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should one set of people set limits to anotherset of people. It's taking my life,my education, and freedom as a privilege,not as a common right. It's being kept ina lower class, with inevitable hardships—"The girl stopped for breath.''Hardships !'' repeated Dick. "Whathardships in this country, I'd like toknow?""Plenty." The girl caught his words."Isn't a woman's opinion on any seriousquestion discounted before she speaks?Isn't 'womanish' a term of reproach?Isn't a man insulted to be told his intellector his character or his style ofwriting is like a woman's? Isn't a womansupposed to be nattered, on the contrary,to be told that her brain or mannerof doing things is like a man's? Aren'twomen treated by their men, generallyspeaking, with affectionate contempt?Do women get equal pay for equal workin the callings where they have peggedtheir way into recognition—teaching,stenography, clerkships ? No, they don't.You know it. Also, if any man—anyvoter—wants a place, other things beingequal, that vote settles his preferment forit over a woman. The woman standsaside, sometimes gives up her livelihood,because a person who can vote, and who'stherefore more important, wants it."Dick was distressed. All this seemedempiric. He had seen such statementsin print; he had even read them andput them down to one-sided reasoning.Doubtless, if one went into it, there werefacts which more than balanced apparentinjustice. Besides, this applied toworking women—not to goddesses. Whyshould a tall girl in a white gown, withgolden hair and a voice like runningwater—why should she care about orknow sordidness? Was not every manon earth ready to stand between her andhardship? It was unfitting, it revoltedhim to hear this talk in those tones. Suddenlyhe caught the note of laughter inthe tones which his soul adored. "A lectureon suffrage!" she spoke. "I neverdid it before, did I?""Never," said Dick; and then, thoughtfully:"There's a thing I'd like to say.We think a lot of the family in the South.I've grown up to consider the family aunit. Father and mother and childrenMr. Boyle 59parts of one institution, all with differentfunctions. The mother's affair is the mostbeautiful: to keep the home, the hearthfire, the heart of life to them all. Therough jobs like voting and breadwinning—thoseare the man's. What aboutthat?"The girl's eyes flashed to his. "You'renice," she said. "You don't try to poohpoohthings—but, then, few people donowadays. Suffrage has fought its wayto serious consideration. I'll tell youwhat I think about the family as a unit,Mr. Battle. It isn't a unit and never canbe again; also, it is so much a unit that nochanges can shake its oneness. It can'tbe a unit again because history won't gobackward. A married woman has individualinterests now—charities, clubs,studies, amusements. Often they're iden-• tical with her husband's, often not. Thatjust happens. She has opinions, too. Thehusband doesn't play golf to cover theamusements of the family, so why shouldhe vote to cover the opinions of the family?The missis may agree with himabout the next President or not; theyshould be able to differ peaceably, as theywould about tennis and golf or church orthe books they read. Shouldn't they?"asked the girl. "Anyhow, it's so. Awoman is a person these days and notonly a fender for the fire—sacred firethough it is—of course it is.""Oh!" murmured Dick."And the other way around; the familyis forever a unit. Do you know any womanwho isn't crazy about her house andher children ? If you do, isn't she a freak ?Don't worry, Mr. Battle, the eternal feminineis on the planet to stay, and knowinga bit isn't going to unsettle her. Itdoesn't take you more than three hours ayear to do your voting, does it? Well,three hours a year won't spoil the housekeepingof any family. And don't beafraid we'll talk about the legislature andstocks all the time. We'll frivol the betterfor a little ballast in our heads."She tossed up a hand. "There's somethingelse to the family-unit point—whatabout the thousands of old maids?"With that she threw back her fair head."I'm ashamed," she cried, "to deliver alecture to a helpless guest. And a Southerner,tied and bound by chivalry !"

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