The record-union., 1896-05-18
POLITICAL DISHONESTY.
The Republican Convention Tri1ed With
a Serious Matter.
A Fad Which May Bring Serious
Injury to the Whole Com
monwealth.

IFrom the San Francisco Town Ialk)
When it is scrutinized carefully, the
platform adopted by the Sacramento
Convention presents to the consldera-
tion of the thoughtful one of the Strang-
est conglomerations of fads, plautuoeS
and demagogism ever put before the
people as a declaration Of political pfln-
ciples. Insincerity and lack OF WIS
dom are it's leading characteristics all
the way through and the absence or
the schoolmaster is painfully apparent
in every line of it. It's first plank reads
thus:
Resolved, That this convention ia
vors the proposed amendment to the
Constitution Of the State of California
whereby it is sought to extend the
elective franchise to all citizens or the
United States, both men and women.
That is an insincere declaration in
favor Of the modern fad Of female suf-
frage 1t is dishonest in that it does
not express either the sentiment or pur-
poses of the Republican party. One
delegate-and he undoubtedly mouthed
the feeling of quite a number, if not
majority, of his fellowS-openly admit
ted that while he would vote in favor
of the platform, he would probably
vote against the constitutional amend
ment which it indorsed. Such duplicity
and trickery as that is shameful. If
this amendment did not commend itself
sufficiently to this man, and those who
think like him, as a question of public
policy, to be sure of his and their en-
thusiastic individual support, then he
and they should have refrained from
recommending the people of the State
TO adopt it. The truth of the matter is
that the Republican party Of this State
has been trifling and double dealing
with this question of female suffrage
for some time past. 1t indorSed the
proposition in it's platform in the last
campaign, but yet its representatives
in the last Legislature were with diff
Guilty induced to keep the party prom
Uses even to the extent of referring the
matter to the people in form of the
constitutional amendment that is now
before us, and it is safe to say that,
Notwithstanding the platform declara-
tion above quoted One-half, if not more,
of the leaders as we'll as of the rank and
file Of the party will vote against the
amendment. In the face of this con-
dition of party sentiment the quoted
declaration is, therefore, an arrant
piece of political dishonesty. 1t is even
more. 1t is trifling with a serious sub
Ject in a way that may involve the
Commonwealth in serious injury This
question Of female suffrage is upon it's
face merely an innocent fad with some
weak-minded women who imagine that
they are betraying strong minds by
living in a condition of continual war
with the laws of nature and their own
sex. These women who want to make
speeches and hold conventions and vote
at elections and wear mems clothing
are not nice people, but neither they
nor the little crowd Of thoughtless ladies
who, being for the moment carried
away with the novelty of the idea of
exercising political rights, fancy that
they favor the proposed innovation, are
in any way menace to the good gov
eTnment of organized society. The
qualification of their fad is upon it's
lace a harmless step; but behind it
there stands more serious considera-
items which should certainly be visible
to the leaders of a great political party
il they are not utterly incapable of ex-
ecuting the duties of their Self-im-
posed task Of leadership. In the city of
San Francisco alone there at least
1900 women who come within the ge-
neric term abandoned. These women
will form a ready and valuable addi-
tion to that criminal class who made
the last Republican primary a farce
and who have made it almost impossi-
bic for the Democratic party to hold
a primary at all without surrendering
the party machinery and the party
management into the hands of thugs,
thieves, maquereauX, unconvicted as
we'll as convicted felons, and miscella-
neous blackguards. Staid and repu-
table women will never go to the polls
at either the regular or the primary
election. Thoughtless and giddy women
would, If given a chance, go once to a
regular election. The new woman
would, undoubtedly, go promptly to the
primary, but, when she rubbed up a
few times against the Banjo-eyed Kid
and Fat Annie, even her coarse nature
would give way and she would retire
in disgust. In any case, her influence
would not be a fractional part of that
Of the element which she had been in
strumental in injecting into the body
polite. In other words, If female suf-
trage becomes an accepted and estab-
hshed institution, there is no primary
law that would be devised which will
be capable Of dethroning the influence
OF de push" IN large cities. The ad-
dition thus injected into its strength