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Show W 0 MA N OS for-supposin- g, though undoubtedly of a hasty and passionate adtempter. Socrates 'himself,- is said to have mitted that she always influenced him for the good. It should be remembered too, in mitigation, that many things in the life of Socrates must have been sore trials to his wife fur instance, his devotion to the fairAspasia. Still, however this may be, the hand is a bold one which attempts to,in the face of the popular verdict of centuries, invest her with a character totally foreign to that which ha been assigned her. This Miss Levy does, and, in some very beautiful, thoughtful and powerful linc, proceeds to invest "Xantippe'' with an interest until now quite unthought of. At seventeen, Xqntippe, a fair Athenian girl, stands "at life's great threshold with a beating heart and soul, resolved to conquer and attain." She sees Socrates in the public places of the city, and her fir.d instinctive feeling is one of repugnance at; his uncouth and almost deformed appearance; and when told by her father that she is to wed him - . Eliza-compose- t! , the wonderful hymn, which d. has been sung hy thousands and thousands ever since, and 'in every land to which the Gospel has been carried, in which she so beautifully She foolish wept, to see Tho maidtMi image of a of our Father and ISJother mission here on earth and .our Ihe, home, portrays . purity, and has awakened thoughts in the minds that never nave stirred. Who ever 1ftou$iTof ITreal mothl iMta-spi- rit is strong world? and yet the mother-lov- e in the soul of man; but these beautiful lines of hers have been like a sweet and grateful incense to the hearts of many who longed for some satisfactory expression of this deep emotion "which they could not define, but which they find in these touching words: neen &'mlu- xwnerwisjc - "In the heavens arc parents single? No; the thought makes reason btare! Truth is reason truth eternal Tells me I've a mother there. "When I leave this frail existence When I la- - this mortal hy, Father, Mother, may I meet you In your royal courts on high? ' The whole hymn is full of tenderness, and yet there is a strength of language in it which carries conviction with the words. The gift of prophecy, through the inspiration of poetry, is noticeable in the writings of tin eminent woman, and indeed she seems to inherit from her illustrious race this characteristic of her Hebrew, origin. To be Continued, p 7 J "XANTIPPE A FRAGMENT. T.Y AMY LEVY. "v. In the MaT number of the University Mag-ozin- e appeared a short poem, entitled "Xan-tippa Fragment," which, besides being of considerable interest to classical scholars, nobly expresses the indignation of true womanhood at the unjust subjection in which women have been kept. The novelty of the conception of Xantippe's character, and the earnest and thoughtful beauty of the lines, tempt the writer of this brief notice to direct attention to it. The name of Xantippe, the celebrated wife ofthe grcH philosopher Socraesri&,more or e; - at eat neo down future love, Where perfect body matched th p?rfc.t soul. in heaven,-ourwelcome homo to the paternal mansion in the celestial kingdom. The "Invocation" breathes the very soul of uth&oKfe EX P 0 XENT. S less familiar to every one. Her fame has not been, hitherto, altogether an enviable one. ; She stands forth as the prototype of a 'Scold, J) and is verv far from being a romantic and poetic figure in history. That this popular view of Socrates' wife is" not altogether a just one, and. indeed there is some ground every reason to believe that she was.a very true and attached wife and an excellentmother, during hat period she wrote the most sublime and lofty poetry, and mi inspiration from on to? be resting upon her almost High seemed The Church itself was. passing constantly. through wonderful stages in advancement. The revelations of God seemed to pour down upon the Prophet Joseph, insomuch that a new era, as it were, was begun, and light and intelligence which had long heen hid was made known to the faithful, who had proven their integrity to the cause they had so earnestly espoused, and so manfully maintained in the face of every difficulty and unjust and unwarrantable oppression. Woman participated in the glorious blessings that were imparted with the ushering in of this phase of the new dispensation; and woman partook of the divine sacrament, which was offered only to those who had complied with the requirements of heaven and made a sacrifice through obedience. At this period a new era dawned upon woman; marriage and motherhood were indeed supremely glorified, and the Spirit of God enlightened the minds of those who humbled themselves and sought a testimony of the divinity of those eternal principles, which seemed too sublimely lofty for human comprehension. Perhaps it was about this time that Sister ' 9 " But at length the mighty soul of the great philosopher sweeps before it this repugnance, and the young maiden loses all thought of the uncouth frame, in noting the magic fhudi of geidus lufti e)aiid; Ibtenmg jAJt.W Howl of hi 4W4L akm Rfittd?, II e re tlie nob 16 r thoughts of the maiden find their scoucTlief