THE COURIER
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Annie L. Millkc, Editor.
Officers of the State Federation of Woman's Clubs.
President, Mrs. B. M. Stoutenborough, Plattsmouth.
Vice-president, Mrs. E. M. Cobb, Yoik.
Secretary, Mrs. Henrietta Smicb, Omiba.
Treasurer, Mn. M. V. Nichol, Beatrice.
Auditor, Mrs.-Ella S. Lirsh, Nebraska City.
Librarian, Mrs. G. M. Lambertson, Lincoln.
The following report of the Denver
Biennial is reprinted from the Bazar:
Perhaps it is because Denver is a
city of superlatives, possessing the
hottest sun and the coolest, driest
nir, the biggest mountains, the .Inest
fruits and vegetables, the most ur
bane and approachnble of governors,
and absolutely the most hospitable
of women, that one can only speak
of this fourth Biennial in the same
degree. It is pronounced on all sides
now that it is over, to have been the
most successful eer known in. the
history of the general federation.
Some obvious cautes account for this
the fact that the preliminary years
of organization are finished, and that
Mrs. Henrotin's grasp of the helm
has been forcible and developing;
but over and above all this is un
doubtedly the fact that the place
where it was held is responsible in
a large measure for the supreme suc
cess of the meeting. "Everybody who
had never been there wanted to go to
Denver, and apparently everybody
who had ever been there wanted to go
back. Hence a large and enthusiasm
tic attendance. The atmosphere of
interest and expectation began in the
various federation trains as they
crossed the plains on the last stage of
the Rockies. It was a moment to be
remembered in every car when from
the hot treeless levels of Nebraska
and Kansas a view in the distance
was caught of snow-capped nioun
' tains. " The travellers knew then that
they were close under the shadow of
Tikes Teak, and that anticipation had
at last given place to reality.
The Omaha prelude was a delightr
fill and suggestive overture to the
great symphony played later at Den
ver. More than a taste a good strong
draught of western hospitality was
taken at the Nebraska city, where the
incoming guests were met at every
train by the most cordial of women,
who looked quickly and capably after
their comfort and happiness from the
moment of arrival. At the beautiful
exposition, which is a whole story by
itself and is not to-be told here, the
visitors were happily entertained on
Saturday afternoon, June 18. There
was a most interesting meeting in the
big auditorium, at which Mrs. Henro
tin, en route to Denver, and Mrs
Breed, the vice-president of the feder
ation, were both present.
Women's work at the Omaha, expo
sition is largely on educational lines.
They have assumed the care of all
educational and religious congresses
which are to meet there during the
five months of the fair's progress
and of which the federated club
women's meeting was the first. A
program devoted to the consideration
of educational topics was presented.
Mrs. Draper Smith, president of the
Omaha Woman's club, delivered an
address of welcome, to which Mrs.
Hearotin in her response made the
good point that the history of the
General Federation of Women's clubs
was that of expositions; its inspira
tion was found in the Chicago fair,
and now Omaha marked another
epoch of its growth and development.
Mrs. Mary K. Mumford of Philadel
phia. Mi-h. Hermann Hall of Chicago,
Mrs. Kate Tannett Woods of Salem,
Mass., and Mrs. Ellen A. Richardson
of Boston made up the list of force
ful speakers of the afternoon, each
voicing her special phase of educa
tional work. An afternoon tea in ther
reception rooms of the educational
bureau of the exposition followed the
program, and in the evening a large
and brilliant reception was held in
the mining building, in the beautiful
rooms of the entertainment commit
tee of the exposition a committee
whose rooms and personnel and work
are going to have a story in Harper's
Bazar all by itself. On Sunday at
Omaha various pulpits were filled by
visiting women. Rev. Celia Parker
Woolley of Chicago, attracting a large
congregation at the Church of Chris
tian Unity. Most of the officials left
for Denver on Sunday night, dele
gates not needed at the convention
until its actual opening loitering,
however, at Omaha until Monday and
Tuesday.
The opening scene at Denver on
Wednesday morning, June 22, in the
Broadway theatre, was something not
soon to be forgotten by those who
witnessed it. The large auditorium
was beautifully trimmed with potted
plants and flags, the stage banked
with green, and the great audience
room packed from pit to dome with
interested women. The tiers of boxes
were reserved for the president's
guests, and for honary members and
distinguished visitors. On the stage
were the officers of the convention
and speakers. After the opening in
vocation Governor Adams of Colorado
delivered an address of welcome that
was most genial and sympathetic.
There was not the slighest doubt that
the state of Colorado, through its
chief executive, welcomed the visit
ing club women genuinely. Following
him. Mayor McMurray of Denver
added a greeting in the same- spirit,
which was supplemented in the ab
sence of Mrs. Thatcher, the president
of the state federation, by Mrs. Gale,
the vice-president, with equal cordial
ity. Mrs. Piatt, as president of the
great Woman's club of Denver, then
gave the freedom of the Denver dub
world io its visiting sisters with
breezy spontaneity. The welcome
from the audience to Mrs. Henrotin
the presiding officer, when she rose
io reply to this quartet of greetings,
was a round of applause and the
Chautauqua salute, the effect from
the stage of this flutter of cambric
being most striking. Following Mrs.
Henrotin's address came four reports,
which were models of excellence. It
is rare that reports need a special
comment, but these respectively that
'of the local Biennial committee, by
Mrs. James B. Grant chairman; com
mittee on credentials, by Mrs. Carrie
O. Kistler, chairman; recording secre
tary, Mrs. C. P. Barnes, and corre
sponding secretary, Mrs. Philip N.
