Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-04-17

force-a matter of purely domestic man.
agement, not rightfully concerning any
body outside our official household and
the housekeeping, so to speak, at Cont
mental Hall.
Injurious to Organization.
1T is needless to point out to women of
your intelligence and social standing how
such a gratuitous and unwarranted no.
toriety given to an essentially trifing in
cident belittles our noble organization in
the eyes Of the general public.
Threats of law suits and even of i'm
parchment have been manufactured to
meet and satisfy the cravings of the NOR
bid appetite for exposures. 1t is true
that the peace and DINGHY of the
Daughters of the American Revolution
have been most causelessly and grievous-
ly assaiied; but have deemed it my
clear duty to refuse to be Interviewed, or
in any way drawn into TIE public dis
cussion of an action that was clearly re-
quired of me and as clearly within my
powers and duty as executive and re-
sponsible head of an institution annoyed
and discredited by persistent insubordina-
ton and bad manners on the part of a
minor employee, and l still refuse not
withstanding the public scandal and I'M
founded shame that has been brought
upon our organization, to treat it other
wise than as a matter for our own pfi-
vate consideration in the board of man
agement.
IF defeated faction has been at the
bottom Of the extraordinary publicity
worked up out of this episode; If we are
forced, after investigation, to believe that
the national and international publicity
has been methodically secured: if the pre-
posterous attitude taken by the dismissed
copyist has been promoted or abetted by
a dislOyal and obstructive element-re-
solved either to rule or to ruin-if all
this be so, we must face the situation and
meet it. If we cannot before very long
abate the nuisance and peril Of faction
and spells politics, in the worst sense
of the term. persisted in with such malign
energy, then the withdrawal and future
exclusion from our membership of all
women of the higher and finer types
must certainly result among the lamen-
table consequences to our organization
Censure for Miss Gerald.
Il am calling your attention thus to my
dismissal Of a clerk for INSTRUMENTATION,
an employee in the department of which
am chief, as chairman of the Continen-
tai Hall committee, employed by the
board at the request of the former presi-
dent general for the specific purpose of
copying Continental Hall records and
therefore, perhaps, imagined by herself
and her advisers to be immovably en-
come, ladies, to ten you that the situa-
ton in connection with this young lady
in her clerical capacity-has become SIM
uly impossible. Our Office machinery can
not be run on the personal likes and dis
likes O. our clerical force 1t is a clerical
force supported by dues paid by all the
members, and, of course, no member of
such a force can be allowed to intrude
either partialities or spites of her own
into her official relations with members
of this society.
mo charge has been brought against
this young lady as d. A. r. Her
standing in the society today. as recent
events may have affected 1t, is the same
as 1t was formerly. Her recent offending.
perhaps. springs from the mistaken
leniency I showed her last summer in not
promptly severing her connection with
our clerical force for conduct similar to
that now under consideration toward a
distinguished woman who has filed many
national offices and who has been most
honorably and intimately associated with
the society ever since its inception.
Alludes to Crude Rebuff"
LAS in the present instance, instructions
from the president general were being
carried out-and the rude rebuff was re-
ceived from the same quarter. Embold-
ened by my kindly consideration in my
letter to her. copy of which hold in
my hand. written in reply to one from
her denouncing the acting chairman of
the supervision committee, emboldeped
also by the generous forgiveness of the
lady to whom she had been so rude, and
who had declined to report here, both of
US understand and making allowances
for the unfortunate influences that i'm
PEELED her to such conduct encourag ICED
too. am ashamed. but forced to believe
by influences openly and avowedly hostile
to me personally, and to my administra-
ton officially. the young woman has now
filled up the cup and brought things to
a pass where forbearance ceases to be a
virtue. At all events, her manner toward
ladies who seem to have incurred her
displeasure has become SO offensive that
they prefer to avoid rather than to come
into any contact with her. even officially.
1.-The conduct February 81 for which
discharged her was simply in line
with the arrogance she had assumed
and maintained toward ladies distaste-
full to her. There is no parallel to her
OFFENDING in, the nineteen years Of our
society: at least. SO Tar as I know. 1t
is unprecedented. Hitherto we have
had the unwritten law Of common
politeness and official courtesy toward
each other maintained and exercised
here, more especially toward the women
delegated to carry out personal in-
| ~ rucfiopS from the nreSi0ent general