Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-06-08
THE SAVANNAH MORNING NEWS: SUNDAY. JUNE 8, 1884,
WOMEN OF THE WEST.
Facts About the Status of the Fair Sex
i'm Washington Territory.

Facts About the Status of the Fair Sex
in Washington Territory.
One Of the features Of Washington Ter
ritory, says the st. Paul Pioneer Press, is
the political enfranchisemeRt Of its
women. On a bright sunny morning, in
the little court room of Seattle-a court
room which, by the way, contains more
than one intellect fitted to grace a far more
pTetentious Observation-Disclosures for she
first tine the operations Of mixed jury.
An unusual thing had occurred, so the
lawyers told me, in that the jury had
been out all night because of disagree
ment. Generally the mixed jaries have
proved eminently expeditions and salts
factory; and even in this case it was not
men against women, but an equal di-
vision. Still, must confess, though with
reluctance, that overheard an irate man
sxclaim, as the fagged-Qut creatures
filed in court: swell, as long as Mrs. -
and Mrs. - are both on the jury. you
might as well give up expecting anything
like an agreement" Yet they were an
intelligent looking set Of women, and
asked the Judge questions with a clear
ness and decision which proved they
knew what they were ebout, and seemed
in every way familiar with legal pro-
cedure. During the night the-wOInen had
been rendered some courtesIes in the
way of accommodations, but they pre-
scented a very fOrlOrn appearance, though
perhaps no more so than their male asso-
ciates. 1t was amusing, in the course Of
the evening, to observe the wOrried-loOk-
ing husbands dancing attendance around
the doors. laden with wraps; but | be-
lfeye no woman is required to serve who
is not willing, so those who are there are
filed with conviction, and occupy the
position from choice. Certainly no case
will suffer which is considered by
women with faces of such intelligence
and character as | saw that morning. If
Cincinnati had possessed a jury one-half
as intelligent, the city would hardly have
acquired its recent unenViable notOriety.
Several lawyers told me that the new or
der of things worked to a charm, and that
the press and majority Of thinking citi-
zens are decidedly in favor of it. A case
which l watched with considerable inter-
est was noticeable for its laughably in
congruoUs elements-as the prisoners
were Cinnamon, the witnesses Indians
and the jury femalesl Last, but by no
means least, the Clerk of the court proved
to be Ludlow, notorious in connection
with the career of the Evangel, the craft
now commanded by the son Of Henry
Ward Beecher.
SEATTLE SOCIETY.
One pleasant evening here l spent in
the dining room Of the Arlington at a
| grand ball given by the bachelors and
| event of the season and brought out every
one of note. 1t was all very lively, very
| pleasant and withal very crude. The
| supper proved to be the regular dinner
| bill of fare, instead of the delicate salads,
cakes, ices and drinks, which is all one
cares for on such occasions; and / no
| ticed that the floor was waXed after pc
| culiar fashion, Jumps Of spermaceti be-
! ing thrown here and there, so that the
| dancers literally did the work themselves.
| Such a custom may be economical, but 1t
| is hardly elegant. Yet the music was
| conspicuously good, and inspired the
! dancers to such an extent that the hall
was not deserted till nearly daylight, when
| exhausted nature was obliged to succumb
| Society in the Pacific Northwest consists
| both of Eastern people, who have
come here comparatively recently, and Of
| people who may be said to have grown up
with the country. Fasteners are dis
| posed to believe that nothing west Of the
| Mississippi river can be much over a
decade or two old, yet on this coast YOU
meet people in the forties who have lived
| here since their childhood. A society Of
| this kind presents far more individuality
| budH 5uCu eUCl6bg dS buib VI al ~, lOI
| instance; because the people have grown
up with the place, have become imbued
with its notions, and have distinctive
| traits of their own. Both Portland and
Seattle are more interesting places
socially than San Francisco. In fact they
are almost as interesting in their display
| of characters as a New England country
village. More than one of the wives
of the prominent citizens here were among
that batch of schoolma'ams sent out years
| ago for the purpose of mating with the
| lonely pioneer. They came around by the
way of the Horn, and their landing was
something to be remembered. l have
| often wondered as to the nature of their
sensations when they passed through the
crowd of men at the dock, knowing what
was expected of them. Think OF being
| packed up, freighted across and landed,
like so much merchandise, for a purpose
| so delicate! l should think they would
have preferred to seek the depths ofPuget
Sound. Yet they paired off, some inside
Of three weeks, lived their little lives, and,
L days say, were as happy as the average.
Two or three happened to draw prizes,
and to-day hold positions of prominence.