The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1919-01-24
Fringe


Speaking of fringe, the editor of the
Star certainly wields a facile pen,
and the little paragraph on fringe"
several days ago. gave US much pleas
ure; it was SO very neatly turned, but
a mean disposition TO go to the root
of things, compels us to point out the
fact that the inconsistency is the
esteemed editors rather than ours,
inasmuch he makes himself a party to
Withdrawing the privileges of supe-
riority, but is unwilling to extend the
rights of equality. That sort of thing
won't work in business. I believe it
savors too much of the "slow check"
device sometimes resorted to by the
impecunious, which, like the little
boys description of fib, is a very
present help in time of trouble, but an
abomination to all good business peo-
pie.
Besides this, the editor of the Star
failed to understand the real meaning
of our article concerning the attitude
of the Florida newspapers towards
the suffrage situation. We did not
say (nor do we see how such a mean
ing could have been read into the
article) that the "errors" of the suff-
ragists should not be published, but
we did say-and we still maintain
that it is manifestly unjust to cause
in which the very best women of our
country are vitality interested, to ad-
vertise the doings of few who bring
discredit on this cause, while we sup
press or publish in such a way as to
belittle or obscure the valuable
achievements of it's representative
supporters. And we observe that this
attitude is almost peculiar to the
southern newspapers; IN other Sec
tions, things are reversed. We have
an old-fashioned belief that the ideal
newspaper takes it as a matter of
honor to give its readers honest, un-
biased news, regardless of the person
al preferences of the management.
We confess to a sad lack of exper-
fence in the ways of newspaperdom,
but we cling to our ideal.
They Have Stayed by the Stuff
We greatly fear that some of our
friends are still believers in the theory
that women must be weeping will
lows and twining vines, standing up
on pedestals." (The mixed metaphor
is not Originally. Very pretty theory,
but it won't work and il never has
except in so few cases as TO make the
theory neglible as working plan.
Consequently, the theory is reserved
for the ideal woman, the woman of
dreams, while the real woman con-
forms TO rather modified program
intimately connected with cooking,
scrubbing,, washing, ETC., while the
PEDESTAL "the most rickety thing on
earth, to quote DR.. Shaw-is gener-
ally stationed close to the cookstove,
in order that the household divinity
may, from point of vantage, patrol
the pleasing path to the masculine
heart.
/ heard man say recently that on
his way into town he beheld three
twining vines cutting wood to do the
family washing. and upon arriving in
town, he found the husbands of these
superior beings adjoining the plat
form of the depot, whiting sticks
and running the country while Will
son was in Europe. This man said
that he became a suffragist on the
spot, for since women "had right TO
work, they were entitled to voice in
the government under which they
worked"
Tt seemed to me that this man had
touched upon something fundamental
in the whole situation. The entire
fabric of civilization is predicated
upon the worker, and the worker has
at least as good right to speak In
matters touching human rights as any
enc else. 1t is quite true that wom-
en- have not gone forth in great num-
bers to fight with death-dealing
weapons in the battles for freedom,
but many have gone into the very
jaws of death to minister to the fight
ers, and those who stayed behind,
~~-l1 - xDor~sb1a e., %I,< woovn - no