The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-11-07
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

The cave man had his club, and made good use of it. If early reports of the
 male race are true, he used 1t in getting
 his bride but along came the humane English law and reduced the size of the big stick used by our remote ancestors
 to the size of mans thumb when used
 for wifely corrective purposes. But all the while mans club has been growing smaller, woman's privileges have been growing larger, until the twentieth cen- trry women, with their clubs, are giv- ing mere man an exhibition of what they can accomplish for themselves and for mankind by sticking together Time was when women's clubs and clubwomen were the butt Of every funny paragrapher in the land The cartoonist caricatured them. The poli-
 ticians ridiculed their political preten- sions. The pulpit lampooned them. But
 in spite of ndicule, scorn and misrep
 resentation the women are coming into
 their own and through their various
 clubs are making feminine influence
 power to be relied upon and reckoned
 with in many different spheres. The
 Federation of Women's clubs is a power
 in the land and growing stronger every
 day.
 have been surprised at the number of
 things women undertake even in their
 literary clubs I take as a typical exam
 pie the Clionian club of Birmingham that
 has been in existence for about a quar-
 ter of century. It includes within its
 membership some of the leading women
 of the city, well known church and so-
 cial workers, and literary luminaries.
 It's membership is limited to 25 Organ
 ized to study the great masterpieces, it
 was not content when the war came to sit idly by enjoying the treasures of
 English literature. but felt the call to
 service
 For years the club had prided itself not only on the matter contained in the year book, but in it's form, and so it was a triumph of the printers art. But this year at a called meeting of the 1HOuldUS III utS U. Ildlcy, lIC originator of the idea of the clubwomen in Birmingham establishing a base hos pital in France told what could be done in the way of equipping a hospital with money spent on a printed pro- gramme, or for refreshments. She en- should be raised by some form of self denial It immediately met with ap- proval,s for good women always respond to sacrficial work The idea originating in the Clonian club was seconded by the College Women's club, and this way brought before the Council of women's Clubs of Birmingham, who enthusiast caly adopted it, and at once a pro- gramme was mapped out, in which each club was allotted it's bart in preparing the necessary equipment to establish a first-cass base hospital in France
 Now, women are often accused of pro- crastinating ebut the women's clubs of have raised what money was needed and made all of the pre- scribed garments and forwarded them to headquarters in America to be sent somewhere in France for the comfort of our boys who are over there fighting our battles. Fortunately the articles made by the loving hands of the clubwomen of Birmin gham were not lost in the Amer ican Red Cross ship which was recently torpedoed by the Germans.
 Tha fact however that praat StoraS oFl supplies intended for American troops were lost, stirred the Clionian club to such depths that at it's meeting on last Friday, it unanimously resolved itself into Red Cross unit The literary pro gramme will not be wholly abandoned but one of the members at each session will discuss some drama, while those present will ply the needle. Not satis fled with this contribution one Friday in every month the club will meet at the Women's Christian Temperance union headquarters and spend the day in making machine garments.
 Some men seem to think that women have no power of organization, but ac- complish what they Go in spite of method I haven't time to settle this years 8 pastor. learned that when l wanted anything done in the way of church or welfare work that it was safest to ask the women to do it. They would generally go about it in what seemed to the male animal as helter- skelter way. but they would be through with the job and ready for another be- fore the men could figure out the best way in which to do it.
 Now the Clionians are not only willing to sacrifice and to serve, but they are "Methodists' not in the religious sense, but in the manner they have apportioned ths work. The knitting group will be under Mrs. Richard Fell. The bandaging making group will be under Mrs. J R. Thames. The machine sewing group will be under Mrs. l.. J. Haley This means that every member will belong to Q particular group and will do her best work.
 I had the pleasure of sitting next to Mrs Hooper, the charming and able pr esident of the Federated Wolnen's Clubs of Alabama at a recent luncheon at the Southern club, when she shyly said: You men always give lunch, a dinner or banquet when you want to talk about food conservation: how funny" She had me for surely it is enough to make anyone with sense of humor laugh. when he sees spread be- fore him bounteous repast, and lot of well fed men. sitting with their feet under table, grooming with good things to eat, while some orator on his feet is getting red in his face talking in the interest of food economy.