Art and Handcraft in the Woman's Building
of the World's Columbian Exposition

ASSOCIATIONS OF WOMEN. THE parable of the mustard-seed, of the great tree that grows from the smallest beginnings, is illustrated by many facts of common experience, and nowhere more than in the his- tory of the beginning and progress of the associations among women, which have come to play so important a part in the development of American society. Sporadic instances of women’s clubs appear here and there in the history of the last fifty years, but the movement which has culminated in the General Federa- tion of Women’s Clubs may be said to have had its beginning twenty-five years ago, when, within a few weeks of each other, the New England Woman’s Club of Boston and the Sorosis of New York came into being, each with a name and plan of action. The first of these had its immediate origin in a desire to furnish some convenient place for meeting and resting to the many ladies who reside in. the suburbs of Boston, and are often called to the city by various occasions of business or of pleasure. Several ladies, remarkable for sound judgment and superior culture, associated themselves in this enterprise, and established it on a practical basis. Parlors were engaged in a central part of the city, and the club was duly installed, its numbers at the first amounting to one hundred and eighteen—with seventeen associate members. The locale being secured, plans of utilizing it began to develop themselves, resulting in the institution of a weekly meeting for the hearing of lectures and the discussion of topics considered of importance. These exercises rapidly increased in interest and value, and the Mondays of the month—Monday being the chosen day—were en- trusted to the care of various committees. The first Monday in the month belonged to the Art and Literature Committee, and was occu- pied by a lecture, usually by an outsider, followed by a short discus- sion of the topic presented. The second Monday was assigned to the Discussion Committee, and was wholly devoted to its work, which was introduced by a short paper contributed by a member of the club. The third Monday was given to the Work Committee, and at this meeting many grave topics of public interest were pre- (147)