Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1890-07-31
IN W0MAN'S BEHALF.
lRREFuTABLE ARGUMENTS.
Why Woman Suffrage Is Right and Is
Bound to Come.

Ace people Wnen any new plan Is Sug-
gested, especially il it has been adyo-
Gated for long time and with great ur-
gency, to settle the matter in the only
sensible way, which is, to put it to the
test. Has it occurred to you that
great many intelligent people-whether
or not you agree with them-advocate
woman suffrage? Do you remember
that the claim has been advocated for
many years? Are you aware how easy
1T would be to settle this question by
putting it to the test?
'ehe question of woman suffrage suf-
iors from its very familiarity. If it
could be sprung as new question; If,
for instance, the right to vote were alto
gether new right conferred on the peo-
pie in this year, 1890 for the first time,
there would be no more question of
granting it to bothm men and women than
of permitting both males and females to
attend to the public schools, or acquire
and hold property, or do any of the 9TH |
er things which both now do in common.
Or put it in another way-for. in home
ly phrase, what is sauce for the goose is
sauce for the gander-suppose that up
to this time suffrage had been limited
to women, and that no man had ever
been permitted to vote except for school
committee. Suppose, meantime, that
men had developed their natural capac-
ity for every department of business life
and enterprise, and were demanding the
ballot How much nonsense do you sup
pose they would stand from any body
who should answer them by saying that
suffrage is not right; that it is mat
ter of expediency; that there are too
many voters already; that men are yir-
tually represented by their wives and
mothers that to give them the ballot
would result in the disturbance of fam
lilies and endanger the home; that it
would lead to violence at the polls; and
that men ought not to be perverted from
their sphere or distracted from their APP
propriate business of making money,
raising corn, transporting freight, and
all the great masculine concerns and
economies of production and commerce?
How they would roar you the great
truths Of the Declaration of Independ-
cnce, that all mankind are created free
and equal, and that government derives
it's just powers only from the con-
sent Of the governed; and that whoever
is taxed for the common benefit and af-
fccted by the making of laws should have
voice in the process of taxation and
legislation!
Let us be honest, and admit what we
all know; that the real reason why the
right is denied to women, is because
there is just trace enough of ancient bar
barism lingering in our civilization to
bar them out-the same barbarism that
made women slaves, that made them
beasts of burden, that made them pets
and playthings; but that-thank heaven
is gradually passing away. The whole
logic of the thing lies in nutshell.
Either women should vote or men
should not vote Human ingenuity can
not suggest single distinction be-
tween the sexes so far as the right of
voting is concerned. They are equally
competent to Judge of the merits of
measures and the comparative merits of
candidates = Men and
women have an equal stake in the Gov
ernment and laws; they each hold prop
erty to be protected and taxed; they
alike have children to be educated and
lives and limbs to be made secure. am
told that you will find many street in
our towns, on which, of the adult resi-
dents, majority are women owning
property on which they are taxed for
the municipal expenditures in which
they have no voice. And yet in every
such community the average intelli'
gence and competency of the women is,
at the very least, equal to that of the
men. Some of the women don't know
much; some of the men don't know
much. Some of the women would MOI
vote if they could; and many of the mel
do not vote, although they can. Some
of the women would vote as they were
led or misled; and many of the men Dc
the same thing. Most of the women il
these instances would, if they were
voters, exercise the suffrage with care
conscientiousness, understanding anC
advantage; and the men do no more
These same men and women meet to
gether many times year and engage il
tho same interests, not only in privat'
life, but in public relations.
: In view of this what patience can b.
: had when some hardshell tells us tina
: this is all so; but the heavens woul,
fail. society would be ruined the Stat
would collapse, il the same women, ono
in March and once in November, shoult
enter a decent town hall or ward room
all the moro decent for their presence
walk to ballot-box, and put into it
piece of printed paper expressing i
concrete form the results of their previ
Gus consideration
: Right? OF course it is the denial of
l right, and every body knows it. L
a deny right is an outrage. 1t is idle
: mystify this matter with refinement
: about natural right and artificial righi
r Somebody even has suggested thatwon
S en- are not particularized in the Declar;
g tion of Independence or the Constitl
4 ton. Neither are slaves. Even as
: them some used to argue that freedol
: is not a natural right; that children ar
e not free; that offenders against TIE la
t and insane persons are not free; an
J. that freedom is a matter of expedier
$ discrimination. As matter of con
: nonsense, you and | know that If "
8 contribute out of our property to con
o mon fund, if we are taxed for commo
y enterprise, If our rights, our libertie
!, our persons, our children, are affecte
Q by certain laws, we ought to have
voice in the arrangement, and if yc
doubt this, try the experiment with
= body of men, and see what will come
!, it. As to this matter of exp
diency, il is an insult to our civilizatic
TO assert for a moment that we have n,
, intelligence and ingenuity enough to