New-York tribune., 1915-07-14
THE ANTI SUFFRAGE MIND
An Analysis and an Answer from
the Other Side.

To the Editor Of The Tribune
Sir: Rose Phelps's letter, published re-
Gently in your paper and headed Nothing
United Women Cannot Get from Mems Gov
ernment," amused me. It discoses what one
might call an "anti-sufFrage mind That
is. the writer's desire that women shall not
vote is based on sub-conscious reasoning and
temperament only For instance, she thinks
that women in the Eastern states ought not
70 vote because only "small number are
intelligent and educated" About the same
number Of men and women are educated IN
our schools, and therefore any objection on
the score Of education and intelligence ought
10 apply to both sexes equally. It must be
that in her mind mems maleness constitutes
some reason why their lack Of intelligence is
counteracted.
Like most anti-suffragists, Rose Phelps dis
believes in her own sex; she also disbelieves
in democracy She seems afraid Of both.
Her ideals Of government are really based
on masculine force and property ownership.
Why else should she complacenty swallow an
uniutcligent male electorate when she is
fearful Of an unintelligeut female one? Why
else should she look upon the enfranchse-
ment of the 5 per cent of women who own
real estate as if these were the only women
to be cufranchised? Sufrragsts believe that
taxation without representation is tyranny;
but they know enough to know that one pays
taxes indirectly as well as directly
All the good things that have come to
women within the last fifty years have come
without women's touching hand to them,
Il one can believe Rose Phelps. Women
haven't known they wanted them; they have
been protected even from the trouble Of
thinking. Advancement is merely the result
Of enlightened public opinion" so she says,
but not, Of course, Of woman's public opinion,
for that would presuppose an agitation the
"antis" contend women never have needed.
Women just sat on the bandwagon of prog
ress and rode home when the fighting was all
done.
Evolution seems to be a thing men touch
button and bring to pass. Women, who in
hert from men, who bring forth and bring
up men, don't even know the needs of the
race they carry in their bodies II one is to
believe the "antis." One wonders II even an
anti-sufrragist believes such a mOnstrous un-
reality.
In 1885 Ernestne Rose, Polish lady, ban
ished to this country by Francis Joseph be-
cause of her love Of liberty, went about the
country with Paulina Wright, one of the
pioneer women physicians, and agitated siren
uously for those changes in the property
rights Of women which became laws in 1s4S.
| Twelve years later after an agitation which
had lasted all these twelve years, Susan b.
Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton drew up
/ tho revised laws which passed the New York
/ Legislature in 1860. This bill was almost "a
/ legal revolution" and was indeed brought
about by public opinion, public opinion ere
ated and fostered by small band of women.
Theodore Tilton later said of Mrs. Stanton
and Miss Anthony that they "w,re the two
sticks of a drum for keeping up what Daniel
Webster called the 'rub-a -dub-dub of agita-
ton" No married woman would be as free
as she is to-day in New York State with
out the fighting Of pioneer suFragists
New York, July 9, 1915. NJ. O. W.