The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1875-10-29
A "FOROTBLE REASON" i"

Now comes the Spirit of the West with
an exceedingly fresh and original (?)
objection" to Woman Suffrage, which
its editor honors with the title of
"forcible reason" Although our read
ers may have seen or heard something
of the kind before, we will, lest they
have not, reproduce this 'forcible rea-
son" aforesaid. Hearken, We who yearn
for something new:
There is far more forcible reason against
Woman Suffrage, presented by the fact that
were law giving woman the ballot passed,
it would be exercised to a very great extent
only by the bad element Of their sex. The IN
teIligent and more respectable portion would
ignore their right, and let the elections, no
matter of how great Importance they might be,
go by default.
The refined and educated portion would not
feel like elbOwing their way to the polls
through a crowd of roughs. Their modesty
would step in and take them captive; and
hence an intelligent expression from the great
majority would not, from the nature of things,
be had. Thus the great aim of enfranchising
them would by defeated, and their power to do
good thwarted. We are cognizant of the fact
that there is large amount Of intelligence
possessed by them, but the utility of the
adoption Of such law as proposed above
would be circumscribed, and ignorance would
carry of the palm by giving an undue influ-
ence to demagogism and clap-trap.
We referred to this "forcible reason"
few weeks since, and out of the mouth
of witness opposed to Woman Suff-
rage proved its fallacy. A writer in
the Denver (Col.) Ne1U8, who has been
widely copied, short time since, speak
ing Of the effect of Woman Suffrage in
Wyoming, made the statement that out
of ], 800 women voters in that Territory,
300 are women leading impure lives;
and after dilating in the usual strain of
such writers concerning the matter, he
winds up by saying that the experiment
of Woman Suffrage there has resulted
in making everything just as it was be-
fore, "only more So" Here, according
to this estimate, the bad women num-
ber one in five, and we have an abund-
ance Of testimony showing the good ef-
fects of women's votes, while even the
enemies of political equality admit that
everything seems much as it does else
where.
The editor of the Spirit says "the re-
fined and educated would not feel like
elbowing their way to the polls through
acrowd ofroughs. Their modesty would
step in" etc., etc. What says Judge
Kingman, of the Supreme Court oi
Wyoming Territory? Hearken: ave
have Just had another election, ana
at no time have sOe had so full a cote
Our aOOnea haze taken a lively interest
and hare Uoted quite as universally q
the men. Their influence has been fell
more than ever, and generally on The
side of the best men. Several men
have been defeated on account of thei
want of good character, who expected
success on party grounds. No one tina
I hear of wishes Woman Suffrage abol
isbed, and no one would dare to propost
its repeal. The women are beginning
to feel their influence, and are growing
upto a wider and stronger exertion oft
Should not plain aud straightforward
testimony like this, from one who has
chance to know whereof he speaks, settl
this question in the minds of those VIII,
have only conjecture to overbalance it
The idea that women cannot go int
crowds without detriment to their mod
esty, is disproved by the observations O
any one who has attended State Fairs, re
vival meetings, orother places where tn
great crowds of both sexes do congre
gate. Not polling place anywhere
where they would be more liable to b
jostled by the crowd than they were o.
coming out of the Skating Rink in thi
city, at any one of Brother Hammond
evening meetings last summer; and n
one thought that their elbowing thei
through the 'crowd of roughs" congre
gated at and about the door was del
riment to "modesty."
Our brother, in support of his "forcibl
reason" asserts that woman's power fc
good and evil is unlimited. So also "
believe is that of man, but we neve
heard Of restricting his rights and priv
ileges as a free man on that account.
We feel duly grateful for bis opinio
so unequivocally expressed, that "mos
women have the ability to vote intellj
gently, and in the main would, if the
could place themselves on the side {
good government" as this admissio
of itself refutes the "forcible reason
he sets out to maintain; and though b
winds up with the fear that the plans
Woman Sufffagists, if successful, woul
not be productive of the good result
they claim for them, we feel sure tbs
he will ere long be prepared to adm
himself that such fears are groundles
and altogether unworthy of one VIII
does not ''for moment question the il
tegrity Of woman"