The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1889-11-13
wOMAN's POLITICAL STATUS

The Past and Present Conditions Of
Women In This Country and Abroad |
The Ballot the Fulcrum OF Political
Power.
''ls the suffrage movement making
any progress?' is a question frequently
asked by those who take no note OF
what is being said and done about it
To Judge Of the progress of a movement
one must understand something of its
origin and purpose. Those who have
given no thought to woman's political
status in the past or the present would
be surprised at the statement that in
all civilized nations. at some periods.
women have possessed and exercised
political power in greater or less de-
grees.
From time immemorial, says Eliza
beth Cady Stanton. in Frank Leslies
Illustrated Newspaper, the women OF
England have held many important
offices and voted on many questions;
and in line with English precedent,
women had the right TO vote in this
country in the early days, under the
constitutions OF the thirteen original
colonies Many years passed before
the several States so amended their
constitutions as to make sex disquali-
fication for the suffrage. New Jersey
was the last State to rob woman OF this
right, and she did not do it by the slow
legal process of constitutional amend
ment but by hasty. arbitrary act OF
the Legislature. In that State women
voted at all elections, from l776 to 1907,
upon terms Of equality with men. They
helped to elect the delegates from that
State to the Constitutional Convention.
They voted to ratify the instrument
when submitted They voted at the
first five Presidential elections-twice
for Washington. twice for Jefferson.
and once for John Adams Their de-
scendents are only claiming the exercise
OF a right as old as the Constitution
itself.
/ am indebted to Judge Charles V.
Waite, of Chicago, Francis Minor, ESQ.,,
of ST. Louis, and Hamilton Wilcox, of
New York city, for several valuable
pamphlets on this question, contains
ing much curious information and I'M
earthing many reliable facts hitherto
unknown even to those most deeply in
terested z in this subject. Through
various causes many of these ancient
rights had been withheld and others
had fallen into disuse until the agita-
ton Of the slavery question, in England
and America, and the French revolu-
ton aroused widespread discussion
on Individual rights, and gave new
significance to the terms of liberty,
justice, equality. The intensely earnest
debates in legislative and popular jas
semblies. and the terrible enginery of
war, thrilled the hearts Of the women
OF those countries, and awakened in
them new desire to share in the bless
ings OF those broad principles Of free.
dom proclaimed for the masses.
This demand was answered in France
by the Napoleon code for women; in
J the United States by bills in New York
and Pennsylvania securing to married
women their property rights in lS4S
, and in England by bills introduced into
the House of Commons by John Stew.
! art Mill in 1867, demanding suffrage
for women, which passed in 1869, grant.
ing municipal suffrage to widows and
spinsters. THE Woman Question ir
Europe" by Theodore Stanton, shows
/. the political status OF women in the
various countries on the Eastern Cont
nent, all alike recognizing the princi
pie that sex is not barrier to the sui
frage. n
In the United States women now vot'
on some questions in twenty-five States
, They have full suffrage in Wyoming
Washington and did have in Utah
Municipal suffrage was conferred Oh
' the women OF Kansas two years ago
g Taking the two continents and the isle
!. OF the sea together, where women nov
vote, find the area Of freedom cover
about 10000 600 of square miles, ant
I includes about zoo. 100000 Of inhab
4 itants. In this vast area some form O
!. suffrage is now exercised by women.
!. Every year. both in England and tn
/. United States, find some steps in prog
4 ress. some new rights conceded. Tn
drift OF legislation and public sent
ment is all in the direction of woman
complete enfranchisement Yet in tn
, face OF all this we have some women
. both in England and America, petition
= ing their lawmakers to halt where W
y are, and concede no more rights, privi
= eyes or immunities to the women {
= their respective countries. Singularl
:. enough these English petitioners ar
" the very women who, as members {
y the Primrose League. carried the las
;, Tory election, among whom was Lad
Randolph Churchill. They canvasse
:. their several districts thoroughly. a.
\ centuating their arguments with all th
: personal charms that artistic dress an
!. winning manners could give in the wa
= of bewildering unwary voters. The
!, petition. which some OF our metropolita
papers have thought worth publishin!
is a tissue Of contradictions. old. worI
= out assertions that have been fully al
!, swered many times during the last hal
" century. The petitioners on this sit
. are, equally active in advocating ce