s human nature, and you will never get men
to think and act any differently. As to faith in man as such, not only
in the church-going man, but in the rough-spoken fisherman, the
contemned publican, the infidel Samaritan, faith in his power of
recognizing and rising to the truth, the higher standard placed before
him, _that_ I sometimes think lies buried in that Eastern garden--in the
Sepulchre "wherein never man yet lay."[22] And yet it is the man as
revealed in Jesus Christ, not the man as fashioned by the world, with
its low traditions and low public opinion, that is true to human nature.
In moments of excitement or danger he reverts to this true nature, which
has been so warped and overlaid by the world. In the great mass meetings
which I held for the purpose of pleading with men to come over on my
side and help me in the work of saving women from the awful doom to
which men sentence them, I used to bring this home by saying to them:
"If a fire were to break out in this vast hall, who would be the first
person that you would try to save? It would be me because I am a woman";
and the roar of assent that burst forth from all parts of the building
showed that I had struck home. I used to bring before them--and the
sooner you bring it before your boys the better--the conduct of the men
on the ill-fated _Birkenhead_--ah! dear men, voiceless and nameless,
and lost in that "vast and wandering grave" into which they sank, what
have they not done to raise the tone of England? You will possibly
remember that the _Birkenhead_, with a troop of our soldiers on board,
struck and foundered not far from land. The women and children were at
once crowded into the boats, and it was only when, in a few minutes, the
ship began to settle that the cry was heard among the men, "To the
boats! to the boats! every man for himself!" But the officer in command
stood up and shouted, "What! and swamp the women and children? Die
rather!" And those men did die. Drawn up in military array, without
moving a muscle, those men sank into the bitter waters of death, that
the women and children might live.[23] That I contend is man's true
nature, to love the woman, and, if needs be, to give himself for her.

It is, therefore, to recognize and strengthen this true nature of man,
to get it deeper into him, and not to get it out of him, as I cannot but
feel we have hitherto more or less done, to train your boys in this
perfect loyalty to all womanhood as such;