Page 188 - Confronting Race Women and Indians on the Frontier, 1815 - 1915

CHAP E T R F I VE

pappooses with them, and their squalling reminds me of my own
parental home and village." 3 6
Like men, women avoided going into detail about pregnancies or
births, but fo r different reasons than men. Because oNictorian reticence
regarding personal matters, women seldom spoke of anything related to
sex. They did, however, express concern about protecting and caring fo r
children in a f r ontier setting. W o men worried about children's health
and safety , especially preventing rattlesnake bites or the jolting of a child
off a wagon seat. Men also took precautions to protect their children,
and went to great lengths to retrieve them when lost. Being male, how­
ever, men acted "masculine" and said little about their reactions.
Even though men's and women's writings differ in the above areas,
they converge in general observations and social life. Both genders com­
mented on scenery, weather, meetings with old neighbors, the begin­
f
nings of r iendships, loneliness and homesickness, illness, death, disaster,
entertainments, schools and churches, and similar matters of joint con­
cern. Both were taken with the grandeur of the plains and mountains,
the profuseness of prairie flowers, the clarity of water, and the vastness
of the sky. Both relieved the boredom of the trail by describing such
sights as Scotts Bluff, Independence Rock, and Salt Lake City. Both lav­
ished detail on prairie fires, hordes oflocusts, blizzards, and spring floods.
In addition, men occasionally expressed delight and enthusiasm,
although not in the same way as women. A man pleased to meet an old
f r iend along the trail might clap him on the shoulder, whereas women
would hug and cry. More often than not, men kept their sentiments to
themselves. When leaving f o r the W e st, Hiram Shutes slipped off to bid
his mother goodbye in private.37 After settlement, a woman who wrote
home that letters were like "bread and 'lasses' to a hungry child" sus­
pected that her husband "wept over them" in private.3 8
Furthermore, men were scientific and women literary in the style
of their observations, another reflection of societal gender prescriptions.
W o men emphasized color and light, openness and vastness, and nature's
flair f o r the dramatic, whereas men fo cused on soil types, dimensions,
and nature's ability to enrich or deplete the earth's resources. o men
W
typically envisioned Chimney Rock as a castle or some other f a nciful
fo rm, whereas men speculated on dimensions and types of rock. The

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