Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1919-11-05
MAYOR DISCUSSES
CIVIC MATTERS AT.
WOMAN CLUB TODAY
EXPLAINS THE INITIATIVE AND
REFERENDUM TO LARGE GATH.
ERlNG HELD IN LIBRARY HALL
ENDORSES COMPLETE SUI.
FRAGE FOR ALL WOMEN.

Civic matters We're discussed AT
length this afternoon, by Mayor Geo
V b. Weeks, before the civic depart
ment of the Ottawa Womans club
tcreSting that had ever been given
''betore the club, and was delivered in
a very able manner. Library hall
where the session was held, was filled
by representative women OF the city
before the hour for the meeting &c
open. The club had invited all WON
en- in the city who We're Interested to
attend, and large number of ladies
took advantage of the opportunity OF
listening to the address.
The meeting was in charge of Mrs
Betty Stonebraker. who was the host,
ess for the day. Preceding the talk
of the afternoon, Miss Mary Roberts,
the little daughter OF DR.. and Mrs
! Roberts, gave a reading. and was
/ forced to respond to an encore
The mayor said in part:
Il note that have been asked to
speak before the civic department of
/ your club. The modern word civic
| is derived from the Latin word civ
icus, meaning Il gathering of the peo-
| pie for monstratiOn of some kind,
and the word civic in modern times
| means something pertaining to local
government, and the interest of a
citizen therein
Il would take ii from that that this
| department of your club is interest.
ed in the government of our city.
and that the courtesy YOU have ex-
tended me today. should be used by
ME In talking of local government in
general and some of the important
things that confront Us today
My definition of government is. 4
restraint upon society Women are
as much part OF society as men,
and my talk TO you in the first
place | wish to discuss why in my
Judgment they should have an equal
right to vote.
The law making bodies of the ma
tion, state and city are composed Of
men and with the exception of our
local city government those law MAX
crs are voted on or selected by men
Women come within the domain OF
the laws that are made Just the same
extent DIS do men, yet at present
they have little To say as to what
those laws shall be.
Women have the right to hold
property as well as men. and prac-
tically on all things excepting the
right of franchise and of office hold
ing, stand on an equality with men.
Her education is on an average with
mans and her general knowledge OF
right and wrong will equal mans.
And above all believe her desire
for good government is more in
tense than mans, and there is a rea-
son why The very heart of the
world is the homa and ehe wife
and mother is the heart of the home
All laws affect the home, whether
they are national, state or city laws,
and the home is the greatest inter
est Of most women. and when coup
led with the rights and prosperity of
her children, which all laws affect,
makes her interest in government and
those that shall govern so strong that
to deny her the right to vote is to
take from us the best that we have,
and to destroy in the electorate the
highest standard of citizenship
Our government in all its branches
is representative government. In
the very early days the government
was really democracy States were
not formed, and each town governed
itself and all had a voice in the gov
crument at the local town meeting
But as the population increased even
in local government ii became neces-
sary to create districts. and have the
people OF each district select one or
more men to represent that district
and create laws for that district at
some central meeting place. And so
today we have our national congress,
composed of men elected from GER
tain districts who represent or are
supposed to represent all the people
in their district and the same is true
of our state legislature, and under
the old aldermanic form was true of
| our city government, and is more
or less true of the commission form
of government under which we oper-
ate today.
THE old aldermaric form was di-
rectly representative, but would have
brought into being better men for al
derman if 1t provided for the cleo
tion of aldermen by ali the voters in
J The city voting on all aldermen in all
wards, instead of just the voters in a
ward voting on the alderman in that
ward. For the larger the element OF
the people voting the better class OF
men we usually obtain.
ANY form of government Is a
good form If the personnel holding
Continued on ps5e 8, col. ~