217
kind, in which he is skilled, in order that he may be able to provide for himself and family.
What is expected of woman?
I have heard mothers say, "Let my daughter enjoy herself while she is single: there is time enough for her to learn cooking and house-keeping after she is married." Now, suppose a young man should go to a college to ask for his diploma, telling the professors that he would take out his degrees; but the profession he would learn afterwards. Suppose that a young man, while offering his hand to the daughter of the above mother, should say, "Madam, I have enjoyed myself so far; now that I take to myself a wife, I will learn a profession: there is plenty of time after marriage to learn." What would the dame say? Very likely she would stand aghast at the impudence of the fellow; and politeness would not prevent her from telling him that he was not fit to have the care of her child. And yet, when he says, "I am a mechanic, a merchant, a lawyer, or a doctor of medicine," what does she say of her daughter? — probably this: "She is a good girl; she is the idol of our family; she has never worked; she has never known a trouble: see that you make her happy." O good mother! is that your idea of equity? The way you ought to be able to answer is this: "My daughter, too, has a profession; she can keep house; she can sew; she can cook; she knows the market price of comestibles, knows the proportions of groceries to be meted out for a certain number of individuals in a family; can keep a book of expenses; understands the laws of economy, the management of servants, the government of her house. I assure you that the earnings from your toil will be safe in her hands. While you make, she will economize; and, instead of being an expense to you, she will be an assistance. Even if she should not need to
