The Washington herald., 1915-10-09
A REAL ACHIEVEMENT.

elS hSPt ouSy, liSlC Is all HiSCSsdHt
hum of voices; people are coming and
going. doors arc oper early and
closed late, not in one suffrage head
quarters, but in the Offices or F
street and those in the Munsey
Building. Besides meetings are be-
ing held on the busy corners and
will be so long as the weather
is mild enough to permit an au
dience 20 gather. There. are teas
and stree: fairs, concerts and lunch
cons. The prosuffrage agitation that
is now going on in this city and that
has been going on all during the hot
months when most societies suspend
activity, srrpasses that Of any polit-
icsl party or man-supportec organiza-
tion.
Out of all this work one OF the great
est results that have been gained for
the suffrage cause within the last de-
cade is putting the issue on its own
feet. boiling it down and getting rid
of the by-products. Back in the days
of the early sufragists. Susan B. An
lhony and the rest, the suffrage cause
was mixed up with the cause of aboli-
tion. Later suffrage took under its
wing the cause OF temperance and
practically all the prominent suffrage
leaders were also workers in the w.
c. T. u. Then in the days of Amelia
Bloomer, to be suffragists one was
given credit OF being out strong for
dress reform. Our conservative and
dignifed grandmothers somehow felt
that it would be Votes for women
first and bloomers next"
From the days of the English
pioneer champion of women's rights,
Mary Wollstonecraft Goodwin, there
have occasionally been suffragists
whose impracticable theories and un-
conventional conduct has made those
who have looked on confuse the is
sues of suffrage with more or less
moral laxity. That free love is part
and parcel of votes for women has
always been one OF the favorite |
planks in the "anti" platform.
The suffragists of this day and gen
Grafton and of this country have bent |
every effort to rid suffrage of any
association with other interests no
matter whether these be desirable in
themselves or not. 1t is a question |
that must win or loose on its own |
merits and in training it to walk |
alone" and accustoming those who |
look on to judge it on its own merits |
the suffrage workers OF this day have |
certainly achieved no little triumph. !
at is habit of mind" local suf-
frage worker told US the other day, !
"for men, and women too, to blame
any little friction and disturbance or
absurdity that comes up in the course
of suffrage work on the fact that suf- |
fragists are women. Just like women,
says the man who looks on whenever
he hears of any factional disturbances |
within the ranks That's the kind of
things that would be going on all the
time if women were in politics!
This suffragist, one OF the calm
steady-nerved sort who talks straight |
from the shoulder, was taking part in
the New Jersey campaign last sum-
mcr. In one city OF that State the
question had been somewhat compli
Gated because OF local factional trou-
BILE among the various suffragists. So
our outside worker who had much to
do in a short time took the questions
that she had to settle to some male
executive of the city and asked him
for his cooperation.
Now. III tell you what to do"
said the man. You go to Mrs. So |
and-So. She is d suffragist and she
knows all about it. You sit down with
her and tell her what you want and
she'll get in touch with me and we'll
see what VIC can do"
But that's just what ! don't want
to do" said the suffragist. There is
a little rift in the suffrage organiza-
ton here. and want to take my
stand outside the party lines. That is
why have come to you"
"Oh. we'll, we'll, well" said the man,
assuming fatherly reproving man
ner. "If you can't go to Mrs. So-and-
So and sit quietly down with her and
explain matters I'm afraid there isn't
much hope for YOU women if you do
get the vote"
The suffrage worker leveled her
steady eyes on the man in authority.
You're Progressive, aren't your"
"Yes." he admitted.
well, it was just because some of
you Republicans couldn't 60 to Mr..
of the old organization,
and sit quietly down and talk mat
ters over with him, that the Progress
sive party came into existence. 1t
isn't because we're women, it's be-
cause we arc human that these riffs