PREFACE. We are so much accustomed to see a preface at the commencement of every volume that issues from the press, that a book would hardly be thought complete without this appendage. At the same time this portion of a work is in general so little read that it may well become a question whether both the author and the printer might not almost as well spare their pains. Especially may this be the case in reference to a volume which is brought out in periodical portions, and which may be supposed to have been nearly all read before the appearance of the work in its more complete form. However, for the sake of those who may take up this volume without having previously perused the successive numbers, and who may wish to be acquainted with the general design of the work before they enter upon its perusal, we avail ourselves of the opportunity furnished by the prevailing custom to state, that the Females' Advocate was undertaken with a view to assist in diffusing such information among the female portion of the community as might tend to elevate the standard of character, and to place them in their true position in the social system, to warn them of the snares which beset their path, to excite them to the pursuit of real excellence, and to furnish hints which might guide them into paths of usefulness. It is also a leading object of the work to plead the cause of the destitute, the oppressed, and the forlorn, and to arouse the attention of the affluent and the virtuous to the claims of their unhappy country-women, by placing before them some of the many facts which are brought under the notice of the London Female Mission, in its different departments. Encouraged by the extent to which the circulation of this work has already been carried, its conductors trust they will not be found wanting in any efforts which may render it more worthy of public patronage, and they beg leave to urge upon the friends of the London Female Mission, the propriety of exerting their influence to render its circulation still more extensive, as a means of assisting the funds of the society, as well as of promoting the direct object of the work. They also respectfully invite communications adapted to its pages, and particularly articles of intelligence, respecting the formation and operations of maternal associations, young women's associations, female missions, penitentiaries, and any other institutions which are aiming to promote the welfare of the female portion of the community. |