Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1908-03-20


Pass in the Night" made her as ia
nous in America as here, is an earn
est worker and speaker. May Sim
clair, Clemence Mousman, Evelyn
Sharp and Violet Hunt are now on the
streets with collecting boxes asking
money from passersby, who some-
times recognize them as the popular
novelists they are but more often
laugh at them as Suffragettes.
niece Of Joachim went to prison
last week and her maid went also. Two
daughters of Gen. Brackenbury were
obligated to send a wire to George
Meredith and say they could not be at
his birthday celebration, as they have
been taken to Holloway jail for try
ing to get into the house of commons
with their sister Suffragettes.
1t was Christabel Pankhurst,s idea
that a whole week should be given
over to collecting funds. So every
woman interested in the question Of
woman's suffrage was asked to give
money or her services to get money,
so that the campaign will not he ham,
pered by lack Of funds. And it will
not. Money has poured In from every
quarter and there Is no buster place In
London today than the rooms Of the
W. S. p. u, where workers, contrib
utors. friends, etc, are continually COM
Ing In and out and where method,
system and order reign In the midst
OF constant work.
The agitation will undoubtedly con-
tinue to grow. 1t will become still
noisier. still more insistent. But IL one
examines 1t from the point OF view Of
cold, practical politics he is forced to
the conclusion that 1t is only sur
face eruption.
It has not begun to stir the body
polite as have the fallacies Of social
ism. The men Of this country once
forced an unwilling government to
grant them the franchise. They were
ready to fight for what they believed
to be a boon that would bring in its
train the reform Of all social and po-
litical evils. They got it-and were
wofully disappointed.
They found that the right to vote
didn't increase any mans wages by a
penny no matter which party was put
In power. 1t mitigated none Of their
every day grievances, it added nothing
TO their happiness. So the average
Englishman today refuses to be STIR
red to active sympathy with his wom-
en- folk in an agitation for what he
regards as an empty privilege.
1t is an open question also how ex-
tensively the demand for the suffrage
really prevails among the women of
England. Ten per cent Of the female
population are quite capable Of making
noise enough to deceive the country
themselves included, into believing
that they represent the majority Of
their sex.
1t should not be inferred that the
present movement includes so small a
proportion Of the women Of England
The suffragist campaign is stronger
than that, but 1t is by no means prov
ed that a plebiscite of adult women.
If 1t could be taken, would ask for or
exercise the franchise.
There arises therefore the very seri-
Gus objection that the granting Of the
demand for votes for women would
have a distinctly undemocratic effect.
The results of elections would be un-
representative and be virtually a gov
ernment Of the minority unless indeed
the exercise Of the franchise should be
made compulsory, a provision which
Is not included in any Of the measures
that are put forward by the Suffra-
gettes.
Most practical politicians in the
country regard the present agitation
as tactical mistake. They believe
that 1t has seriously postponed instead
Of Fastening the passage Of a woman
suffrage measure.
It is said that two or three of the
leaders of the suffragist movement
when they realized two years ago that
the Liberal government had no inten-
tion to fulfil 1t promises went in de-
spair to Arthur Balfour and asked his
advice. He replied in effect: "Agi-
tate, agitate, agitate-you can get any
thing you want in this country by
agitation" They have acted up to
this precept-too literally perhaps.
The more militant ones say: Con
ventional argument, mere decorous
talk would never arouse the country.
We were compelled to be- either
criminal or silly. Men would have
been criminal We prefer to be silly"
The Stiffness has been carried too far
on more than one occasion, notably
when 1t destroyed the chance men,
toned above Of their bill passing the
commons.
They have antagonized all the lead
ers of the Liberal party. Members Of
the cabinet who go about guarded by
detectives loathe and abhor the very
name Of Suffragette. They declare in
almost so many words that what they
were prepared to grant in due time as
a matter Of equity they will never give
under the pressure Of threats and in
timidation. not even petticoat intimi-
dation, which they ruefully admit Is
the most CALLING. kind Of all.
- hA nf hnA
tactics silly Suffragette antics and
Mrs. Pankhurst's attempts to coerce
the British government, it may be
predicted with some confidence that
the next great political development
in this country will be the granting OF
universal adult suffrage.-London
Cor. New York Sun.