The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, May 9, 1896, Page 10

10 Ten Splendid Essays Session of the Woman’'s “THE CALL” IS PRAISED. Miss Severance Applauds the Stand of the Great Daily. | FIRST LOVE. | “AUNT SUSAN'S” Professor Griggs’ Strong Paper on “The Modern Change in Ideals of Womanhcod.” | Pale golden fleurs de lis, deep orange | poppies, yellow marguerites with cloth of gold and Marechal Niel roses gave to the | stage in Native Sous’ Hall a warm, cheer- ful coloring durinz yesterday’s sitting of | the Woman's Congress of the Pacific Coast. The president stated that she had re- | ceivell a very large number of letters from different parts ot the State commending | the very full accounts of the sessionsof | the congress given by the City pavers and particularly by THE CALL, which, she said, | it should not be forgotien had been the | first to come out for the cause—to lead off and be followed by the other: The first paper of the day, “America’s Great Queens,” by Miss Harryett R. Strong, was read by Miss Dorothea Roth. The following extract will give a fair idea eign what wighty monarch or down the short roil there one applied to glorious record of bat ple bebind ber? If not, bonor, :hen there mu: e roa: privilege been guarded period of 4000 vears, his- . when 640 kiligs re.gned a mere rigat, ove, Galla T's daughter, ruled more mythological or narrow: and of the tw Placidia. tho! as regent th ant; ope, the Empress Maud, had little chance to ruie. and one, the litile Wilheimina of Holland, b s nor vet begun her 'h eaves eizhteen lives we may independent queensbip end empresses whose ral women six represent best erent forms of sovereiguty and the differs 0us of atiaining power, and of the six fi belong to monarchies which from iime to tim ns on the western coutinent, and gives us the right to clalm them t of time is Margaret of Den- ¢ was elected to three rones, and beiongs to the western world .aroush Scan naviau discoveries and settlements on the west of Greenland. The second, Isabella of Castile (1474), succeeded to her brothe kingdom in preference to his daughter; herclaim 10 America comes through overies of Columbus, undertaken under the Spanishcrown. | Elizabeith of England, 1 who inherited her throne through will and act Parliament, ran| as third of A merica’s great Queens because of her Waiter Raleigh's explorations on the Eastern coast, even now called Virginia, and of Sir Francis Drake's discovery of this our own Ssu Francisco Bay. The fourth in point 0f time we cannot ciaim as our own, but she ranks with the world’'s great Queens and therefore deserves a word of men- tion—Maria Theresa of Austris, 1717, Inberited from her facher, but was obiiged to defend her heritage. The fifth, Catherine the Great of Russia, 1 usurper, can_with truth be reckoned as America great female sovereign, by virtue of Alaska | oelonged to Russia. | ria, the last of the list and our fifth and Queen, reigns now ovep the larges: part of America, and has had the longest and most Ppeaceful reign in all history. Of Isabeils of Castile it may be said that her | praise has been exiravagantiy sounded throughout the centuries, and only of late has prejudice striven to creace a reaction. Her public acts may sometimes justly have deserved censure—ber per- sonality never. She was -verything as (o sweet- ness, gentleness, wisdom, magnanimity, that couid be desired, & careral mother ana affectionate wife, and these excellent persoaal qualities were combined with those mental iraiis of sagaci.y and | farsightedness that make the soverelgn great. | Catherine of Russia. the only woman called “The Great.” possessed greai genius and greater | faults. Historians piace her as only second to | Peter in her achievements toward Russia's devi opment. Good she certainly was not, bat her ad- ministrative ability showed her mental traits 10 be transcendent. Her ambitions were aiso Im- mense, snd_she underio0k vast schemes “mereiy for show” the bistoriaus tell us—of improving ber country, reforming education, drawing up the plans for & Hussan dictionary, founding an scad- emy, eic. She, of all the others, fought and con- quered, but whew she set about to make her name renowned it was through the aris of peace and not Of war tha: she attempted it Vicioria is no absoiute monarch as Cstherine, Bor despotic as Elizabeth: she is what is calied s | constitutional sovereign: she reigns. while her Parliament and Ministers govern. Victoria pos. | sesses the royal prerogutive, but she contents ber. | self with merely pertanctory dutles of making doc- | uments legal by affixing the royal signatore to evers paper placed before her. This action re- | sembles & lion with its teeth drawn, for royalty Wwithout power ceases {0 be dangerous. That such | & government is for the welfare of the Dation the prosperity and gresiness of Vicioria’s realm ac- | tests. Now that we have quickly glanced at the his- | tories of these royal women, written down in men's annals and compared with the kiugs of their re. | spective times. what do we discover? | kiagdoms the laughing stock of the nations? Do | their realms suffer confusion and auarchy under | | | the weak rule of woman? We have hardls fonnd it 0 Have they been carried away by their womanly emotions, or Influenced by unworihy and unscrupuious favorites? The one reasos why their good deeds are often not given credit doe is because somehow or other their excellent men advisers should also share the | praise. These same advisers, hLowever, wers | chosen by the Queens themselves. Do we find | weakness of intellect? No, they were magnifi- | cently educated, and often their chief desire was | o promote learning ihronghout their terricories. | Were they bioodthirsty and crnel® Not even toe | worat of the Queens regnant. Blood was shed and wars carried on. but supreme power seemed 1o | steady them and fill them with & sense of reaponst: Dility for their subjects’ lives. Not one ranks as & | sessed