Litchfield enquirer., 1879-02-13
Woman Suffrage.

BETHANY, Conn., Feb. 3d.
 If. Editor.-As we take up paper after, paper, we see it frequently asserted that Woman Suffrage in Wyoming has proven a failure, or words to that effect.
 Since Gov Andrews has set Conn. people to thinking more seriously upon the subject, such assertions attract more attention, and lead us to see on what they are based.
 The Pittsburg Chronicle says editorially Ion our first page will be found a letter from correspondent everyway entitled to credence, and who having had the fullest opportunity to observe the practical operations of Woman Suffrage in Wyoming Territory, submits tes- tiinony showing that so far from being the failure it has been represented to be, Woman Suffrage is a success in Wyoming. The let ter reads thus:
 Tn your issue of the 16th inst we notice a letter written by a Cheyenne correspondent of the St. Louis Republican in which woman suffrage in Wyoming is pronounced failure The writer withholds his name, and for this reason his statements are net deserving of credence nor should we have noticed them had you not referred to them editorially He has made many assertions but given no proof of their truthfullness. He states that the ob. ject of enfranchising the women was to coun- ter-balance the influence of the roughs. thieves, cut-throats and highwaymen that constitute large share of the population at that time. but leaves us to infer that it has not had that ef- feet. Yet the testimony of the most reliable citizens of the Territory proves that it has accomplished this very thing That great good has resulted from the attendance of the women at the polls, is attested by judges, editors, ministers and other leading citizens. Their statements have been made in the most public manner and left free to the most search ing criticism. Before legislative committees have some of these appeared from the plat form and through the public journals, under their own signatures, have others testified to the beneficial results of this enactment.
 ''The Laramie Sentinel, whose able and re- liable editor was one of the pioneers makes this statement, editorially: "We did not have single election without drunkenness, rowdyisn, gambling, fighting and bloodshed until our wives, mothers, sisters and daughter were permitted to accompany us to the polls Men stayed away from the polls rather than encounter the danger and rowdyism they must to exercise their right of citizenship" But all this is changed. Our elections go off as quiet ly as any other social gatherings, no matters how heated the polititical campaign may be, or how important the issue at stake" The papers throughout the Territory attest the same. Wishing to investigate this, on the 5th inst. we attended the election in Cheyenne. We saw that the utmost order and quiet pre- vailed; no drunken men were, there; no crow ding, pushing and tanning, such as women often experience at theaters, operas, lectures and even at church when distinguished divine is to preach
 Not loud word from the gentlemen who stood in large numbers on the sidewalk near the polling place; no smoking and no splitting. The women voters were coming and going at all hours. Some came in their own carriages. others in carriages sent by the political parties, but many more walked, preferrng this rather than to place themselves under the appearance Of being influenced by riding in a carriage sent by candidate.
 ''The women all brought their tickets with them, and not word did they speak while on the ground. This may seem marvellous, nev- ertheless 1t IS true. No electiOneerng therefore The average time for lady to walk from her carriage across the sidewalk, deposit her ballot and seat herself in the carriage again was twenty-eight seconds. The longest time ta- ken for this was forty-five seconds, the shortest eighteen seconds. No woman's vote was challenged while we remained, though men were present for this purpose. Women's votes are rarely challenged, so much do men trust the honesty et women, though they have been III politics nearly ten years. Two beneficial results have come from enfranchising women, said gentleman to us. One is, both political parties have been compelled to nominate bet ter men for office, for the women will not vote for bad men. The other is, the votes of the wives and aad sisters of men owning property offset the votes of the worthless class of men who own nothing but generally vote against the interests of the taxpayers, and also against the moral in- terests of the towns. The women. vote in proportion to the men, we were told by those who had an opportunity of knowing. The most respectable women vOte The great majority of those voting were without doubt respectable, good women.
 "Ihere are two polling places Ill Cheyenne, women and men vote at both of these, though the greater number of women vote at the one held in the lnter-Oce hotel, where there is nicely furnished room set apart for them Numbers of men vote there also. Some wo- men vote at the other polling place. At the hotel two of the judges were ladies, and one of the clerks was lady; all the wives or leading citizens.
 ''We met one gentleman who declared that female suffrage was not success" because the women would scratch the tickets, but he eXacted promise that we would not mention his name in saying so, for no man dare say a word against equal suffrage here.
 'The writer of the letter says no attempt has been made to repeal the law. Two at- tempts have been made. When the law had been in force two years it was repealed by the Legislature, but the Governor vetoed the bill The second attempt was made some years af- ter, but the man who made the proposition was hissed down. Since then no man has tried it. The babies too, we understand, are well taken care of by lady friends when the mothers go to the polls And not unfre- quently the mothers, trundling the little car riage with baby snugly nestling inside comes up and deposits her vote as though it was the most natural thing in the world. We had the pleasure of seeing such cases. Woman suf- frage is success in Wyoming"
 MATILDA HINDMAN.
 PITTSBURGH, November 21 1878.
 MINISTERIAL SIMPLIoITY.-Perhaps the