Vicksburg weekly herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1868-1883, 1878-06-07
Failure Of the Women's Hotel.
New York Evening Post.

" AAg NN0AAGAfk HMOUeNa
New York Evening Post.
Ne one, we venture to say, was
greatly surprised OF the Circumsiantlal
account which we gave on Saturday of
the failure Of the late Mr.. Stewarl's
philanthropic project for the working.
women Of this city. It was expected
TO fall Of lite professed purpose as soon
as the conditions upon which 1t could
be enjoyed were known. Judge Hi.
ton 10 reported 10 cay that he shared
this opinion with the public. He is
also reported 10 be of the opinion that
It failed solely because men were OK.
cluded from the building. There will
be two opinions upon this point.
The Women's Hotel was established
TO furnish cheap, comfortable living to
women who must support themselves.
Unluckily the living was too comfort.
able to be cheap enough. The inn was
too good for the charges to be smaller
than they were, and the charges were
too large for the means Of the class OF
women for whom the inn was intend
ed. There was a good inn and an
abundant class Of persons to live in Il
but the Inn did not meet the need OF
the persons, the two did not Gt, aud
could not be made 10 ft each other.
In the very nature Of the case, shop
women chiefly must have been the oc.
cupaDts of the rooms, if the rooms
were 10 have occupants, and shop.
women could not afford to live in such
an inn. The cardinal mistake was In
providing for . class Of persons &C.
commodAtions which that class OF per-
cons could not afford 10 avail them
selves Of The prices may have been
very low for the accommodations
given, but they were too high for the
persons intended 10 be benefited. Dia-
monds al half.price would be cheap,
Of course, but their absolute cheapueas
would not enable poor folks to buy
them.
A second mistake, made with good
intentions probably, was scarcely less
fatal in lite influence. We mean the re.
strictions placed BpOn the occupants OF
rooms. In order that the inn might
not be made system Of disguised
shops, women taking rooms in 1t were
forbidden 10 have sewing machines,
without which most women of the
class intended to be benefited cannot
get on conveniently, as they must do
their own sewing out Of business hours.
For less apparent reasons women living
in the establishment we're forbidden to
keep pets Of any description, q deprl-
vation which most women living alone
would feel very keenly. For the sake
of securing the moral rectitude of the
inmates, another onerous restrictio n
was placed upon them; they we're for.
bidden 10 receive guests in their
rooms. This, as good woman said
upon reading the list Of rules, made
the inn scarcely ireei than q convent
and It must have given ofIense to great
numbers Of persons who might have
endured the other rules. Few women
with minds Of their own would con.
sent to rent rooms 10 which they could
not at will invite mother, sister or
friend few women with ordinary SEN
sitiveness would be content to be
treated As suspected persons, needing
this sort OF supervision from their
landlords.
The scheme was intended to be OF
advantage to poor women, and II failed
because of an excess Of zeal " hloh, In
trying to care too minutely for its ben.
edciarles, regulated them out Of lie
reach. II was q we'll meant scheme
which had the misfortune to be imprac-
ticable.