The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-06-04
RATE OF sUBsCRmTIoNs,
sUFFRNaE FoR WonEs.

SUFFRAGE F0R W0SS1llES.
speech by John stuart MIlI..-Why
= Women Should Vote. - -
In the House of Commons, ,,day 20,
John Stuart Biill7made an amendment
to the fonrth claussIof the Representa-
tion bill, to substitute the word "per-
SON. for "man," and supported it with
the following argument In favor OF ex-
tending the franchise to women:
I rise to propose an extensi Ion of the
franchise which can incite no party or
class feeling in this house, and which
cannot give umbrage to the Keenest ad-
vocStes of the claims of property or
numbers-an extension which has not
the slightest tendency TO disturb that
Of which we have lately heard so much,
the balance oflpolitical power; which
cannot Affiict the most timid alarmist
wilA any revolutionary terrors, nor
offend the most Jealous democrat as an
+infringement Of popular rights which
was giving an advantage to one class
which Is denied to another. There is
nothing to distract our attention from
the simple question whether there Is
any sufficient just fcAtio1 for contintl-
Ing the exclusion of an entire halEof
the community, not only from actual
admission, but also from the poSsibIlI-
Fty Of eyer being admitted within the
pale OF the constitution, although thew
mayifnlttll all the conditions of legal
and constitutional citizenship. Hear,
hear.1 Within the limits Of our con-
stitution this is a solitary case. There
Is no other example of exclusion which
is absolute, II the law refuse vote to
all except the posseSsor of G5, 900 year,
the poorest man In our community
might, and now and then would, ac-
nor fortune, norintellect, nor eXeftion!
nor even that great disposer of human
AFFAIRS accident can ever enable any
woman to make her voice heard In
those national affairs which touch her
a51nearly asianY other member of the
community. Hear, hear
y .INJUsI6R OF -ExoIUDtNa WOMEN. /.
Before going any further 1 may be
permitted to say thata PriHld Jdeie case
has already been made out, 1t is not
Just to make distinctions in rights or
privileges without sufficient reason. I
dolnot mean to- say that the political
franchise or any other political function
Dis an abstract right, or that the with
holding of 1t from any one without Just
reason or expediencY Is a public
wrong. My argument Is entirely one
ofexpediency. But there are different
orders of expediency. All expedien-
cies are not all exactly on the same
level. There Is a, very Important
branch of expectancy which Is called
justice; and Justice, although It does
not necessarily require that we should
confer political privileges upon all per-
sons, requires that we shall not eapti-
ciously and without cause withhold
from one what We give to another.
Hear, Hear. lalt "1fH y silGn its I,'t Z
tits not only the general principles
of Justice that are iniringed If not set
aside by the exclusion ofwomen mere
~ as women from the suffrage, but also
particular doctrine of the British
constitution. According to that doc
trine this exclusion violates one of the
,oldestiand most cherished of our consti-
tutionRl maxims-a' dear TO all
reformers, land Theoretically aoknowl-
edged by almost all c6nservh htiYesE the
doctrtns that taxation and representa-
ton should be eoextstent. - 80
TAXATION wrfHoUT RRPREsESrAr1oN.
Does not every woman pay taxes Z
Does not every woman who is sui jIsTiS
Contribute exactly the same amount iof
revenue as every man who has the
same electoral. l.1quRlifications7 If a
stake in the country settles It, then
every holder of freehold property has
stake In the country, Wheth6r that
holder 'iS IMAM or woman. No one
1 think can possibly pretend that wo+
men, many Of W hom are, responsible
heads OF tamltes-Yomen who manage
estates or conductla ubusiness-Women
who pay esand taxes even toa large
and frarunrflyr .,
earnings; and many of whom In the
capacity of schoolmistresses teachi q
great deal more than a grest portion OF
male electors ever learned Claughter1-
no one, i say, can pretend that they are
not at TO exercise the political functions
OF which every male householder Is
supposed to be capable. [Hear, hear.l
Is II supposed that II they are admitted
TO the suffrage they will -revolutionize
the state, or deprive us of any OF our
valued institutions, or that they would
be worse governed than at present 4
No one believes any Of those things. 4
1t was most Justly and truly said by
my right honorable friend, the member
foe South Iancashirei in heimOst mis-
understood and misrepresented speech
have, ever heard hear, hear, that in
order to lay a ground for the exclusion
Of any one from the franchise, It Is
necessary 70 alIege personal nnhtnesa or
public dange Hear, hearl. Neither
Of these things, T. venture to say, can
possibly be alleged In the present case.
Hear, hearl. There is evidence in our
constitutional records that women have
voted for counties and some boro1ghs
at a distant period Of our historyssiid
OBJECTIONS ANswRRRb y - 4
The house viii probably expect that
lIshopld not rest my arguments solely
Tor orprineipa yFupon general iiprinciples
either ofjustice or of the econstitution,
but that Ishould aIlege practical fea-
sons. There Is one practical reasoh@of
very great force which, frankly con-
tsS ~ btaIly wan ting, in the c8seiof
M0niehL Lthey do not hold meetings In
hyde Park llaughteTl, nor get up mo-
lltical denominations at IsIfnRtbu.
| Hear hear, How tar, this fact NAV
their claims i do not pretend Ia say.
But practical REASONS OF, ,anothsF Z n A
practical in the most restricted sense
or the tsrm-arenoeW W6ntIAgf and ian
prepared to state, II may be permit
ted, ftse Whit are the pfaSdEaf bbjec.
tons, The difficulty which most peo-
l pie feel In conneet eetion,WIth this question