Mother's day thoughts

No "hail the conquering hero" for Julia Ward Howe: "Our husbands shall not come to us reeking of carnage for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy, and patience."

Interesting sentiments for 1870.

Previously, her husband was apparently a member of the Secret Six - not a peaceful group in the least. She herself was a member of the Sanitary Commission, an adjunct of the U.S. war effort.

"As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free" - her famous 1862 cry to arms is now mysteriously superseded by an unequivocal Mother's Day proclamation, "Our husbands shall not come to us reeking of carnage..."

Pacifism is a selective doctrine, even in a single heart.