Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1888-04-28
THE rAILAcY OF N sUFFK .GE

Notwithstanding the lessons taught
erTing humanity By the experience that
Wyoming and other commonwealth
have had with the fallaey of woman
suffrage. our neigbbors of Washington
for the second time find themselves
through the laundering Of a fool Iegis-
lature and an imbecile Governor who was
fifty named Simple, confronted with the
solution Of the vexatiOus problem. For
the second time the Territorial courts
are to be called upon to settle the ques-
tidh. Two years ago this tribunal de
cided against it on the technical ground
of a defect in the title of the bill which
had inyalidated the act. Delegate
Voorhees, was whistIed down the wind at
the close Of last session when he at
tempted to secure the passage Of an act
of Congress validating that and thirty
four other acts of that fanatical legisla-
ture. In the meantime both politi-
cal parties, thinking that the
women had a vote, incorporated
a plank In their platform, en-
dOrsing the principle. So when the
Legislature met last winter woman suf-
frage was re enacted on the ground thai
the members had been elected Oh that
sort of a platform. They labored under
the delusiOn that the Governor would
veto the bill and did not give it a eOnsti-
tutional majority. But the Governor had
a woman suffrage sister who went IT,
Olympia from st. Louis to labor with him
and won his signature on the very day
the bill was passed when he had been no
titled by wire of protests on the way from
such cities as Seattle and Spokane,
signed largely by ladies. So he fooled
the hypocriticaI members who did not
cOnscientiously believe in the principle.
This aroused the anti-snffragists in the
Legislature to action and diplomatic daI-
lance accomplished what hard voting
conId not. They drafted a bill exempt
ing women from jury duty and smuggled
it through that body by getting a suffra-
gist to introduce it. The organic act OF
The Territory absolutely prohibits speeiai
legislation, SO that all that is necessary
TO be done to defeat the Odious measure
is to get it into court. Spokane took that
matter in hand, and at the April election
the ground was laid to get it before
Judge Nash at the ensuing term. He il
an OutspOken anti-suffragist and will un-
dOubtedly decide it in the negative ON
the presentation Of the proposition. Then
it will 60 to the Supreme Court and be
decided before the autumnal election
and woman suffrage viii have again been
eliminated from the political system of
our sister Territory, and it will be a good
radiance.
Having seen the practical operation, of
woman suffrage we wOnld cite the rea-
sons that lead us to condemn it. As a
rule women who respect themselves will
not 60 to the polls. Ii is the other class
that take advantage OF the law to exeE-
else the right of franchise. They are
controlled by the worst element of the
community who make it odious for a
modest woman to vote. OF course, there
are a few short haired old Pelicans who
would face anything to assest their al
legged rights. But there are only a few
OF these even in Washington Territory,
as compared to the ladies who respect
themselves and know the functions with
which nature endowed them. Then, too,
there are a few noble women who really
labor under the delusion that by the
self sacrifice Of voting under embarrass-
ing conditions, they may promote the
welfare OF society. These are to be COM
miserated, for the franchise when be-
slowed on their sex, tends in the other di-
rection. 1t doesn't require a very vivid
imagination to foresee the results. No
good has or wen will come Of woman
suffrage anywhere and we. hope to see
u friends in Washington shake off the
incubus.