The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-01-29
THAT WOMAN'S CLUB
1t Seems Now to be Fairly
Under Way-Saturday's
Meeting.
MRS. FLORENCE HOWE HALL SPEAKS
Many Literary Women Present to
Take Part in the Dis
cussion.
MRS. FLORENCE HOWE HALL SPEAK

The often agitated question of the forma-
ton of a woman's club in Jersey City was
again discussed on Saturday afternoon at
the residence of Mrs. A. j. Newbury, on
Clifton place, when Mrs. Florence Howe
Hall gave an informal talk on "Women's
Clubs.n For this Mrs. Hall was especially
well fitted, since she is the president of the
Monday Afternoon Climb of Plainfeld, and
the daughter of Mrs. Julia Ward Howe,
public and one of the first to strongly ad-
vocate the establishment of women's clubs
in this country. Mrs. Halls talk-for it was
without notes, and scarcely of a lectures
formal charactor-gave a sketch of the
progress of the clubs for women in this
country and in this State, where there are
eleven. She dwelt at some length upon the
plan and the work of the New England
Club, of which her mother, Mrs. Julia Ward
Howe, is president, and which has for the
past quarter of a century exerted such a
powerful influence in the departments of
philanthrophy, literary work, social better
ment, or any of its other channels of use
fulness. She also outlined the work of the
Monday Afternoon Club of Plainfield, of
which she is president, showing how it grew
out of a series of mothers meetings." and
has now a membership of 1875.
ADVICE o JERSEY.
In giving advice as to the formation of a
women's club in Jersey City, Mrs. Hall said
that the founders must be sure what was
their object, and once it was found, keep to
1T. She gave some good advice as to organ
ization and government, and as to qualifica-
lions for membership and citizenship.
Mrs. Hall said, in speaking OF the influence
of women's clubs in the broadening of
woman's character, that when her mother
joiued the New England Club, she, a pretty
young girl, had a great deal to say about the
i'll effect it would have in taking her mother
out of her home. A very brief experience
was enough to convince her of her error, and
when she, herself, came to take the presidens,
cy of the Plainfield Club, her mother, she
was glad to say, refrained from retalatlng
with any 81 told you SOS"
Mrs. Halls manner as a speaker is inter-
esting, although quiet and undemonstrative
The interest of her talk lay in its excellent
common sense. At its conclusion, an invita-
ton to enter the discussion was extended to
those present, some fifty in number, several
of whom represented literary clubs of the
city. Mrs. Hall suggested hat the literary
head to form the long looked for club. Miss
Lulu Grace Farrant explained that this
would be an impossibility, simply making
one great tangle of all the little associations,
from which it would be hard to unwind any
club at all.
MRS. WATTS SPEECH.
Mrs. II. c. Waits remarks were to the
point, She evidently believes that no club
now existing in the city meets the require
ments of a real literary club, and looks for
the establishment of one which shall. She
advised the exclusion of those who would not
and could not take part in the work of the
work of the club in SOM way. Mrs. Hall
could not entirely agree with this, as it was
sometimes difficult to say how much the club
would develop the capacities of the woman
for it's work. Mrs. j. L. Scudder was called
upon, but did not speak. Others made brief
remarks, among them the President of the
Woman's Club of Tenafy.
Nc decisive steps were taken toward the
formation of the club, further than a tenta-
tive taking of names. There seems to be no
reasonable doubt, however, that the project
so long debated. favored by the larger pro-
portion Of the city's representative women,
and waiting only for someone to give it the
first impetus, is at last fairly on the way.
The music of the afternoon was furnished
by Miss Jessie E. Marvin. Curiously, Miss
Marvin's grandfather, the Rev. E. R.
Clarke, and Julia Ward Howe, were old
oboo11,o%a o,1 caoo,1 nor,cinc -