THE LADIES’ WORLD.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2611, 20 September 1909, Page 3

THE LADIES’ WORLD.

A DISTINGUISHED WOMAN

Airs Ella Flagg Young, principal of the Chicago Normal School, lias been chosen Superintendent of Schools for that city, bv a. unanimous vote of the Board of Eductaion. There were 2 U candidates under consideration. It is the first time in the history of Chicago that this position has been he-ld by a woman. Mr & Young will be in executive control of school property worth £10,000,000, and will direct the destinies of 290,000 school children. Her salary will be £2OOO a year. Mrs Young is 64 years old. She was born on January 15, 18-15, at Buffalo, New York. Her parents came to Chicago when she was a child, and she was educated there, in the high school, and later in the normal school. Slie studied also at the University of Chicago .which £Eivo her 1)110 degree of Doctor of .1 hilosophy. At 'the age of 17 she began to teach in a West Side school at £o per month. In 1868 she married William Young, who died some years ago. Airs A T oun,<r continued her work 01 teaching. "She was made Professor of Education of the University of Chicago, which position she held until she was chosen' head of the Chicago Normal School in 1905. In recognition oi her work among tile teachers, tile women principals of the Chicago'schools, when they formed an organisation several years ago, named it the Ella F. Young Club. Airs Young is a member of the Chicago Woman s Club and the Every Day Club. She is a, suffragist. . Among the educational articles written bv her when with the University of Chicago were “Isolation in the School,” “Some Types of Modern Educational Theory.” “Ethics in the Schools,” “Evolution and' Educational Methods,” and “Literature in the Elementary Schools.” . Says the New York “Evening Poet : —Place aux dames! The supenntendelicv of the entire school system of Chicago has been awarded to Airs Ella F’agg Young, and thereby the mouths of some mighty lions have been stopped. AVho was this scientific person who was arousing us recently with the cr v that our boys and girls were being converted into niolly'-oodcllies by the predominance of women on the touching staff of the public school? Where is the Qslerian doctrine, when a lady ox 64 is entrusted, with the supervision of the Chicago educational plant? The appointment is a well-deserved triumph for tested competence and ability, and is worth as much in the influence it is likely to exert elsewhere as in the promise it affords of continued excellence in the public school system of our second greatest city.

A DEVASTATING CHICKEN. There was recently an amusing motor case in America, in which a variety of domestic animals figure. As reported in the “Green Bag,” -an American legal contemporary, it appears that as a motor-car was passing quietly through a village in Now England a chicken, pursued by a cat, suddenly crossed the road just An front of the automobile. The sudden dash of the chicken and cat startled a pony, driven by two little girls, one of whom had a poodle in her lap. The poodle jumped out to give chase to the cat. and fell on the road right in front of the car, causing its driver to pu’l up suddenly. Just as this happened a collie travelling with its mistress in the car, leapt out and chased the poodle, which frightened tlic pony, so that it bolted towards the car.' Seeing this, the chauffeur drove towards the .gutter; but, as the dogs were fighting there, had to take another course, "colliding finally with a stone wall and totally wrecking the machine. The owner of the car brought an action for damages egamss the owner of the chicken, claiming --at it was responsible for the damage. In giving judgment, the Court argued that there was no doubt as to the chicken having been the proximate cause of the accident, for had it not crossed the road the cat would not have scared the pony; had the pony not been scared, the poodle would not have got out of the pony trap; had the poodle not done so the automobile would not have stopped, and the collie and the poodle would not have been, in the gutter; had the collie and poodle not been in the gutter the cat would not have hung round to see things through; had the cat not remained on the scene the chicken would not have been trying to scale the wall; and had the chicken not been trying to do this the chauffeur would have kept his nerve and saved the machine from accident. Yet, though the chicken caused the accident, the chicken’s act was not in itself violent or dangerous. This chicken would doubtless have made a tender broiler; it was gentle and inoffensive, and, not being “ferae naturae,” its destruction of the automobile was unconscious and free from malice. Therefore, the chicken not having exceeded its common law rights, the action oould not bo maintained, and judgment was accordingly entered for the defendant.

MOTOR CYCLING FOR WOMEN. New Zealand women have not taken yet to the motor cycle, though in one of the motor cycle tests of this year a lady was a competitor. The “Queen,” speaking of English experience, says; “Somehow or other the motor cycle does not seem to appeal much to lady riders. There are a few enthusiasts certainly, who never lose an opportunity of proclaiming its merits, but even their example does not bring it into real popularity. No doubt this is due a good deal to a. fear of skidding, or dislike of the dust and oil that more often than net manage to get on to one’s clothing. The motor bicycle is, however, not always given a fair chance, for people forget to notice how much it has’been improved of late. Besides . considerably reduced in weight as well as being nearly noiseless, most modern motor cycles are reliable enough to travel long distances without needing repairs. The .use of magneto ignition lias removed one general source of trouble, hence ladies are less likely to be wsterecl with unwelcome attentions during an enforced halt. Alotor cycle tyres also are now quite up to tiieir work, and as mechanical troubles are the exception) there is little that can go wrong. To enjoy motor cycling to its utmost the machine should be fitted with) a. free engine and a twospeed gear, as they save a good deal of hard work. And, though one cannot truthfully sav that these, machines will never side-slip on wet tramlines or greasy road©, they are, nevertheless, perfectly safe if used with, judgment. And their advantages in lightness and economy of running ought to recommend them to those who like to be independent or have little opportunity for using a motor-car. If a trial is made of suitable machines, I think •motor cycling will appeal to a larger number of ladies than it has been able to do so far owing to the weight of the earlier types.