The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-07-25
POLITICAL EQUALITY,
Some or the Ite.n,n or Woman suffrage In
Wyoming.

Wyoming.
Rachei Foster Avery: Since 1860 wy
omIng has stood az the representative
OF the political equality OF women with
mon. Let us Aca what this has meant for
the women and for the community In
which they have exercised the right OF
government, Years before such a
thing was known In amy other common
wealth, the women teaching In Wyom-
| lnR's public schools received salaries
based upon the value Of their work with
out regard 10 their sex; this was done
without struggle ind without com.
ment ~ soon M women formed part
OF tho governing power.
The rlght to survc upon turtles IN all
| wyoming courts was such Il new d..
parturv thut Il called forth ns much
anlaIement In the outside world az did
the voting Itself, In 1859 | visited tho
territory and met che gentleman who
had drafted the very first Jury upon
which women served. Many tines In tho
course of q short acquaintance he inen-
TONED this to mo with PRIDE but u mu-
tuaI friend told mo with considerable
amusement, that, ut thu time, this gem
tlcman had been exceedingly unwilling
to do what he has since come to regard
ns the act Of his lie. which most en-.
| titles him 10 recognition.
About fifteen years ago there appear
cd In all the eastern papers which were
untrlendly to equal suffrage a most
] scurrilous article purportlng to hive
been written by "a leading citizen" OF
| Laramie. Among other things 1t stated
| thnt the service OF women as Jurors
hnd tended to lower the standard Of
| nllnlIn nNDF1tl In tho nnt n,,.I
that only bld women voted and accent
| cd Jury service. 4 careful Investigation
Us TO the source Of this mlsguldIng mr.
tcle (slSned BY II false namc) resulted
IN the discovery that the writer did
| know, ns he claimed. "by personal en-
perlcnce," tho results OF having women
on the jury. since he had dragged ~
Dali and chain through the streets OF
Laramie, convicted OF his crime By II
| Jury composed In part Of womenl
Striking and reliable testimony as TO
the decrease Of crlmNaity In Wyom.
Ing Is given In u valuable article cntlt-
led Woman Suffrage In Wyoming" BY
| Clara Dewick Colby. OF Nebraska, as
| follows:
| THE population Of the United States
has Increased In the last decade 2t6 per
| cent. That OF Wyoming has Increased
As''' IVA NSINs Duk NIlht lIt NUMBER OF
| criminals In the whole United States
| has Increased 1913 per cent, an alarming
| ratio,-far beyond the Increase In pop
| ulatiOn- notWithstandIng the immense
| increase OF population In Wyoming. the
number OF criminals has not Increased
| at all. giving Il relative decrease, which
shows law-abidns community and
| constantly Improving condition OF the
| public morals. In 1880 there were con-
| fined In the jails and prisons OF Wyom-
| Ing seventy-four crimlna Is, seventy-two
men ana two women. The census OF 1880
shows the same number OF criminals,
Sevcnty-four, rs against an average
number OF criminals In the other west
ern states OF H5.S. This remarkable fact
Is more Interesting because the seventy
four In 1890 were all men. and thus
the seatccrow OF the vicious women In
politics disappears"
Nothing is more characteristic OF the
| hnti-suitragisi than Ills fsar lost the
home life may suffer ut the hands OF
women when they shall become the po-
iitical equals OF their husbands. Ger
tninly this anxiety ought TO be allaycd
by the knowledge, based upon undouht-
cd statistics, that. while In all the other
| western states the number OF divorces
| Increased. from 1870 to 1880, 80 per cent.
| In Wyoming the number decreased %
| per cent, and that now the ratio 0f
divorce in Wyoming Is as one 20 three
| In the rest OF our United States.
II We wish Official testimony az to the
advantages TO the state OF the enfran-
chlsement OF WyOmns's women, we can
call upon any or all OF her governors
and can record the resolution OF her
second state Legislature, passed by the
| house Of representatives. and concurred
In by every senator but one:
BE It resolved by the second leglsla-
| ture OF the state OF Wyoming, That the
| possession and exercise If suffrage by
| the women In Wyoming for the past
| quarter OF n century has wrought no
| harm and has done great good In many
ways: that 1t has largely aided in ban
| ishng crime, pauperism and vice from
| this state, and that without any violent
or oppressive legislation; that II has
secured peaceful and orderly elections,
| good government, and remarkabl
degree of civilization and public order;
| and We point with pride to the facts
that after nearly twenty-five years OF
woman suffrage not one county In Wy
| Oming has Il poOrhouse, that our jails
| are almost empty, and crime, except
| that committed by strangers In the
state. almost unknown: and as the re-
| suit of experience we urge every Civt-
| liZed community on earth 10 enfran-
chlSe It's women without delay"