The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, March 17, 1900, Page 4, Image 4
TrtE COURIEk. from plowing and reapinp, and yet had an equal share with hip fellows. At length, when the peasants began to take music as a matter of course, and forgot to tell the piper every morning what a gifted fellow be was, he decided that they did not appreciate a good artist, and didn't know one when they heard one. So ho went away to Paris and began to play very different music from that which he had played for the hay-makerp, music that did not give pleasure or delight except in a dry, barren way, but people went to hear him because it gave them an opportunity of saying clever things and writing articles. Now these people who got the music were not really the people who paid the musician, for they produced nothing and did no work, but wrung their money from the peasants and with it bought jewels and music. So the hay makers still paid for the music, though now they heard none of it. This, Count Tolstoi claims, is the present status of art. While Miss AddamB was talking I couid not help thinking of the letter that Turgeneiff wrote Tolstoi from his death bed, urging him, begging him to abandon bis philanthropic madness and give himself again to the great art which he had once enriched. When Count Tolstoi lived ij the world and wap, as he assures me, a very bad man, he wrote some of the greatest novels in the world's literature. Now that be lives like a serf and spends his strength for bis convictions, he writes fables for heavy-browed peasants. The compari son !b a poor argument for godly living. But the gist of the whole matter is this, in these times a man cannot live away from the stress of the battle. A weak man or a vicious man who in the long run makes for good is more useful than a 6hint who hides in the cloister. Count Tolstoi argues that art has grown too far away from the people. No, it is the people who have grown, and art with them. He argues that no greater poetry has been written than the "Iliad"' which came almost directly from the people. But verses from the people of today would be very different sluff. The life of the p?asant today is less independently personal, more com plex than that of the Argive kings. The life and fortunes of the humblest laborer today are influenced by tele graph reports, stock markets, questions of transportation. Sothe art that ex presses life today must be more complex than the art of the Homeric Greeks. As to Tolstoi's theory of labor, of one rcan'e doing several kinds of labor and of throwing the disagreeable work wholly upon no one class, its absurdity is plain enough, if Ten Dyson had gone every day into his tulip bed and tent hin tulip gardener in to work at "Maude," I fancy neither "Maude" nor the tulips would have prospered. It seems unfair enough that some should be doomed ps the hod carriers of the world, but even Count Tolstoi cannot unmake and refahion God's universal. Nature did not mean all things to be equally beautiful or equally happy. She made the skjlark and she made the toad, and not all the passion of our prayers could give the reptile wings. There is no means among all the re sources of science whereby we may communicate to an oyster the beauty of a symphony. iO00000W0000OOOOOOO0 L6LBBS. i LOUISA L RICKETTS. X CALENDAR OF NEBRASKA CLUBS. March. 17. Woman's c. Child Study Lincoln 17, Woman's c, French Lincoln 1 History and Art c Effects of the 17, CrusadesGothic in architec- ture Seward . I Fin de Siecle c. Brook Farm '' i Hnwthnrnn Seward I ,- ( Woman's c. Household econ- ' . nmliN North Bend i omlcs I Zetetic c. Parliamentary ' practice. Weeplng Water . j Frances M. Ford c. Children's ,a' hour Stromsburg 19, Woman's c. Business meeting Omaha I Woman's c Abraham Lin IP, coin and the Civil War. Rep- resentatlve men of the U. S..Central City 19, Woman's c. Household economics.. Lincoln 19. iSorosis. "All's Well That Ends I Well" Stanton 19. Matinee Musical, Open meeting Lincoln 20. Woman's c, French conversation Omaha 0, Woman's c Ethics and Philosophy.. Omaha a). Woman's c. Business meeting. . . Fairbury .,., History and Art c Political Irelard " ' ( Scott, Ingelow and Kingsley Albion ., t Woman's c, "Merchant of Ve- " ( nice Stanton ii i Woman's c. Parliamentary prac- J3 tice Lincoln 20, Fortnightly c, Russian music Lincoln f Cozv c, Frederick the G reat and . his court Comparison of 11a--' ; ria Theresa and Catherine the (. Great Tecumseh 21, Woman'sc., Oratory Omaha 21 ' Marv Barnes c, American revo- 1 lution Events of 1777-1778.. ...Fullerton 21, Woman's c Lecture .Ashland .,, J Woman's c. Household econom- -' ) ics Omaha. 22, Woman'sc., English literature ... .Omaha. 22, Woman's c Education Omaha 22, Chivalry and Knights Templar Dundee 22, Woman's c Art Lincoln 10, Woman's c. Literature department-Lincoln .... t Fortnightlv c. Mara time discov- j eries of the age Raphael Wymore iSelf- 23. - C J val i Self-Culture c The Austrian war Career of Napoleon Nutritive value of foods St. Paul M' Woman's c Current topics -Ecclesiastical history. . . . Plattsmoutn 23. Woman's c. Music Lincoln 21, Woman'sc, English History.. .Stromsburg ... ( New Review and Art c Titian, Tin- -' toretto York History and Art c. Writers or the -J middle ages The servant ques I tion Seward t. 21, Woman's c. Music Lincoln 21. Woman's c.. The Crusades. North Bend ... J Fin de Siecle c, Alcott, Ripley. -' Ossoll Seward 21 Woman's c Colonial expansion ...Syracuse OFFICERS OF N. F. W. C 1899 1900. Pres., Mrs. Anna L. Apperson, Tecumseh. V. P., Mrs. Ida W Blair, Wayne. Cor. Sec, Mrs. Virginia D.Arnup, Tecumseh. Rec Sec., MKs Mary Hill, York. Treas., Mrs. H. F. Doane, Crete. Librarian, Mrs. G. M. Lambertson, Lincoln. Auditor, Mrs. E. J. Hainer, Aurora. The club movement of the United States is confronted with the most mo mentous question which has arisen since its conception, viz: the reorganization proposition, which originated in Massa chusetts. At the council meeting in June a committee was appointed to coi siJer the question. This committee has just printed a majority and minority report. The