The Washington herald., 1914-12-01
SLANDER Charge
MADE BY ANTS
Strong Statements Made by
Their National President,
Mrs. Dodge.
FIGURES ARE DISTORTED
u. S. Census Quoted to Rout Arsu-
ments Made by Sufragists
|. at Nashville.
FIGURES ARE DISTORTED
ny MRS. ARTHUR NJ. DODGE,

ny MRS. ARTHUR NJ. DODGE,
Presi6eut National Association Opposed to Woman
Suffrage.
Overwhelmingly defeated on November
s in five and perhaps six Of the seven
States that voted on woman suffrage in
1874 the votes for women" seekers have
become so disheartened that they have
descended to the phase of petty politics
called mud singing" This was especial
| ly noticeable at the recent national suf-
frage convention in Nashville.
Not only have suifragists accused the
war, big business" the corporations.
machine politics." and the liquor and
vice interests with being responsible for
their defeats, but they have sought to
pose before the public as the only repre-
sentatives of the will OF American
women, and tried. in the old-fashioned
style popular with male muckrakers
about ten years ago, to cast personal
slurs on their women opponents. The
standing Of these women who oppose suf-
frage may be guessed when 1t is re-
membered that with them We must in
clude such names as those Of Mrs. Will
lam Howard Taft, Miss Mabel Boardman,
executive head OF the American Red
Cross, and Miss Ida NJ. Tarbell. who is
conceded to be Americas foremost
woman journalist and research expert.
Space only limits the listing Of thousands
Of other prominent women. Without one
atom Of proof that would convince q
jury Of ten-year-old children. suffrage
writers and speakers since the defeats in
strate an alliance between the 1nt-suf-
fragists and the liquor interests.
No Aid from Liquor Interests.
Despite my own and other representa-
tive anti-suffragists' afidavits that our
organizations and workers have never
received financial support from any
liquor interests at any time: notwith-
standing the letter exhibited before the
Senate Committee at the last woman suf-
frage hearing in which Hugh Fox, sec
retary OF the United Brewers Associa-
ton, said: The United Brewers As
ISOLATION states that the anti-suffragists
have never received nor asked for con-
tributions from them, although we have
appeals from the other side" the suffrage
charge goes on in a thousand repetitions.
But general insinuations are not the
limit of suffrage imagination. Really it
would be comical II 1t were not so pitiful
to examine all the shameful instances Of
personal mud singing by which some
suffragists have disgraced their woman
hood. According to suffrage stories, one
OF our speakers, who is a widow with q
grown son, accumulated in the short
State, two deserted husbands, four neg
lected youngsters at home crying with
want and a position on the pay roll of
a brewery! Another anti-suffrage speak
er, who is not a mother, had left two
babies, home and a henpecked husband.
it was alleged. to go West and speak
against suffrage.
In several instances, though, these
charges were so personal and libelous
that we could not, as women with repu-
tatiOns to defend, neglect to bring prose-
cution in the courts, and now have a
case pending against a Montana news
paper for a vicious attack on one of our
speakers. But ii is only on very serious
personal charges the anti-suffragists care
to take such matters into the courts;
We dislike to do it except when absolute
ly necessary. because it means bringing
suit against a newspaper, instead of
against the vitriolic writer or cartoonist
who is really responsible. In some cases,
these nbelOus attacks even get into per-
fectly fair newspapers. which are not
aware of their nature when they accept
and print them.
The Pity of II.
But think of the pity of it! Think
what an obsession exists on the part of
the feminist politicians when they not
only adopt the tools Of the muckraker,
but to obtain notoriety, descend to per-
sonal attacks on the honor and integrity
OF their fellow-women!
A syndicate article Of the suffragists
a week ago stated that there was prac-
tically no difference between two of our
speakers as 'prevaricators." This is only |
a little way from the shorter and uglier |
word" and, indeed, even that was in |
cluded as an indirect gratuity to US at |
Nashville last week.
The anti-suffragists have figures on |
everything" said the leading representa- |
tive Of the National Woman Suffrage AS
sociation there. And We must remember |
that figures don't lie-but liars do figure"
Then there is the charge Of our ''deliber- |
ate inaccuracies'' and want OF informa- |
tion," which the suffrage syndicate let |
ter is powerless to illustrate by anything |