News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1898-12-14
WOMAN SUFFRAGE.

Mr. Editor
A recent issue of the News AND CIT
IzEN you asked your readers to give
youa pointer occasionally by writing
you, so | have accepted that invita-
ton as [ would like to ask you to do
what no other paper in the state has
done, or at least, those that | have
seen. | wish you would write a few
articles on the Woman Suffrage ques-
tion.
There are so few of the women who
understand what they are asking for,
when they sign the petitions asking
the privilege of voting. They don't
know that they are petitioniDg for
80 tax with the school, the corpora
tion tax and all the other taxes
which are attached to the poll tax.
No Woman's Rights lecturer ever tells
the poor people this side of the story.
One of their chief arguments is,
that the poor woman has to lean
over the washtub and by the sweat
of her brow help earn the money to
pay her husbands taxes and then
she is debarred from voting how that
money should be used. They don't
tell the poor woman that she will
have her taxes to pay then.
A rich woman's tax is only a few
dollars more by adding the poll tax,
but the poor peoples taxes are just
doubled if they have only the poll
tax. Some lecturers tell us it will
help the wage question when women,
and that they can demand as much
pay for their work as men. They
don't tell that the wages question
has just been settling itself within
the past five years. To-day woman
who works by the hour or day gets
just as much pay as her husband
does if be is only common day la
borer without especial trade.
The lecturers never tell the women
who work in shops and mills, that
their votes will be more under the
control of the boss or overseers,
than the mems votes are who work
in the same places. If the bosses tell
the women that they must vote so
and so or else get out, they will vote
as they are told to every time, as a
woman's work means more to her
than it does to a man. A woman
can't loaf in the streets or go run
ming around the country as a man
can until he finds work. The women
will vote every time as they are told
rather than lose their place.
Some women say that they only
signed the suffrage petition to please
so and so. They don't stop to think
that is admitting that they will vote
to please so and SO, If they haven't
any more principle than to sign such
a petition just to please some one,
they will not have the principle to
vote independently and could be
either bought or Influenced in any
campaign.
II there is nothing elevating in pol
Tics for men surely there is not for
women. There are just as many of
the lower element of women as there
are of men, and it will not be the
most refined, womanly women who
will be at the polling places. They
may go once or twice, but after they
see what they have to come in con
tact with and the level on which they
have to put themselves they will
stay ut home, but the lower class will
always be on hand.
These are some of the points which
would like to have brought before
the minds of the women of Vermont
before the next campaign, as some
are so dissatisfied with the repulse
which they had this fall, that they
say, there will be stronger work put
in before our next Legislature meets.
This is rather long for a p9ronal
letter, but | should like to have some
of the above thoughts placed before
the women of Vermont in such a way
that they will know that there are
two sides to this question. $50
An American who has recently Wis
tied the town of San Fernandino, in
the interior of the island of Luzon,
incompanv with three American off.
GERS and the wife of one of them, has
surprising things to tell Of "a native
band that headed a procession wei.
coming Aguinaldo he writes to the
Evening Post: "This native band
is justly celebrated. | venture pie.
diction that if it ever comes to the
United States even Sousa's military
band will be overshadowed in popu-
larity. Excellence of tone and accur.
acy of time are characteristics of al
the native musical organizations
even to the small theatre orchestra
and the mandolin and guitar quin
tets. Wherever two or three of these
musicians are gathered together
there music is found"
A Boston paper advised Vermont
ers to try bushel, if they we're tired
of a Peck. Perhaps they don't IN
derstaDd that Vermont got GrOutJ
over Peck and a Gilmore (GiI
more) and have decided to go back
and begin over again with just the
Gill leaving ont the lpavpn which i