Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-10-12
A Plea by the Distinguished English
Novelist for "The Real Spiritual and
Economical Freedom of Woman"
and an Appeal ito End the Farce
That She Is Not Only Free, But a
Kind of Sovereign"
HAIL GAME
By HALL GAME.

authorized version OF the Scriptures, faithfully
reproduces the spirit OF the original tongue.
1t Is abundantly clear that IL Moses was the
author Of the Pentateuch, he really believed
that woman belonged to man. There is not any
where in the Mosaic books $50 far as | can
see) the faintest indication OF an idea that in
any answering sense man belonged TO woman
When man wanted wife he took" her. No
woman ever took a husband. The woman's
first owner was her father, and in one form or
other he sold her to her husband, as Laban
sold his daughters to Jacob in return for seven
years hard labor apiece. That even in those
days women loved their husbands is certain,
out their love did not determine their choice,
for nobody ever dreamed OF consulting It.
Such. apparently, was mans earliest conces-
sion of woman's place and use in the world
and ] ask If We have altered It very nateri.
ally during the thousands of years that have
interviewed. Has civilization altered t7 Has
law altered It? Has religion altered II? No
they have only ratified IT, authorized Il. bedvad
1t round with pains and penalties, chiefly hear.
ing upon the woman In every ATTEMPT In a.
sert her natural rights. Still does the father
control MS child. especially his female child bv
I'sht OF iatherhood and In return for material
protecuon' still may he hold her by right Of
ID" against the natural right OF the mother
VINO bore her; stu may he sell her 10 a hua
band In exchange for money or title or soc,oI
position; and when he marrieR her reI,0io,
(Which makes such a great point OF free con.
Sent) Is so far from recognizing any absolute
rights within the woman herself to dispose OF
her liberty, or 70 make OF her own free will a
change In the condition NJ har IiFa tbot 70
quires that her father, or somebody authorized
TO represent him, shall be present at the nup.
tial ceremony to give her away"
Ihls was the first part OF the humbug OF
female subsection under the guise OF liberty
which my novel was intended 10 expose The
woman In my story. inheritinE the traditional
view or womans position in relation to her
parent (being so young that her female nature
Is not yet awake, and so ignorant as the re-
suit or a false system OF education. that she
scarcely knows what she is doing) submits to
II to the point OF marrying a man whom che
does not love, man who was found and court
ed for her. man who had no better reason to
desire her than the hope of escaping from the
embarrassment OF his debts by the money her
father gave in exchange for the rank his name
conferred her.
or course. was told that this was an excep-
uonal situation. entirely deny It. There are
tens OF thousands OF girls in every generation
in the new United States as we'll as in the old
Great Britain. in Mary O'Neils position or in
positions OF equal helplessness, and subject TO
equal tyranny. You need not look for them
only In rich families where vain, ambitious
vulgar and perhaps vindictive fathers and
mothers are trying to make matches for their
children with titled roues OF broken-down for
tune.
So much for the position OF woman in the
making OF marriage. Now let US glance at her
position in the breaking Of II. Was ever any
thing more unjust? In order to see how low is
the place assigned to woman in the legal con-
cepton OF marriage you have only to look at
her when she Is trying TO lberate herself from
a fathless husband, or even when she Is faith
less herself and her husband is trying to lib
crate himself from her Then you see that she
is merely her husbands possession. and that
her virtues are things that have price.
Apparently II has always been so, in all coun.
tries and in all ages. My Jewish friends have
pointed 1t out to me with pride that the great
lsraeitish lawgtver was so far ahead of the
civil law OF most of the modern nations that
he inflicted for infdelity an equal punishment
on man and woman. But when look a second
time see that this does not mean that he sets
the same price on the woman az on the man.
u