Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1894-02-03
Anent the Suffrage Amendment.

frage Amendment "PPo"o"
the Public Platform of January 10,
published at Winfield, Kansas, and
written by Lowell H. Webb, attor-
ney, formerly of this city:
1.-THE historical Kansas Legisla-
t,re of 1893 has submitted to the
voters of the state, to lie voted upon
in November 1894, a proposition to
amend the suffrage article of the
state constitution so as to allow
women to vote at all elections.
MANY questions affecting the
constitution have been submitted
to the voters, especially of late
years. but discussion of those ques-
tons has been uniformly neglected
both BY the press and public speak
ers, 80 that the average voter f1rst
learned of the proposition when he
found it on his ticket, and OF course
he was not then properly prepared
to vote OIL the question.
The pending question is, in TACT
all such questions are. important,
and should be thoroughly dis
cussed and considered, in order that
the best judgment of the whole peo-
pie may be acted upoh.
What good will ,res ult from the
adoption of the suffrage amend
inent:
Mrs. Chinn, in a recent issue OF
the Platform, urges its adoption be-
cause it will enable American wo-
men to offset the votes of foreign
born men.
Sister Chinn overlooks the fact
that if that amendment carries, all
women can vote. and when the for
eign-born brother goes to the ballot
box he will take with him his wife,
mother and sister. That changes
in our suffrage laws are advisable
is freely conceded. But is this the
change we need: If the foreigners
vote is so undesirable that the PEG.
pie should by law provide for oft
setting it. then it is 80 undesirable
that it should never be cast. Under
our present constitution foreigner
can land in this country on the first
day of May, at once declare his in
tention' to become a citizen. live
here until election day the following
November, and may then vote. al
though he don't know as much
about the ticket he is voting, as does
an American boy of fifteen. And
this condition of things Sister Chinn
proposes to remedy by making a
law that will permit the foreigners
wife also to vote. Would it not be
better to provide that no foreigner
shall vote until he shall have been
here for at least five years and be-
come fully naturalized, and until he
shall be able to read and speak and
write our language intelligently and
shall have become acquainted with
our system of government, and I'M
til he shall own property here and
thus be interested for his own sake
in perpetuating our institutions:
The fact is recognized that some OF
our most valuable citizens are OF
foreign birth, and there is not the
slightest intention on my. part to
disparagc them or their citizenship.
But it is certainly not asking too
mach to insist that a foreigner Shall
become thoroughly American. in
both citizenship and education. be-
fore he is permitted to vote.
"Other reasons are urged for the
adoption of this amendment. Not
long ago man asked me: Els not
your wife more capable of voting
than an illiterate and ignorant
man: Of course she is. But this
remedy. which would permit my
wife to vote, would also permit the
wife of that illiterate man TO vote.
and how much better off would we
be? In my Judgment it would be
far better TO say to the ignorant
American. as to his foreign brother:
When YOU can read, write and speak