Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1893-12-14
A MOST VULGAR HABIT
Chicago Women up in Arms over Men
ExpectCrating.

order league Members of the league
VIII at once inaugurate a movement
intended to mitigate, if not break I'D,
me haplt of promiscuous expectoration
IN street cars, theaters and other pub
nc places where women go. The other
evl they mean to attack is street
Signs Ihey Will not contine their
work 10 the merely suggestive and
vulgar, but will include the unsichtly
affairs that so often offend the eve.
Committees have been appoin,ad 10
ask the cooperation of sreet-car Off
cials, real-estate boards and others in
whose power the remedy lies.
About the filthy habit of expectorat
ing" said Miss Ada c. Sweet. Il sim.
ply can't talk about it without feeling
Ill. In no other country in the world
is this evil so fixed upon the people
as in America. l think climate NAV
nave something to do with it, but not
ALL
I'VE intend to ask the officials OF
the street-car lines to put up signs
, forbidding ii. Mr.. Yerkes did this q
few months ago and the evil has never
been SO bad on the north side since
We believe that if this matter were
called TO the minds of men. put proper
ly before them that they would of
themselves stop it.
About the street signs" concluded
Miss Sweet, the ones which I am
opposed to are those where men are
pictured maltreating women. The
power of direct suggestion of criminal
action to the mind through these pic
lures is incalculable Not to the moral
ly strong, but TO cranks and to the
young whose minds are plastic These
are the ones to be protected. A man
choking woman or beating a woman
or children with Il club, or one man
tying another TO 4 railroad track or
running him through n -mill-an
these things are unSightly and harm
full. | would make every advance man
for theatrical shows go to the proper
authorities to exhibit the paper which
he expects to put upon the sign-boards
in this city"
Mrs. William B. Keene, who is .
prime mover in these reforms, said of
the street signs: "One would think
Chicago big, overgrown town to see
the big advertising signs hoisted on
every vacant lot They are unsgihtly,
they obstruct the view of many
handsome residence and mar the beau
ty of the city. We are going to boycott
every baking powder firm, and patent
medicine outfit which faunts itself in
our faces in such an obtrlsive man
ner. The real-estate board expressed
great sympathy with this movement
some time ago and now we are going
to wait upon it to see if it will mani
fest its interest in some tangible way"
AS to the horrible, horrible habit
OF eXpectorating in street cars and
theatersr it is unhealthy as we'll as
loathsorle, and now that the cars and
theaterS are heated it is thousand
times worse than before We are going
to wait upon Mr.. Allerton and Mr..
Yerkes, or rather we hope to influence
them through Mrs Allerton and Mrs.
Yerkes. We have talked with the
street-car conductors, and they say
they would be eager to put men off
the cars who showed themselves so
unfit for human society
Zone night last week / sat in one.
OF the finest theaterS in the city next
to man whu had made a disgusting
pool between his feet I looked at
the handsomely dressed woman in that
row who must pass out over that
nj
put out Of theaters for other unbecom-
ing conduct why not this?''
Mrs. W. H. Duncanson, another
member Of the league, is enthusiastic
over the new features of it's work.
She repeated the arguments against
the two evils given by Miss Sweet and
Mrs. Keene.
Splitting on the floor has always
been a source of great annoyance to
street-car men, but they say they are
powerless to prevent it. The north
side company attempted with more
or less success to shame it's patrons out
of the habit by displaying signs in
the cars. Conductors say that the hab-
it is a source of great annoyance to
them, but they do not know how ii
can be stopped. Ladies appeal to them
to compel men to observe ordinary
amenities. Many ate made so sick
that they are compelled to leave the
car, but the conductors say that they
are poWerless.
A number of west side conductors
were interviewed on the subject last
night and asked for opinions as to
how the habit might be stopped.
II would suggest that tobacco-chew-
ers be compelled to ride outside" said
one. Another suggested that tobacco
chewing in public conveyance be made.
a misdemeanor punishable by fine. An
other thought that men might be
Shamed out of the habit if the ladies
would forego formalities and speak
to them about it, and still another
that men who did not
use tobacco take the law into their
own hands and forcibly eject any man
who so far forgot the rules of public
lecency as to persist in practice on
It's face Objectionable to all Clearly
persons.