The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-12-20
GIVES REASONS FOR
 FAVORING SUFFRAGE
Detailed Letter Sent to President by Shapiro in Applying for
 Membership

letter which describes the changes through which Birmingham cltlzen opinion of equal suffrage passed before he finally accepted the belief was received by the president of the Equal Suffrage association of Birmingham, Mrs. Solon Jacobs. at it's last meeting. The sentl- ment of the writer toward womans rlshts is presented as follows:
 Dear Mrs Jacobs: Please tender this as my application for admission to mem bership in the Birmingham Equal Sui frage league.
 .srhis application, which of course ln- wolves my belief in the enfranchisement of women-a complete reversal or my previous position-is not Judgment or inc moment, but the resultant of consid- erable thought.
 My views on the subject have tray ersed four periods;
 "1. I first regarded the suffrage at. titude as one of temerity assumed. oy a cluster of female freaks.
 .2. The movement next appeared to me in the guise of a colossal joke.
 $. But when foreign nations-nations whose laws we imitate-and few or our states extended the ballot to women 1t oc- cured to me that the question, however unostentatious it appeared to it's op- ponents, was assuming herculean propor- tions. and demanded tolerance, respect ahd recognition.
 A. And when such ameliorists as Jane Addams and Stephen Wise and Ben Lind sey and Israel Zangwill and Graham Tay- Tor and Edward Devine and Frederick c. Howe and Reginald Wright Kaufman, and the remainder of the army of altru- ists, humanitarians who have dedicated their lives to social and industrial amel- ioration, espoused it's merits, and upon observing the salutary effects that the granting to women of the opportunity to participate in their own affairs was going movement to democratize the hu- man race.
 "This is an era of service. The di- vine creed of the common brotherhood of man was never before indoctrinated with a loftier degree of intensity Char tty is being subdued by social justice.
 ITO completely effect this social jus tice remedial and preventive legisla- ton is requisite. My limited observa- ton has been that in this effort to- ward alleviation the women of the land have assumed an Atlas role. In most instances they undertake the initia- tive It seems a most fallacious con- dition that these magnanimous women should be barred from actually voting their curative endeavors into effect.
 "Women are the most competent, nay, the most natural, ministers of the household. The nation is but large household and its citizens are members of huge family. The deprivation of women in the participation of govern mental affairs is not only unjust to the women but rank injustice to the entire social organism. Why seek their aid in matters peculiarly within their province and then deny them the power of executing their ideas through the medium of direct and practical meth ods? The nation imperatively needs the counsel of all its citizens.
 '.In word, the question Of woman suffrage resolves itself into this: Would the granting of the vote to women im- prove conditions?
 q regard social justice or the con- servation of human rights as the most vital and acute problem of this re- public Experience demonstrates that women can contribute incalculably to- ward the wisest, safest and expeditions solution of that problem. Hence the conclusion is inevitable that l favor