Susanna Major, class of 1843, who came from Ontario, Canada was the first international student to study at the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. In 1843, she wrote an essay titled “The Sphere and Education of Women,” in an anthology of essays and articles written by Mount Holyoke women. Titled “Original Compositions and Selected Articles, 1838-1849”, this anthology was collected by Abigail Moore Burgess, a graduate of Mount Holyoke’s first class, the class of 1838, and a niece of Mount Holyoke founder, Mary Lyon. In her piece Major wrote “As gravity pervades every particle of matter, and is secretly diffused throughout the material creation, so the influence of woman, pervading the family circle, extends to communities and nations, and finally has a mighty bearing on the destiny of the world. If this be so, why should not a woman’s education meet the demands of her sphere and capacities?” Although the idea that the value of women’s education was dependent on her role as a mother and homemaker may seem antiquated now, in 1842 when Major wrote her essay this concept was one of women’s rights advocates most successful arguments. One example is the U.S. Children’s Bureau, founded in 1912, which was staffed primarily by women and advocated policies that Frances Perkins, class of 1902, who was the U.S. Labor Secretary under President Franklin Roosevelt, would later promote. The value of an educated mother appears often among the writings of early Mount Holyoke international students, many of whom attended to receive the education necessary to further women’s education back in their communities.