The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, May 15, 1898, Page 22

22 THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, MAY 15, 1898. STRANGE STORY CONNECTED WITH THE FAMOUS DUKE OF PORTLAND ESTATE | HE Duke of Portland is one of | table and God-fearing man, had never’ England’s wealthiest noblemen. income from a rent roll $2,000,000 a year. owns a big portion of London. is one of the most famous in Welbeck Abbey, dates back to the His alone is The lir the British peerage. the family estate, married and died childless at the age of 79, being succeeded by William John Arthur Charles James, a cousin, who is | the present Duke. Yet whatever may be the merits of Mrs. Druce’s claim, the fact remains that it has been taken so seriously in London as to become the subject of an application to the Con- | He 11 nif{lid gL Jlep vear 1140, and millions of pounds have | Sistory Court. It is best to let Mrs. Druce’s story been spent upon it. And vet there y 413 as she recorded it herself when comes a woman, a woman heretofore | attempting to establish her claim in | unknown, who claims that the ffth|London. As coming from her own lps | THE HOME OF THE Duke of Portland, the immediate pre- | it is In substance as follows: DUKE OF PORTLAND decessor of the present Duke, was the | “The marriage on October 30, 1851, 3 father of her late husband, and that| at New her son is the rightful heir to the titles and estates | It is a weird story that this woman | tells, a story such as the fanciful brain | of Bulwer might have concocted. It | hints at foul murder, it suggests clank- | ing chains and noisome dungeons, it | openly charges a dual personality on | the part of the late Duke, and the | burial of a man who never died and | mother, tw love. with who never existed! | ltht- The woman’s name is Anna Marla | .ot Druce, and she says that under the | name of Druce the Duke married her husband’s mother. Her son, she say is the real Duke of Portland. He is | now in Australia. | It has always been understood that | the fifth Duke of Portland, described | as a most eccentric but humane, chari- gre ‘Windsor, tween my late husband’s father and in which the names were recorded as Thomas Charles Druce and Annie May, was in reality be- the Marquis of Titchfield, af- | terwerd the fifth Duke of Portland, and the il'egitimate daughter of the fifth Earl of Berkeley. | ‘The Marquis Lord George Bentinck, were hoth in the same woman, while the younger’s suit received vprobation of her father, the not only discouraged the de- sire of the eldest son, but treated him with insult and referred in very terms to a skin disease 1tom which he suffered. the cuarrel between the brothers was reached September 21, when Lord George was found dead near Welbeck Abbey—it was stated from a spasm of the heart. Whether this was the true cause of his death Berkshire, b remorse and abject fear. and his brother, hut | of Thomas Charles Druce, mense property Duke of Portland. manner in which he apartments. He did precis The climax to 1848, ing that he might ready a place of refuge. will never be known, but it is cer- tain that from that time my hus- band’s father suffered the i'l;ee\'lest e nearly always in a state of terror. “He took various courses for his protection, and, adopting the name trans- ferred to himself as Druce an im- from himself as You know undermined Welbeck Abbey with subterranean ly the same thine with the Baker street bazaar, his desire in each case be- have always “Realizing the risk of exposure to *| which he was subjecting himself by his double existence, he determined to end his life as Druce, and caused a coffin to be buried with his sup- posed remains. Even after this his fears were not quieted. At last he determined to assume madness, that should he ever be accused of any crime, he might have the plea of insanity to fall back upon. “Taking the name of Harmer and conducting himself in the most ex- travagant manner, he caused him- self to be placed under the care of Dr. Forbes Winslow and succeeded entirely in convincing that gentle- man of his madness. “But after about a year of incar- ceration he was permitted to leave. “As to opening the grave, I have received a letter from the cemetery company, saying it will not be opened without my son’s written was Druce. the 28, 1857, Yorke THE LONELY HERMETICALLY > SEALED GRAVE IN e 4u ;nIGNGATEl_L' v authority. must be delayed, but I am absolute- ly confident of success.” This is the strange story told by Mrs. lutely no light upon any such romance desperate struggle to prove her claim. According to Burke, the fifth Duke died unmarried, December 6, 1879, and the dukedom passed to his cousin, Wil- liam John Arthur Charles James, the present Duke, who was born December only daughter of Thomas Yorke Dallas- County of Lincoln, on June 11, 1889. The dukedom was created in_ July, 1716. The additional titles borne by the | him. £ As he is in Australia, it Cirencester. Burke's peerage throws abso- + the carrying out and 1aarried Winifred Anna, Esq., of Walmsgate, in the mingled in society. were not allowed an THE DUKE OF PORT LAND'S P VAST UNDERGROUND ART GALLERY. family, and which are now claimed by | Wis the Australian. are Marquis of Titch- field, Viscount Woodstock and Baron Willlam John Cavendish Scott Ben- tinck, fifth Duke of Portland, against Henry, the fourth