Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-07-04

BY refusing the perfectly reasona bic
request legitimately entered, Of GER
tain advocates Of woman suffrage in
Georgia that they be permitted to
use the Senate chamber for a meet
ing, at a time definitely sure not to
conflict with any bushes Of the Sen
ate, it is extremely doubtful whether
the Senate has covered itself with
any amazing amount Of glory or
| erected a perpetual monument to its
| common sense.
That is the way a great many peo-
pie appear to view the matter, any
way!
Moreover, if the Senate is opposed
to woman suffrage which it is agreed
all around it has a right to be, 1t
doubtless has helped the cause rather
than injured it in Georgia by refus-
ing the request noted.
! Woman suffrage may not be popu-
| lar in GeOrgia-on the contrary, it
may be more popular than some folks
! lmagine-but certainly its advocates
| thus far working in the open are
women of extraordinary intelligence
! and marked conservatism of action.
To deny them a request that would
have been granted, readily enough, TO
the State Democratic executive COM
mittee, say is not particularly con-
vincing in the minds of some people
| that woman suffrage is either an err
TOR or a monstrous wrong.
To be sure, the women may hold
| their meeting elsewhere, but in view
Of the fact that all sorts of political
meetings have been permitted in the
| Senate chamber-which Is a public
| place-and all sorts of people per-
mitted to speak therein, in season
and out, the needless turning down of
a handful of women, DESTROYS of hold
! Ing a welfare meeting in hehalf of
| their own organization. seems to
! have been rather out of place, If not
absolutely cheap.
The Senate of Georgia before this
| time, however has strained at gnats
only to swallow camels subsequently,.
| Ii appears that the present Senate
was not loathe to let it be known
| that it could do that old act itself if
occasion seemed to require the per-
| Torrance.
1t is the opinion Of a number Of
people that the Senate's refusal of
/ the request of the women involved
was extremely ungracious, to say the
least Of it!
II should be borne in mind that
neither Representative Macarthur nor
! Representative Browning, Of the new
counties of Wheeler and BleCkley, re-
speCtively, were expelled from the
House.
Both gentlemen had been sworn
in. but that fact did not make them
members de jure of the House, neces-
sarily The constitutionality of their
titles to their seats was raised and
sustained by the House and their
seats therefore were declared vacant,
or, rather, their seats were declared
never to have existed.
Both gentlemen are very popular
and are citizens of the very highest
integrity ana standing Indeed, as a
purely personal matter the DISPOSE
ton of the House undoubtedly was TO
| seat them. However, the House, after
thrashing the matter out exhaustive
", decided that the law plainly was
against them and very properly IT
acted accordingly.
| Discussing this matter to-day, Rep
resentative Hardeman, who made a
speech denying the right of the gem
tlemen to their seats, said. 1T is a
tribute to the patriotism and genuine
worth OF the House that it acted as
il did in this matter, despite it's heavy
personal inclination to vote otherwise.
Nv own vote was embarrassing, in a
way-I hated To vote against these