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Letter to Editor
April 27, 1861
New Hampshire Journal Of Agriculture
Manchester, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire
What is this article about?
A farmer's wife replies to M.H.S., agreeing husbands often ignore wives' home improvement plans but defends building a new barn due to harsh milking conditions in inadequate facilities. She advocates for equal rights, promising to plan house and garden if barn is improved. Signed A.B., Manchester, April 13.
Clipping
OCR Quality
98%
Excellent
Full Text
Correspondence of the Journal of Agriculture
MR. EDITOR: Will you allow me space to reply to some of the suggestions by M. H. S. in Journal 19? While I agree with her that the wife's plans for improvement in the house and garden are too often turned aside by a deafened ear of the husband, yet I would not say a word against "the new barn" or the improvement in the barn; nor would she (in my opinion) if she was obliged to milk three cows every night and morn (whether she be sick or well,) in a small barn only 24 feet each way, where six head of cattle are kept standing on manure six feet deep, for want of a floor, and a barn cellar. A neat, convenient barn does much towards keeping a clean house; but how can a woman be expected to keep her kitchen floor clean, while the barn floor is entirely covered with slough from the manure pile. I say build a new barn with all the improvements necessary, and a big one too, and I will plan for the house and flower garden.
Yours for equal rights,
A. B.
Manchester, April 13.
MR. EDITOR: Will you allow me space to reply to some of the suggestions by M. H. S. in Journal 19? While I agree with her that the wife's plans for improvement in the house and garden are too often turned aside by a deafened ear of the husband, yet I would not say a word against "the new barn" or the improvement in the barn; nor would she (in my opinion) if she was obliged to milk three cows every night and morn (whether she be sick or well,) in a small barn only 24 feet each way, where six head of cattle are kept standing on manure six feet deep, for want of a floor, and a barn cellar. A neat, convenient barn does much towards keeping a clean house; but how can a woman be expected to keep her kitchen floor clean, while the barn floor is entirely covered with slough from the manure pile. I say build a new barn with all the improvements necessary, and a big one too, and I will plan for the house and flower garden.
Yours for equal rights,
A. B.
Manchester, April 13.
What sub-type of article is it?
Persuasive
Social Critique
Emotional
What themes does it cover?
Agriculture
Feminism
Social Issues
What keywords are associated?
Barn Improvement
Women Farmers
Equal Rights
Household Labor
Agricultural Conditions
Gender Roles
What entities or persons were involved?
A. B.
Mr. Editor
Letter to Editor Details
Author
A. B.
Recipient
Mr. Editor
Main Argument
while agreeing that husbands often dismiss wives' plans for home and garden improvements, the writer defends building a new, improved barn as essential for women's farming labor, promising to focus on the house and garden afterward, in the name of equal rights.
Notable Details
Reply To M. H. S. In Journal 19
Milking Three Cows In A 24 Foot Barn With Six Feet Of Manure
Barn Improvements Lead To Cleaner House