The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-05-29
TALKED TO THE TEACHERS.
Miss Anthony, Miss Shaw and
Mrs. Cooper at Golden
Gate Hall.
DEGRADED CLASS OF LABOR"
Eminent Equal Suffragists Give
Their Experience as
Teachers.

The teachers Of the City schools as
sembled at Golden Gate Hall Yesterday
afternoon to hear addresses by Miss An
thony, Miss Shaw and Mrs. Cooper. Much
enthusiasm was shown, and at the close
one of the teachers rose to announce that
this was exactly the kind of an institute
teachers like. Superintendent Babcock in
troduced Miss Anthony, who made half
hour address, in which she enunciated
what she calls her lone idea," besides
some pertinent remarks on teaching.
Miss Anthony gave the story of her own
experience as teacher, laying stress upon
the fact that after many years service,
which had been pronounced good by the
superintendent, her salary was still 50 30
per week, with the privilege of boarding
round. Describing the State convention of
teachers held in New York, she caused a
gale of laughter by her account of how she
secured permission to speak at that con-
vention, of which Professor Davies of
mathematical fame was the presiding Off
GER. For a decade she continued to attend
those annual conventions, always striving
to introduce a resolution that women do
ing work in the schoolroom equal to that
of men should receive the same pay. She
was glad, she said, that a law exists here
that the salaries of men and women teach
ers shall be the same.
Miss Agnes Manning interrupted the
speaker and announced that she had writ
ten the law, and she and Miss Kate Ken
nedy had secured its passage. Yet the
word primary in that law had killed it,
Resuming the subject of teaching, Miss
Anthony said that women who had not
special aptitude and liking for that pro-
fession should seek usefulness elsewhere,
and leave the avenue open Tor women who
are specially adapted to teaching. The
great hindrance to progress in this line is
that there are too many people engaged in
it who are not fitted for it. In closing she
said that, so long as women are of the de-
graded class of labor, so long as they have
no ballot with which to persuade, to ele-
vate that class, just so long will they labor
for smaller wages than are paid to men
doing the same amount of work.
Miss Shaw said she, too, had been a
teacher; she, too had taught for the small
sum of 81 per week, with boarding round.
1t was by means of the "boarding-round"
experience that she had learned so much
about the subject of marriage. Muscle
was more necessary qualification than
brains in the teachers of those days. In
the present day the profession of teaching
requires the finest intellect and the most
finely trained consciences.
"When women get the ballot, il I am
ever tlcCtcu 10 d place III tu0 NdLlOndl
Legislature" she declared, ~ will intro
duce bill requiring that teachers be pen
stoned. Generals, colonies, captains, those
men who are trained to kill people, are re-
tired on half pension, whole pension,
double pension, but teachers-why are
they not pensioned? The argument is
often made that women are not proper
teachers of patriotism. Some German sage
has said: There will never be true patriot
ism in America till boys are trained by
men teachers. How can a political non
entity teach political entity patriotism t?
Now, that is III measure true, but what
would thinking woman answer2 She
would say: Granted, but give US the
ballot. Make us political entities and al
that will be changed
Mrs. Sarah B. Cooper said she could not
leave the hall without communicating the
good news that DR.. Walk of Trinity Church
had just brought from that body of Epis
copalian ministers, met in convention in
the south, the message that they had in
dorsed the woman-suffrage movement. A
brief pungent address favoring woman
suffrage followed and Mrs. Cooper was
heartily applauded as she resumed he1
seat.
On motion of Silas Wright, principal
of the Spring Valley School, a vote OF
thanks was extended to the speakers