The Portland daily press., 1889-03-19
SOROSIS IS OLD ENOUGH TO VOTE.
Anniversary Of the Famous woman's
Club OF New York.
Great Convention Of Woman's
Club members In Gotham.
no" sorosls was Formed and what
Has Como OF IL.

S'uo 1embers In Gotham.
no" sorosls was Formed and what
Has Come Of IL.
NEW YORK. March 1s.-The sorosls Ciub
the famous woman's club Of New York. h.s
just reached the age Of 2l years. Beginning
today II celebrates Its new dignitles under
the presidency Of the pOetess, Mrs. Ella
Dietz Clymer, who was last week elected 10
the Office. A convention Of woman's clubs
Is in the wind, and delegates from all parts
of the country are already arriving. This
convention may result, indeed II Is expected
to result, in federation Of all the establish
ed woman's clubs In the country In a nation
al union with a central organization, head
quarters In New York, and annual sessions
TO discuss topics Of general interest 70
women.
A banquet at Delmonico's today, when
members and guests will rejoice in the com
ing Of age Of the society; morning sessions
Tuesday and "Wednesday In the Madison
Square Theatre, which A. NJ. Palmer has
loaned for the occasion; receptions by SOro-
sis, by the retiring president. Mrs. Thomas.
by Jennie June and by some Of the most
prominent artists Of the city, who will throw
open their studios; visits to the MetrOpOli-
tan Museum at the invitation OF General Dl
Cesnola, to the Historical, Geological and
Archaeological soclties, all OF which are Law
ish In their offers OF hospitality, promise 10
make week memorable In the chronicles OF
woman's organizations.
Long ago Jennie June discussed a project
for "wOman's parliament" and it Is much
the same thing under. another name which
the representatives Of one hundred or more
societies Of women will have laid before
them. The proposition Is TO unite the exist
ing clubs Of women In great general body,
whose brahehes-the local women's clubs
shall extend all over the country. This gen
eral organization will erystaliZe the lntelli-
gence and the influence Of the now scattered
societies, and unite their energies IL possible
In definite channels. Matters connected with
hygienic and sanitary reforms, the work and
wages Of women, women In the professions,
the education Of women, domestic economy
and progressive housekeeping. the dress OF
women. prison reforms, and even political
clubs-are subjects which have been suggest
ed beforehand as topics Of Interest on which
the collective public opinion Of the sex might
be brought TO bear In useful directions.
The idea OF the federation Of the 100 clubs
which have grown up In the twenty-one
years that Sorosis has lived originated with
Jennie June. What will come CT Ii depends
on this weeks deliberations. IL IL should bs
adopted II will be one Of the most important
steps In organization that women have ever
taken, bringing together body larger and
better centralized, and with better defined
constituency than the "Womah's Congress-
q" which have from time TO time assem-
bled. Organization Is w0men's watchword
Just now. Whatever they do they do in So
cieties, and where two or three are gathered
together there Is the club certain 10 b9
formed. III the clubs themselves take 10
clubbing then will they begin to act definite
ly on the varied interests OF society.
The name ''Sorosis" was selected by Mrs.
Croly, (Jennie June. She found il while
hunting through q botanical dictionary. She
says she liked IL for "its apprt pirate signih-
cation, its unhackneyed character and sweet
ious meaning" The establishment Of Sor-
osIs grew out of the exclusion Of women from
the good times Of men. In March. 1855. the
New York Press Club offered dinner %
Charles Dickens. Jennie June. as mem
for ticket at the regular rate, SIS.
The committee laughed and said, Good
Joke, isn't 1t? She's clever woman"
Mr.: James Parton took u seriously,
Fern" another journalist, applied also.
Mrs. Charlotte Wilbur, woman writer, sent
in third request, and Greeley then took the
matter up. declaring that he would not pre-
side 'unless the women had a show" But
the Press Club waited till the last moment,
and then sent letter, not too cordial, telling
Mrs. Croly that II women enough to make
a geod showing and prevent each other from
feeling lonely, could be found to buy tickets,
they might purchase them. This ehurlish
assent, at such a late date, was practical
refusal, and the women staid away. But
they had wOman's weapon-the tongue.
