lty of Arts should be
thrown open to all persons without distinction of sex." In the summer of
1884 a deputation of women who had already passed the examinations for
Associate in Arts waited on Principal Dawson and asked that
opportunities be provided in the College to enable them to proceed to
the degree of Bachelor of Arts. The obstacle in the way of granting this
request was the lack of funds. But a few weeks after the request was
made, Sir Donald Smith agreed to give a sum of $50,000 for the purpose,
on conditions to be settled by him. These conditions stipulated that the
classes for women were to be wholly separate and distinct from those for
men, and that no expenditure was to be incurred beyond the income of the
endowment. The offer was accepted by the Board of Governors. The sum
given was sufficient to provide the necessary duplicate courses for the
first and second years in the Arts Faculty, and in the autumn of 1884
the first session for women in McGill commenced with fourteen regular
and thirteen partial students. The women's classes were given in the
lecture rooms of the east wing of the Arts Building. The students were
known as "Donaldas," after the name of their generous benefactor, and
the course was known as the "Donalda" course.

After two years had passed, in October, 1886, Sir Donald Smith increased
his endowment to $120,000 in order to provide sufficient income for
courses in all four years, and thereby to enable women students to
proceed to the B.A. degree. In the session of 1886-87 there were twenty
regular and fifty-eight partial students enrolled in women's courses,
and in 1887-88 the number increased to twenty-six regular and eighty-two
partial students. At the end of that session eight women received for
the first time the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Higher education for
women in McGill was now an assured fact. The Principal's dream had at
last been realised.

But Dr. Dawson had hope of a still greater development of women's
education. He said: "This great work is not yet complete. We look
forward to a College for women, either a College of the University
co-ordinate with McGill College, or affiliated to the University. Such
College while taking advantage of the Museum, Laboratories, Library, and
other appliances of McGill College, and to a certain extent of its
staff, will have its own building, provided with all modern improvements
and refinements for educational work.... I desire to express