Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1888-08-09
MIGHT M RIGHT.

Frederick Doaxiass On Suffrage. Before
the New England Woman suffrage As
-oeistioa az Their Twentieth Annual >es-
sgon.
According 10 the Declaration Of indie
pend.nde and to the men who signed
that great charter Of human liberty.
all righthl powers ~ Government
arr derived from the consent Of the gov
erned-
No man has vet been able : state
when. where and how woman has ever
given her consent "a b. deprived Of all
participation in the government under
which she lives. or why should
b. excepted from the principles u the
American Declaration 81 Independence.
W. are told that man derived his au-
thOrity thus To ~disfrauchise woman from
Mature. weli. We should all have great
respect for Nature. We can not too
often listen to her voice and learn the
lesson she teaches.
Let u begin then with Nature in the
family. This Is the starting-pOint Of
life, the natural -tartinr-pOinto of organ
lied society and Of the State. Here are
a son and Il daughter in the same house
hold They have nursed at the same
breast in their infancy: they have been
supplied FROM the same board. they
have talked. sung. prayed. and played
together on equal terms in their youth:
they have grown 70 manhood and wO-
manhood together; in a word. they have
been equal members Of the same family
together all their young lives. with sub
stantially the same rights and priyi-
ieges in the oommon family; they have
received the same moral and intellectual
training. and have enjoyed the same free
dom Of thought and expression around
the family hoard-the right TO ask and
Ia answer questions They are equal
In moral and intellectual endOwments.
or II not 80 equal. the one i A. likely to
b. superior A. the other. tine daughter
n the on, the sister rs the brother.
Now the question 10 b. answered al this
point i Just this; At what time and
under what conditions does Naiur. step
IN To change the relations Of these two
people and make the son and brother
the ruler Of this daughter and sister9
When does Nature say hat he shall
elect lawmakers. and make
laws. Institute governments. define
for her the metes and bounds OF her
liberty. and thai she. q rational crea-
turc like himself. shall have no voice or
vote in determining any question con
corning the government under which
she. equally with him. l. TO lives They
We're equal in the cradle. equal in the
family. equal in childhood. equal in
youth. equal at maturity. equal N the
right tn life. To liberty. and To the pur-
suit Of happiness. | demand To know.
then. what fiat Of Mature. what moral
earthquake from below. or what
thUnder-bOlt from above. has driven
these two people asunder-raisa.l one
to the sky and struck the other to
earth-one to freedom and the other to
slavery? The only answer that Nature
l. alleged to give here in opposition to
woman. Is n which no Just and gener-
Gus man or should aceept. for il
bases a moral and intellectual coucIu-
sion-One which excludes woman from
al freedom Of choice in the affairs Of
government-upOn a purely physical
fact The logic i that man l. physical
ly stronger than woman. and that he
has the right 10 make her a subject Of
his viii, that since she can not shout
der n musSet and fight. she shall not
select 4 ballot and vOte-that though
she may have the ability to think.
she shall not have the right In
express her thought and give e.
feet To her thought by her vote.
There Is No getting away from
the conclusion here that the very 60
enc Of this anti-wOman suffrage doc
frine i that might makes right Il i
the right Of the usurper. the slave
holder. the tyrant. the robb-.r and
ptrate-a right which better h.fts wild
beasts than reasoning men and women
"A right which no woman ought 10 adj
$50 @A AE AA&AA AAALaA THRILL ne 0nAN
thing that saves il i-om ~execratiou i
the A that men are too humane and
too civilized to make their practice a
form - the full measure u their theory.
They DENY rights. but admit inruene..
she may not vote. they say. but she NAV
influence the man who doe vote, and
II l. precisely this which constitutes the
VIC Of this relation. for il gives inau-
enee and excludes responsibility. A
Of responsibility i an essential
element in all q ex~ertions and rela-
tons. We need H. woman needs n
not les than man. % work out the bess
re~ults Of her conduct. Dives; wo-
ma Of power and you divest her Of A
n Of responsibility and duty-two Of
the essential attributes Of all useful ex-
sru0n and existence.
The "WOman's Rights Almanac
published At Worcester. Mass. in 1855.