The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-11-25

WASHINGTON, Nov. 25.-A plan to
maintain seven colleges for women in
the Fart East by American support,
and especially by having each OF
these oriental colleges adopted by an
American women's college, is now I'M
der way. A good deal of money has
already been raised, and drives in all
parts of the country are planned for
this winter. A Washington drive was
recently held under the patronage of
women of nigh position in official So
ciety.
This plan represents an attempt on
the part of western women to carry
the movement for education and equal
rights for women into that part of
the world where masculine domination
is most complete. In the Orient high
er education for women was a thing
unheard of until a few years ago. In
addition to their seclusion, an almost
hopeless handicap to higher education
! for the women of India and China is
/ found in the early marriage customs
| of these countries. In India 10 per
cent of the girls become mothers by
| the time they have reached 10 years
| OF age, and so percent of them are
mothers under Is years of age. 1t is
| to be remembered too, that this is in
country where high caste women
cannot be treated by male physicians
and where women doctors are almost
unknown outside of mission stations
! What the East Indian women have
suffered in consequence need not be
dwelt upon here, nor is it surprising
under these conditions that but one
! percent of India's 165 100000 womer
! can read.
/ Chinese Women lIIiterate.
! In China more than 80 percent Of
the women are illiterate. In japan
conditions are brighter but unlike the
men who go from the middle schoo
to college and often from college tC
university, the japanese girls educa
ton often stops with the middle
school or even earlier. This is no
surprising when it is recalled that the
Japanese government supports SO in
situations of learning of universit,
grade for men students and but on
institution of college grade for all tn
girls of Japan.
Until recent years the small school
maintained by church mission boards
were the only educational provision
which was made for the girls of thu
Orient. They began about so years
ago. at about the time Vassar college
was started, and at that time tn,
boards were weak and insignificant
organizations themselves. While tht
results of the schools established b,
the mission boards have been encour
! aging in the extreme, yet the individ
ual boards were never able financial.
to establish colleges and high grad
medical schools They had not tn
money to equip nor to run them. TIL
mission boards realized the folly o
trying to run poor sectarian schools
when by uniting their efforts the,
might establish strong union Chris
! tian colleges and give the girls of tn
Orient the same educational advant
ages the American girls enjoy. AZ
cordingly the leading church board
, of England, America, and Canad
united, in 1913, and established tn
first of these high grade Union Chris
tan colleges at Madras, India.
The success which attended tn
Madras venture led to the organize
) ton of committee for the purpos
of securing cooperation among tn
women's church mission boards of tn
United States and Canada in thei
work along educational lines for tn
women of China, India and Japar
: From these boards joint committe
? on the Union Christian colleges fo
/ the Women of the Orient was formed
2 Seven colleges were accepted to be tn
g.. beneficiaries of the cO-Operativ
boards. but before their final accep
anCe Miss PendletOn Wellsley's pres
dent. at the invitation of the COmmi
. tee. went to China and Japan an
1 made a thorough study of the co
! leges. Upon her return Miss Pendl'
=, ton gave the colleges her unqualifie
endorsement and they were accort