Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1920-02-19
RIGHT TO VOTE MEANS
MORE RESP0NS| B|l|Ty
Speaker at Citizenship School
Mentions Problems That
Women Must Face and Ex-
plains How They Can Help in
Clearing Up Things

4 NV biGN
Quoted i'm Vermont under tho auspices OF
the suffrage movement closed its three
dav program in this city last eVenins
with a meeting at the Edmunds hlgh
school. At this meeting, Mrs. Nancy
S~choonmaker of Hartford, Conn., diree'o.
of citizenship work for the STATES y,
Vermont, New Hampshire. Rhode islano
and Connecticut. who has been c~onduct"s
the schoo in Burlington, led a ulScuseton
on the League of Nations, telling why
she favored such a league ana discussins
some of the international situations III
connection with the league
Al tho close of the League OF Naulon9
discussion, Principal John u. Colpuih V.
the high school presented the ''uSc W
the Burlington teachers in regard W 'uV
p~etition for larger salaries, Wiici ""'
come before the voters OF the Guy ~
! the March meeting in the torn oil " puSS
| tion as 10 whether the city will Nnt" TO
add Il cents on y dollar Of the s1ahu
list to the school tax for the purpose OF
increasing the salaries OF teachers ""u
| other employees of the schools.
Mrs. Schoonmaker took mp AZ the meet
ing yesterday morning the subject ~
'The state and Nation while the SUD-
iect which she discussed yesterday atler-
moor was New Problems That A"al,
Us" Both of these meetings were HcIu
in the Sherwood parlors.
In discussing the state government
Mrs. S~choonmaker said that the 0'itc
! was formed from a combination OF Nv"
governments, either coming down thtoutl'
| the colonial path, with charters from tne
King of England, or coming through 'he
territorial path, States being added 10 we
Union from adjoining territories "ho
explaincd how constitutions were formed
to govern the states and how these con-
| stitutions may he amended. The leglsia-
tive, the judicial and the executive do-
partments Of both the state and nation
were taken up in order and given quito
detailed description. The methods OF elec-
ton to the two houses of the state Ten
cral Assembly. and TO the two houses OF
Congress were also given careful attcn-
ton.
Mrs. Schoonmaker declared that the
! town system of representation III the
! state Legislature is q bad one because 1t
| allows territory to rule rather than people
The rural districts arc thus able TO con
troll the cities. even though there may
he moro people in the cities than IN the
rural districts. In England. this was
known as the rotten borough system.
At the afternoon session. Mrs, Schoon-
maker mentioned some of the problems
which the country will have to face dur
ing the next few years, and explained
how the women can help in cleaning
up' things. a job in which the women
are especially we'll vcrsed, according 10
the pcaker. Some of the things which
the women ought TO be especially inter
osted in cleaning up she said, are the
child labor and women's labor problems,
the school problems of tho country, which
need much attention. the manner ot
carrying on the politics of the country,
the public health problems. social condi-
tons and public morals.
Women must take their share OF the
responsibility for all of these conditions
from now On, said Mrs. Schoonmaker
Now that they have the vote, they mus
use it intelirently. Women have a grea,
contribution to make to the world. hui
they must know how to make it, know tho
procedure Of government and follow 1t
being on the job every minute.
"If the world falls. we fall with it,
said the speaker. w are through witt
netitioning. We are now on a level Will
men. We must rise and use our power
Al the close of the afternoon session
Mrs. E. II. Reed, acting president of thu
Vermont Equal Suffrage association
made an appeal for members for thai
association. which will soon become {
part of the League of Women Voters o.
the whole country. The interest in thu
Z citizenship school has been growing
I steadily during the three days that /
has been in progress in Burlington. AM
many expressed their appreciation of TIL
opportunities offered to learn more abou
the political institutions of the various