170 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



there all the time and never a smile and never a bright, happy 

 thought in her mind, crowded down by the routine that has sur- 

 rounded her until she is no longer the bright, cheery woman, but 

 the tired, overworked, petulant mother with not time for a 

 bright smile for her boy or girl or a real kind word for her hus- 

 band. And maybe some very cross words for her husband, and 

 I don't blame her for saying them at ajl. I believe I would do 

 it myself. What time is given her? What time does she have 

 to rest? 



We started out by getting our women together just as often 

 as we could. Side by side with the Farmers' Institute stands 

 the Women's Institute of Oklahoma. Our membership is about 

 three thousand more than that of the men. W^e started in with 

 nothing; we went to the Legislature, and I think I am responsible 

 in a small way for the legislation. The Speaker of the House 

 is a very good friend of mine, a splendid fellow. He was busy 

 and I had waited and waited to get an audience with him. 

 Finally I said, "Mr. Durant, will you give me thirty minutes of 

 your time between now and three o'clock Saturday evening?" 

 That was Monday morning. He looked at me and said, "I will 

 give you thirty minutes tonight." All right. I met him 

 promptly at the time, was there waiting, in fact, because I did 

 not want to miss the opportunity. Speaker Durant is an Indian, 

 a Choctaw Indian, a prince of a fellow for all that. He came 

 walking up and took out his watch and said, "You have just got 

 thirty minutes, because I promised another party." I replied, 

 "I don't want thirty minutes." He said, "You don't mean to 

 say a woman can get through in less than thirty minutes?" 

 He looked at me with surprise and I thought. Mister, I can say 

 what I have to say in less time than that. And when I got 

 through he took out his watch and said: "Bless your heart! 

 you have just been fifteen minutes, and I am for the women." 

 And he went from there over to the floor of the House, and when 

 the bill came up Speaker Durant was on the floor of the House 

 to defend it, and from that time our appropriation was assured 

 and our movement has stood side by side with that of the men. 



We have sufTicient money on hand to put a trained nurse 

 in the field to talk to our women and tell them things that they 

 should know; and we have a professional dressmaker in the field 

 and she teaches the women good dressmaking. We hope to so 

 train our country women that it will no longer be said when they 

 pass, "That is a country woman." Oh, how I hate that stigma! 



