his meeting the question of adopting
children.

CHAPTER XXII

MISCELLANEOUS PROGRAMS

When clubs have serious subjects for their year's work, which require
considerable reading and the writing of substantial papers, it gives
variety to arrange the general program in such a way that a light
program comes between two heavy ones; or at least to have every third
meeting of quite different character from the rest.

Often clubs can invite a speaker from outside to take up most of the
hour; a traveller, a settlement worker, a college professor, an actor, a
journalist, a judge of a Children's Court, a student of bird life, all
have something worth while to contribute. Perhaps a writer will read
from his books; or a musician will sing or play, or an artist will tell
of life in the ateliers of Paris or Rome. Even in a small town one can
find some one who has a friend who will come and help in such ways, and
there is no better way to rouse interest in a club than to offer such
meetings occasionally.

Where it is impossible to provide anything of this kind, it is still a
good plan to have miscellaneous meetings from time to time; but there is
always the danger that these will be spoiled by having them consist of
odds and ends, a paper on one subject followed by another on something
which has no relation to the first, and perhaps a third which is still
further afield. It is best to have but one topic for each meeting, with
music if possible, and a social hour afterwards.

One of the best ways to begin a miscellaneous program is to take up
current events for ten minutes. It is possible to plan systematically
for these, so that one member is responsible for a report on foreign
affairs, wars or politics, or whatever is of national importance
anywhere; another for great scientific discoveries or important
inventions; a third, noteworthy music; a fourth, for the great book of
the hour; a fifth, for anything of especial importance to women. No one
should write these brief outlines, but merely give them informally. The
material can be found by following the daily papers, or looking up
articles in review magazines.

Clubs which study a historical or literary subject often find it
interesting to begin these miscellaneous programs with a roll-call,
members answering to their names with quotations from the authors of the
period, or from one author alone. There are books of quotation which
give the best short lines for such rec