The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-02-22

which is difficult to explain and for which it is impossible to apologize. Men seem peculiarly susceptible to it's dom l finance. If the presiding officer of a woman's club were to terminate a meet 1 ing by merely putting on her hat, what rldicule would be meted out to heri Yet | the time-honored way for the speaker of ! the French chamber of deputies to close a final session is 10 put on his hat, and when recently he neglected to prform that sacred rite, pandimonium reigned Thus do customs handed down from age to age acquire almost the force of law Traditions in themselves have no dignity, our only interest in them is the fruitage they bear,' and while many of the traditions of the old south were gracious and kindly beautiful and hon. orable, if their product is injustice they are no longer admirable.
 The old south was an artistocracy if you will, but many years ago we began the reconstituton or an arstocracy un- der the democratic conditions. Now democracy is a thing of growth, by it's very essence it must proceed from within and it is but natural that the democratization of the south should pro ceed more slowly than other parts of Che country for we had farther to go.
 The old heritage of guardianship toward the unprivileged is not yet en- tirely eliminated; we are still somewhat nursing our respect for the past. We have not fully recovered from the re- coil due to pressure of a democratic age.
 But there is much suffrage sentiment all over the south, and some of it has crystalized into active organizations, whose energy. resourcefulness and spirit are not surpassed anywhere. And the women of the new south whose splendid struggle for the ballot has been made especially difficult by the traditions they have had to overcome in addition to the general lack of understanding of what the vote really signifies, have emerged strengthened, because we have not been hampered by thinking politically in time- worn grooves. The fruitage of our labor is that we reach our goal of enfranchise- ment free and untramefed we have won a victory over ourselves
 WEARY OF SECTIONAL FEELING
 We are utterly weary of sectional feel ing and anything which keeps it alive; we are tired of those people who think in terms of the United States and that other department of the universe south of Mason-Dixon line. We know we have background and an honorable past, but we wish to occasionally be allowed to forget it, and to live in the present and fuild for the future. We have sickened of making constant and reiterated ex- plantations of political blunders for which we are in no wise responsible.
 We realize we have moved beyond the period in which the practices of repres- sion created by the exigencies of by gone day can longer be justified. We know, too no state can base a present policy upon outlived conditions; and finally we know the whole body polite suffers from the disease. of any Of rs members.
 It is aeutely distasteful to southern suffragists not to be enfranchised by southern men, for we of all people under stand the symbolism of the ballot es- pecially in state where it's use is re- stricted and professedly based upon virtue and intelligence
 And now by the thousands we have worked out our own salvation and nave unshackled ourselves spiritually We are not bound or gagged by any tradition which thwarts justice.
 ! Justice has become our tradition. Jus 1 tice to all women, children, to the l iliterates in our midst. justice to the ! women in industry still working un- | limited hours, justice to all the hitherto lunprivileged.
 ] It only remains for the outward and visible sign of our freedom to be put in 1 the hands of southern women by Tle generous men, of other states a situation | which hurts our pride and to which we submit with deep regret but not apelogy.