The Washington herald., 1920-08-22

anhood, is to her the greatest glory, the
greatest gift the Creator could have be-
slowed.
That is the idea that runs all through her
most recently published article, "On the
Fence" which is really a.setting forth Of
her views on suffrage, and which seems TO
have been written with the ides- Of dis
claiming the credit showered on her in hun
dreds of letters of thanks and congratuls
tion when her husband, whose probable
stand on the suffrage question had been
matter of misgiving among those who were
trying to put through the suffrage amend
ment, voted for it.
Processing to have for years occupied an
undignifed position ''on the fence on the
suffrage question, Mrs. Keyes continues:
Most of the stock arguments on the
suffrage question seem to me so irrefutably
true as to be absolutely bromide. So far
women have proved that they can do any
thing that men can do, and do It well. Any
one uncertain of this before the late war
must be certain. even if reluctantly certain.
now ." One very decided advantage
suffrage iS sure to bring and that Is eco
nomiC independence for women. Curlously
enough. there is much less said about this
than about the probable purifying of poll
tics, over which | am personally much more
skeptical The states which already have
suffrage. even those which have had It for
ssme' time. are not nOtlceahly purer than
those which have il not: and the reason is
so self evident as to require very little
comment. There are all kinds Of women in
the world, just as there are all kinds OF
men. We are not, as a sex, above ever sort
of reproach no matter how much indIvid-
uals, men and women both, would like US
to believe that we are. We have faults
which are no more attractive than mems
faults, though they are not always the same
ones. We hope. of course, that American
women and American men are going to grow
better as time goes on. But it will probably
be some time before we are perfect. And
meantime we will all vote. if any of US do.
The rain will continue to fall upon the Just
and upon the unjust as it has been doing
for some ages already and il is emnently
desirable that it should continue to do:
But all women, good, bad and indlter-
emit want money, need money and ought to
have money. and so far many of them, in
a good many cases, those who need It most
and deserve it most, have not had their fair
share.
She points out that man is responsible
for his wifes and daughters bills, but he
cannot be made to give them one penny in
cash unless he wishes to, and lamentably
large number of men do not wish.
But" she rejoices, ''the recent war has
been a great opener for men who have
wives, sisters and sweethearts, even their
mothers, who might perhaps be expected
to carry on old fashioned traditions better
than the younger generation, who 'couldn't {
be trusted 10 handle money or who had no
business instinct fare forth without turn
ing a hair, without more ado in fact than
they formerly made about getting break
fast or putting the baby to bed (for which
they were not paid. and bring home we'll
filled pay envelopes each week. The uses of
adversely have indeed proved SWEET
md she pictures Jane, now that John is
"A home from the war, telling him that
she loves him and little John dearly. and she
wants nothing better than to stay home and
do for them both She'd far rather do that
than run an elevator in a department
store, and it seems to her better worth
doing. and she doesn't quite see how the
world is coming out if the wives and mothers
don't stay home and look after their fam
lies. But she will ask if it isn't worth
something in cold cash to do those things
Running an elevator is-she gets paid for
that. And. oh, well, she doesn't mean that
she's going back to the elevator, but
still-v' And Mrs Keyes thinks that the
masculine half Of the world will see the
point, and she quotes a little verse:
when the old fashioned toife t0ith her has
band had strife,
I'H 90 back TO ny mother she'd sob;
But the toife Of today dOesn't argue thot
Udy5
She says, 'I'H 90 back to my job" "
But just about the time that the suffrs,