Relations of Rescue

In the 1870s a group of Protestant mission women appalled by the heavily masculine atmosphere of the cities of the American West came together to construct a dominion of female authority. Creating a network of mission-sponsored homes the Protestant women maintained what they called `women''s work for women'' in virtual freedom from male authority. The author presents a sophisticated treatment of the interaction of the Protestant women with women from different ethnic backgrounds raising some interesting questions about culture and assimilation.