The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1909-01-15
FIRST wOMAN's JOURNAL.
Created by Napoleon a Century Ago
in France and Killed by Joke.

An anniversary that has almost es-
capped notice ought to be commemor-
ated this year. 1t is just 100 years
since women first started newspa-
per TO advocate their rights.
In 1903 IL was known that Napo.
leon was determined TO divorce Jose.
phine, his partner of fourteen years,
because she had given him no heir
A reason Of state like this carried no
weight in the female world, and out
side the circle OF courtiers all sympa.
thy was with the wife, especially
when Eugene de Beauharnais, Jose-
phine's son by her first marriage, de-
clared himself, in the Senate, on the
side Of his stepfather and against his
own mother on the question Of di.
voTce.
From the feeling thus stirred up
there arose a great feminist move
ment. Seeing that popular opinion
favored the helpless wife as against
the all-powerful husband, a group OF
young women philosophers thought
the time had come for an effort for
the social progress of their sex.
Their first step was to create an
organ for feminist defence, and so the
Athenee des Danes was born and at
first fourished vigorously. The pro-
gram OF these suffragists OF a hun
dred years ago was given in a mani
festo before the first number ap-
peared.
Must Il be-" It was asked, "as it
has been so long. that women should
be called nothing but the flowers of
the human race, the charm OF terres-
trial eyes? Must they be fattered
solely for their physical charms, so
as TO limit their empire to their fair
youth, which, alas, passes so soon?
And yet, true companions to man,
they aid him to cross the stormy sea
OF life. Can It be said that women
are classed among the domestic ami
NAL pets, whose pretty little acts, the
fruit OF a happy animal instinct, arc
so captivating?"
The Athenee des Danes put in its
protest against the common opinion
that man is superior to woman. "lf
women had not been for centuries
brought up in profound ignorance.
and had not been persuaded by force
OF hearing men say that they were
created to obey they would have long
refuted this paradox" it declared.
"The task OF our journal will be to
make known all those virtues and all
those talents which the modesty Of
women makes them shut up in thoir
own bosoms, and which have no wit
nesses outside their families and the
little circle Of friends of each one.
1--WE shall make known to the pub
lie the writings OF many of us, who
not altogether occupied with house
hold servitude can rival in genius the
male poets. The celebrated woman
Of the day will have her portrait and
her biography inserted in the weeks
number in which she is described"
This movement, which might have
cleared the way for the votes for
women agitation Of to-day had its
days shortened by an accident. 1t
happened that shortly after the Athe-
nee had begun to spread the light,
woman, a wigmaker by profession.
named Bouhourt, aged twenty-five.
was convicted OF having murdered
three people in order to rob them.
Thick-set and well built, this young
woman was noted for her habit OF
wearing mans clothes, and it was in
mans clothes that she mounted the
scaffold. The satirists and caricatur-
lists seized on this circumstance and
made the womankind kind OF scare
crow to intimidate women from fol-
lowing in the ways of the Athenee.
and the writer's for this journal OF
emancipation. getting tired OF being
nicknamed Bouhort, gave up contrib
uting and no one was found bold or
persevering enough to take their
place. - Paris Correspondent of the
New York Sun.