The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-04-16
oNE-GALL.s WOMEN.


frago Association Is holding its forty
second annual convention in Washing.
ton. There are seven hundred dele
gates in attendance. rho Rev. DR..
Anna Shaw is president of The Asso-
citation. Ste is a fine woman. Nearly
ali of the members are fine women,
except the twelve men who are pres
emit and they are doubtless fine men.
as men go But there are some enc
gallus or one garter ladies present
and they made their presence selt
Thursday night when they Kissed tho
President of the United States lie
had bcen invited TO attend the con-
vontion and bid the Assoc ia'ion vel
come to the National Capital, and,
never dreaming for moment that lie {
would be insuned by the women VIM '
had invited him, or by thei: associates,
he accepted their invitation. and &C
copied it against the protest Of equal
ly good women who are opposed TO
woman suffrage. He will know BET
ter next time, although we nope that
he Will not suffer himself to make auy
change in his very reasonable views on
the suffrage question because OF the un.
gentlemanly conduct of the wall flowers
wfo behaved as badly as anE of thel
rednccks and hillbilles who have
brought manhood suffrage into n!er-
tied contempt in Arkansas, not to
mention the unsocmly demonstrations
OF the wool-hat gang in other South
ern states and the sand-lot crowd who
followed Dennis Kearney on the Pa
cifc.
Mr.. Taft, however. has nothing to-
regret about the incident which came
Very near being solar plexus Tor he
suffra gists of the Shaw school. that is
10 say, If any body of women working
for equal .ights could be charged with
The possession OF such a spot iii
their makeup. After telling the com
Inittce which invited him to attend
the opening session of the convention
that he did not believe III all the
things for which they contend, and
being assured by the committee that
he was to have free swing, he was
over persuaded 10 make his appear
ance. and no sooner did he say some
thing which some members of the con-
vention did not understand. but which
they imagined was an insult to their
masculinity, than they began to hiss.
after the manner of the goose. After
saying that ION the whole every in
telllgent class which is really intelH-
gent knows its own interests and Is
better qualified to determine how those
interests shall be cared for than any
other class, no matter how aItruissic."
Mr. Taft added:
The class should as Il whole
care enough 10 look after its
interests, 10. take part as whole
fn the EXERCISE. ot'poltical power if II
is conferred Now, If it does not
care enough for this, then it seems to
me that the danger is, If the power is
conferred. that it may be exercised by
that part of the class least desirable
as political constituents and be neg
lected by many of those who are IN
telligent and patriotic and would he
most desirable as members OF the
electorate
Mr.. Taft proved his point; for 1T was
lust as ne finished this perfectly clear
and reasonable statement that the
geese began to hiss, thus proving be
yond the peradventure of a doubt tha
they certainly could not be safely N
trusted with the exercise of sutrraG
which requires any degree of intelli
gence. We are not surprised tina
their more self-respecting associate
in the convention should have bee
greatly huniliated by their conduct
The behavior of the Kissing geese
however, ought not to be laid u
against the cause, any more than tn
riotous conduct of the ignorant an
irresponsible who participate in 'nen
assemblies should be regarded a
ground for denying the suffrage
men. The incident only proved tina
there are wool-hats in pettlcoats a
well as in brooches,
Mr. Taft deserves to be congratr
lated upon his fine conduct in a some
what embarrassing situation, and h
rebuke WAS the finest thing that /
has done for many day
was al the same time one OF the hare
est licks that has yet been given
the Movement Tor equal rights.