New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-04-14

lltlZen
women, like men, have been hanging
breathless on the news from the great bat.
tie OF Armageddon going on in France
When the line OF the Allies was bending.
we pinned our hopes upon the reserves; and
all hearts rejoiced when they came up to
strengthen the defence
THE world is full of wars, visible and in
visible. all going on at the same time The
tremendous war with German imperialism
does not put stop &c the wan against
tuberculosis. or the war against profteer-
ing, or against political corruptions. These
and score of other perennial struggles
keep right on. in all of them the men
who are fighting bravely for the right ought
TO be reinforced by their reserves, the
women. And the men who are leading al
most every good fight demanding that
the women shall be equipped with the most
effective modern weapon. the ballo' Fancy
the folly. if in France only the first line had
been armed with guns, while the reserves
had been provided merely with bows and
arrows against the German artillery,
"ln view of the terrible events now going
on IN the world. women might we'll DROP
for the time being their fight for the bal
lot If the right to vote were only orna-
ment decoration, a badge of dignity; but
the middle of great world is no time
TO drop the fight for effective weapon.
1t is the time to redouble every effort be-
cause of the pressing need.
"'Women never fight like this for them
selves, said an acute observer, commenting
uron the enormous outpouring at a suffrage
meeting in England. years ago. Women arc
seeking the ballot not for their own pleas
urc, not chiefly for their own self
respect, but above all because they want to
help
Mrs Mary A. Livermore, famous army
nurse in her day, as well as n famous suf-
fragist, told story illustrating this. She
said:
During the Civil War major of the
goth Indiana Regiment was brought to my
house in Chicago with seven partly healed
wounds, received at Gettysburg. He told
me that in the beginning of the battle his
regiment was stationed a hill among
the reserves. The smoke hid the battle
field. and the screaming Of the shells was
terrible. After a while the smoke blew
away, and they could see. on hill oppo-
site, other reserves, including the 18th Ind
lana. Presently the other reserves were
ordered down, and the major cried Boys.
there goes the 18th Indiana into the fight"
Down they came like one man, TIL the
masked battery opened fire on them The
grape and canister tore through them, NOW
ing great swaths. On they went, keeping
step and time, making their way around the
great mounds of dead. And the Goth Ind
lana watched in agony the slaughter Of
their comrades and friends, and the major
cried, 80 God, why don't they call US re
into action? We could charge down
the hill and spike those gunsi"'
Mrs. Lvermore added: Il think of this
as | read the papers; | think of it as | go
among the slums. l say to myself, 80 God.
why do not those beloved men. the halves of
ourselves, call us, their reserves ~ The
same lesson comes to from our sick and
wounded soldiers; it comes to us in all our
work for the uplifting of society. Women
allowed to look after the detectives and
unfortunates, but they want to get back
behind the of pauperism and insan-
ity, and in nine-tenths Of the cases these
result from bad laws. 1t is this very wish
to help that makes US long for the ballot
This is as true to-day as when Mrs.
Livermore said It. All the forces OF evil
go into politics. They go in with all their
might. Every ounce of strength in the
armies of righteousness is needed to defeat
them; and eternal vigilance is the price Of
safety. DO not forget me, sister If you
forget me, enemy will think Of me, says
haf-delrous boy IN Thomas Wncfold.
ct Will 90 hard after the war with any
enc who is proved to have hindered. through
/ selfish greed the proper equipment of our
troops; and it Will 90 hard in time to
come with any political party that binders
the men who love their country from being
reinforced with the votes of patriotic
women