DOI issue:
September 22, 1866
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.16878#0136
128
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI. [September 22, 1866.
MISS LAVINIA BROUNJONES.—No. 6.
Lavinia arrives at a Waterfall, and asks its Name. The Shepherd (not understanding English) Informs her in Gaelic
THAT IT IS CALLED (AS LAVINIA SUPPOSES) “ VlCHAROOBASHALLOCHOGGILNABO. ” LAVINIA THINKS IT A VERY PRETTY NAME.
FEMININE SUPREMACY.
Dear Mr. Punch,
Being a lady, I of course but very seldom read the news-
papers. Politics and such stuff are all very well for men, but there is little
in a paper that is interesting to women, except perhaps the murders and
t \\q fashions, and the breach of promise cases. The other day, however,
I chanced to see a letter in the Pall Mall Gazette, written by a lady
upon quite a lady’s subject, namely that of the employment of a
charitable sisterhood for “such works as hospital nursing, teaching in
schools, and visiting the poor.”
Having a husband to manage, as well as five small children, I have,
vou may imagine, as much work as I can do, and have scarce a moment's
leisure for visiting rich people even, and naturally none at all for
visiting the poor. But I thoroughly agree with the writer of the
letter that very much good may be done by a charitable sisterhood ; and
though, being a true Britoness, I think that nothing, except bonnets,
should be copied from the Continent, I quite admit with her that
foreigners might give us a few vastly useful hints upon this interesting
work. But I do not at all agree with her in stating as an axiom that—
“Every woman wishes for a beaten and familiar path to walk in. Whether
rightly or wrongly, the most highly educated women are generally the most ready
to feel and urge the impropriety of any unnecessary singularity, or anything like a
disregard of public opinion, or even of custom, in their own sex."
“ Unnecessary singularity ” I abominate most heartily, as I have
often told my husband when scolding him because he meanly will persist
in keeping for my use a merely one-horse vehicle, while nearly all my
friends are accustomed to a pair. But I deny that “ every woman
wishes for a beaten path to walk in,” for I am very sure that most of
us now much prefer to ride. Nor do I admit that women always feel
inclined to comply with public custom. For instance, it is customary
for a wife to make a promise that she will obey her husband, but I see
no “ impropriety ” in her not keeping her word. And this leads me
to another foolish statement in the letter, which I utterly dispute—
“ Every woman likes to be ruled, and prefers that her ruler should not be of her
own sex ”
“ Likes to be ruled ” indeed ! What stuff and nonsense, to be sure !
I have no patience with the woman—if it really be a woman, which
I’m half inclined to doubt. It’s just the style of language that men
very often use, when, cowards that they are, they try'to make a woman
fancy she was bom—poor thing !—with brains inferior to their own.
Before I married him, my husband sometimes talked in this way about
the “ weaker ” sex. But I soon showed him that some women were
quite as strong as men, and indeed a little stronger, both in mind and
body too. The precious “ lords of the creation,” as they delight to
call themselves, often find out that they have to give in to the ladies.
“ Like to be ruled,” do we ? Well, if this really be the rule, there are
plenty of exceptions to it, and among them you may reckon,
Sir, your very humble Servant,
Griffin a Greymare, nee Prancer.
P.S. Pray does Mrs. Judy like being ruled by you? * * If so, poor
thing, I pity her !
* Yes, Madam, she does : for she is a true woman. And can do without your
pity, thank you.—Printer's Angel.
A LUCID EXPLANATION.
Said Angelina to her Edwin, as they looked through an old glee-
book, “ Edwin, dearest, pray what is the meaning of the line—
“ Unnumbered surges grace the foaming coast’’?
Serge, you know, is woollen stuff, like my bathing dress, you know
But one don’t spell it with a “ u,” you know.”
Said Edwin, “ ’M sure I don’t know. P’raps it’s a misprint.
Fellow very likely wrote it down at Ramsgate. Tried to count the
bathers there, and found he couldn’t do it.”
Incurable.—There’s a man in Middlesex with such a bad memoir
that he constantly forgets himself.