Duke. to the title and vast estates March 27, 1854, and for twenty-six years lived the life of a recluse. I or more than a quar- ter of a century all he cared for was of his wonderful works at Welbeck Abbey. It was true that he was eccentric. He was never seen at court and never Even his solicitors interview His personal attire was most ex- traordinary. He never started outy whether the veather was wet or fine, without an umbrella. He would invariably drive alone, no one approaching him but his valet. There were drawn for him every day two quarts of beer and two of ale, but he never drank them. He was free from vice, and his unusual manner of life was sald to have been caused solely by an overmastering desire to carry into effect his rare constructive skill It is also true, as Mrs. Druce alleges, that he caused to be constructed under- ground passages leading from Welbeck Abbey. It is ridiculous to presume, however, that he did so with any desire to use them as a means of escape. He was addicted to underground architec- ture, and it is because of its subterra- neous apartments that the abbey is to- day ome of the curiosities of England. The late Duke’s vast income was ex- pended vear by vear on the estate and buildings. He had a passion for archi- tecture., The reason genérally given for the creation of the wonderful un- derground passages and roads .which honeycomb the estate is that the Duke vished to give employment to the poor, of whom he was alw considerate. The main tunn 2640 yards long, is built of b with an arched roof. It is lighted from the top by cir- cular lights of plate glass, 12 feet apart, n the life of the late Duke as that| whom such st-ange charges are made | With intermediate gaslights, which are :)petm; éthged h; (h‘: woman. If there | bv Mrs. Druce, was born September 18, | used night and day to insure safety to be a flaw in the title she will have a |1800, beirig the second son of William | passengers. The ate glass lights stand out about two feet from the sur- face of the ground and have the ap- pearance of huge eyes. The subterranean carrlageway Is one of the many interminable tunnels with which the late Duke of Portland per- forated Welbeck and its approaches. He is reported to have spent between two and three millions sterling in mak- Ing this vast congeries of underground walks and drives and ha There is & labyrinth of private tunnels. He succeeded with OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO00000000000000OOO00000000000O000000OOOOGOOOG000000000000000000000OOOOO00000000000000000000000000&09000000000000000 ARE WOMENS CLUBS HARMFUL TO _THE HOME? DISCUSSED BY: MRS. HORATIO STEBBINS. HE almost phenomenal growth of the woman's club idea during the past decade or so has aroused the attention of the entire civilized world. Women’s clubs—social, scientific, ar- tistic, literary, musical, political, patriotic, phil- anthropic, utilitarian and aesthetic—have sprung into existence in cities, towns, villages and hamlets, and the “club woman” has become a feature—and a Very large one—in all communities. The question as to whether so much of club life does not interfere with home life is occasionally raised, not especially by opponents of woman's advancement, but by those who honestly desire her best good and the best good—through her—of the world. ~ Mrs. Horatio Stebbins, a woman who is widely known and universally respected not only for her quali- ties as a wife and a mother and a home-maker, but for the good which she has quietly and unobstrusively done and is constantly doing outside her household, has recently expressed her opinion concerning this matter, and her views are here presented, together with those of some of California’s most prominent club women and some of San Francisco’s well-known men. « s e & AR | It is generally assumed, without any disparagement to MRS. H. STEBBINS. | the other side of the house, ___ | that the mother's spirit and character determine the spirit and character of the family; if this is so there can be no question concerning the rank of maternal influence - compared with other influences of any kind. What- ever aids the mother of a family galns from other sources they find their highest expression in the in- fluence they have upon home. Nowhere does the mother appear so well in the character of woman as at home; nowhere is her influence more profound or more lasting. Like most other great Influences it is silent but pervasive and penetrating. If domestic life is the foundation of civilized and Christian soclety there can be no questions concerning these things. ‘Whatever impairs this influence, whatever ‘diverts it into other channels, is yielding up the greater to the less. Yet these duties cannot be wisely discharged in utter seclusion from the daily life of the world; the doors of the home must be open to the best influences that society affords; the mind must be refreshed by the open field of thought; weariness must be relieved by change; monotony overcome by cheerful inter- course, and sympathies awakened and responded to by the generous mingling of true feeling. The question arises now, can all these be appropri- ated to enrich the mind and heart with cheerful wis- dom, happy love and patient care? In all things good there is a tendency to excess. ‘What is called society has a fascinating charm, but unless wisely enjoyed it