The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-02-28
WITH DRAWN PENS.
The War of Words Still RACES 1,


the East.
The New York Sun has surely Joined either
the suffrage association or the anti-suffrage
association, or both. 1t has for some time de-
voted considerable space to the cause or
causes, and has recently given up four COL
umns to battle of pens between the suf-
fraglsts and the ants. The particular bone
OF contention just now seems to be the ex-
tent to which women have awaited themselves
OF the franchise already granted them, and
the amount of interest which they betray in
questions of the day. Upon this subject Ida
D. Harper, Miss Anthonys biographer, says:
That women already are interested in these
questions no one could have doubted who sat
In the senate gallery last Monday during the
debate on the peace treaty. In the face of a
binding snowstorm not hundreds but thou
They filled the seats. they sat upon the
steps, and through every open door waiting
line could be seen. hoping that somebody
would grow tired and leave vacant seat.
But nobody did, and for hours they listened
with the most intense interest to the glowing
oratory that was. perchance, to change the
destinies of the nation. Over and over again
each speaker declared with solmen earnest
against the treaty: and one after another
read impressively the instructions from the
legislature of his state. backed by the inn
perative demands Of their constituents. In
all this there was not the slightest impress of
wonman's mind or a woman's wish. No
woman could say i cast my vote" In all
opinions of the women Of the nation have not
had feathers weight, and yet they will
share equally with men in the results Of this
treaty. whether for veal or woe.
The day before it was voted upon a petition
to the senate was published signed by twenty
four citizens of the United States. selected
from among the most prominent but among
them not one woman. Why? Not be-
there not in this
distinguished for intellectual ability and grasp
of public affairs, but because their names at
tached to such a petition would not add one
iota to its weight. Indeed, they would de-
tract from It In the eyes of many, tsld more
than one signer of this very petition would
object to being classed with women in his at
to accept as a reason for these things the
fact that women have no political standing,
and therefore must necessarily be without
influence upon matters that must be settled
through political methods. Were they in
vested with the same power, the opinions of
eminent women would be as much sought for
and carry as much strength as those Of emil
nent men. The action taken by orgaiation 81
of women upon national questions, instead of
being a subject Of jest or Indifference as it
is now, would be carefully needed by poll
ticians and law making bodies as that of the
great organizations Of men, The more intel
l1gent and progressive among women fully
realize this fact, and that is why they are
making the struggle for enfranehisement in
derstand its Importance, and Of those, also,
who fully compromising it, are prevented
from active effort by the demands of home
duties or of breadwinning occupations.
Another point contested is whether women
are not losing more than they gain by reach
ing out for the ballot. On this phase of the
controversy a woman who signs herself Mrs.
John Somebody, says
Most of the haphazard statements thrown
out by sufragists seem mere bait to drs W
out argument. Now if woman with sal
airy of S100 month loves a man earning
only S50-well, women do foolish things We OF
the sex all know. but on the face Of it, why
cannot she use her brain to help him to rise
in his own profession, instead of keeping on
working herself. One~thing Miss Harper
overlooks: A woman must have brains to be
able to command that salary; also sef-re-
spect. How long would the latter quality
hold out If. after hearing man promise be-
fore God to love. cherish and incidentally
same old ruts and helped keep him7
We ants do not profess any great amount
Of brain OF sense According to some accept
ed standards we surely have neither, for We
fell in love (dreadfuD and married (rnore
dreadfuD and bore children q am dying with
shame to tell it,; we never had our names
in the papers, except perhaps when we en-
tered the martyrdom commonly called mar
riage; the glare of footlights has not been
ours, no, nor fierce controversies, nor news
paper notoriety But-we have had compan-
least, and the clasp Of little hands, the salts
faction of seeing peace and happiness In
daily operation. Are they little things? II
we denied ourselves the love and sympathy
of our husbands and relegated the children
to boarding schools, so that we had leisure
to meet man on his own plane and prove our
right to vote with him-would the world be
better? If every woman a suffragist
would the millennium come any quicker
And when women have a constitutional Cor
UNCONSTITUTIONAL right ito stand up like men
and sell their votes, on what lines, pray, is
the world to be run? AS universal Oneida
colony, or will we have stately. high-fown,
Platonic affection? And will miracle hap
pen then. and girl babies fall from the skies
and boy babies grow out of the earth 1--WE
are surely going to tTample on them them
Or does the new scheme of creation prohibit
children altogether and insist that any new
corners to the earth shall be clothed and
educated up to the point of reading, as their
entrance examination? THE 'Steenth Amend
ment to the Constitution of the United States
giving suffrage to women" Might it not be
we'll If q little more attention given to
some Of the fundamental laws of God and a
little more heed paid to that very important
question of human nature?