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI. [September 22, 1866.
MISS LAVINIA BROUNJONES.—No. 6.
Lavinia arrives at a Waterfall, and asks its Name. The Shepherd (not understanding English) Informs her in Gaelic
THAT IT IS CALLED (AS LAVINIA SUPPOSES) “ VlCHAROOBASHALLOCHOGGILNABO. ” LAVINIA THINKS IT A VERY PRETTY NAME.
FEMININE SUPREMACY.
Dear Mr. Punch,
Being a lady, I of course but very seldom read the news-
papers. Politics and such stuff are all very well for men, but there is little
in a paper that is interesting to women, except perhaps the murders and
t \\q fashions, and the breach of promise cases. The other day, however,
I chanced to see a letter in the Pall Mall Gazette, written by a lady
upon quite a lady’s subject, namely that of the employment of a
charitable sisterhood for “such works as hospital nursing, teaching in
schools, and visiting the poor.”
Having a husband to manage, as well as five small children, I have,
vou may imagine, as much work as I can do, and have scarce a moment's
leisure for visiting rich people even, and naturally none at all for
visiting the poor. But I thoroughly agree with the writer of the
letter that very much good may be done by a charitable sisterhood ; and
though, being a true Britoness, I think that nothing, except bonnets,
should be copied from the Continent, I quite admit with her that
foreigners might give us a few vastly useful hints upon this interesting
work. But I do not at all agree with her in stating as an axiom that—
“Every woman wishes for a beaten and familiar path to walk in. Whether
rightly or wrongly, the most highly educated women are generally the most ready
to feel and urge the impropriety of any unnecessary singularity, or anything like a
disregard of public opinion, or even of custom, in their own sex."
“ Unnecessary singularity ” I abominate most heartily, as I have
often told my husband when scolding him because he meanly will persist
in keeping for my use a merely one-horse vehicle, while nearly all my
friends are accustomed to a pair. But I deny that “ every woman
wishes for a beaten path to walk in,” for I am very sure that most of
us now much prefer to ride. Nor do I admit that women always feel
inclined to comply with public custom. For instance, it is customary
for a wife to make a promise that she will obey her husband, but I see
no “ impropriety ” in her not keeping her word. And this leads me
to another foolish statement in the letter, which I utterly dispute—
“ Every woman likes to be ruled, and prefers that her ruler should not be of her
own sex ”
“ Likes to be ruled ” indeed ! What stuff and nonsense, to be sure !
I have no patience with the woman—if it really be a woman, which
I’m half inclined to doubt. It’s just the style of language that men
very often use, when, cowards that they are, they try'to make a woman
fancy she was bom—poor thing !—with brains inferior to their own.
Before I married him, my husband sometimes talked in this way about
the “ weaker ” sex. But I soon showed him that some women were
quite as strong as men, and indeed a little stronger, both in mind and
body too. The precious “ lords of the creation,” as they delight to
call themselves, often find out that they have to give in to the ladies.
“ Like to be ruled,” do we ? Well, if this really be the rule, there are
plenty of exceptions to it, and among them you may reckon,
Sir, your very humble Servant,
Griffin a Greymare, nee Prancer.
P.S. Pray does Mrs. Judy like being ruled by you? * * If so, poor
thing, I pity her !
* Yes, Madam, she does : for she is a true woman. And can do without your
pity, thank you.—Printer's Angel.
A LUCID EXPLANATION.
Said Angelina to her Edwin, as they looked through an old glee-
book, “ Edwin, dearest, pray what is the meaning of the line—
“ Unnumbered surges grace the foaming coast’’?
Serge, you know, is woollen stuff, like my bathing dress, you know
But one don’t spell it with a “ u,” you know.”
Said Edwin, “ ’M sure I don’t know. P’raps it’s a misprint.
Fellow very likely wrote it down at Ramsgate. Tried to count the
bathers there, and found he couldn’t do it.”
Incurable.—There’s a man in Middlesex with such a bad memoir
that he constantly forgets himself.