Omaha daily bee., 1902-04-06

At the Los Angeles biennial the General
Federation Of Women's Clubs will be con-
fronted by a revival of the reorganization
question supposed to have been settled at
Milwaukee. 1t is complicated with the
question Of admission Of colored women as
members Of the General Federation. II the
position assumed by the women Of New
England is endorsed the women Of the
south will leave the General Federation.
While the published minutes of the pro-
ceedings of the General Federation Of
Women's Club" - a" S+Annial session held
at Nil 81. are silent as
the TOMB - tier, an in
cident occurred there which Las own from
what was apparently only an act of dlscre-
ton on the part of the president into In
issue that may disrupt the federation. The
president declined to accept the credentials
offered by a delegate from the New Era
club Of Boston, a colored woman repre-
senting an organization Of colored women.
Quite a little tempest was stirred up about
this M &c, but IL was smoothed
over.
The principal business before the Mil
waukee convention was the consideration Of
the report Of the committee on r~eorganiza-
ton appointed at the Denver session in
1898. Under its charter, granted by the
state of New Jersey and filed with the sec
rotary Of state for New Jersey December 29,
1898, the General Federation consisted at
that time Of IAN association composed Of
about 300 clubs. having an aggregate mem
bership Of about 10000 individuals from
the United States and foreign countries.
which said association is known as The
General Federation of Women's Clubs"
Under this charter and under Its bylaws
the individual club is the basic unit of the
general federation. In conformity with this
provision the first article Of the bylaws
as amended at Milwaukee in 1900 reads:
9TH General Federation shall consist o.
women's clubs, state declarations, territorial
declarations, national societies and kindred
organizations, the two latter to be admitted
on the basis Of individual clubs" This
section was reported by the majority of the
reorganization committee. The minority re-
port contained this section: THE General
Federation shall consist OF state declarations
Of women's clubs and territorial fedora
lions in states or territories where no state
declarations exist" On a motion to sub
stitute the minority for the majority re-
port the vote stood: Ayes, 29S; nays, 49S.
1t was thus definitely settled at Milwaukee
that the unit OF the General Federation
should be the individual club.
After the adjournment Of the biennial the
Massachusetts state federation began the
agitation of the color question. taking as a
pretext the action Of the president in ex-
GLIDING the colored woman's club Of Bos-
ton from participation in the Milwaukee
convention, and coupling with 1t another
plan for reorganization. It must be under
stood that the New England states sup
ported the minority report, favoring the
state as the unit for the General Federation.
The injection Of the color line gave them
a chance to renew the agitation after the
defeat and to push ahead again for the
adoption Of their last plan.
Georgia, which represents the south In
the controversy, took up the debate in OPP
position to Massachusetts, and urged that
the bylaws adopted at Milwaukee be
amended by adding the following words to
section 2: "Clubs desiring to join the
General Federation OF Women's Clubs
must be composed of white women ana
must show that no sectarian or political
test is required for membership"
The Massachusetts plan was for adopting
re minority report. defeated at Milwaukee,
and allowing each state federation to con-
troll it's membership. Under this plan Mas
sachusetts could admit clubs Of colored
women to membership in the state fedora
ton and Georgia could exclude them II It
so desired.
Under the Massachusetts, plan the only
change in the situation would be that from
the individual club to state federation as
the unit Of the General Federation. At pres
ent there is nothing in the charter or by
laws of the General Federation which
specifically excludes colored women or
which prevents a state federation from ad-
hitting colored clubs to membership. As a
matter Of fact, a number Of state fedora
lions have admitted colored clubs, and they
gain at least as direct representation In
the general federation as they would have
we're the Massachusetts, plan adopted, for
the state officers are ex-oficio delegates to
| the General Federation and the colored
women have a voice in the election OF the
other delegates. This is all they could have
II the Massachusetts, plan were made the
law.
The Georgia plan was simple in It's d.
r~ectness. 1t solved the problem by insert
ing the word white" into the law.
Much debate was had over these amend
ments and feeling began to rise, when a
conference between Massachusetts, and
Georgia was called for New York in Febru-
airy. Committees from the executive boards
Of the two declarations got together and
spent a day In f~ruitless argument. each
trying to convince the other of its posi-
tion. Agreement appearing hopeless, the
committees drew up a compromise as fol-
lows:
Resolved. That the color line question be
| settled without reorganization by the strict
application OF the doctrine Of states
rights.' Individual club membership in the
General Federation TO remain as II is.
After reaching home the Massachusetts