The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-05

nss,, Recausc She was asirl-Wha'
~. state Gives to women ara
ara, A. NwSt Yet Gsive-Tha
,aIIure N the suffrage Bill In Han
American ahlldren's Manners
Western Paper, in commenting on the
,r,sncen,ent exercises. said: The
-aA,a.es OF the normal sSd the poly
sh,ic schools do not read essays OH Be-
'.rd the Alps Lies Italy Fc- each of them
.mond the alma mater lies job
This is felicitous way of expressing
.,odarn conditions as they relate to the
"r.d,,ate, and it applies in a large degree
,be universities as we'll as the technical
..hools The time was when after four
soars of college work, which usually rep
''.sonted much sacrifice on the part of Ill his
family, the graduate was fitted only for a
,lnrpyman or a lawyer, and in fact he re-
ouired more preparation before he could
,rsc,;se law Now he selects his vocation
n his freshman year and begins to special
i,o" for IT, nor Is ii necessary that TINS
sbouId be one Of the so-called professions,
os the strongest departments in many OF
,ba universities are those devoted TO what
NAV be termed mechanics. Indeed the
nblic now looks with the highest favor
and the greatest hope on those who are
Graduated from the colleges of electrical,
mining or civil engineering, and those OF
n kindred nature. The semi-contempt
with which the hard-headed business man
used to regard the college graduate has now
been replaced by sentiment which gives
him the preference over his less highly
educated competitor. The future will
belong to the university graduate.
This change in the status Of men, with
all iis Importance. is far less significa mt
than the one which has taken place in that
e women. The mind scarcely can con-
Give a greater revolution than is shown in
Yer education. 1t has not been the prod
rrt of ages. but there are thousands OF
PEOPLE still living who can remember that,
in this very country of advanced thought,
il was honestly believed the feminine mind
was not capable Of receiving the higher
education. II is Just seventy years since
it occurred to few brave souls TO make
an experiment AT Oberlin 10 learn whether
women really had brains. II was dis
covered that they had, for among those
early students were Lucy Stone. for half
century one Of the most powerful of public
speakers, and Antoinette Brown Black
well, the first woman ever ordained to
preach But even those who were pro-
gressive enough to make this remarkable
innovation would not permit Lucy Stone to
perform the shockingly immodest act of
reading her graduating essay. The wives
of the faculty labored with her to prevent
this unwomanly thing, and, as she would not
yield, it was finally forbidden
No other college was opened to women
until twenty years later, when, in 1858,
Antioch, at Yellow Springs, Ohio, was
1t was not until after the civil
war that the State universities in various
parts of the country began to throw open
their doors To women, and the establish
ment of Vassar, the first great college
exclusively for girls, electrified the world.
From the time when Lucy Stone was re-
fused permission to read her essay, to the
time when hundreds of thousands gather
In various parts of the country to applaud
the commencement orations of the girls,
there is span of only about fifty years.
II marks also the difference between the
belief that woman was not capable OF
grasping anything beyond the rudiments,
and the knowledge that no branch OF learn
ing is impossible for her The present
generation express surprise and contempt
FOR those antiquated ideas and pride them
selves on their liberal attitude, and yet
at every new departure which Is proposed
for woman they bring forth the musty
old objections and show themselves true
of their bigoted and ntolerant
ancestors.
Another change Just as remarkable as
that in the education of women, and a
Of 10 in
dtions which make it possible TO say, Be-
yond the alma mater lies job for every
woman who wants one. For the State
to give women the highest education and
then refuse them an opportunity to make
any practical use of il, would be great
injustice to both. More than one-half
of the money used to maintain public in
stutons of learning is expended on the
Of girls. and for this the people
are heavily taxed As a recompense the
State has a right to receive some service
from women in return. II may be said
that this is given in their wise discharge
of the duties of wifehood and motherhood,
but these were well performed before women
were educated. There would be as much
authority to Use the public. funds simply
to prepare men for husbands and fathers
as women for wives and mothers. This
might perhaps be a good use Of them, but
il hardly would be sanctioned. The recoR-
MED object Of this education by the Gov
ernment is to prepare the youth of the
nation for good citizenship, and this will
express itself both through their contri-
buttons Of labor for the material pros
perity Of the nation and through those
To It's political or governmental welfare.
When women have spent years Of time
and work in preparation they have an abb
soute right 10 Use their equipment in earn
mg livelihood and providing for mis-
fortune or old age To refuse them this
opportunity and compel them 10 let their
abilities lie dormant while they wait for
possible marriage, which may or may not
relieve them of this responsibility, is cru
city Of the past which has almost disap-
pearcd The State and society at large
are now slowly learning that women are
needed service to them and soon they will
nor accept it somewhat grudgingly. ss AT
present, but will welcome and even de-
Uahd II And all women Will know IN
llme, what many of them realize now, that
'h"lr Government has not fulfilled it, wGnIc
guy in simply permitting them tU max" q
wing, but that justice demands II should
give lhnm, in addition. u vOic" in It's couu-
U..l' and parI in its admnistrat ION. Tho
''at" rsolf eventually will have sufficient
Cohnnence in the Judgment, ability and pa
uotSm of It's women To acknowledge full
affairs
lhIs nation now oduCatcs It's wuMa! cir"
"'hS WIN The sam" car" ana eXp"us" AS rs
man ci'2"us II gives them rs far as pcs.
e'"''' no same 81 port lnities as il does men
w 'Hh" th"ig "Gn"gtiun IL pracucal
m"hh"I Ih" ncN' step must logically anu
,r'Nalr 10" 'r E"uo' them their rightfuul
nI"'' ~ ~" Gnyernmc.l under which they
- t,,,I. I / "