is one of the most prolific sources of superficial thought and feeling. What is commonly called fashionable society is a combination of conventionalism, self-consciousness and insincerity; a woman who is at the head of a family and is given up to this cannot bring into her own life or home any fine influences from that source. The criterion of wis- dom and love in social relations is that woman who uses soclety and is not used by it. A form of social life, improvement and recreation is the club. The club for women is comparatively a new institution. The club is a fascinating association for men or women; for men it is valuable for pleasure, convenience, busi..ess or idleness; for women it is ex- hilarating, affords a cheerful change from the mo- notony of woman’s work that is never done, and gives much interest and zest to common events and common experience, but it is exposed to many excesses and trivial ambitions. A cl- .+ woman (and I use the phrase in the same sense in which we say a club man) I believe cannot be the wise, patient and loving administrator of her household. Sh: can bring little into her home from that source to refine its temper, soften its asperities, or unravel the perplexities that are natural to young, untrained minds; but a wise use of the club affords a cheerful change, a happy intercourse ef intelligence and refinement. . s A recent article in the Club ‘Woman expresses my ideas so well that I can do no better than to quote it in part: “The club woman who neg- lects her home duties for those of the club iIs not a worthy member of the club. If the club does not make the woman a better wife, daughter, mother, a better, sweeter, brighter, nobler woman, it is not in harmony with the spirit that should animate every club in the land.” . ! MRS. LOVELL WHITE,’ l President California Club. Yes, most emphatically, I believe in woman’s ctubs. The trend of the time Is to congre- ! gate, centralize, Investigate; and while woman is in the great current of humanity she cannot help, In this ADA HENRY VAN PELT. MRS. JOHN F. SWIFT. REV.SARAH P.CARR, Lemoore, Cal. transition period, being drawn into the eddies and whirlpools caused by the inevitable upheavals and breaking away from old thoughts and customs. The club to women is but a higher grade in life's school, and if one does not have the time or inclination to study the many intricate problems touching the civilization of to-day she can profit by the research of her sister, thus gaining in a few moments what it has taken another days and weeks to gather. The club, to a large extent, has aroused women, and through its agency her latent ability and energy have been brought forth and she is realizing, as never be- fore, that she is a potent factor in the world. Along with the realization of this fact comes the desire to be qualified to meet all demands, and the beautiful results are that homes are better regulated, motherhood more exalted, childhood more guarded. « s e The subject of women's clubs has only a broad and general interest for me, for the reason that “club women” are almost an unknown quantity among my acquaintance, and no club has ever had the opportunity to experimental- ize on my home or home life. In my estimation the question as to the desirability of such clubs depends to a great extent for its answer upon the worldly circumstances of those who join them. Those women whose incomes are sufficient to make them able to put all the real work of their house- holds, and care of their children, into other hands, leaving to themselves merely the general supervision of affairs, may perhaps give much of their time and at- tention to club work and club pleasure without ma- terially defrauding the home, save in taking from it the wifely and motherly presence, and the wifely.and motherly influence, which the homes or the wealthy too often wofully lack. On the other hand, women in moderate circum- stances, whose homes and children are almost, if not entirely, dependent upon their personal good offices for all their care, comfort and happiness, can scarcely glve much of their time or thought or strength to out- side duties without actually neglecting, in material \\)vlays. those who should be nearest and dearest to them. 7 I am not prejudiced against women’s clubs, for I see ways in which they can be used, as well as abused; but I think that the majority of women connected with such organizations become g0 engrossed with their club work and aims and so absorbed In themselves in re- lation to these things, that a certain spirit of selfish- ness is unconsciously cultivated, and they become club, and self, centered, thus neglecting or ignoring more important outside duties. I also think that the political side’of club life—the electioneering and the small ambitions for office—have a tendency to destroy the feeling of sisterhood which ought to exist in assemblages of women joined together for some common purpose, and t6 create in its stead petty jealousies and differences which extend outside the club doors, and do much harm, sometimes, indeed, developing into almost a feud between factions. Such things may, and undoubtedly do, happen in men’s clubs likewise, but I was not asked to express an opinion of them. . As to the educational value of women’s clubs, it seems to me that the average woman by devoting to some special study the