In
the mail of "The Woman's Voice" there are many letters and articles, sent to it from time to time by the readers, men and women, of this magazine. Among these articles is what is tender of stem and soft of wing, in which the correct Arabic style has not yet taken firm shape, nor has deep thought yet come to it; and in it there is what gives good tidings of a generation of women and men with a taste for literature and poetry.
And we—though this task is among the most difficult tasks of editing—do not like to neglect our readers' letters to us, nor their articles; rather we publish some of them, by way of encouragement and to strengthen these ties between the readers and the magazine, within the possible limits...
My dear young girl:
Do not suppose that I write these lines to blame you for some failing; I write them out of a sincere feeling, coming from a heart that thinks only of what leads to your good and your happiness...
Do not think, my sister, that school is a waste of time, to be approached with sluggishness and grumbling; for nothing strengthens your mind and opens the doors of knowledge before you like school... So seize the opportunity of your presence in it and draw from its sea all you can.
Listen to the advice of your elders, your family and your teachers, and do not suppose that they wish to humiliate and subdue you, for they love you and want your success,
and from their experience they have a wisdom surpassing your wisdom; so lend them an attentive ear and you will be the wiser.
And know that a girl's ornament is her honor; so guard your honor from being soiled, and do not pave for yourself the road to criticism.. Do not draw eyes to yourself with excessive adornment and strutting in the streets. Beauty of this kind is cheap... and the ugliest thing in a girl is to be cheap. Remember this always and do not forget it.
Finally, do not think about trivial things, but persevere in your lessons so that you may reach a degree of culture that qualifies you to hold your head high, and
We are certain that Amin Nakhle did not take from Nawfal Ilyas. Rather, we hold that Nawfal Ilyas lifted portions of Amin Nakhle's verses without success.
thereby to raise the head of your nation.
Listen to my advice, my sister, girl of today; be brave, and trust that you will not lose.
A young lady said it in The Woman's Voice
An unjust judgment, and a manifest arbitrariness, in this saying.
How many a noble soul has had his fame immortalized in the pages of history! How many a sacrifice have
the pens of writers sung and the discourses of the learned passed from hand to hand!
Has this speaker turned a blind eye to the good deeds of all mankind? Or has tyranny overspread the entire world, so that we have truly come into a darkness from which we cannot escape?? And is it true that the environment has grown corrupt and cannot be set right??
And can we bring ourselves to believe that this absolute, unjust judgment issued from a sensible, wise elder?
No: the noble elements have not been lost from society, and they do not surrender before false preachments. Nor do they let doubts seep into their being, for their faith in themselves is firm and their confidence solid. Only the weak elements crumble and surrender before such judgments.
"All people are tyrants"—such a saying quickly breeds in sound souls a shrinking into the self, since they cling to a blind obedience, especially as it came from an elder of imposing dignity.
O man: He who created you and cast you into this current—if He stripped you of the cutting sword, He supplied you with the finest and most impregnable of