The record., 1917-12-06
HIS DREAM CANE TRUE
By ELSIE LEE.

<FSfSSSSfS fSS5ISsGSESSSSS
Alice was beginning to realize a
Ong-cheriShed dream Of an old-faSh-
ioned flower garden. When the last
brown beds OF loose earth had beer
sm0othcd and the tiny border plants
had been transplanted by her rheumatic
old negro gardener, she surveyed the
result with Il satisfied smile.
At precisely the same moment, Da-
vid Markham, seated at his desk in the
towns biggest bank, was saying to
himself that he could not live without
Alice. Two weeks before Alice had
told him that it would be easily pos
6iblc, as we'll as desirable, for her to
live without him. Their quarrel, re.
sulting from David's demand that she
refrain from publicly iHdcrsing equal
suffrage, was probably responsible for
A,ices undivided attention to her gar
lcu-maling.
The county convention vas to take
pl&ce the next day, ana -.lice was TO
appear before it as 0ne of committee
Of three wcmcn who would request
=
suffrage. David, though younger Cham
the other members of the cold guard
WAS Il local lcaGGr, bit his efforts; to
prevent giving q hearing to tie Won't
ms committee had been fruitlcSs.
The morning session Of the cOuEtg
convention was given up to reports
from township chairmen and to other
lCr at the Watkins house, each MAJ
vent back to the afternoon session
sGGguinC of carrying the day accord
.Dg 70 his desires. Not man OF them
inspected that the suffrage commit.
eca had coIlaborat2d with Mrs. Wat
g;inS in arranging The menu for that
satisfying dinner, so they did not rca-
lizc that an unseen wire connected
their optimistic frame of mind viii;
he appearance Of the WOman'S COM
1littee Immediately after the after
noon session opened.
First, 15rs. Worthington spoke. Be
ing the middIe-agcd mother of four sue
ccssful sons, there was soTre weight to
her argument.
Second came Mrs. Ellis. She was q
handsome matron who had been 9
trained nurse before her marriage.
Third, Alice Hanson spoke, and cnir-
airy was her theme David Markham
tightened his lips as if IT, prevent re
leasing the bitter words within. At
GIst he hssars i 3ot q lN.qres ~ saie,. .sslii
\ ssigtts s. Sifesi eti1Ittfl1
/ that he had never seen her LOOK mere
bewitching. And her speech was
brief.
Concluding, she said: 'Is chivaIry
built upon such an unstable foundation
that il falls tottering to earth merely
because 4. woman walks into booth
and puts piece of paper into box
as q means Of approving or disapprov-
ing Of certain public servants? We
women we'll know that it is not"
It was significant that just at this
point she dropped her lace handkcr-
chief, and of the four men who dartcd
for it, David was the successful cap
tor who restored it to her.
'I have planted garden Of flowers
she resumed. 81 shall have to use
much care to keep the soil in good con.
dition and to keep away harmful in
sects. That care will require proper
tools. All over the world W0men are
planting gardens-home gardens
school gardens, kitchen gardens civit
gardens-Sardens that grow human
I0Wcrs. They need the ballot as 8
tool to keep conditions such that theil
human flowers may grow strong. Is il
cliyalr0uS to withhold that tool? We
women do not ask to uSurp the place
0f men; we ask y9u to help us steI
from the pedestal where your well
meant but misguided chiyalry has 81
long kept US, and we ask you to un
dcrStand that whit we want is tt
walk and work side by side with you
knowing the underlying principle OF
Justice in the heart Of the American
man, we know that what we ask vii
be given Us"
after the completion Of the specche:
/ The carefully planned psychological
moment came and went with the con
: ycntionS unanimous Endorsement o
equal suffrage. Davids "aye" Wa'
given in an unnatural voice, and he ha(
trembling feeling in his legs as h
rose with the other men while thi
ladies passed from the room.
AS Alice passed through the doc
/ she turned her head, pressed her lace
handkerchief to her lips and flashed
. upon David forgiying glance tha
, made him entirely oblivious of wha
: tran5pircd for the next few minutes
JIe gave himself up TO brief but &c
static dream of days to come when h
would be q welcome visitor to the sum
Her house i'll her flower garden ana
subsequently, his dream came true:
| Copyright, 1917. by the Mcclure Newspa
per Syn&icGtel