time that she gives to the club —the preparing of her toilettes, the dressing, the going to and from, the hours spent in her clubroom and on committee work—in fact, exactly the hours, minutes and seconds that she gives to it at home and abroad— would acquire a larger, more accurate and more avail- able fund of real knowledge than she could hope to gather from listening to club papers and club discus- sions. There is only one kind of a woman’s club which would have my entire indorsement and sympathy, and that is one where women should band together for the sake of alleviating the suffering and pitiable poverty which exists all around us. If women would organize such clubs and prove true to themselves, their obliga- tions and their fellow beings, thinking not of personal aggrandizement in any way but of the work which lies before them to do, such clubs would be a wonderful power for good, not only to those cared for, but to the members themselves, and would be a blessed stepping stone to higher tl.ings. . REV. J. P. DICKSON, Fourth Congregational ‘ Church. . s There is only a given amount of time. The frivo- REV. : lous woman will spend it SARAH PRATT CARR, frivolously, the selfish woman Lemoore, Cal. selfishly, and the unselfish woman seriously and unself- ishly. This is true of club life as elsewhere. Clubs founded solely as places of entertainment and display usually afford harmless and more or less artis- tic amusement for .women who might—and in lieu of he club probably would—spend their time in mora DR. GEO. L. FITCH. MRS. M. V. GADEN, Chalrman Pro- gramme Committee, Woman's Congress. costly and more questionable ways. The present agitation®about club life for women is more or less provincial. In more populous and oldex localities this question was fought out and settled years, ago. Any student of the recent conditions of womanhood will not escape from the fact that the great body of American women look upon life with a larger, less per- sonal and less passionate view than was the case twenty-five years ago, and this is very largely due to the growth of the woman'’s club. Such women malke better, because wiser, mothers. In spite of many undesirable forces that strongly affect the national character, there is a large per- centage of young people now growing to maturity who Jook upon life with pure hearts, serious minds and high ideals. Go Into any small town and select the boys who respect women, who are clean of body and mind, who have a pride and interest in their town, their State and their nation; select the girls who dress sen- sibly as well as beautifully, who are following earn- estly some especial line of work or study, and who look upon marriage as something besides the acquir- ing of a well-feathered nest, something imposing large obligations upon the woman as well as on the man— and you will see that these boys and girls have moth- ers and teachers who have been considering all those questions studied in the ordinary woman’s club. And it requires but a very superficlal observation to see that these results are far more obvious in the towns where there are such clubs than in towns where there are none. Women'’s societles auxillary to churches do not ac- complish the same results, because—first, they are small and divided by sectarian differences; and sec- ond, their object is usually not moral or religious so much as it is a money-making object to aid the ma~ terial welfare of the church. Much that is foolish is said both in and about wo- men's clubs. Churches and church women have com- bated them; but while it is true that club life does tend to break down sectarian differences, to ignore the non-essentials in religion, to cast aside Dorcas So- clety customs, yet much of that which is essential and permanent in religion, a broad outlook upon life, a lively interest in the life of the entire community, a higher morality, a development of spirituality ex- pressed in more thoughtful living and a greater love of humanity, and a grander, more intimate sense of union with the Infinite—these results do follow the establishment of the typical woman’s club every- ‘where. o/l et e Concerning’ the influence of women's clubs I echo the sen- timent expressed at the con- gress by that most helpful of our club women, Mrs. Sarah Pratt Carr, that wherever wo- men are organized in club work there is to be found the sane, sound and helpful women. It is true that women in secular organizations have done and are doing what church women might have done, but do not. The club woman is a true soclal being, trying to find out what she may do to help this world and to grasp the present opportunity; not satis- fied with the best she knows how, but se&rn&ln‘ for and eager to adopt a “‘yet more excellent way. 1 do not think it can be found that any more women neglect their homes for their club than neglect home for church, and these women, were they interested in neither church nor club, would find still other outlets for their energies than dommtl.u ones. s . I think women’s clubs are 1 DR. GEO, L. FITCH, of the last mile stones on ::: way toward national de- struction, the goal toward . which this nation is at present rapldly journeying. ‘When men live in men’s clubs and women live in women’s clubs, where does the home life go to; and with home life gone what becomes of the nation? You say a woman may