Evening journal., 1913-02-06
GIVE THE WOMEN A SQUARE DEAL.


attitude Of antagonism toward the Ten-Hour Work
Day for women and girl wage-earners in this State
That control, however does mt explain why vicious,
unwarranted and unfounded insult should be inflicted
by that paper upon the club women and others who
working for the political enfranchisement Of the
womanhood of Delaware. II IS with regret that we
called upon defend those against the at
tack of a newspaper that ought to have their we'll
being close at heart That the situation may be under
stood clearly. we quote the following editorial from
Every Evenings columns:
state Senator Reinhardt of this city has given notice
of his intention 10 introduce in the Legislature bill
proposing amendment TO the Constitution Of Della
ware to confer the privilege OF voting upon women he
viii no doubt follow this notice with bill designed
70 carry it into effect, but such amendment must
receive the votes of twohirds OF all the members IN
each branch Of the present Legislature and the votes
Of two-thrds Of all the members Of each branch Of
tho next Legislature before It can become part Oh
TIE state Constitution
Senator Renhardt is Republican, and the PROPOSE
ton of allowing women to vote In Delaware is receiv
ing encouragement from some Republican newspapers
Of the State And it is only natural that Republican
politicians and republican party organs shouid laVol
Wcmans Suffrage, as giving the vote to women would
make Delaware so absolutely Republican that 1t would
/ REQUIRE pohtcal eupheaVal OF almost lmpossple
dimensions to wres the State any Of the coun-
ties from the control Of that party.
One certain result Of comforting the voting priv
| ilege women in Delaware would be that 10000
to 10000 negro would at all elections, sodly
/ and unthnhngiy and uncaringy vote the republican
ticket regardless Of all campaign issues the per-
sonal character of candidates How many Of the
white women would vote at all Is prooiematcal, but
judging by the exercise by women Of the privilege oi
apparently not much more than onehalf OF the qna-
fed women of California voted at the Presidential
election of last November-a majority Of them would
continue Indifferent to voting and those VINO votea
would divide their votes among the various political
Thus it will be seen that the adoption of womans
Suffrage in Delaware would tie the State in tight
partsan leaders of the Republican party Fo- this
reason we do not expect the Democratic members Of
! Port 10 a measure which, if enacted might make it
impossible for single Democrat to be elected to any
Office in this State after 1t became operative
That editorial is a tissue of gross misrepresenta-
ton and nexcusabe misinformation The Republican
party of the State of Delaware has made declar
ation in its platform elsewhere, in favor of
suffrage Nor is the proposed amendment having that
end in view a Republican measure. II was drawn at
and under the direction of the Delaware
Equal Suffrage Association; sent to Dover under
the direct auspices that association and intro
duced by Renhardt and referred to the Com
mittee Revised Statutes
The Delaware Equal Suffrage Association is in
sense a Republican organization. It is composed Of
many Of the best women in Delaware and has the
moral and material support Of many other organ
izations composed of the flower of Delaware woman
hood, and with restrictions of any sort with respect
to partisan leaning bias. The who favor
equal suffrage have made a commendable determined
and successful effort prevent anyone from embroi-
ing them their organizations in the rancor of part
san politics. They also have done everything possible
to protect their issue against being made the play
thing or the politicians or any party. lney nave Deen
content to permit the question the enfranchisement
Of the womanhood OF State stand fall its
own merits. without entering upon any embarrassing
alliances with either Republicans Democrats.
1t is true that Senator Reinhardt who intro
duced the bill for the Delaware Equal Suffrage Asso-
ciation is a Republican, but It occurred to him
or to anyone else that the bill would be regarded
a partisan measure. II remained for the dstempered
intellect those who direct the editorial policy Of the
Every Evening attempt place it in such an absurd
oloc fnod for m ADJ yha
the Democracy of Delaware must be most insulting
suggeston--that the enfranchisement of the woman
the State would place the political control of
Delaware irretrieyably out of the reach of the Demo-
cratic party We doubt that the Democratic leaders
Of the State the Democratic members of the Legs
lature will to give approval to such an assump-
that the Democracy stands in such discredit in
the eyes OF the womanhood Of Delaware that 1t never
could hope for countenance support at its hands.
The Every Evening says that the adoption or the
constitutional amendment and the enactment Of con
sequcnt legislation would result in the enfranchise
nent of 10000 to 10000 negro women. 1t ig
altogether however, the fact that between five
and six times as many white would be en-
flanchised at the time. If the Every Evening
will consult the statistics for 1910 bearing OF
the sex distribution the population Of the United
r States it will find the following facts:
It That in 1910 the total population OF Delaware wa
d 2o2S22 That the total male population was 10S,4S
and the female population 9sSs7. But let us no
stop with that Carry that distribution into tn
of race, may dispose of this negro woma
e bugaboo that the Every Evening, the enemy
l. a fair working day for women and girls and Of tn
n enfranchsement of Delaware womanhood has con
iured up frighten Democratic members of the Legis
A. ature white population in 1910 consisted of SO
IS SS7 males and sS7l5 females Our negro population
10 consisted 1901 males 1910 females It mus
IN be borne in mind that white and children ar
he included in those totals
h. We regret that the figures in hand do not perm
Of MS carry the analysis to the point Of showing az
al curately the number of white and wome
of voting and the number of white girls and
ed girls who would be of age by the time such col
a. stitutonal amendment would become effective. WeI
he At possible. that would be the fair to get at
lie AS it is not possible to do it, let accept bas
for calculation the Every Evenings estimate that II
ct enfranchsement the womanhood of Delaware wou