The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-12-05
Abbott Reads Letters.

New York. Dec 4.-The attitude of President Roosevelt and. of Secretary of State Elihu Root on the subject of woman suffrage. was disclosed today at a meeting, under the,auspices of the National League for the Civic Educa- tion of Women.
 The Rev. pr. Lyman Abbott, editor of The Outlook, in the course of an ad- dress in opposition to granting the rights to vote to womep. read letter from President Roosevelt which he said he read with the Presidents per mission. although 1t was not written for publication, nor for this occasion" !"
 pr, Abbott who was the principal speaker at the meeting, argued against what he held would be the inhiction of an unnatural responsibility and duty on women by forcing on them the ob- ligations of public life. The title of his address was The Assault on Wo- manhood"
 Secretary of State Root, in letter which was read at the meeting. says:
 T do not myself consider that the granting of suffrage to women would under the existing conditions, be any improvement in our system of govern ment. On the contrary, I think 1t would rather reduce than increase the electoral efficiency of our people. 
 the women of the United States or any very large majority of them, should really come to want the right of suf- fraRa for themselves. they would ulti- mately get 1t. For the purpose of. ex- ercising the right of suffrage if they should ever get 1t, and for. the purpose of determining intelligently whether they really want 1t. the women of the country generally ought to have and 4a oaSm a degree of education In questions of government and in the practical arts of government than they have had up to this time"
 Richard Watson Glider. aditor of The Century Magazine presided at the meeting and in the course of his ad- dress said:
 'Within a few days sthe country has been shocked by the appalling ofaeiaI figures of divorce in the United States. In the face of this lamentable showing as to an increasing weakness in the sentiment of home and the family are the foundations of the best things that humanity has yet achieved; and to lift up their voices against what in their solemn belief is a new, insidious and possibly disastrous attack on the fun damentals of civilization"
 RO0sevelt's Views.
 President Roosevelts views were as follows:
 Personally believe in woman's suffrage" says Mir. Roosevelt at the outset of the letter. which is dated No- yember 10, 1903. but I am not an en- thusiastic advocate of 1t, because I do not regard It as very important mat ter. I am unable to see that there has been any special improvement in the position of women in those States In the West that have adopted woman suf- frage, as compared with those States adjoining them that have not adopted it.
 '''I do not think that giving the wo- men suffrage will produce any marked improvement in the condition of wo- men. do not believe that 1t will pro- duce any of the evils feared, and I am very certain that when women as a whole take any special interest in the matter, they will have the suffrage if they desire 1t. But at present think most of them are lukewarm; I find some actively for 1t. and some actively against it. am, for the reasons above given. rather what you would regard as lukewarm or tepid in my support of ft because. while I believe in it. I do not regard it as of very much i'm portance. I believe that man and wo- man should stand on an equality of