Nothing
really happens just overnight. Each day,
as it comes along, brings the results of
all the selfishness and sacrifice, the heroism
as well as cowardice, the successes and
the failures of the human race which still
has so much to learn about itself.
People
of vision must always be a step ahead of
the immediately obvious. There is nothing
surprising, then, to read that Dr. Phillips,
long before the Trondheim meeting, had sought
the opinions of the presidents of member
Federations. She needed to know how they
believed the International Federation should
function in the event of a general war.
Its first obligation was, of course, to
maintain its truly nonpartisan and representative
character, whatever difficulties this might
bring. Already, at the time of the Trondheim
meeting, there were gaps in the usual attendance.
Mme. Szelagowska, International vice-president
and Member of the Polish Parliament, wrote
that she could not leave her country because
of the critical situation, and France, for
the first time sent no delegate, nor were
some of the more distant countries present
such as New Zealand and Australia.
In
addition to the continuation of work on
the Three-Year Objective, as mentioned in
the preceding chapter, it was recognised
that in the event of war, women should endeavour
to serve their countries. In this connection,
the various Federations should assemble
rosters of those whose qualifications and
aptitudes made them suitable for special
posts. It was urged, too, that thought should
be given to a formula for exchange of women
prisoners. The suggestion was also made
that the International might establish an
office in a neutral country where help of
various kinds could be given.
For
the purposes of this history, it is appropriate
to consult a Report by Dr. Phillips covering
the period between Trondheim and July 1,
1943. Following, though necessarily much
abbreviated, are the main points it brought
out.
When
in September 1939, Poland was invaded and
Great Britain and France declared war, the
entire world suffered a shock, the reverberations
of which were felt in every activity and
large organisation. Previous plans became
impossible or inappropriate.
In
many countries, great handicaps were placed
upon the extension of Federation work, yet
the New Zealand branch expanded and clubs
were organised in Rangoon, Burma, and Nice,
but presumably ceased to exist or went underground
after these countries were occupied. During
1940-41, an organising committee was formed
in Rio de Janeiro. That same year the Swedish
Federation enrolled new clubs and new groups
in Finland were affiliated. The following
year the League of Business and Professional
Women of Bulawayo became affiliated as an
Associate Club.
The
year 1943 brought a Cuban Branch. Long established
Federations like the United States, Sweden,
and Canada were able to increase in power
and prestige. History has taught that a
time of struggle is the time to struggle.
The
European Organiser, Miss Zonola Longstreth,
was in America when war broke out. Her pioneer
work in forming British Clubs had met with
great success. International Headquarters
then assumed that such work would automatically
cease. Headquarters were, however, "of
little faith" in their surmise. Miss
Gordon Holmes, President, and the young
leaders of the new National Federation of
Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which
had just formed, were eager to continue.
Their slogan had become "one new club
for every three weeks of war." It represented
the club movement per se, as distinct from
the specialised occupational organisations
forming the membership of the British Federation,
which also had considerable increase in
membership, and of which the National was
a member.
The
expense of organising the Clubs was carried
entirely by the International until 1941.
(Mrs. Anderson, of the Newcastle-on-Tyne
Club, England, took over where Miss Longstreth
had had to leave off). In 1942 the clubs
assumed one-half of these expenses, and
from July 1, 1943 increased the ratio to
60%, the International continuing to bear
the remaining 40%. (In 1944 the ratio became
75/25, and in 1945 the British Clubs assumed
full responsibility).
After
1938-39, the Report shows an inevitable
falling off in payment of dues. In fact,
from 1939 the only countries directly paying
were Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New
Zealand, Sweden, and the U.S.A. Sweden also
voluntarily paid the dues for Finland and
Norway for "the duration." Miss
Gordon Holmes, Chairman of Finance, kept
closely in touch with International Headquarters,
and during a speaking tour in the U.S.A.
in 1941, turned over to the Federation a
substantial sum, her fees as a lecturer.
Relief gifts from other sources in descending
scale from $1,534.77 in 1940 to $537.80
in 1943 were also received.
