Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1920-05-27
BURLINGTON. VT. MAY q. 1s0
WANTED
WOMEN AND POLITICS

Even though women are not permitted
% vote in Vernon, for State officers or
'or presidential! electors or for members
already sn important factor in the pres
mt cal-paign
a Burlington voLr said Yesterday that
.he prescnt Vernon. executive was maxi
ing Democrats Of tho women Of Yer.
mont about as :t:, ~ possible. He
thought II the r. lean party did not
have influence with the present
executive 20 !oa, p'pnote political
Justice for wcr' i woui1 deserve to
lose ths women ,o,c. This Burington,An
though. this A'a,tor wocid also coun.
against the C!c,uen- candidate for tho
yoverrorship in the presen. campaign
We do not say this is ALL SO we merely
quote this u.tcrance as an example Of
,he things thai are being said by indvid-
va! voters. Tho St. Adams Messenger,
which for a long time was friendly to the
present Vermont executive, now com
ments as follows:
"Once again the woman suffrage forces
of Vermont will storm the citadel of
Governor Clements opposition to the fed
eral suffrage amendment. Heavy REIN
forcements, it is said, are on the way and
thanking attack is to be made with a
view to exerting sufficient pressure to
force the chief executive of the State to
call a special session of the Legislature.
The re-inforcements being rushed to this
State are Miss Betty Gram and Miss Elsie
Hill. national organizers of the National
Womans party and the Immediate OBJ
jective Of the assault is the Republican
State Convention which will meet in
Montpelier next Wednesday.
Governor Clement. despite appeals from
all quarters of the State and nation, has
steadily refused 70 call special session.
and it is now the thought of suffrage
leaders to gain the ear of the Republi-
can convention believing that a request
for action from that quarter would cause
the governor to recede from his position.
1t is said similar situation occurred in
Oklahoma where Governor Robertson re-
used to call a special session until asked
20 do so by the Democratic State Con-
venton.
Although Governor Clements position
Is unwarranted in view Of the favorable
sentiment of the citizens Of the State in
regard to woman suffrage Of which he
must be fully aware it seems hardly
likely in view Of what has gone before,
that even request of the Republican
State Convention will be of anv avail
The governor has few il any political
fences to fix and the party favor will
doubtless be matter of Indifference to
him.
1T seems therefore. that the adaman-
tine reserve which Governor Clement has
seen fit to throw about him on this oues-
ton will serve to repulse this new attack
by the women of the State and nation.
Meanwhile. public sentiment is more and
more crystallizing in favor of making
Vermont the Both State to act on the
woman's suffrage amendment and per-
haps the governor may yet find himself
engulfed in lake of his own making"
Mrs l.. H. Olzendam, chairman Of the
ratification organization for Vermont
writes the Free Press in part as follows:
Some time ago when I was commits
s'oneo 70 prepare primer for Vermont
voters. in view of the imminence Of the
woman vote being added 20 tho electorate
OF our State, I vas constrained to spend
4 good deal CO time and thought ,,non tho
election laws of the State and no one OF
them was SO difficult of assimilation az
that OF the presidential primary. was
therefore more than interested in your
exposition Of that particular law IN vour
issue OF May 2st.
The figures given in FRIDAYS naner
- are certainly an(illuminating commentary
ON the presidential primary law which WAS
enacted believe, in 1915 There uere s,o
"otes cast In the towns Of Vermont, all
out three or four Of the 247 towns being
represented therein waIton's Vermont
tolls MS that there are 1856 males OF
voting age in the State, so that by a lit
tie calculation we can see that about four
per cent Of the male voters
took advantage OF their right to vote
In tho primaries in an election which bids
fair to be the most important one In the
history of our country.
Opponents of political justice for wom-
on, when pinned down to try and find
come sound argument for their side. often
remark that women shouldn't have the
privilege of the ballot because they would
mt use it II they mad it. 1t seems to me
that in the above figures Vermont men
have forever put silencer on that par
ticular argument just as easily as suf-
fragsts can produce clean bill of health
in reply to all the other so-called 'argu-
ments against votes for women.
"When tho time comes to vote in the
fall. for chief executive of both our State
and nation how many citizens of Vermont
realize thnt i7,5OO.0OO women are going to
cast their ballots for President Of the
United States whether ratification of the
Suffrage anne ndment is complete or not,
and that tie ri''ior".e or Vermopt viii