South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1919-10-12
Newspaper Woman,
Sighted by Newspa-
per Men, Brought
About Great Wom-
ems Organization.
Started With Sorosis
Club, and Proved the
Adage Great Oaks
From Little AcOrnS
Grow.

- REAT oaks from little acorns
- grow. and It Is interesting TO
know that Sorosis, the mother
OF clubs. to whose initiative was due
the formation OF the General Fedora
don OF Womens Clubs was inspired
by a newspaper woman, Mrs. Jennie c.
Croly. known to people Of her time as
Jennie June. one OF the first and best
OF the New York women press repre-
sentatiyes did not take very kindly TO
a woman among them. not that they
did not recognize the superior ability
OF Mrs. Croly. But when 1t came 10
any semi-social gathering OF their own
they left her out. just as some press
clubs have been known to do in later
days. and died the death in conse-
quence Charles Dickens. who had
come to this country IN the late COS.
was 70 be dined and wined by the New
York Press Club. and Jennie June,
who had very great desire to meet
him and was more socially prominent
than most OF her fellow-workers. was
not invited
She spoke TO Mrs. Charlotte Wilbour
and other women of the New York, OF
that day. declaring that the women
should have some sort OF club that
would be OF equal importance with the
press club upon such occasions as the
entertaining OF celebrated authors. So
In 1853 the sorosis Club of New York
was born ard twenty-one years after
wards II was sponsor for the General
Federation. the number Of women's
clubs IN this country at that time hav-
ing grown TO eighty-seven-
These first clubs were very Select"
o ny, yes. and they would not toll
crate newspaper reporters under any
consideration They always spoke OF
themselves as ladies" and they were
"genteel." a word very expressive in
those days, and. goodness knows. ex-
pressive enough in these. The ladies
met IN one another's parlors and were
for the most part middle-aged, and
women OF social prominence, but with
little education. They had a great
thirst for learning. however. wanted to
drink deep Of the PieriRn" spring
their idea OF learning being things that
had happened 80 long ago. no living
authority could vouoh for them. per-
sonslly,
They wrote ESSAYS on such sub
jects as Plato Dante" "On the
Language OF the Iroquois" and the
Trail OF the ssracens in Spain" En-
cyclopedias were in demand at the IL
braries, and when they deigned to in
form the newspapers Of their work"
they copied whole pages from such
books. giving the lady to whom was
assigned the essay. credit for the
statements The newspapers. edited
by men. OF course. had great fun with
the olubwomen and described their 1T
erary orgies what they accomplished
as a tempest in teapot"
Many men forbade their wives 10
Join these high-brow organizations. 10
which they referred as the blue
stocking brigade. II was considered
by those who could not get into the
-fr,h- - . ehoc1-frr- 1s----.-f---
en- 10 spend an hour twice a week list
ening TO talk about dead men. The
woman IN the home" came into her
own. and there were shriekings about
the neglect Of family and children.
It was the man of the family. how
ever. who came 10 the rescue. He
wanted his wife 10 take part in these
meetings OF the elect. in the best par
lors" IN town. and he urged his wife 10
run for office. helped Ler write her
essay in fact in nine cases out OF
ten wrote them-and only the disgrun-
tied lords OF creation whose wives
could not get in growled about clubs
ana you viii md some Of them doing
It to this day. it having become a habit
20 Islander intellectual women. The
young. rising men with pretty. popular
wives. we're all for women's clubs. lust
as they have been for woman suffrage
IN these latter DAYS, while all the old
fogies cry out against it,
Those of US who attended the Mil
waukee convention viii remember that
one entire session was given 10 the
press. Among the speakers was Miss
Fora Gale. at that time connected with
a Milwaukee paper. and its club ed
itor. and she made things as clear in
her way 10 the federation as Mrs. Gro
ly had done in her day. and no one
SouId have come away from that meet