Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-04-07
snocIal Corregnondencc.

Special Corresponding
ONDON, March 20 despite the
reforming zeal Of the new house
of commons. II has been decided
that It's "grilc"--thc symbol of
women's political infarIority--Is to be
retained. The grille Is the name given
10 the brass grating which screens the
occupants Of the Ladies' gallery from
the view Of the members Henry Nor
man, an English VI. r.. who was cdIl..
Gated at Harvard and has quite Amer
lean notions of how women should be
treated. asked the prime minister
whether it might not safely" be re-
moved. Sir Henry Campbcl- Banner
man. who has Il gift OF pawky humor,
played awhile with the question, Did
Il mean safety for" or safety from
the ladies'? he asked But finally he
specifically refused Mr.. Norman's re-
quest 20 submit the question TO the
house on the ground that tho iaany
ne wmembers had not yet hai m op-
portunity of studying the We mat
ter practically. Perhaps n rup-
tons TO which Sir Henry wa lnent-
" Gup1ftAtd NY tNti -LtdiVNa NpHltfi-
suffragists, at various meetings which
he addressed IN the course Of the gem
eral election, has preiudlced him
against the sex. Anyhow, the practise
OF the haren. so far as seclusion is
concerned, Is still to be imposed upon
women who visit the house Of COM
mons.
There IS 40 denying that IN the mat
ter of granting facilities for hearing its
discussions, parliament treats women
scurvily. Man. being the lord of crea-
ton, walks into st. stephens hall as
II he were the rightful owner of Il.
He has an uninterrupted view OF the
proceedings i'm the house. q comfort
able seat, and freedom of movement.
But II IL different with the women
whom members invite To listen to their
oratory.
PIT AND STALLS.
At the furtharmost side of the cham
Der, high up, beyond what may be
called the pit and stalls of the MEM
bers. back of the speakers throne and
the busy reporters, Is curious looking
affair which resembles a set of stained
glass windows Then. again. 1t might
be bird cage, and II looks very much
like one. Really, II is where the hon
orable and gallant members keep their
wives. sweethearts and faminine
friends who come 20 hear them speak
1t Is the women's cage--a real cage
and not a very comfortable one at
that. While all around Is light, it Is
dark; despite the electric fan IL Is
close and sturfy; II gives rise to a
species of headache quite different
from the headaches Of the opera or the
academy, and unless one happens to be
In the front row one can see little and
hear less. II consists of two sections
two-thirds of Il are given over TO the
members OF the house; one-third, sep
arated by heavy partition from the
other. Is In the hands Of the speakers
wife or, if he has not a wife, is In
charge of the woman who acts as the
head of his household. The present
speaker, Mr.. Lowther, has a wife. and
II is from her alone that much
coveted seat in what is regard
ed as the select portion Of the
Ladies' gallery can be obtained. She
must find the task OF discriminating
between applicants rather delicate
one, for she can grant only small
portion of the requests she receives.
CONTAINS FORTY SEATS.
The other and larger portion OF the
gallery contains some 40 seats--not
nearly enough to provide accommoda-
ton for the feminine friends and rela-
tons OF the 600 odd members who wish |
TO attend n meeting of the finest club |
in Europe To solve the problem Inn
partially members ballot for these I
seats-and rome unlucky members bal
lot for n whole session In vain. Two
OF the seats for every sitting are placed |
at the disposal OF the American am
bassador for the use OF American Wis
itors. But Of what avail is II that they
array themselves In what are called !
creations" and CONNECTIONS when |
these triumphs Of the milliner's art are
concealed behind bars?
In their cages women are subjected |
to another indignity to which male |
strangers are not exposed. 1t was
made the matter OF complaint In the |
house itself by one OF the new mem
bers. lie asked the prime minister
why I'm that gallery, and In no other, |
there are cards on which the word 81
LENCE is printed in large, obtrusiye.
not TO say offensive letters Sir Hem
~ with a wise caution worthy of his |
Scotch lineage. declnied to say why |
the word was Haunted in the face of |
the ladies'. though he added he sup
posed there mus; be some mysterious |
reason | know what sneering and |
ill-intormed men less discreet than Sir |
Henry, say OF the subject. They say |
that women are Incapable OF preserv- |
ing silence OF their own free Will and |
have to be coerccd into condition |
which is TO them unnatural. To refute |
that calumny on the sex, I will relate
famous parliamentary netdept which