Evening star., 1902-02-17

the nFSt pioneer IN kAe woman question.
ties were threatened by the government.
and no wonder. for their first opening was
not crowned by success. 1t is true that wo-
esms ef fosssins ss from all the
and their aim was various. There were
girls who had been successful at high
scnoois, anxious to continue their educa-
tlon, tnen there were also the women, be-
longing to the poorer classes, believing In
knowledge as future pieces of bread; but
.nere were also great many less earnest,
In IKE the daughters OF our farmers. who
tnougnt life in the, capitals more interesting
than In the countfyss, Then there came the
number of indifeFeht girls, whose mothers
believed that higher education would give
thelr daughters prestige in society and
thus advance their matrimonial prospects.
Ihen tnere came the usual quantity OF fe-
males. endowed with the instinct Of a herd
tn VI cattie' following in the rear, not know
ing why or wherefore, and last. not least,
came crowd of good-for-nothing girls,
VINO mad left the discipline Of the paternal
IooI ana soon afterward became a disgrace
70 OUT sex and terror to our government.
Ihese women were the first to call
themselves emancipated, but the fact is
lhey nad only emancipated themselves from
sos.I, soap ana water, comb and brush, for they
eooiu De recognized in the streets Of our
capitals by their shortcut hair. eyeglasses
ana shocking manners. This was the first
period OF their existence, the second was
Molse-sney worse became nihilists. In every po-
century these women had taken part Vera
Sassul1tz. who attempted to kill General,
1repo1; Maria Grinoff, who shot the gov
e[hor OF foltaya, and Sofia PerOvskaja,
VINO was hanged after the murder Of Alex
ANGER III, mad been students at the medical
coleges, Which had to be closed on account
OF the nihilists This was a dreadful blow
70 the nard.Working, earnest women, for
WHOM professional education had become
an ann In life. For a number Of years the
frencn and Swiss universities were crowd
ed with Russian women, who had to leave
thelr country, often without means, in order
70 study abroad. But that seems long ago.
AT the present day one professional school
opens a1ter the other, and Russia may
poast or the great number of her women
physicians, lawyers, dentists, pharmac acis.s
anu the rest. All our government offices
nave opened their doors to these representa-
tlVes OF work and brain, and what is more,
encourages them by giving them equal
r1gnts e with the men. Physicians, lawyers,
an scnooi oHcials, beginning from the prin-
clpai to the youngest teacher, inspectors Of
hospitals and other institutions, are en-
t1tied TO the same distinctions as the men,
and many Russian woman may be seen
Wearing-en her breast the st. AIMS and St.
Flad1m1s cross, given to her by the govern
ment In appreciation of her services.
ou have all heard Of Sofia Kovalevsky,
the woman who was far ahead of her coun-
try and consequently had to carry great
genius TO Sweden, where for number of
years she occupied the chair OF professor
OF higher mathematics at the University Of
Stockholm. Not many have read her book
or have heard of it. At the age of twenty
she was considered light in science. Her
work was crowned by the greatest reward
from the Academy of Paris. We have a
great number of women writer's editors
and journalists of no mean ability There
IS not country in the world which has
SO many women members in her scientific
societies. The president Of the archaeo-
logical congress lately held in Russia was
Princess Tn
women seem to be everywhere. The city
or Iaita last year elected woman
honorary citizen of the town. This is only
title, but few men get it. Honorary citi-
zens are rare, 1t is true but citizens we all
are, we Russian women, for we share the
suffrage rights of our men, In Russia, of
course. 1t Is different from what it is in
other countries, for we don't vote for our
czars nor do we vote for our governors: but
our local officers, like the mayor, aldermen
are elected by the vote Of real estate own
ers whether they be men or women
In Russia the women Of the better class
es do not vote in person. They transfer
their vote to anybody they please. The
woman of the people is less conservative,
and election day for her is as lively as for
the men,
Women of Norway.
In her address on the women Of Nor
way Mrs Drewson said:
I'VE have attempted to insist upon
same work but as a rule with very poor
results. The different laboring women's
associations have also been working to-
ward this end, but it has become more and
more plain that the rights of women can
not be well guarded until they have the
same political rights as men, a result that
only can be obtained through the acuuisi-
tfon OF suffrage. A few years ago a mar
ried woman's right to collect wages was es-
tablished by law A married woman has
equal custody over her children with her
husband. The age of consent is fifteen
years. The established church is the Luz
theran, in which the women can have no
offices, nor take part in any delberation
ganist and sing in the choirs. Women fire.
quently attend public meetings and deliver
lectures, both political and professional.
There are no legal restrictions on womens
appearance In public Choice of husband
is entirely free. Divorce can be obtained
for 1nfideilty, or in case husband or wife
commits crime against the other for which
the punishment is not less than six years
imprisonment
ANY marriage can also be dissolved,
when both parties agree to it, in the follow
ing manner:
"Applicaton is made to a court for a
separation, and if this continued for three
years full divorce would be obtained If full
agreement Is made to the control of
children, alimony and division of prom
erty.
South American Republics.
Senorita Carolina Huidobro Of Chile ad-
dressed herself to the subject, Women In
South American Republics" which, she
stated in opening, was something Of a mis-
nomer, as she could only speak with
knowledge of the Latin republics, which
would leave out Brazil, the largest of all.
and Portugal.
The senorita disdains notes and manu-
script. and talks with hands head and
shoulders. She said that the woman's con-
dition in Chile was scarcely comprehensive
to the northern woman, particularly the
different blood to begin with" she said
"and education and environment have done
the rest. There Is a society caste in Chile
that presents almost insurmountable diff
culties." Senorita Huidobro is a newspaner
correspondent, yet to her papers in Chile
she has to write over nom de plume IT
could not afford to lose my social standing
by announcing to my society world in Chile
that 1. q woman, work in public" The
speaker then sketched graphically some of
the features of the peculiar conditions sur
rounding all endeavOrs to emancipate wo-
men in Chile.
Other speakers were FREDERICK Dereton
resident commissioner from Porto Rico. on
the women of Porto Rico; Women in the
Philippines" by Mrs. Harriet Potter
Nourse, and Impressions of a Traveller in