The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1920-01-03
WOMAN OCCUPIES
.UNCERTA|NSTATUS,
SAYS LECTURER
Is Herself to Blame fol
Economic Inferiority
to Man.
TALK TO VOnAN'S CLUB
New Years Reception Pro
gram Last Night Very
Interesting.
TALK TO V0NAN'S CLUB

Until woman's work is recognized
and paid for accordingly and until she
desdsts from living partly in the old
regime and partly in the new will her
economic status remain unchanged
and will sho continue to exist as she
does today on an ineuality with maqn.
rms was the gist of remarkable
address delivered by DR.. Earl Barnes
OF Philadelphia, last night before the
Womau's club when he lectured on
the TOPIC "The Modern Woman in
Society,""
Standardization of womenfs work
and position as a means to better &c
ononic conditions was strongly EN-.
phasized by the speaker who believes
without doubt that a woman's work
should be recognized and paid for &C.
cordinSly whether it he confined to
home and household duties or whether
It be n office, store or factory. Laws
Should be passed, said the speaker
whereby a man and woman marry
their Joint earnings should be equally
divided between them because If the
woman'S life is devoted to household
duties and the raising of children she
Is wage Garner as surely as Is 1,el
husband and therefore entitled to rec
ognhion and wages. Prof. Barnes be.
teVes an adjustment of this kind
would be great impetus to better
economic conditions and would alsn
result IN fewer family enstrangement,
quarrels and separations.
He roundly scored women for their
responsibility in lowering the stand.
ard of positions and vocations 1nny
occupy and fill in the world ny ac-
cepting meagre wages and small recoe
milton for good service rendered. This
he said they did purely from unselftsh
motives and desire to serve. They
have. he said, not only lowered the
standards of these positions for them
selves but for men as we'll. Especially
Is this true he said of the teaching
profession and thousands of good teach
ers are leaving the profession on &C
count Of the inadequate salary recog-
milton.
Mr.. Barnes rather discourages the
ideal of remedial legislation for the
conditions that confront the woman
in sccte1y of today as a means to an
end and believes that legislation gov
ernsnS working hours for women ana
other like legislation, without effect
20 men, nather discourages the prog
ress OK women in the ocial and eco
nonrjc world.
He declared poverty to be the great
est menace TO civilization that con-
fronts the world today and believes
:he women are somewhat responsible
for the lowering of the standard OF
wages IN the many departments of la
Dor Which they have entered.
In his opening remarks Mr.. Barnes
set himself squarely as favoring WON
an suffrage and eaid that he used to
go shout the country advocating the
equality OF women with men at the
ballot box but as the need for this
had vanished and the next few months
would see the National suffrage amend
ment ratified by the states he had
stopped this and was now trying to
present either problems of the won
en- to them for their study and atten-
ton.
The. speaker in the beginning of his
lecture to illustrate the point that the
human body is poorly adapted to
stand erect and perform the many
arduous tasks that are thrust Upon
it, let it he known that he was some
what firm in his belief in the Darwin
ian theory and that men originally
went OF all tours.
A musical feature of the, program
was a group OF songs sung by Prof
Walter Parnes of tho Fairmont State
Normal School accompanied by Miss
Laura NJ. Briggs of the Normal school
faculty.
Mrs. ]. Walter Barnes the club pres
ident, PRECEDED at the meeting and
stafed that q local newspaper had
jokingly referred to the meeting last
night as a Barnes affair inasmuch as
the speaker was a Barnes, the singer
was a Rarnes and the president was
q Barnes. She went on TO say that
the musical program had been arrang-
ed by Barnes and that another Bar