Down close, we'll give you a warm time, And, since you're down, we'll use you for a seat, As housewives use the down of geese for cushions You now become subscribers to our rules, Imposed by stern propriety—father true Ofjudgment and grandfather too Of first and primal Nature high ; So then Propriety may veto laws By Judgment made, or made with Nature's seal, And make such laws as piques a heart of flesh, Which Nature made, but pleases souls of learning As physic sickens sickness for a cure. We all agree as to a natural life That it would be our ruin and despair. To upbraid our hearts and tendencies, we hold To be a right regard for:our high selves. We you conjure with us tomcat that fount Which gives a birth to sentimental streams, And ripples forth with tender ecstacies That weaker souls calilove—an idle name, Or bursts anon with plunging riot forth, And surges wild in some unlawful freak, Set such a seal on your compressed lips As never breaks an accent or a word In converse with a maid,—this is our rule. Our rule comes home unto our abstract crawl, And rigidly forbids a spoken word, Our word by looks or touch or thought conveyed, To cross the territory which conjoins The soul of maid and soul of lad forsooth, So that this territory may escape Possession by some such as you, whereas Wo are the rightful owners, since it falls Within the reign and general government Of sovereign Faculty Propriety. So, by your not of being hero convened, You do conjointly pledge yourselves with u 4, That you do shame such deeds as break this rule. You do anticipate the base outlaw Which ever could hold sway upon yourself And make you break the law, and so do swear Yourselfa spotted leper, inn aught You disregard this sacred ordinance, And blot your record in our Censure Book. In all the things of doubtful quality, Which humors of a'healthy soul do fetch, Which caper forth in youthsomo frisk beehance, Wo hold a sovereign right to,' tulge in fine ; And hereunto you set your hand and seal : That if your conduct cater not to this Or that, or strike a discord to our heart, You're placed in jeopardy for treaty broach,•— The treaty had by the 'agreement" signed. And also, you do swear to embrace a rule Which drags you by the nose at every bell To each and every exercise in full, As keepers drag a subdued bull to stall When they have pierced his nose with iron ring, And unto this you swear ; that burning shame THE FREE LANCE. Ilath cauterized your life and your career If you should over disobey the rule, As rod hot irons cauterize the flesh, And show a festered aspect to the eye. To be with us is yet another oath— For being here doth firmly swear you in— Which oath (loth bind you're int'rost to our prayers, That we do utter in our chapel voice And wish to be observed with punctual ear. 'Tie here we give a digest of the truth, And speak it in a stated speech to you— Or in a stated prayer which is a speech. 'Tie in these digests we digest the truth, And feed It to your spiritual appetite, As the great paunch within a ruminant Digests in part the hoterogenous mass, And belches owls for the small stomach's sake. To all these ends we mutually aid ourselves By giving countenance to our mutual deeds, And hindering any wayward broaches ( And so perhaps the comfort of our breeches Or comfort of our individual State) ; By visiting speedy punishments on all By making "censure marks" against the name. So shall we urge our great and high purpose, And swell our intellects and souls with size That they will rise to most ethereal bights,— As swelled balloons from their groat size rise high (Though once they're pricked they fall with swift descent ) Nor will we "run against a snag" and fall, As pricked balloons we all eonfess.will fall. WOMAN ASKS BUT MERITED RECOG NITION-NOTHING MORE. In these days of agitated debate on the question of women, we are apt to fall into the error of over estimating her work and exalting her too highly for what she does. He who would have the right appreciation of woman and her ability, must not look upon her as inferior to than. , We do . not claim for her equal ability with man along all lines of work ; there are some paths she has not trodden ; of her ability or inability to tread these untrod den paths we can only surmise. As to the depart ments of work in which she has labored, there have been manifestations of ability and proficiency equal to that of man. If vigor of intellect is the true measurement of human ability, she has already demonstrated in public life, as well as in the col lege class room, her posseSsion of mental strength
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers