http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/eagle/congress/zeman.html
"The Women of Bohemia." by Mrs.
Josefa Humpal Zeman.
Publication: Eagle, Mary Kavanaugh Oldham, ed. The
Congress of Women: Held in the Woman's Building, World's Columbian Exposition,
Chicago, U. S. A., 1893.. Chicago, ILL: Monarch Book Company, 1894.
pp. 127-130.
Excerpt [Page 127]
THE WOMEN OF
BOHEMIA by MRS. JOSEFA HUMPAL ZEMAN
You have heard how in the beautiful forests of Bohemia there
blossom millions of sweet scented violets, modestly hiding their drooping heads
beneath the velvet moss; they live their short life quietly, yet steadily,
performing the duty assigned to them by their Creator; they live and breathe
the sweet breath that fills the air, invigorating the wearied passer-by with
new strength for his daily toil; intoxicating the nightingales, who, bursting
in songs of joy, soothe and inspire souls, who, like Keats, need new vigor to
enliven their fainting hearts.
And like these
violets that blossom in the bosom of our forests, so the women of Bohemia
live quietly, hidden within the sacred walls of their homes, unostentatiously
performing their duties, and yet their influence has filled the air with the
sweet scent of encouragement, and inspired our men to deeds of heroism. Our
women always have lived closer to the men than the women of the western
nations. They have been their true helpmates in home and national life, and not
infrequently have their words, their faith, their example, and poured fresh
vigor into the fainting hearts of the worn-out warriors. As far back as legend
and history can reach we find our women participating in national welfare. The
third ruler of the Czechs was a woman, Libuse, and it is said that under her
rule the nation prospered, and today she lives as an embodiment of all that is
desirable in a good king; as noble, just, kind and wise queen! Later, Drahomira
was another brave queen, and among the first Christian women. St. Ludmila is a
good illustration of the interest that women have shown in public life as far
back as the eighth and tenth centuries, A. D.
In the times of the
great tribulations that came to Bohemia during the Hussite wars, when whole
armies of Catholic soldiers swept into the quiet regions of Bohemia, tearing
away from the hearts of the people that which was most sacred to them–their
religion and their mother tongue–it was then that our women showed their heroic
nature, sending their husbands away to war, and they themselves marching with
them. They carried stores, nursed the wounded, and frequently stepped into
the place of their husbands and sons when the cruel shot swept these out of
their places. Thousands of women left their homes, their friends, and went into
exile, when, after the fall of Bohemia on the White Mountain, in 1620, after
the long Thirty Years' War, Rome and the Hapsburgs were victorious; and all
those Bohemians who would not become
Excerpt [Page 128]
Roman Catholics were
exiled, their property confiscated and given to foreigners, who filled the land
like ravens, preying upon helpless, suffering Bohemia. In the Middle Ages
our women were queens of the castle, and often were very learned. Many
wrote in Latin, Greek, and some even knew the Hebrew. We have traces of
literary efforts done by these women as early as 1502, and all through the
so-called "Golden Age" of Bohemian literature in the sixteenth
century. The "old embroideries" prove the high artistic talents of
women, for the designs are all made by women copying the creations of nature in
their beautiful embroidering. The blending of colors and choosing of design,
all testify to a great development of esthetic tastes and love of nature
"for its own sake."
It is, however, this
century that best unveils to us the hearts of our women. Standing by the
side of our poets, they went from village to village, from house to
house, awakening the people to new life and new courage, carrying with them
literature, and teaching the peasants how to read and write. This is the
time that Mme. Bozena Nemcora formed her little salon, and, like Madame De
Staël, gathered about her the best sons of Bohemia, inspiring, helping and
teaching them. She was the "good star" of the brave men who tried to resurrect
the nation from a death of more than two centuries.
During those days of
tumult and strife, when the Bohemian language was almost forgotten, when
it was a shame to be a Bohemian in his own fatherland, when there was no
literature left–for the Roman clergy had burned all that came within
its grasp because the best class of literature was written by the
"Bohemian Brethren," a Protestant sect–it took more than courage
to stand up as a patriot, and Madame Nemcora, braved the storms. She is the
first one who cultivated novel writing, and her "Babicka" or
"Grandmother" has been translated into German, Russian, Polish,
French, and by Frances Gregor into English (published by McClurg, Chicago). It
is a classic in the language. Her literary productions would fill a small
library. She is to Bohemian what George Sand is to French, and George Eliot is
to English.
Around her, during
the first half of this century, in the time of revolutions and upheavals in
society gathered nearly thirty women, who began to cultivate
"Belles-lettres" and help in the patriotic efforts of the men. Up to
this time the girl's sphere was limited. She had been brought up like the girls
of other nations, to regard household duties as her proper sphere. The Bohemian
housekeeper was well known, the Bohemian cook was famous, and so each
young woman was carefully trained in these arts. Fancy work, fine
embroidery, a little music, French and German were about all the arts, which
were opened to the girls. The women of lowest class, the
"laboring" women, were, however, allowed "equal rights"
with the men, and could work in fields, in winter spin, and in the cities these
women often worked with the masons, carrying brick and mortar and doing such
rude work.
The life of the
"laboring class" of women is a hard one indeed; but they don't
complain, they remain loyal to their homes, and often from these lowly homes
come the greatest men, and many of these men have thanked their mothers for
their success in life.