either ability, our American gueens possessed ali ing Catherine. | Miss Severance knew of some native- born American Queens. She said: “There was a great Indian Queen in | | the following thoughts: | the mothers of kings and rulers, | her experience and tempered his scts wiih her | to be gathered from our subject it wiit be interest- | the toy Emperor, she has “governed as well as | ing with a few remarks on Mrs, Peet’s pa- | | mothers of rulers, the mothers to whom all | mother and that of teacher: | years of patient effort on the part of the latter | Are their | o© { woman: how it can stre; Read at Yesterday’s Pacific Coast Congress. Massachusetts called the Great Sachem, and among the Iroquois there was s woman ruler at one time. I have observed that it was not an uncommon thing for the woman of early times to hola high places among the aboriginal tribes of America,” “The Queen Dowager,” was the subject of the second puper of the morning, and was written by Mrs. Sturtevant-Peetof San Jose, who, during her reading, expressed Identical with individual and material char- acter governments have been derived and become “at factors in solving the problems of civiliza- tion. In reviewing the laws instituted for regulat- ting soc'al, moral and civil relations it is interest- ing 1o note the mold of individual characters, re- gardless of sex, in formulating and enforcing pro- visions for the control and administration of public affairs. ‘The least conspicuous among royal women, though by no means the least poteni, have been aeen dowa- Ts.” Such sothers have in most Instances man- ifested more than ordinary intercst in the wel- fare of offspring and nation: they have exerted an intluence ofttimes determining their future destiny. The pecaliar reiation of dowager mothers to the throne. their interest and great inflence in public affaiis is the burden of my theme. The benign influence of a mother ca scarcely be estimated in the humbler positions df life: and to measure it when intimately associated with the throne to which is delegaied such a degree of supreme power is beyond the strength of mind to comprehend, Almost every nation in_Lurope at one time or another has been placed In the position of being ruled by & woman. Helens. the kmpress mother of Constantine, was one of the many nobie and infiuential characters of the period. She was piaced at the b of the excheguer and honored with & seat in all of the na- tional councils. She was granted the spectal privi- lege of suggesting new and untried methods, with ihe authority to erforce tue same. The city of London was enlarged and fortitied in compliance With her request. Othercities were founded in her name. She was with her son when he presided at the council of Nice, A. 3 affairs and interests of state Helena aided the Emperor with wisdom. | Before passing to the suggestions and inferences ing 10 make reference to one who has been promi- nent in the East for forty years, oneof theworid’s greatest rulers, the Queen Dowager of China. While she has bad all to do witn the education of reigued.” A second writer says of her, that though ssed of & kind heart. she is proud. strong and | 1ions us Queen Semiramis. In the days of & at famine in the emp.re, she made a sacrifice neal upon her own table, that she might 5t the Telief fund provided by ihe state, a xample that might officiais in time of financial ai ism has stood many such ¢ | of celebraiing her sixtieth birthday anniversary the recent Japanese invasion, which was | 20,000.000 ounces of silver, ste abandoned the prosramme, contenting herself with & private celebration. and paid the money intothe war chest | for the defense of her country. The most impressive fact_sugzested by our sub- | ject is he value of a cultured mother conscious of | ber wisdom and responsibility. Mothers educated | snd interested in the affairs of siate will give strensth and breadth of characterto the fuiure generations, in which alone rest the greatness and Perpetuity of » Government. The greatest trees of the forest mever grow upon weak and shallow S0il: the purest streams of water never fow from (urbid fouats. Greatuess never comes by chaace. There was a Helena before a Constantine, 8a Isa- | Bella before the birth of tuis Republic, siatesmen before a Clay, Calhoun and a Webster. So woman's | sphere must pandeu, so motherhood must be endowed with equal sovereigu rights and crowned with the honor of citizenship before the birth of | perfect freedom—before the drawing near of a bet- | ter, brighter era iu the realm of government. “I am not intimately acquainted with our dowager queens,” remarked Miss| Severance. “But the first dowager queen erected a great mausolenm for her kind Mausolus. The present Queen of Spain | is a dowager queen, and she is rearing the little child that shal! be the future ruler. There have been all kinds of dowager queens, good and bad, just as there are | among us common peoble.” i Mrs. E. G. Greene of Santa Cruz, follow- | be foliowed by our siress. Her patriot- | st. Upon the o-casion | hd: per, eulogized the Dowager Queens as the honor should be accordea. Miss A. M. Fulton, a teacher m Miss | Fest’s young ladies’ seminary, read a very scholarly paper on “The Power Behind the Throne.” " Her popularity among her | present students and those formerly mem- bersof the seminary was attested by the | presence of a large number of these young | iadies, who permitted no good point o escape their approving applause, and as a | result the whole audience repeatedly united with them in commending the sentiments expressed in the paper. In part her re- marks were as follows: { 1f we consider the different phases of that power | weshall find that they are mainly two, viz.: ber power to mold and her power to guide. The mold- | ing power is embraced in the two offices, that of | and the guiding power | in that of sister, lover or wife. | The first of these carries with it an immense re- | spousibility, 10 matter by