Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-05-15

as the two objects upon which women feel
Vassar is of the simplest. Occasionally
richly attired girl is to be seen, but If so,
one or two surmises may safely be made:
Either she Is a freshman, furnished by an
anxious mother with variety Of unsuitable
garments, or she is an upper classman, tenn
porarily reduced to her good clothes"
Serge and aannels are the customary wear,
and long before the eve of comfortable
dressing set in elsewhere, college girls were
in the full enjoyment of simple and
rational costume. On feast days and leisure
evenings there is q flutter of pretty dresses,
but they are simple gowns to begin with
and they are made to do service.
Whore Girls Have the Advantage.
Clubs and societies are numerous but
many have no fees, and the most exorbit-
ant demand is made by "Philalethea," the
leading literary society, whose yearly dues
are 81 and entrance fee So. In considering
the cost of living for college girls an esti-
mate will be far out of the way that does
not take into account the feminine ingenuity
which these girls have at their command.
In the arrangements for class entertainments
and private "teas," in their theatricals and
the decoration of their rooms, it comes into
play wite great success, both so far as finance
and results are concerned. To make a pair
OF dainty muslin curtains for the room one
day, to paint castle wall or rig yacht for
scenery in "hall play" the next, is a mere
nothing by way of versatility, and when she
wishes to be hospitable in her 7x9 apart
ment, she can butter the sandwiches and
make the tea herself and take no trouble at
all about further provisions for her guests,
since such as cannot find place on the lounge
hair ha fha
floor.
The students rooms are furnished by the
college to this extent: They are carpeted
and have in them the essential pieces of
furniture. Their Transformation into cheer
full and homelike hooks is brought about in
very simple fashion by deft fingers and
mother wit.
One hundred dollars year will cover
these supplementary expenses. Many girls
spend less. In fact, one girl, is on record as
having spent from the opening of the col
lege in the fall'up to the Easter vacation,
$37. She was going through college OH a
She has hosts of friends, and one after an
other of the distinctions of student life were
hers.
When the freshman steps over the college
threshold, she leaves behind her whatever
social or personal prestige she had at home
If she is wealthy her wealth will secure her
the chances to indulge her personal fancies
within rather narrow limits, and the chance
to be generous, and little else. She will
simply have the place which she can win
for herself by virtue of her own qualities of
mind and character. It is q wholesome ex-
perience, and one which too seldom comes
into woman's life.
The Utility of a College Course.
But in considering the money side of
collegiate training. there is yet another
phase which should be touched upon. We
see what it costs to get 1t; what is it worth
to the girl when she has it? In answering
this question, everything but the material
gain which may result from such course of
training will be set aside. Whatever devel- |
in broader outlook and the sense |
of wider opportunities the four years at col |
lege may have brought the student will not |
be touched upon. The relatively unim- |
portant question of its material value to her |
will alone be treated. In the first place, f.!
there Is the obvious fact that in the profess
sion of teaching the possession of college |
diploma is rapidly becoming sine qua non,
and that the prizes in the profession are
hardly within the reach of women who have
not supplemented their college work by |
more advanced special study.
And, again,it is evident that if the crowd
ing of women into the calling of teaching is
to be remedied, it must be by some means
that will put them in touch more generally
with the activities of the world, and also
give them the chance to develop. as fully as
possible. their individual bent Toward
both of these the college helps. The horizon
of her world continually recedes before the
students eyes, and the four years is four
years. test of her most effective direction of
work.
For these reasons college course has
1tilitarian value for that large and increas-
ing class of girls who take it for no utilita-
Ran considerations, but simply for its worth
IN itself They are girls who may reason
IDLY expect that they will not have to face
he necessity of selt-support; but it is often
he unreasonable that happens, and it is
much more in the way of possible disaster
or a woman than for man.
ELIZABETH NJ. HOWE,
President Boston Branch of Association of
Collegiate Allumna.