i entered the lace-world by the grim door of war. for it was the war-time work of the women of the brussels lace committee that opened the way to me.

long before the war, queen elizabeth in belgium, like queen margharita in italy, had sought means to protect the lace worker, through centuries the victim of an economic injustice, not to say crime, and to rescue and develop an industry threatened from many sides. in 1911 she gave her royal encouragement to a group of prominent belgian women who organized as “amies de la dentelle,” friends of lace, and began a lace-saving campaign by trying to remedy the deplorable condition of most of the lace schools, the defective teaching, long hours, and pitiful [16]pay. they could insist in the schools, as they could not elsewhere, on the right to inspect, to grant or refuse patronage. they subsidized worthy institutions, and advocated the establishment of a lace normal school and of a special school of design. education they felt to be the main road leading out of the prevailing misery, and they were making progress along this road, when suddenly the invader poured over their borders.

while other women hurried to open refuges and hospitals and soup-kitchens, a few of the friends of lace remembered first the lace-makers; and by november 1914, had effected a war emergency organization, known as the brussels lace committee, with mrs. whitlock as honorary president. unfortunately most of the lace dealers failed to cooperate with them, but they won the approval of the powerful belgian comité national, which, with the commission for relief in belgium,[17] carried on the relief of the occupied territory throughout the war. and with an initial gift of $25,000 from america to be converted into lace, they were able to start their work. it soon came to be directed altogether by four women; the comtesse elizabeth d’oultremont, lady-in-waiting to queen elizabeth; the vicomtesse de beughem, an american; madame josse allard, and madame kefer-mali. at the same time the aid and protection of workers on filets and other commonly called “imitation” laces, was assigned by the comité national to another group of women, the “union patriotique des femmes belges.”

the brussels lace committee employed, as trusted business director of their offices, m. collart, generously released to them by the allard bank, and as technical expert, madame sharlaecken, before the war with the compagnie des indes, one of the largest lace houses in [18]belgium; and as the work developed, an increasing number of designers and aides necessary to a lace business were added.

during the first few months the situation seemed utterly hopeless; thread was impossible to obtain; and even if the thread were forthcoming, no one could say who would buy the laces they might encourage the women to make; the germans were cutting off successive sections of the lace-making areas where they had established sub-committees, and were forbidding communication with them. and yet these four women continued bravely to create the foundations of a great lace business—for an extraordinary commercial organization grew from their efforts.

however, despite all their intelligence and devotion, such a result would have been impossible but for a hard-won diplomatic victory. in early 1915 mr. hoover forced an international agreement which [19]permitted the c. r. b. to bring thread for the lace committee into belgium, and to take out an equivalent weight in lace, to be sold in the allied countries for the benefit of the workers. england required a rigid control of the thread, and that it be given only to establishments open to inspection by the c. r. b. at one time these thread shipments were stopt—a period of cruel anxiety for the women—but happily after a re-adjustment they were continued. and once these international guaranties were obtained, the belgian comité national was able to arrange for the distribution of the thread to the various, even remote, lace centers, and for the return of the finished laces to brussels. they granted the women a subsidy of $10,000 and insured to each dentellière the chance to make at least three francs worth of lace a week—a small minimum, to be sure, but every one understood it might be increased [20]later, and that if each of the many thousands of workers was to have an equal opportunity, it could not in the beginning be more. after this the lace committee had at times as many as 45,000 women on its lists. the work in the schools and out of them began to bear fruit. the sweating system, and payment in kind (in clothing and food) were practically wiped out, and inspection and control established. everywhere the standard of design and of execution was raised; old patterns were restored and improved, and by the end of the war 2,237 new designs had been added.

but this was not advance through open country. there was constant danger that at any moment the way might be completely barred; at any time the guaranties covering the thread importations might be withdrawn. the germans early originated a “lace control” of their own, and tried in every possible way to win over [21]the belgian workers, and to buy up all the lace in the country. they accused the brussels committee of being a political and patriotic body existing chiefly to defeat the occupying powers and the flemish activists. then there were other courage-testing difficulties. but despite all obstacles and perils, the women persisted, and continually the precious skeins of thread, with their message of “carry on” were flung out from brussels to the farthermost corners of the land, binding all together in a firm and beautiful web of hope and confidence. for the enemy was right in suspecting the committee of a purpose deeper than that of merely trying to save women from the soup-line; they carried on a patriotic work of highest importance. to them i owe a personal debt of gratitude, for they permitted me to follow their devoted service closely, and they opened the door for me to a new world of beauty and interest.