The Worthington advance., 1900-04-27
! Mr.. Jobson on Suffrage
A/HEN Mr.. Jobson reached his

"HEN Mr.. Jobson reached his
w home from the Office the other
evening he found his wife entertain
ing in the parlor handsome, we'll
groomed, middle-aged, wholesome
looking woman, OF blitheful presence
and amiable manners. Mrs. Jobson
introduced her visitor to Mr.. Jobson
as Mrs. Schenectady, of New York,
an old school friend, whom I have
not seen since we were girls together;
she is here on business in connection
with the suffrage for women"
Mr.. Jobson, who had put on his
Sunday smile when he entered the
parlor, stiffened when his wife men
toned the suffrage for women" and
the smile froze on his face.
"Glad to meet you, ma'am," he said,
austerely, as if he meant it to be
understood that he wasn't glad, or
anything like glad. He excused him
self after two minutes of desultory
conversation, during which he sat
straight up in his chair and looked
daggers at his wife's visitor when the
latter wasn't looking at him, and
then he clomped upstairs. He heard
his wife and her visitor talking ami
matedly, while he sat upstairs tug.
ging at his mustache and growing:
"Suffrage, hey?" And when at last
the handsome, wholesome-looking
woman departed-saying at the door
that she would meet Mrs. Jobson
downtown in the morning Job
son descended the stairs with heavy
tread and a scowl that reached from
ear to ear.
"Madame," said he to Mrs. Jobson,
as his wife entered the parlor after
closing the door upon her visitor, II
think we're about due to have q close,
searching, heart-to-heart talk, and
there isn't going to be any better
time for it than right now.''
"Why, what has hap" Mrs. job
son began, looking at him in a suE-
prised sort of way.
"Oh, nothing has happened partic-
ularly," interrupted Mr.. Jobson, pick
ing up book from table and look
ing through it with a severe, judicial
air, as if searching for legal defini-
tion. Except that was not aware,
until ten minutes ago, that you had
aligned yourself with the female suf-
frage persons. Now, I.want-'
"But you are"
IL know what I am, Mrs. Jobson,
and I don't need to be told by any
proselyte in the women's suffrage
business what I am" broke in Mr..
Jobson, ponderously. "Now, I want
to tell you one or two little things for
your guidance in this matter" Mrs.
Jobson-I want to make you aware OF
where I stand on that question. H.
"But if you'll just wait min"
"You will permit me to say what !
intend to say, and then you may have
the floor, according to the parlia.
mentary usages of your female suf.
frage organization, as long as you
want it," cut in Mr.. Jobson. "Mrs.
Jobson, don't care a pair of worn.
out gum shoes, personally, whether
the women of the United States, or
the women of Zanzibar, for that mat
ter, secure the right to stand around
the polls on election day, distributing
pastors and folders to jagged hodcar-
riers, or whether they stay right
where they are with regard to the
franchise until the year 3245. It's all
one to me. I don't lose any sleep. over
it. If they did get the franchise uni.
versally it wouldn't affect me or this
plant in the slightest, for I'm resi-.
dent of the District Of Columbia
where men are disfranchised, as well
as women, and expect to go right or
living here, and finally have the
daisies planted in District of Colnm.
bia soil over my head. I don't read
the proceedings of the female suffrage
meetings. dodge the headlines
perched over the top Of that news
paper material. There's no amount o1
coined metal that could induce me tc
attend one of the female suffrage
meetings. I simply regard the whole
thing as a matter that isn't imminent
which doesn't affect the course of m,
existence any more than the tribes
mems wars in equatorial, Africa af
feet it, and I've slid along through
this vale of tears for a matter of !!
years or so without missing a meal OF
batting an eye over the question o.
female suffrage. l."
"Mr. Jobson, if you will be gooi
enough to abate your flow of elo
quence long enough to listen"
you'll just be good enough to defe,
your sarcastic allusions to my flow Of
eloquence until I'm through, madam,
broke in Mr.. Jobson, haughtily. "I'vt
got my own little private ideas about
the suffrage for women business, o.
course, but I'm not going arounG
throwing 'em at people who don't be
ieve the way do about it, and during
the past week I've ridden in the street
cars with several scores of the femal,
suffragists without rising in my seat
and telling 'em just what think .o1
the proposition they are scrapping for
Mrs. Jobson, I don't mind giving you
for your own information. brief out,
...,. 5::==. Is:
3 80 \ q FrSf -