Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1911-07-29
ME PENSION QUESTION
Special School Meeting Called
for Next Tuesday Evening
Women Who Are Assessed May Vote
Provisions of Some Of the Statutes
Necessity for Paying Taxes.

Believing that the vote in the regular
meeting of the incorporated school dis
trict of July 49, on the recommendation
of the prudential committee that pen
sion of half salary be voted to Mrs.
James p. Elmer was not expressive of
the real sentiment of the district, the
article having been passed over by
vote of 80 to p, the friends of the pen
sion plan have caused a special meet
ing to be called for next Tuesday even
ing at s o'clock. \ warrant containing
two articles was posted Saturday and
since then, in fact ever since the last
meeting, the pension question as relating
to the particular case in hand has been
discussed in the offices, shops and on
the streets in its various phases.
The first article reads as follows: "To
see If the district will vote under the
provisions of Act No. Sc of the Acts of
1910. and in accordance with the recon-
mendation of the prudential committee
of said district, to grant a pension to
any teacher who comes within the prov
ince of said Act, and If so, to whom and
to what amount" Article is to trans
act any other business that legally may
come before the meeting,
The question of whether women are
entitled to vote has been looked up as
far as possible this week by competent
lawyers, and their opinion is that only
such women as pay taxes have the priv
ilege of the ballot in school meeting.
That is in accord with the ruling of DR..
Henry d. Holton, moderator, in the
meeting July Is. Section CSC of the Pub
lie Statutes says: women, twenty one
years of age, shall have the same right
as men to vote on matters pertaining to
schools and school officers" That sec
ton Is under the chapter relating to the
town system, but in section 1l39 the law
is that the provisions of law relating ia
afrafa alVafaA NJ
public schools, to raising and eXpendine
school moneys and to other matters per-
tanning to schools in a town shall apply
in incorporated school districts, unless
otherwise provided. In this instance
therefore, it appears that women at
tending next Tuesdays meeting VIII
have the same rights as men. Likewise
they will be under the same restrictions
judging from the statutes. and one OF
them Is that man cannot vote unless
he pays taxes.
This raises another question. The tax
list, which Is made up for the wholt
town, contains the names OF number
of women who give in a tax inventory
individually. There seems to be no ques-
live in the Incorporated district may
vote next Tuesday. But in the tax lis'
there are a number OF instances where
the property stands in the name of Q
man and his wife, the words 'anc
wife, following the mans name. 1t Is
for somebody to decide whether the
wife is entitled to vote If she pays tax
es jointly with her husband and with
out giving in a separate individual list
Good lawyers who have looked into the
question for their own satisfaction thinl
that such women are as much entitled
\ to vote as are their husbands
.,Apparently the duty of deciding upor
INC eligibility of voters will fall upor
the moderator and prudential committee
Secson 1875 OF the Public Statutes say!
, that the moderator at a school meeting
kShe clerk and members OF the pruden
xal committee shall decide all questions
as to the eligibility of a person to vot,
in a school meeting. This relates, how