The National tribune., 1891-09-17
SANITARY COMMISSION.
The First Example or Cooperative Womanh0Od
Serving the state.

This the sanitary Commission was the irst
example OF cooperative womanhoOd serving
the State the world had ever witnessed and as
an education it was Of incalculable value 20
women aud % the Nation. While they were
working for the relief Of the army, women
studied the policy Of the Government and
learned what tremendous issues were at stake,
the questions involved in the war and the i'm
MEDIATE causes underlying it. They maintained
q sturdy devotion 20 the National cause, light
eued the gloom of every reverse, were uudis-
mayed by the dlsCDurasCmentS OF an Cmbar-
Eas-gd trade aud commerce, which brought
faIutuess 10 the hearts Of men, aud stOutIy
reDuked the manifestation of a disaiiected,
compromising aHd uupItrOtiC spirit. All the
while they maintained q pTOdigI0us correspond
euce with the soldiers in the army, thus
Keeping the men ia tho field civilians" says
DR.. Bellows, and making the people at home,
of both sexes, half soldiers Not only did
these women broaden ia their views; they grew
practical aud executive in work. They learned
how "a cooperate IHtCliigently with men; be-
came expert IN conducting public business, in
calling and pr siding over public meetings.
even when men made a large part Of the audi
encc; learned how TO draft constitutions and
bylaws, TO act as secretaries and committees
how to keep accounts with precision aud sy5-
tenn; how 10 answer, indorse, and file letters
how to sort their stores and keep an accurate
account Of stock. They attended meetings with
regularity and pr0mptuess, and became pune
tiious in observance Of official etiquet; in short,
they developed rapidly a remarkable aptitude
for business, on which men looked and Won
dcred. Where were these superior women
before the WARP" was frequently asked. Above
all they learned one another, and found the
world grown Suddenly large for them. rs they
formed friendships with women from whom
they had long held aloOf because OF local, Sec
tartan. or personal jeaousies and detractions.
They had demonstrated the power Of associated
womauhoOd, when working tremendously, and
had awakened men 10 a consciousness that
there were in women possibilities aud poteu-
cics of which they had never dreamed. The
lesson has not been forgotten. The young
women Of that day are the middle-aged women
of the present time better educated than their
mothers more self-pOised, aud instinct with
vital interest in all that concerns the human
race. The girls born during that period are
our young women, who are coming ON the stage
better equipped for the work Of life and with
larger opportunities awaiting them than ever
before daWned on a WOman's vision. Colleges
have been founded for them, scientific, profess
sional; art and industrial schools have opened
their doors to them; Temunerative employ
ments have given them entrance, sometimes in
advance Of their capacity and fitness, while
freedom of choice aud action is the birthFight
OF American women as of no others on the
globe. Under these stimulating circumstances
what have women accomplished during the last
quarter of a century?