Volume III Part 135 (1/2)

Concerning the higher education of women Dr. van Diest writes:

There existed in Belgium some years ago a law which required students who would enter the university, to pa.s.s the examination of graduate in letters (_gradue-en-lettres_). Candidates for this degree were expected to know how to translate Greek and write Latin. But as there were no schools where girls could study the dead languages with the thoroughness of boys who were trained six years in the cla.s.sics, the former were almost entirely shut out from enjoying the advantages of an university course. This _graduat_, however, no longer exists, and the entrance of women into our universities is now possible. Female students are found to-day at Brussels, Liege and Ghent, but their number is still very small. It was in 1880 that the first woman entered the university of Brussels, but it was not until 1883 that their admission became general. They pursue, for the most part, scientific studies, thereby securing more lucrative positions as teachers, and pa.s.s their examinations for graduation with success.

Switzerland being made up of more than a score of separate cantons closely resembling our States in their political organization, it is difficult to arrive at the exact situation throughout the whole country--small though it be. However, generally speaking, it may be said that the Helvetic republic has remained almost a pa.s.sive spectator of the woman movement, though a few signs of progress are worthy of note. The Catholic cantons lag behind those that have adopted Protestantism, and the latter are led by Geneva. Though subject to the Napoleonic code, Geneva has never known that debasing law of the tutelage of women which existed for so long a time in the other cantons, even in the intelligent canton of Vaud, where it was abolished only in 1873. It was not until 1881 that a federal statute put an end to the law throughout all Switzerland.

Geneva has always been very liberal in its treatment of married women--divorce exists, excellent intermediate girls' schools were created more than thirty years ago, and women are admitted to all the university lectures. Marie Goegg, the untiring leader of the movement in that country, writes me:

However, notwithstanding these examples of liberality, which denote that the law-makers had a breadth of view in accord with their time, Switzerland, as a whole, has been one of the least disposed of European States to accept the idea of the civil emanc.i.p.ation of woman, much less her political emanc.i.p.ation, so that from 1848 to 1868 the demands of American women were considered here to be the height of extravagance.... The seed planted in America in 1848, though its growth was difficult, finally began to take root in Europe. The hour had come.

In March, 1868, Marie Goegg published a letter, in which she invited the women of all nations to join with her in the formation of a society. In July of that same year the Woman's International a.s.sociation was founded at Geneva with Marie Goegg as president.

The organization began immediately an active work, and through its efforts, several of the reforms already mentioned were brought about, and public opinion in Switzerland considerably enlightened on the question. Mrs. Goegg says:

With the object of advancing the young movement, I established at my own risk a bi-monthly, the _Woman's Journal_ (_Journal des femmes_). But this was a violation of that good Latin motto, _festina lente_, and, at the end of a few months the paper suspended publication. Swiss public opinion was not yet ready to support such a venture.

It may be pointed out here that, except in England, all the women's societies created in Europe had, up to the time of the organization of the International a.s.sociation refrained from touching the question of the political rights of women. The Swiss a.s.sociation, on the contrary, always included this subject in its programme. But, unfortunately, at the moment when our efforts were meeting with success, and the future was full of promise for the cause which we advocated, the terrible Franco-German war broke out, and, for various reasons unnecessary to go into here, I felt constrained to resign the presidency, and the a.s.sociation came to an end.

Two years later the International a.s.sociation was revived in the form of the Solidarity (_Solidarite_), whose name signified the spirit which ought to unite all women. In 1875 Mrs. Goegg became president of the new organization as well as founder and editor of its organ, the _Solidarity Bulletin_ (_Bulletin de la Solidarite_).

But on September 20, 1880, both society and journal ceased to exist. The president in her farewell address said:

The dissolution of the Solidarity ought not to discourage us, but ought rather to cause us to rejoice, for the recent creation of so many women's national societies in different countries proves that the Solidarity has accomplished its aim, so that we have only to retire.

