Omaha daily bee., 1909-08-08

hurst clasps her hands and leans forward.
looking at your intently FUN face. with an
expression that with older and more settled
might be termed grim. we shall
continue 10 make ourselves as obnoxious
as we can and while for the moment there
does not seem 10 be any more effective
ways than those already used. no doubt
new inspirations will come from time TO
time as they have in the past.
Revolt In Prison.
The latest one, you know. is the revolt
Of the women in prison who have smashed
windows. starved themselves. refused to
wear the prison Rarb. torn in when put on
them and In a word broken every rule and
regulation. The maximum penalty that can
be allotted for this offence is fourteen
days Of close confinement. and they are
willing. II not eager TO endure this.
CLOSE confinement is not pleasant. l
had several days Of II. The idea Is TO
break the spirit, and II Is true you DO
come out in rather a limp condition, for
the air In the cells is horrible. 1t will
be better all through with the broken
windows, and without that barrier, OF
course. conversation can be carried on,
which is infringing rules again.
This morning we sent some Of our
staff OF workers up TO Holloway to meet
any OF the regular prisoners whose SEN
fences terminated today. In prison, you
don't know how, but It is quiet true, news
flies about, and from time to time we
ave been able by this means to get some
information regarding our people.
These poor wretches are rather proud
to talk with US. In their eyes # certainly
lends a prestige to prison life which has
been sadly wanting in the past, to have it
shared with women OF intellectual and
social caste. one of the worst phases,
from the point Of view and imprisonments,
100 up to date, is the secret undermining
of the fear and humiliation Of serving a
term which has been a salient deterrent
Of crime.
Worries the Ma sfstrnte.
The authorities recognize this and when
the magistrate In the last Bow street trials
said that he would be glad when the mat
ter was finally settled, he had this 1
should Judge in mind as we'll as the pre-
valent fear everywhere about tina some
real harm may result in one of the raids.
which, II It ever occurs, will be a blot
on England's chivalry which can never
be wiped out. Mr.. Gladstone, the home
secretary, responsible for homes and pris-
ons, says that his obligations are so great
that he has really suffered and that he
will be glad when the matter is brought
to conclusion.
Holloway prison holds 500. 1t is the
only prison for women in London. The
sixteen suffragist prisoners there now have
created a panic among the officials. II the
present case is decided against us, 100
more awaiting sentence will have TO be sent
there mutinous and determined, and you
lLnou O pnptfny a, prio,p ;s ~ a pHoaganN
thing for the authorities.
w hope the next demonstration will
land 500 there and no doubt it will. What
is going TO happen then? Can Holloway
continue to do business at the same old
stand under the same conditions, with
this new problem to face? More than
three-quarters filled with suffragettes
whore will the regular criminals go. and
will the revolt spread to them?
If we win one part of our claim and are
treated as prisoners of the first class we
can wear our own clothes, we can carry
on our professions. nave our secretaries
etc. and have our food sent from outside
hat means a great deal Of extra service
and trouble and IL II becomes a center OF
s~uffragetts activities as 1t surely would
ment furnishing a headquarters for the
votes for women propaganda
1T is as ridiculous as that of the prime
minister going about everywhere under
police protection, as II is said he does
having a bluecoated breakwater to ment
off the waves Of suffragettes, as ridiculou,
as the position Of the 'antis' shrieking II
public that women have no place Their,
but should stay at home"
II Amuses London.
There is no doubt that social Londor
looks upon the cause with a kind of iron
ical humor. Everywhere one goes one hear
some amusing suffragette story. At on,
I party 1t is the tale Of the policeman whC
: at one Of the Parliamentary raids wa.
l forced to yank down by the ankles
shrteking sister from her position on tn,
e pedestal of King Georges statue to which
I she had climbed to harangue the mob.
How did yer manage to get her dow
I without hurting herr" some philanthropis
e s%trolling by who had seen the captur,
Q asked OF Bobby afterward.
o 'Ow'd Hi manage, sir2 Why, HIS
E married man and Hi knows 'ow to 'andl
8 EN-"
( The declaration of a male suffragist a
the trial of his wife that he was per
9 fecty willing to pay a guinea a weeI
{ every week she was in jail bore to tn
r synieal a different meaning than was in
( tended and although 1t happened last win
/ ter the remark is still quoted as showing
y a certain advantage that the man pos
a sesses whose wife is allied to the caus
e over the husbands whose help meets ar
indifferent.
d 1T hasn't been easy" says Miss Pank
$ hurst, speaking Of this phase OF the sub
ject, the facing ridieule and the runnin
e counter TO convention. It requires a 10
of courage; II isn't a thing that you coul
possibly do unless you had a very stron
reason for IL.
n Lesson of Experience.
e "when we commenced we commenced /
e a very ladylike manner. We never though
Z OF interrupting a political speaker until h
. had finished his speech. The consequence
> OF this was that Immediately 1t becam
known that VI we're represented at
meeting by women who had questions I
ask and objections to raise, the speake
left and the press with him the very M
u ment he had finished and the suffragett
movement might just as well have bee
: n~on-existent,
1t was this knowledge that first force
US into the militant path. Today we ha,
a reached the point where We are exclude
from political meetings, many politician
absolutely refusing TO utter a word