New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-12-16
W News Of nt9rgSt a.
- CO zMgmgI1 = ~
WOMEN AND PROHIBITION
suffragists Never Undertook to
Abolish Saloons.

To the Editor or Inc JrlDune.
Sir: In communication from Josephine
NJ Dodge. printed in The Tribune Of De
cemher Il. II Is stated the prohibition was
formerly 2 slogan of the suffraglsts. Ref
erence is made 70 the CRY of the SUI
fragists that prohibition and abolshment
Of the saloon will follow in the wake of
the woman vote
At the National Suffrage headquarters
No rs Fifth avenue there are thousands
of pieces Of literature, including the ON
cial publications OF the suffrag ists for many
years past 7 challenge any one to produce
one Of them I'm which II is stated thai
equal suffrage will result in prohibition
Mrs. Dodge has. in fact mixed the sur
fragists with the Womans Christian Tenn
perance Union. The women Of this organi'
zation are by no means all su1ragists' OUT
when they are II is usually because they
wish 10 vote against the saloon. But the
two organizations are entirely different
bodies Of women.
/ Mrs Dodge criticises DR. Anna Shaw fol
saving recently that the liquor interests
financed the opposition in the Colorado SUI
| frage campaign Of 1898. AS my sister was
secretary Of that campaign and l was
member Of the campaign committee. per
/ haps have some authority TO speak in tha'
matter. There was no organized opposition
at all in that campaign. It's opponents mao
no idea that the measure had any chance
{ OF passing Just before election, however
some one became alarmed and flooded Den
yer with leaflets against the suffrage refer
endum. They were anonymous. but on the
back were advertisements of various
liquors. This fact is perfectly we'll known
10 persons who took part IN the Colorado
campaign, and Is probably what pr, Sha"
had in mind.
/ Mrs. Dodge quotes Western papers as
saying that Mrs. Smith Of Washington
states that the liquor interests of Washing
ton helped the women Of that state get the
vote. 7 took an extremely active part i'm the
Washington campaign. and ] cannot help
thinking that Mrs. Smith has been misun-
derstood or nisquoted In Spokane for days
before election posters were hung in saloons
bearing the legend IF YOU want to cook
your own meals hereafter vote for woman
suffrage" Apparently that was what Spo-
kane men wanted. a they voted that way
There is published in Seattle a paper
named "The Patriarch" the organ Of the
big liauor interests Of the state, and con-
tanning practically no other kind Of adver-
tisements. This for repeated issues before
election was filed with abuse Of the suf-
frasists. approaching the obscene. ! per
sonally purchased a large number OF these
papers and mailed them to clergymen as
valuable campaign documents for the
amendment, and I still have some in my
possession.
What right has anybody, anyway, IN de
mand that women shall vote either for or
against prohibition in order TO have the
vote? No such demand has ever been MADE
of men.
No movement. can control the speech or
action Of all individuals connected with II.
But the organized suffrage movement has
never pledged its support TO any party or
nIedged it's members to any political action
after their enfranchsement.
MINNIE J. REYNOLDS,
Press Committee New York State Suffrage
Association.
New York. Dec. -, 19ll