Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1918-11-14
WOMEN VOTED
JUST LIKE men
christian Science Monftor9

Inc Waple story OF the experience OF
women III the New York election, on
Tuesday. is condensed INTO the state.
ment that they voted like men. They
approached the polls, entered the
booths, marked their ballots, deposited
them, and went about their business,
like men. Like men, some Of them had
to ask questions; like men, few Of
them did not understand, when their
questions were first answered, and had
to be further instructed, but, like men,
in the main, they voted intelligently
and e~Xpeditiously.
Said one of the leaders of the suf-
frage movement, after performing her
duty as a citizen, 1T took me Just two
minutes to Vote labored thirty
years and spent thousands of dollars
to get that vote. and l cast it in two
minutes. There might be a difference
of opinion as to whether l voted wise.
Y, but / can testify that it was worth
all my work to be able at last to express
ny opinion like q free citizen in a free
country" s
AS nearly as the vote of Greater New
York on Tuesday can be ~analyzed, it is
.stinated that eight-nipe and one.haIf
per cent of the registered women cast
heir ballots, and this would indicate
hat the number of women's votes was
}7l,2l2. Everything considered, this is
regarded as an excellent showing, and
me which disposes completely of the
claim that if women We're given the
ote they would not use it. There is
GOOD reason for believing that if GER
ain ~unfavorable conditions had not
risen, both the registration and the
rote would have been larger. Even in
he presence of conditions for from nor
nal, a registration of Ala, 7s60 and a vote
If 73l,212 constitute Il sufficient re-
futation of the time-worn allegation
hat wome a + nothing for political
lffairs and prefer not to be mixed up
IN them.
This argument was long in use in the
West; it was employed in New York to
lefeat suffrage; there are evidences that
t will be offered by opponents of equal
rights in other parts of the East, with
more or less persistence, from this time
on, Notwithstanding that experience in
the older suffrage states completely
lisproyes it. New York has now come
Onward to show that women in hte old
er are quite as alert to the opportuni-
les given them through the franchise
Us are women in the newer states.
Another equally unjust allegation
also has been disposed of by the vote of
New York States on Tuesday. Women
leither flocked to one side nor to the
1ther at the behest of Strong minded
eaders, so far as may be judged by the
.'eturns. They voted, apparently, as
men vote. No doubt, ONE We're influ-
enced and some We're led, as some men
re, but there is reason for believing
that the proportion of individualism
,layed at the polls among ONE wa
,)y men. Elsewhere the SANDER that
women in politics would not think for
themselves has been thoroughly refu-
ed; it is no surprise to students of the
,peration of equal suffrage elsewhere
hat it has been refuted in New York.
Newspaper reports; looking for flaws
IN the operation of woman suffrage in
he chief city of the nation We're appar-
entity unable to find any. What they
lid find was that the refining infiu-
nee of women was noticeable in the
yoting places in the initial election un-
Ter the new law. They gave generous
testimony to the fact that woman's in
1uence was reflected in larger, cleaner,
more comfortable polling places. The
d~ecencies we've generally regarded. The
exercise of the duty of citizenship by
non was made more agreeable. Women
lid not get in the way; did not clog
the passages; did not remain an undue
.ength of time in the booths; on the
whole they carried themselves credit
lbiy, and more like veteran citizens
than beginners.
Seven in name, bur one in aim
United War Work. CamDaign.