The sun., 1909-02-14
FRENCH WIVES WANT WAGES
WHICH THEY FIN At HALF
THEIR HUSBANDS PAY.
Home Work Only Occupation for Which
There Is No COmpensati Ion Gains
OF Noinan's Cause In France
Boys schools Opened 10 Girls.

Ob VoWuub abust IN France
boys schools Opened 10 Girls.
PARIS, Feb. The suffraeists In
France, or feminstes as they call them
selves. demand the passage Of law re-
Iquiring every married man 10 pay mis-
wife one-half his salary as recompense
for her household work. Madame Pohon-
Landry. secretary OF the legislative seq
tion Of the National Council Of Women.
who il the origina tor and lead== If the
movement, thinks that while the pro-
posal may seem strange at first sight
its justice will commend itself on con-
sideraton.
1T cannot be repeated often enough
that man work is possible only because
Of the work Of woman" she said the
other day In u speech. IF the husband
Ia TO earn his wages the wife must free
him from the domestic duties neoessarp
for his existence. II men had to make
their beds mend their clothes and bring
UP their children their gains would be
remarkably diminished. Woman's worle
therefore is the condition sine qua non OF
mans professional labor. In other
words. the man receives wages FOR tho
work of two.
''Since this domestic activity has suck
value. why should II be the only work
that receives no remuneration"
When asked IL she hoped for success
In her enterprise Nine. Pchon-Landry
replied
'Of course we expect final success. Wa
have already won many friends among
the faculty Of law. and although thereI
are more important questions before the
Chamber now VIC have no doubt thabi
our turn will come"
The question was then put to Nine.
Pichon- Landry whether she thought that
her law would he practical. whether a
wife would enforce her rights in COURT
II the husband refused TO give up ONE
half his salary. The reply was most
femphatic
ave know that the law would be enc
forced by the wife IL the husband did
not readily comply, We already have
law which permits woman to draw
certain amount Of her husbands sal
airy every payday IL she can prove that Z
| he does not support her as he should:
IL this law il a success our new law must
certainly he equally practical
Nine. Pichon-Landry belongs 10 the
younger set Of feministes in Paris, who
are not nearly so extreme or so violent
/ in their methods as the older branch.
"We are not the kind OF feministes
who go about smashing vases TO attract
attention. she explains. -We younger
workers know that nothing can be accom-
plished by violence and we have conse-
auently taught ourselves to be patient.
Unfortunately We are called by the same
name as the other group Of workers and
We have 10 suffer the same taunts and
ridicule which their methods always re-
ceive-especially from the press
"Our progress though quiet has been
steady in every direction. One OF the
best indications is the number Of friends
we now possess among the faculty OF law.
Formerly these men were all against us,
but now almost all of them. especially
the younger men. are willing to aid us in
our legal fights. Nor does the Govern
ment combat us as IL used to-
Before We attempt TO put a question
before the people we study it for year
or more. Then we choose one Deputy
to present it to the House and help push
the interest in il.
-In this way we have brought il about
tlHit NOliltH cIldll nave IHt 1TtN
disposition Of their wages, a very great
step in advance Of the old situation when
the husband had tho right to dispose ~
all the wife's possessions. We have also
obtained for mothers the same authority
over their children as the father possesses
and in the case of natural children the
parent first recognizing the child has full
power over il. This last law was made
10 prevent the father from stepping in
and taking away n child after tho mother
had with difficulty reared ii.
We have also opened all prison posi-
tons to women. and this ia important
because it is the first time that women
in France are allowed to hold positions
where they have men to deal with. as is
the case in most OF our prisons.
"In education we have also made great
strides. Although the general public
is not as yet aware Of it, coeducation
and the higher education for girls are
daily gaining flrmer foothod. About
fifteen years ago only twenty girls were
graduated from the various collegiate
institutions. and in my class there were
but four or five who we're not studying
to earn a living as teachers. Now the
four big lycees. Fenelon. Victor Hugo,
Racine and Lamartine. have all added
the haccalaureate course and each school
graduates from fifteen 10 twenty girls
every year. These numbers may not
seem big 10 Americans. but it means great
progress for France. To be sure the
Catholic aristocracy even now rigidlv
withholds itself from this liberal endency.
but it is finding the approval Of all other
classes in France
Mixed education has also begun. es-
pecially in the country. In Paris some
of the wealthy boys schools began to
admit the little sisters and from this
beginning the idea grew until now thew
admit anv little girls as far as the fourth
grade. We really cannot yet say, how
ever, whether this coeducation will be
popular in France IA the idea is still.
too new"