Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1914-11-12

q ~ SuIlI'It.ll supply VI OATS LOT DllIlthTS
purposes and price has not been fixed.
, the antc Then there were ALWAYS
those people who we're forever opposed
% change because of natural prejudice
and who chung 10 the best things in
the past
Speaking of the conservatism of peo-
/, pie, which was always a force in on
position to suffrage. Mrs. Park related
several interesting stories of her own
experience to show how strong was Gus
-om. She said that it seemed charac-
terstic Of human beings to make a GER
tain amount of progress and then to
stop for fear that to proceed further
would be to dash society over a precplce
She once attended meeting Of wom-
ans club in Japan at which man pre-
sided who had no interest in the club
whatsoever and seemed i'll at ease She
asked why this was so and found that
II was the custom Of the japanese wom-
on to havN men do their talking for
them. She cited the case of Mrs Hum
phrey Ward. who was opposed in Eng
land to parliamentary suffrage but who had
spoken very warmly Of the method of
municipal suffrage in England when she
was lecturing in this country Mrs.
Wards idea that women could vote
with proprtety in municipal affairs but
could not understandingly vote in affairs
of the empire. The old argument against
suffrage, that womans place was the
home, was found to be used almost every
whore against the feminist movement
whenever It appeared She mentioned an
extract from a Hong Kong paper when
h.. 10,
Chinese women's feet the extract being
n translation from Chinese paper Civ
ing a native mans views on the subject
His principal argument was that II the
women were to have normal feet they
would become masculine, which was not
to he desired. In New Zealand the people
thought that home life in America was
being destroyed owing to the fact that
there We're many womens clubs.
Equally absurd IS the argument that be-
cause woman has the power to make a
cross on a piece Of paper on election day
that will occupy a few minutes Of her
time, It will unsex her and make her
unfit for the duties Of the home.
Mrs c. s. Van Patten asked Mrs.
Park for opinion on the women and
war argument which has frequently been
brought up, In opposition 10 suffrage
Mrs. Park replied that 1t is not an essen
tial of citizenship in this country that
men are to be soldiers before they can
vote. Then 1t should not be REQUIRED of
women Many men cannot serve as SOL
ders because of some physical defect
or because OF age. That does not de-
prive them of the right to vote. And.
the speaker added. every person in the
world represents the pain borne by some
woman to give that person life and more
women have died In childbirth than there
have been soldiers killed in all the wars
since the world began
question was asked as to the best
method of women obtaining the bal. |
lot. The speaker replied that the best
method was to give women the ballot !
and ascertain In that way II she wants |
1t. In no state can women vote on |
the question OF their own enfran-
chisement. In the states whore suf-
fraee has been granted they have ex-
ercised the right as much as the men.
The straw vote" has no effect as it
has no character. a good way of
finding out whether women want the
ballot or not would he to enfranchise
them and then give them an oppor-
tun'ty to disenfrapchise themselves
Henry r. Shaw asked Mrs Park If
women would pay poll tax the same
as the men II they were given the bal
lot, The speaker replied that they
would undoubtedly consent to It,
would it be popular with the wom-
enc" inquired Mr.. Shaw.
Il do not know as to that" replied
NI,-, a,J bo
actly popular with the men"
It appeared in the course of Mrs.
Parks remarks that In the States
where women had the ballot nobody
paid poll taxes.
In closing, the speaker pleaded for
the equality of the sexes in voting
She said that men and women working
together could accomplish concrete
results not possible under the present
system, for men cannot make laws
from the women's viewpoint any more I
than women can make laws from tho ]
mems viewpoint Where there are
Suffrage states one will find better
conditions In systems of parks and
recreation grounds, better systems of
garbage disposal and better working
hours for women. The moral charac- !
ter or the candidates Will be improved l
When woman votes she will be care c
full to select as a candidate a man who c
is not licentious or a drunkard, or who
does not treat his family we'll Re- q
peated experience OF this sort will y
finally induce the voters to select
only men of moral character for office. |
Women are not keen as to the DIFF
ferences between democrats and re.
publicans They are distinctions that .
defend different sets OF business prin- .
clples A woman will vote for the \
home and the protection of the weak r
and dependent and viii bring to II :
the mothering instinct that 1, mora .
fundamental than any distinction of =
party We have lived under the de- 7
mocraoy established by men. and to- ]
inA is the womans movement When
both work together there will be- a
human uAa6ezn,rAs. L