Moore represented in their brie!
comprehensiveness the ideal of what,
such reports should be. A message of
greeting and congratulation to the
convention from Lady Aberdeen,
from Ottawa, was read. With the
close of the Wednesday morning's
meeting, the Biennial was in full op
eration. From that time through to
the reception on Monday evening to
the newly elected officers the days
were a whirl of delightful and inter
esting events.
It is not within the compass of this
preliminary article on the Denver Bi
ennial to give a detailed account of
the various meetings of the conven
tion. At this writing, with the echoes
of the closing exercises not yet died
away, and in the confusion and haste
that still prevail, it is impossible to
get a point of view for the detail of
the work. It is only attempted to
view it as a whole. One impression
that was voiced on many sides, and
which seemed to be almost the prev
alent one, was the absence of a bitter
or factional spirit in regard to the
election of new officers to succeed
those whose terms by the constitu
tion had expired. From the very first
Mrs. Piatt, the president of the Den
ver Woman's club, was the majority
choice of the delegates. It is probable
that' no woman was ever urged to
take an office so persistently and so
enthusiastically and so generally as
was Mrs. Piatt throughout the entire,
duration of the convention.. Mrs.
Piatt's objections to becoming a can
didate did her great credit. She ob
jected first because she felt it was a
little unsuitable that Denver, which,
was the hostess of the federation,
should provide the new executive. She
objected secondly, and with the
frankness which is characteristic ot
her, because, as she puts it, she felt
that the federation was not ready for
her. "I am a radical woman," she
said. "I might try to curb, my own
energies in certain directions, but I
should find it very hard to hold my
self within the conservative lines tat
have so far controlled the federation."
Mrs. Flatt is, of course, being a Colo
rado woman, an 'equal-suffragist, and
an anient one, and she referred in
this remark to her attitude on that
question. A third reason which Mrs.
Piatt gave for declining the nomina
tion was the fact that a western
woman was retiring from the office
and that another section of the coun
try should now be represented. Mrs.
Piatt evidently possesses that unusual
quality of being able to stand off
from herself and make a study of her
fitness for an office, irrespective of
her personal desire. She did not hesi
tate to say that the temptation to
take the place was a very strong one;
it was an honor she would appreciate
and which she coveted, but which she
felt was not quite ready for her. Mrs..
Piatt deserves the more credit for
this stand because there was little
doubt that her consent to take the
place was all that was needed to in
sure her election. The large contin
gent of western women present made
that almost a certainty, and the fact
too, that her personality won rapid
ly upon many delegates from other
sections.
Mrs. Breed of Massachusetts, the
vice-president of the federation, was
the next strongest candidate in the
field. Her friends were ardent and en
thusiastic throughout, and felt sure,
of her election so long as Mrs. Piatt
remained firm in her decision not to
accept.' Both she and Mrs. William
B. Lowe, president of the state fed-"
eration of Georgia, the third' candi
date, won many friends during the
progress of the meeting. There were
many arguments in favor of Mrs.
Breed's candidacy. Her service as vice
president made her election to the
chair of the chief executive a natural
sequence. Her experience, too, as
president of the Massachusetts state
.federation, one of the largest and old
est in the country, was strongly in
her favor in a claim to the head of the
national organization. Her dignified
manner and bearing in the platform
work which she was called upon to
do at various times during the con
vention produced a most favorable
impression upon those who had not
previously known her.
The friends who pressed the claims
of Mrs. Lowe, the successful candi
date, did so under some protest from
the lady herself. Mrs. Lowe felt that
to accept the presidency would in
volve a large sacrifice of personal in
terest, but she was willing to do this
if the situation demanded it. As
some of the southern delegates aptly
put it, "to give the presidency to .tie
south is an altruistic work that is
worthy of this federation. We need
the impetus in club work which
would p rraeate the south if a south
ern woman were tthe head of this
body. Later we shall not need it, for
we are making great strides in our
club work, but now we ask it as a
most useful inspiration." Mrs. Lowe's
executive ability has been shown in
her splendid work at Atlanta in the
organization of the woman's club
there, which later became the source
and inspirer of the state federation,
also a well-equipped and rapidly de
veloping society.
A feature that impressed everybody
throughout the convention was the
absence in all this uncertainty of. can
didacy of bitter factional feeling.
While delegates mentioned the presi
dency as they met, it was not -until
close upon the critical Monday morn
ing which saw the report of the nom
inating committee and the elections
that the feeling grew intense. If
there was wire pulling done and
there undoubtedly must have been,
since every candidate had her most
loyal friends and supporters it was
done in a quiet and what might be
called rational way. Certain it is
that among the delegates in general
there was a most noticeable absence
of offensive partisanship. In this re
spect the general federation gave an
object-lesson to some of the 'other
women's conventions of the country.
To begin to sing the praise of the
general features of the convention, so
far as it concerns the ladies of Den
ver, is to open a floodgate of lan
guage. For over a year the local Biennial-board,
under the chairmanship
of Mrs. James B. Grant, has been in
efficient executive working. Its re
sults were' impressive throughout the
five days at Denver. Everything had
been thought of and arranged for.
The places of meeting the Broadway
theatre, Trinity and Unity churches
were compressed in a single New
York block. The various bureaus of
information, credentials, registry, and
so on through the list, were well pla
carded and easily found. The pro
gram, comprising a pamphlet of a
dozen pages, was a model of complete
information. Little girls from ten to
twelve years of age, dressed in white,
and with scarfs of blue ribbon let
tered in gold across from shoulder to
waist, acted as pages at all 'of the
meetings. They were divided into re
lays, serving at different times, and
their efficiency was really remark
able. Each girl carried a small pad
and pencil, and it was easy to 8enci a
line at a moment's otice to any part
of the house, so intelligent and apt at
their work did these little daughters
