Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-03
w. G.. T. u. Department
BY JULIA A. GARRISON

in vain to recover a share in COM
knowledge. These are facts, even
though people often refuse to believe
them.
A husband is bound to support his
wife. A wife is bound to support her
husband when he cannot support him
self. Her separate property is liable
for certain community debts.
Divorce may be granted for any OF
the following causes: Adultery, eX-
treme cruelty, willful desertion, will
full neglect, habitual intemperance or
conviction of felony.
A wife may work for years in or
out of the home, economizing hero
ically, planning to use her savings
for her children's education. But her
death without the possibility of will
ing the money to her own children
may be followed by the husbands re-
marriage and by the squandering of
wife, while the children of the first
marriage are taken from school and
put at once to work.
One California woman, 49er
mother of a crippled son, spent many
years of deep anxiety as she grew old,
because she knew the law prevented
her from willing a dollar of commu-
nifty property to this son. She had the
added fear that her husband would
manage to divert the community prop
erty so as to leave her penniless in
her old age. She could not protect her
son or herself from poverty. Other
wives are as helpless, whether they
know it or not.
A married woman may become "a sole
trader by certain legal steps, at some
expense, and with humiliation AS
such she may control her earnings and
business as an independent individual.
Women are admitted on the same
terms as men to all departments of
the state university Women of cour-
age forced their way into the uniVer-
sity years ago anu left the doors open.
Women are eligible to school Office
throughout the state. Half the county
superintendent of schools are women.
Women serve as school trustees.
Women occasionally fill high educa-
tional positions, but usually the high
salaried places are given to men, who
are promoted over the heads of eXpe-
rienced and able women.
Women are lawyers, doctors and
ministers in churches of all denomina-
tions except three. No law prevents
their serving as jurors, but custom has
so far prevented their service.
Women do not receive equal pay for
equal work either as teachers or in
other positions Women receive less
pay for identical or better work.
Women are taxpayers. Taxation
without representation is tyranny now
as it was in 1916.
"The age of consent" is is years.
A girl cannot legally sell any property
at 16, but she can consent to the loss
of her virtue. Girls are often stolen
or seduced, but convictions Nare ex-
tremely rare. The codes protect clans
and Holsters and fish and birds, but
they fail to protect girls sufficiently, or
to punish those who trade in girls as
sex slaves.
Woman offenders against any law
are arrested by men, imprisoned with
men (police matrons are not found in
all jails), tried in court by men
lawyers, jurors and judge, according
to man made laws. Half the Jurors
should be women, at least in cases re-
lating to crimes by women or against
women.
Women have not even school suf-
frage in California. They are allowed
to vote partial suffrage in twenty-nine
states. Three for school district trus-
tee; three are school and taxpaying
suffrage. Eighteen states have some
form of school suffrage. One state has
municipal. suffrage. Four states have
votes for men and women on equal
terms.
The women of California may vote
after both branches of the legislature
have given a two-thirds vote In favor
of an amendment, without signature
of governor, and after the men of Cal
ifornia have given a majority vote in
favor Of votes for women.
Women who are suffering injustice
in their homes or in the courts are
seldom able to take a public stand
against present laws. Women whose
husbands are better than the laws,
and women who are not in subsection
are free to take an active part in the
movement for equality and freedom.