Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-11
AMERICAN WOMAN'S SCHEME
MADE PEASANTS PROSPEROUS

understand the true object Of the Industrie
Feminilie Italianc"
perhaps. Ike me. they don't know Ital-
ian I suggested. ''W'in you please trans
late?"
Better still will explain. I teach them
to make lace"
You cater TO frills and tashions-and you
call that regeneration ! asked, somewhat
surprised
There you are"' exclaimed the countess.
I'VE are talking good English, and you
don't understand yet! I teach the women
and children TO make lace such as the Old
Italians used 10 make. such as contributed
to the fame of Italy like the great paintings
and sculptures and buildings Of the past
This lace making supplies women and chill
dren with gentle and remuneratiyc employ
ment sparing them hard and unhealthy
work in factories and they are thus enabled
to attend to their home duties Then there
is moral example and restraint The wo-
men come TO us a rule incapable of
self-suppoTt: after a short time they are
useful to themselves and to others.
Il must say that have absolute conf
deucc in the lower classes; their instincts
are good and the only trouble with them
comes when they are mislcd. Lack of de-
Vc!opmcnt makes them easy victims to self
ag2iandizirg labor agitators and leaders oil
the rights OF man. but never have a word
60 say about the duties Perhaps it is this
reflection which has made me an apostle OF
works and example rather than of theory
and doctrine. and that is why, before talk
ing about my ambitions. 1 applied them in
a modest way. In 1891 the first local agro-
UCmical exposition for emulation among
peasants was held At the CASTILLO di BrazZa,
and attention was conferred six little
girls with lace on their knees and spindies
in their hands, working with exemplary
care. In two weeks | had prepared these
children, and their success encouraged me
20 begin my efforts seriously"
You had then already thought of your
plan for regeneration
"rhe ambition to do something Of the sort
came TO me when / was myself a child.'
the countess said. II had only been seek
ing means. on battlefield OF the confed-
cracy my father, viewing the frightfui car
mage. wished that he might save as many
lives as had been sacrificed there. He toiied
to this end until he himself met his death
in saving men at mine disaster in LOuisi-
ana and. young as l was at the time, my
fathers example and pacific precepts in
spired me TO carry on work which neces-
sarlly has diScouraging sides.
Il knew that the suffering class must be
surrounded by love from those who enjoy
that assistance must be offered spontane-
ously or even imposed, instead of being
held back until it is implored and that
the form taken must be that of some in
stitutiou providing for self-support and not
of mere aims. But all this was theory; and
l was still seeking means for applying it
when l was impressed with the decline OF
lacemaking in Italy. and at the same time
with the dangers to the peasant population
from ignorance from neglect and from a
loosening of the home ties through the
labors required of the women in factories.
So l experimental with the little girls; then
/ went on to older children, and finally to
women. / chose rare and ancient models.
TO give character to our products. Gradu-
ally our work became known, until today
we find markets the world over, and my
greatest satisfaction was when I found
that there was a demand in the United
states, also, for the lace coming from the