The herald., 1896-03-11


controversy, claims to be surprised that l
failed to refute her assertion relative to
the Democratic law of 1855, Secs. 1894
and 2OO4. I penned my reply before
breakfast, to insure its reaching THE HER
AID editor in time. Though familiar with
the naturalization laws regarding woman,
l was not certain as to the numbers OF
those sections. A trip to the law library
confirmed the supposiiion that these Sec
tons were the same. Had those sections
been quoted verbatim would have known
wherein her argument was at fault. Those
sections, despite all my opponent claimed
for them, dismally failed to give woman
the elective franchise. We quote Sec
1894, revised U. S. statutes. 1851: ANY
woman who IS now, or may hereafter -.
married to citizen of the United States,
and might herself be lawfully naturalized,
shall be deemed a citizen" Sec. 20O4
makes the same distinction. In the re-
vised U. =. statutes, 1855, IAN article to
secure the rights of citizens" enacted and
approved. Sec. 2 reads: "And be
it, further enacted, that any woman
who might lawfully be naturalized
under the existing laws, married. or who
shall be married to citizen of the United
States, shall he deemed a CITIZEN We
will look further. section 2259: EVERY
person, being the head of a family,
widow, or singla person, mot marie d wo-
men under this section over Il years
and a citizen of the United States. or hav-
ing filed declaration of intention to be-
come such, as required by the laws of
naturalization, or who has made or here
after makes a settlement in person on pub
lie lands, subject to pre.empton," etc. etc.
This section clearly demonstrates that the
two former were enacted to cover the
ground of this. In the state statutes
''citizens" extends to property rights and
under these a woman can inherit property.
The word citizen is otherwise used as a
generic term. To prove that the word citi-
zen, as regards women, has no bearing
upon the rights of suffrage, Section 1929,
after defining the citizenship of the child
rem of a na,uralized male" citizen. "a s:
The power covering this law 'does not de.
scend to children, of the naturalized
mother whose father never resided in
the United States" l presume the in
justice can readily be seen: the boys, by
virtue of the mantle of the father. have
all the rights and privileges of naturalized
citizens and qualified electors. The boys
of the naturalzed mother. 1.-THE father
never having resided in the nited States"
are debarred all such rights and privileges.
and must conform to the laws governing
naturalization in their own name. The
writer lays great stress upon the word
deemed" citizen; but there is wide
difference between being "deemed" q citi-
zen and ''deemed" an elector.
To be citizen is to be recognized, either
by birth or naturalization. as having GER
tain rights, privileges and immunitles,
amenable to law and subject to its penal
ties: to the male citizen it goes farther.
and recognizes him as duly qualified
elector; the woman as a citizen, her quail
ifications abruptly ends. before ''the male
hewn blocks of stone in our state constitu-
tion.''
An elector, as defined in the state stat
utes and election laws. "the blocks of
stone," election laws state of California.
section 1888: EVERY male citizen of the
United States, every male person who shall
have acquired the right of citizenship I'm
der or by virtue of the treaty of t,tlerefaro,
and every male natucalized citizen thereof.
who shall have become such ninety days
prior to any election. of the age OF II, who
shall have been a resident of the stale one
year next preceding the election, and of
the county in which he claims his vote
ninety days and in the election precinct
thirty days, and whose name shall bs en-
rolled on the great register of such county
fifteen days prior to an election, shall be a
qualified elector," etc.
The state has the power to grant or re.
ject the elective franchise and distinctly
franchise. excepting such as may be in
hibiled by the national constitution, the
Fourteenth amendment, section l; even
then it required the vote of three-fourths
of the states before it could be incorpor-
a,ed in the national constitution.
| have all the moral courage possessed
by my sister and stand ready with her TO
test her versions of sections 994 and 2OO4
as soon as the books are open for registra-
ton: only. know by experience, based on
more reliable grounds than these sections
that we will meet with decided but cour-
teous refusal. Ii in the coming election we
attempted to vote. our names not being
enrolled. our vote, or right, would be
challenged.
| was not aware that the writer was a
''member of the hated money power at the
time | replied. | have no hatred for any
"member.' They too are The victims OF
our corrupt financial system. II may sur
prise my friend that | do not believe in
gold and silver as a medium of exchange.
| take no pleasure in it's use. save as by arbi-
trary compulsion am forced TO use it to
meet the necessities of life.
NV sister seems to labor under the i'm.
preston that I belong to the universal
motherhood, the unmarried woman. | too
am a widow, with a son fast merging into
manhood, a prospective elector, and two
young "ctizens." ''my baby entering her
stems The seeming contempt thrown
upon the unmarried women, whom honor
for their moral courage in Drawing LIES
battle single-handed, as if they alone were
clamoring for the franchise, brings to
mind the host of happily married stuff az SITS
pre-eminent among them our sainted Lucy
Stone. and the galaxy OF bright married
stars in our own state, who, because of the
strength and power at their right hand can
do grander, nobler work.
You do me an honor to ring euphony of
my name so often upon the reading public.
In our suffrage and political circles it is
more or less known. Having been in the
journalistic field since my Rlrlhood land
on the PLATFORM. l have become accus-
toned to lis usages and regulations. and
long since dropped all expectations.
am adverse to all newspaper contro-
verses where it involves personal differ
ences if on educational lines | am ever
ready to take part. If cur HERALD, al
ways generous. will grant us space from
now until the close of the campaign, will
prepare an article on this constitutional
amendment or any phase of the suffrage
question, weekly or alternate. or prefer
ably that il BE- open to all of its readers
pro and con on these questions.
regret the sudden Illness of one of my
little ''cisizans' prevented an earlier reply.
Though we may differ on Inany points
we yet have the honor, purity and hishes.
aspiration for our sex deep al heart.
MRS. MAY ELMORE BENsEN.
Water and Filth
EDITOR HERALD:-The Los Angeles City
Water company, like ali large bodies, is
very slow 10 move, and, like all corpora