The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1920-06-08
ADDRESS GIVEN
BY MRS Gait To.
SUFFRAG|STS
Gives Open Address In Gen.
eva, Switzerland, Today
Before Large Crowd

GENEVA, Switzerland, June TAT
the opening here today Of the Con.
gress of the International Women Suf-
frage Alliance Mrs. Carrie Chapman
Gait, president of the American Wo.
man Suffrage Association, addressed
the congress on the progress Of the
movement throughout the world. Mrs
Gait said in part:
"For the suffragists of the world a
few facts stand forth with great clari-
ty. The first and greatest is that the
political liberation Of women was tos-
sed up out of the war chaos like an
isolated mountain when the world was
in the making. War, the undoubted
original cause Of the humiliating, age
old subjection of women the world
around, war, the combined enemy Of
their emancipation, war has rendered
to the women of many lands their po-
litical freedom! St''ange. bewi'dering
fact!
1.-THE Latin and Oriental countries
still hold out but that will not be for
long. Rumania, the first Latin coun-
try to extend the vote to women, has
already led the way, the others will
follow. / believe no country in Eu-
rope except Turkey now is without a
woman suffrage association. Women
will soon vote wherever men do. Yet
while all these old barriers are swept
aside in many lands and men and wo.
men enfranchised, the task Is not yet
completed In the countries where wo-
men have labored hardest and where
the principle of democracy has long
est been unchallenged.
"There must be millions Of women
in Europe who never hoped for polit-
ical liberty and who are now dazed
by its sudden coming. The women of
Norway, Denmark and Iceland have
long been enfranchised, but Germany
has oustripped all other nations in
the recognition of the principle of
equality, with 1877 women serving on
city councils and 81 as members Of the
National Parliament. The President
of the German National Suffrage' Asso-
citation comes to this Congress as a
member of the City Council of lDres-
den.
ut is not for me to interpret the
sentiments of the women of other
lands but with authority / may say
that there are millions of suffragists
in the United States Who have been
fairly stupifled with establishment at
these almost unaccountable events.
AS all the world knows the United
States of America has been dedicat-
ed from the first to the principle of
self government. No other nation has
made the same announcements.
"No other country has repudfated
It's Constitution, principles and history
in it'd denial of votes to its women and
that is why the extension Of suffrage
to the women of all Europe has so
and humiliated the women Of the Unit
ed States. Women Of the United
States are not less glad that women
of other lands have won the vote but
they feel that they have been betrayed
by their own nation.
ut was in the United States that
the first woman suffrage convention
was held and the first organized wo.
man suffrage movement in the world
begun. That was 70 years ago. Had
men been reasonable or logical, they
would at once have responded to the
appeal of 1S4S with the consistent an
swer. Since we are government Of
the people, and women are people,
they must be included in all govern
mental functions.', But men are neith-
er reasonable nor logical; men are
exceedingly emotional and sentiment
al. The race is too near its cave days
to be otherwise.
$50 liberal has the United States
been In the matter or man suffrage
that Is of the 4S states once allowed
men to vote who were not yet citi.
zens and several still do; and seem to
see nothing inconsistent in permitting
an illiterate non-tax-paying alien to
vote while denying that privilege to
American.born, intelligent tax-paying
women.
at has been a familiar sight on cleo.
tion days when q question OF woman
suffrage has been pending to see re-
fined ladies', college graduates and wo.
men of Importance, standing 100 feet
from the polling place making their
appeal to voters. while men unable to
speak English, the language OF the
ballot, unable to read in any language,
uncouth and unframed. marched past
them to cast votes against their en-.
franchisement.
"lncreditable. you say. 1t is; as.
founding and unbelievable. It stag.
gers and dumbfounds one. Should you