whom It is discharged. There is no more high and nobie duty in 1ife: no more important task thai can be undertaken than | the training and development of the youngana | growing life. Nature nerself bas clearly indicated | whose duty this shall be; the 8 poinis to the woman and says: “Behold, her have 1 selectea for this holy function. She, and she aloue, is capable of the condition of motherhood, | and to her naturaily belongs the care of the young | life which she has brought into the world.” The choice of the Creator in ihis respect is ex- | tremely significant in the division of labor in the world between man and woman; it bas lef man | free 10 act, 0 sirive and to mix with the outer world. It bas tied her down to what [ consider | the most imporiant duty that can be given to man | Or woman in this life. It has not oniy made this duty hers. bat has given herihe qualities that ena- ble her to discharge the duty successfully. Wo- man, developed woman, has pstience, endless pa- tience, great power of ending aanoyance and sor- row. and s ci defined sense of right and | wrong. So equipped she is able to shape the life | of the growing boy or giri, 1o train, 1o prune, to | correct. No one so well as thie mother can do this, and sadly untrained and unformed is often the young child who comes up 10 the teacher from the Dand of the nurse or the care of the servaot. Loog | do uot suffice sometimes 10 undo the mischief | that has been done. | This duty then of the training and development | of the young and growing being devolves u; n the mother from the moment of its birth, ou! be contioued, with the help of the teacher, who ould also be & woman, Up 10 the time of the ma. turlty of the Individoal ~Almost eversthing that the chiid is to become in future vears depends upon the Influence of these two guides. The power behind the thrope in this case rules the throne throughout ife. We have the testi. | ImoRY Of oy Eood men 10 the fact ihat the prin: sorgotten. Hesr | cipies instilled then are never Ruskin as he testifies on this poin:: <1 have ve: with deeper gratitude to chronicle | what I owed 10 my mother for the resoluteiy con. | sistent Jessons which so exercised me in the Scrip- | ture. Ani troly. though I bave picked up the elements of a little further knowledge in mathe- matics, meteorology aud the like in_atter life, and ©owe Dot & liitle 10 the teaching of many peopie, tbis maternal instaliation of my mind I count vers couficentls the most precious, and, on the whole, the vne essential part of all my education.” Coming next to woman’s power behind the throue as wife or sister, and that phase of it which is exerted through her contingal formation of en- vironment. We all know frdm experience what environment means to the working man or | ngthen and comfort, and fortify us on the one hand: or exhaust, and wi aod weaken us oo ibe other. And will nott wife who the fighr, 3 be | Pprovides the armor for her husbend in and who buckles it on Iheahe'oell | woman suffra; THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SATURDAY, MAY 9, 1896. WOMAN'S POWER BEHIND THE THRONE. forth to do battle, will she not be able from her point of vantage outside the field to observe how the action progresses, and by her wise counsel to help wiu the victory So far [ have spoken only of women behind the throne as & power for good. Le. us see now whai she can do as a power for evil. Suppose we take the historical and literary example of the wife of Aodrea del Sarto. Here we have the case of & WOman who, through the charm of her personal at- tractions, really held the fate of ber husband in her hands—he a man of the highest natural avilities, but lacking in moral str ngth. Yet such was his love for ber that had she been abie to inspire him with a high and noble ambition to excel in his art, had it been her aim to develop to the full all his powers and facuities, he might, s Browning puts it, have given Haphael himself enough to ao to excel him. it is, we find him caring for nothing but to make a little money with which to buy her a iace ruflie, or help her to enter- tain her friend'—ambition and character alike gone. all the high hopes 0f his youth dashed to the ground and his splendid abilities wasted. 1 must close these remarks by emp..asizing and reiterating what I have already hinted at—that if woman stall be able acequately to meet the needs of the times and the demauds which ber new position makes upon her, she must try to CATTY 00 s best she can a process of self-development; her intellectual range shounid be widened, ber sym- pathies deepencd and sirengthen ed, her moral and spiritual nature so fully developed and so largely in the ascendant ihat they not only dominate her own life, but also leave thelr lasting impress upon the lives of every one with whom she comes in Ct. And biessed is the peopie when such & woman holds the power benind the throne. Mr. Bennett offered some remarks upon the paper. He looked to socialism to make woman a greater power behind the throne. The last paper of the morning was by Mrs. Ada Van Pelt, the popular and re- spected lady president of the Woman’s Press Association and vice-president of the congress. Her theme was *'The Mothers of Great Men.” In one portion of her brilliant essay Mrs. Van Pelt said: The astute and speculative Greek recognized the mother’s influence in developing cbaracter, and in affecting social and national life, for one of thelr old proverbs ls: +Mighty is the influence of moth- erhood.” In the study of lives of great men we find that the mother's intiuence was the potent factor which molded the character of these intellectual giants Who became world movers. Great men nave had superior mothers. This staiement is verified by the fact that almost every man whose name stands high oo the historic page 4 statesman or sage, philosopher or poet, warrior or reformer, huve had mothers of According to the law of heredity, the lives of their children. Especisily is this