The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-04-05
EVENING CHAT
~ Ruth CAMERoN.

A friend of mine showed surprising
fund of information on the subject of
labor unions
How do you happen to know so much
about labor organizations? L inquired
Il didn't know you were particularly in
terested in economics
I never was" she said. ITS just our
Saturday evenings
And what might that mean?''
Why don't know as it's worth telling
about, said she, but it's lots of fun and
we learn a great deal It's this way. Y on
know the crowd that usually drifts
around to my house, or sisters, or Mrs.
C's on a Saturday night. There's sister
and her husband and Mr.. /, John and l.,
Marie and the man she's going to be en-
gagged to, Mr.. and Mrs. c, and sometimes
other people who happen in. Sometimes
We play cards. but more often we just
have Il chatting dish and talk. Well, one
Saturday night at our house we got to
talking about woman's suffrage. We all
had lot to say, but when it came right
down to 1t, found that no one knew
much that was definite. Someone said
that women didn't need suffrage in the
United States because there were no
laws that Disseminated against women,
and someone else said that there was a
larger proportion of uneducated women
than men in the country, and someone
else said it was the other way round.
Finally Mr.. L. said, 4 don't believe any
of know what we are talking about.
Suppose we all try to find out some
definite facts on one side or the other,
and finish our talk next Saturday We
did and you don't know how much fun it
to talk something about which
we really knew a little. We learned a lot,
too, because everyone had found out facts
along different lines.
well that night someone happened to
say, Who's going to be the next preSi-
dent?' and sister said, Instead of arguing
that, let's have a game of whist now, and
leave that until next week, so we can
find out about it. We did and that was
interesting, too. Everyone picked his
favorite candidate and tried to find out
something about him during the week,
and l learned more about politics than /
ever knew before. Another night we had
a tariff discussion, and last week we talk
ed labor unions and the McNamaraS, and
next week it's going to be socialism and
be surprised to know how much fun it
is and how much you learn. You'd better
come next Saturday night. Be sure and
know something about socialism-not just
have an opinion, but know some definite
facts
My informant said that her Saturday
nights were scarcely worth telling about.
l differ most emphatical1y. Don't you?
1t seems to me that there is a seed of
in the story of these little in
formal debates which cannot be scattered
too broadly.
I've no doubt that all those people got
more out Of one of those Saturday night
than they would from hearing
a paper read on the same subject at some
formal gathering. Besides, some of them
would never go to the formal gathering.
Intelligent conversation is of the
greatest educative forces in the world. l
wish that this Saturday night club--no l
will not call it a club, that's too formal,
that is to formalize and organize it-these
Saturday night conversations, I'll say,
might be a suggestive ancestor for many
such.