The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-08-01
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body of women. the superiority of Chicago wo-
men as speakers. parliamentarians and in gen.
eral ability to guio g and inform audiences was
generally and generously recognized. At that
time distinguished woman from New York
City said II feel as if the Chicago women were
deep sea in which we eastern women swim
as small and unimportant boats"
The wOmen's clubs of Chicago are the most
numerous and enroll the largest membership of
those of any city of the United States. They
also contain the largest proportion of women
who are college graduates. Two of these clubs,
the Fortnightly, with membership limited to
200 and the Chicago Woman's Club, with a
membership of neatly 500. have very handsome
ly equipped club rooms which occupy the entire
fifth floor of one of the great business blocks in
the heart of the city. Here. over a quiet cup of
tea or chocolate, which can always be obta ned
on CALL the best women of Chicago meet to dis
cuss matters of general interest or to formulate
plans for the humane and Christian enterprises
for which they are so noted. The presidency of
the National Confederation of Woman's Clubs,
with its 100000 members. has, for the second
time, been awarded to a Chicago woman, Mrs
Chas. Henrotin. Notwithstanding vigorous
attempt on the part of eastern members to re-
move 1t 10 New York.
All the pupils of Chicago schools, public and
private, have the advantages possessed only
by great cities, of access to the great libraries
of the city; to Its Art Institute, now among the
finest In the country; to its museums, which
contain many of the most valuable things shown
at the Columbian Exp sltion; to its great
Academy of Science, ETC. Tie musical and
other entertainments are also an important fac
tor in liberal education for girls. The Thomas
concerts continue throughout the winter sea-
son, and as the rehearsals are given on Friday
afternoons, they are attended by hundreds of
pupils from the schools. The best musical art
lists come to Chicago every winter.
The great Chicago Conservatory of Music and
Elocutlon. under the direction of Samuel
XAVIER, with its finely equipped studios in tie
Auditorium. and its corps of teachers In each
department, from the front ranks of the pro-
fession, offers the opportunity to the pupils of
Chicago schools for education In all branches of
musical and dramatic art which New York and
Boston have, until recent years, mOnopolzed.
A great deal of the credit of the general high
standard of culture among Chicago women is
due to the Chicago private schools for glIls,
which, ever since the great Chicago fire, have
been doing singularly effective, If quiet work
Among the twelve or fourteen long established
schools for girls in Chicago only two receive
more than twenty boarding pupils, none receive
over thirty, while the majority receive only ten
or twelve in the families of the principals. This
restriction has had the effect of bringing the
young girls who are boarding pupils into close
personal rela ion to the principals of these
schools, to the great advantage of these pupils,
since among the principals of the private schools
of Chicago are to be found women distinguished
not only as educators but as scholars and writ
ers to degree scarcely equaled by any city in
the country.
Another interesting fact in regard to these