Omaha daily bee., 1919-11-03
Women Preparing for Neso
Cevic Duties
From the Minneapolis Tribune,

Women are proceeding to justify the extern
sion to them of the right of suffrage by organ
izing for the purpose of educating themselves
as to their civic duties and as to the questions
upon which they should be informed and must
have an opinion in order to cast an intelligent
ballot. In doing this they are setting an exam
pie for the men which might we'll be copied.
It is true we used to have political parties
and political discussions, where the male voters
were supposed to be enlightened as to the
But so many men were careless about their
civic obligations and neglected their response
bilities to such an extent that that system of
party leadership, exercised through caucuses
and conventions, fell into disrepute and what
Is known as the direct primary was substituted.
denced by the results. Wherever the direct
primary is in effect, and notably in this state,
where we have perhaps about as bad election
laws as are to be found anywhere, there is no
opportunity for guidance or leadership, no re-
ton or body of voters, no formulation Of plat
forms or notwithstanding but scramble
for the offices. Each candidate is a platform
for. himself, legislative results are haphazard,
and great public interests, both local and state,
suffer for lack OF organized protection or pro-
motion. This is what the male voters have
accomplished through lack of interest in poll
tics through failure to discharge their civic
duties and rightly sappraise the dignity and re-
sponsibility of being voter.
Now the women have been granted the right
which they have long demanded, and fright off
the bat" so to speak they proceed to organize
for efficiency as citizens. To take the place of
the movement formed to agitate for suffrage.
they are organizing for the education of women
IN order that they may discharge intelligently
the new duties which are imposed upon them
by the privilege of the ballot
That is the prime object Of the meeting to
be held in this city beginning today, and It is
significant that among the eminent women Wis
ltors from other states are representatives of
the womens organizations of both the repub-
lican and the democratic parties This voters
educational movement is not a partisan affair.
rarity politics, as. we understand it, will be
allowed to cut no figure in the sessions and the
activities OF this undertaking. Women are d.
vided in politics very much as men are but
they are probably more tolerant Of the differ
ences OF political opinion than men because in
this movement they open the doors irnpartially
to women. OF various political beliefs. 1t is
doubtful II any male voters council could be
held IN this non-partisan, or bipartisan, man.
ner, with speakers present representing differ
ent political beliefs and organizations. The
effect OF the woman voter upon American pol
tues IS the subject of much speculation, upon
which advocates and opponents of suffrage
have taken widely divergent positions: but
with this definite purpose to educate and en-
tighten women voters on the questions of the
day and the nature of their new duties as citi-
gems, whatever of apprehension there. might
have been as to the effect of adding to the
electorate large mass of supposedly more or
less unntormed voters, it is evident that there
is sincere purpose to prepare for the ntelli-
gent exercise of their new functions as citizens,
1t will take time, perhaps years, to bring the
women voters as mass to a proper under
standing Of what they are attempting to do as
voters, but it is safe to say that they will quail
Try more rapidly than the opponents of equal
suffrage have been willing to concede.