belong to a club and still be a good wife and mother. I deny it, and facts will substantiate my denial. ‘Whenever women begin to ape men in any way they lose their charm for men. This is a fact there is no use trying to deny. ‘When the United States Census Bureau tells us that MRS. MINNA V. GADEN, Chalrman Programme Com- ‘mittes Women's Cangress. " more than four-fifthg of our men (80.69 per cent) at 25 years of age are unmarried, that nearly a half (45.98 per cent) at 30 years are unmnn{ted, that over a quar- ter (26.50 per cent) at 35 years of age are unmarried, then the said bureau tells us that a vast majority of our young men are leading licentious lives. S In other words, the unwomanly manners and ways of modern women, of which “women’s clubs” are one expression, “woman’s suffrage” is another, and all the * varied forms and ways in which women turn from their one place in the !vm-ld—"home-mdfierl"—to enter e LOUISE A. SORBIER, Pres. W.E. L U. BY MRS. E. O. SMITH, San Jose. into competition with men, take the bloom off the grape, and then man’s interest in woman becomes simply animal, devilish. Mind, I don’t say this is woman's fault chiefly. On the contrary, it 1s man’s fault for ever permitting it. Man has allowed a lot of “talkers,” who by the direction of Satan himself have garbed themselves in woman’s habiliments, to go about the land shouting about the “tyrant man” trampling on the much-abused woman, telling woman she could do something “higher and nobler” than motherhood, and that she ought to be man's competitor instead of his coadjutor. The result is that now, when it looks as if the Anglo-Saxon race had got to combine to fight nearly all the rest of the world, the young men whom we might have had with us are going to be awfully needed. 1 suppose, however, we can console ourselves for their loss with “women’s clubs” and *“women’s con- gresses,” etc. I am afraid, though, we shall find them mighty poor substitutes for the men. R The effect of women’s clubs on the home depends entirely on circumstances and the es- special waman in question. There are homes and homes, and women and women, and many things have to be taken into consideration In discussing a matter of this kind. There are, unfortunately, both men and women whose minds seem incapable of dealing with more than one idea at a time, and who run on one straight line to the neglect of everything outside of that when once their inertia has been overcome sufficiently to start them in any direction. I believe that the church has been of infinite damage to some homes for this very reason, the devoted “church worker” being, however, in his or her own estimation actuated by the very best of motives and never realizing the deplorable facts of the case. There are women who have become so interested in their church, in Booriboola Gha and their other mis- sions at home and abroad, as to neglect their house- holds and their children most markedly. There are others who arrive at the same undesirable end through their devotion to fashion, and to society, and there are still others who have become so infatuated with the appearance of the home itself as to almost ruin it for those who are forced to abide in it. There are also women who are so devoted to their children as to spoil the children utterly and cripple their usefulness in the years of maturity. The average woman and the average home, I believe, have been greatly bene- fited by the kind of club life which women have taken up in the past few years. While it is man’s rightful place to skirmish for the bread and butter for his family, it is the mother’s place to skirmish for what will benefit her household men- tally and spiritually, and bring tc it the inspiration which .comes from such an interchange of views as can be obtained in the woman’'s club where every one brings her best and highest thoughts. No well-poised woman will ever be so carried away with any outside call upon her time and attention as to ignore or neglect the claims of those who are near- est and dearest to her, and the woman who is not well poised fails in the performance of her duties wherever ghe may be placed, and neither the club nor the home is the better for her presence. * e e MRS. E, O. SMITH, ‘ San Jose. ‘While there undoubtedly are women who neglect their home duties because of out- side interests of some kind, such women, I am convinced, compose a very small minor- ity, and women of the same caliber most certainly neglected their homes long Lefore women's clubs ex- isted to be blamed for their remissness. The ordinary club fills up only a small portion of time, not nearly so much as is spent in social calls, and as, instead of the half hour of chatting between two women on no particular subject, the time in the club is speat in listening to instructive papers and dis- cussing them with an assemblage of women who have read and studied and thought for the especial purpose of bringing something of real worth to their club meet- ing, it seems to me that there can be no question asto which method of spepding time is the more valuable. The interchange of ideas, the bright, earnest discus- sions, the contact of different minds, which club life gives to women is not only pleasant, but greatly bene- ficlal, and a wife and mother who finds the time to at- tend such meetings goes back to her home better fitted to