The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-10-25
WOMEN GO TO CLUBS
They are Becoming Numerous in
New York.
WHY THEY HAVEN'T CLUB HOUSES
sorosis is Conservative, but Radicals are
Plenty-A Great Lecture Managers
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respondence of The HERALD. Club
aoIeness has always been considered de-
slrabie virtue In a man. What is to be said
OF this characteristic in woman.
Everybody is not agreed as to whether a
woman has right to be clubable. And
even those who might be disposed TO admit
that woman had every personal trait i'm
phed by the designation, are not always
ready to admit that she should exercise
these qualities by actually belonging to a
club Certainly good many men think a
Woman's clubableness need not be brought
into play beyond the circle of the home
where the head of the house will make use
OF 1t as he may see Mt.
But 1t is characteristic of the modern
woman that while people are worrying
about definitions and casting about in his
tory, sacred and protane, in search of pre-
ceuents Tor this, that and the other propos-
lton concerning the gentier sex, the gen
Tier sex is going ahead TO do about as it
pleases. The precision with which the
modern woman does not ''stay putt where
the conservative places her IS always
| charming.
just now the startling fact presented by
! New ork life is Just this: That the num-
Der OF women who belong to clubs is equal
II not more than equal, TO the number OF
men-thIs, OF course, not including trades
| unions.
| What does this meaul 1t means that
women, while not using the ballot, are con-
corning themselves with every phase OF
/ CIVIC ana social hte-ys5, l know Of q club
! OF women that is up to its ears in John
EIsha's Civil Government in the United
! states" These clubs that we encounter at
every turn are no longer notifications Of
. the sewing circle Of old, Embroidery is
mot in IT," These women are studying.
debating, petitloning, organizing. a good
many OF them, alas, are what Andrew Lang
mas aptIy described as Societies for Bad
gerlDg the Poor But the majority of them
might De credited by anybody but a cynic.
| VINO denied the fundamental propriety OF
any sort OF organization effected oy women.
women, with being useful in more than a
| prophetic sense.
oorosls is the most famous woman's So
clety IN New York. Socially, it cuts a
wide swath. 1t is .picturesuuely divided
into seismic literary musical dramatic,
churchIy and arlstocratic ciques, but the
sum OF dlsSentlon Is phenomenally small
III 1acG Sorosls seldom mas what YOU might
call genuine row. For one thing il is
extremely conservative 1t has avoided
ABOUT 20 per cent. Of the possibility of row
| by banlsning the subject OF woman suff
rage. The exclusion of this vital topic
seems anomalous under the circumstances
ana many OF the members think it unjusti-
| Maple, Dut probably experience pas dictated
this provision. And then, there are so
many clubs of women in New York that
discuss nothing else!
II Sorosis is conservative, there are q
sufdclency OF radical clubs. Some of these
! II r.rE1
sane person that had their welfare at heart
would think OF divulging their topics and
| conclusions. But their radicalism will he
| the conservatism OF the next decade. The
world moves.
| The working girls societies of New York
nave developed sufficiently TO have an in
tuentlal official organ, Frdr and Necr No
interest OF city life from civil service re
| form ana higher education down to street
cleaning escapes the interested attention of
the organized women. One of the results
| OF this multiplication of clubs is that every
topic OF direct or idirect interest TO women
is soon discussed throughout wide repre-
sentatlon OF the most thoughtful and ener-
getic women In the community
Women's CLUBS develop more rapidly than
women's clubhouses. The clubhouses do
not seem to be altogether feasible. The
! WOman's Press club has quarters and
other societies have rooms and even houses
OF their own. But there are difficulties in
the path of out and out clubhouses.
Iasked q Well-known woman why women
do not have clubhouSes, man fashion.
well, can tell you," she said. without
hesitation. when man goes to his ciub
eis IN an atmosphere that confers upon
| him the highest degree of personal liberty
consistent with human companionship. He
can do things at his club that he does NOT
do in mixed company, things that we can
not Teasibly do at home. But no cIubroorn
can confer similar privileges on a woman.
| What could we do at a club that we couId
not do elsewhere! What could we do al a
club, other than what we habitually 40
without losing our reputation for pro,
| priety! We could not drink wine there
We could not smoke. We don't play nil
lizards, don't take particular satisfaction in
! playing cards by ourselves and have mo
hankering for putting our feet on the
mantepiece. You can see at once that the
rsison d'etre for woman's clubhouse is
! very slender"
! is YOUR LIBRARY CLASSIFIED?
| have before me a circular which savs
/ that 1.-The undersigned, VINO has had many
wears experience in arranging lihro,ios