the Case with the mother. who gives 10 her offspring not only the peculiarities of her physical but of her intellectual and moral nature. In all ages God has honored good mothers. He could have sent an angel Lo Bethlehem, in 1ts arms the infact Savior. but for all time mother- hood was to be consecrated. Elizabeth was {n her declining years when her life was biessed by a son. She represented the old Era AbOUL 1O Pass AWAY. A DeW eIf was DOW about 10 be usherea in, for the time had come wien the Son of God was to_appear veiled in human flesh, So a virgin, type of the new dispensation, was chosen 10 be the medium through which the sd- vent was 1o be made. While feeling that she was Dot worthy of such honor. et Mary accepied the | position of becoming the moiher of the Messiah. | With 8 herolsm as gentle a8 it was great, and she has shown us uow divine It is (0 love, how divine it 13 10 be maternally tender, how divine it is to be womanly. From out the darkness of hesthendom there arises one surrounded by a halo of giory. and Monica, the devout Christian mosher, is she fairest and noblest of her time. Her Increasing prayer was for the salvation of her gifted son. Augustine. The world owes much to the faithfu] Henry Krebs Jr. her theme at the opening of the afternoon session. She said: The women of the Scriptures have filled many places of honor, trast and suthori ty. Fii “womn! 0ld Testament stands Deboran, opens When thisfremarkabie woman and de- Was Taised up to be their ju Jiverer the luraelltes were in & ot and degraded condition. being under the subjec- tion and oppression of Jabin, Kingof the Cansan- ites. Deborah oned Barak 1o take 10,000 men and go against Sisers and bis hosts. Alarmed at the idea 0f encountering so great an army with so small a force, Barak refused to go unless she accompanied him. She replied to him that she had offered him the cowmand and with it the honor; that she would go with him, but the 101y of the victory shouid be given to & woman, Deborah 80 inspired her foliowers by fiery ap- peal and battle cry that they rushed upon the enemy and, with God' on their side, the immense army of Canaanites was discomfited and over- thrown. For wisdom, patriotism and valor “she was un- surpassed by any ruler of Israel from Moses to David, a period of 400 5 2, Her higher qualities as prophetess and priestess are indicated In “her glorious song of triumph, which for poetry, sublimity and historic interest has seldom been exceeded.” she arrogated 1o herself no other title than that of “mother.” showing that it was love for her country and people that stirred her whole spirit to assume the Tesponsibilities of government when the wisdom and sag: city of man proved unequal to the task. The Scripturai commentators have remarked “that Deboran alone of all the rulersof Israel went woreproved by the prophets and inspired bistorians.” “The lana under her rule had rest for forty years,” and the “hand of the cbildren of Israel prospered.” How brave the spirit that took Judith to the camp ot Holofernes in performance of an act that should save the besieged city of Bethulia. What fidelity to kindred and friends was dis- played by Esther, the beautiful Jewisu maiden, who when raised to the proud position of the Queen of Persia forgot not her peopie, and at the risk of life itself saved them from annihilation. We have in this new land many women whose heroic acis and patriotic deeds render them worthy of our highest reverence and administration. Of those distinguished for heroism and fortituge in philanthropy we name as entitled to high re- nown such illustrious women as Dorothea L. Dix, Elizabeth Fry, Mrs. Judson, Margeret Fuller, Mary Wollstonecraft, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Mary 4. Dr.'Grace Kimbaii and Susan B. An champion and our chief, who has the 'tion of having given her life and labor unremittingiy for fifty years to the uplifting of seX. her Through the dark night of discot ‘ments, dis- sppointments, scorn and derision, with dauntless courage, strong in her conviction of rignt, grand woman has nnceasingly toiled. But the dawn bhas come and the full noontide glory I8 not far distant when her labors shall have their foll fruition. And a3 she is the noblest of living matrons, so may she yet wear the civic crown of Ameriean cltizenship in the land which shall have received Its “new birth of freedom.” Mrs. J. F. Swift opened the discussion H referring to the many noble women of | times whose names are not chronicled on the pages of human history. Mrs. per referred to the biblical character so well known as the unknown widow who contributed her mite to the treasury, and she characterized her as one of the unknown heroines of history. At this juncture a lady’s chair slipped from beneath her and she slid some dis- tance on the waxed floor, knocking down other chairsin her wild career, to every- bod consternation. ‘*Since this congress opened,” observed Miss Shaw, “at least filty women have fallen, frontways, sideways and every way, and vet not one of them bas let outa scream. It looks as though women were learning seif-control.” “When the Native Daughters have a hall,” commented Mr1s. Swift, **we’ll have “THE CALL” DARES To BE JUST. Charles M. Shortridge, Dear Sir--Horace Editor The Call: Greeley once wrote: City, May 7, 1896. "If any person ever supposed that any earthly consideration could induce me to write and publish what people desire to read rather than what they ought to know he has wholly mistaken the purpose for which the Tribune is published, and he should stop his subscription at once." When The Call took its position on the side of equal suffrage I wondered whether the old days of journalism had come again, when a great modern newspaper dare to have and publish opinions not dictated by some convention of political highbinders or by the money-drawer in the bu siness office. Whether this is to.be real- ized or not, the attitude of The Call kindles hope, while