The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-05-04
THE FEDERATION-AND WHY
A Club Woman Supplies Some Much
Needed Information.


Needed Information
To the Editor of the Indianapolis Journal:
1 have watched each issue of the Journal
FOR a reply to an article in last Sundays
issue bearing the above heading. AS none
has met my eye 1 would like to say a few
words.
AS the writer OF Sundays article is frank
enough TO admit that he does not know
why women's clubs ever federated, 1 would
like to ask him if he has any idea Why the
States ever united? One or two examples
may illustrate the value of club fedora
ton. Eleven of the leading clubs of Wash
ington. d. c.. united in a federation, and
l had the honor to be it's first and second
president, so L may claim to speak OF that
winch know. During its first year pub
lie feeling was very generally aroused by
a case in court in which a mother sued
Tor possession OF her children. Her hus-
oand, with whom she was not living, but
from whom she was not divorced, had
given those children, by legal process, to
MS parents. The public could not believe
that a mother had no legal ownership in
her own children, and as the people were
very, prominent in society the case was we'll
aired. The presiding judge said in public
print that only the prominence Of these
people had caused such a hue end cry,
as he had tried nine just such cases while
sitting on that bench. The WOman's Jour-
nal, OF Boston, published the court records
Of several similar cases to show that the
father was sole owner Of his children, and
that this law pertained In several States.
The District of Columbia Federation of
Womens Clubs took the matter up at
once and investigated the laws bearing
specially Upon women. The discoveries
they made were almost beyond belief. and
Tor the good name Of the Nations capital
l will not record them or add TO the dis
graceful one above cited, save by relat-
ing one more Instance in which a drunken
husband, after selling or pawning nearly
every movable thing in the place he called
home, deserted his wife and three small
children. By going out washing she sue
oeeded in supporting them and tn buying
a little cheap furniture and q sewing ma
chine. by which she could earn more than
by washing. One day her husband walked
In with an officer and took everything she
had purchased and carried 1t away in spite
OF her tears and protests, and the law
was on his side; and she discovered. as
did Mary a DvermOre when she married,
that her husband owned everything" or,
wore my husbands wedding bonnet to
church when l appeared out"
At the next meeting Of the District Fed
Grafton these facts, with others, and a copy
Of the laws affecting women were laid be-
fore the members and a plan of vigorous
action mapped out. A committee of five
three Of them lady lawyers-was appoint
ed TO draw up a revised code of laws. Then
as by federating-we had in that one
Organization over three thousand members,
hailing from every State and Territory,
we were able TO appoint a m from
each State and Territory, whose business
IL was to see and explain TO their senat-
ors and representatives exactly what we
wanted done. There proved to be strength
in numbers, for, as one senator remarked,
when three thousand women get after
| you, you may as we'll surrender" Most of
the obnoxious laws were entirely changed,
while others were very materially modi-
ned, and through the efforts or Federated
women the District Of Columbia IS the one
spot in the United States where a woman
is almost as gO~Od-legally-as a man,, and
4 - : Il. n1naA n~hnFn he cannot nc
any more than an idiot, a pauper or a
woman. One small club can accomplish
little in such a work as this, but a State
Federation can do a tremendous work,
and the General Federation more, when
it chooses TO bring its forces TO bear for
5ay e eyer hPe STg0S Of the changed laws 'e of
the District of Columbia, but they have
completely revoIutionized the lives of many
women living therein.
OF course. l am sorry that the Journal
writer has been so unfortunate in his I'M
biased(D efforts to obtain re-
garding the Federation, and IL is possible
/ that if he could spend an hour with Julia
| Ward Howe, Mary a. Livermore. or Eliza
beth Cady StantOn-all ardent club women
| and mothers of families-he might obtain
intelligent answers to his questions, or.
if not able to go so far, l am sure the
woman who won the presidency of the
| Worlds Congress Of Women over the heads
| OF many titled foreigners-Mrs. May Wright
Sewall-of your own city, would gladIy en-
tighten him.
1 - the way, ulQ YOU ever hpAACN lAdl
when a writer p~refaces an article with a
| confession of his entire ignorance of its
| subject-matter he generally nils two-thlrds
of a column airing that Ignorance and hold
ing the subject up 10 ridicule? "Ridicule
is not argument" If" as your writer
| suggests. THE federation was designed 10
| permit those who attend to wear their best
| gowns and bonnets, ana co other frlV-
Olous things which he names, would any
or all of them be any more r~eprehensible
or ineffably silly than for great, broad
| shOuldered. able-bodied men TO march up
and down the streets of large cities decked
out in the brilliant reSalia of their club
or organization. blowing tin horns, wav-
ing penny flags frantically, twirling red,
white and blue umbrellas over their heads,
with an occasional toss into the air, and
performing various other antics, Tor the
sole purpose OF attracting attention 10
themselves or their particular branch or
the order" and finally winding up some
where in the "wee-sma' hours under the
| BANQUET table OF some prominent hotel?
As your writer suggests that these women
rel" / would respectfully refer him TO the
examples without number set by our
ilustrious senators and members OF the
House. and by the House of Parliament.
Whv. the Daughters of the American
Revolution" can't keep UP with them;
and think of the fighting stock they de-
Sfter saving What an individual wom-
erfs club is everybody knows, he takes
ten lines OF your valuable space TO tell
everybody who knows what il is. and
o1o1S other things says lit reads papers
on ali sorts OF topics save those bearing
or practical everyday life" VIII he oblige
~ writer by attending one session OF
'.Ths Mothers Congress- held annually in
washington2 1 believe the federation was
oreanized primarily for strength, but 1t
6sS dome a wonderful work In broadening
- educating the minds and stimulating
H. ambitions of thousands upon thousands
- women. besides a very large amount OF
racticaI work which could never have
80 ocromplished by any one club, and
- - which the world at large knows as
title as it does OF the new coce Of laws
~ ~ Ne district OF Columbia, which makes
~ usonan almost as good as a man.
d On" z. NJ. S. T.
indianapolis. May ).