The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-04-01
10 DECIDE On COLOR
Attorney General Knox Up
Against knotty Question.
WOMEN ARE CONCERNED
Can the Federation Bar Out
the Darker Sex?

chicago. March 31.-The Attorney Cen
ersl Of the United States VIII be called
upon TO determine whether club women
can make Determinations on race, color
OF previous condition OF servitude. a
committee Of Chicago club women was
appointed yesterday TO ask Attorney
General Knox about the constitutionanty
Of what the general federation proposes
TO do at Los Angeles
The committee represents the most In
huential clubs in Chicago. and the out
come Of the correspondence will be await
ed by club women at large with great
interest. They think it may overthrow
discussion of the color question at Los
Angeles.
Within the last year the congress OF the
United States has granted the General
Federation Of clubs special corporation
papers. This charter provides for the or
ganization OF women's clubs engaged in
philanthropic. educational or charitable
work, or in literary, art or musical Gull
ture. There are specific provisions against
political and religious Determinations
The question now arises whether the
clubs are bound to observe the constitu-
tionaI provisions in regard to race, color
and previous condition of servitude
Mrs. Rublee A. Cole of Milwaukee is the
woman who proposed the letter to Attor-
ney General Knox. She is Of the opinion
that his answer will throw the whole
IL j
the Los Angeles meeting. The fedora
ton proposes to reorganize, she says, and
IN doing so must remember that it will
have to consult congress, which granted
the charter IN the present form. That
would at once raise the question, she
believes, whether congress would have
the right under the constitution to au-
thorize z national federation which should
recognize race and color.
This new phase Of the color question in
clubs developed at the First Compression
al district meeting of federated clubs
yesterday afternoon at the Kno associa-
ton rooms where. according to announce
ment. the color question was not to be
discussed. Mrs. c. 7. Curtis read pa
per in which the color question was care
fully avoided. and for some time the
delegates were content to talk about tax
alton and representation. Then some one
mentioned the Georgia and NIassac husetts
plans, and communication sent out by
Georgia, containing the following resolu-
ton. was read:
Resolved, That the color question be
settled without reorganization by the
strict application of the doctrine of state
rights individual club membership in
the general federation to remain as it
is"
This precipitated a discussion Of the
color question. DR.. Francis Dickinson be- /
gan to talk about the charter of the gen
eral federation. and said it provided for /
an organization Of women on certain /
lines. which she mentioned. Mrs. Ida |
Wells Barnett interrupted her to ask for |
a definition of the word women"
Dr. Dickinson objected. on the ground /
that the biological definition was too 1
long. and she knew of no other
Mrs. Barnett then wanted to speak, |
and it was supposed that she wanted to /
ask whether congress meant white wo-
men when it granted a charter for an
organization Of women. The discussion I
of the question was declared closed at /
this point by AIRS. Claribel Schmitt, the
presiding officer.
The letter. which was read as coming
from the Georgia federation. announces
that there will be no compromise on the
color question by the south. In the in
terest of harmony the Georgia women
agree TO withdraw their plan for reor-
but they emphasize their
hrmness on the color question By trust
ing it to the fairness and courtesy Of the
club women OF the country"
The Georgia letter urges that this fair
ness and courtesy will oDviate the pos
sibility Of a contingency which would
force the southern clubs to leave the ma
tional organization, membership in which
they value most highly"