Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1890-06-27
THE BALLOT A PROTECTION.


| 1t is significant when the editor of
a great daily speaks such strong words
for. woman suffrage as Mr.. James w.
Clark of the Boston Globe did at the
Suffrage Festival in that city a few
days ago. He said
The granting of suffrage to women
has always seemed to me to lie a mat
ter Of essential justice and right. AS
soon as became Of age I became a
woman suffragist. Ishould have done
that in any case out Of respect to my
mother. Since then l have acquired
FIVE additional reason for being suf-
fragist in wife and four daughters.
l. am woman sutfragist from the labor
standpoint. Our girls ought to have
the same chance in the world, the same
equality IN work and wages. that our
boys have. When one man happens to
have four daughters in his house, and
his neighbor happens to have four
sons, neither the laws Of Massachusetts
nor OF the United States has any right
to discriminate against the man who
has four daughters in favor Of the man
with tour sons,-and that is exactly
what it is now doing. The ballot is a
protection. Was reading last night
Chas. Summers speech in the U. S.
Senate in defence OF the enfranchise-
ment OF the freedmen. His great argu-
ment was that the ballot was protec-
tion. He put this one thought into a
great many forms; that with the bal
lot in his hands, all other rights would
follow, but without the ballot all other
rights We're Of no avail. "The ballot"
said MIR. Sumner, sis like charity,-it
covers all things" That is as true for
white women as for black men, Give
women the ballot, and they can get
everything else that they ought to have
for themselves. But to-day who cares
for womans rights or wrongs, her
wishes or her objections? Mrs Liver
more has very effectively shown us
what sort of Legislature we have un-
der the male monopoly of suffrage. l
was thinking, while listening to her,
how quickly the Massachusetts Legis-
lature woke up when it was proposed
to muzzle the dogs all the year around.
Why was that? Because it was found
that there were 300 licensed dogs in
Boston alone. and every one Of the 800
was represented by ballot on election
day. The votes of SEQ dog-ow ners and
their friends meant for the dogs just
what Sumner said it would mean for
the negro-protection They were
not mu2Zled, in Difference to those
votes. But within a few days a bill
vastly more important to our working
women-the bill giving to them and
to children the ten hour day already
given TO nen-was kicked on one side
by the same Legislature, with far less
time and attention than was given to
the 800 dogs and their uluzZles. This
will always be SO until women have
votes. AS soon as 1t is known that
they can make and unrpake representa-
tives, senators. governors and congress-
men, they will be sought after just as
every man who votes is sought after
to-day. and laws will be passed to
satisfy their demands and remedy
their grievances.
l will say this for the press, to
which l belong: that, in Boston at
least, the press has given women Il fair
and equal chance in advance OF the
law. The time is near when the
number of women engaged in news
, paper work, especially in the higher
walks of journalism, will be as large
and as largely paid, as ofmen: When
that state OF things comes about, it
cannot be long before the ballot fol-
lows; for Wendell Phillips said many
years ago, and it is just as true to-day,
that the government of this country
is q government by newspapers; and
when women are found to be actually
in possession of their half share of the
newspaper government, it will be inn
possible to deny them their rightful
half share OF power at the bsllot-bo1.
} Eaaal Suffrage Meetings.
Mrs. j Julia 8. Nelson, Vice President
Of Minnesota VIC. r, u, will talk on
equal rights to the people at AFessing-
ton Springs July 4th, at o'clockP. N.
Saturday evening July 5th at Center
school house in Viola; Sabbath the 9Th
at the Swenso14 school house in Blaine
at IL o'clock and in the evening OF the
same day at the Larson school housein
Franklin; Monday evening, the 7th, at
Dale Center school house. Our dele
gates to White Lake pronounce Mrs
Nelson's address the best they had
heard on the Suffrage question. She is
a lovely woman as we'll as pleasing
speaker and the widow of q gallant.
soldier. No one should miss hearin,,