it re- vives memories of the old Tribune. The headlong haste all the other papers made to amusing features. vault over one another to twenty-four hours after was a sight to behold. The ¥ "get in" on the ncident has also its side of The Call in I am sure the ex- perience of The Call will demonstrate over again that right, Justice and expediency have not parted company. not the question of war; it 18 of peace. And I wish that the women of this con- gress would by a set of resolutions put themzelves on record as favoring arbitra- tion. “Though I have been asked many times to associate myself with societies com- memorating war victories I have refused to affiliate with them, as I am ntromilv opposed to perpetuating fearful struggles between man and man. i see a much more commendable organization exist right here in this State. I mean the Na- tive Sons of the Golden West. Such an association binds together the founders of the State. And have you Native Daugh- ters? All the better, but it should be all one organization—Native Sons and Daughters of California—for I never did believe in setting up such cistinctions of sex.”” _Then Mies Shaw went on to relate an in- cident in her childhood ; how she had held the plow and ridden the horse in the corn field during war times, when her father and brothers were in the army. Touching upon the heroine, Miss Anna i Ella Carroll, mentioned by Miss Gates, she said that Miss Carroll would not have died in Bgverty had there been any wo- men in Congress when her pension was asked for. Some one had written Miss Shaw com- plimenting herself, Miss Anthony and Miss Yates for showing the good sense to remove their bats in public indoor as- semblages, and hinting stron:ly that if all women who want the ballot would fol- low sait it would be a telling point gained in the good graces of man, and would ma- tedlly aid their cause at the election | next November. Miss Shaw advised her mother of St. Augustine, s0n became the father of 3 As a fit companion to Monica is Anthusa, the motherof Chrysostom. Lef: a widow at 20, she refused all offers of marriage, that she might de- vote her life 1o the rearing of he¥ son. So well did she store his mind with spiritual truths that his teacher, the great philosopher, Liburnius, could Dot lead him into heathenism. After lunch an informal meeting, pre- sided over by Miss Anthony, Miss Shaw . for by her devotion her theolo; 3nd Mrs. Cooper, was held in the parlors of the Hoiel kshire. There was a large attendance. Mrs. Ida Harper, chairman of the press committee, reported that all friends of the woman suffrage movement were more than delighted at the fearless and brave stand taken by THE CALL, which had sounded the Keynote of the campaign. The other papers, she conceived, would soon have to follow in Tae CALL's foot- | steps. The Monitor had offered the use of its columns for articles on the movement, and several other papers scemed more or less friendly in tone. Reports from interior suffrage clubs stated that thousands of copies of last Sunday’s edition of THE Carn had been scattered broadcast throughout the State. There were reported to be forty-five active clubs in various parts of the State, all in flourishing condition. The question of ways and means was referred to a committee consisting of Mes- dames McUomas, Andrews and Hay, with instructions to prepare subscription-cards for circu lation among friends of the cause, PR S— AFTERNOON SESSION. Woman Viewed in History, In the Home and In Time of War. The informal session over, the officers and members retarned to the hall. “The Heroines of History” gave Mrs. CONGRATULATIONS FROM SISTERS AFAR. chairs that women can sit on without dan- ger to life and limb."” Mrs. George T. Gaden read acharming ‘paper on the potent influence of woman in the home. Her brilliant essay had for its title, “The Slave as Ruler,” but the woman whom she painted seemed far from being a servant. She traced the gower of a good woman on husband, brothers and sons, showing how a woman of prudence-and fortitude could ruie her home as though she were a veritable queen. The essay was freguently interrupted by applause. Napthaly Herz 1mber, of whom it has been said he ate onions ‘and breathed de- fiance at the rabbis, was the first one to be recognized by the ckair when the discus- sion was opened. He went into biblical and medieval history with a rush, and was somewhere in an anecdote of Alfred the Great when, the time-limit for such speeches having expired and the warning little bell having sounded several times without bis notice, the audience gracefully applauded him to his original position. rs. Orr offered a few pertinent remarks on the paper, and then a lady far back in the audience arose and spoke of women in the earliest patriarchal age, whom she said were often the judges. A brief but_very interesting paper on ‘Woman in War Times” was read by Mrs. E. 0. th and calied forth a lengthy discussion. ‘‘There is a woman,"” began Miss Yates, +'Who more than any other has done much fortbe United States. Had it not been for Anna Ellen Carroll the United States mizht not still have been the United o States of to-day. It was her intimate knohwledge of the South that, given to the aut! orities, made many of the victories of Grant possible. And’ yet that woman died in poverty and unrecognized for her rmolic acts. Miss Anthony and I visited er in Washington, where she was being cared for by the charity of friends. We tried in vain to get a pension for her. Though thoussnds upon thousands of men have been pensioned she could not be | your work and cordial good success. auditors not to leta high hat stand be- tween them and freedom in the coming election. Just before s:ljonrnmant the following resolution was adopted: | ling Reso'ved, That we in congress assembled Pplace ourselves on record ss {avoring the set- Uement of all differences and difficulties, State and National, by arbitration. The following letter was aiso read amid much