The independent., 1907-02-21
= NEBRASKA NV

theory that the collection OF dehls py
law should be abolished. Let the pay
ment of a debt be wholly voluntary.
Then credit would be extended only 10
the honest, there would be no eApen-
sive litigation. and only rarely an un-
,,a;a aoht. ca goes the argument. 1t is
tba contrary view that the retaii mer-
chants take in asking the legislature
to make it possible to collect debts py
force of law in circumstances WHEREIN
now the debtor is exempt. me present
low by which a married man with
.rood salary can defy his creditors, puts
. nremium on fraud, so they argue,
and not without excellent foundalion.
,rbese two views with VARIATIONS WIZ
No doubt divide men as long aS iipn
huv things on tick Ii hrst one we"
nreyailed and then the othef lhe se. .,,
eral results in the long run wou,a
blv diyerge less widely than one
might suppose.
r,,oor,v the Nebraska house or rep
..santatives will never vote III favor VI
.,oman suffrage 90 long as lIld1ofi.y
na,,vinced tnat family peace hes IN
a., otbar direction. So far as the ex-
sa,,s ~ 10 ,,ans Indicate Of the vote en the
,p,r1nosition to memoraliZc congress 70
a,,a thc ,yay for a sixteenth ameha-
mant granting nationa' woman
fraee family discord is the Srisiy 80
that haunts the minds OF most " lno
men,bers. The British suiirdsiaes'
ouiclxer for once than lneir Aiiiei i.a.s.l l.'.l
cousins. have grasped thls uispoe''.p -
of the male mind and are ,ahiii5 ~
,ng;cal course. This week the parma
.,e,,t house has been beset by croWds
'r a,o,norous women demanding sur
Srage not at the expense Of peace, pul
&c The nrice Of peace. This policy was
6rct inaugurated a year ago az tue
s,,yyastion of the then Prime Minister
Ralfmrr Stir up trouble saiu MI.
palfour that is the way TO get Wnae
you want" George Meredith, the Ia
mons novelist, gave the same auNIce.
"rrhe mistake of the women ne said'
a;s 70 cunnose that John Bull will move
eensihlv for a solitary kick. 1t Is ohiy
~, the repetition of this method OF en-
nyening him that John Bull can pc
persuaded to move at all. Ihi,ip
cnow6ien an influential incmDef Oh the
house of commons, predicts that the
present parliament VIII grant the ue-
mands of the suffra gists, saying: Sul
how soon depends entirely upon the
-,ers;etencv of the exertions of the agi-
tators.o This persistency the women
are now attending to with full zeal
Already over two-thirdS of the MEM
hers of parliament, perhaps not as
coneeauence Of this activity, but IT
seems nartiv so, are said to have COM
mitted themselves to passing woman
suffrage bill before the end of the
nresent parlament Should the Nebras-
ka suffra gists take to English ways
the members of the next Nebraska leg
islature may vote for suffrage for the
sake of peace as this week they voted
against it for the same reason.
III. M. Bushnell has the following to
say on an interesting phase of the
county option question:: County
option should stand or fall on the
county vote proposition. To divide the
county into districts, as proposed by
some of the legislators, would leave the
conditions practically as they are now.
If the people of "a county under coun-
~ option vote against license in the
county every town in that county
would then stand on the same basis.
The contest for saloons on the theory
that they would hold the local trade
would be eliminated from each town
because the saloons would be eliml-
mated from all the towns of the county.
AS the conditions are now, under thu
present law there is a constant strife
between towns adjacent to each other
with the pro-license people sll the
while using the unworthy argument
that each town must hold on to the
saloon system for fear of losing the
farmer patronage. AS it is now, every
dry town in the state has a saloon
faction clamoring and plotting from
year ia year. using all the while this
old exploded theory that the rival
town is more prosperous and attracting
more farmers because il has saloons.
County option would put all the
towns I'M the county on the same basis
and these annual struggles In each
town. and the feuds and bad feelings
ersendered by them would largely dis
appear.