40 
HELEN ABBOTT MICHAEL 
marked feature of European laboratories to utilize their win¬ 
dows for chemical operations, and in botanical laboratories 
for little hothouses. 
“After a few minutes an assistant appeared, who most 
affably took me over the Institute. 
“Dr. Wiebel’s laboratory is a private one, and his students 
are from the University, especially during the summer months. 
I believe one or two ladies have studied here. The only condi¬ 
tion exacted is that they should know German. There seems 
to be no obstruction to ladies studying anywhere in the private 
institutes; the regulation preventing their working in the lab¬ 
oratories applies only to government schools. The Minister 
of Instruction himself holds the right to grant permission even 
here, but I am told that permission is rarely if ever given by 
him. The rooms though small seemed to be conveniently fitted 
up, but there were none of the great conveniences of the newer 
and larger laboratories.” 
Dr. J. Brinckmann, Direktor des Museums für Kunst und 
Gewerbe in Hamburg, gave her a card to Frau Ree, the head 
of the Woman’s Art Industrial School, and on the following 
day she made her a visit, finding her “a lady perhaps over fifty, 
with hair brushed smoothly down each side, and a quick blue 
eye.” She says: — 
“The Gewerbeschule für Mädchen was started from a very 
humble origin by Frau Ree. She took almost from the streets 
young and ignorant girls who had no training or education, 
and in a few small rooms had them taught the rudiments of 
education, such as writing, arithemetic, and grammar. The 
money for the present building was raised by subscription. 
At present the institution is supported by the school fees, and 
the payment by the public for work done. There is very little 
capital from which to draw money. The highest school fee 
for one year is 180 marks. The average is iqo. 
“The time of the course is about two years. The girls are 
expected to work about thirty-six hours a week/six hours a 
day, from nine to three o’clock. The present number of stu¬ 
dents is three hundred, varying from fifteen to twenty-five, 
though women of thirty years have come. There is no distinc- 
