“But who thinks anything of these old female wimmen’s labors and sufferin’s? Nobody. “Who thinks of their martyrdom, their efforts in the good cause, and the help they gin the old male prophets? Nobody, not one. “I spoze the account of these things bein’ writ down by males and translated by ’em makes a difference; it’s sort o’ naterel to stand up for your own sect. “But folks ort to own up, male or female; and them old females ort to have justice done ’em. “And though it is pretty late in the day—thousands of years have flown by, and the dust of the desert lays deep over their modest, unassumin’ graves, where they have lain unnoticed and overlooked by everybody— “But here is one in Jonesville that is goin’ to brush away the thick dust that has drifted down over their memory, and tell my opinion of ’em. “It is too late now to tell them old Miss Prophets what I think of ’em, thousands of years too late to chirk ’em up, and lighten their achin’ hearts, and brighten their sad eyes by lettin’ ’em know the deep sympathy and affection I feel for ’em. “I can’t make ’em hear my words, the dust lays too thick over their ears. “But yet I am a goin’ to say them words jest out of a love for justice. “Justice has stood for ages with the bandage on tight over her eyes on one side, on the side of wimmen, and her scales held out, blind as a bat to what them old females done and suffered. “But she has got a little corner lifted now on the side of wimmen; Justice is a beginnin’ to peek out and notice that ‘male and female created He them.’ “Bein’ so blind, and believin’ jest what wuz told her, Justice had got it into her head that it read: “‘Male created He them.’ “Justice never so much as hearn the name of wimmen mentioned, so we spoze. “But she is a liftin’ up her bandage and lookin’ out; and it stands to reason she can weigh as well agin when she can see how the notches stand. “Jest even, so I figger it out, jest even, men and wimmen, one weighin’ jest as much as the other. “If there are some ingregiencies in one of ’em that are a little better, that weigh a few ounces more, lo and behold! in the other one’s nater and soul are a few ounces of different goodness that even it up, that weigh enough more to make it even. “If Justice takes my advice—and I spoze mebby she will, knowin’ I am a female that always wished her well, even in her blind days—if Justice takes my advice she won’t put on her bandages agin, she will look out calm and keen and try to weigh things right by the notch, try to hold her steelyards stiddy. “And no matter what is put into ’em—men, wimmen, colored folks or white ones—get the right weight to ’em, the hull caboodle of ’em, black or white, rich or poor, bond or free. “She will get along as well agin, and take more comfort herself. “It must have been a tejus job for her to be a standin’ up there a weighin’ things as blind as a bat.”