The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-12-07
TRAINING WOMEN AS rA1LoRs.
Iceland Has a School for the Edu-
cation of Mothers in the Work.

Iceland Has School for the Edu-
cation of Mothers in the Work.
New York Sun.
Outside of the capital, Reykjavik, there has
not been tailor in Iceland in the memory
OF man. So the women have always had to
make the mems clothes, for the Iceland
men, when they are not occupied af1eId wiring
ing hard living out Of the reluctant soil,
are too busy telling stories of the great deeds
OF their fathers, the Erik Brighteyses and
Skallagrim Lambstails of a heroic past to
bother with TROUSERS .ang; such things
AS all the things in the world which the
men neglect have to be done by the women
good reason why their work never ends-and
as they have never been taught tailoring, 1t
outside of the capital, is one huge, prepos-
ferrous misfit Hence tailoring is put at the
very head Of the curriculum in the girls high
school, which Mrs. Sigrid Magnussen has
built for the better education of Iceland
girls.
The Iceland mother is, in fact, the uni
versal schoolmistress Of the land. and it was
so that she might be fitted for the place that
Mrs. Magnussen built her school.
Ii stands. or stood, on patch Of ground
IN Reykjavik, upon which the builder was
Dorn Just now she is very much troubled
by the news Of the great earthquakes up
there, and by the dread that the school
may have fallen down; in which case she
will have to do 1t all over again. Icelanders
men or women, never give up a task once
begun. Some of their hero tales are running
yet, after goo years, with the end not in sight
up. The funds have run out, which is the
reason why Mrs. Magnussen came to this
country, advised By Miss Frances willard
whom she met In England, to try to sell
gathered in Iceland, SO as to provide an en-
dowment fund for her school,
Inc collection Is now in the Metropolitan
museum, on exhibition. d 1t has more than
pathetic interest, for it Is almost wholly
made UP Of heirloohls surrendered by the
women of the bleak island in the Arctic sea
IN the years OF distress that followed the
dreadful volcanic eruption of 1875, and the
years when they had no summer and the sun
never shone. The Arctic ice came down and
closed every ford ana harbor.
The people froze in july and not blade Of
grass grew. There had never been such q
season since anybody could remember. Men
and cattle starved, and II was then that the
women, to keep life IN themselves and those
dear to them, surrendered the heirlooms
jealously guarded for ages to buy bread This
is the treasure that Mrs. Magnussen has
brought to New York. She will part with
to dry. them. better day shall dawn for
Iceland when she returns with the money of
the wealthy Americans
1t is not true, according to Mrs. Magnus-
sen. that the people of Iceland are habitually
hooking about the shore, waiting to be taken
off. They stay there because it is the best
place for them. 1t is all lava farther in Just
now they are afraid Of going into the coun-
try for fear the mountains viii open on them.
literally and fguratively, but they have not
the least notion of DESERVING The only con-
siderable emigration from Iceland was dur
ing the hard years between the eruptions and
the three winters" Then 10 900 Of the peo-
pie went to Canada, leaving $4,000 there but
there are today over 72.00 left. In spite of
land. 1t Is Just the size of Ohio, with 10000
square miles of chiefly rock and lava con-
sequently it has a population Of Something
less than TIVE to the square mile.