Bridgeton pioneer., 1912-03-21
NICHOLS OPPOSES.
VOTES FOR WOMEN
Makes a Big Speech Against
Bill.
THE BILL IS DEFEATED
Senator Gebhardt Clashes with the
Cumberland Senator Over
Suffrage Resolution.


resolution to amend the constitution
giving women suffrage, was beaten in
the Senate yesterday afternoon. The
Huaterdon Senator eloquently cham
pioned the right of women to vote,
while Senator /. T. Nichols opposed
the proposition, and talked at length
about women's place being IN the
home looking after her domestic af-
fairs. Gebhardt and Nichols hal sew
eral clashes.
The speech of Senator Nicao3s is
interesting.
Senator Nichols declared that no
one held woman in higher admiration
than he, and for years he had stood
on the floor of the Legislature advo-
eating measures looking to the better
protection of the rights of women in
their property. AS friend of woman
he sat there to defend her against the
evils of the day when she would have
the right to vote. He said she was
the best part of creation, and there
was no more sacred relation than that
of husband and wife, which had been
unmarried by the centuries, but is now
proposed to be marred by political
dissension and division Women of
New Jersey as mass do not desire
suffrage, he said The average home
where the good woman resides in the
peace of domesticity does not require
the ballot, and the woman who pre-
sidestover il will tell you she does not
want to vote. Her sphere in life lies
in other directions. The leadership of
life is vested in the male, and the male
must shoulder the responsibilities.
AS to the question of taxation with
out representation, the Senator said it
was only question of the husbands S
paying the taxes after all, for in the
case of the married woman she would
say: Here, John, pay my taxes" IF
she is a single woman and owns prop
erty, she wants to be considered the
equal of the man she didn't get" he
said. He also called attention to the
fact that in the vote in Los Angeles,
Cal, license was carried by the vote
OF 10000 women. He, said that the
agitation in favor of woman suffrage
was due largely to literary %oman and
theorists, who We're not carrying out
the edicts sent down from Heaven. He
said that if the franchise were ex-
tended, the good women will stay at
home and the bad women go to The
polls. r,
Isn't that largely true of the men
now?" inquired Senator Gebhardt.
If that's true now, why add to the
purchasable voter returned, Senator
Nicols.
My only answer to that is that last
winter we wiped out the purchasable
vote forever" replied Senator Geb-
hardt
The Senator may think SO, but he
is somewhat mistaken" was Senator
Nichols rejoinder. Continuing, the
Cumberland Senator said that he
wanted the wives and sisters to re-
main upon the pedestal where they
can be looked up to withs reverence
no thor tbop hrOuuht dorD 1tfba laval
of man. Il love to loold upon the
motherly face of womaf" he said,
but she does not seem to be here
much today, but is home attending to
her duties, silently praying that this
resolution may not pass. There is not
a man in the world who doesn't love
some woman and some of them love
several. May the Lord bless the wo-
men and deprive them of the right to
vote hereafter" he concluded.