The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-02-10
DIR. UANNo,

To few men has come the privilege
Of victorious leadership In the forward
of great state as has
come TO Rev. James Cannon, Jr.. of
Virginia.
Few men have won the honest de-
votion of so many people, and few men
have been honored by the petty spite,
the open-mouthed excavations, the
reaction as he.
Among all forward looking men la
boring for the highest progress Of
Virginia. one would naturally expect
to see him at the front 1t is anomal-
GUS. to say the least. TO see him lin
ing up with the most inveterate apos-
ties of reaction in the State.
College politics make strange bed
fellows" To see the grave and weigh
ty leader of reform In Virginia, and
the iight-hearted and versatile eds-
tor of The Richmond Evening Journal
costly snuggied up together in SIN
gle narrow bed, labeled Opposition
to the coordinate college" and snlil-
ingiy attended by the gentleman from
Rock bridge, and couple ef the Faelst-
est members of the Richmond bar, is
a most interesting spectacle.
While DIR. Cannon az a citizen has
unquestionably the right to express
himself upon public questions, the
friends of the coordinate college feel
that II Is hardly equitable for him to
take the great influence that he has
accumulated. not primarily as an ed
uca tor. but as the leader of the tenn
peranoe cause. and use 1t against the
college. Both the friends and the foes
of the coordinate college. know that
he cannot speak as an educator, nor
as a private citizen. They both know
that he speaks, primarily. as the vic
torious leader of q great cause. They
estimate his Influence accordingly.
what Is Proposed.
Stripped of all accident Of thought
and language. the proposition is 70
esta blish at the University of Virginia,
as an integral part of that great fnsti-
tuition, conveniently located and suit
ably housed. college for women, Civ
ing in every way the womauhood Of
Virginia ar equal chance with the
manhood of Virginia, to prepare her
self to enter every open door and
make her own contribution to the
future progress of her mother-State.
Everything else liz matter OF detail
This Is essential. 1t is easy to throw
up dust and observe the sun. Whether
our women shall enter the door of
service. by teaching in the high schools
or colleges, by literature, or the learn
ed professions. through the church. or
in the home. is all beside the mark.
That she shall have In Virginia an
equal opportunity. 10 get read, with
her brothers, liz the essential thing
II Is seberiy urged that the uni
versity does not now turn out high
school teachers. The tallaoy OF the
Is in the sratuitcus assump-
ton that the only way by which wo-
man can be serviceable to her gem
GRAFTON is by high-school teaching. In
creasingly the doors of opportunity
and expression are opening TO women.
1t IL the harsh voice of reaction that
thrusts the woman back into her
and bids her stick TO her
desk, Just as it Is the same voice that
the preacher back TO his pulpit
and bids him stick TO his "sawspcl."
When the gentlemen esS the Le1isls
ture get the simple idea that 1t is pro-
posed to give the future womanhood
of the State every last chance to pre-
pare for service whatever that ser
vice may be, as il now gives or shall
give to the manhood of the state 20
prepare for service, il will make the
whole thing easy. Every other cues
lion viii gather naturally about that
one. and act its proper answer.
Why ~ the University?
Why a woinan's college at The unit
For The very simple reason
that you cannot take the university to
a woman's college. IT is moral and
physical imposslblity to divide. trans
port or assemble the university any
where else In Virginia. If the woman
hood of Virginia Is TO share the bene-
fits of the university. with the mon of
Virginia, she must go to Charlottes-
Vile, where the university is.
But why should she share the uni
with her brothers? Well. why
should her brothers have a university
that she cannot or may not share
Whose university is this, anyway? H.
Is the University of Virginia. Why
should il be monopoli2ed by men and
the woman be risidly excluded from
81 the nerefits of the common prop
erty9
Why not 4 poman's college at Farm
Vile? For the simple reason that you
cannot duplicate the University of N-ir-
GINA al Farmville.
With fine ntilitarianisln. DIR. Cannon
thinks a college ut Farmvil1e would
he good enough for women.
One-Third Off for Women.
DR.. Cannon goes farther than that.
He thinks 5000 college is good
enough for women. He thinks the
average cost mt the university for men
lis $500. The fact is. that the
average cost for men and women in
any standard college in Virginia Is
about the same But apart from the
question OF running a standard coli
lege at cost of 5000 a year is the
offensive distinction drawn between
our men and women. Our women
come from the same homes as our
men. 1t is an offensive and invidious
distinction, on the face of 1t. TO sug-
gest that the State run a college for
men at 5000 and one for girls at $20a.
It Is not only offensive to proper sem
timent, 1t is practically invidious.. 1T
would mean $500 professors at Char
lottesville for men and $200 teachers
at Farmvilie for women.
To say that they could rot go to a
$500 college is to assume that an as
piring woman will not make as much
sacrifice for an education as a man.
Instead OF cheapening education, III
would end in cheapening women To-
put $500 brand on our men and a
5000 mark on our women means the
degradation Of our womanhood, Geo.
homie. social and otherwise,