By this time, the list
of member countries was already showing
a number of casualties:
| |
|
| Inactive: |
Austria, Burma, Estonia,
Germany, Hungary, India, Korea, Palestine |
| Information not available: |
Belgium, Czechoslovakia, France, Holland,
Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania. |
| Still functioning: |
Argentina, Australia, Brazil (organising
committee), Canada, Cuba, Finland, Great
Britain, New Zealand, South Africa,
Sweden, Switzerland (organising committee),
and the United States. |
In
the United States, the Committee on Membership,
in the charge of Miss Zonola Longstreth
was studying future possibilities with the
vast field of Central and South America
in mind. Miss Helen Havener had planned
and supervised an unusually distinguished
series of transoceanic broadcasts for International
Day Observance. In England, Miss Heneker
had taken over the Research Committee's
work, previously led by Miss Armi Hallsten-Kallia
of Finland, and represented the Federation
on the Liaison Committee of the Women's
International organisations in London.
The
Report continues, saying that International
Headquarters received a neverending stream
of refugee members, their families, and
their friends. The Federation of the United
States shared with them "the precious
privilege of assisting those members,"
many of whom had achieved distinction in
their own countries. Some were assisted
to get work, but a far greater number were,
it is believed, "sustained by the fellowship
and human kindliness" which came to
them. None ever asked for financial aid.
In the same spirit, many such visitors were
welcomed by National Federations, notably
Great Britain, Sweden, Australia, and New
Zealand.
The
story of members' help to each other, in
some cases even after the occupation of
their countries, is too diverse to be given
here. Even if it were possible, the report
says, those noted would only be "an
indication of what, in large measure, our
members have felt and done for their stricken
associates."
Wherever
possible, International Headquarters in
New York kept touch, and even initiated
activities in the spirit of our aims. Thus
the Report tells of an "All Americas"
project. It was sponsored by Columbia Broadcasting's
"School of the Air of the Americas"
and the National Education Association of
the United States, with the Pan-American
Union and the International Federation as
cooperating Groups. The two Federations
- the U.S. National and the International
- presented a panel discussion on which
Argentina, Panama, Chile, Peru, Ecuador,
Dominica, Canada, and the U.S.A. were represented.
During the program, the International sponsored
its first South American broadcast, presenting
Miss Elisa Bachofen in association with
it, on the C.B.S. network from Buenos Aires.
At
the Budapest Congress in 1938, an Executive
Committee was formed composed of the International
President, Treasurer, and Vice-President
Mrs. Alva Myrdal of Sweden, who was then
resident in the United States. To it was
entrusted the administration of the International
Federation between meetings of its Boards
and/ or Congress.
This
Committee known as the Emergency Committee,
the Report shows, faithfully carried out
its trust, strengthened by the occasional
presence of other Officers of the Federation
whenever they were available. Much of its
work and voting had necessarily to be carried
out by mail, and the President saw to it
that any action taken was circulated for
ratification by a majority of accessible
members of the Board. During Dr. Phillips'
prolonged illness in 1942-43, Mrs. Claridge
Taylor, the Treasurer, assumed charge of
the International Office. This continued
to be housed in the Hotel Biltmore, and
its efficiency owed much to the "Cooperating
Committee," a group of members in New
York who voluntarily had taken on much time-consuming
work.
The
Report concludes with a look into the future.
The International must direct its thought
to the return of peace while still in the
prevailing atmosphere of war. Women's organisations
would "betray their past and endanger
their future if they do not demand and again
demand and insistently demand not merely
words and wishful thinking concerning peace,
but a world order - political, social and
economic - which will ensure that peace."
Hopefully,
the Emergency Committee prepared a booklet
entitled Blueprints for the World of Tomorrow.
Hopefully too, Dr. Phillips conceived a
plan whereby nationals of other countries
temporarily living in or near New York City
could be brought together as national groups.
They would learn Federation organising techniques
and be inspired by its ideals. They would
then be ready, on returning to their own
countries, to render valuable assistance
in invigorating National Federations, which
had of necessity been quiescent during the
past years. The Report shows that careful
watch was taken of the nonpartisan character
of the International Federation as laid
down in its constitution. The Emergency
Committee had no hesitation in disassociating
the Federation from any sponsorship of activities
within the affiliated and still functioning
national groups which might in any way be
contrary to its avowed aims. Members must
be alert and adroit. The three-year objective
adopted before the war - "more women
in public office, in executive and administrative
positions" - was a challenge, never
entirely laid aside, which must again be
taken up.
This
Report ends on a note of optimism, but the
sun, thought to be beginning "to break
through the dark war clouds," was to
be weak and fitful for some time yet.
In
the meantime, the Emergency Committee continued
its difficult and responsible work aided
whenever possible by such members of the
1939 Board of Directors as might from time
to time be available.
