Smyrna times., 1896-06-03

RunS, singing, TO inc silver sea.
E. MATHEsoN.
WOMEN IN WESTERN TOWNS.
Nothing would surprise the foreigner
in search of local color in this country
more than the way in which women
have taken to governing towns in the
West. Perhaps he would be surprised
at the successful way in which they do
it; but that would be because he was
a foreigner for Americans have come
to take wOman's capacity for granted
so much so, indeed, that the news
about women Mayors in Kansas towns
rarely get more than two or three lines
in q metropolitan paper. Americans
find it impossible to transport them
selves back to the time when such
things would have created even a ripple
of excitment. It is admitted by every
body nowadays that woman in Amer
lea can have and do pretty much every
thing she wants. It is true the advo-
Gates of woman suffrage would be in
clined to deny this so far as voting is
concerned. But, as a matter of fact,
she is already entitled to vote for cer-
tain officers in several Western States;
and in Colorado she will be entitled
under the laws of that State to vote for
Presidential Electors next November.
If she is not finally endowed with the
right of full suffrage in every State in
the Union, it will be simply because
she herself does not want that right.
But the general question of woman
suffrage is not far ahead just yet,
and it's discussion may be safely post
pOned until it assumes a more acute
form. In the meanwhile, the entrance
of women in the field of municipal gov
ernment in certain Western towns is
an interesting and picturesque fact,
which would attract more notice if it
were not taking place under our very
noses, so to speak. year or so ago
the elctiOn of q woman as Mayor of a
town in distant New-Zealand was a
theme of interested comment by the
American press generally, though at
the same time several Western towns
in this country had woman as Mayors,
who, if they did nothing especially
worthy of notice, acquitted themselves
with credit. At present the two towns
in which women seem to be supreme
are Decatur and Marcellus, both in the
State of Michigan. In the former
town, which has a population of 1900,
all the town offices except that of dog
catcher are filled by women, and we
suspect that if any woman had wanted
to be the official dogcatcher she would
have got the Office. The leading ply
sician of the town is woman; one of
its most popular pastors is a woman.
Two woman conduct the principal res
taurant. The proprietor of the largest
drygOods store is q woman; one of the
best shoemakers is a woman, and there
are women printers, harness makers,
florists and brokers. The postmistress
of the town is also woman. It is al
most needless to say that the women
have shut up the saloons of the town,
and the only things to drink are ginger
beer and water.
In Marcellus the ascendency of wo-
men is even greater; and it is seriously
proposed to change the name to Marcel
la, in recognition of the fact. Out of the
population of 1900 two-thirds of the
church members are women. Five of
the six schoolteachers are women.
Two members of the Public School
Board are women. The undertaken of
the town is woman, and a handsome
blonde at that, the local chronicler
adds with pardonable pride. The fav-
orite barber of the town is O woman,
and woman is the proprietor of the
leading hotel. But it is needless to 90
on with the record. About forty wo-
men altogether are represented in pro-
fessional or business life, and they are
doing their work so we'll that everyone
is satisfied. They have organized a
Twentieth Century Club, in which
they discuss still further advances for
the sex, and the probabilities are that
they will soon hold all the municipal
offices in the town, with the possible
exception of dogcatcher, which will be
given some worthy man. In the mean
while, however, they are the power
behind the throne, and very little is
done in the town of which they do
not approve.
As we have frequently pointed out,
the ''new woman" of the newspaper
funny men is myth. If such vulgar
unsexed creature exists at all, it is
only as rare anomaly. The women
in these Western towns are not ''new
women" They have parted with none
of the virtues and graces for which the
world honors womanhood. All that
they have done is to prove that they
have much the same capacity for the
active business of life that men have.
As municipal rulers they may or may
not prove to be successful as men.
But at least their influence will be on
the side of purity, honesty and moral
ity. And that of itself is no small
thing.-N Y. Tribune.
If it required an annual outlay Of