The Washington herald., 1909-08-09

/ Chicago. Aug. s-The election OF Ella
I Flagg Young 20 the SUPPLEMENTARY OF
the Chicago public schools is a source
/ Of great satisfaction 20 al the women
/ OF her city who are interested IN e6uca-
tlonal matters Those who are person
ally acquainted with her. who have
! known something OF the nature OF her
educational ideals, and who have worked
| with her IN the Chicago WOman's Club,
feel a peculiar satisfaction because they
| long have considered her the best quail
! fed person in the city for the position
which she Is now to hold. An austere,
quiet woman. with a manner at once
judicial and modest she Is 70 be recog-
nized as a personality as soon as seen.
Even the late president Of the Univer-
| sity Of Chicago. DR.. Harper. made an
exception to her. and asked her to &C
cept q professorship in his aggressive
new school. though he had. as all men
knew. a fixed prejudice against women
! In positions Of authority. and offended
and discouraged many an ambitious wO-
man by his unconcern regarding her
abilities and aspirations.
President Harper recognized her as a
woman with q vocation. She has been
! called 20 teach, and she never has ques-
/ toned the dignity Of her calling or failed
I 10 do the best that in her lay. She Is
/ incapable Of being casual or perfume
tory In the performance OF anything she
! sets herself 10 do. She does not worry
about the commonplace, because nothing
worth doing seems commonplace 20 her.
/ She has this quality In common with
| President Harper. His acceptance OF life
and its work was so hearty that IL never
| occurred TO him that any task could be
beneath his dignity or that IL might
prove Unlnteresting.
He brought a vitality and fund OF eX-
/ pectation 10 all that ne undertook. and
| gave significance 10 all he touched A
| similar vitality and constructive force
/ DISTINGUISHES Mrs Young. She has an
| IMAGINATION, and small beginnings would
never dlsmay her She would have the
ability 20 keep the end in view.
She began teaching at the age OF eight
cen. taught at the Skinner School for IS
month, and was, no doubt. terribly in
earnest Now she has a trickle OF mirth
running through her most serious mo-
a young woman the undercurrent OF sad
ness which is noticeable in her. as Il is IN
most persons Of power, had its way with
her They tell a story TO the effect that
In that first school she had among her
pupils O group Of young cattle herders
They had come IN from the pralries with
the idea that because they were the
young bosses Of the cattle they could lord
it over a school nam. but one day, so
the legend runs, the leader OF the rebels
went too far. He therefore was seized by
the collar and confronted with an en-
phatic and Just demand: why do you
laugh az me when I am doing the best I
CAM" demanded Miss Flagg What Is
the sense OF laughing at a person who is
doing the best she can? Don't you know
that 7 could throw you out Of that win
dow il wanted to? But don't want to.
I want TO be good 10 you I want you
TO be good 20 me- You've got TO be good
70 me"
Il struck the herder that he really had
70 be good 10 any one who made such
a plea for fair play and he was heEice-
forth her very willing and obedient pupil
There are stories OF that sort IN plenty
about Mrs. Young. but they are not al
first hand from her She Is a singularly
hard person to interview. Her sense OF
hunor, as well as her modesty, would
keep her from talking about herself
She never had much interest in talking
unless she was dealing with definite ideas
and was engaged In intoxicating some Of
them or in teaching others how 10 think
for themselves.
Time was when she was something OF
a journalist. Being as she was. earnest
and concentrated. Il was but natural
perhaps, that she should think there was