Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-05-12
AS ONE WOMAN SEES IT.
New Voters, slishted by old.Tlmers,
View Bag Of Political Tricks and
Learn Some Startling Lessons
BY SARAH d. LOWRIE
ODO YOU suppose all primary elc


l feel that this is momentousT friend
OF mine asked me yesterday.
Il put her question to seasoned veteran
1f 11od the r,tS machine variety and he shook his
This here has me wore out in my temper
before It comes off ~ was his sole comment.
The truth is the uncertainty of what to
expect Is bit wearing on the boys from
they did not expect is giving the new voters
considerable jolt. In other words the
machine men are afraid of surprise, and
the women politicians have had their sur
prise and are staring at new world with
calculating eyes to see how best it can be
adapted for their use.
The. new bag Of tricks that has been
opened before them for the first time, with
personal menace. is astonishing to them,
GTt put, not In the least alarming. To have the
ders and invited them in to help and asked
them what they could do for them alter.
nately ignore them or double cross them.
now that they show tendency to think for
themselves. does not scare them, does not
even discourage them in their quick disillu-
sionment,.. but turns what was perhaps an
attitude of good humOred patronage.o on their
part into quietly determined attitude Of
seeing the thing through to finish
TT WAS perhaps as we'll that the inevitable
L "sh2wdown', should come sooner rather
I"tci. u, NC us say. tue women or the
variety that directly after the war were
culed out by. the political powers for polit-
cal power of n fgurehead type had been
content to be fgureheads for the ascendant
boss TO decorate his ceremonial anniver-
saries with It would have delayed things
and rather blurred the clear cut issue but
fortunately those women. chosen for their
prestige and charm and for their influence
with women as well as with men, we're not
isureheadS. They had always been leaders
IN vastly more intricate life than even
politics can produce. their home lives and
their lives in the world, so that when they
We're ignored they were aware not only of
their rights but Of the way TO claim those
rights properly and with dignity and in Il
way to hold the public attention.
Too late for their own success. the poll
ticians who in the name of the State Repub-
ncan Committee chose q candidate for Gov
ernor without consulting their women State
omrlaiS OF the party have realized that their
technical error is working havoc with their
machine discipline. The strength of the
machine idea is the giving to each member
MS due OF power. In placing women in
nominal positions OF power they forget TO
give them ut the crucial moment even Il
sembance of authority; they really humiH-
nted them before AL the other women of the
state. Some Of their victims took It quietly,
biding their time; some took it angrily and
win personal animus. but. fortunately,
there were some who took n for what -
was. an act Of injustice directed against the
supposed weakness Of the uninitiated. an
injustice as much injuring men as women.
TNllE contention OF the vice chairman Of
l. the State Republican Committee. Mrs.
barclay Warburton. that she was not Off .
cih'iy consulted when tie candidate that the
State Committee decided to adopt MS its
candidate for Governor was chosen. and was
therefore not responsible for him. is based
on technicality that no machine tDolitician
from the Governor down to the division boss
would care to have ignored where he was
concerned.
To the duiicst mind ignorin- her official
rights was not playing the game" The
fact that the candidate was very reason
able candidate to back does not change the
issue. re vas chosen ''out of order" Tn
less the primaries indorse him next week.
therefore. he has no right to the name of the
committee candidate; he was actually chosen
as Independently By Republicans as was
linchot by his group. But the men chooS.
ihS hin. or forcing him on the committee
were OF one type not wholly agreeable 70
many loyal Repubicans-the State contrac-
tor type.
nttl the issue is decided at the rri-
mar!es those not favorable TO his backers
may with all GOOD conscience vote against
nm, not because they dislike or even dis.
trust him. but because they distrust the mon
who ov"rrode even the common decencios of
their party discipline to>put him under obli
CATION to them for his candidacy.
mat IS the position that those women
leaders have taken who. though Officially
state tominitt""wom"n. are backing the
Independent Republican canddatc-piHchot
The machine broke down in the sclection of
:. A!t:r .r and nd slid HIN in by a trick Of few
"have come along" and some of tho cnno"
mtte"wom"n. but nor all of the committee
me men or women nave acduiesced in the trick.
They arc waiting for the primaries 70 decide
the issue. W "so'N'
1t is IL perfectly fair stand on their part
and ono which even those whom they are
inconNcncnr!ng and even threatening can
understand and IN a sense admire even while
they use every effort and we'll known trick
To c!rcumvcut.
WHEN s,y every we'll known trick
w | mean. Of course, we'll known 10 the
machine politician, hut not seen before in all
their glory by tho new voters
| VIII enumerat" just II few that have
en.!vencd som" Of my political hours Of late.
Th"r" ar" various racial bodies in this
city that have always heretofore been handed
t,rp "a nj. b., Iii