The sun., 1894-05-13
IDEAS OF EAST SIDE WOMEN.
WoNlN SUFFRAGE HASN'T HlDE
MUCH fNPRESsIoN ON THEM.

Thsy Dose wsst 90 Vote and They SIN
Lsok Up 60 Nss ths Hss1 sf the
FsmiIy-sous wouid Like % vots " Ths'
wo-ia Eassie Thsm TO ne Butehsr,, "a
ne Poiie.r-e., 10 Riss Free % the Cars
or TO Get Fessious-Good Husssndr
B.eow,sg Harder to Get Every Year.
woman's Rights. or woman's Wrongs. or
whatever may be the accepted name for the
new movement boosting along the old cause.
are little known. and, less understood. on the
populous east side. The beniQhtsd sisters who
live on the further side Of Third avenue and
the Bowery are mentally slow they seem to
be forever occupied with the sterner affairs Of
life-the getting Of bread and the bringing up
Of children. principally. lit were not 80 they
might be as ardent suffragists rs any Of the
rest OF them.
But the east side woman 10 first Of all q bread
winner; what little time she has for relaxation
she devotes to pleasure Of the most trivial aud
evanescent sort. She does not make work Of
play. She holds few opinions OF any kind. be-
cause they are too costly. They don't bring
bread. and that's what she wants for herself
and her brood. When she thinks she doesn't
think OF woman's elevation. She deals with
the concrete. not with the abstract
Man to the east side woman is q creature
very different from herself. IL he's good he
brings home his weekly wages and takes her
TO Central Park on Sundays with the children.
II he's bad. he spends his time at the corner
Rroggery and beats her. Good and bad. that's
about all she knows OF him. Equality with or
superiority to him she never dreams Of He
won't let her. He's an animal Independent
and magnificent and she gets along with or
without him as best che can.
She generally prefers to get along with him.
Har In MATTE Eha ~ n hna
band. when she can and thereafter he 10 . big
man to her. The typical east side woman
doesn't question her husbands right to do
as he pleases and to make her do as he pleases.
II this 10 shocking. II is also true. and . half
days visiting In east side tenements will
prove It to the most doubling. She lets her
husband do the thinking for the family.
East side girls are brought up that way. II
you walk through an east side street any OF
these evenings you will see how the man takes
the lead. The woman Just trails. II 10 not
certain that she would prefer to do otherwise.
A canvass OF moro than 100 east side women
was made By q Sun reporter several days ago
for the purpose OF finding out what advance
IL any. the suffragtst movement had made
beyond the Bowery; what east side women
thought Of it II they thought OF It at all;
whether or not they were eager to see the
word male" stricken from tho face OF the
Constitution OF this State. or whether they
knew It was there. The salient outcroppings
OF that CANVASS were these:
First-That the average east side woman 10
very uncertain what tho movement 10 all
about: more uncertain what It is meant to
bring to pass; most uncertain Of any benefit
that will accrue from woman's equality with
man from political point OF view.
Sscond-That she has very hazy under
standing that Q number Of rich women are
working in behalf Of their poorer sisters; but
that her understanding that she doesn't want
any such intercession is very clear.
Third-That she likes man pretty much as
he 10. and. In . great mum Der Of cases. would
even higher oninion Of himself than the women
sufffaRists say he has now.
Fourth,,That in the case Of the married ,wo-
man. she demands only that her husband shall
SsiSs homs his % wages @ ana fiat ss ss sf. e not
beat her and the children; and. in the case of
s~ssthosrs snail saHs her srt 10 q" the n dsnees
and picnics. that he shall not firt with other
his time Ioahns % on the nearest corner. ' '''A1
filth-That she has not consuming desire |
S lnas or ss voted any nss5 %sy
These s,s are no, the Siews Of any 81 one e. class Of
ssay ys%s
Of the sort Of women who compose four -hfths |
OF the female population Of this city. They do
again. that they come from the poorsst-irom
the great tenement houses east OF the Bo1ery
includes q single block with population Of
nearly 1000 souls; Il includes another with
sSSsre %ilsAthas beandsd b. bY stanton. Eass e
Houston Ridge. and PITT streets. Many OF the
born. most Of them are OF foreign parentaae.
All OF them have had meagrs advantages In
When the reporter made tour OF the dis
trtct he was In search Of the most intelligent
visws on the sabjsst to be found. For that
Allen. street, Us Stanton street. I8y Orchard
non as street. @ % and s6s. ' sS4 Sno and 40 Madison
street. Other. tsnemsnts In. First street. In
sHa s aonrHs Sdss :ss S.rs e
ited. The view: obtained were varied In sx-
A typical view Of the n movsmsSt 10 from the
Of the German housewife was that
OF hTa Fuehrll. who lives in stanton street.
man district Mira FueSrIi is intsliIGsnt as
;Ls ere nearly ,y al Of her ne ghbors; her husband
sons ThsS ali WORK aiIssnt a oRs SwS q oifNS ,ss
factory FredS mas Is ARTIFICIAL so1srs in SoutS
Filth avenue: Katie. the youngest works In a
The family Sg Is oPaSnissd sSh ON Is. cooperative
Pisn EsSh 2, ID mS%Ssr n5 Of 4 tS the
i've Ga SnS snS' lay Ss M a6Ss nH%e Ih.g ns
ISd nts are 10 squslid tenemsn. but be-
%hsn snst hs or neat and
thought OF the suffragist movement. what she
thought Of the proposed con stitutional amend
sreature called Man, what she thought OF the
IIhings In general that the advanced woman
thinks Of Mrs. Fushrli put her arms akimb DO
and gAzed at her questioner with the plaeldity
md stoliditY OF an untroubled conscience and
serene mind; Clearly. II lAmentably. she had
nsvsr thought cf those things at all II took
ne SPUR oil complete and diseursivs explAnR-
Ion OF the ins and outs Of the advanced move
nent 90 lar as the masculine mind can under |
.tAnd ard sxplain them. 10 get Mrs. FushTli TO
..nsgsr Then she said. with . curious little
iimdsnt manner which told a. once that she
Eoqld DO useless recruit for the cause:
ThAt thing does not bother me. | hive
heard o. It, yes, My husband has read me- |
Ioms things about II We have not time.
2 1eh, 70 talk about IT, ! don't know whether
;ern US much. |
=, II We were to have the same rights as men
dAybe II would be good. don't know We
ave not much time. Tou see. My husband
FORKS, l work, my bOys work my girls work
ze al work. We get enough to de, and when
70 don't We help each other. Would what
'ou say give us work all the timer Well
maybe then IL would be good.