The Washington herald., 1914-04-15
Who's Who Among
Women
Mrs. John Clarence Lee. Her Novel
Experiences in Siberia.
by MARY b. MULLETT.

by MARY ID. MULLETT.
To the utter amaZement OF Irkutsk, al
American woman arrived in the city on
day last autumn. To be exact, II wal
night; not day. She was quite alone. ShC
was very good TO look at-and her clothe.
also possessed this desirable character
istic.
It was a Saturday night Even In
Irkutsk the next day was Sunday. Thi:
was a piece of great luck for the in
habitants, who otherwise might have ha6
TO take a day on to satisfy their curios-
ity.
An American woman! Alone IN thu
heart of Siberia! 1t was incredible. No.
body had ever heard OF such a thing be-
fore.
Nevertheless it was true. And the
woman who created the excitement-Mrs.
John Clarence Lee, of Philadelphia-has
rSI published book, Across Siberia
Lone" in which she relates her expert
cHces.
So had crossed that vast, mysterious
ra.I-sry in the first place, bound for
Chfaa and taking with her the foster
"a z, 4.ter whom was to marry a young
American naval officer stationed in
Chinese waters. But the return journey
was to be made alone. At the best, 1t
meant ten days travel merely to reach
Moscow.
That prospect would have appalled, most
women. But behind Mrs. Lees prepos-
sessing feminine exterior there turks an
: unexpected spirit Of adventure. To gaze
at Siberia through train windows for
solid week did not satisfy her. She
wanted to see it at closer range.
So she decided to stop at Irkutsk.
Everybody discouraged her. Everybody
warned her that it was no place for I'M
attached females. They painted its perIls
in vivid language.
To no avail, In spite of the pleas Of
her fellow-passenger she left the train,
as before remarked, one memorable
Saturday-memorable for Irkutsk as Well
as for Mrs. Lee
Under the guidance of the chef de train,
who spoke only a few French words
aside from his native Russian, she
bounced of into the darkness alone in a
careening droshky. The chef had already
disappeared. with her luggage, in another
tempestuous vehicle.
For all she knew, she might never see
either of them again. But American
courage had its reward. All three were
reunited at the hotel That institution
was in a state of feverish excitement as
long as she remained The proprietor
begged her TO eat in the dining room and
gave DIS his reason lIle naive plea tlut
1.-THE people wanted to see her."
The desire was mutual, so Mrs. Lee,
determined to do credit to America, put
on her very gladdest raiment and ap-
peared as requested.
Apparently this sight of the visiting
lady from Philadelphia" merely whetted
the local appetite. They couldn't seem
to bear to have her out of their sight.
Whenever she retired to her room she
was besieged by gentlemen Of various
nationalties, who knocked at her door
and pleaded humbly for the privilege of
taking her somewhere - anywhere - to
drive, TO church, to the club.
Some Of these pressing invitations she
longed to accept. For instance, she had
an enormous curiosity to visit that club.
She had heard many strange rumors of
it: how girls Of good families are per-
mitted to go there without chaperons.
Girls of sixteen and seventeen go in
their gymnasium suits to have supper
with officers, supper. at which cham
payne figures largely on the menu.
But she was adamant in refusing all
these overtures. The only invitation she
accepted during her stay in Irkutsk was
to a supper, arranged by the chef de |
train. 1t was in a Russian family. |
There were fourteen guests among them !
When Mrs. Lee left Irkutsk, the in |
valuable chef gave her a letter to every !
railroad official she might meet 1t read: !
This is to introduce Nine. Lee. travel |
ing through Siberia and Moscow to |
America. Madame is of noble birth and |
no harm must come to her. Great care |
should be taken in this respect"
She left the train again day or two
out of Irkutsk, again contrary to the
protests OF her fellow-passengers. This
time she went to Tomsk. On the journey |
out she had met one of the professors of
the university at Tomsk and had been in
vited ny him and his wife to visit them
on her return.
Here she stayed in a real Siberian
home and added more interesting expert
ences to her budget. As rule, the best
books of travel are written by women.
They are much closer observers and they
tell you the things you really want to
know. The little things they see and |
record are the ones that give you the 1.
vivid human realities.
Mrs Lee is keen, sympathetic. hu-
observer She has had a SPLEEN
did training for ii. Born in New Eng
land, she was educated in Paris for
the stage. Instead. she married and |
went to Galesburg, Ill. to live.
While there she organized a dra-
matte company called the Western |
IDEAL Company. which made a tour
through the "wOoliest" of Far Western