Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1867-03-12
Henry Ward Beecher on Uniyersnl

New YORK, Feb l3.-Rev. Henry
Ward Beecher delivered tonight, Mt the
Booklyn Academy of. Music, an address
on Universal Suffrage" He took the
ground that all classes who expected to
e any benefit from legislative action
should have a voice in making the laws.
He claimed that manhood has the right
to suffrage, not a permission; and it was
not just to exclude one section of the
country from voting. Education was
the ~watchword for safety over the bal
lot-box. 1t was not dangerous to allow
ignorant men to vote. Suffrage itself
was a powerful educator. The most
ignorant mar in New York would know
in one year, by education, the difference
between a vote and o club; the second
year, he would observe the influence of
party; the third, he would vote more
inteligently ; the fourth, he would
know the acquisitions for a candidate;
and the fifth, he would vote as well rs
any one.
The speaker advocated woman suf-
frage because through her. influence a
higher standard Of men in office would
be secured. Woman's sphere was some
thing more than to remain at home and
darn stockings and sew on shirt buttons.
He also sustained his views on scriptural
authority, saying the New Testament
contained nothing intimating the in
equality of the sexes. W. don't want
that a woman should undertake to, be a
man, but that she should bring into the
nations affairs the influence of her ma
ture, that which he carried to church
and to camp.
Some objections had been made that
a woman would vote as did her husband
and ne~utralize the effect, or that she
would vote opposite and so make dis
cord in the family but he said it would
be the same! in politics as in religion, If
there was no difference theY would 60
in harmony. If woman had a recog-
nized right to influence her husband
and sons as to the manner in which they
should vote she also had a right to vote
herself.
Human society needed the executive
power Of Yoman, and he would put it
upon their consciences to use every pos
sible effort to ameliorate the condition
of the poor, the down trodden, and the
ignorant. We did not believe that
woman should fight because she voted
all men who vote didNnot fight.
But if women could fight better than
men then let them do it. On an average
her head was stronger than mans. A
writer states that the family is the unit.
1t was so in olden times, but now the
individual is the unit Of the family. He
did not wonder that woman said she did
not want to vote, because she. had been
educated not to take part in National
affairs, but the day was not far distant
when a reformation would take place.
Mr.. Beecher waited for the day for
woman to vote, because then he could
vote for once in q decent place. The
moment she gave her influence to the
ballot q wide and a great change would
be felt, not only in politics, butin morals
throughout the land. He concluded by.
urging his fair hearers to take upon
themselves the task. of bringing about
the desired result they would contri-
butte not only. to their own happiness,
but to the welfare of the country by so
doing. His only faith for the future
prosperity of human society was their
devotion in the cause of woman suffrage.