The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1876-03-03
DEBATE AT LAFAYETTE.

Inc SUBJECT IOr QlscuSSlOu at tue 1iy- |
eeum last night was:
Resolved, That the elective franchise be ex-
tended to woman.
The arguments produced on the mega
tive side of the question were entirely
pointless, and at the same time very
amusing, in fact, almost ridiculous. If
space in your valuable paper will per-
NIT, would like to give synopsis of
some of the speeches. I will mention
no names, out of pity for those poor
young men who spoke on the negative,
and who would be very much embar-
Tassed at having their names published
in connection with their remarks.
The gentleman who opened the dis
cussion on the affirmative used able,
convincing arguments, showing the in
justice of depriving woman of the use of
the ballot, and at the same time allow
ing foreigners, negroes, and every other
class of men to use it at will. He closed
his remarks by reading an excellent
article about the "Practical workings of
Woman Suffrage in Wyoming"
An ,unfledged youth, whose only
knowledge of the wants. and needs of
woman has been acquired by associat-
ing with silly young girls who ''have all
the rights they want" took the floor as
leader OH the negative. He branched
out quite lively, charaeterizing the first
speaker as champion of the cause"
and then said he was in favor of wom-
ans rights, but was opposed to Woman
Suffrage. Whether he was going to de-
fine the difference between the two will
never be known; for all at once he 'for-
got' what he was going to say, and af-
ter vainly racking his memory and
glancing wildly at a slip of paper he
held in his hand, which appeared to
contain some "notes," he gave it up in
despair, and retired in confusion.
Amid the shouts of laughter which
followed the poor youths discontinue,
another gentleman-a lawyer, by the
way-arose for the affirmative. Hespoke
mostly on the injustice of the laws con-
cerning woman, showing clearly that
she should have voice in their framing.
Passing over the next two speakers
another young man on the negative who
tried to make point and couldn't, and
another speaker on the affirmative-we
come to the infiiction of the evening.
This was nothing more or less than an
"essay," by "FoX Arabias," who was
vanquished in the Courier not long ago
by Mrs. H. A. Loughary. He went
over the same old ground that has been
travelled time and again, and produced
the self-same Od sayings Il can't call
them arguments) that have been an
swered a thousand times. What
troubled him the most was the idea oi
wOmen's holding Office. He seemed tc
think that they could not possibly be
kept out of Office if allowed to vote, anC
went on about certain conditions that
would unfit them for such place. He
evidently feared that there was danger
of children being born in court rooms
legislative assemblies, or congressional
halls. He took it for granted that al
women were mothers, and said tha
woman could no more assume the du
ties and responsibilities of man thar
man could perform the functions of ma
ternity; that reform was needed in an
that tight lacing, want of outdoor ex
ercise, ridiculous modes of dress, etc.
ETC., were greater evils than had eve
yet been mentioned by the suffragists
, He was very certain that the ballo
would not benefit woman; on the con
trary, it would prove positive injur!
to her He read that long-winded arti
Gle that has been copied in so many o
the papers about the "ill effects" o
Woman Suffrage in Wyoming; branches
off about our grandmothers' performing
so much more labor than the women oft
,, day; how they did their spinning, weav
ing, sewing, and knitting all "by hand,
and were still robust and healthy, whicl
could not be said of the women nova
, days, and talked very pathetically for
while about the labor-saving machine
that were now in use for the benefit G
woman. 1t did not seem to occur t
him that more labor-saving machiner
had been invented for the use of ma
than of woman. He classed Woma
Suffrage, free love, divorced or discon
tented wives and unhappy homes all i
the same category said that every ma
must rule his own household, an
quoted Genesis, 1st Chapter, 10th verse
for authority. But it is useless for m
to try to touch upon all the points" b
= attempted to make, on account of tn
extreme length of the delectable eff
: sion (it took him over half an hour t
;. read it,. What I have already quoted
. however, will give your readers som
idea of the originality and quality of I'll
arguments. 1t will be a great wondt
if he does not have a severe attack
brain fever after such a mighty an
mastery effort. Well, he got throug
at last, and the leaders of the discussio
were called to close the argument.
. The unfiedged youth before'mentione
st again took the floor (he had been a