One
would always be missing in future. Senator
Plaminkova of Czechoslovakia, much loved
founder-president of its national Federation
and revered Vice-President of the International,
had fallen a victim to Nazi occupation of
her country. At their meeting on June 20,
1943, the Emergency Committee stood in silence
to honour her memory. Later a memorial booklet
was issued at the request of a number of
official and other Czech organisations.
In
1944, Dr. Phillips was able to visit Sweden
under the auspices of the United States
Office of War Information and Great Britain.
In her long list of public engagements,
the Business and Professional Women's Groups
and Clubs figured largely, and she returned
to America greatly encouraged.
At
its meeting on February 5, 1945, the Emergency
Committee found, no doubt with immense relief,
that the financial condition "was excellent."
Analysis of the audited report for 1943-44
and the Treasurer's report of January 31,
1945, revealed that credit for this was
largely due to $6,300 contributed by Associated
Clubs in the United States under the leadership
of Miss Margaret A. Hickey, President of
the U.S.A Federation.
New
Zealand's "Lights Up" Rehabilitation
Fund was attempting to raise £1 per
member. The Clubs of the National Federation
in Great Britain were contemplating a similar
fund.
It
takes little imagination to picture the
sense of renewed hope which must have been
felt by those present at this meeting. They
were able to concentrate upon a tentative
Plan for Reorganisation of European branches
and other Field Work.
France,
it was agreed, should be the first European
Federation to be reconstructed if possible.
From there the organiser could move into
Belgium and such other adjacent countries
where entry was possible. In new fields,
New Zealand would have a membership Vice-Chairman
to work on expansion in the East, and similar
assistance from Great Britain would go to
South Africa. If funds permitted, organisation
in Mexico and Central or South America should
be attempted.
That
action should be immediate was strongly
felt by the Europeans whom it was able to
consult. Notwithstanding the levelling effects
of war, they feared the antifeminist measures
which were always a corollary to postwar
depression and unemployment. Other organisations
were making their plans, and it was necessary
to revive the business and professional
women's groups if they were to be representative
of the prestige gained through women's important
role in underground movements. Equal status,
equal pay, and equal recognition should
be pressed for, and women who had the vote
should be encouraged to use it.
Time
alone would show how far this well thought
out, but necessarily tentative, plan would
meet the needs of people rising phoenix-like
from the ashes of shattering experiences
to the unknown hazards of readjustment under
a condition which, with the cessation of
war, was thought of as peace.
The
minutes of the Emergency Commitee of January
22, 1946, briefly refer to a timely trip
Dr. Phillips had made to Europe. Her report
was encouraging and valuable to the Committee's
deliberations. For instance, women who had
belonged before the war were inclined more
to reorganising themselves than to have
a paid organiser sent to do it for them.
In Norway, about half the Clubs had managed,
with great ingenuity and at even greater
risk, to continue meeting. They refused
the offer of financial help from the International,
saying they wished to be self-reliant.
1946
witnessed an exchange of financial courtesies
rarely, if ever, equalled. By then the British
Clubs had assumed full responsibility for
the expenses of Mrs. Anderson's organising.
They went further. They had a deep appreciation
of the confidence the International had
shown in taking on this liability in the
first place. Now they made the gesture they
had been working up to since the start,
the collection of one shilling per member
per year. Dr. Phillips was invited to London,
and, at a ceremony attended by some five
hundred members in Central Hall, Westminster,
on August 31, 1946, she was handed a cheque
for £5,000 by Mrs. Stella Phillips-Marder,
Finance Chairman of the Clubs' Federation.
Miss Cordon Holmes, its President, looked
on with a big smile. The Clubs asked that
the money should go to the "Lights
Up Fund" so that others could enjoy
similar benefits to their own. Representatives
from New Zealand, where the "Lights
Up" Fund had originated, whose gift
of $681.20 was included, and from Australia
were present.
Trustees
to administer the fund, which was lodged
in the Westminster Bank, London in the name
of the International Federation, were Dr.
Madesin Phillips and Miss Cordon Holmes,
(its President and Finance Chairman), and
Mrs. Phillips-Marder, Miss Phyllis Deakin,
and Miss Margaret Lappage for the Clubs.
Miss Bergliot Lie brought to the International
$60, this being 2½% per capita of
the Norwegian Federation for 1946-47, and
a gift of $100. This latter sum had been
offered to Sweden in repayment of the dues
Sweden had paid for Norway, during the war.
