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M r s . K e i t h Rand, Porl Wil- liams, N. 5., President Fed- e r a I e d Wo~ men's lnslilules of Canada. IT IS with a deep feeling of humility and hon- our that I accept your editor’s invitation to write to the Women's Institutes of Ontario -â€"the Mother province of our great organizaâ€" tion of rural women. The Federated Women’s Institutes of Canâ€" ada have passed an important milestone in their National Convention. Every woman pres- cut was proud to have a part in this history- making event and proud to he a member of an organization which has earned such esteem and support. A sincere tribute should be paid to all who have by their deeds or dreams made such an event possible. Each woman in Ottawa doubtless gleaned something different but to me the greatest achievementâ€"the greatest joyâ€"was to know that women from vastly different communi4 ties. of many walks of life and all with indiw vidual thinking were willing and able to see all sides of a question, talk it out, and reach a With lovely old keepsakes treasured through generations of gracious living. A valued worker in the Anglican parish of St. John’s, in the University Women’s Club at Wolfville, this versatile person initiated School Exhibitions under the Women’s Insti« tute of Nova Scotia. She has held all offices in the Instituteâ€"Branch, District, and Prov vinciial in her eleven years of membership; and at the Winnipeg Biennial National Con- ference in 1955 she was elected Second Viceâ€" President. This year, October 1957, the high office of President is hers She truly exempli~ fies the motto of the Institutefi‘T‘or Home and Country.“ “The high occasion often calls for men Some for release from service give their pelf, But he gives most who freely gives himself.” Greetings From Mrs. Rand decision with the true spirit of compromise. I know the founders of our organization would be happy to know that we could meet our problems in this spirit. It has been said “Today is yesterday’s pupil.” I think our National Convention has proved we are apt pupils of the women of yesterday. The fact that our problems are not the same as theirs does not. change the spirit in which they are studied and solved. At the Convention we became more deeply aware of the East by reports of the Ceylon Conference. A quotation from a writer of the EastiKahil Gibranâ€"came to my mindâ€"“Your house shall not be an anchor but a mast.” The Federated Women's Institutes of Canada has built its house on a firm foundation. II is up to us in our home Branches to hoist the sail on our mast and go forward in uncharted ways. Edith Rand, President F.W.I.C. A Prophesy That Failed 0 NE of the many interesting records brought to light at the time of Stoney Creek Wo- men’s Institute’s Sixtieth Anniversary celebra- tions was a letter dated March 16th, 189'? from Mr. F. W. Hudson, Superintendent of the Far- mers’ Institutes of Ontario to Erland Lee, well known for his part in the beginning of the Women’s Institute movement. Mr. Lee was Secretary of the Farmers’ Institute of Saltfieet township with which the first Women’s Insti- tute was affiliated, and he had submitted to the Superintendent, Mr. Hodson, a draft of the Constitution and Byâ€"laws of the new Woâ€" men‘s organization. In a reply of considerable length, Mr. Hodson made this observation: "I think that it is all right to have a branch auxiliary” (that was what they called the Wo- men’s Institute at that timeâ€"an auxiliary of the Farmers” Institute) “in every township, but some plan must be evolved whereby the Insti- WINIER 1958 tute district as a whole will be represented . . . and I still think it would be a decided mistake for you to form an organization en- tirely separate from the Farmers’ Institutes. If not more closely allied to the Farmers‘ Institute than an auxiliary it certainly should he an auxiliary . , . We have far too many separate associations now. It makes the ma« chinery too cumbersome and the number of officials too numerous. I am quite certain that if the ladies of the province strike out on inde- pendent lines it will be a long time before they receive recognition. I am just as positive that if this work is kept closely in touch with the Farmers” Institute system the recognition must necessarily occur at an early date.” Mr, Hodson was not the only person who held this view. Only the early Institute women and a few others had faith in their cause, 11