St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-02-10
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE.
Uouou's Suffrage.

To the Editor OF the Globe:
SHAKoPEE. Mimi, Feb. 6.-The pressure
of household duties is never so great that
do not take time to look over the GLOBE, so
as to keep posted as to the onward trend of
the progress OF the race.
A large portion OF the women of Minnesota
are anxiously watching the action Of the
house on the petitions for female suffrage.
That our bill has been returned with favor
able recommendation has been accepted as a
bright omen, that the great state Of Mime
sofa may yet have the honor of being the first
state in the Union to redress the great wrong
which has been done TO woman since its or
ganzatiou. The gentlemen who have so
valiautly champloncd for us have our warm
est thanks.
The opponents Of female suffrage have
had their stock of objections reduced to The
following, /. t. some women do not want 10
vote. Ever since the war for pcndeuce
there have been women who plead for their
rights to use the elective franchise, and
previous to that contamination such
a woman as Abigail Adams, the respected and
honored wife of John Adams, and the mother
to whom John Quincy Adams said that he
owed all that was good, noble and great in
himself, plead that at the inception OF a new
form OF govern ment the right Of woman to
stand equal with man In all respects should
not be ignored.
Many of the Tories did not wish to be sep
arated from the mother country, aud used
their best efforts to Illustrate the endesvors
Of the colonists to effect that separation, but
their male descendants have not been dis
frauchised on that account.
Our fOrefatbers committed the absurdity Of
not enfranchising the most LOYAL and de-
voted of her citizens, our foremOthers and
their female desce rdants.
When the Declaration Of Independence
was formulated the statement that ''all men
were created free aud equal'' it undoubtedly
included woman in that cOmprchen-
sive word men. am amazed
that auy minister should have the
audacity TO make such REASONABLE utterauces
as were made last Sunday in your city. If Mr..
Smith does not feel satisfied with our form OF
government why does he not emigrate TO
some Pacific isle and there become ''mon-
arch of all he surveys" The great and wise
men who drew aud signed the Declaration Of
Independence. did not intend to assert that
tai ability o. to the possession OF inherited
property, but that they should have equal
opportunities and freedom Of action to make
the most of the new chance here given the
race. Under the old world system the child
was handicapped at its birth That they
formulated fundamental truth has been
demonstrated times without number. Il isa
well known fact that our great men have
arisen from the humblest rank to the highest
position in the gift of the people, no; having
been kept down by the idta that man must
remain in the station in life in which he was
born.
To the pessimists, and their number
seems 10 become larger daily, our govern
ment is a failure. Il is not because the dec
laratiOn is not true that the present alarming
state Of affairs exists, but because the people.
through their representatives. have been
traitors 20 that declaration. The will Of the
few has Seen allowed to override the rights
Of the many; the best aud most moral Of
our citizens have been deprived Of their
right TO assist in the housekeeping of this
nation.
II all the people Of the United States are
allowed 70 participate in choosing our repre-
sentaiivcs, and II those represeut ztives would
carry ouf the VIII Of the people, the unjust
absorption OF the wealth Of the country into
the hands of a few would cease. and we
would be blessed win magnificent results.
only TO BE attained through fun faith and
practice Of the benefee1t Declaration Of In
dependence LIZZIE P. HAvkISs-