What Is "women's Work?"

Brct Harte, writing recently from Kurope, expresses his satisfaction, after seenir the wotnen to work in the fields umi elsewhere, perforrning the most laborious duties, tliai this is not the practico in bis own country. He thanka hoaven tbat he livcs ia a land where there are men enough to perform labora of euuh a character. This is a natural expreseion, and a very comuion one auiongst American travolers in Europe. The drudgory commonly laid upon woinen there, of wliich field work is almost the lightest, offends our ideas. To see women pulling to niarket carts loadcd with farm produoo, oi' towing boats on the Holland canals ; to sec thetrj in Vienna and other (jurnian cities, carrying brick and mortar to the bricklayers on the wulls of new buildings is not agreeable to people M'lin luim tmnlmjl irt-i J í.i.,, nine nature and pbysique aa too delicate for any but the lighter occupations in and about the home of the faniily. In this country, however, it is not unusualfor women to work in fields, during the harvest season. It has, in faot, uw&ys been the custom to a greater or less degree, in many sections. Atuong the Germans of Pennsylvania the women have alwaya helped to secure the hay and grain crops, and the practico, if it has ilivlined, has nor by any mcans disappeared. In the we.-t and northwest, eapeeially among the (ierman and Seandinavian settlers, tfifl custom of field work for the women is universal. A Chicago newspaper, corumenting on Mr. Harte'a rtiiuarks,says that if he would make the circuit of that city, within u radius of 20 miles, " he WJuld see in seed time and harvet, in storm und shine, in hot and cold wealhrr, liuld after field dotted with women doing the work of men. He would see tliem ploning, hociog, wced-cutting, sweepins the scythe tlirougb the grass, raking hay, pithing off loada of fertilizing materiaU, and with a stu!) bom purpose doing ajore and bettei work I ban the men who cinpioy them. " This 8eems a vcry stongly drawn picture, how ever, and if it bc a true one of the vieinity of Chicago, it is certainly not a true one of tbis seotion of the country. Butafter all it isaquestion what women' s proper work is. The tendeuoy auiongKt older " agricultural " familie?, along the Atlantic coast, in the nortli, has bevn for wonien to more aml luore witlidraw Frotn from labor. So far ascooking is concerncd their duties have not been ligUton d, l'u people eat as mueh as they ever did - if not more - and rhoe tirrsniuc, ever recurring duties of the bousohold, which must be done three times a day, every day, aml whieh never wiil stay done - thes; are a wearing and tryingas over. Man; a wom au will unitc - probahly there is none who will not cordially agree with - the old couplet that - '' Mt'n's wurk Is h tin sun to Hiin, }ïut woinuu's work is liever doDO.'' What will bear suggestiug, however, is tbis; whethor the women of the larui, ihose women whese hu.-bands are obliged to look to agriculture for thoir own living and the support of their families, have gained anything by the ontiro absadoo ment of open air cmployments. Leaving out tlie economie phise of the quejtin, hoy have not guinod certainly, in health. The " Dutch " girls in those sectiona where they may be found in the harvet fields raking and pitching - in old times mowini; ui'l cradling - have alwuys been fauious br their robust figures, and abundant vitality. Utlier women in our more retined civilization, when sneial duties, and the claims ui art and literature, to suy nothing of dress, aborb uil their ulegant leÍHUre, tiuw It'ft witli the apparently hard work tf the freld the health and strtflfUi that enabled them to perform it. Wc are not 'in to recomniend them to go back to Iruiliiory, at all, luit win n we liour, mmand then.of a farmer' dauirhter who drives Ui' hiirsL-raktí in the field-, or Irads 1 1 1 1 ¦ loráe to the hay tork, or helpa in some other way the wmk ivf harvent and hayingtimo, the sUKfcestlon arises whuther it is not in several ways a good invoslmetit of ét linie and BtreDgth.