The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1916-03-12
OF Interest to Women
BY Winona Evans Reeves.

| The other afternoon at the Birth OF
a Nation we sat beside very de-
| lightful southern woman, Kentuck
| ian, a woman whom we had never seen
before and even now do not know
her name. We were so pleased that
accident should have made the num-
Der of her seat and ours because
cause it was as IL we had seen the
picture with dual personality. She
had her little boy with her. a child
perhaps six years old. and her con-
versation with that little boy Is what
made us see the picture as it register
ed itself on the retina of southern
eyes. We learned that she was born
in Kentucky and that the little boy
loved horses because his grandfather
raised fine horses. This woman's
grandfathers on both sides had fought
for the southern confederacy and
had lost their lives in the civil war.
1t didn't take a very Discerning
mind to see that that little boy knew
all about the lost cause and he kept
track OF that picture every minute.
Now and then he'd say. yes, mother,
but where are the confederate SOL
diers." In the great battle scene
every time the confederate flag came
UP to that stone wall she clapped and
cheered, and every time old glory
flashed across the screen We clapped
and cheered, but we met on common
ground and both cheered Lincoln.
When the raiders went through that
lovely old southern home, she said
to the little boy, "caynt you see, son.
what they are doing?'"
There isn't any doubt in the world
but that The Birth of a Nation is
southern picture, but 1t isn't going to
do any harm to the north, tho victor
ious side In the war, neither is 1t go
ing to stir up any strife, but it is 60
ing to do this-it will make the north
ern people get the viewpoint Of the
southerners in a more graphic way
than hundred printed volumes would
do. And so as the last strains OF
1.-THE Star Spangled Banner died out
and we said good bye, not one con-
vict1on of ours had been changed, but
we looked into her face and under
stood her viewpoint better for having
seen The Birth of Nation.
Some one in speaking of the num-
Der who have gone forward at the
Scoville tabernacle within the last
two weeks, said: "a lot Of them are
children" and we thought Of story
Dr. Newcomb once told on com
munion day at the First Westminster
Presbyterian church, when there were
no grown people Joining the church,
only four little boys stood before the
altar. This is the story as DR.. New
comb told 1T:
! One Friday night up In the high
lands of Scotland, an old Presbyterian
elder came home from the preparatory
service at the kirk, down hearted ana
discouraged. The good wife said 10
him: Did none ask for tokens to-
night?" You know in Scotland when
one wishes to join the church, they
appear before the minister and the
elders, and if they pass the examina-
ton as to their beliefs and conv1c-
lions they receive "a token which
they present on Sunday morning at
communion. So when the wife said:
did mono ask for tokens ton1sht!'
the old elder said: "None but wee
little boy" But the name Of that boy
was David Livingstone.
AS has been said before in this
column, the women who stand for
equal suffrage today deserve no spec
ial credit for their position in the
matter, the thinking people In the
course of time have come to realize
it's Justice and it's consistency with
democratic form of government. Sew
eral Keokuk women knew personally
the pioneer suffrage worker, Susan B.
Anthony, among them Miss inertia
Mitchell. Miss Mitchell is graduate
of the law department Of DePaw Uni
versity and practiced law for years IN
st. Louis, and met at one time ana
another most of the prominent women
of the country. A few days ago IN
speaking of the newly organized sur
frage association here, she spoke or
Susan B. Anthony's personality, and
said she was a lovable sweet OLD
woman when one met her in social
way, but that when she spoke in public
some times harsh note crept into
her speech. due doubtless to the
memory of the treatment which she
had received from almost every quar-
ter for a. belief which she knew was
| inst and which time would justify.
miss Flora Dunlap said recently IN
the New York Evening Post that
iowa women are making the suffrage
campaign, not on the basis Of unjust
| laws or unfair treatment to women,
hut because they believe that equal
suffrage is fair and just to women
I l. Cot