And then there wuz cotton raised and ginned by wimmen of the South, and
nets by the wimmen of New Jersey, and fruit raised by the wimmen of
California--the most beautiful fruit I ever sot my eyes on, and wine
made by her, too.
(I could have wept when I see that, but presoom it wuz for sickness.)
And from Colorado there wuz tracin's of minin' surveys. Wimmen a-findin'
out things hid in the bowels of the earth! O good land! the idee on't!
And engravin's and etchin's done by wimmen way back to 1581.
And in stamped leather, wall decoration, furniture, it wuz a sight to
see the noble doin's of my sect; and a exhibit that done my soul good
wuz from Belva Lockwood, admittin' wimmen to practise in the Supreme
Court. That wuz better than leather work, though that is worthy, and wuz
more elevatin' to my sect than the elevator.
The British exhibit is arranged splendidly to show off wimmen's noble
work in charity, education, manafacture, art, literature, etc., and
amongst their patents is one for a fire-escape, and one to extract gold
from base metals. Both of these are good idees, as there can't anybody
dispute.
Another exhibit there that appeals strong to the feelin' heart wuz Kate
Marsdon's Siberian leper village.
She is a nurse of the Red Cross, and her heart ached with pity for them
wretched lepers, in their dretful lonely huts in the forests of
Siberia.
She went herself to see their awful condition, and tried to help 'em;
she raised money herself for horsepitals and nurses.
[Illustration: Relics of Kate Marsdon.]
Here is a model of the village, with church, horsepital, schoolhouse,
store, and cottages for them that are able to work.
Here is the saddle she wore durin' her long, dretful journey to Siberia,
and the knife she carried, and some of the miserable, hard black bread
she had to eat.
Here are letters to her from Queen Victoria, and the Empress of Russia.
But a Higher Power writ to her, writ on her heart, and went with her
acrost the dark fields of snow and ice.
Wall, after lookin' at everything under the sun, from a Lion's Head, by
Rosa Bonhuer, to a piece of bead-work by a Injun, and every queer and
beautiful Japan thing you ever thought on, or ever didn't think on, and
everything else under the sun, moon, and stars, that wuz ever made by a
woman--and there is no end to 'em--we went up into the ruff garden,
where, amidst flowers, and fountains, and fresh air, happy children wuz
a-playin', with birds and butterflies a-flyin' about 'em over their
heads.
The birds couldn't git out, nor the children either, for up fifteen
feet high a wire screen wuz stretched along, coverin' the hull beautiful
garden. Nothin' could git in or out of it but the sweet air and the
sunshine.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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