The Swedish Federation did not want to accept
it, so the two countries agreed it should
be turned over to the International. For
their own part, Fru Alva Myrdal handed over
$300 as a gift from Sweden. It was the amount
left over from a sum raised for ameliorating
conditions. Miss Cordon Holmes, under whose
Financial Chairmanship the Federation was
enjoying an unprecedented stability, praised
the courage of the International and its
Presidents in its spending policy during
the war. Canada for four years had contributed
$500 to the National Federation in Great
Britain. Its Clubs, the New Zealand Federation,
Sweden and Southern Rhodesia's Bulawayo
Club, were paying 10 cents per capita. This
had helped to put the Federation in a comparatively
sound position. "Keep it that way,"
was her parting admonition.
Lessons
of Yesterday as the Keystone of Tomorrow
July 30, 1946, was
a wonderful day in the history of the International
Federation.
All
those who had carried the memory of its
ideals deep in their hearts, as well as
those who had never ceased to work to keep
it alive, were richly rewarded.
Not
all of them, of course, were able to join
the excited happy people who thronged into
the Hotel Atlanta, Brussels at 10 a.m. that
summer's day. But wherever they were, they
knew that after seven almost despairing
years, the call to meet had once again gone
freely forth.
Opening
the proceedings, Dr. Lena Madesin Phillips
referred to "deep emotions and poignant
memories." For most of those present,
the absent ones who could not be there,
were she said, epitomized in one greatly
beloved Board Member, Senator F. F. Plaminkova
of Czechoslovakia (one of ten members executed
or persecuted to death by the Nazis during
the occupation of her country). "She
died as she had lived for the things in
which she believed."
The meeting stood in
silent tribute to her and all the members
who became casualties of the war.
Twelve countries were
represented:
| Voting Members: |
| Canada: |
Miss Dorothy Heneker
(International Vice-President) |
| Finland: |
Mme. Anni Voipio-Juvas (National Representative) |
| Great Britain: |
Miss Caroline Haslett (International
Vice-President)
Miss Gordon Holmes (International Chairman
of Finance) |
| Italy: |
Sig. Antonietta Paoli Pogliani (International
Chairman of Music and Fine Arts)
Dr. Ines De Guidi Insabato (National
Representative) |
| Norway: |
Froken Bergliot Lie (National Representative)
|
| Poland: |
Mme. Anna Paradowska-Szelagowska
(International Vice-President) |
| Sweden: |
Fru Ingrid Garde Widemar (National
Representative) |
| United States: |
Dr. Lena Madesin Phillips (International
President)
Miss Sally Butler (National Representative)
|
| Nonvoting Representatives: |
| Belgium: |
Dr. Marguerite De Munter-Latinis |
| Czechoslovakia: |
Mme. Marie Wolfova |
| France: |
Mme. Bedier (alternate) |
| Interpreter: |
Miss Marie Ginsberg |
| Secretary: |
(pro tem) Miss Dorothy Lappage |
There
were also many Observers from the countries
mentioned above, and Holland. Voting could
only be done where the country represented
had constitutional affiliation to the International.
Some had not yet reformed their Groups.
This did not mean that their voices were
unheard. All spoke freely in the shared
release from pent-up emotions. Indeed, as
someone who was present said, "it would
have taken superhuman chairmanship to stop
them." No one wanted to. Their experiences
must surely go into the histories of their
National Federations. From the "spiritual
and intellectual as well as material changes
which had resulted from this terrible record,"
said Dr. Phillips, must come "profitable
lessons for the future."
Like
a keystone to that future, members heard
with satisfaction of progress already made
by women with twenty-four members of Parliament
Czechoslovakia, and the Federation moving
rapidly forward. In France, the appointment
of a woman as Secretary of State, and a
French National Federation of Clubs was
an early probability. Italian women, desiring
freedom from political affiliations, had
studied the constitutions of many International
Groups. They opted for the International
Federation of Business and Professional
Women, and had formed in February 1945.
Norway had eight members of Parliament as
against one prewar, and for the first time,
a woman Chairman of a Parliamentary Standing
Committee who was also a Club Member. Belgium
would be campaigning to teach women how
to use the vote when they got it. In Poland
the challenge to the Federation, when reformed,
would be to encourage women to overcome
a tendency to step backwards to a renewed
sense of inferiority. Sweden was disabusing
itself of the idea that once they had the
vote, the rest would follow automatically.
