Volume III Part 130 (1/2)

Just before the opening of parliament in 1881, Mr. Courtney accepted a position in the administration, which rendered it impossible for him to continue in charge of any independent measure. By his advice, application was made to Mr. Hugh Mason, member for Ashton under Lyme. But the state of public business during the session never permitted the resolution to be discussed.

The same disappointment occurred in the session of 1882--the difficulties in Ireland and Egypt occupying the attention of the government and the country to an extent which almost precluded any measure of domestic reform. Nevertheless, by constant and arduous efforts, these two years witnessed the pa.s.sing of the Munic.i.p.al Franchise bill for Scotland.

The Munic.i.p.al Franchise act of 1869 applied to English women only.

Early in the session of 1881, Dr. Cameron, member for Glasgow, introduced a bill to a.s.similate the position of Scottish women to that which their English sisters had enjoyed for twelve years. The bill pa.s.sed the House of Commons before Easter, and was then brought forward in the House of Lords by the Earl of Camperdown, pa.s.sed May 13, and received the royal a.s.sent June 3. This law applied only to women rate-payers of the royal and parliamentary burghs, and did not extend to the police burghs, the populous places endowed with powers of local self-government under the general Police and Improvement act of 1862. A request was sent to Mr. Cameron to exert himself for a similar extension of the franchise to the women of the police burghs, and he answered by introducing in the following year, 1882, another act which gave to all women rate-payers the right, not merely of voting at elections of burgh commissioners, but also of voting with the other inhabitants as to whether a populous place should be const.i.tuted a police burgh.

The election under these new measures was in November, 1882, and then Scottish women voted for the first time, excepting of course in school-board elections. The result was entirely satisfactory, though the number of women who voted varied greatly--in some places where no special interest attached to the election none came to vote, while in others they voted in equal proportion with the men, and in a few towns nearly every woman whose name was on the register voted. The pa.s.sing of these two franchise bills was an undoubted triumph of the women's suffrage party. As one of the opponents in the debate of July, 1883, scornfully observed, ”Had it not been for the question of women's suffrage being agitated throughout the country at the time, we should not have heard a syllable of the Scottish women's franchise bill,” a sneering admission which we willingly construe into compliment.

The year 1882 also witnessed the pa.s.sing of the Married Women's Property act, whose immense benefits can hardly be estimated, and we may confidently a.s.sert that but for the unceasing agitation of the friends of women's suffrage, another quarter of a century would have been suffered to pa.s.s without bringing in this tardy measure of justice.[553]

We now come to the session of 1883, inoperative as far as actual legislation was concerned, but rich in its augury for the future.

Already in April the improved temper of the House on questions in which women were concerned, had been shown by the brilliant majority that voted with the Rt. Hon. Mr. Stansfeld for the suppression of the Contagious Diseases acts which have so long stained the English statute book. Early in May a memorial to Mr.

Gladstone was signed by 110 Liberal members of parliament, unconnected with the government, in which they stated:

That in the opinion of your memorialists no measure for the a.s.similation of the county and borough franchise will be satisfactory unless it contain provisions for extending the suffrage without distinction of s.e.x to all persons who possess the statutory qualifications for the parliamentary franchise.

This memorial was a most remarkable manifestation of the support which members on the Liberal side of the House are pledged to give to the principle of justice to women. Nor are we wanting in Conservative support. Sir Stafford Northcote, has always given his friendly approval to the movement, and has very recently repeated his a.s.surances of cooperation in answer to a deputation of ladies who waited on him. After repeated balloting, Mr. Mason obtained a day, July 6, on which to bring forward his resolution. It was thus worded:

That in the opinion of this House the parliamentary franchise should be extended to women who possess the qualifications which ent.i.tle men to vote, and who, in all matters of local government have the right of voting.

Mr. Edward Leatham, also a Liberal, gave notice to oppose the resolution affirming with a curious liberalism, that ”it is undesirable to change the immemorial basis of the franchise, which is that men only shall be qualified to elect members to serve in this House.” Thus after a silence of four years, years of apparent inertia, but really fraught with progress, the debate once again revived in parliament. Mr. Jacob Bright said:

They have told us women can get what they want without the franchise. That used to be said of working men--but since they have had a vote, members in every part of the House have had a generosity and sympathy and courage in all matters affecting working men which they never had before. Precisely the same effect would follow if you gave women the franchise. I admit that women have gained much without the franchise, and I will tell the House when that gain began: It began with the introduction of the question of women's suffrage to the House, and the gain has been mainly due to the awakening intelligence of women on political questions owing to the wide-spread agitation and the demand for women's suffrage. They have gained without the franchise, munic.i.p.al votes, school-board votes, the right to sit on school-boards, the magnificent act of last year--an act which ought to confer lasting fame on the present lord chancellor--the Married Women's Property act. And owing to the untiring energy of the right honorable member for Halifax (Mr. Stansfeld), they have succeeded in inflicting a blow on an act of parliament[554] more unjust to women than anything which has ever been pa.s.sed, a blow from which that act will never recover. These things have been gained without the franchise. But who will tell me they would not have gained them sooner, with less heart-breaking labor, if they had had the political franchise?

Mr. Courtney also addressed the House in stirring words. The result was most encouraging. Four years had pa.s.sed since a division had been taken, and the enormous majority against us which in so many divisions had maintained its strength had dwindled to only 16. A total of 164, including tellers and pairs supported the resolution against an opposition of only 180. If the Liberal side of the House had only been canva.s.sed on this occasion it would have been a victory, as 119 Liberals voted for it and paired, and only 75 against it.

