The Hawaiian gazette., 1893-12-19
EXTENDING. THE VOTING FRANCHISE
TO WOMEN.

The subject OF allowing women
to vote at popular elections has
I been agitated and discussed for
wears, and in a few instances they
have been by law permitted to vote
at local elections-such IS choice
Z OF officers for school boards, and in
/ three OF four States they have been
/ allowed TO vote in the general State
( elections. Among these are Wash
! ington. Kansas, Wyoming, and,
quite lately, Colorado has, by 4
I special election held throughout
the State, decided to allow them to
participate In all State elections,
If We remember rightly, Washing
ton and Kansas have repealed the
privilege, but the latter State pro
poses 70 allow the question again
70 be decided by special election,
held for this one object only.
Regarding the Colorado election,
the New York Nation of November
10th has the following
For the first time in the history Of
the country, the majority of the men
in 8 State last week voted directly in
favor OF giving the women of that
State the ballot on equal terms with
themselves. The Constitution Of
Colorado has s provision that women
suffrage shall be granted whenever
the Legislature shall submit the queS-
ton 10 the qualified voters and they
shall ratify it. The last Legislature
thus submitted il, and equal suffrage
was carried on November eth by 8
majority of several thousand. Women
have voted for years in the Territories
OF Utah. Wyoming and Washington,
but il was only by act OF the Legisla-
ture: and although Wyoming came
into the Union as q State with 8 con-
stitution that fOrbids any denial or
abridgement Of the right 70 vote and
hold Office on account OF sex, this con-
stitution was ratified as q whole,
without any separate vote on the
suffrage clause. In Colorado, on the
other hand, the question Of extending
the ballot to women was submitted at
the polls SIS 3 separate proposition,
and il was the only State issue which
was thus submitted this year, the
elections being for county officials.
The result consequently expresses the
deliberate judgment OF the men, and
equal suffrage Of the two sexes must
be accepted hereafter SIS the settled
policy Of that commonwealth. There
has been q notable change of senti-
ment on this question among the men
of Colorado during the past sixteen
years, SIS in 1877 the same question
was submitted and a similar PROPOSE
ton was rejected by vote Of two to
one. 4 woman-suffrage amendment
to the Constitution of Kansas will be
submitted 10 the men Of that State
next week"
Many arguments have been
brought up, both for and against
allowing women to vote at al cleo
tons, and the question is still an
undecided one. There can be no
doubt that women owning property
in their own right should be per-
mitted to enjoy the franchise equal
" with men. Property and educa-
ton should be the basis of qualifi-
cation to vote in any country.
Gradually this is becoming recog-
nized as the only safe basis, and
viii sooner or later be adopted, first
as regards men, and perhaps later
to include women.
But the most interesting news
relative to extending the franchise
TO women comes from New Zealand
where q law was lately enacted al
lowing them to vote. The first
election held under this law took
place in November of this year,
and seems to have been a success.
As TO the number of votes cast by
the women, there was no record |
kept, nor is it known for which
party they voted. The fact, how
ever, that women in New Zealand |
are now permitted to vote on the
same terms as men is an interest
ing one. The following paragraphs, |
taken from the Auckland Herald |
Of December ,, describe this first
election:
"The novel feature of this general
election, which viii forever make it |
in the history Of New Yea
land, has been the exercise Of the suf- /
rage by every woman over the age Of |
twenty-one years. From end to end |
Of the colony, in the crowded cities
and in sparsely-settled country dis
-ricts, the women have recorded their /
votes at the polling booths. The can
iidates had committees of ladies as
well as gentlemen, and the members
IF the ladies' committees were as keen
Is the oldest electioneers in bringing
voters of their own sex to the Doil /