The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1890-01-31
In WOMAN'S BEHALF.
LEGAL INEQUALITY.

| The Difference In the Conditions Of the
Sexes on Coming of Age-The woman's
Rights Movement Has Attained Its ma
jority.
The twenty-frst anniversary Of a
mans life is made the occasion of spec
ial rejoicing, since it marks the legal
boundary between youth and manhood.
He is no longer under the lawful control
of his parents. He is his own man and
! can act for himself with perfect legal
responsibility. He is part Of the SOW
ereign State, and so important is this
sovereignty that his single vote may, CT
rare occasions, turn the scale in determ-
ing nations policy. All the twenty
years of his minority have been spent
in fitting him for this momentous re-
sponsibility. Henceforth he stands or
falls for himself. Now there is no legal
hindrance to his establishing home
and rearing family, and sending down
his name to posterity.
But there are a good many people,
writes Hannah M. Tracy Cutler, in
Woman's Journal, who have realized
that daughters have not had an equal
heritage with sons. Their rights have
been limited, their education curtailed.
The colleges, with rare exceptions,
have shut their doors in the faces of
woman; their employments have been
circumscribed; their wages unequal to
those of men even for the same work
equally we'll performed. They have
had no voice in making laws and no
power in their execution. They have
seen the revenues of the State increased
by licensing crimes of various grades,
which flourished under the protection of.
legislation. They have been mothers
deprived of the legal guardianship of
their children by the sovereign power
CT the law, which counted them as be-
longing solely to the father, so that he
could, not only while living, but even
after death. direct the destiny of the
child born in lawful wedlock, while the
mother was not even consulted in regard
to its well-being. The property of wom-
en- has been taxed without representa-
ton, and they have had no voice in de-
termining the appropriation Of vast
sums drawn by the government from
their resources.
Such inequality has led thinking peo-
pie to inquiry, and this has led to the
conclusion that disfranchised class is
always at the mercy of the enfranchised.
The civil war, which desolated our
land, most fully illustrated the value of
suffrage, SO that, at its close. it was
deemed unsafe to leave the freedmen
without the ballot in their hands. They
might not know how % use it, they
might be defrauded of it's benefits many
times. but the fact of its possession, it
was deemed, would ultimately protect
them in their right to life, liberty and
the pursuit of happiness" When the
wise men were contemplating this new
order of things, providing against any
future enslavement of race, they were
approached by good men and women
who asked that in the amendment to the
Constitution which declared that the
right of franchise should not be denied
on account of race, color or previous con-
dition of seFvitude, the word sex should
also be included, thus putting an end to
all legal inequality among the citizens
of our government. But men said it
States would not ratify the amendment
if that one word were added. So we
women were still left DISTINGUISHED.
1t is now twenty-one years since we
called convention at Cleveland, after
six months spent in correspondence with
pronounced advocates of woman suf-
frage, to organize for work. Leaving
out all collateral questions, we would
demand of the nation it's recognized
only to be the object of organization.
/ was at t'.at time In Cleveland, and
some members of tho New England W.
S. A. wrote me that they considered
Cleveland a good point for the conven-
ton, and empowered me to secure Cases
Hall, and to make such other arrange
nsants, through the press and through
private influence, as might secure the
success of the convention. The hall
was secured, and the newspapers were
very courteous and promised to give fair
reports. Then l called a meeting of
those disposed to aid in entertaining
the expected delegates. To my chagrin, |
only five ladies responded. 1t was the
more humilfating as there appeared on
the scene three or four reporters who,
unless they were generously disposed. |
might bring the whole matter into ridi- |
cule. l went to them and made salts |
factory explanations, saying 1 hoped
they would be present at the convention |
and give us fair reports. Next mOSning,
these representatives from the different |
papers had given a generous report, and |
had bespoken the attention Of the citi- |
Zens to a convention that would be of |
great Importance, commanding some Of |
the finest talent of the nation.
But the weather was by no means pro- |
pitious. 1t grumbled and rained. The |
day before the convention a regular |
blizzard set in. 1t showed, and the wind |
roads, both east and west But milder |
climatic counsels prevailed, the snow
fall was light, the wind abated, the |
trains were on time, and the delegates |
also were on time; SO that when called |
at the parlors of the American House, |
which were to be headquarters, found |
the rooms full of bright, hopeful faces, |
and realized that our convention was |
not to be failure.
Then a committee meeting was held.
We had such able organizers as Lucy |
Stone, Henry b. Blackwell, Mrs. Liver
more, Mrs. Howe. Mrs. Rebecca n. Haz-
ard, Judge and Mrs. Bradwell. T. W.
and host too numerous to
mention. I. W. Higginson was elected
president of the convention, and the |
platform was graced by a fine array of
talent. Before the close of the meeting
even the aisles were crowded. The