Page:Women of distinction.djvu/17



The position accorded the women of a nation is a gauge of that nation's civilization. In one age or clime man's slave and beast of burden, in another his pet and plaything, the hidden adornment of a harem or the inspiration of a chivalry more or less Quixotic, it remained for our own time and country to approach most nearly a recognition of her true place and station.

"God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them."

There need be no trite discussion of the relative superiority or inferiority of the sexes. The claim of equality need not be mistaken for an assertion of perfect likeness.

The true woman takes her place by the side of man as his companion, his co-worker, his helpmeet, his equal, but she never forgets that she is a woman and not a man. Whether in the home as wife and mother, or struggling in the ranks of business or professional life, she retains her womanly dignity and sweetness, which is at once her strength and her shield.