The striking success of university coeducation in Switzerland calls for a few words of notice. Mrs. Goegg writes:

In October, 1872, I sent a pet.i.tion to the grand-council of Geneva, asking that women be admitted to the university of Geneva on the same footing as men. The state of public opinion on this subject in Switzerland, and especially in Geneva, may be judged from the fact that, fearing to compromise the demand if I acted in my own name or that of the Solidarity, the pet.i.tion was presented as coming from ”the mothers of Geneva.” Our prayer was granted.

The number of women who have pursued studies at Geneva has steadily increased every year. In 1878 the university of Neufchatel was thrown open to women, while the university of Zurich has long had a large number of female students. Professor Pfluger, of the university of Bern, writing to me in April, 1883, said:

From February 2, 1876, to the present time, thirty-five women have taken degrees at our medical school. The lectures are attended each semester on an average by from twenty-five to thirty women, while from three to six follow the lectures on philosophy and letters. The presence of women at our university has occasioned no serious inconvenience and many colleagues favor it.

The rector of the university of Geneva wrote, February, 1883:

Up to the present time the attendance of women at our university has occasioned us no inconvenience except in some lectures of the medical school, where the subjects are not always of a nature to admit of their treatment before mixed cla.s.ses.

We shall now glance at the situation of woman in the three Scandinavian countries, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Sweden stands first, just as Germany does among the Teutonic nations, and France among the Latin nations; in fact we may perhaps go farther and say that of all Continental States, Sweden leads in many respects at least, in the revolution in favor of women.

The State, the royal family, private individuals, and, above all, women themselves have all striven to outstrip each other in the emanc.i.p.ation of Swedish women. Normal schools, high schools, primary schools, the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, both at Stockholm, dairy schools and a host of other educational inst.i.tutions, both private and public, are thrown wide open to women. The State has founded scholars.h.i.+ps for women at Upsala University and at the medical school of the university of Lund. Numerous benevolent, charitable and industrial societies have been established and in many instances are managed by women.

But the best idea may be gained of the liberal spirit which prevails in Sweden by showing what the State has done for the emanc.i.p.ation of women. For instance, in 1845, equality of inheritance for son and daughter was established, and the wife was given equal rights with the husband as regards the common property; in 1846, woman was permitted to practice industrial professions and to carry on business in her own name; in 1861, the professions of surgery and dentistry were opened to her; in 1864, her rights in trade and industrial pursuits were enlarged; in 1870, she was admitted to the universities and medical profession; in 1872, a woman of twenty-five was given the full right of disposing of herself in marriage, the consent of parents and relations having been necessary before that time; and in 1874, a married woman became ent.i.tled to control that part of her private property set aside for her personal use in the marriage contract, as well as to possess her own earnings. The reforms in favor of married women are in no small measure due to the society founded in 1871 by Mrs.

E. Anckarsvard and Anna Hierta Retzius, whose aim was the accomplishment of these very reforms.

A good beginning has been made toward securing full political rights for Swedish women. In many matters relative to the munic.i.p.ality, women vote on the same terms with men, as for example, in the choice of the parish clergy, in the election of munic.i.p.al councilors, and members of the county council. This latter body elects the House of Lords, so that woman's influence, through an intermediate electoral body, is felt in the upper chamber. May this not be one reason why the Swedish legislature has been so liberal toward women? Demands have been made, but in vain, for the complete franchise which would confer upon women the privilege of voting for members of the diet. Woman's interests have found a warm and energetic advocate in the _Home Review_ (_Tidskrift for Hemmet_), which was founded in 1859 by the Hon.

Rosalie d'Olivecrona and the Baroness Leyonhufoud, to-day the Hon.

Mrs. Adlersparre. The paper is still edited by the latter; Rosalie d'Olivecrona, who has always been a most active friend of the woman movement, having retired in 1868.

If we cross the boundaries of Sweden into the sister kingdom of Norway, we find the condition of woman absolutely changed.