The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-11-30
TIE CAUSE OF WOMAN.
ENGLISH LABOR UNIONS FAVOR
THE Suffrage For WOMEN.
Position Of Women In the Unions There
why OrEanized Labor In England
Has Not Vet Demanded the Ballot for
INSTRUMENTATION for the suffrage
Greatly Needed In This Country.

much better organized to secure the suf-
frage than those OF the United States; in
fact, the latter scarcely can be said To he
organized at all There are several rea-
sons why this Is the case. but possibly the
strongest Is that the enfranchiscment II
the workingmen of Great Britain is of
no recent occurrence Gs67) as to enable
the present generation there TO see the
Improvement In conditions which II has
caused At first only the owners Of prop
erty-householders could vote, hut in re-
spouse to continued pressure the fran
chise has been gradually extended until
all men who pay a rate. or rental. even for
lodgings. possess It. The working women.
witnessing these extensions and their
value to workingmen. have been stimu-
lated to secure the suffrage for themselves.
In the United States they feel that men
have been born with this right for genera
tions. and it Is a sort Of divine inheritance
which women cannot hope for. Then.
hard as are the conditions here for wage.
earning women. they are infinitely harder
there. while there is simply no comparison
in the treatment they receive from the
men Of their own class here and there.
The women are admitted TO the labor
unions in fact, are expected to join them
and keep their dues paid-but they not only
hold no Offices and have no vote, but are
frequently made to understand that they
are not wanted at the meetings. In some
Of the unions in the north Of England
women form 20 per cent Of the member
ship. In Clitheroe they comprise o. per
cent of the trades unions which pay the
election expenses and salary of Mr. Shacke-
ton, their Member Of Parliament The
women have to bear over one-half Of these,
and yet they had no voice in his election,
and in no sense does he represent them
Women form 20 per cent. Of all the adult
factory workers in England Out of 900. 3s5
textile workers, $50, 1897, or so per cent. are
women. Of the non-textile only Is per cent
are women. IL liz very natural that these
textile workers, who represent the better
class of factory employees and are within
so small radius rs to make cooperation
easy, should organize to secure the suf-
frage. Within a few months. in the three
counties Of Lancaster. York and Chester
5000 signed a petition and sent il to
Parliament by delegation, whose speeches
could not have been excclled Ivy any
labor leaders OF the masculine sex.
The men of the labor unions as a body,
however, are in favor of the enfranchise-
ment of women, but like those of the United
States, they have so many battles of their
own to fight that they never find time to
do any practical work for the women The
Trades Congress. which met last year at
Swansea, enthusiastically adopted a reso-
luton asking Parliament to enfranchise
women. This fall the congress met in
London, where. az in all large cities, there
is considerable adverse sentiment on this
question, but even here the vote stood
1903 ayes. 100 noes. The argument used
by the opponents was that the bill would
enfranchise all the propert y-owning women
and be Of little benefit TO the wage earners.
rs the husband is the ratepayer and the
working classes cannot afford to own or to
rent the second piece of property There.
as in this country, widows and spinsters
are not held to be worth considering in
this connection, and there, as here. il only
one Of the family can vote of course il must
be the husband.
Nevertheless, petitions for woman suf-
frage are being largely signs by the trades
unions and councils Two months ago
liz, eggregating about 10000 members.
had signed the Yorkshire petition, and the
canvass bad scarcely begun. Thousands
Of working women desire to sign the first
petition, but il Is confined TO the textile
workers, and Is receiving daily accessions
The North of England Woman's Suffrage
Society Is raising a fund of s.. 900 for the
purpose Of thoroughly organizing the
working women, which was started by
$500 from Mrs. Mrs. McIaren, sister Of the
Brights. In the speeches of Sir Edmund
Barton, Premier OF Australia. on his recent
visit to London, he stated that he did not
consider the conditions in the mother
country regarding this question as prac-
tically different from those in Australia,
and that her women ought to have the
suffrage. There is very little doubt that
the women of Great Britain will be fully
enfranchised long before those Of the
United States, This will he because il
cen be done by single act Of Parliament,
while here II must he referred to the voters
If any body of men in this country. of what
ever class, color or condition. had 10 de-
pend for the suffrage on a majority OF
those already in possession Of IL they
would wait a long time, The difficulty ia
still greater in the case Of women. and Il is
q cruel and disheartening situation.
The weakness of the woman suffrage
movement in the United States is the lack
of compact, thorough organization. Until
about ten years ago there was very little
to organize. The work had necessarily
been agitation and education. and while
this IL true Of all reforms, those among men
have been carried on with "A class who knew
now 10 organize ana the value OF II. ms
was an entirely new line for women and
they are only now beginning to learn CO.
operation The work Of the pioneers haa
borne its fruit and the sentiment for women
suffrage exists everywhere. The disgrace
and the ostracism which attached to the
early advocates have practically passed
away and, although it is very far from an
aristocratic cause, IL IL now perfectly re-
spectacle to belong to suffrage club, The
opposition has but one argument left
women do not want to vote That can be
answered in the various communities only
by giving them chance to enroll themselves
In the affirmative.
New York city, for instance. should have
woman suffrage club i'm every ward. and
this could be had without great effort il
funds we're available for the purpose Of
organization. Letters come to this de-
partment every week from nurses. steno-
graphers, bookkeeperS and other business
women. expressing the most earnest desire
to work in the limited way which alone Is
possible for them, to obtain their enfran-
chisement The presidents Of several large
manufacturing establishments have said
recently, when questioned, that, so far "a
they knew, every woman in their employ
would like to vote, and yet there Ii not
suffrage club among working women.
Capable organizers could form many clubs
without difficulty but such persons are al
most invariably earning n livelihood and