Evening star., 1937-08-01
Bv Jane TAYLOR McCleskp

OUR high-ranking officers of
the National Womans Party
which stands for equal rights
L for women. want President
Roosevelt to appoint a woman to the
Supreme Court.
One does not.
And of the four who want a woman
to sit in the seat which the resigna-
ton Of Justice Van Devanter leaves
vacant, none can agree on who should
have the post.
Burnita Shelton Matthews of the
national council of the womans
party believes the President 'unques-
tionably' should appoint woman to
sit on the highest tribunal. She is a
former president of the National As
sociation of Women Lawyers.
Helen Hunt West. lawyer who has
had colorful career as woman
leader in Florida, thinks there ought
to be women rather than "a woman"
on the Supreme Court. She is acting
congressional chairman of the Ma
tional Womans Party.
Miss Anita Pollitzer, vice chair
man, agrees with Mrs. West, but she
looked up from voluminous papers to
announce that she is too busy trying
to get equal rights for women in ev-
erything to concentrate on getting
any particular woman appointed to
any particular Office.
Il certainly think there should be
q woman on the Supreme Court
bench" Miss Laura NJ Berrien,
treasurer of the National Woman's
Party, declared
Miss Berrlen is vice president of
the National Association of Women
Lawyers and a member of the law
him headed by Mrs. MattheWs-Mat-
thews, Berrien e. Greathouse-th
only one in the Capital composed of
Is many as three women.
cBJECT1NG to any campaign to
put woman on the bench of
the high court is Helen Hill Weed,
stern. eray-haired person. who pores
over law books doing research for the
National Woman's Party and whose
father was for 80 years Represent
ative from Connecticut.
Mrs. Weed knows of no woman quail
if1ed for the place. She declared she
would rather keep that old reac-
tionary, Justice McReynolds, on the
bench than see a member Of her own
sex, Federal Judge Florence Allen,
there. Bobbed-haired Judge Allen of
Ohio Is the only woman just one
step below the Supreme Court.
The Congressman's daughter OBJ
1ected to Miss Allen on grounds that
the woman jurist is "a feminist"
II don't think Judge Allen would
do for the place at all" said Mrs
Weed emphatically. "She is fem
mist and she believes in putting
women of in a cabin somewhere, pro-
tecting them and legislating for them.
Il believe only in removing the
barriers that keep women out of posi-
tions so they can get the jobs If they
qualify" she continued.
Mrs. Weed objected just as vigor-
ously to Judge Genevieve Cline of the
United States Customs Court.
Judge Cline is unsuitable, she con-
tended, because she is well-versed
In only one form Of legality"
Mrs. Matthews, small, slim and
dark haired, began her feminist career
while law student by picketing the
White House during the woman suf-
frage campaign. She would have the
President appoint Judge Cline be
cause Of her record, because she has
served longer than any other woman
on the Federal bench, and because
she was the first of her sex to sit
there"
The United States customs judge
was first appointed by Coolidge and
subsequently reappointed.
Mrs. West, who is credited with
first obtaining jobs for women in
banks in Florida through her free
employment agency for women and
girls, would put her sister attorney,
Mrs. Matthews, on the Supreme Court
bench If she could.
ONE reason is because she heard
one of the Oldest members Of
Congress and . former jurist, Hat