The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-08-20
SUFFRAGE WORRIES
ffYg
BOTH PARTIES
|oA
Fear That Unfriendly Con-
gressmen of Both Par
ties May Be Punished
ORGANIZATION MEN
DISLIKE THEIR WORK
Fear they Cannot Vote Constituents
In Groups omen More Influenced
by Merits Of Candidates Women
Will Strengthen Prohibition Cause. Z
Bv DAVID LAWRENCE.

BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Especial Despatch to The Reformer,
Copyright 1920
WASHINGTON, Aug. 20,ARatifica-
ton of the 10Th amendment to the fed
eral constitution permitting women in
AL states of the union to vote has I'M
questionably upset the calculations of
the Republican and Democratic manag
ers of the presidential campaign. 1t
may mean an entire change of tactics.
Certainly it already has brought wor-
ries that didn t exist last week One
of these is the certain punishment of
Republican and Decorate members of
congress who showed themselves unfa-
vorable to suffrage. The other is the
vote of the women on the tangible or
intangible liquor issues and the various
phases of the league of nations con
troversy.
Now that the fight is over, it is not
prejudicial to say that inside both the
Republican and Democratic camps,
there were influential men who secretly
hoped that the measure would not tri-
umph The women leaders used to call
these persons reactionary and ultra
conservative and however that may be
ii is fact that most of these same in
dividuals were organization politicians
and were plainly stumped by the pros
peet of organizing the feminine vote
in the wards and precincts in the short
time that is left between now and cleo
tion.
Nothing worries a political leader SC
| much as inability to vote his constit-
uents in groups or at least to assess
definitely the trend of one district SC
he can eounterbalance losses in another
| But the women have always proved
themselves inaccessible They are hard
to organize in the political sense and
insist upon a certain Independence
which defies party tradition and par
tisanship While many a man has been
life-l long Republican or Democrat and
hestates to change his allegiance, there
has been built mp no such fealty on the
part of the women. They are inclined
therefore to judge the candidates and
the parties on their merits.
And while it is perhaps a trife ex-
IRENE TO use the term punishment y
as applied to the intention of the
women voters with respect to certain
United States senators who have done
all in their power ito block suffrage
| the women leaders believe the activity
of these men was a true test of their
progressive or reaetionarv character
and that the ones who opposed suffrage
were, with rare exceptions, similarly
lined up against other legislation of q
| social or humanitarian character. They
will therefore use a man Is suffrage rec
ord as an index of his value to the
| community and fight him regardless OF
party.
There is already a good deal of talk
about the giving of credit for the win
ming of Tennessee. 1t is superficial
factor and the women leaders do not
attach much Importance to that kind
of thing They don t believe the
women will vote as matter of graft
ftude but as a matter of principle Al
though Tennessee is a Democratic state
and the Democrats are naturally iubi-
liant that southern state did the trick.
the women leaders know full well they
never could have gotten suffrage as far
as Tennessee = crucial vote without the
constant support of progressive Repub-
licans both in the congress and in the
state legislatures. They will tell you
that Governor Cox showed himself
more sympathetic than Senator Hard
ing They will even show YOU how
Democratic members in the Tennessee
legislature were influenced by Governor
Cox or his personal representatives and
certain women leaders still show re-
sentiment over Senator Harding,s
kindly reference to the anti suffrage
workers in his speech of acceptance.
But shrewd political managers aren t
so sure Senator Harding didn II NAV