applause: NATIONAL COUNCIL OF WOMEN OF THE UNITED STATES, NEW YoRK CiTY, April 30, 1896. To Mrs. Sarah B. , Presideat, and o the Woman's Congress Association of the Pacific Coast in conference In behalf of the National Council of Women of the United States I beg to present our most cordial greetings, our congratulations upon the past success of your noble organizatior., our regrets that more of our members cannot share the beneSts of your unequaled pro- grammes, our most sincere sympathy with wishes for its We rejoice in your magnificent effort to dis- cover the right foundations and to rear there- on enduring structures of Fwerment for the individusl, the home and the Nation, all of which ought to profit by your deliberstions. Four facts with relation to government are true: First—In time past governments have rarely aroused themselves to restrain evils, to restore rights, to correct wrongs, until forced 1o do so by the demand of the people. Second— The people rarely make an effective demand until to the majorities the need of reform is ‘The need of reform is rarel; jorities until after the inves tion of facts and the dissemination of nowledge oa the part of a few. Fourth—The few rarely make such investiga- tion until the evils have grown to the propor- tions of great wrongs. The Woman’s Congress Assoeiztion of the Pacific Coast seems to be disproving the fourtn statement and to have aroused itself for the in- Yestigation of truth and ihe dissemination of knowledge in time to prevent the destructive growth of much that is evil and to strengthen much that is good. To this effort the National Council of Women ©of the United States—committed as it is to the “highest good of the family and the State, to the overtarow of ail forms of ignorance and Yours truly, JAMES S. REYNOLDS. women. It certainly seemed last night that the magnetism of his words produced a wonderful cffect upon his hearers. A pale, intellectual, almost ethereal looking young man still in his twenties, he delivered a surprisingly forcible and charming extemporaneous speech on be- half of womanhood, an effort thateven Miss Shaw took occasion to declare was tne embodiment and perfect expression of her own highest ideals on the subject. ‘When the wild applanse following Pro- fessor Griggs’ introduction had subsided he began his address, during which and amid repeated applause he said: Ideals change with all change in actual life. The ideal Is the horizon, which is determined by the point where we stand. At the same time the ideal 18 the best standard for measuring the actual life. The key to_a man or an epoch is the ideal wor- shiped. What one is to-day is a changing shadow on the sundial of time, while the ideal s the white light shich casts the shadow. It is especiaily important to recognize this in studying t.e changes of ideals of womanhood. These changes tell us better almost than anything else the trne progress of the higher human Iife, It is extremely difficult to state the fundamental differences between men and women. Sex difter entistion s only one example ofthe great principle of division of ishor—its aim fs economy and adup- tation. In primitive conditions of life the func- tions of women are industrial and reproductive, while those of men are protective and military. In very early times a greater equality between | men and women prevailed than at intermediaze | stages of progress This is in harmony with | the general law of evolution. Primitive life is non-moral, and progress means greater possibil- | ity for advance or degeneration. With the growth of eariy societies inequalicy in- | creasea inall poiitical and social conditions. | State and class tyTannies arose out of 10ose family | and tribal conditions, the miii:ary functions pre- dominated over the industrial and hence came the enslavement of women. The painful story of siow | emancipation is written in great suffering and is still going on. The freedom 0f women has ¢rown step by step with ihe emancipation of industrial | fonctions from the dominance of milltary ones. | The type of womanhood fostered by such con- ditions of life was industrial aud domestic. Marriage was developed by natural selection for the better | protection of offspring, and the womsn who had no Opportunity to perpetuate herself was the one wil- 10 iose her personality absolutely In the family | lite. Yet the close association of two human beings reacts upon the development of each, and marriage | came to be a relaion founded to some extent on | permanent qualities of character. We have a | £ood lllustration of the struggle of the two prin- | ciples in the best period of Greek ctvilization | where the higher class of courtesans received a respect incomprehensible to us, because they alone were sufficieutly educated to_be intellectusl com- panions to cultivared man, while the Greek wives | and mothers were keps In ignorance and seclnsion. | Christianity brought a reverence for womanh which the ancient world had never known. ihe worship of the Virgin placed womanhood in a new | light. Yet the gain was not unmixed with evil, for the type 0f woman reverenced was mot the | human wife and mother. The medieval ldeal was | ascetic and Degative. It worshiped the puricy of | imnocence and not the purity of virtae. It viewed | marri a concession to the weakrness of man- Kkind; Iooked upon those women as Dobiest who refused a.l buman ties and chose & life of lsolacson from the . ‘This ideal was opposed to natural selection and had inevitably to disappear The medieval woman who perpetuated herseif in offspring was the one | willing to sink herself inthe life of the family. Family life might be an sdjunct in the livesof men, But it bad to fill the wholeof the lives of married women. | The dawn of modern ideals of womanhood oc- | curs In the Renaissance as & part of that wonder- | ful expansion of life. We find at times a pew con- | ception of marriage and a recognition of higher | possibilities in the personal