The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-04-08
Woman sWorId
REACTION AGAINST WOMEN
Tendency in German Official Circles
4 to Restrict Further Concessions
in the Woman Question,

Facts are increasing to show that i'll
official circles in Germany a reaction has
set in against further concessions in the
woman question. says the Outlook. In
the fatherland this problem Is confined
almost entirely to the departments of
higher education and public service, and
only to very limited degree has 1t also
a political aspect. Remarkable progress
had been made, especially in the attend
ance of women at the universities. Here
the high-water mark Of 1882 was reached
one year ago, and even last spring total
Of 1929 was reported. Now only 737
women are enrolled in the twenty one
universities Of the country, and the prob
abilities are that there will be a further
decrease, as the authorities In a num-
Der of cases have assumed a hostile at
titude toward the agitation. Notably
is this the case in Berlin, where the con-
ditions for admittance have been made
more stringent, with the result shat the
enrolment decreased from 622 to $40 in
a single semester. Still more significant
Is the fact that the university senate, in
response to a petition to admit women
to university privileges on exactly the
same footing as the men, has promptly
refused to do this. This means that not
only in Berlin women will not be ma trio
ulated, and can attend lectures only as
hearers" by special permission, but that
probably the majority of these institu-
tions throughout the country will follow
the example of the leading Prussian
school. AS matters now stand, only the
duchy' Of Baden, with it's two territorial
universities of Heidelberg and Freiburg,
will permit women to 'matriculate and
take degree with exactly the same con-
ditions that obtain in the case of men.
In all Of the other universities women
cannot become full-7edged- students, and
can be admitted to examinations only as
a special favor. Baden has in general ex-
hibited a marked degree of liberality in
extending the privileges Of it's high schools
to women, not only admitting them to its
| universities, but also to the regular gym
nasium or secondary schools at Pforzheim
and elsewhere, and even establishing reg
ular colleges for girls, e. g. at Carlsruhe,
leading up to the universities. In this
latter respect it has been timidly followed
by Oldenburg and one or two other smaller
states of the German empire; but as yet
nearly all Of the girls colleges in Ger
| many, corresponding to the regular CLASH
cal gymnasium and the scientific Ober-
realschue for boys, of which colleges the
best are found in Berlin, Leipzig. Bres-
lau and Hanover. are the work of private
! enterprise. AS long the all-powerfu
Estate of Prussia shows so little inclination
to make real concessions to the movement
but little permanent and tangible gains
can be expected. And in Prussia the re-
aCtlOn is seemingly stronger than else
where
In koenigsberg new restrictions were
| enacted that virtually exclude women
from the medical department, and this
example has been followed by Halle and
Saxon Leipzig. It is rather remarkable
| that even where women can matriculate
they make little use Of this privilege. Ir
Heidelberg, out of seventy women stu.
dents, only sixteen are matriculated, an6
in Freiburg out Of forty-thre only eigh-
teen. A woman contingent is found at al
of the German universities except the
three smaller institutions at Greifswald
Munster and Rostock. the attendance a
the others ranging from $40 in Berlin t.
2 In Tubingen. This same reactionar,
tendency appears also in the official de
cree Of the German imperial government
directing that henceforth special care shall
be taken not to employ weak women in tn
postoffices and telephone departments no
in the Public schools, the statistics of re
. cent years having shown that the physi
cal condition Of women only In exceptions
cases permitted them to do their flu
duty In these callings, a fact probably ex
planned by the rigorous demands made b
: the German government on all of its OF
(ficials