NEED FOR WOMEN
IN BODY POLITIC
"Must Take Interest or Democracy Is Failure," Convention Hears.
MEETING AT ST. MARIES
Clubs of Idaho Take Stand on
3VRA, County Unit Library
Plan and Other Issues.
By a Staff Representative.
ST. MARIES, Idaho, Sept. 29.—
"Woman in a changing world has got
to take an interest in politics, other-j
wise democracy is a failure. We arej
now a government of a minority be-;
cause only half of the citizens vote.!
The others sit back and say, 'What's!
the use/"
This is what Mrs. Grace Morrison1
Poole, president of the General Fed-,
eration of Women's Clubs, told a convention of 60 delegates of the Idaho
Federation of Women's Clubs here
today. Mrs. Poole's home is in
Washington, D. C.
The convention audience in the St.
Maries Masonic temple was not confined to the delegates, for after the
first day's session word was spread
among the neighboring towns that
the chief speaker carried a genuine
message.
Among those present were 19 officers and chairmen of women's organizations, and 41 club presidents
and delegates. Several prominent in
Washington club activities also were
present, including Mrs. H. B. Gray-
bill of Spokane, chairman of the general federation committee on war
veterans; Mrs. E. E. Cowin, Wapato,
president of the Washington State
Federation of Women's Clubs, and
Mrs. P. H. Brady, president of the
Spokane Federation of Women's
Clubs.
Need Snpercitizens.
The title of Mrs. Poole's address
was "Women in a Changing World."
"I should like to see clubs made
up of women who are supercitizens,"
she declared.
"There will always be room in the
world for the workers and there will
be room for the straight thinking
citizens, men and women."
Dr. Koentz said that in Idaho $16
for every voter is spent every year
on education of children, while only
75 cents apiece is spent on public
health.
The convention voted to accept
Boise's invitation to hold the next
annual meeting in the Idaho capital.
The federation convention henceforth
will be every third year, the place to
be determined by the council. The
council will meet every year.
Teach Temperance.
After the convention Mrs. Poole expressed her views to The Spokesman-
Review representative on various proposed substitutions for prohibition. In
addition to being an active women's
club leader she is a member of the
W. C. T. U.
"I believe prohibition is going to
be repealed by the end of November,"
she said.
"I doubt very much if any state will
vote dry. The General Federation of
Women's Clubs is on record as supporting the 18th amendment, but
when that is out of the way, I hope
our program will be one of sane education for temperance. I do not think
any one wants the old saloon back,
but I think we will have to go slow
and consider the matter from the
point of view of states' rights to control the thing.
"I feel that the way we were doing
it before national prohibition came in
was the best way. At that time
three-fourths of this country was dry.
, She urged the club women not to
neglect their church work, saying \
that the world has got to experience'
a spiritual rebirth, something which
can not be attained overnight. She'
urged them to keep up their activities in community affairs and especially to pay attention to local politics. I
"There are plenty of people worrying about how things are going in-
Washington, D. C, but what we need
to do is to understand government
in our own towns and to know all
about our own wards," Mrs. Poole I
said.
Back Child Labor Amendment.
The delegates passed unanimously1
| a resolution that "the state federation,
| through the legislative committee, use [
j every effort to secure the ratification\
of the child labor amendment."
They voted down a resolution that
the clubs support the adoption of the
; proposed county unit library plan m
Idaho. It was brought out that the
i change would involve the discontin-
| uance of the state traveling library
j service, which is said to be inadequate
\ to the state's needs.
Solid for NRA,
Another resolution, proposed, by
Mrs. Poole, exhorted the federation1
members to study carefully every
phrase of the proposed changes in the
federal pure food laws. This resolution was adopted.
The state executive board presented;
a resolution, which was adopted, call-j
ing for the federation's indorsement!
of the NRA. A letter will be sent to
President Roosevelt assuring him of
the 100 per cent support of the organization.
The utilization of funds derived
from the sale of federal endowment!
lands for educational purposes only;
was demanded in a resolution written
by the education committee and
adopted. A provision of the Idaho
constitution was invoked to show that
the revenue from the federal endowment funds can be used only for the
support of public schools and beneficiary institutions.
. i
War on Tuberculosis.
An emergency resolution was passed!
recommending the establishment of a
state department of health in Idaho
to have charge of the war against
tuberculosis and other diseases, especially among children.
Dr. C. H. Koentz, superintendent
of the Lapwai Indian sanitarium,
told the convention that out of 140'
children of the white race an average
of one and one-half die from tuberculosis.
I believe we have got to go back and
start right over again. We dropped
our temperance education overnight.
I think we have got to have regulation of the liquor traffic, but we will
gradually return to the old way of
approaching it. The whole thing is
so chaotic now that we must have
federal control,"
Nominating Committee.
A nominating committee of two
members from each of the three dis-
*""*cts in the state was elected by the
convention to choose the new officers.
They are:
First district—Mrs. H. A. Wagner,
Blackfoot; Mrs. C. L. Alexander, Twin
Falls.
Second district—Mrs. E. G. Rosen-:
heim, Boise; Mrs. C, W. Bowling,i
Weiser.
Third district—Mrs. J. E. Turner,1
Lewiston; Mrs. Theresa Graham,
Coeur d'Alene.
Mrs. Turner was made chairman.
On the lower floor of the Masonic
temple were shown exhibits from various parts of the state. There was
an exhibit of books printed by the
Caxton Press, at Caldwell, of the
works of Idaho authors, principally
about the western country. There
was also an exhibit of Indian bead-
work from Lapwai and Coeur d'Alene.
Sandpoint sent a model of its proposed
new bridge.
Mrs. E. T. Barton, Boise, president
of the federation, presided over the
convention.