relations. Hut the women who Tealized this were few in numbers. Since that time the growth has been remarkasie, | increasing with immense rapidity in our own time. The home is still far from ideal, but marriage | has come to be more and more a spirituai relation | based on the more permanent qualities of charac- | ter. This means a change In the basis of natural selection in its application to women and marri- age. Formerly the woman who was able to per- petuste herself was the one willing 10 lose her in- dependent life in the family relations. Today, more and more, intelligent men seek s their wives women of independent and free development who are unwilling to sacrifice their separate life and | activities entirely to the domestic rel .tions. Hence | educated. intelligzent women have mor- and more | ibe selective value placed upon ihicn. | . the strug- | gle for existence. ~Marriage cesses o merely & reproductive and industrial Institmion and be- comes spirituai and human. The failure 10 see this mars mach of the current thought on human problems, yet the chauge in the selective principles here is the same as that which is seen everywhere. Brute strength was once dominant in the strugzle for existence: now | it has given place to intellectnal and moral qualities. When a higher adapiation appears it has a selective value than those below 1 | in the scale. When the family comes 0 infinence | deeply the development of each member of it it | attains a moral significance. Our epoch is_transitional and hence it is a time | of misadjustments. But we can afford 10 bear the i tlon in the whole of life, . In religion’ we pass through ail . possible | of tne Goid suffering for the sake of the higher life which 18 to come. ‘The differences petween men and women arenot to be overcome. Maternity will always cost more, physically aud mentally, than fatherhood. It ls the greatest of all possible errors to attempt to make women over into cheap imitations of men. The “eternal womanly” will always be with us 10 lead s on. Yet the law of evolution n the application to the higher human life alwass nvolves these phases. We pass from a homogeneous, indifferentiated basis, through specialization and differentiation, to a more organic unity on a higher plane. Specialization of function Is only a waste of force unless there 1s integration of the specialized func- In government we pass from an indifferentiated unity at the beginning, through all possible types, g6od and bad, toward a ceriain common type which shall, with the great- est organic unity, give the ur?uz possible freedom from a simple basis beliefs and super- sitions toward a common faith in the ra- tionality of the universe and the one God and father of us all. Similarly, in sex devoiopment we pass from the monogamous family, through ail kinds of conditions, to a monogamous family which involves, insiead of excluding. the widest specialization of function and life The ideals of man and woman tend to approach each other and are united in the inclosive ideal of the human be- ing. Theideal man must be pot only strong sud brave snd true, but tender and sympathetic ideal woman must be not alone loving and se tive and tender, but strong and capable of inde- ndent life. Likeness between men and women the last thing to be desired, bui there can be no satistying personal relation without equal freedom and development. Ansthing which relieves women from the neces- sity of marcying tends to place marriage itself on & nobler plane. The interesis of men are the i terests of women. The notion that thers is a necessary struzgle for supremacy between the sexes, and that one CODQUETs at the expense of the other, is one of the most absurd and pernicions no- tions ever perpetrated upon a patient world. No regeneration of humanity is to be expected trom giving the suffrage to women. It isooly a step toward freedom: bu it Is such a step, and as such deserves our cordial supporc. Out of sl the long struggle of humanity emerges the ideal of womanhood. It is the “fternal Womanly,” but the eternal womanly unhampered by artificial limitations. Woman—loving, tender and sensi- tive, but woman strong and true is the modern ideal; woma capable of standing alone, and hence worthy of the deepest human relations— and is the ideal of which we catch a glimmer, the unew woman—-God bless and protect her.” A Mr. Howard opened the discussion by indulging in what promised to develop into an interminable dissertation upon the merits and demerits of the ‘‘new woman' considered in the light of sociology and evolution, but was cut off by the three- minute limit. Another gentleman named Benham spoke of Lady Aberdeen’s lace industry in Ireland as good in its way, but would pre- ier to see the land in that country in pos- session of the natives. He scored absentee landlordism in the strongest terms. Mrs. Andrews commented upon the new woman and the new man in a set of orig- inal verses, which were warmly applanded. Miss Sarah M. Severance read a most interesting paper on “Woman’s Stake in the Country”—thatis, it was called vaper, but was properly a magnificent extempo- raneous oration. She said: A stake is something set—something fixed Has ‘Woman & stake in government® Government is a great joint siock company, into which woman born. She cannot sell out or throw up her stock; she cannot avoid assessments. Politics Is & method of management, God’s law for the correlation of human beings: it 18 & science, and there 1s 16 cor- ruption except in its management; it fs that haif Rule which pertains to humanity The bailot is a choice, the only choice which 15 counted. “Those who have no voie are enslaved 10 those who have,” said Dr. Frauklin. The prime object of government 1 1o protect, and it s s ;gn;:uaepflve "f un“mx" and the incapable of the ot as of the pistol, if the atest good of the greatest number 8o deman s, = . But there should be no impassable barriers. When the incompetent, the minor, the lunatic, the