perform her duties there. The only objection which I have to the clubs of the present time is that there are men’s clubs and women's clubs, instead of being, as there should be, clubs for both together. Men’s clubs, as a rule, are very dif- ferent from women’s clubs; they are run on different lines, being more for amusement and recreation, and their influence is not so good. There are not & few LOUISE A. SORBIER, President W. E. and | U. REV. J. P. DICKSON, Fourth Congrega- tional Church. CARRIE S. WALTER, Editor, San Jose. women who have just cause to complain that club life interferes between their husbands and the home. During the day men are engaged in business and women are occupied with domestic affairs, sothe ideal club—composed of men and women both—should hold its meetings at a time when both could attend. I can never see the desirability of any institution where man and wife are not welcome together, and which tends to break their unity by developing in thein different tastes, interests and opinions. s s+ e As to women's clubs: I re- CARRIE S. WALTER. gard the culture club—in moderate doses—a most ex- cellent thing for women, more especially the home women of our community, and most especially the home women in only ordinary circum- stances, financially. 4 ‘We have many such clubs in San Jose—bands of women, with a greater or less membership, busy at odd moments studying varieties of art, history, music, some particular author or authors in -~ ~eral. In this way even the woman whose early education has been much neglected can acquire a measure of culture that will be a benefit to her famuy and put her at her ease in almost any circle. I believe this culture club has done much toward the loftier thought and broader in- telligence of our domestic women, the homekeepers, the ‘wives and mothers of to-day. Anything that can oc- casionally lift the thought of men or women, particu- larly of mothers, out of the rut of the commonplace and set it climbing to loftier heights is a blessing; and that this is being done by our better class of culture clubs no one can doubt who has knowledge of them. I am speaking now only of the modest culture clubs that have taken unto themselves so many of the best of our quiet, domestic women; having no reference whatever to the “woman suffrage” and other “reform’ combinations which, in the language of Rudyard Kip- ling, are “another story.” . Editor of the Santa Clara, San Jose. . . The normal women of the present time are broad-minded enough to give each of many things its proper share of at- tention and consideration. To guch 2 woman the club is really a blessing: If she be a wife and a mother, tired, and made at times a bit despondent and discouraged by her multifarious duties and the incessant demand upon her time, her strength and her temper, an afternoon spent at the club, where she sees friendly faces and listens to the ideas and ex- periences of others, and finds opportunity also to give of her own best for the encouragement and help of others, is both a rest and a tonic. She goes back to her home, her nursery and her kitchen better able to deal with affairs of her every-day life, and her family as well as herself is a galner by her brief holiday. Then again, there are many women who have neither home nor children—teachers and working wo- men, who find their best recreation and highest pleas- ure in the society of their club members, and who look forward to the weekly or monthly meetings with keen interest and the pleasantest anticipations. Here they find congenial friends, their equals in mind and antici- pations, and their sisters in sympathetic companion- ship. Of course, if women are to be only housekeepers and nursery maids, if they are expected to deal only with the material wants of their families, and to have no mental and spiritual gifts, then the club life is cer- tainly detrimental to them, since it broadens their minds and most assuredly unfits them to be mere drudges. But surely a woman is no less motherly because she is made more intellectual by friendly association with refined and cultured women, and quite as surely it is not necessary that a woman should be a recluse in order that she may love and care for her children and home as she ought. In refutation of this idea, let me say that the “club women” of my acquaintance are shining examples of happy home makers. Take the Century Club, for in- stance, of which I am a charter member. There are over 200 of San Francisco’s best women in that organi- zation and they are the best homekeepers and mothers, and yet find time to attend the weekly meetings of their club and maintain its high standard without in- terfering with any of their other duties. The Suffrage Association also is composed to a great extent of wives and mothers, and the uplifting and improvement of the home is their central idea—not its neglect and de- sertion. B If my home {8 not happy and well ordered, my farm not properly run and my children not just as well loved and well cared for as those of any woman who never saw the inside of a club-room, I would like to be so in- formed, and vet I am a member of four different clubs and the president of two—president of the Congress Association and State president of the Suffrage Asso- clation and member of the Century Club and vice- regent of the D, A. R. ) MRS. JOHN F. SV{IFT.