Evening star., 1912-04-12
VOTES FOR WOMEN.
III-Arguments of the Suffra2ists.
By Frederic ]. Haskin.

LII tRe mlndS or the SuHfdS1StS tne
strongest argument for woman suffrage,
and one that they say can never be salts
factorily set aside. is that every woman
deprived of the ballot is living under the
tyranny of taxation without representa-
tion," a condition which the founders of
this nation found intolerable nearly a
century and a half ago. One leader con-
cretely put this argument thus: In an
eastern city few years ago lived a wom-
an who derived her income from row of
small brick houses upon a side street,
which rented at about SIS month each.
Under ordinary conditions her income was
comfortable, even after all the repairs
necessary to the comfort Of her tenants
were paid for. One year, without any
consideration of her wishes, her income
was suddenly cut for six months because
the city council had authorized the tear
ing up of perfectly good brick pave
ment in the front and rear of her prop
erty and substituting for it some compo-
sition material on which a certain coun-
Gilman was making a profit.
within three years, another ordinance
required this to be replaced by cement
blocks that a councilmanic paving COM
pany might have another profit. A year
or two later, the system Of sewerage was
altered to give work to some other graft
ing politicians and her water pipes were
torn up and others substituted which
were not so well adapted to the
needs OF her property In this way she
had her income stopped three times with.
in five years. without having any voice
in the matter. by the votes of the men
Of ri
tenants. who ere chiefly foreign born
and did not contribute one dollar Of prop
erty tax to the city treasury. Stung by
this injustice, this woman joined the
suffrage society of that city, resolved
that even though the enfranchisement
of the women of the country came too
late to benefit her. she would at least
aid in obtaining it for other women"
\ i
During the past few years an increa sing
number of women have followed the ex-
ample of Miss
barred at POLLS: Susan B. An
She Sues Officers. .o.o NOM, ana nave nave
paying taxes, and each protest is, it Is
said. at least productive Of increased
sentiment for woman suffrage In New
Jersey. young woman has brought suit
against the precinct election officers be-
cause she was not permitted to vote last
fall, and she proposes to carry the matter
to the highest courts. because she argues
chat she. is properly qualified citizen
and will defend her right to vote. An
other woman. living in Vermont, last fall
gave notice to the town clerk that. as
she had been denied a voice in spending
the municipal moneys. she would no
longer continue to pay her taxes. When
her taxes had been delinquent some
months. the constable went to her bank
and attached sufficient bank stock to
cover the amount due. The woman, who
owned a large amount Of property. has
published the facts and her reasons and
has taken up her residence elsewhere,
thus depriving the town of the money
which 1T would otherwise receive from
her.
Says leader in the suffrage move
The industrial conditions of the present
are each y..-- forcing an increasing num-
Der of wOE.~.. out in the bread winners
held There are over seven million wage
earning women in the United States and
most of these are suffering from con-
ditions which the ballot would right. In
th:rty-two states women are not the legal
guardians Of their own children. In
nearly all OF the states marriage and
property laws are in some way unfair to
women. Nothing but the law can change
this and nothing but the vote can elect
the lawmakers.
'The enfranchisement of American
women would mean adding materially to
the percent
State Loses Value of age of the ed
Its Strongest Assets. eu Each ,,e.r vote, ,%s
number of girls who enter the higher
schools exceeds the number Of boys, and
the training they receive at the expense
of the nation, on economic principles,
should benefit the state in some active
Yet when the entire body of
womanhood is unable to express
Its views in the only practical manner,
through the ballot, the state fails to
realize the value Of one of it's strongest