Its Federation of Occupational Groups had
been strengthened by the formation and affiliation
of its Clubs. By this fusion, achieved during
the war was receiving increased recognition
from State authorities. Great Britain, which
had a similar experience, was encouraged
by the compliment paid by the Swedish Government
when it sent an official delegation to England
to study how best to make use of women's
work in the national economy.
No
one was present from Austria, but Miss Ashton-Jones,
who had recently been stationed in Vienna
said she and Miss Jean Starritt, both enthusiastic
members from England, were able to contact
three members of the original Club. Prospects
were promising for Federation development
in Austria.
Miss
Sally Butler said American women were determined
to assume the responsibility of world citizenship
and not to lose the skills they had gained.
At that time all the women members of the
U.S. Congress were members of the Federation.
The
Chairman of the Belgian Committee of Arrangements
for this unique meeting was Dr. Marguerite
De Munter Latinis, a former Vice-President
of the International. Food for such a large
gathering might have presented great difficulties.
The problem was eased by the dispatch from
America, as the gift of the Minnesota Federation,
of sufficient money to provide sandwiches,
salad, tea, and coffee at lunchtime each
day for all attending. This was consumed
in a cafe belonging to a member. This meant
the exclusion of her own regular customers
for four days.
The
choice of Guest Speaker for the public meeting
held at the Palais des Beaux Arts could
hardly have been better. Mme. Bodil Begtrup,
Chairman of the UN Status of Women Subcommittee,
spoke of a new start in search of world
cooperation by the newly formed organisation,
the United Nations, which had followed the
old and now defunct League of Nations. She
based her talk on the Charter's Preamble:
"We,
the people of the United Nations are determined
to save succeeding generations from the
scourge of war which twice in our lifetime
has brought untold sorrow to mankind; to
reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights,
in the dignity and worth of the human person,
in the equal rights of men and women and
of nations large and small."
Fifty-one
nations had already signed that charter.
To meet its challenge where women were concerned
would perhaps "cause some inconvenience
in habits of the home," but mankind
as a whole would surely benefit. Nobody
knew what women could do because "they
have never been where peace is built,"
she said.
In
a neat, yet detailed form, Miss Hilda Hesson
presented a report on what steps the Emergency
Committee had taken throughout the years
1939 to July 1, 1946, and this received
unanimous approval. Similarly the financial
records, "kept in accordance with good
accounting principles" (to quote the
Auditors) were offered by Miss Gordon Holmes,
International Chairman of Finance, in the
unavoidable absence of Mrs. Isabelle Claridge
Taylor, the Treasurer.
So,
with ends tidied up and past actions confirmed,
thanks tendered to the Emergency Committee,
and an improved financial position, the
Meeting moved on. "It is now a happy
day for us when we can return to normal
procedures. This organisation's services
are needed more now and in the future than
ever before," said Dr. Phillips when
concluding her President's Report.
Miss
Margaret A. Hickey of the United States
had been Liaison Officer between the International
and the United Nations. It was voted to
establish a United Nations Committee with
Miss Hickey as its Chairman. It was to coordinate
the work of the National Federation in carrying
out an approved programme starting with
the "devotion of the current fiscal
year to a study of the United Nations Charter."
The previous Study and Research Committee
was discontinued.
The
growth of the membership inevitably brought
the need to look into the constitutional
machinery. Under the existing constitution,
only one national affiliate from each country
was allowed. This presented difficulties
where development had been along the double
line of occupational Groups and Clubs, such
as in Great Britain and Sweden. The situation
was particularly acute in Great Britain,
where the former was the older but the financial
contribution of the younger, the Clubs,
was the greater.
An
ad hoc Committee (Fru Alva Myrdal, Mme.
Kraemer Bach, and Miss Elizabeth Hawes)
was appointed to draft changes in the sense
of the suggestions made to amend the Representational
and Dues clauses. It would be for the next
Congress to decide such knotty problems.
After
Miss Gordon Holmes had presented her 1946-47
budget based on the previous year, with
fourteen Countries contributing various
sums ranging from $15.00 (Rhodesia) to $9,500.00
(U.S. Clubs), it seemed imperative that
some standard rate of dues should be agreed.
A per capita system of 10 cents was fixed
for Clubs. Some countries might, for a time,
find it impossible to meet this obligation
owing to currency or economic difficulties.
