THE CONGRESS OF WOMEN

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could never be applied to the lowest of them. They lead a simple, domestic life, and their habits are unusually frugal. They are timid by nature, or rather, by training; are very sensitive of, and grateful for, the smallest favor. Naturally indolent, they can still apply themselves steadily to work when there is any incentive of love or a prom­ise of reward. For love of Mrs. Hanson they will accomplish what neither threats nor gain could make them do. What is still more astonishing, in a race to whom exacti­tude and punctuality are qualities unknown (time being of no count with them), they will, as a rule, keep their promises to her, as regards date of returning their finished work. Their cleanliness would put to shame many cultivated Christians. “ With a Turk cleanliness is not next to Godliness, but part and parcel thereof.” It is difficult to conceive that these exquisite embroideries, on the most delicate materials and colors, covered with fine embroidery requiring weeks and months to complete, should be worked in a small room, where the members of a family are born, live and die. Their work is stretched on a low frame, before which they sit cross-legged on the floor; and this frame, containing the embroidery they are working upon, is an object of reverent care. In cases of fire, which is by no means unfrequent among their poorly- built frame dwellings, it has often happened that when not a thing besides has been saved, the work attached to the frames has been found spotless and having been removed to a place of safety before anything else was thought of.

Age makes but little difference in their deftness. A small child of seven or eight years makes as perfect work as a grown woman, and there are great numbers among them, seventy and seventy-five years of age, who still do the finest drawn-thread work—in fact, there are some kinds of the old Persian work in which the old ladies are the greater adepts. They do not take as kindly to innovations as the younger ones, and they despise all work which is not exactly the same on both sides. The test of perfection is, that none shall be able tell on which side the eyes gazed when the piece was being embroidered.

Many of you may some day go to Constantinople. I would ask you to find out Mrs. Arthur Hanson, living in the village of Candilli, on the Asiatic coast of the Bos­phorus, and be present on her reception days when the work is given out, the silk and gold weighed, the design and coloring of each piece explained, words of encourage­ment and advice given, medicine for a sick child, a reward for a specially good piece of work, a gentle reprimand for carelessness, inexactitude, or an unfortunate stain; the language carried on between Mrs. Hanson, her lovely daughters, her assistants and these women, being a mixture of English, P'rench, Turkish and Greek. A veritable Volapuk, unintelligible to the outsider.

I can only touch briefly on our preparation, to exhibit at the World’s Columbian Exposition. For many months we were in doubt as to the possibility or practicability of doing this. It was certain that we could not exhibit for “glory” only. The Baroness Burdett-Coutts graciously allowed us to use the “ reserve ” fund, on condi­tion that we should return it as soon as possible. Finally, after an interview with Mrs. Potter Palmer, at the Holland House, New York, the last days of November, 1892, word was cabled “start—weeks before our material had been chosen in Paris, our designs, colors and combinations prepared by Mrs. Hanson. An adequate descrip^ tion can never be given of the difficulties to be surmounted in so short a space of time (but four months remained, if we were to have the work in America by April, and be ready in Chicago by May ist).

Everything arrived in time, and our beautiful exhibit was ready in the north wing on the main floor of the Woman’s Building, in the first days of May.

The “ Turkish Compassionate Fund” had risked its existence on this effort. Every­thing it possessed was in the stock. But for nearly the first four months our hopes of pecuniary success seemed doomed to disappointment. From first to last little was done in the Fixposition proper, but regular sales were conducted in some of the principal hotels in Chicago. Our embroideries were the wonder and admiration of wealthy visitors from all parts of the country, and during the last ten weeks of the