Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1915-10-15
RALPH ". WESCOTT
REPLIES TO SEN
ATOR MARITIME.
Gives Facts and Statistics to
Prove Equal Suffrage Helps
Good Legislation.

Ralph W. Wescott of Haddonfield,
N. J., attorney-at-law and SOB of At
torney General Wescott, Is one Of the
most active s~uffragists In the southern
part of New Jersey. He claims the
distinction of having been one of the
few voters of the state to have seri-
ously studied the pamphlet prepared
by the District of Columbia Associa-
ton Opposed to Woman Suffrage and
ranked out In the name of Senator
MARITIME.
When interviewed lately Mr.. Wes-
colt gave out the following statement:
"An examination of the statements
made In the leafet showed them to be
out of date, superficial and often de-
1iberately misleading. The authors of
the pamphlet have set out to prove that
woman suffrage is a failure and that In
states where women vote they do not
avail themselves of their privilege. If
woman suffrage Is a failure 1t Is
strange that no movement has been
started to abolish 1t. All the equal
suffrage states, except Kansas and Wy
oming, have the initiative and referen-
DUN, so any one could initiate a repeal
of woman suffrage and submit 1t to the
voters for their decision. Not only has
this never been done, but there has
never been any agitation to do it In
any of the states concerned. If we
look at the broad facts We shall see
that m suffrage, appearing for the
first time in Wyoming In 1860, has
spread to ten adjoining states. All the
newer suffrage states border those In
which mi have been voting for
years. The men who have given votes
to women In the west are the men
who lived nearest the suffrage states
and had the most intimate personal
knowledge of the workings of woman
suffrage.
"When 1t is remembered that New
York state ordered a constitutional
convention with a vote of scarcely
100000 more thar the vote OF the Chi
cago ONE in 1914 and that in 1912
only 100000 men voted for the pres
ident of the United States and Mr.. VIII
son was elected by about 100000
votes-not a majority of the voting
men, but about one-fourth of the male
electorate-it is rather a presumption
for men to say that women have NOT
been interested In voting.
1.-THE pamphlet sets forth that the ex-
preston taxation without representa-
ton is tyranny has no such meaning
In the equal suffrage movement as 1t
had In the Revolution This may be
very true since conditions are entirely
different. 1t is also true, however.
that any woman owning stock In any
private business votes on that stock.
No corporation in America would dream
Of forbidding a stakeholder to
vote on any matter submitted to the
stockholders for their decision. Nei-
Their does the corporation ask how she
acquired her stock-whether by gift, In.
heritance or her own exertions. The
fact that she stands ON the books as
owner is sufficient. The plea that wo-
men should be denied representation
because their property has been placed
in their names by male relatives would
tell equally against any man who in
herited his property.
"The plea hat most of the property
held by women has been acquired by
the male members of their families we
regard as unjust. Men would be churl-
ish indeed If they did not accord to
women a contribution to the wealth of
the world that cannct be calculated. A
consideration of the 100000 women