But the principle was established and provisions
made for equitable arrangements to be made
where necessary.
It
would have been unrealistic at this first
postwar Meeting for the International President
to have ignored the subject of the neutrality
of the Federation. Dr. Phillips said it
was her conviction that the International
Federation as an organisation was beyond
national or partisan lines. She had kept
it in a strictly neutral position at a time
when its members gave allegiance, some to
the Allies, some to the Axis, while others
were neutral. She herself was a citizen
of an Allied country, and she had worked
diligently for that cause but she felt that
the International Federation belonged to
the women of the countries which had been
represented in it. She did her utmost to
hold it to such a position.
This
was evidenced in the International's relation
to the I.W.S.G. (International Women's Service
Group of Great Britain). This had been sponsored
in the name of the International by Miss
Caroline Haslett and had done splendid work.
Eventually, however, it had included in
its purposes the support of the Allied efforts.
When that transpired, the Emergency Executive
Committee had ended the International's
direct sponsorship. Members showed their
approval of the Policy Dr. Phillips adopted.
This is recorded in the Proceedings of the
10th Board Meeting, Brussels 1946.
With
the end of the war, there was reawakening
in the Federation, a wish to be of practical
assistance to its own members. This came
up particularly in a proposal brought on
behalf of Fru Myrdal (Sweden) that a Committee
to be called International Employment Exchange
should be set up. Its duty would be to stimulate
national organisations to take care of practical
arrangements for welcoming the exchange
worker. All policymaking influences should
be used, after full information from official
sources had been obtained, to provide such
particulars as length of stay, job requirements,
payment and cost of living, and forwarded
by the receiving Federation.
A question
of importance to the future standing of
the Federation arose out of its affiliation
to the Liaison Committee of International
Women's Organisations. (see Appendix
No. 3) There was no desire to break
this liaison if the Federation could, at
the same time, approach the United Nations
directly. It was agreed to withdraw only
if necessary to achieve the latter. In the
meantime a resolution of cooperation with
the Subcommission on the Status of Women
was approved to be sent to United Nations.
The theme "Women and the Atomic Age"
was chosen for the coming International
Day.
The
business sessions were not the only step
in this reestablishment of friendly relations.
The great chasm which had lain between the
past and the future was bridged by groups
stimulated in the flow of ideas by Mme.
Bodil Begtrup's address earlier on, by private
dinners arranged by delegations, and a Reception
for everybody in the charming home of the
Belgian Fine Arts Committee Chairman, Mlle.
Jeanne Pipyn, where leaders of the governmental
and diplomatic circles were present. The
Baroness Pol Boel, President of the International
Council of Women, at a supper in her lovely
home and gardens, presented the opportunity
for all to meet leaders of the Belgian Council
of Women.
The picturesque background
of woods at Tervueren was the scene of a
farewell banquet given by Belgian members.
As
this first postwar meeting of Business and
Professional Women came to an end, there
was laughter and good fellowship in abundance.
There was, too, a feeling of strength for
the future.
"Yet
Another Springtime"
I ask
myself, "What can one say to our members
throughout the world who, for years, have
so courageously endured danger and deprivation,
fortified by their passionate hope and firm
faith in this day, which now, in its dawning,
seems already robbed of its promise?"
I do
not know. Mass warfare has ceased, but greed
and fear, suspicion and political stupidity
remain. Now that we have defeated a common
enemy, as in some madness of self-destruction,
we turn upon each other.
I think
it is that we have harvested the bitter
crop of war, cutting off the tops but leaving
intact some of the roots which bore the
crop and which, if undestroyed, must continue
to bear its kind.
If you ask me if I am disappointed, my answer
must be, "Yes, bitterly." But
if you then ask if I am discouraged, I reply
emphatically, "No, never." For
myself, I find consolation and security
in the conviction that this is but the early
springtime of a new and better era. We ourselves
have not seen its like before, but other
generations in centuries long past have
experienced similar times of confusion and
discouragement. Old roots of narrow selfish
interests are hard to dislodge, but now,
as then, they will go. Tender young plants
are fragile in cold ground, but enough will
survive. The fair and peaceful world for
which countless men and women have died
can be delayed, but eventually come it must.
This
is just another springtime. A bright and
better summer is sure to come, if not for
us, then for other men and women as eager
and worthy.
Lena
Madesin Phillips
President |
