New-York tribune., 1913-08-03
RUSSIAN WOMEN ABREAST
Of EUROPEAN SISTERS
Making Marked Advances in
Higher Education and Taking
Large Part in Public Life.
SHOW REMARKABLE ABILITY
Have Entered Nearly All the
Learned Professions and Are
Rapidly Overcoming Preju-
dices Against Sex
From The Tribune Correspondent. ]


London July 26.-Eveline Milford has
recently written for The Daily Chronl-
Gle" an article on the advance OF woman
ir Russia. based on her study OF con-
ditlors iL that country She saws:
II ever Alexander n met on hts walks
girl student IN spectacles and Carl
baIdian cap he began to tremble. think
ing that she must be a Nihilist. bent on
killing him. His hatred Of women who
endeavored 20 obtain higher education 10
m themselves for the service OF rhe
masses would have been ludicrous n Il
had not been such a serious thing for the
women themselves.
And yet neither the prejudice Of kings
nor the fulmlnatlons OF Panslavists like
Katkon could do more than temporarily
check the feminine march to educational
freedom Recent events show that wom-
ems part I'm public life has grown to the
proportions OF a mass movement With
the awakening OF human conscience. and
that Russian women are actually making
as much progress as the women Of other
European countries. The University OF
Tomsk has petltioned the Minister OF
Education 20 enable women Of Siberian
birth to graduate in medicine. and an Inn
oortant congress In 81. Petersburg, pre-
sided over by the ex-Minister ot Educa-
ton. and comprising 100 delegates. has
suggested many reforms that will render
the path Of women's education less
thorny.
Developed Amazing Ability.
1T IS a psychological effect OF the rec
ignition OF woman's advance that they
have spontaneously developed an amazing
ability. courage and organizing power.
The fact that there are now about
thousand women practising as doctors Is
sufficient justification for their advent
into that profession.
Social as we'll as economic evolution
led Russian girls to put OF plain black
voollen dresses. cut their hair and be
come students They wanted 10 educate
themselves. so that they might educate
and improve the condition Of others
Technical training satisfied them for a
time. but Il was merely the first step TO
greater demands. When they appealed 10
the alumni az the universities of 81
Petersburgh and Moscow they received
WILING support liutcu' thc ""S ."
which the men. both professors and stu
dents. have stood by the women In their
struggles for better education forms
one OF the most cheering pages in the
whole story.
I'm 1905 the Emperor granted auton-
onv 10 the universities one OF their first
acts was 10 admit women. and more than
. 600 at once availed themselves OF their
uew privileges They did remarkably well,
but three years later they were expelled
hy the new Minister Of Education on the
ground that. as they were forbidden TO
serve the state they had no business In
the universities In vain did the press
support the women in voicing the general
Indignation OF this uncavalierlike treat
ment. In vain did the universities send
up strongly worded protests. In vain did
the women petition the minister himself
Thus. after years OF heroic effort, with
hope deferred again and yet again, and
after a well deserved victory and briet
sojourn In the promised land the women
were fgaln cast out into the wilderness.
Have Made Rapid Strides.
Notwithstanding this reverse, however
the higher education Of women has made
rapid strides The teaching profession Is
largely recruited fro-' thsir ranks. ana