The Washington herald., 1913-01-13
By. FRANCEs sHAFFKR.

Little girls, little boys. big girls. big
boys, grown men and women--they are
all pretty much alike in some respects.
And because they are so much alike.
the little girls and the big girls of the
original Junior Republic Mt Freeville, N.
Y, had to fight for some of the privi-
leges. the rights or the duties that they
believed should be shared by every young
citizen under the scheme of self-govern-
ment.
At the very start % the Republic girls
voted with the boys, because 1t was
taken for granted that they should and
because there seemed no other way to
learn the combined viewpoint of all for
whom the government existed.
But that did not last long, for when
it happened that there was a hotly
contested election, one of the boy vot-
ers thought il a rather strange proceed
ing for girls to walk up to the polls and
cast their ballots, with all the indepen-
dence and governing instinct supposed
to be peculiar to boys. He knew that
the great outside State would not sane
ton such a thing and he also remember
ed that in the Junior Republic the laws
of the State prevailed unless changed
through special encatments Of their own.
Challenged Her Vote.
II CHANGED that the young protester
was a candidate for some Office with
in the gift of the Republic, and he got
1t into his head. quite rightly, too, that
one of the girls was planning to cast
her ballot against him. So he was on
hand to challenge her vote, which he
declared was void because the women
of the State were voteless and the Re
public had never seen fit to set that lit
tie matter right.
II was made a test case before the
citizens court and the boy judge de-
cided that the candidate for Office was
right in his claim. And of course that
threw out all the rest of the ballots
deposited by the girls. who had always
considered themselves voters.
But It did not rest there, for a mem
Der of the Legislature who believed that
the Junior Republic was established for
all its citizens, introduced a bill giving
girls the right to vote. 1t passed and
awaited only the signature of the Presi-
dent.
Then the boy candidate grew very
busy. He went to some of his sturdy
friends with a definite plan of action.
in order TO secure the Presidents veto.
He pointed out TO them that the bill
must be vetoed, whatever the cost, for
if it went through, what would become
Of their political careers?
And then they betook themselves to
the girls, adroitly appealing TO them
to petition the President to withhold
his signature. And what do you sup
pose was their chief argument? Why.
it was such an ''unladylike" thing. this
duty of voting! And so well they
talked and impressive they grew
that at last they won over all the girls
to sign the petition, except very
stubborn minority Of six or eight, who
did not see why they could not vote
and be ''ladylike." too But the rest
of the girls and the boys understood
oh. yes. 1t sounds very like real his
tory-and they called that obstinate six
or eight bold" "boyish," and a few
other things.
Felt the Injustice.
In due time the question of taxation
came up in the Legislature, and at that
time all the citizens of the republic
were divided into industrial classes
three for the boys and three for the
girls. In the boys classes there was
an average membership of thirty, |
while the girls numbered only fifteen.
The members who were responsible |
he 10 h. i'll lNs