The Washington times., 1911-02-22
REASON WHY TOLD
BY SUFFRAGETTE
Sylvia Pankhurst Gives Ex-
cuse for Militant Methods in
Interrupting Parliament.
Sylvia Pankhurst-suffragette,

Sylvia PankhurSt-SuffraGe
She admits it. She does not want any
euphemistic toning to that title. She
is proud of it. She told an audience at
the Columbia Theater this morning just
why?
Clad in a Grecian gown, the twenty
year-Old English girl who, with some
of the "shrieking sisterhoOd' has
caused parliament considerable en-
baTrassment, told why she adopted
militant methods. She says she doesn't
martyrs were ridiCued. and she ad-
Vertises her lecturing tour on large
posters: Sylvia Pankhurst, Sufragette,
from an English Prison"
mentioned this prison, Holloway Jail, as
a possible candidate for Shonors with
Bedford Jail in which John Bunyan
wrote "PilgIims Progress.
Mr.. SiddOns also chivalrously stated
that perhaps the newspaper accounts OF
militant suffragism had been slightly
exaggerated. Miss Pankhurst VigOr-
Ously denied this.
GrandmotherS Were Suffragettes.
"Our mothers and grandmothers were
suffragists," she said. They held their
meetings and sent their petitions by
postage But no one had heard much
about them. That's why militant meth
ods were needed. We got down our
history books and found that in 1870,
when certain men wanted a hearing
they sacked towers, tore bishops, and
members of parliament from their car
riages, committed murder, and did
awful things.
We didn't want to be quite so dis
orderly As men," Miss PankhurSt con-
tinued so We merely decided we would
go in parliament and ask questions.
Those men didn't pay any attention 10
us. Then we said, We shall have to
copy men a little more so We began to
interrupt their speeches.
Then, according to Miss Pankhurst,
when a woman began to speak she was
first Chucked under the chin, led out
side in the halls where her arms were
twitched and her hair oftentimeS torn
down.
The speaker complained that men We're
no longer chivalrOus because they did
not always stand back when women
were trying to make their way INTO
tram cars and busseS.
''One man did stop me one day" she
said, and asked me to get aboard
first He said he was surprised at the
way women were treated in England;
it was so different where he came from
Australia. There women have vote.
Miss PankhurSt said she is not quite
sure about the laws OF this country IN
regard to the rights of parents to chill
H.
Women Must Get Pull"
Laws" she explained, are for people
who don't know enough how to be
good"
In order to get their rights, Miss
Pankhurst thinks women must have
more pull" "and then women will be
as well paid as men. ! don't know how
it is in your country, but over in Eng
land there are more of us, so they think
We are cheap.
The lecture was given under the aus
pices of the State Equal Suffrage League
of Washington. one Of the lntroduc-
tions was made by Miss Harriet J. Hil-
ton, president of that body.
Major Sylvester sent a deputlZatlon OF
blueCOatS TO see that no militant demon
StraIiOns took place around the theater.
Notice also was served that no sidewalk
chalk advertising would be permitted.
Another plan was 70 advertise by means
of sandwich men, but this also was
abandoned.
The meeting was scheduled to begin at
II o'clock, but was delayed by the late
arrival of the speaker The crusaders
did considerable campaigning in the
lobby.
Miss Pankhurst arrived in Washington
at o'clock this morning. After the
meeting she was entertained at the New
I;bhi,t House where she and Miss Anna
{. ECltOn. tiducCo Of DR.. II. w. Wiley,
were guests Of honor.