The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-09-12
a WoMAN's VIEW OF WOMAN
SUFFRAGE.

/ a WoMANS VIEW OF WOMAN
SUFFRAGE.
IN the recent discussion OF woman
suffrage in this country the objections
10 the proposition that have been
urged by women have been, perhaps
quite as numerous as. and in MANY
instances more forcible than the oh.
Jections urged by men. In beginning
an article on the subject in the Allan.
TIC Monthly for September. Miss Molly
Elliot Seawell deplores the superb
cial and Inadequate manner in which
the matter has been discussed on both
sides. She complains that the sui.
fragists show in their spoken and
published utterances that they have
little knowledge of the fundamentals
OF government or the real meaning of
suffrage. n their treatment of the
subject they hopelessly confuse politi-
cal, philanthropic, socialistic, and eco
nomic questions, nor do they seem
able TO discern between objects of
national and those of state and munic-
ipal regulation
On the other hand, this writer admits
that the directors to woman suffrage
have not always given logical or prac-
teal reasons against 1t. Both sides
make the mistake of assuming that the
revolution will be over when a woman
can walk up to the polling booth and
deposit ballot in the box 1t is at
this point, however, according to Miss
Seawell, ttat the revolution will be-
gin. The experience of full suffrage
for women, as it has been tried in the
states of Colorado, Idaho. Wyoming,
and Utah, has not been entirely sue
cessful, and during the last fourteen
years the states of the w, where
a nearer view of suffrage wa possible,
have repeatedly defeated suffrage
amendments to their constitutions.
A brilliant and prominent advocate
OF woman suffrage recently gave the
following as its chief objects: ''Wo-
men suffragists stand for for santa
ton, education, and the uplift of six
million working in the United
States" Miss Seawell proceeds to
analyze this formula:
First, is the universal fallacy on
the part of the suffragists that all
women will vote alike, and will vote
right
Second: neither sanitation nor ed
ucation can be the first or even the
most important object. of government
Good laws well administered, a pure
and competent judiciary, internal or
der, national defense, and many other
things, must take precedence Of SAM
tation and education. Neither santa
ton nor popular education was known
to the founders of tee Republic; yet
these founders added more to the
forms of civilization than any group
of sanitarians or educators that ever
lived.
Third; neither sanitation nor educa-
ton is national affair, but both are
the business of states and municipali-
ties.
Fourth: sanitation and education
are already well attended TO by men,
and as ia-ge a share of the public
income is devoted TO them as the PEG
pie viii bear.
Fifth: the proposition that one-haIf
the electorate Of the country shall de-
vote its energies 10 the uplifting of
six million workingwomen in the
United States is bald proposition to
create a privileged class. This is
thing abhorrent to republican institu-
tons, and is the line OF demarcation
between republics and monarchies.
There is not, and never can be,
line on any statute book in the United
States, regulating work and wages
between private individuals Any
proposition TO that effect is socialism
rnn mad. There is a socialistic asso-
ciation, highly favored by suffragists.
70 bring about that no shop-girl shall
work for less than four dollars week.
II is only just TO the weilmeaning
but Uniformed women who have gone
into this movement, 10 say that their
with governmental prob
lens is the reasons that such a gro
tesque association exists. TIE limo
cent bIunders Of equally weil-nleaning
and ill-informed suhragists in New
York City have involved them in viola
tiong Of law, and several Of their lead
ers we're indicted in June, 1910, for
and conspiracy.
Suffrage is neither a philanthropic
scheme nor an economic measure but
q registering machine The stock
Of the Euffragists have ever
been, that the suffrage would enable
2 woman 10 get the game pay for tie
same work as man. What they prob
ably mean by this ia. that woman
working the same number Of hours a.
the same employment as men is not
receive the same pay. Bur II has been
tested, AMI needs no test, that the
Work IL women for the same TING q.
I. same employment as men Ia NOT
~ good ID quality or quantity, and
s0r obvious reasons. A woman can
not stand physical effort and nervous
strain AZ man can: nine hundred
ana ninety-Dine women out Of every
thousand 20 into work with the fxed
Intention n abandoning IT at the first