The sun., 1910-02-06
MISS PAUL'S DAYS In JAIL
EXPORTED SUFFRAGETTE ON
FORCIBLE FEEDING.

That Conditions I'm America Call |
FER Militant Methosia-kIer studies. |
Miss Alice Paul. the University Of |
girl who was seven times |
arrested. three times imprisoned and |
Tor four weeks foroibly fed by the British |
authorities just because she could not |
break herself Of the habit of shouting |
Votes for Womenl" came all the way |
over from Philadelphia yesterday just |
to be interviewed.
She arrived at the headquarters OF the |
Equality League OF Self-Supporting |
Women about 1880 o'clock under the |
OF Mrs. Nora Batch De |
Forrest.
Mira. De Forrest motioned her guest |
to a seat under n richly colored poster |
Mrs. Pankhurst.
Nov tell us all about it, she said
enoouragingly.
Miss Paul sighed and olasped her
hands tightly in her lynx muff. She is
q slender. fragile looking young woman
with dark brown hair, calm gray eyes
and pale olive skin.
Il don't know Just what you want me
to tell she murmured in soft tones
that persons who hadn't been to England
would describe as English. Wouldn't
IL be betterif you asked me some equsstions'
Perhaps II would agreed Mrs. De
Forrest.
what do they do when they forcibly |
feed your" chorused half dozen voices.
Miss Paul shuddered.
why. they put you in straight backed
chair she said. and tie sheet around
your waist. another just under your
arms and a third around your neck. so |
can't move a quarter Of an inch. They |
then take q rubber tube about five OF six |
feet long and insert IL In one OF your
nostrils and push it through the nasal
passages down into the throat. Your |
nose begins at once to bleed violently, |
and you choke and gasp and the tube
usually sticks in the throat, although the |
operator pushes rs hard az he can-quite |
in fact as IL he were driving a stake in |
the ground. Then it is pulled out and in
serted in the other nostril. After one OF
two trials the tube In driven down into |
the stomach and some liquid food Is forced |
through it."
"Horriblel" exclaimed the listeners. |
How often did they do IL TO your asked |
one Of them in awestruck tones.
-Oh, twice a day for four weeks in my |
particular case replied Miss Paul
nonchalantly.
And didn't it make you sick7'
well, I spent most Of the time in bod. |
We were supposed to perform several
kinds OF hard labor. but We aren't doing
that any more. Not q single suffrAgstte
has obeyed any OF the prison rules since
ast October"
And wasn't your mother dreadfuIly
frightened about your
Il suppose abe wns.' said Miss Paul.
Il didn't know about Il at the time,
ecause We weren't allowed to receive
any communications from the outs ide
world. you know. but II seems my parents
cabled to the American Ambassador
several times asking him 20 try to secure
my release. but he replied that he couldn't
interfere with the course Of British
Justice
But why did you break the Window
Didn't you know IL was against the lRw1'
asked a visitor who had not yet spoken.
why, va couldn't have made the
Prime Minister hear ms IL We hadn't broken
window explained Miss Paul. but
perhaps you don't understand just what
kind Of q window IL was. You know all
the Cabinet Ministers are so afraid Of the
suffragettes. or rather OF the sympathy
which they get from the people. that every
time there is to be q meeting OF any inn
portanoe they have the building in which
1t is to take place barricaded. They also
have all the approaches TO 1t on every
street guarded. and they don't let any
one enter the building for three Gays be-
fore the meeting sxcspt persons VINO are
known to those in charge. Tho Guild
Hall. where the Lord Mayors banquet
was held, was not only guarded in the
manner which l have described but a
number Of policemen were stationed on
the roof because it was feared that some
OF us might try to effect an entrance that
way.
my companion and disguised our
selves as oharwomen and got into the
building at o'clock in the morning. We
hid all day and tried 20 get into the ban
quet hall as soon asNthe dinner was on.
This we found impossible so we went up
to a room on the next floor which CON
tanned a balcony in which was a little
window about foot square overlooking
the room where the dinner was in prog
rees. We broke little hole in the glass
Of this peephole and started to make our
little speeches to Mr.. Asquith. las soon
as the diners heard us the orchestraiwas
ordered to strike up and a search begun |
for the voices. II was some time before |
we were discovered and arrested. OF
course we had to plead guilty when we
were arraigned and we were each SEN
tenced to months Imprisonment at hard
labor
What were you put in prison for the |
other times?' she was asked.
sOh, once before in Holloway for trying
to go to a Cabinet Ministers meeting
she said. and another time in Dundee
for just walking up to the door OF build
ing where one OF them was going to speak.
tried the hunger strike on in Dundee
and was let out in four days. OF course
you know why we all do the hunge strike,
don't your"
Seeing expressions Of. doubt on the
faces Of some of those present. Miss
Paul explained that the authorities
must do one Of four things to the suifra-
gettes who refused TO eat in prison.
IF they let them starve," she said,
1T will be awfully bad for the party in
power. because the workingmen all over
the country will unite against them.
II they let the women out after a day
or two they will be criticised for not
being able TO enforce the sentences which
the judges have given. As for the foroible
feeding, they will soon have to give that
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