The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1896-11-18
The Proposed Referendum.


For various reasons our CORE spon-
dent, " Voter" continues his objec-
tions to taking the judgment of the
people on the proposition to extend
municipal suffrage to women. "The
reference is unnecessary, he says, be-
cause the suffrage is question of JUS
tice aud not simply of policy. Taxa
ton and representation go together.
Women taxpayers already have right
to vote on school matters, which now
come up in town meeting, and other
questions in which women are inter-
ested are decided in town meeting"
The question of granting the stuff
rage in school matters I" was not re-
ferred to the people for their approval,
and no one can claim that mistake
was made by our legislature by so do.
ing" The referendum would continue
the existence of this injustice to tax
paying women, and finally, the last re-
publican national convention "w was
mindful of the rights of women" ia.
vored "the admission of women to
wider spheres of usefulness and well
coined "their cooperation is rescuing
the country from democratic and pop
ulist Encouragement and misrule."
Briefly summarized, the foregoing are
the grounds upon which "Voter" now
insists upon conclusive action by this
legislature.
1t is not purposed to enter into an
elaborate discussion of this question at
this time. In reply to onr correspond
ent it is proper to suggest that the suf-
frage is very much matter of policy,
and less matter of abstract right and
justice. A wise policy dictates that
time be set when the privilege of vot-
ing shall begin, although as a matter of
right there is no good reason why the
youth should not vote in the year be-
fore as well as in the year after he is
twenty-one. Very likely many youths
from eighteen to twenty.one years of
age, are better.qualified for the exercise
of the suffrage than many men from
twenty-one to threescore and ten. The
plea of injustice might be set up in be-
half of these young men whom the law
classes as minors, but this plea yields
to the dictates of policy. Here the in
vestiture with the suffrage is entirely
matter of policy. An Englishman or a
Scotchman, an Irishman or a French
man, or any other foreigner, though
grown to mans estate, must abide here
continuously period of years before
he can vote, and in this respect the law
makes no distinction between an Eng
fish farmland and an Englishman of
the intelligence and understanding of a
Gladstone, or any other foreigner as
we'll qualified to vote in the first year of
his arrival as in five years thereafter.
Policy dictates the law in this respect,
too, and all-the ignorant and the edu-
Gated, the dullard and the intelligent
must bow to this policy, however unjust
it may appear in its failure to discrimi-
nate between conditions of applicants
for admission to citizenship.
Taxation and representation are Of
ten divorced. There is pending now
in the legislature of this state a meas
ure that deliberately proposes to change
the situs of large class of taxpayers
from the towns in which they have
their legal residence and are repre-
sented by officers, administrative and
law-making, in whose choice they
have participated, to towns in which
they can have no direct representation.
The minor, the citizen of another state
and the alien owning property here,
are taxed without representation. But
none of these, nor the case of women
taxpayers tot whom "Voter" applies
this maxim respecting taxation and
representation, constitute wrong that