Washington, DC, 1993.
Preceding element provides place and date of transcription only.
For more information about this text and this American Memory collection, refer to accompanying matter.
The National Digital Library Program at the Library of Congress makes digitized historical materials available for education and scholarship.
This transcription is intended to have an accuracy of 99.95 percent or greater and is not intended to reproduce the appearance of the original work. The accompanying images provide a facsimile of this work and represent the appearance of the original.
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF WOMEN
OF THE UNITED STATES
LEAD, KINDLY LIGHT
INCORPORATED 1891.
Program of the 5th Triennial Meeting
OF THE
National Council
:: of Women ::
of the United States
AFFILIATED WITH THE INTERNATIONAL
COUNCIL OF WOMEN
TO BE HELD AT THE PYTHIAN TEMPLE,
Ninth Street, bet. K and L, N.W.
WASHINGTON, D. C.
April 9 to 15, 1905.
HEADQUARTERS: THE SHOREHAM
Motto: “Lead, Kindly Light.”
CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT
SUBJECT
Women - Source Material
NO
President,
Mrs.
Mary Wood Swift,
824 Valencia Street, San Francisco, Cal.
Vice-President-at-Large,
Mrs.
Kate Waller Barrett,
Alexandria, Va.
Corresponding Secretary,
Mrs.
Flo Jamison Miller,
Wilmington, Ill.
First Recording Secretary,
Mrs.
Frances E. Burns,
St. Louis, Mich.
Second Recording Secretary,
Mrs.
Isabelle Quinlan,
Calesburg, Ill.
Treasurer,
Mrs.
Lillian M. Hollister,
307 Kirby St., Detroit, Mich.
Peace Demonstration:
Mrs.
May Wright Sewall,
Chairman.
Arts and Letters:
Miss
Ellen H. Richardson,
Chairman.
Laws Concerning Domestic Relations:
Mrs.
J. Ellen Foster,
Chairman
Department of Home:
Mrs.
N. Coe Stewart,
Chairman.
Dress:
Mrs.
Anna L. Johnson,
Chairman.
Philanthropies and Charities:
Mrs.
Ellen E. Downer,
Chairman.
Education:
Mrs.
Elizabeth E. Brown,
Chairman.
Dependent and Delinquent Children:
Kate Waller Barrett,
M. D.,
Chairman.
National Woman's Suffrage Association.
Universal Peace Union.
National Woman's Relief Society.
National Christian League for the Promotion of Social Purity.
National Council of Jewish Women.
Young Ladies Mutual Improvement Society.
Supreme Hive, Ladies of the Maccabees of the World.
National Woman's Relief Corps.
National Association of Loyal Women of America.
National Association of Colored Women.
American Federation of Nurses.
Great Hive of the Modern Maccabees.
National Association of Business Women.
National Catholic Benevolent Association.
National Florence Crittenton Mission.
Woman's Centenary Association.
Ladies of the G.A.R.
Rathbone Sisters of the World.
National Free Baptist Missionary Society.
State Council, Rhode Island.
Local Council of Bloomington, Ind.
Local Council of Toledo, Ohio.
Local Council of Rochester, N.Y.
Local Council of Indianapolis, Ind.
Local Council of Portland, Me.
Local Council of San Francisco, Cal.
Local Council of Detroit, Mich.
Local Council of Union City, Ind.
First Congregational Church, corner Tenth and G Streets N.W.
Chairman, Mrs.
Mary Wood Swift,
President National Council of Women
Invocation: Mrs. S. D.
La Fetra.
Bible Reading: Mrs. E. B.
Grannis.
Solo: Miss
Pierce.
Addresses:
Mrs. J.
Ellen Foster,
Washington, D. C.
Mrs.
Mary Church Terrell,
Washington, D.C.
Mrs.
Kate Waller Barrett,
Alexandria, Va.
Mrs.
Hannah G. Soloman,
Chicago, Ill.
Benediction: Rev.
Amanda Deyo.
Singing of Council Hymn:
Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,
Lead thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead thou me on!
Keep thou my feet! I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.
I was not ever thus, or prayed that thou
Shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path; but now
Lead though me on!
I loved the garish day; and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will: remember not past years.
So long Thy power has blest me, sure it still
Will lead me on
O'er moon and fen, o'er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone;
And with the morn those angel faces smile,
Which I have loved long since and lost awhile.
Mrs. S. D. La Fetra,
Mrs. Alfred Wood,
The Local Council of Jewish Women, whose National body is affiliated with the National Council, will hold a service in the vestry of the Temple, Eighth Street, between H and I Streets N.W., at eight o'clock, Sunday evening, to which the public is invited.
Badges may be had from the Chairman, Miss
Hetty Abraham.
All members of affiliated organizations are entitled to wear these badges.
