Eliza Bisbee Duffey (1838 Ð 1898) was an essayist, a painter, and a printer and editor of periodicals. Much of her writing, including the present work, challenged misogynistic myths about womenÕs health. Her later book, No Sex in Education (1874), was a response to Edward Hammond ClarkeÕs Sex in Education (1873), in which Clarke argued that educating girls could cause underdeveloped ovaries, sterility, and all manner of psychological disorders. DuffeyÕs response challenged the scientific basis of ClarkeÕs arguments, argued for equal educational access for girls and boys, and presented a call to action to her readers: ÒLet us now adopt a system which recognizes no sex in education and gives to boys and girls an equal chance, and see if the results will not prove advantageous to both,Ó (p. 139). Along with her advocacy for education and womenÕs health, Duffey was also respected as a still life and landscape painter, and her work was exhibited at the Buffalo Fine Arts Academy and the Philadelphia Academy of the Fine Arts. She was made a member of the Philadelphia Academy of the Fine Arts in 1869. Octavo. 320 pp. PublisherÕs brick red cloth stamped in black. Spine titled in gilt. Some dampstaining to cloth and rubbing to extremities. Brown coated endpapers. Some marginal toning and a bit of foxing. A few gatherings somewhat loose. A good copy of an uncommon book. First edition. This womenÕs health manual Òbegins with the physical development of the girl into womanhood, and points out all the dangers which attend it and mistakes which may be committed. It treats of love in its various phases, and fearlessly attacks immorality in every form. It discusses marriage in all its bearings, denounces criminal abortion, attacking it and pointing out its remedyÉIt treats of pregnancy and delivery and the management of the newborn babeÉOne chapter is devoted to an infantÕs dressÉAnother chapter is devoted to the diseases of infants.The concluding chapter treats of the moral responsibilities of motherhood.Ó OCLC records sixteen physical copies, only seven west of the Mississippi: Iowa State, the Huntington, UC Davis, UC Santa Barbara, Mills College, the California State Library, and the University of Oregon. Weidman, Jeffrey. Artists in Ohio, 1787-1900: A Biographical Dictionary. Kent State UP, 2000.
