A DAUGHTER OF MODERN ATHENS

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 96, 16 January 1908, Page 3

A DAUGHTER OF MODERN ATHENS

y One of tbe mqst distinguished .women : i modern Grccco ia Sevasti JT- Callispei .. '"Miss" Sevasti sho is called by the America - paper which tells tho story, of her.brilliai ; carcer. It seems wicked to affix .thb.cor moil little word to tho name of'.s>„Giscis | r lady, and almost wcirso to give ".an. initi ! r instead of her second name, 'l)u6j' ; profrab j had it existed in. thoso flays an'.Anieric! y. journal would hive written of Helen rif Tri ,1 as.Mrs. Helon S. Menelaus. Sevasti : Ca,l speri comes from a noted family,-6f. Atheii e Her father fought in tho Gr.eek. war of :i ( [ dependence, was one of tho close- frietids , the first king, Otho, was,made secretary.'' '' the, provincial government of tlio Islartd i: Samos, later .becamo the first. .. 'judge • Athens, and afterwards held the position j. governor in several different provinces/ H ]_ brother, it may .be said in . passing, is 11c B; president of tho Council of Athens,, arid jj professor in tho University of. Athens. • ,<j To tho education of his first-born)' ; 11 ,y Callisperi. devoted all , of his spare .tiri] ,g often waking her, .when a littlo girl of oigb . at fivo. in.the morning, in order that- [{ might impress upon her tho lessons for t 10 day.. Tho first school sho attendee! was Mi ;j_ Hill's School for Girls, but at thirtoen h s , father took entire chargo of her educatio ls and at sixteen tho young girl found horsi lr ready for the examination leading to tho d ; 1_ greo of Bachelor of Arts. Ie Women were not admitted to tho Univ( sity of Athens, and naturally the I !n quest , of this young woman for examir fy tion was refused. Sho persisted, howev( t s until tho professors wero shamed info gnu m ing her request. They submitted her to t , n severest questioning, hut wero forced j s admit her attainments-and to hestoW lip 10 her tho desired degree. ea With this, at soventeen years of. ago, M; 1Q Callisperi went to Paris, whero sho. enter jg tho Sorhonne, tho University of Paris, not , 0 for'its difficult examinations. Hero S 10 studied for seven years, at the end of whi j ( ] time she brilliantly passed tho severest' c ™ animation of tho year. Out of onohundr n . and twenty-eight candidates, only thirl nine passed, and Miss Callisperi, tho or woman, stood eighteenth on tlio successl t . O list. She thus becamo tho sccornl woman go tho world to obtain tho ss • DEGREE.OF DOCTOR OF LETTERS lie from tho' Sorbonno, and tho first ivoman ho foreign'birth. - ■ ■ •• • : .: n . After a year at tho higher Normal Schi «f Sevres, and some months at Newnham .a

London,-the .young iG.reck' J patriot returned' to vher. own .land; that 1 to. its-' service .she' might dedicate-hcr-brilliant'talents. • ; The country realised that sho was.a woman of exceptional'ability, who'had added; lustre, to'the namo of Greeco in. foreign- lands, andi they strove suitably, to honour, her.. At.tlio request': of tho -King . and .many : noted ' deputies tho.positionsof Woman Inspector of 1 Public Schools was. created ;by .special Act ~ of tho Legislature for- Miss Callisperi, and this position she held , for ten years—with- tl! out any salary, however.. Tho King, fur-' ther to honour her, appointed her Professor of Ancient Greek Literature to his daughter, tho Princess Maria, now a Grand Ducness of Russia. Ci During I'ier ten years of service, Miss C; Callisperi learned much about tho educational Di needs l of her country, and made every effort D; in her power to meet somo of those needs. Sho w,roto memoirs and legislative works which wero jj PRESENTED TO PARLIAMENT H by deputies who had become enthusiast']- M cally in favour of her plans. At tho same time, sho tried as an individual to do somo of tho things which sho thought the Govern- aj mont ought to do. For .instance sho tried 0 to introduce tho study of silkworm culturo 0 into-the public schools, but was hindered and finally defeated in her efforts by tho men P teacljgrs who objected to havinjr a woman £ inspector over them. She brought together tho . parents of tho children in tho public m schools in a Public School Brotherhood which rp in threo months, provided clothing for five y hundred children who wero unablo to go to. V school for lack of raiment. But those efforts scorned small compared to tho great needs. Manual training needed S! to bo taught in the public schools that the children, might learn to uso their, hands and to honour honest labour; scientific agricul- bi turo especially was needed, for witn her ol rich soils and superb climate. Greece is at m tho present timo importing bread stuffs and t-1 dairy products. Higher schools wero needed si for girls, for although, because of Miss P Callisperi's success, tho University was now d; open to women, there was nothing for, them ti in the public school system between the n: grammar grades and that highest institution a.' of learning. So she determined to found ci a school of her own, and with tho idea of s 1 studying the best educational methods sho a visited America and made a thorough in- d vestigation into tho American system, re- t maining to lccturo through tho States in aid s of funds for her school. Sho is tho only woman who lias over lectured in tho Unit vorsity of Athens. t y