The Portland daily press., 1869-02-03

lOuf quiet, low voiced women are bestirrin9
themselves. 81 have never in my life writ
ten line for publication" says tie writer of
"hat follows. Let her persevere. She is
wanted.
TO the Editor Of the Press;
would like through the columns of your
paper to express my warm thanks 10 Mr..
John Neal Tor his late articles ON "Woman
Sufflage."
Lis views are so sensible and his arguments
so convincing that dare to hope from them
efectual aid and advancement to our GREAT
cause which is not only one of simple right
and justice to one portion Of the human
rae, but which Is also, believe, one Of in
calculable Importance in its effect upon the
progress OF the world (may not say, of the
"efcerSel toward higher and purer civl,iza-
ton than we have as yet dared to dream f.
Many persons who unhesitatinGIy ac-
knowledge the right of this reformation in
government yet refuse to advocate it because
they question its e1pediency. They forget
evidently that the erpedient thing is not al
ways found to be the right one, while all his
NN-S D-AN"S th~' SJtS sOOutt OF later. 10
have been the e1pedient one also. 1t is nut
ting the cart before the horse to consider
expediency first, aud light afterwards. "To
thine own self be true" Ito tt inc own convic-
ton OF simple right and ustice) 'and it must
follow as the night the day thou canst not
then be false to any man." AS our own Emer-
son has beautifully announced it, He series
all acho dares be true"
Mr.. Neal in his paper quotes Mrs. ii Beech
er Stowe on this question, and expresses his
regret that such earnest and well-intention,
ed women as Mrs. Stowe and Gail Hamilton
should hinder rather than help this cause by
halfway advocating it as they do. l sympa
thize with him on this point. The time has
come for earnest and whole-sou,ed effort. and
we can but regret the course so honestly al
though SO ienorantIy pursued by those high
m nded women.
Gail Hamilton has spoken heroiealy and
sensibly, many times on many themes and
deserves our special thanks for her dexter
Gus and hearty zeal in slaughtering our an
cient clerical enemy by pointing his own
guns against him and blowing him TO pieces
lie was not very dangerous enemy, TO be
sure, but the spirit with which she conduct
ed the charge on him was certainly conmead-
able and worthy of heing used against more
formidable Ioe. But one thing she said, to
winch L take serious exception-that as a
man, she would not refuse woman the ballot,
and as woman she would not ask man for
| 1t.
| Why not ask for it if it is right? There is
an old saw-"lf thing isn't worth asking
tor it is not worth having" So long as man
has the gift of the ballot to woman under
| his eontlol and has withheld it from her mos
arbitrarily AID unjustly, for so many years, now,
when the world needs it in egOnlQn's hands
also, why should she retatd vilization by
foolishly refusing, with false plide or child
ish obstinacy, 10 ask for it when man is so
slow to righteously and magnanmously offer
it? AS man, l would offer woman the bal
lot; as woman I would ask man for it a
Willingness to give and willingness to ask
would soon settle this great question; women
who cannot see that, in this country, the
possession OF the ballot is, in itself, protec-
tlon and power to the individual, must be
short sighted indeed. What man, whether
he makes use ct his power to vote, or not,
would willingly be deprived OF his right to
exercise it should he choose?
Mrs. Stowe has worked nobly for the Ari-
can slave-God bless her for it but she does
not seem to see the analogy between their
former condition and that of woman to day
that, practically, woman. stands in her
relation to man, as the African slave
stood in his relation to his master !;
slaves were bought and sold on the auction
blocks; women are bought and scld in mar
rage, voluntarily or iDvoluntarily, at the bid
ding OF ambition, vanity and lust; whether
the baf offered be houses and lands, lace ana
diamonds, with ease aud social distinction
or, in the case of poor lone forlorn women
VINO are worn out with their struggles for
hie, with such leariuliy unequal ODDS against
them, home; the result is the same; the sac
ritiee OF the Deity within to the lower inter
| est without, is made day alter day, week at
| ter week, and year after year, by the hun.
dred by the thousand; and humanity suffers
great loss in consequence. Would this con
dition of things exist very long, think you,
alter woman had the ballot and with it the
power Of opening to herself the educational
institutions of the country, now mostly Gle
ed against her, and the variols avocations oil
lie with tair prospect of maintaining her
self respectfully, and not being obliged to sac,
riice her integrity in order TO keep body and
soul together little while longer than she
otherwise could
The slaves had no equality with their mas
ters before the law. Woman has no equality
with man before the law.
The slaves were taught to believe, and
many OF them learned the lesson, that theirs
was blessed condition, exempt from the
cares and responsibilities of lie, dependent
upon the protection and support OF theirs
owners, who graciously under .ook to play the
part OF Providence toward them.
| Woman has fcI ages been taught TO believe
| land she, alas in the majority OF cases has
learned the lesson only too WELL that hers is
a state OF blessedness, exempted from the
cares and responsibilities OF Lille outside her
own little cfce OF family and church, de-
pendent upon the protection and support OF
her lord and master" WHO has undertaken
to play Providence for her as the slave holder
did ior his negro.
The Southern master often honestly sup
posed tor want OF deep and unprecedented
thought on the subject that his view OF the
slavery question was the true one, and that
the negro was really better off than he coulG
be if enaneipated; it never occurred to him
evidently that the greatest evil possible was
that deep degradation Of humanity in the ne-
gro which should make him contentedly sub
init to an order OF things which should aD-
solve him from all individual responsibility in
universal life and progress.
So the majority OF men to-day honestly
suppose II will not say believe, for there is
not sufficient evidence of deep and unpreiu-
diced thinking I. warrant the use of that
word that thei- view OF the woman question
is the true one, and that woman is much
better under the tutelage of man than she
could possibly be otherwise, and they seem
to realize as little as the Southern slave-hold-
er, that one OF the greatest evils to woman in
the existing state of things is The tendency 1t
has to make her feel no interest or response
bihly in lie, outside of her own family.
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