Grace Darling | Page 5

themselves. They are afraid to be singular. But this fear
is no honour to the sex. A woman should be so far free and independent
as to do that which she feels to be right, no matter though the right
seem to call her to heights which she had not occupied before. And if,
in her ordinary avocations, she be allowed liberty of thought and action,
there is the greater probability that, when the occasion comes which
demands from her strength of nerve and firm endurance, she will not be
found wanting. It does not matter very much whether or not other
people are satisfied with a woman's deeds, though she cannot help
wishing to please those whom she loves. But what does matter is, that
she should gain the high praise of Him who sees not as man sees, and
who will say even to those who imagine themselves to be in some
sense failures, "She hath done what she could."
To study the life of any good woman, is to know that she is not
necessarily unable to do many things well. It used to be thought that it
was a pity to educate a woman; for, if she understood two or three
languages, it was not likely that she would also know how to darn
stockings. And nothing can make men willing to pardon a woman's
domestic deficiencies. Have not poets sung of them as nurses, wives,
mothers, and cooks! But no poet cares to write of them as physicians,
reasoners, lecturers, or preachers. Lyttelton has written--
"Seek to be good, but aim not to be great: A woman's noblest station is
retreat; Her fairest virtues fly from public sight, Domestic worth, that
shuns too strong a light."
Montgomery has said--
"Here woman reigns: the mother, daughter, wife, Strew with fresh
flowers the narrow way of life. To the clear heaven of her delightful
eye An angel-guard of loves and graces lie; Around her knees domestic
duties meet, And fireside pleasures gambol at her feet. Where shall this
land, this spot on earth be found? Art thou a man?--a patriot! Look
around; Oh, thou shall find, howe'er thy footsteps roam, This land thy
country, and this spot thy home."

Shakespeare, too, has described her mission--
"I am ashamed that women are so simple, To offer war where they
should kneel for peace, Or seek for rule, supremacy, and sway, When
they are bound to serve, love, and obey; Why are our bodies soft, and
weak, and smooth, Unapt to toil and trouble in the world; But that our
soft conditions, and our hearts, Should well agree with our external
parts?"
It should be borne in mind, however, that a really clever and sensible
woman is able to do many things excellently. Was Mrs. Fry less a good
wife and able mother, because she visited prisons, and saved many of
her sex from desolation and death? She had eight children, and no one
doubts that each one had every care that a devoted mother could bestow
upon him. Was Grace Darling less loving and obedient as a daughter,
because she was so bold as not to be afraid to face death? Certainly not.
And the women of to-day will not fill their humble positions less
satisfactorily if they thankfully take every opportunity of training
themselves, both physically and mentally, for whatever good work may
come in their way. Does not the name of Grace Darling suggest to
many parents, a contrast between her life and that of their own
daughters? And would not many a man be glad to know that the
woman who is to sit by his side, and help or hinder him through life,
had similar qualifications for her position? In a word, can Grace
Darling's be trained? Is there any way of making "the girl of the period"
into a vigorously healthy, sensible, devoted, self-forgetful woman? Is it
impossible, out of the material which is to be found in any of our
schools and seminaries, to form characters of sterling worth and
practical usefulness?
The study of the life of the heroine of the Farne Isles will provide the
answer to this question. It will be seen, at all events, that such women
are not the produce of ballrooms, where the air is poisoned by gases,
and where women spend nights in scenes of excitement and gaiety.
Contrasts cannot be more striking than this between late hours,
crowded rooms, paints, scents, and flirtation, and the free fresh air,
better than all the champagne in the world, which circulated over and

through the Farne Isles. If the girls of the future are to be free from
sickly sentimentalism--if they are to have warm and tender hearts, that
are ever ready to respond to that which is noble,