They talked. They talked at the sunday
evening receptions Of the Cary sisters. They
talked to Kate Field, then on the Tribune;
they talked to Mrs. Vincenza BOtta. They
talked about a "Blue Stocking Club" a
"Woman's League" Columbia Club, "and
the "Sphynx," which was Alice Cary's sug-
gestion. Ten of them Organized Sorosis.
Alice Cary was the president, Mrs Croly
the vice president, and Kate Field the secre-
tary. Ella Dietz Clymer and Mme. Demon
est, one now president, the other an active
Field did not like the name, and left when
she could not change II. Mme. DemOrest
stood by the '-Sisterhood' and ehristened 10
with basket Of white carnations, and upon
this 'Sorosis," Ia letters OF violets.
The Press Club gave breakfast" Invited
SOrOsis and left Il to sit still and eat and be
talked to. Then Sorosis gave ''tea" 20 the
Press Club, and let II sit still and eat and be
talked to. Not man was allowed TO open
his mouth, even In response to the toast,
"the gentlemen" Then the Press Club and
SOrosis gave a "dinner" together, sharing
the eating and the talking. This was the
first public dinner ever given at which
women sat down on equal terms with men.
paying their own bills and dividing the
honors and the.exercises. Alice Cary wrote
poem about 1t. four lines OF which ran:
Let lightning, harnessed 20 the cable,
| Trample old ocean Into spray
With news that women SIC az table
Above the salt today
In less than one month came the New Eng
land Woman's Club In. Boston. In less than
two years the Brooklyn Woman's Club be-
came number three. The club idea, In spite
| Of the ridicule that was heaped on u, inter
ested women from Maine to California.
The Association tor the Advancement OF
Women, which has neld an annual Con
gress" since 1873, assembled In answer % a
call from SorOsis The social life Of the club
has been restricted by the fact that, unlike
some Of the young and progressive Western
woman's clubs, 1t has no club house, meet
ing In parl0rs at DelmonleO's but despite
this fact one Of its special functions has been
the social recognition Of good work done BY
women as some Offset 10 the social marks 0t
distinction bestowed by men on men. IL
has offered receptions to almost every IA
nous woman who has visited New York In
ten years. Alice Cary. Mrs. Wilbur. Jennie
| June and Mrs. NJ. Louise Thomas have been
its presidents, and its membership comprise.
all sorts, mostly good sorts. and conditions
OF women. A partial list OF its new set o.
officers installed includes, besides the pOetes'
Ella Dietz Clymer, as president, Jennie June
| as first vice president; Olive Thorne Miller
the bird lover and nature writer, as membel
Il Oh Lu6 ENtcubtNo OOuulitbtcs MARY Il. DAy
an, the Southern novelist and editor Of Nun
| roe's publications, as chairman Of the Liter
ature Committee: Mrs. Ravenhill. Kathryn
Kidder's grandmother, as chairman OF ths
| Committee on the Drama; Anna Randall
Diehl, on Education; Marion Hartland, on
House and Rome; Mrs. Ella Hitchcock, On
| Business Women.
Sorosis has established a freemasonry
| among women, with chances for discussion
| OF subjects which promise TO influence their
| future and the welfare Of society. When
| the club was founded there were no women )
| exchanges, no industrial unions, no working
wOmen's clubs, no church or missionary so
cieties ofhcered or carried on solely by won
en-, no purely wOmen's societies at all. Now
there are 100 organized and incorporated
women's clubs, and the projected federation
OF these may form the basis Of a unitet
womanhood. which shall make the historl
OF the woman's club the record OF what I
being done for and by women.
The Colonies DIspIeased.
SAN FRANcIsc. March is.-Both Auck
land and Sidney newspapers which have
Il "a Z -, rauafasn siya great urnm