Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-21
SHOULD WOMEN VOTE?

IF nothing more formidable can be
said against the suffrage for wo-
a men than was said by Miss Min
ME Bronson before the City club on
Saturday last the advocates of equal
rights with the ballot need not fear
any serious halt in the movement
Miss Bronson appears to have totally
failed to see a delicious bit of humor
involved in her position in the matter.
She is herself filing a federal political
position at good salary and at the same
kept at home and saved from the YER
tex of active poItics
All the sophistries and abstract ar
guments on this question must give
way to the hard facts. When the op-
ponents of equal suffrage say it is not
a success or that it has bad effect on
the character of woman they are up
against the hard fact that in New
Zealand Finland, Norway and four
American states idll woman suffrage
is in operation with success and no
serious proposal is heard that it shall
be abolished. Travellers say the sci
ence of government has reached it's
highest development in New Zealand.
Some of the anti-suffragists make
the concession that women should be
allowed a vote on school questions,
which is so obvious that few have the
hardihood to dispute it. If woman is
capable of wisely using the suffrage on
scbaol mo +farc--o1nonp tho most inn
portant of all we have to deal with
and calling for the highest order of
intelligence-why in the name of all
that is fair is she lot capable of vot-
ing on lesser questions?
One of the amusing postulates of
Miss Bronson was that the ballot was
"given" to man in return for his mill
tary and police service. Who gave"
it to him? He took his authority by
the power of might in day when he
thought woman his chattel and beast
of burden; when he made her carry
his loads and till his fields while he
was off fighting fer some fool cause,
or often browsing in the sun.
Ever since, being the government"
by arrogation and supercilious superb
ority, he has held on to what he gave
himself; but reason is coming to have
a part in this question as in others, and
he finds himself trying to square the
acts and attitude of his semi-barbarous
forefathers with twentieth century
conditions, and the arguments he is
compelled to advance are often quite
pitiable.
If it be conceded that war services
entitle to the ballot, who but the wo
men, after bearing and rearing the
sons to do the fighting, gave their
time and deft hands to molding bull
let's for them and making flags during
the Revolution for the new republic?
Who but the women made the clothes
for the soldiers Of the Civil War on
both sides and nursed them in the
camps and hospitals? Is this any less
war service than carrying a musket
and pulling the trigger?
The secretary Of state of Wyoming
says 80 per cent of the women vote.
That disposes of any claim that wo-
ernor Warren of the same state says:
"Our women nearly all vote; and since
in Wyoming as elsewhere the majority
of women are good and not bad, the
result is good ami not evil" No con-
fidence can be placed in political news
papers that denounce woman suffrage
They have reasons. There are papers
that still denounce the initiative and
referendum, but its adoption is becom-
ing universal, just the same.
The greatest benefit to come from
woman's vote will be on moral ques-
tions. BY nature she is endowed with
qualities that better fit her to pass
rightly on moral questions than man.
1t is the testimony of observers that
since Colorado gave woman the ballot
the political parties have become chary
of putting notoriously bad men on
their tickets.
The City club can do no less than
invite an able speaker of the female
sex who favors equal suffrage to reply
to the arguments of Miss Bronson. It
is ten to one she would confine herself
to the hard facts and leave the alb
stract question of justice to the reason
and conscience of ner auditors.