With the close of the session the question was transferred to the country, and the events of the autumn made it amply evident that the majority of Liberals were in favor of extending the parliamentary suffrage to women. A great conference was held in October at Leeds, where delegates from between 500 and 600 Liberal organizations were present. Fully 2,000 delegates were present at the first meeting. After a long discussion upon the coming Reform bill, the Rev. T. Crosskey, of Birmingham, proposed a rider to the resolution which would include women's suffrage, as follows:

_Resolved_, That, in order to meet the just expectations of the country, and to fulfill the pledges given at the last general election, this conference is of opinion that a measure for the extension of the franchise should confer on householders in the counties the same electoral rights as those enjoyed by householders in parliamentary boroughs; _and that, in the opinion of this meeting, any measure for the extension of the suffrage should confer the franchise upon women, who, possessing the qualifications which ent.i.tle men to vote, have now the right of voting in all matters of local government_.

Mr. Walter McLaren seconded Dr. Crosskey in an able speech, and Miss Jane Cobden (daughter of the late Richard Cobden) who was sitting on the platform, and who had been appointed delegate from the Liberal a.s.sociation of Midhurst, supported the resolution. She begged them, representing as they did the Liberal principles of all England, to give it their hearty support. This was a continuation of the struggle in which Liberals had taken part during the last fifty years, and she trusted they would be true to their principles.

Mrs. Helen Bright Clark, the daughter of Mr. John Bright, M. P., who had been appointed delegate from one of the few Liberal a.s.sociations which comprise women among their members, said:

There was in this country a considerable and increasing number of earnest women of strong liberal convictions, who felt keenly the total exclusion of their s.e.x from the parliamentary suffrage.

Their hope was, of course, in the Liberal party, though all of its members were not yet converted to true liberalism. The Liberal women would not rest satisfied until there was throughout the United Kingdom a real and honest household suffrage. They knew that they were weak in the cabinet, and they regretted to know that some of the most eminent leaders of the Liberal party were not in this matter wholly their friends. These leaders had fears which she thought the future would show to have been unfounded. But she could venture to say on behalf of the Liberal women of England that they were not unmindful of the past, and were not ungrateful for the services which these men rendered and were prepared to render to their country. Women were grateful.

They sympathized with the efforts of Liberal statesmen in the past, and they knew how faithfully and loyally to follow. But they felt that they must sometimes originate for themselves, and they dared not blindly and with absolute faith follow any man, however great or however justly and deeply beloved. Further, she could say that, with the result of the high political teaching they had had in the past, they would endeavor faithfully, intelligently and with what ability was given to them, to uphold those great principles of justice, and trust in the people which she believed had made the Liberal party what it was, and which alone were capable of lifting it to the highest triumphs in the future.

There were enthusiastic cheers when Mrs. Clark had finished speaking. The historical interest, the self-evident justice of the plea brought forward by the daughters of the great reform leaders on behalf of the continuance of the grand cause of freedom for which their fathers had so bravely battled, went to the hearts of the crowded a.s.sembly. Delegates who had come determined to vote against the resolution--the ”monstrous political fad,” as one of our opponents in parliament had called it--said, almost with tears in their eyes, ”We can't vote against the daughters of Bright and Cobden,” and when the resolution with the rider was put, a forest of hands went up in its support, and in that vast crowd there were only about thirty dissentients. The following evening Miss Jane Cobden and Mrs. Scatcherd addressed an open-air meeting of 30,000 men who could not gain access to Victoria Hall, where John Bright was speaking on the franchise for men, and a unanimous cheer was given in favor of women's suffrage.

This was only the beginning of the autumn campaign among the Liberal a.s.sociations. The general committee of the Edinburgh United Liberal a.s.sociation met on November 16, 1883, in the Oddfellows'

Hall (No. 2), Forrest road, Edinburgh, to consider the questions of the Local Government Board (Scotland) bill, the equalization of the burgh and county franchise, and the extension of the parliamentary vote to women householders. After the two first subjects had been considered, the following resolution, moved by ex-Bailie Lewis, was adopted:

_Resolved_, That this meeting regards the extension of the parliamentary franchise to female householders as just and reasonable, and would hail with satisfaction the introduction of a government measure which would confer the parliamentary franchise upon all female householders, whether resident in counties or burghs.

November 21, a meeting of the general council of the Manchester Liberal a.s.sociation was held in the Memorial Hall to consider the resolutions pa.s.sed at the Leeds conference. Mr. J. A. Beith presided. Mr. J. W. Southern moved the following resolution:

_Resolved_, That in order to meet the just expectation of the country and to fulfill the pledges given at the last general election, this council is of opinion that a measure for the extension of the franchise should confer on householders and lodgers in the counties the same electoral rights as those enjoyed by householders and lodgers in parliamentary boroughs, and should extend to Ireland the franchise enjoyed by Great Britain; and that, in the opinion of this meeting, any measure for the extension of the suffrage should confer the franchise upon women who, possessing the qualifications which should ent.i.tle men to vote, have now the right of voting in all matters of local government.

An amendment to strike out the portion relating to women having been rejected, the resolution was carried unanimously. November 26, the sixth annual meeting of the National Liberal a.s.sociation was held at Bristol. Here also one or two ladies were present as delegates. After a resolution affirming the urgency of the question of parliamentary reform had been pa.s.sed, Mr. Lewis Fry, M. P., moved: