Mistress of Girton College 1903–16

Emily Elizabeth Constance Jones had a varied early education at home,
and abroad (the family spent four years at the Cape 1861–65). She took
correspondence classes in Greek before two months private coaching from
Alice Grüner for the Girton entrance examination. She came up to Girton
in 1875 and achieved a First Class in the Moral Sciences Tripos in 1880
(the lateness of her Tripos was owing to her degrading because of family
circumstances).

After Girton she lived in Wales for four years working on a completion
and revision of Elizabeth Hamilton’s translation of Lotze’s Mikrokosmus.
In 1884 she returned to Girton to become Resident Lecturer in Moral
Sciences 1884–1916 (Director of Studies 1903–16), Librarian 1890–93 and
Mistress 1903–16. She continued her prolific output of philosophical
writings during her periods of office and her controversial New Law of
Thought was written while she was Mistress. When she became Mistress in
1903, the College debt was £43,000. By 1916, when Miss Jones resigned
because of ill-health, this had been paid off by raising substantial
gifts and bequests which had also enabled four new Fellowships and two
research studentships.

She was a Governor of University College Wales, Aberystwyth from 1892
and received an Honorary DLitt from Wales in 1913.