am of the savage, or the castle of the feudal chief, but
would rather soar with hope to that period when "right alone
shall make might"; when the truncheon and the sword shall lie
useless; when the intellect and heart shall speak and be obeyed;
when "He alone whose right it is shall rule and reign in the
hearts of the children of men."

We are told that it is not within "the province of woman" to
discuss the subject of slavery; that it is a "political
question," and that we are "stepping out of our sphere" when we
take part in its discussion. It is not true that it is merely a
political question; it is likewise a question of justice, of
humanity, of morality, of religion; a question which, while it
involves considerations of immense importance to the welfare, and
prosperity of our country, enters deeply into the home--concerns
the every-day feelings of millions of our fellow beings. Whether
the laborer shall receive the reward of his labor, or be driven
daily to unrequited toil: whether he shall walk erect in the
dignity of conscious manhood, or be reckoned among the beasts
which perish; whether his bones and sinews shall be his own, or
another's; whether his child shall receive the protection of its
natural guardian, or be ranked among the live-stock of the
estate, to be disposed of as the caprice or interest of the
master may dictate; whether the sun of knowledge shall irradiate
the hut of the peasant, or the murky cloud of ignorance brood
darkly over it; whether "every one shall have the liberty to
worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience," or
man assume the prerogative of Jehovah and impiously seek to plant
himself upon the throne of the Almighty. These considerations are
all involved in the question of liberty or slavery.

And is a subject comprehending interests of such magnitude,
merely a "political question," and one in which woman "can take
no part without losing something of the modesty and gentleness
which are her most appropriate ornaments"? May not the "ornament
of a meek and quiet spirit" exist with an upright mind and
enlightened intellect? Must woman necessarily be less gentle
because her heart is open to the claims of humanity, or less
modest because she feels for the degradation of her enslaved
siste