The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1945-06-13
Observations
Women i'm Public
Office Have Tough
Time of il
by HELEN EssARY

Frances Perkins, flrst woman sec
Rotary OF labor in the cabinet Of
the President OF the United States,
is about TO pass from the official
Washington scene. In fact, she
has passed from the Washington
scene with the appointment Of the
new labor secretary, Judge Lewis
schwellenbach
Already Miss Perkins has packed
away the famous tricorne hat-her
Identification tag. No longer can
little Quips and Jokes be made
about Fanny. Miss Perkins re-
gime is over.
Miss Perkins manner OF depart
ure is none too magnificent, I'll
admit that. But between you and
me and the prejudice we all have
against women in public office,
Miss Perkins has been a much ma
ligned woman
Any woman in public office is
a much maligned woman. Oh yes,
sir. she isl All yes, my dear. she
is much maligned! Any woman
and every woman who steps out
into the limelight Of officeholding
has two strikes against her.
People used to think OF women
in public life as a combination OF
Carrie Nation and the picture on
people used TO think the female
who dared TO stand out-spokenly
for a conviction or two was tough
enough 10 ride a broomstick. The
broomstick conception OF the in
dependent woman still clings 20
some of the modern-minded women
in public life. You may be as mod
ern as you please in private life.
You thereby supply much juicy
gossip.
Lately. however. the popular con
ception OF a woman in public life
IS changing. Grim" is becoming
less and less descriptive. The
woman in public life is now too
often thought OF as Cute. Yes.
cute! There you have il. From
grim to cute. There is no compro'
mise. II a woman isn't too careful
about her appearance: IL she Is
thinking more OF the speech she
is about to make than whether the
shade OF red on her hat matches
the shade Of red on her handbag
then she reverts to the grim.
And IL her color scheme is per-
feet, then she is labeled cute.
In other words, the female OF
the species Is far from emancipat-
ed. She is more tied down in many
ways than her grandmother was.
She has made herself a competitor
OF the male. ! mean, an open COM
petitor. And II may be, she has
been pretty silly to so expose her
self TO every known type of envy.
Poor Frances Perkins! She was
an example of all. the things I've
been talking about. Yet I have
heard well-informed Washington
ians say that she was far superior
as secretary OF labor to the men
who preceded her in office.
Before Miss Perkins came 10
town the labor post had often been
filled by men who were notably in
competent or who had been afflict.
ed with weakness when they met
a tough problem. Making deals"
of one sort or another was the nor
uncommon practice Of labor sec
retaries.
Labor, before Frances Perkins
rarely raised its whipped-down
head. Walking over labor was a
common pastime Il was no trick
at all 10 keep labor flattened ont
Miss Perkins came in on a new tide
OF thought and action. Labor. sud.
denly aware OF its strength. was
rarin TO 90. And did 20. And
there sat Miss Perkins, within he-
own rather stiff personality, sur.
rounded and protected by sec
retaries. Trying to hold 10 the
principles she believed in and AZ
the same time express the policies
OF a new deal" which didn't al.
ways know what Il believed in.
I've an idea that when all the ex.
citement has died down, Miss Per.
kins will be discovered TO have heen
a pretty fine cabinet officer. I've
an idea, too, that IL she had been a
man many OF her mistakes would
nave been regarded as bold SUCCESS.
es, or at least overlooked. II she
had been less grim and more cute
there would not have been so many
jokes about her. On the other
hand, II she had been more cute
than grim, she might not have had
the Job at all.
don't know what the answer Is.
You figure it out. There are two
strikes against a woman in public
office. And privately think II just
as well there are because you simp.
ly can't give US too much rope. We
might hang ourselves and the rest