soul kindles with the thought of the holy communion of her mind and his, and with dreams of life, in which, strengthened and upheld by his majestic intel!ect,she may fathom the depths of the unknown, and in true unison, pass "through life to a glorious eternity, not the mere plaything, not the household drudge, the passive bearer of his children, but as true wife, true helpmeet, and kindred soul. Her early and dawning dream is realized, and' in a noble enthusiasm she becomes the wife of Socrates. Wed to him, the cruel truth is borne in upon her; the hopelessness of her dreams, is revealed to her. The philosopher does not wish for a companion does not seek for such in woman. He treats her kindly, and gives her raiment and food; her mind does not exist for him. Yet she does not wish to blame him, for he men ut No evil, so I take it, to his wife; Twas only that the. high philosopher Pregnan'. with noble theories and great thoughts, to trust to slight a thing: Deigned not to As tho fine fabric of a woman's brain I think if h1 hid stooped a little and eared, I might hue ris:n nearer to his hight, And not loen shattered, neither fit for us: A g odly ho'ichold vessel, nor for that Farfiner thing whkh I had hop?d to be. .... Xantippe for a short time struggles with her fate, and to Ii unresponsive lord urges her thirst for real love. At length her spirit is broken, and she determines to bend to fate, and leaving all aspirations tmfulflljfid, to strive to boom:- the thrifty housewife; the noble burst of anry. and eloquent despair, in which !ie takes this resolve, is exceedinglv powerful. . . "Can it be t her-hig- h - That we poor worn, n are empirical; That gKt who fa hioiicd ns did ttrvie to make. IWngfc too tine, too tibtly ddi- ate, With sense that thrilled respontie to every touch Of nature; and their taek 1b not complete; - That they have sent their half completed work To bleed and quiver here upon the earthv To hloL-- and quiver and to we.op and weep, To beat its soul against the marble walls Of men's cold hoarts and then at last to die? d It. L, K. -- English Woman's Review. THE EDITOR, The work of an editor can only be appreci. ated by those who have had the fortune to have had some little experience of it. The editor of a London daily newspaper is held answerable and sometimes for every word in forty-eighsixty columns. The merest slip of the pen, an epithet too much, a wrong, date, a name misspelt or with a wrong initial before it, a mistake as to some obscure personage only too glad to seize the opportunity of showing himself, the misinterpretation of some passage perhans t, offence to the personal or national susceptibility of those who do not even protess to care tor the feelings of others, may prove not only disagree-able,bevcn,costly mistakes to which an editor is liable. As it is imposible to say what a night may bring lortn, ana ine mo&i nupuumiL is apt to be the latest, it will ofteu find bun with none to share his responsibility, without advisers, and with colleagues either on other matters or no longer at hand. The editor must be on the spot till the paper is sent to press, and make decisions on which not only the approval of the British Public, but great events, and even great causes, may bang.-Al-l the most serious part of h'n duties has to be discharged at the end of a long day's work, a day of interruptions and conversations, of ut uiiei-ligenc- ' e pre-engag- letter reading ami letter writing, when mind aaikbodv ar&jjkot what they were twelve hotua natureaaiidAnwearied editoralitt - pica.. for the night's battle with comparative repose in the solitude of a study or tlie freshness of converse green fields. He must see the world, with its foremost or busiest actors, be open to information, and on guard against error. All this ought to be borne in mind by those who accomplain that journalism is not infallibly Thoir complaints curate, just who found fault lord are like those of the court. with the disagreeable necessities of warfare. London Times. and-agreeabl- NOTES AND NEWS. From Martinique comes the news of an inof teresting antiquarian discovery, in the shape the anchor of the ship in which Columbus sailed on his third voyage to the new world. It is well known that in 1408 his little fleet came to anchor at the south-wes- t extremity of the lslrnd of Trinidad, called Arenas Point, and that durdaning the night the ship encountered great sudden ger from a tidal wave, caused by the itseli swelling of one of the rivera that empties into the Gulf of Paria. The only damage s suffered, however, was the loss of the Admiral Sen-o- r anchor. This has recently been found by Agostino, while excavating in his Point Arenas. The anchor weighs 11 w be ot pounds, and was at first supposed to rePhoenician origin, but careful inspection . vealed the dated 4)7 on the stock. The geol-conditions of the ground in which the conclusions discovery was made bear out the that the'anchor is a relic of Columbus. hx. gaf oo-ica- l mt C- - 1 r C V T. Af. of this Stake are requested to forward Q" I. A. immediately to the Office of QuaTten. read at the Sisters' Conference Sep. -- 5, 1880. MARY A. Fkkeze, Pres. )i AUGUSTA J, CROEHJ30N, Kerts Exi-oMENTta- -- |
