Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1867-07-16
EN- ALE SUFFRA G II
BY RAPHAEL BEMMEs

One of the most curious signs of
the times is late vote in the British
House of Commons on the question
of admitting the better half of crea-
ton to the right Of suffrage. If there
is any staid, sober, practical body in
the world it is the British House of
Commons, and after a telling speech
by J. Stuart Mill, the other night,
who is doing yeomans service for
tho maids and mothers of England,
there was vote of seventy-three in
favor of female suffrage. This sub
ject has hitherto been spoken Of
lightly and flippantly in our papers,
but it is evidently attracting the
serious attention of thinking men.
Mr.. Mill is by no means an enthu-
siast. No very crochety idea could
find Judgment, for any length Of
time, in his enlarged and philo-
sophical brain. We think he and
those who are working with him, on
both sides of the water, are making
some grave mistakes in government,
in regard to franchise generally, but
if there is to be no restriction put
upon males, we cannot, for the life
of us, see why there should be any
put upon females. The wives and
daughters OF country form one-half
OF its population, and have rights and
privileges to be protected, that are
not necessarily protected by the laws
which protect the interests of the
men. Selfshness is inseparable from
human nature, and however nearly
and dearly the woman may be con-
nected with the man, he has been
prone, as all history has shown, to
do her injustice. In the old English
common law, which is the fountain
head from which we have derived
our own systems of Jurisprudence in
these States, the married woman was
a mere nonentity. Immediately upon
her marriage she was deprived of all
her civil rights, and became dead in
the eyes of tho law Ali her per-
sonal property vested absolutely in
the husband, and he was entitled to
the possession and management and
profits of her landed estate. She be-
came simply a plaything, or an upper
servant in his household. The more
gentle made her plaything; the less
gentle, a servant. Even the earn
ings of her personal labor reverted to
the husband, and except only in case
of personal violence, she was forbid
; den to make her appearance in a
court Of justice. Many a drunken,
worthless husband has habitually
robbed and maltreated his patient
and long suffering wife without the
law affording her the least redress.
The reason of SO unjust system OF
Legislation is obvious-the system is
in the hands of men. The system
! of oppression is not confined to legis.
, lation; it extends to private life
The woman, being the weaker vessel,
invariably goes to the wall when ii
becomes the interest of the male
,, vagabond to Cypress her. She is the
victim of mean .jealousies and rival.
0 ries among almost all the laboring
classes. Many of the manual EN-,
Payments belong peculiarly to hel
by reason of her better adaptability
to perform them, and yet whenever
such employments are profitable, she
is rudely thrust aside by the males
Individual y or in combination. She
q |, is permitted and encouraged to
/ drudge at the needle, but beyond
this there is scarcely any pursuit
j open to her. The lower places in
4 schools and colleges are awarded
. to her, but the upper places and
the more profitable ones are al.
Q ways monopolized by the men. In
n vest her with the ballot and all
$ these tyrannies and expressions will
y disappear, as she will be armed
>, with the means of defending herself
: We believe, too, that the change
: will greatly purify the ballot itself
= There will be fewer votes sold fol-
: whisky, and the low-down, maudlin
l. beer-house politicians will be shorr
+ of more than half their power. No
% do we think that the exercise of thu
g ballot will tend in any degree to un
o sex the fair voters. A lady-tha
70 is, one who has the nice instincts ant
+ perceptions of her sex-will always
8, be lady, and will cast her vot'
a with as much dignity, discretion ant
81 81 sound judgment, as she evinces wher
to called into council by her husband o
J. brother on any serious matter o
u, u, business and as for those in tn
Us lower walks of life, the exercise o