The business sessions which will be held each morning at 10 o'clock in one of the smaller halls of the Pythian Temple are open to the members of the Council, Patrons, Annual Contributors, Fraternal delegates, and specially invited guests. The afternoon and evening sessions will be open sessions, to which the public is cordially invited.
Owing to the absence of President and Mrs.
Roosevelt,
it has been impossible to arrange for a reception at the White House, but special permission will be gotten for any delegate desiring it, to visit the rooms in the White House not usually shown to the public.
The agent to visé railroad certificates will be in the hall on April 12th. The hour will be announced at the session of the Council on the 11th.
Formal Opening of Triennial.
Prayer.
Appointment of Committee on Credentials.
Reception of Applications for Membership.
Presentation of Committee on Rules.
First Report of Committee on Credentials.
Reports of Officers.
Appointment of Special Committees on Business of the Triennial.
Reception of Fraternal Delegates.
President's Address: Mrs.
Mary Wood Swift.
Reports of Affiliated Organizations.
National Woman's Suffrage Association, 2.30 to 2.45.
Rev.
Anna Shaw.
National Christian League for the Promotion of Social Purity, 2.45 to 3.00
Mrs.
Elizabeth B. Grannis.
Universal Peace Union, 3.00 to 3.15.
Rev.
Amanda Deyo.
American Federation of Nurses, 3.15 to 3.30.
President or Delegate.
Young Ladies’ Mutual Improvement Society, 3.30 to 3.45.
President or Delegate.
National Woman's Relief Society, 3.45 to 4.00.
Mrs.
Emmeline B. Wells.
National Association of Business Women, 4.00 to 4.15.
President or Delegate.
The Lord's Prayer, led by Rev.
Alexander Kent.
Greeting of President, Mrs.
Mary Wood Swift.
Greetings,
Susan B. Anthony,
President, International Suffrage Association.
Greetings, Mrs.
May Wright Sewall,
Honorary President, International Council of Women.
Greetings from Canadian Council of Women, Mrs.
Robert Thompson,
President.
Address: “The Ethics of Home Making,” Mrs. N.
Coe Stewart.
Address:
Edwin Markham,
“Woman and the Future Social Conscience.”
Minutes of Previous Meeting.
Report of Committee on Credentials.
Report of Special Committees.
Report of Standing Committees:
On Dress: Mrs.
Anna L. Johnson,
Chairman.
Department of the Home: Mrs. N.
Coe Stewart,
Chairman.
Programme: Mrs.
Flo Jamison Miller,
Chairman.
On Revision of the Constitution:
Press: Miss
Ackerman.
Care of Dependent and Delinquent Children: K. W.
Barrett,
M. D
Reports of Affiliated Organizations:
National Council of Jewish Women, 2.15 to 2.30.
Mrs.
Hannah G. Soloman.
National Catholic Benevolent Association, 2.30 to 2.45.
President or Delegate.
Ladies of the G. A. R., 2.45 to 3.00.
President or Delegate.
Report, Local Council of Detroit, Mich., 3.00 to 3.15.
President or Delegate.
National Association of Colored Women, 3.15 to 3.30.
Mrs.
Josephine S. Yates.
The Woman's Centenary Association, 3.30 to 3.45.
Mrs. C.
Quinby,
Hon. Prest.
State Council of Rhode Island, 3.45 to 4.00.
President or Delegate.
National Florence Crittenton Missions.
Mrs.
Kate Waller Barrett.
Through the courtesy of Mrs. J. B.
Henderson,
a Tea, complimentary to the Officers, Delegates and Visitors to the Council, will be given.
Report of Committee on Arts and Letters.
Mrs.
Ellen H. Richardson.
Adelaide Johnson.
Address: Rev.
Anna Howard Shaw,
Chairman, International Committee on Equal Suffrage.
Address: “The Need of National Legislation on Child Labor.”
Hon. J. A.
McKelway,
Asst. Sec., National Committee on Child Labor.
Reading:
Edwin Markham,
“The Man with the Hoe.”
Minutes of the Previous Meeting.
Adjourned Business Previously Presented.
Report of Committee on Resolutions, Mrs. E. B.
Grannis,
Chairman.
Discussion.
Report of Peace Committee, Mrs.
May Wright Sewall,
Chairman.
Reports of Affiliated Organizations:
National Free Baptist Missionary Society, 2.15 to 2.30.
Mrs.
Mary Davis.
Rathbone Sisters of the World, 2.30 to 2.45.
Delegate or President.
Great Hive of the Modern Maccabees, 2.45 to 3.00.
Mrs.
Frances Burns.
Local Council of Bloomington, Ind., 3.00 to 3.15.
Local Council of Toledo, Ohio, 3.15 to 3.30.
