Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1910-05-23
MRS. HARRISON GOES ABROAD
Widow of President Will Educate
Daughter in Europe.
VIEWS ON DIVORCE AND POLITICS
Neutral ON Suffrage, hut Woman
who would Not Vote should
lie CIassed ms Had
Citizen.

NEW YORK, May 22.-(specal Tele-
sramD-"I feel the utmost sympathy for
Queen Alexandra, for it is a terrible blow
when ones beloved helpmatc passes away,
and the same love and devotion fills the
heart of king and queen as the heart OF
the lowest mental"
Mrs. Benjamin Harrison, widow OF the
late President Harrison, made the fore
going utterance today on the eve of her
departure for Europe, where she and her
13-year-old daughter, Elizabeth Harrison,
wiz remain for two years Mrs. Harrison
goes. abroad that her daughter may be edu.
Gated in Europe, and in doing so she fol-
lows the example of the other widow Of az
American president, Mrs. Grover Cleve
land, who is also in Europe. where her
children are being educated.
Before sailing today Mrs Harrison dis
cussed a number of topics, for she takes
keen interest in American affairs and is
a ready talker on national politics as well
as society.
High Cost of Living.
THE dreadful high cost Of living is not
driving me out of America" said she, with
a smile, "although 1t has become one OF
our biggest problems. l certainly agree
with James j. Hin that Americans are too
eXtravagant. Everyone apparently wants
to own steam yacht and an automobile
no matter whether ne can afford 1t or not,
and, unfortunately, he cannot afford but
tries to hide his poverty Sooner or later
Americans must come to learn a standard
of economy. The question seems strictly
one of American solution, for in Europe
l find one can live twice as comfortably
and surrounded by much more luxury than
in the United States on one-half the money
| it costs here.
Upon the suffrage question 1 am
neutral although l have always been in
terested in politics, and much of my life
has been spent in a political atmosphere.
The American woman must realize that
| enfranchisement imposes n duty as Wen
| as a right and that duty must be full
filled. The man who doesn't exercise hts
right to vote is called bad citizen; the
woman who would not vote after getting
the ballot would necessarily be classed
in the same category. Personally l
would make no effort whatsoever to ac-
quire the ballot although 1 am not an
ant-suffragst. 1 am naturally not inter-
| ested in the question. The women of to-
day have more power than they realize
and this was brought forcibly to my at
| tention only day or so ago when Presi-
/ dent Taft in public address, said that
United States"
On the Divorce Question.
Mrs Harrison was asked II she was q
student of the divorce question which
has become ont of Americas most motor
ious institutions and she said:
Naturally 1 have views upon 1t. To
my mind the divorce might be classed
in some degree, together with that other
evil which l mentioned. the high cost OF
, living. They are both evils and the
| sooner they are abolished, the better 1t
will be for American society. So many
bizarre propaganda ana queer tenets of
life are springing up that create divorce
| that the question seems to be more
| tangled time goes by, rather than get
| ting clarified as to solution. A national
uniform law would doubtless assist but
the sooner men and women recognize that
the old fashioned ideals are the highest
and best and purest, the sooner the di-
vorce evil will die.
Il am going abroad with my daughter
to educate her there, because 1 believe
any man or woman who spends a year or
more in a foreign country comes back Il
better American. Even amid the culture,
refinement and luxury of Europe, 1 love
the United States better and recognize
the qualities of my home most distinctly.
Nothing is so good for the boy or girl
as the broadening influence of foreign
travel"
Mrs. Harrison said she hoped to meet
Mrs. Cleveland abroad, as a warm friend
ship existed between them.