New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-11-01
A FEMINIST VIEW OF THE
TEACHER-MOTHER PROBLEM
Miss Foa La Toilette Upholds the Woman with Children
and Career Against the old Maid Who Has
Only Halfway Interest in Her Work.

I preferable under any conditions to that
same woman happily married, nor
mally bearing children and continuing
/ her work improved and broadened By
lifes experiences ?"
Miss La Toilette broke off for a mo-
ment to master certain scorn and
Indignation which were manifesting
themselves beneath the calm and even
ness which she believes desirable in
discussing public questions.
zone of the members of the board
was quoted recently" she resumed, "as
saying that it was debasing and in
decent for pregnant woman TO be in
a classroom surrounded by children,
and could only result in harming them
and poisoning their minds What a
preposterous shutting of his eyes TO
actualitiesl There are thousands of
children who unfortunately live in the
cramped quarters of tenements and
from their earliest years are brought
unavoidably into closest contact with
all the facts of life. There are no
wells in two and three room apart
ments' in tenemsnts; the delicacies and
privacies of life are conspicuous by
their absence. What those children
learn of the origin of life and its de-
velopment is learned under the most
bald and crude conditions. 1t seems
to me that if children must learn these
facts IN that way, at least that should
not he the only knowledge they have
on the subject Would it not be inf
nitely better if they also might see
from day to day in their clhssroCms
fine, sweet woman approaching mater
nifty under conditions which would
hallow il in their eyes? Is there not
something in making hundreds, thou
sands of children realize that If
parenthood sometimes means hardship,
suffering, sickness, poverty, il may
also be looked forward 10 with seren-
ity, with joyous anticipation, as a vel
come duty and a sweet privilege?
THE attitude of the Board of Edu-
cation strips the conventional concep-
tion Of motherhood of its bunk. Either
they do not believe that motherhood
is all we have always considered 1t TO
Define, educatlye, ennobllng; or they
do not want those teachers who desire
TO become fine, big, noble, TO he so.
Either those members who forbid
motherhood TO their teachers are fax
ers in their beliefs regarding mother
hood or they are defrauding the COM
munity of the best services Of some
of the best teachers.
THE board has the right 70 take
this antedluvian stand; the Court of
Appeals has said it had. But why
should its members, who are quite or
binary human beings, with human de-
sires, emotions, hopes, beliefs, want
10 take such fossilized position? All
over the world to-day as never before
women are asserting their right to live
genuine lives-to work, struggle,
achieve. 70 do their share in helping
the world 10 move along. They are
making good at il. This country is
called a land of opportunity. In many
ways II has given opportunity TO wom-
en- as no other country. Why should
this great city forbid women school
teachers 10 be mothers when there is
no bar 70 a woman lawyers bearing a
family, or a woman doctor, or a writer,
an actress, dressmaker, a charwom-
an?
This whole situation is illogical, alb
surd. un-American. unprogressive, un-
enlightened all the things OF that
nature you can think of TO call it,"
declared Miss La Toilette. 1T is ride
ulous that it should exist. IL is I'M
thinkable that it should continue 70
exist long | believe even the Board
Of Education Hself must come 70 see
that soon"