Local Council of Rochester, N. Y., 3.30 to 3.45.
Local Council of Indianapolis, Ind., 3.45 to 4.00.
Local Council of Portland, Me., 4.00 to 4.15.
Local Council of San Francisco, Cal., 4.15 to 4.30.
The Patron, Her Duties, Privileges, and Responsibilities.
Discussion.
Report of Committee on Domestic Relations under the Law.
Mrs. J.
Ellen Foster,
Chairman.
Address: Our International Relations, Mrs.
Willoughby Cummings,
Corresponding Secretary, National Council of Women of Canada, and Editor
International Bulletin.
Address: The Spirit of Internationalism, Mrs.
May Wright Sewall,
Honorary President, International Council of Women, Honorary President, National Council of Women of the United States.
Minutes of the Previous Meeting.
Election of Officers for Succeeding Administration.
Presentation of Plans and Suggestions for the Increased Efficiency of the National Council.
Luncheon at the Shoreham, complimentary to newly elected officers. Tickets may be had from the Chairman of the Committee, Mrs.
Rosa Dumars.
Patriotism, The National Woman's Relief Corps, Mrs
Fannie L. Minot,
President.
What Fraternal Benefit Societies Mean to Women, Mrs.
Lillian M. Hollister,
President Supreme Hive, Maccabees of the World.
National Association of Loyal Women of America.
Mrs. I. C.
Manchester.
Report, Local Council of Union City, Ind., Miss
Jessie Nelson.
The Responsibility and Opportunity of the Government towards the District of Columbia, Hon.
Geo. S. Wilson.
Presentation of the newly elected Officers and the transferring of powers and properties of the Council to the new Administration.
There are two parts of the work of a National Council, one of which may be said to represent its practical side, the other the side of sentiment. While there are many who would say that, in so far as the Council does practical work, it may lay claim to the term useful, very few seem to understand that the Council idea—that is the sentiment—may be as really useful as the concrete thing to which we may point, saying: “This has been done by the Council.” One need not at this time in the history of civilization defend sentiment. * * * Love of country is only a sentiment, but how much it has done for the loved country. Even motherhood is a mighty force in Christian countries to-day, by virtue of the sentiment which gathers round it. * * * What is the sentiment underlying the Council idea? It is that, whatever affects the people of our country affects us: that we are bound up by innumerable ties to all who live under our skies and render allegiance to our rulers; that every condition making life easier or harder to them is a matter of supreme moment to us; and that through our organizations, we want to hold out hands of help to every movement that is meant to uplift, to educate, to relieve, or to brighten the lives of our fellowmen and women. And the value of a National Council lies not so much in what it has done as in what it may do when its powers are fully developed. We go to see a mother of our acquaintance. We find her in ecstasies about the baby. She says he has learned to walk. Have you ever known a mother scornful about these tottering first steps? Does she say severely, that the baby should never try to walk until he can emulate the manly stride of his father? She knows that there will be many a fall, many a hurt forehead, many a tear, before those little feet shall grow strong, and those steps firm like a man's; but for all that, she has nothing but praise for those first attempts; nothing but hope for a perfection of that feeble beginning. * * * Even a valuable thing may become valueless from disuse. * * * But when it is neither misused nor disused, what is the place in the community to be filled by the Council? It seems to me that it should be the eye and the heart of the body social, of which the educational societies may be the head; the philanthropic, the hands and feet. It should look round in the community to see what is to be done, and how to do it; it should see what is being overdone, and save the waste of effort; and it should be the sympathetic link between societies whose aims are apparently far apart, yet all of which are helping towards the betterment of society in some way. Sight and sympathy—the eye and the heart—should be the twofold function of the Council. * * * (Instances quoted of the manner in which National Councils are fulfilling this function) There are some objectors to the Council, who say that it has never done them any good. There is a sense in which it was not intended to do them good. Why are the societies organized at all? Is it to get good? Is it not rather to do good? The Council is not a porridge pot, out of which spoonfuls of nourishment are doled out to hungry participants; it is an instrument which can, and ought to be used to further the aims of the societies. And if you do not use it, never say it is of no use for you have not tried it. The Council is no abstract thing up in the clouds, it is you—you members of affiliated societies; and if you have not found the use of the Council, may I ask have you ever tried to use it? Have you not rather stood aloof critically, forgetting that it can only be of use when those who belong to it make of it an instrument to help them in the particular work to which they have put their hands. It is getting rusty maybe, for want of use; it is yours to make it serviceable: to bring the kingdom of heaven a little nearer to this tired world. Whenever there is a little child neglected, a home comfortless, a girl astray, a man inebriated, a city insanitary, a mind left uncultivated, a willing hand left idle for want of hiring, there is need for a National Council of Women.