The "Middle
Class" consists of the families of the professional men, merchants,
officials, and such as have income enough to keep their families in comfort. In
this class the women, as a rule, do not help the men to earn the living. The
daughters in these families, in addition to the elementary education received
in the public schools, receive a supplementary one, which is to put a sort of
varnish over the other. They are taught a little German, French, music, a
little painting and a good deal of fancy work. But all this is done, not with
the view to enabling them to earn their own living, but rather of giving them
some accomplishments to help them to win a husband. These women expect to be
supported by some man, since there is no way open to them by which they may
earn their living. The "Nobility", of course, live like the same
class everywhere else: besides, we have, with very few exceptions, no nobility
that is really Bohemian.
Since 1870 the
condition of our women has changed, and there are now certain professions
opened to them. These are the teachings (there are twelve hundred teachers in
Bohemia now), nursing, type-writing, telegraphing, clerking and
Excerpt [Page 129]
some trades. There
are only two physicians, and these studied in Zurich, and are not allowed to
practice in Bohemia, although the government has acknowledged their ability by
appointing them to be regular staff physicians in Bohemia among the Mohammedan
women. These openings for self-support to young women have been made by the
organization of "The Bohemian Women Commercial and Industrial
Society," organized by our great novelist, Mme. Karolina Svetla, in 1870.
This organization has
a school in Prague, where the girls are taught, in addition to various branches
of higher studies, all kinds of handiwork, mainly dressmaking, millinery,
bookkeeping, type-writing, cutting and various fancy works. The school can only
accommodate about five hundred students, and hundreds of promising girls must
be turned away because the society has not funds enough to enlarge its school.
A similar school is also sustained at Brünn by the women of Moravia. The school
is something like Drexel Institute in Philadelphia. This society has also
founded the first and best Bohemian "Woman's Journal," whose editor
is the famous poetess, Eliska Krasnohorska, the founder of "Minerva,"
a society composed of the best men and women in Bohemia, under whose auspices a
Gymnasium for girls was established in 1890. The Gymnasium is the first school
of its kind in Eastern Europe, and has now been copied by the German and
Austrian women. The students are to be prepared for admission to the
University. The funds for supporting the school are raised by Madame
Krasnohorska, the indefatigable author and worker in the cause of women. The
school now numbers more than eighty students. It is a task of great importance
and very difficult, since, with the exception of the University of Zurich, no
university in Northern Europe opens its doors to women.
There are not less than one hundred and eighty societies of women in Bohemia,
and yet out of all there is none that we might call a "suffrage
club," although the Society of Bohemian Teachers in Prague has given
considerable attention to this subject, having arranged for lectures, and many
of its members write articles upon the theme. Bohemia, like all of Austria, has
not universal suffrage, and only those who have property can vote. In many
towns and cities the women vote also; in others they are represented
indirectly. In some towns they may even vote for the delegates to the state
Diet; but not for those of the Reichsrath. Although in some cases they may
vote, they themselves are ineligible to office. Some towns have a committee of
women appointed to oversee the work in the primary and industrial schools for
girls.
As I have said
before, since the "Medieval Era" of the Bohemian literature, women
appear in the ranks of authors, and today some of the most popular authors of
drama, poetry and novels are women. The Bohemian women exhibited and donated to
the Woman's Building three hundred and twenty books, all original, not one
translated, written exclusively by women. This is a good showing, when we
remember that the nation is continually in a fierce struggle for
self-preservation; that until recently no avenues of higher education were
opened to women, and that the nation is comparatively small, of only five
million inhabitants. The German women had only five hundred copies, and the
French women only seven hundred. But not only do the Bohemian women write
poetry, novels and drama; they have made some very successful attempts in
scientific and educational literature, some having written well in history,
hygiene, physiology, geology, travels, and as art critics. There is one
remarkable fact which I wish to note in closing, and that is that all the
students of the University of Prague are very friendly to the attempts made by
women pleading for admission. The women of Bohemia have done this work quietly;
they are pressing toward the same mark to which the women of the whole
civilized world are directing their desires and ambitions; but whatever they
do, for whatever they may long, they never forget their obligation to the
nation, and are first patriots and then women. They stand in the ranks of
soldiers, fighting for the sacred right of Bohemia, bearing the heat and smoke
of the battle, ministering to the wounded, and yet performing their duties as
wives, mothers and sisters. They cannot point to glorious buildings, clubs and
enterprises, for every penny is needed by the country, and no one can under-
Excerpt [Page 130]
stand the
difficulties and burdens that are laid on the shoulders of our women. It is harder
for them to get a penny than for people of this country to secure dollars.
Their efforts may appear small, but to those who know the hard situation in
Bohemia, they speak of zeal, enthusiasm, and perseverance, such as only a
Slavonic woman, endowed with her splendid physique, could accomplish. We are
only in the dawn of the morning. Before us lie the whole possibilities of a
splendid day, and I can only say that the Bohemian women are on the march, and
they will keep step with the ranks of all womanhood marching on to progress.
[Page 127]
Mrs. Josefa Humpal
Zeman is a native of Bohemia. She was born January 9,1870. Her father was a
prominent Bohemian leader and speaker, who came to this country in 1873. She
was educated in the public schools of Chicago, and later spent two years in
studying at the high school of Pisek, Bohemia, where her parents returned, and
since 1890 has been studying at the Woman's College, Western Reserve
University, Cleveland, Ohio. She has traveled extensively in Austria, Germany,
England and America. She married a Bohemian editor, Robert Zeman, in 1887. Her
special work has been in the interest of the women of her own nationality,
philanthropic and educational. All her literary works have been published in
the various Bohemian journals. She is a Christian and a member of the
Presbyterian Church. She is a regular contributor to all the leading Bohemian
journals. As a lecturer she is intelligent, sparkling and attractive and the
only Bohemian woman speaker in America. Her postoffice address is No. 513
Arcade, Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio.
