Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1878-02-22
, womau., Substitute for the Suffrage

In Mrs. Melusina Fay Pierce's address to
the Massachusetts Legislature, on Woman
Suffrage, in opposition to the proposition to
give tax-pay;ng women the right to vote for
municipal officers. she says:
| believe there are three great forces which
alone can work out to its very best possibili
ties the sc-called woman question" The
first is the co-education of the sexes, from
the kindergarten through the university.
The second, cooperative storekeeping and
housekeeping by women. The third, the sd-
visoIy represcntation-if | may so phrase 1t
OF women as above indicated. | am op-
posed, Mr.. Chairman, to the demand for uni
yersal woman suffrage, as presented here
every year 50 far, and am opposed to tax
paying woman suffrage as presented this
wear. because both of them are founded upon
the theory that in politics a woman is the
same thing as a man. While women are the
protected class this can never be; and they
will always he the protected class, for so
their Maker has ordained. Why should they
disdain and hate this gracious and fascinat-
ing position? They will not disclaim it,
gentlemen, if you will do your duty. No
thing makes women so womanly as chivalry
in men. Certainly there is, and always has
been, missing factor in governments.
Were il not so, the path of Time would not
be strewn with the wrecks of nations, en-
pires, Kingdoms and republics, as it is.
What is that factor? 1t is very simple; and
the woman suifragists are right when they
say that it is the feminine factor. And they
are not wrong, either, in feeling it hard
ship that the 600, 900 or 100000 VI wo-
men in this country should be arbitrarily
governed by men, without even being con-
suited When We reflect upon it, il is in
deed astonishing that men should so calmly
ana confidently go on, gear after year, exer
cising this tremendous authority. bearing
this tremendous responsibility, without ever
asking for light and information from the
enormous mulritudes they legislate for.
Why, then, should you not. Mr.. Chair
man, give to women in the State that which
you give to women in the home, and which
nature and religion alike teach you is their
due-the consulting, the advisory function
thus bringing them into real and useful
and mutually respecting relations with your
selves? Ii YOU will do this, gentlemcn-if
you will request the women of every town
to elect advisory councils and school and
charitable boards in connection with the
local authorities-and after 10 years of this
experience, if you will request them to send
here their women representatives to a con-
sutiug or advisory house in organic relation
with your own, you will have given to
women in politics all the real weight that
they can possibly have, and will have solved
the woman question in Il way which, | am
confident, will meet the admiration and
sympathy of the majority OF the women OF
this generation at least. The next, if it
pleases. can 20 enc step further-educate
every woman to carry and use loaded
pistol, throw open manhood suffrage and the
ranks OF the militia to her, and let her take
care Of herself if she can
In conclusion. should it be objected that
the legislature Of Massachusetts should not,
according to my own principle, confer this
advisory representation upon women with
out having been requested to do so by the
majority ui the women Of Massachusetts.
answer that. IA look at 1t, the cases are
not parallel, because to confer the manhood
suffrage OF w-making power upon women
would he reyolutionary-someth entirely
novel in human experience therefore to
be undertaken only in accordance with the
most clearly TX pressed popular will while
to confer the advisory power recommended
would ne naturul-would be simply to en-
large the conception and scope Of the actual
and immcmorlal relations of women with
the governing half OF the world.