The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-12-14
GOT MAD At
THE PRESIDENT
Women Did Not Relish Words OF
Advice Concerning Their
Work in Life.

President Roosevelt belleVe III
woman suffrage, but am not an enthu-
siastic advocate of it.
Secretary EIihu Root do not con-
slider that the granting Of suffrage to
women would be any Improvement IN
our system of government.
Ellen f. Sargent, honorable presi-
dent California Equal Suffrage Associ-
ation-Anyone who will attempt TO
| take the ballot away from other
human beings, or to deprive half the
people of ballots, is tyrant. Presl-
dent Roosevelt talks of equality. He
| ought to know what equality means.
1t means equal rights for men and wo-
men both We suffragists do not be-
lieve in special privileges for men
which are forbidden to women.
Mary E. sperry, president-The tel
egraph tells us that President Roose-
velt says woman's suffrage is "an un-
important matter He is entirely
mistaken. Woman's s suffrage is of
vital Importance to women. Men
have suffrage. If the franchise could
be taken away from all men tonight,
they would forget all other questions
and unite early in the morning and
set about recovering their ballots. Man
suffrage is a necessity for men. Wo-
man suffrage is as great a necessity
for women-and women are awaken
ing to its importance.
A letter from President Roosevelt,
read at a meeting of the National
League of the Civic Education of Wo-
men, in New York, in which he de-
clared himself lukewarm supporter
of women's suffrage, produced good
sized row among the women present.
The President wrote:
Roosevelt's Letter.
Practically, I believe in woman's
suffrage, but I am not an enthusiastic
advocate of it. because I don't regard
it as a very important matter. 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's suffrage,
as compared with those States adioin-
ing them that have not adopted it. :
I do not think that giving the
women suffrage will produce any
marked improvement in the condition
of women. I do not believe that it
will produce 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 it. But at
present think most of them are luke
warm; I find some actively for it and
some actively against it.
I am, for the reasons given above,
rather what you would regard as
lukewarm or tepid in my support of
it, because, while 7 believe in it, do
not regard it as of very much import
ance.
I believe that man and woman
should stand on an equality of right,
but [ do not believe that equality of
rights means identity of function;
and I am more and more convinced
that the great field, the indispensable
field, for the usefulness of women is
as the mother of the family. It is her
work in the household, in the home,
her work in bearing and rearing the
which is more than any
man s work, and it is that work which |
should be normally the woman's spe- |
sial work, Just as normally the man s
work should be that of the bread |
winner, the supporter of the home,
md. if necessary, the soldier who viii
light for the home.
There are exceptions as regards
both man and woman; but the full
md perfect life, the life of highest
happiness and of highest usefulness to
he State, is the life of the man and
woman who are husband and wife,
Who live in the partnership of love