The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-08-14
WOMEN WHO Talk POLITICS.
An Organization In Which There Is Tea
and No Hair Pulling.

and No Hair Pulling.
Tho society for political study Is n
hourishing organization of New York
women whose object is to educate the
sex in politics. 1t must not be sup
posed that the students seek to learn
the most approved manner of capturing
u caucus, or how to throw delegation
when the balance of power happens to
como the right way. Nor do the teach
ers nave anything to say about the rel
Htive value of the 'Hinfiooencc" of this or
that wirc-puller, or tho Value of pulls
In political affairs
The society, says the New York
World, has lcaped over the rudiments
OF practical politics and plunged ut
once into deeper pools of political know
ledge. 1t has boon organized only n
short time, but during its brief career it
has practically solved some of the knot
ticst problems over which statesmen
have become gray haired. 1t has head
quarters ut No. sos East Seventeenth
street, and meetings are held every
tuesday afternoon at $3.50 o'clock.
During the last year papers were read
and discussions had on such subjects as
protection" and free trade" Natur-
ally these are subjects on which all
women take great deal of interest, or
would, but for one thing. Tho tariff, of
course, affects the prices on ribbons,
laccs, feathers, silks, satins, fans, bon
nets and gcw-gaws from the other side
generally. The one thing excepted is
that the husbands and fathers, rs q rulo.
pay the bills
But the women OF tho society for po-
1itical study have rgone deeper yet,
which proves that they are not inter-
cstcd only III those political subjects
which concern the cost of articles i'm
ported for their udornmcnt. They have
educated themselves thoroughly on tho
work and aims of the pan-Amcrican
congress, reciprocity and the Monroe
doctrine. At the subsequent meetings
they are to discuss the annexation of
Canada, the admission of Utah and tho
international copyright. After these
heavy topics have been satisfactorily
disposed of they may take up the diplo-
matte relations between Italy and tho
United States, the financial situation of
the Argentine Republic and tho domcs-
tic policy of Peru.
The discussion of such subjects us
these are the feature of the weekly
meetings The constitution of tho
United States and the relation of the
federal government to the states aro
standard topics, while no little time is
devoted at each meeting to the study
and practice of parliamentary usage.
Next winter, 1t is said, the relation of
parties to the welfare of the nation will
be one of the features for discussion.
Miss Grace Dodge recently delivered
IN address before the society on tho
subject Of manual training, and after
the discussion that followed tea was
served. Tea is always served before
the meetings adjourn. Tea is soothing
after political discussion, and it could
be introduced with advantage in the
Fourth and Eighth wards, so the exam
pie set by the society is a good one
The ignorance of American women
concerning the politics of their own
country has frequently been commented
upon by foreigners. In England the
women arc thoroughly informed on all
political questions. Political subjects
are discussed there at the flrcside and
around the dinner table, and the women
nre able to hold their own i'll argument
with tho ablcst statesmen. 1t is n part
OF their education from childhood, and
Englishmen cannot understand why 1t
should not be SO everywhere.