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THE CONGRESS OF WOMEN.
I have attended the meetings of scores of building and loan associations and asked the female members as they came in to pay dues what their source of income was, and I believe that less than fifty per cent, of them derive their money from their husbands. That is to say, one million three hundred and fifty thousand women are investing in building and loan stock the money they earn themselves, and this self- earned money, as distinguished from the total held by women is, at a low' estimate, $86,000,000. Women investors in building and loan associations are usually working women or the wives of working men. A great many clerks and school teachers invest in this manner, as building associations hold out the prospect of obtaining a home, which is the goal of woman’s endeavor; for almost every woman has some one for whom she desires to create a home; if not her own children, then parents or a sister or a brother; in fact, this is the strong motive among working women, and to attain this end they w'alk many a w'eary mile and deprive themselves of many a pleasure.
Women should exercise great care and do their best to ascertain from a reliable source the financial status of the association in which they desire to invest.
The tremendous financial power which women might become in this country they have never as yet realized. At my request, Mr. Hepburn, the late comptroller of the currency, sent out to the national banks a request to furnish him with a list of women holding bank stock, and the statistics which he collected were sent to me by Mr. Eckels.
It is an interesting point that the large amount of stock in banks owned by women does not come to them as a reward of their own labor, but is usually given by some relative. The tendency of men to put their money in the hands of women is becoming a very pronounced one; also most husbands and fathers consider bank stock a safe investment to leave to women. It is easily managed, the income is usually an assured one, and in the present status of women’s information on financial matters, it does not require very much ability to draw little slips of paper against a definite sum; consequently that is regarded as an easy way of disposing of their future, and this is the point of view to be combated. Were the women of this country once to realize their power, the sense of ethical responsibility born of power would rise within them. They would no longer content themselves with giving their proxy when asked for it, and never voting themselves or attending a stockholders’ meeting.
There is also another side. The men are constantly saying they are overworked: this is made the excuse for the bad management of many corporations. There are a large number of intelligent women in this country, owning great financial interests; these women would make excellent directors, they are conservative; with a little exertion they could acquire the requisite knowledge of finance and then relieve the men of some of the tremendous burdens from which they now suffer.
Before continuing further I will give the figures of the comptroller of the currency. It must be borne in mind that these figures represent only the national banks, and not all of them. In some states the private banks do not report.