New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-05-01
SOCIAL QUESTIONS.
,voxAx srrFRAGE-SERvANTS UNION
AMERICAN SOCIETY.

fnY CABLE TO The TRIBUNE
copyrfsnt; 1872: By The Tribune AssOeiataon.
london. April 3O.-It has heen usual with advo-
,atos Of woman suffrage to treat it as political
ousstion. 1t is political the face of it, but it
!. essentially far more social than political. Tie
POLITICAL phase Of IL is only preliminary. The
,hect on society will not be till the experiment
has been tried, if it ever should be. on great scale
Then it would be seen that no question of the day
coes so deep. The Women Suffrage party are
thought to have won moral victory in the House
Of Commons on Wednesday. They expected to be
oeaten by 80 majority. and were in fact beaten
only by %. defeat. if not so bad YOU en-
pectcd is nowadays d moral victory. Various en-
plantations are given of this vote. most of them con-
jectural. Mr.. Gladstones letter TO have
oyerthrown the partislns of female voting. In
luckily. on this as on other questions. Mr.. Glad
stones followers desert him when il suits their con-
yenicncc They do not hold themselves bound, it
would seem. TO pay him even the homage due TO his
services his abilities. his admitted chicftainship,
end his unquestoned ascendcncy in the cOunsels
and conduct of a once united perty The spirit Of
LOYALTY is forgotten. Discipline is relaxed Mutt
MES occur every few days.
Mr. Gladstones pamphlet-lctter against this bill
excited, You have seen, bitter resentmen's
among those radical Gladstonians who radicals
first and Giadstonians afterward. Its effect on
his opponents was almost equally surprising They
SEEM or some Of them seem TO have thought that
he had some deep party object in opposing female
suffrage. No prudent man would say he had or
had not But the suspicion was enough. No less
than thirty Conservatives opposed to the bill sent
word 10 the Conservative whip that they would
not come down to the House to vote with Mr..
Gladstone. What gained BY Liberal Austen
loSf
tons.
The debate on Sir Albert Rollits bill lasted some
five hours. What the speeches were to hear |
know not To read them is WEAKNESS TO the
flesh From the hacks on either side nothing new
was expected. But something was hoped from Mr..
Bsfour Tho hope proved vain
Sir Alberts bill is thought by the eject half
hearted measure. 1t is merely bill TO give the
Parliamentary franchise TO women who already
possse the municipal franchise. No more IL
logical innovation was ever attempted. The
municipal franchise is property franchise
Women vote not as women. but as occuplers. or
rate-payers. The municipal franchise is based
on q property qualification. SO once was the
Parliamentary franchise but is no longer. The
muddle is characteristic enough of movement IN
behalf of a sex which dcspises logic.
The true-blue sistcrhood want every sister 10
vote Their male champions may be divided into
two classes: Those who are governed, like the
sisters, by sentiment, and those who IKE Mt
Courtney treat politics deductive science or
An abstraction. Mr. Bafour presents himself as
a third class lie wants women 10 vote for WHAT
he calls practical reasons. His practical reasons
reduce themselves TO this, that women might DE
useful in public life if they he allowed TO vote
and are not allowed TO be voted FOR. Reduced
again, the practical reasons come 10 this. that
Mr. Balfour believes the female vote would III
crease the Conservative vote Exactly SO do the
Liberals the same side believe u would H.
crease the Liberal vote. Nobody knows Both OF
them are ready for gamble: both OF them hope
il NAV turn up heads. and will risk a toss of the
coin; and both Of them, for an imaginary p9r'6
advantage advocate q measure which III It's
present form is absurd, and in its ultimate form
means the greatest social revolution the modern
world has
An obiect-lesson in woman suffrage was pro-
vided the night before this debate occurred a
meeting was held in ST. Jamcss Hall in support OF
Sir Albert Rollits bill. 1t was attended also b.
the male and female stalwarts who think TINS Dill
Inadequate and who of opinion that no Dread IL
better than half a loaf. There was row winch
would have done credit TO the BoWery III hs oest
days. 1t began with reference TO Mr.. GLADSTONE
and cry from lady on tie Chairman eiV'
Down with TIE ola enemy OF NVhicH A"''N
were speeches. but nobody would listen The haii
resounded with yclls. Kisses. shril cheers anu
whistlipg. The speaker on the platform was In
terrupted from the hall. Then the platform was
stormed The chairman bolted dozen s,rug-
eed for his place The reporters toble collapsed
Ratings we're torn down. The free fight lasted
ten minutes The stalwarts elected the hali-Ioai
pcople and then held meeting of their own
Men and women seem TO have been equally con-
sp;cuous in this conflict. They were without OK
eeption advocates OF woman suffrage ana tiien
Quarrel arose solely from the fact that some would
take what they could get, and Others wouid ha'e
all or nothing Impulse, sentiment, passlon-thes
governed II was an example ana an cpl'ohie Vi
what may be expected should women be granted
an equal share with men in public affairs
Tho Servants Union has held second meeting
1, Uvde Park and announced new object.
las, week these useful members OF society. male
and female wanted better bedrooms. This week
they have broadened their aims, and now desire
n nromote a better feeling between employer ana
emnloved There are several ways in which they
could do that without starting union OF INC
employed to coerce the employer.
The object of every trade union in this country
Is 10 manage the employers business lor hini'
Sometimes this pious effort succeeds; soihe''h'e'
il does not The object OF the present noNe"e'i'
is simply to make men-servanfs masters ana n'aiu
servants mistrcsses. The present masters a'i'
mistres,es-terms still used here--may then aooi
cate
A writer dating from New-York and signing
himself at some length Mayo Williamson iiezel,,"e
contributes to the May Nineteenth century a
paper entitled Studies Of New-iorK ooc,e'S
The satrical tone which marks it indicates "a' !,
was intended for home consumption. ~ haiu
to conceive Of an American sitting deiioerae'S
down to pen for foreign, and above all 'of an Eng
lsh, audience an elaborate lampooh on us o%'
cn,r,,r 49, -, Amor;can social life. Still, it has