The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1915-03-29


voting There is no real reason why
they shouldn't-if men didn't vote.
The important thing is that they do.
not realize that the family is the unit
of government, and not the individual.
When the man OF the family votes he
is not speaking for himself alone, but
for the wife and the children of his
household as well. 1t is, of course.
the normal, natural thing for the man
to do this, because he has always at
tended to the interests of the family
outside the home, as the wife has al
ways attended to them IN the home.
Now, am an unmarried man. and
/ shouldn't object If l were not allow
ed to vote. On the other hand.
should say that widow who repre-
sented a family of children should
vote. The family is the institution we
must consider, and not the state. 1t
IS not question of whether women
will be OF value to the state, or
whether the state will be of value to
women. 1t is merely a question of the
family.
Only One In Family Unit Must Vote.
''As matter of fact, should much
rather see the women alone voting,
and the men not, than to see both
women and men voting"
Mr.. Chesterton then explained how
the woman's suffrage agitation grew
up In England. 1t seems that there
were many unmarried women en-
ployed as clerks and typists, and they
grew tired Of mothering typewrlters
and were restless when they thought
OF their future. They turned their
attention to government as the cause
OF their discomfort, and decided they
wanted to ente. politics. The sufrra-
gette was the result.
Now, there is no suffrage move
ment in France, and with good rea-
son." he continued. "The French
and she helps him with his business,
but she does not go outside the home.
The young girl is brought up to help
her father. and then when she is
married she goes on helping her hus-
band. She Is really the head of the
family. and that is as it should be.
She lets him do the voting, because
she has more than enough to think
about in the home. Most French
wives are really tyrants in the home.
like to see that. 1t is a healthy
sign. | used to live in a little French
hotel in Boulogne. where the wife
was the absolute master of the house
hold, and it wasn't until l was about
to leave that 1 discovered that the
poor. overworked porter. whom she
continually ordered about was her
husband. That woman had no desire
and no use for the vote"
Doesn't Like Progress.
And then the little Englishman
went on to complain that he didn't
like progress-in fact, he didn't know
what people meant when they spoke
of this as progressive age.
When one progresses one ap
proaches a definite aim. If place a
layer of stone on my tower each day
l progress, but if I start building a
we'll l don't progress on my tower.
Now, most people speak of progress
ing when they haven't any definite
goal in mind. AS a matter Of fact,
the age is not progressing. We have
no proof that our present civilization
is greater than any other civilization
since man first existed. And we have
absolute proof that no people ever
attained civilization by their own eff:
forts. The European countries have
an imposed civilization. imposed by
the Romans. And we have no record
of time when the Romans were not
civilized.
Home Broader Than World Outside.
81 cannot understand women when
they complain ABOUT the nome being
too narrow for Them he said sud
denly. in his very English manner.
Really, the home is much broader
than the silly world outside. In fact,
it is only because men have homes
that they maintain their balance. And
l can't understand. either. this cry of
women to go outside the home to
work. 1t seems to me much broader
thing for woman to tell her little
son how the world was made than for
her to become a machine in an office |
or a factory.
But of course the capitalists are /