Waterbury evening Democrat., 1905-11-03
MRS. SAGE'S WARNING
Financier's Wife Tells of Perils
 That Beset Leisure Class.
REBUKEs WOMEN WHO GAMBLE

She Describes How They Squander Their Husbands' Money and Claims
 Rich Hostesses Politely Bully Their Male Guests Into Games of Poker.
 Suggests Work For Leisure Class.
 Mrs. Russell Sage in an article on Opportunities and Responsibilities of Leisured Women" published in the North American Review for Novem. Der makes the following statements:
 'There is an immense amount of feminine talent and energy wasted in the world every day. This is not due to the indifference or the laziness of woman, for she is eager to do, to ac- complish, to go outtinto the field of life and achieve for herself and for her kind. But she simply does not know how. One of the most important movements of the day, therefore, is the reawakening of woman, the building her up on new basis of self help and work for others. That movement will set loose an amount of energy and tal- ent that will reyolutionize our social life.
 Tt is absurd to suggest that women who have talent for music or litera- tnre or art slIoufdebe ensiaEed@ by do, 1nestic sdrudgery wfhie t1estruggls, for the civilization of the world is going on."
 Mrs. Sage thinks selfishness and idle ness great sources of daneSr. She thinks womens laxity toward drinking and smoking is injurious. At din ner she recently attended, she says, ''it was put to vote whether or not smok- ing should be indulged in. The ladies present, not wishing to be obnoxious, voted Yes being the only one that voted, No The result was that the men indulged their love for tobacco to the discomfort of almost all the wo- men present and the nausea of some of them. This sort of thing is remote ly responsible for the cigarette smok- ing habit among reputable young wo- men. They indulge in order to affiliate with young men and be considered good fellows .5... ..... .....-... ..
 ,"Drinking is indulged in to an ap- palling extent by women of the wealthy idle class, and their daughters are following in their footsteps. The great danger of this is that the idle rich class influences the succeeding strata of society. This class is sur rounded with a certain glamour that those not so high up in the so called social scale mistake for something genuine, but which is the veriest sham. Bear in mind that refer to no set or clique, but to a condition manifested in all parts of the country. Now, the persons of this class are widely imi- tated. If they drink it is considered smart to do SO, and others follow suit. If they smoke cigarettes other girls do the same"
 Mrs. Sage denounces gambling as one of the inevitable concomitants Of idle extravagant life" She tells of hostesses politely bullying men into games of poker or bridge whist and making them pay dearly. She adds:
 "The trouble is that the wives of many men in this class squander in gambling and other forms of dissipa. tion the money their husbands give them for household expenses and are compelled to resort to just such meas ures to make up the deficit, lest their husbands find out the true state of af- fairs and adopt drastic measures to correct them.
 Week end parties have bridge whist as a sole purpose. Rooms are hired and furnished in all parts of New York city by fashionable young women who do nothing but gamble there. 1 was sitting in my carriage not long ago and, seeing a young friend of whom am fond walking up the avenue, in Tited her to drive with me. But she waved her hand and exclaimed: I can't today. I've been losing at GU ehre. and now I'm going to make it up at bridge And she hurried on.
 'The idle rich are no more vicious than the idle poor, but they are much more lacking in sympathy with one another
 Mrs. Sage recommends women of leisure to apply themselves to mission ary work In improving towns and vil- Iages She says:
 "In our great cities many women are necessarily lonely or are forced into vicious society. And this IOneli- ness Is not smeliOrsted by attending balls and other entertainments. It is unfortunate that men Of small means. having to attend business. must leave