Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1905-05-18

ers. but the ways of the woman's clubs
must part from the ways of Grover.
when it comes to a discussion Of how
better mothers are to be brought about.
1t Is not more ignorance. more mar
rowness. more prejudices that are
needed among mothers. but less of
these things. Even SO beautiful q
thing as mothers love may be mis-
applied through lack Of an educated
Judgment and cultivated perception.
There Is Ignorance among mothers
OF the physical needs Of the child, of
the mental needs. Of the social condi-
tons into which 1t must enter at an
early age. OF the evils and temptations
into which It will enter in the life out
of women for whom the best resource
and indeed the only resource which Is
available Is the club. That the club
habit" so obnoxious to Mr.. Cleveland.
is not allowed to go to an extreme. as
any good thing may be allowed to do.
and SO defeat its own good ends. must
be left to the Individual conscience of
each individual woman. And 1 am
confident that this may be safely done.
Women have long ago recognized and
accepted the fact that whatever chill
dren are born into this world must be
born by women. and that there is ev-
cry probability that majority Of
motherhood. 1t is for this reason that
women have from the very beginning
been studying the club movement, and
watching its effect upon home life and
the life and development of the chill
dren in the home. Can mother for
get her child? Do not ever fear 1t,
but hail her seeming devotion to her
club as prophecy OF renewed and
more intelligent devotion to those Of her
own flesh and blood. Mr. Cleveland
makes the statement that no woman
who estimates motherhood as less than
her highest and hottest function and
privileges is fit to be a mother. A
woman's fitness to become mother
depends upon her fitness physical,
mental and moral to become a good
mother. 1t is every womans right to
prove that motherhood is her highest
and hottest right and privilege, but it
is wrong to take 1T for granted. The
assumption of motherhood by the UNI
fit is a constant menace to the good Of
the world.
What the club is to the Individual
woman, federation is to the individual
clubs. 1t draws them out of their mar
rowness 1t uplifts them by an inter-
change of thought: it brings inspiration
and enthusiasm which can come only
through numbers. Iowa women be-
lieve in clubs and in their federation.
The state federation was organized
twelve years ago at Des Moines, and
since that time has grown steadily. The
first state president was Mrs. James
G.. Berryhill of Des Moines.
There are at the present time 300 fed
Grated clubs in lib towns. The num-
Der of members in these federated
clubs is 10000.
The efficient president of the state
federation is Mrs. Alice G. Fletcher of
Marshalltown. The work of the state
federation Is divided into departments,
which are in charge of committees Sc
lected from different parts of the state.
The dues of the clubs to the federation
are small and the work and assistance
of the committees is always available
for any club in the federation at no
cost at all, or merely a nominal one.
The departments of the federation work
are the reciprocity bureau Ga classified
collection of club papers upon different
subjects), library work. educational.
village improvement, art, household
economics. child study. child labor. club
program and Industrial A state meet
ing is held once in two years, alternat-
ing with the meeting of the general
federation. May 10, II and IL ere the
dates to which Iowa women are look
ing forward. as the 1905 biennial oc-
ours at that time at Waterloo
The federation idea is applied locally
in all the larger cities of Iowa, the vari-
Gus clubs of each locality uniting for
mutual fellowship. acquaintance and
good work.
"Of course" says Mrs. Decker, 1.-The
great advantage of federation is the
union for good work and the acquaint-
ance with each other. No club has an
excuse for being unless 1t Is doing good
to some one beside its individual mem
bers. Think what splendid Gordon of
wise and sensible women q state feder-
alton of $1,000 members means to any
commonwealth. l ask you to increase
your clubs and your federation The
more club women there are the greater
will be the advance Of the state and
the community. spiritually. physically
and intellectually because they are the
home women. the happy women, the
hopeful women and the helpful wom-