The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 10, 1901, Page 6

HERE are women, and enterprising women at that, who do not want to be men. This is not as it should be, ac- cording to the common theory of the funny man v’ ssociates woman's clubs with bloomei- .nd swaggers and slap-me-on-the-backs. It is generally supposed that if a woman has the au- dacity to club it, it is because she is mad that she wasn’t a man in the first place and she is trying her best to make herself one. The funny man has i« living, and if the truth does not uull out for lis purposes, he must call upon his imag- ination. The truth of the matter is that by no means all of the women who have jdeas want to be in their brothers’ shoes. Mrs. John Swift is one of these women. She says: *I wouldn't be a man for anything in the world. 1'd rather be something nicer, as all of us women are. A man is well enough in his way, but what can he do as compared with wom- en? Very little. “What can he do? What can a woman do? “A man can attend to his one trade or profession or art, whichever he supports himself by. Take that away from him, and what can he do? “In most cases, nothing. “But 2 woman—what can she do? “In the first place she can very likely attend to some form of business just as well as a man. It is no small proportion of women nowadays who can earn their own bread and the butter for It, too, al- though they don't very often get what they earn. “But her profession is only one of her gecomplishments. What else? “8he has not lost her womanly accoms plighments through learning other things. Bhe still can sew She can cook. Bhe can rear children She can nurse the sick. She can kecp the wheels of a home oiled and in perfect running order. “Now which would you rather be? Which do you think it is better worth wh‘lh- to be? For my part, 1 am satis- fied.” The keynote of Mrs. Swift's ambition i8, not to make women into men but Lo make them better women. 7To that end she works through her clubs. She Is a member of the Century Club and was for a long time its president; besldes the work of the Century, the Busan B. An- thony Club and the Daughters of the Revolution claim her Interesis Just now she is in the public eye as lhu most prowinent worker In the move “California’s Best Known Club Women!” they aref Or, in knowing who they are, have you ever studied their personalities to know why they should be considered the ‘“best known”? This sketch of Mrs. John 8wift is the second in an inter- Do you know who esting series on just those lines. Swift 1s a friend entertained the visitor when she Sewall lectured, met genernl gave Aan lmpetus on the coast fmpetus die tant personal L\ local cour International May Wright Bewall was here representative International Ce been organlz committee i1 call on August W and 1n October the organization was formed. This made the clubs which join- ea it all members of the National Coun- ¢il. which belongs to that great interna- tlonal organization that includes millions of members, almost all women, “The thing is to get women together so t¥nt they may know each other, get rid of their prejudices and act together,” she says. *“The trouble with the smaller clubs is that they bring together women of the same kind. One club contains all philan- thropists, all literary people, all millin- ars. The councll brings together the phil- antkropists, the literary people and the miliners and they come to find out that they are all good people in their way and they might as wch be (riends." Mrs. Swift's philanthropy is attended to in asldes, Once in a while it crops out that somebody who has found this world a very big place and easy to get financial- ly lost in found a safe harbor in her big heart, These are the things that she doésn’t talk about, Her home Is a place worth visiting. It fs full of delightful Japanese ornaments and carved furniture, black and heavy, and splendidly Orjental In Its wealth of elaborate design. These treasures were gathered during the years when she lved in Japan; her husband was United States Minister to that country. There they lved In luxury, with elghteen Jupanese servants, who drew halr-splitting lines between thelr elghteen dutles The gorgeous embroidered hangings and the e¢bony carvings adorn the parlors downstairs, Upstairs at the front of the house Is Mrs, Bwift's own study. Heg desk 18 there, her couch, her easy chalrs Flowers always stand in the room. About the walls hang old-time portraits of her family. Her grandfather was o famous mninlature painter in his day and much of his work Is preserved there. There, If you are lucky, Mrs. Swift will recelve you In a room that makes you feel at home on the gpot, to say nothing of what its occupant does. Bhe Is known as a good hostess; she has a cozy, comfort- able manner. The gods have glven her a fine physique, sparkling black eyes and a mass of snowy white hair. The truth s Mg, Bwift comes of a famlly rvnnwm-d for its endowment of beauty and she was not overlooked, It I8 partly the beauty of good health and optimisgmn. “Of course, I'm an optim- fgL,”" she sgay: “What's the use of living if you are not? There 1s nobody on earth who hores me a8 a pesshinist does, ™’ And when you come to think about ft, vouldn't that be a short way of getting rid of pessimistg if everybody tried 1t? IThey thrive on pity, they thrive on con- domnation; but If they were looked upon a4 bores perhaps they will in time find thit they are boring themselve There I un ldea from a club woman that 1 worth looking at twlce - P O