idiot. the ignoramus, become capable, when the criminal becomes worthy, then should they be permitted 1o votetheirstock. The sex line for vo. ers is the most unwise possible, for sex marks functions and fone. tion leads to different development. Man deals with the mass, woman with the individoal e has power, she thics and fntaitions, a feeling of re. sponsibility, as the result of fanctions. Both are needed In the nation as in the home. We are told thal woman shan’t vote because she can's fight, and that sue shan't voie because she will plunge us into a religious war; that women will vote Just ag their husbands do and that they will vote just as their husbands don't, and said husbands will be vely and make inharmony in the family: thac women are 100 g00d 10 Vote aud women will terpt men to lower levels It. after Investigating assertions prove troe, for, but don’t disfranc! woman. race. James g the free States, thess disfrauchise women there- bise woman because she is & I: is & stigma upon her son: it blasts the ar-eved science, in the person of Sir Cricaton Browne, tells us that wonce edu. BACKBONE AND ‘COURAGE. 534 Pace StrEET, San Frawcrsco. To the Lditor of TrE Carr: It was with feelings of the deepest gratitude and apprecia- tion that I read of the advance position taken by TrE CaLL re- garding woman suffrage. The women of California will “rise up and call you blessed ” for your brave efforts in their behalf ; and when the victory is won next November they will not be unmindful of the hand that exte nded the timely aid, of the pilot that led the way into harbor. They will call mass-meetings in every city, town and hamlet in the State, at which they will call to mind the valuable assistance given them by the San Fran- cisco CALL in their struggle for independence. The first exer. cise of their newly acquired political privileges will be to call for the appropriation of a sufficient fund for the erection of a grand monument in Golden Gate Park, which shall tower high above all others, and prove a fitting testimonial from thousands of grateful women of their high esteem and profound admira- tion for the San Francisco C d its nobl i rewarded. injustice, and to the application of the golden rancisco CALL and its noble representatives. “And poured millio Py . A ALET s granting penstons to n!en,_montyof Whom E&:’g DE“ ctive .,.,,:?i.’,".":d"’w"fi‘., X Should there arise any objection to such use of the public 2 Jay sneireyesight by viewing battles from | operation. G my own funds a draft can be made upon the accumulated taxes paid by Rv'cE Mrs. Andrews of Los Anzeles said she | 16"} o WY (nability to <hare the R e Z P 7a23 memier of an Mfia-dnl‘:l dhat ;:mmd i of e asion: L am, sincercly | women during the past two hundred years, in the disbursement composed lerate N 3 : . Toas coupaxy TRANSMITS Axo DELIVERS messaces omcr Mitsion 08 SeLvERy o UNREPEATED MESSAGES Bevons T sv;‘;’.nfi and &Lf":f:&: Sympathisers.| | Gaited uaene. counell of Womea of the | of which they had no voice or vote, and with such a vast sum at COND(TIO IMITING | v e i 2 oy : . L 70,57 THE Soxen OF THE FOLLOVING WERALE: | banquet and asked sie of the_ Isay"mem EVENING SESSION. their disposal they can erect a monument that will reach the sky. ERRORS CAN BE GUARDED AGAINST ONLY BY REPEATING A MESSAGE bers to prepare tue food and lay the tables. Their work over, the ladies were expected to leave; but they stayed, and since then the precedent has been foilowed. women p"mx' :hsmn in all the convivial meet- ings of the association. 5 McCaulay said: *I want to men- tion the heroes of our own State, the pioneer fighters of California. They not only cleared the way for the immigrants; they located many of the valuabie mines, but because they were United States soi- E:sn they were not permitted to claim em. Miss Anua Shaw then sdvanced to the wEBsAGE. T8 18 an UNREPEATED MESSAGE, AND 18 DELVERED BY BEQUEET OF THE SENDER UNDER THE CONDITIONS NAMED ABOVE. BACK TO THE SENCING STATION FOR COMPARISON, AND THE COMPANY WILL NOT HOLD ITSELF LABLE FOR ERRORS OR DELAYS IN TRANS- JOHN W. MACKAY, President. / W. C. VAN HORNE, Vice-President. Meanwhile the women of the State should call for thou- sands of extra copies of TaE SuNpAY CaLr, and when they call upon their friends present them with a copy of TrE Carr—the first great daily that had sufficient backbone and courage to call the attention of the voters of California to the fact that women were knocking at the door and calling for admittance into the duties and responsibilites of citizenship, and to unite its voice Professor Edward H. Griggs of Stan- ford University Makes a Very B-illlant Address. As regards a great audience the at- tendance at last evening’s session of the ‘Woman’s Congress was second only to the packed and uncomfortably overcrowded ball of Wednesday night, when Miss An- thony and Miss Shaw and their co-work- ers bad returned triumphant from the Re- publican convention at the State Capital: CHAS. R. HOSMER, General Manager. L. W. STORROR, Superiatendent. Received at San Francisco. Gal. 22Vr. 12:43 p. J. J. 31¥Paid. OTTAWA (ONT.), May 8th., '96. REV. ANNA SHAW, Pacific Coast Council, : with theirs in the call for a halt in the present un; ini front of the platform, and, greeted by the | U423 far as intense, prolonged spplause 5 . . € present unjust adminis- San Francisco, Gl T gy LS e ATy £ mfifl:mfi“&hmu tration of public affairs, and demanding that woman shall be “Who can say that the women did not | of the whole successful congress. The Please convey kindest greetings and best wishes to Pacific called upon to assist in makin; g laws by which she is taxed, mar- Coast Council ; LADY ABERDEEN. ried, divorced, sent to jail, prison and hangeil. Respectiully yours, May 3, 1896. . | J. ScHLESINGER. { nflnunl:h in war times '-:it‘a‘mh ? The agony of silent, anxious as severe an ordeal as t!udu;-nfguae. The question with us te-dsy, however, is name of Professor versity, before the