Feminine Freedom

During the past few years woman's sphere of action and usefulness has been very rapidly widening in every department of life except that in which she should be supreme, viz., the selec­tion and preparation of food.

Women do not accomplish more because they do not undertake more. They do not adopt food reform; first, because they are held responsible for the table, hence feel that they must conform to old customs to please others; and, second, because women have not yet learned to break conventional chains and think for themselves.

There is no system of servitude that could be more complete than the housewife cooking three "square meals" every day and cleaning her kitchen pots and dishes. The breakfast work laps into the noon, and the noon labor into the evening, and the evening far into the night.

A system of food reform might be installed in every home, that would reduce the labor and care of the culi­nary department very greatly, if the housewife would use a little diplomacy.

First, every woman should remember the fact that a fraction over 90 per cent of all human ills originate at the dinner table, or in other words, are caused by errors in eating. Every housewife, and especially the mother, is largely responsible, therefore, for the health of the family and her only method of security lies in a knowledge of the few simple fundamental laws of Applied Food Chemistry.

Every wife owes to herself and to her children the opportunity to cultivate the mental, physical and emo­tional faculties to their highest degree of development.

It is pathetic to see the young wife, anxious to per­form her duty and give pleasure to others, drop into the treadmill of kitchen slavery and get as a reward for her labor disordered digestion, an irritable, nervous husband and unhealthy children.

Some study given to food reform, to the actual re­quirements of the body according to age, work, climate, etc., would change all these conditions toward better living, higher thinking and more happiness.

The cost of living would be reduced, labor in pre­paring food would be a pleasure, enjoyment of eating multiplied a hundred-fold, digestion would be perfect, good health and good cheer would reign, and above and better than all, the wife and mother would have time to improve her mind, to think, study, and read, to go into the open road, the fields and woods—to draw some in­spiration from the tranquil grandeur of nature—to endow her posterity with the highest, the noblest and the best.

The character of freedom that I advocate for women is not license or masculinity, but the preservation and cultivation of all that is ennobling, elevating and wom­anly; but I insist that women should have something to say about what is womanly and what is elevating. From dimpled infancy to manhood, she carries the burden of posterity, she loves, labors and caresses nations into strength and power; with this responsibility and interest at stake, she could be depended upon to judge fairly well that character of freedom which would be best for her, which would mean best for her coun­try and best for all mankind.

Just to the extent that woman is governed and con­trolled, so will her posterity be governed and controlled, by beings mentally stronger. Just to the extent that she is enslaved, her posterity can be enslaved. Just to the extent that she is healthy, strong and vigorous, her children will be healthy, strong and vigorous. Just to the extent that her life is made joyous, that she culti­vates the beautiful, that she is loved and loves in re­turn, so will her children be endowed with these things. Just to the extent that she is inspired with a love of country, patriotism, pure government—just to the ex­tent that she participates in making good government, in the selection of its officers and the fulfillment of office, in the shaping and making of conditions under which she and her children must live, just to that extent will her children be patriotic and stand for justice and the right, from the fireside to the nation's capital.

On the other hand, just to the extent that she is silenced, governed and controlled by laws in which she has no voice, just to the extent that she is disfran­chised and refused citizenship, to that extent will she bring forth a race that will drag the flag of their coun­try into the mire of money and politics.

Women should have the ballot because instinctive protection for her offspring would lead the nation towards political purity.

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