Mar, 30, RECENTLY received Home papers: devote considerable space to the discussion of a Bill, introduced in the House of Commons on February 20 by Mr. Whiteley, Labour member, which. proposes to equalize the franchise rights of men and women. The author of the Bill postulated axiomatic principle that the right to vote was a concomitant of citizenship and was not in any way dependent on the possession; or lack of possession, of property. Women, He contended, were bearing the sponsibilities of citizenship and were entitled to its privileges. The contention seems to have been accepted, although the Bill itself was rejected, The Prime Minister has pledged the Government to bring in and pass a measure whick will'give to men and women equal voting rights before _another election takes place, The BIL has been accepted. in principle by all parties and this ie a sufficiently arresting cireumstance to dene measure of! attention, for less revolutionary measures have awakened fierce controversies in days not so long past. Let us try to set forth the changes that the proposed measure will make in the laws of Britain,"
Under the present franchise men have the privilege of a vote at twenty-one, but women must reach the age of thirty before! they can exercise a similar right. The result is that though, the population of the country, women outnumber men by a large majority, men, at a general election, cast some three million votes more than women. The control of the nation's. policy, therefore, rests, in the last analysis, in the hands of men. Women exercise a modifying, but men the controlling, influence in the nation's councils. and seemed, when the law was passed, convincing to the ma. jority of the nation. Perhaps that which had most weight was the consideration that a nation's depends on its power to defend itself if attacked. war, the burden of defence must fall on the male section of the population; it appeared unjust that women, if they had an equal franchise with men, would, by holding the majority of votes, be in a position to declare a war, the dangers and sacrifices of which would be borne exclusively by the outvoted minority of men. Experience has proved this argument to be fallacious, Women, in the last great struggle in which the nation was engaged, bore their full share of the hardships and the hazards of war. Moreover, man is the bellicose animal; there is very little danger that in a depa man would be found on the si: le of the angels and women in the ranks of the war-makers. And, as Lady Astor observed, women do not cast a sex vote. There is no chance whatever that the House of Commons will ever divide so that the men will all cast''their votes for the ayes and Wortten for the nees. The idea that. lovers would quarrel and Jhusbands and wives be estranged by their opposing views on polities is. simply laughed out of court; no one was found so oer to do it reverence. And s0 it has been decided that within ithe lifetime of this present Parliament the ages at which men and women vote will_be 2 fixed at.a common level. The result will be that five million women will be added to the elect-toral roll and women voters will outnumber the men by more than two million.
'This change is decidedly revolutionary and yet it has been accepted, unanimously, in principle, by the House of Commons 'To, those -of us who remember: the' bitter controversy that was. roused by the suffragettes and suffragists and the torrents of abuse that were heaped on those unfortunate pioneers, this complete volte face borders on the ridiculous, It is a lesson worth taking to heart by those who are tempted to oppose measures they. dislike by intemperate language. Perhaps we would all be wiser: if we remembered Cromwell's appeal to his Parliament, "I beseech you, gentlemen, think it! possible that ye may be mistaken, The preponderance of women amongst those qualified to vote in Great Britain is bound to be reflected in the laws placed upon the statute book. We may expect, if and when this measure. becomes law, that future Chan-cellars of the Exchequer will follow Mr. Snowden's excell example and budget so as to give arly as possible, an untaxed breakfast table." Questions, relating to education, {housing and sanitation will all be treated with a new deference because of the influence wielded by the army of women voters. There are, doubtless, some who. still fear that women will "lee: us down," if the phrase niay be used, on questions of foreign That, however, remains to be proved and we will not anticipate what may never happen, That the influence of women in social legislation is good ought to be presumable; that may be undesirable other in directions has yet to be de-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.