The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1912-04-05


between the sexes, the distinction is
vital. Men are characterized by force,
power, might, strength, vigor, energy,
vehemence, violence, coarseness, bru-
tality; women are characterized by sa-
gacity, diplomacy, adroitness. finesse,
cleverness, shrewdness, cunning, arti-
flee. intrigue, craftiness, thickness,
subtlety, duplicity, guile.
The political evils which most
threaten the safety of society are not
those which fight In the open with
might and vigor, giving and taking
manly blows, but they are those which
attain their ends by intrigue and sub
tlety and duplicity and guile. If Pat
rick and Hans and Giovanni and Pet
erovski are running the country, shall
Bridget and Gretchen and Rosetta and
Maryanski come to the rescue?
have in my desk the evidence that the
vote of women in Los Angeles largely
brought about there the defeat of pro
hibtion last November Can we help
shrinking back from the certain influ-
ence on womanhood and even on poll
tics of it's becoming good form" for
woman to match against, or supple
ment with, mans might and coarse
ness and brutality in politics-w woman's
diplomacy, cleverness, artlIice and sub
tlety? win feminine righteousness
through equal suffrage purify slum
politics or will feminine duplicity give
an added smudge? "The women are
all smarter than the men"
One of our leading educators said to
me yesterday, Il think that perhaps
the advent of woman in politics might
for the time elevate political morals,
but | dread the effect on our women" B."
Have we not also occasion to fear the
ultimate effect on politics? "The wo.
men are all smarter than the men"
II it becomes good form for wemen
to enter politics, the shrewdest most
undermined and sneaking man wire
puller will find that just an ordinary
woman can beat him at his own game.
Like the rest of you, when ! came
here expected to vote to submit equal
suffrage to the electors at the fall
election, but ! cannot do It; the bah
its of a lifetime prevent it. Manly
men are accustomed to defer to the
wishes of the good woman about them
Mother, wife and daughters are op'
posed to woman suffrage. A large ma
jority of even the grange women In
our county do not want It, OF the larg-
er constituency, tabulated statements
in Secretary Sandles' office show that
two out of every three hundred city
housewives in the state do not believe
in It. And more than two out of three
hundred country housewives are op
posed to equal suffrage SO that II
because you think the women want It,
, some of us must vote against 1t be
cause we know that our women and
the most womanly women we are ac
quainted with do not want it. Thous
, ands OF such women are appealing tc
us to save them from the unwelcome
burden which their militant sisters are
demanding at your hands. And some
[ of us must speak and vote for the
A quietloving home-loving, child-lovinl
/. women, whom men love, even though
+ an alto protest be made gainst 1t.
q We have here today further proc
+ that the women are all smarter thar
0 the men" No body of men of equa
Q numbers with the Equal Suffrage Asso
s citation could have worked a politica
= machine so effectively and made sucl
{ an impression on this convention al
= months. The State Board of Com
I merce, the Liberal League and It's al
!, lies, the Anti-Saloon League and III
v allies, and even the Good Roads pee
d pie are distanced out OF sight by tn,
D above association They began thei
s campaign of education last fall II
Q newspapers and by circulars; In Jan
e uary and February directly ant
' through the w. G. 7. us, they circu
lated their petitions, which have beel
coming to US and have been referre,
to the committee on equal suffrage
This week they have brought us tn
pile of petitions, thinking that the,
represent the womanhood OF the state
Nay, that all the women that are II
the state think as they think; an,
Q their assurance is so colossal that the
have made this convention believe tina
@ they are right, and we are likely I,
r grant almost without discussion al
i that they ask for. While the facts are
y that not one woman in a hundred L
} the state of Ohio signed that petitio
y and the request of that petition mis-