reorganizition committee met in Philadelphia February 15th and tCtb, the members present being Mrs. Horace Brock, chairman; Mrs. Rebecca Douglas Lowe, president G. F. W. C; Mrs. F. M. Hanger, president Arkansas federation; Mrs. Lucia Eames Blount, state chair man correspondence, District of Colum bia federation; Mrs. Emma Van Vechten, ex president Iowa federation; Mrs. Di triies T. S. Denison, president Sorosit, New York; Mrs C. A. Eldredge, state chairman of Colorado; Mrs. P. Lindsay Johnson, president of Georgia federation; Mrs. Penoyer L. Sherman, president Chicago woman's club; Mrs. May Alden Ward, vice president Massa chusetts federation; Mrs Emily E. Will iamson, president New Jersey federa tion, and Mrs. Selwyn Douglas, presi dent federation of Oklahoma and Indian Territory. The committe- calculated that an an nual income of five thousand five hun dred dollars would meet the expenses of the general federation. This provides for a stenographer for the president and secretary, necessary postage, stationery, etc., and leaves five thousand dollars for biennial meetings. The Denver bi ennial cost about one thousand six hun dred dollars, and three thousand dollars was paid by individuals for speakers, and the stenographical reports for the program committe cost three thousand dollars more Ihe club women desire the best speakers at the biennials, and these cannot be had for nothing. MAJORITY REPORT OF THE RE- ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE. ARTICLE I. Section 1. The General Federation shall cons:st of women's clubs, state federations, national societies and kin dreJ organizdtions, the two latter to be admitted on the basis of individual clubs. Section 2. The general officers of the federation shall be a president, two vice presidents, a recording secretary, a cor responding secretary, a treasurer and an auditor. Section 3. The general officers of the fedeiation and eight diiectors shall con stitute a board of directors, who shall transact the business of the federation, subject to its direction, and make a full report at each biennial meeting, and to the council when it convents. They shall meet at the call of the president. Five members shall constitute a quo rum. Section 4. The board of directors, presidents of state federations, presi dents of clubs and kindred rocieties ehall constitute a council to consider and promote the interests of the Gen eral Federation of Women's CIulb. This council shall meet the a ay previous and the day following each biennial, also at the call of the board of directors. Twen ty members shall constitute a quorum. Section 5. The presidents of state federations and board of directors of the general federation ehall foim an ad visory council, to meet at the call of the president. Saclion 5 shall be called section 6, and read as follows: The seven officers of the general fed eration and eight directors shall be elect ed at biennial meetings by ballot. One delegate from each state, chosen by the delegation of the state, shall form a nominating board, to offer a list of offi cers and directors for election. A ma jority vote of those present entitled to vote and voting snail constitute an elec tion. Section G shall be called section 7, and read as follows: No member shall hold more than one office at a time, and no officer shall be eligible to the same general office for more, than two terms consecutively. No two members of the board shall be from the same state. One-half of the board of directors shall be changed at each bi ennial meeting. Each officer shall hold office until the adjournment of the bi ennial meeting following that of her election. In case of a vacancy, the board shall appoint a member to serve until her successor is elected. Section 7 shall be called section 8. Section 8 shall be called section 9, and read as follows: Each federated club end national so ciety or kindred organization shall be entitled to be represented at the bien nial by one delegate. Each state federation shall be entitled to be represented at the biennial by five delegates, one of whom shall be the state president. Section 9 shall be called Eection 10. ARTICLE II. Section 1. Every organization desir ing to join the general federation shall make application through its presi dent to the president of the general fed eration. They must show that no sectarian or political test is required for membership in their body, and must agree to tho constitution and by-laws of the general federation. Section 2 The president shall refer all applications for membership to the committee on membership appointed by the board of directors for its action upon the tame. The action of the committee on mem bership shall be in writing and a unani mous vote of the commifee shall be re quired to elect. In case the committee fails to agree, the application ehall be referred to the whole board, the written vote of two-thirds of which shill be necessary to elect to membership. ARTICLE III. Section 2. The board of directors and regularly accredited delegates only shall be entitled to vote at biennial meetings. Section G. Annual dues for clubs, na tional societies and kindrtd organiza tions ehall be six dollars. . The annual dues for state federations shall be fif teen dollars. Dues shall be paid annually the first of May. Note Tho committee considers that this plan will provide sufficient income for the support of the general federa tion. (Signed.) Rebecca D.Lowe, Frances Mario Hanger, Lucia Eames Blount, Emma M. Van Vechten. Dimies T. S. Denison, Emma Hayward Elijkeihje, Annie Gillespie Johnson. MINORITY REPORT. We, the undersigned, understanding it to be the du'y of the committee on reorganization as expressed in the reso lution unanimously adopted by the council of the G. F. W. C, to formulate apian for reorganization which shall "do awav with club representation, to- J. F. HARRIS, No. I, board of Trade, CHICAGO. STOCKS -AND- BONDS. Grain, Provisions. Cotton. cvVs Private Wires to New York City and 1 Many Gties East and West. -S X MEMBER New York Stock Exchange. Chicago Stock Exchange. Chicago Hoard of Trado ss I f V