The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-09-29

ers. The recall of. Judge Weller of
San Francisco demonstrates the fact
that where women have the ballot,
robbing a girl of her virtue cannot
safely be held as a lesser crime tina
petty larceny. Three years ago Cali
fornia had 800 towns under prohibit
ton. Since women vote the number
has been increased to CTS.
The cities of Washington and Ia
coma with the aid of women's ballot
have cleansed themselves Of a notori-
Gus system Of organized vice and elect
ed mayors who are clean Christian
men, Sunday school, temperance and
civic reform workers. After women
were given the ballot in Washington,
licenses gained two towns while no
license gained lis.
There was no prohibition territory
in Wyoming before equal suffrage was
granted. Now 80 per cent is under
prohibition. Utah passed a local op-
ton law in 1911, and now 10 cities
have voted out the saloon. Only
eighteen voted for it and of these
eighteen so-called cities, sixteen are
mining camps. ...
The press of the country is beginning
to realize the influence that the en-
reimbursement of women will have
upon governmental affairs, and good
men who formerly opposed women's
pCllOl al IL L "NN gill "I 1
reserve force in. the unequal, fight
against political corruption, graft,
corporate greed and the domination OF
the liquor traffic. The most powerful
to women are the big interests. the
white SLAYER and the liquor t~raffice.
Wherever it has been defeated these
forces nave been mainly responsible.
Today women vote in ten states and
in Alaska. Three years there were
but four suffrage states: Wyoming
(1S691; COLORADO dS9Sl; Idaho GS961;
Kansas, Oregon and Arizona in 1912
and this year Illinois and Alaska. Suf-
frage is now pending in North Dakota,
South Dakota, Montana and Nevada.
Suffrage amendments nave passed one
legislature and must pass another In
Iowa, New Jersey, New York and Penn
~sylvania. -Four million women in the
United States have the ballot now.
They affect a cufficient number of
votes in the electoral college to create
a balance of power. They have al.
ready organized a national counsel of
women voters and will concentrate
their efforts to obtain the passage by
congress of a constitutional amend
ment for franchising all the women of
the United States: .''''.'
The W. c. r. u. has not only been
an important factor in securing equal
suffrage, but it is one of the best pos
sible schools for preparing women for
the duties of citizenship. Because the
white ribboner has been studying
christian citizenship and working for
better social, moral and economic con-
ditions, she knows h to do with the
ballot when she gets 1T. AS a prepara-
ton for citizenship we shout endeavor
to get the women of our towns and
communities to join the w. C. T. u. and
take up in the union the study of these
great questions.
T6ie &c e., or1ya1nIIc or on1 urhila
1t has tremendous possibilities for
good it is we'll for us to remember that
1t also has the dangers. that accom-
pany great privileges, wealth, luxury
and ease. These may all be summed
up in one word, "worldliness," forget
ting God. The Sabbath is becoming a
workday or a holiday, the commercial
spirit of the age Is demanding a even
day week and millions of toilers know
no Sabbath. For thousands of others
1t Is a gala day and Sunday baseball
games, theatres, n amusement parks
| are crowded. No nation has ever pros
| pered that attempts to abrogate Gods
laws. When this nation forgets OBJ
of the christian Sabbath, her
decline is begun. .'
Gambling is getting to be an almost
universal craze. Women are gambling
| as never before. They begin with the
card tables and bridge parties and do
not stop short of the bucket shop, the
roulette wheel and the race track. I'm
~ ~ IA ~ NAS SN"i AttiS
dangers Of today, and there are por-
tentious indications that the result will
be a heart breaking harvest of -immor-
ality. The women Of the so-cal1ed
higher social circles are setting the
example of cigarette smoking, wine and
beer drinking in restaurants and din
ing cars and dancing the Negroid
dances. 1t seems to be worldliness
| gone mad. Wherever these conditions
exist to any great extent the morals of
the young people are being under
mined. The of these great
dangers is a solemn call to christian
women everywhere. to hold the stand
ards of morality, purity, right living
and christian graces higher than ever
before and to set their faces like a
flint against all these evils in their in
cipiency. These grave problems must
be solved by christian women, workers
in the church. the Sunday schoo and
the w. c. T. U. and we believe the in
creased responsibility, the broadening
of life's vision, which citizenship
brings will help to solve them.