The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-04-19

Theodore C. Wadsworth has inaugural ed a new era for herself and likewise for Q number of other ladies. She has shown that woman as well as man may graduate rom school teaching into the insurance business and succeed if. it in a way to make most men open their eyes at the region.
 Life Insurance is the special depart ment Miss Wadsworth has chosen for herself sbe Is an Ohio woman from the Western Reserve region. Her father was pr. wadsworth of the family from which the poet Longfellow descended. Theodore received the main part of her education at Baldwin University. the CO., ed college at Berea. O., where her home was, She taught in the high school of that town after leaving college. She con tinued in the teaching profession till she had distributed her labors over five ant principal in Wichita. Kas., again was normal school instslAAtor in Minnesota and finally was supervisor of music In an Iowa school
 Her life was in the main a pleasant one during this career of teaching. Her vigorous intellect. superior education and bright, aspiring nature opened to her nat urally the higher places in the teach CTS world. and that threw her socially among college people and literary folk. She was well paid. too. as teachers goes. but by and by the question occurred to her. What car, woman teacher do if she grows old? Before tho teacher there is always the necessity of making provi- sion for one or both of ''the inevitables of life" death and old age. If the teach ss dies les sonns her sGr pride mpes mated. as the case may be, in respectable style If she lives to old age. then all the greater the need that she shall have rit- tle income to maintain her while she is waiting to die. as so many persons of Both sexes apparently consider that they must do. These often bid the world and all its activities farewell twenty or thir- ty years before they actually do die;
 worth to think of other women teachers and workers on comparatively small wages. In these days of hard conditions the hope Of matrimony as . life support thought Miss Wadsworth, the common sense thing for women wage earners to do is to tax their income during their
 sea income when s they ney are olS sse sse s about how Miss Wordsworth puts it In her insurance lingo. To make this forehanded provision for herself and to induce other w,men to do likewise so that they might be free from the bitter dependence of old age Miss Wadsworth gradually came to consider her special work
 Some of the large life insurance com panies were beginning to open depart naturally. the figuring part of the insur.- ance business had a fascination for her. and she desired to be in and of it. Her hope and ambition centered on becoming an actuary, the computing official of an insurance company and the top notch in the profession.
 She was in Iowa at the time she was drawn to the insurance field. The com pany with which she is still connected was opening a womans department in the Northwest. with offices at St Paul. Miss Nadsworth took charge of this new feminine branch Of the enterprise.
 That was her opportunity to prove how valuable and capable a business man 8 woman makes when she sets her head to do 1t. She remained three years in St. Paul. managing her department and watching with pride and pleasure it's growth. Then the company sent her to Iowa and Nebraska to open insurance offices for women. Her headquarters were in Omaha and Des Moines.
 About this time, too, she began to train other women for insurance agents. a work for which her years as public school she gave lessons to high school teachers at the beginning of their summer vaca-
 tion. In her own office she had a black board. on which she figured before their eyes the problems they as agents would encounter. In two weeks she prepared them to go out and try their hands at obtaining insurance orders. Some special Faculty seems necessary to be a succeaE- Is, few possess it. Miss Wadsworth says. When a woman has it, however, she sue ceeds remarkably well. One lady during the experimental summer vacation work obtained such good results that Miss lWadsworth advised her to ask for leaS Of absence from the high school in whic.i she was a teacher. She got the leave and succeeded so well in insurance that she resigned from the school and became a, length superintendent of the company's womans department in Iowa.
 | As to Miss Wadsworth herself, who
 had done such successful pioneering work, she was transferred to New York I City and made superintendent of the whole branch Of the business which per 1 tains to insuring women.
 Do you employ agents?' somebody asked her.
 Yes. I employ agents. and am my l self my own best agent" she answered l "A woman who is successful in this busi ness receives anywhere from Sl, ,aO0 to s10 900 a year,
 Miss Wadsworth herself is a royal illus 1 tration of wonans ability, tact and hus l tie as well ah of a womans success 1T a field usually given over to men. Sht | was in Texas awhile looking after hel | company's affairs. She and her agents in