The New Zealand Times. SATURDAY, MAY 23, 1914. WOMEN IN POLITICS

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 8740, 23 May 1914, Page 4

The New Zealand Times. SATURDAY, MAY 23, 1914. WOMEN IN POLITICS

A Tory interesting question was raised in Sydney a couple of days ago, when a deputation of women representing the Political Labour League Conference urged upon the Premier, Mr W. A. Holman, “ their claims to participate in the activities of political and municipal life, also as nominees to the Upper House.” The subject opens up a wide field of controversy, more or less legitimate for and against. Of course, if wo are going to concede sexual equality pure and simple there can be no logical ground for limiting the aspirations of women to participate in all spheres of public life. But can mental equality of the sexes, or mental and temperamental, be reasonably admitted? We doubt it very much. We question whether the average woman has the same capacity for judicial consideration as the average man —and. this may be said without disparaging the fair sex. A woman, we fancy, has a shrewder and truer instinct than a man. She may be driven thus to the right conclusion — or to the wrong; but, speaking broadly, men are, we believe, better equipped in their powers of thought and reasoning, in their ability to weigh facts apart from prejudice, than are women, and are thus entitled to the work and responsibility of controlling the important affairs of State and of government. Certainly, we can see an immense difference between giving women the franchise and inviting them to sit in the Legislature, for which it is extremely doubtful if they are suited by temperament. Apropos of this subject, it is interesting to note that an eminent New York specialist. Di Simon Baruch, who has specialised for half a century on sexual differences in health and disease, asserts that woman's brain differs essentially from man’s, and does not ■possess what he terms ‘‘centres of originality.” The absence of originality and initiative in the woman’s brain cells is, of course, as the doctor says, no fault of hers; it is the defect of her germ plasm, and she elicits admiration for having accomplished so much with this biological handicap. The fact that all through the history of the thousands of years of ; human life and endeavour there is nob even sufficient exception to the rule to prove it demonstrates that great originality, initiative, is a masculine quality. From the enormous material, including all the epoch-making discoveries or great achievements, it Is safe to say that a majority sprang from the brains of men who were most woefully handicapped, and who by reason of their masculine courage, persistence, and doggedness swept the handicap aside. Quoting specific instances in sup port of his assertion, Dr Baruch says; —“Look at Christopher Columbus, Lincoln, Hiram Maxim, Elias Howe~ has any woman been more handicapped? What opportunity had Carnegie and his young aid, Charles M. Schwab, or Fels, or Altman, or Woolworth, or Jacob M. Schiff, the great banker? While women’s opportunities for great work were limited by their conventional confinement to one occupation, home duties, the chief reason for the entire absence of groat achievements out-

side of the emotional lines, in which their work cannot bo over-estimated, lies In the. essential mental difference between the sexes, in the essential biological difference in their brain.” And no goes on -to argue that because this cannot bo demonstrated ■ anatomically there is no more reason to doubt it than to doubt the difference between most sane and insane persons because there is no anatomical difference be tween’ -their brains discernible. . In the emotional lines women excel by theij nature; in creative lines men excel bj their nature. “I have not yet found a man who could approach the vast majority of women in the physical or men tal care of young children; his germ plasm unfits him for this most momentous of all tasks,” says Dr. Baruch. '‘The physical rearing and spiritual guidance of children, the making and conservation of home so that it may bo worthy of man and woman living in true comradeship, surpass, despite the slurs and contempt of the feminists, in importance all the discoveries and creations of men. Humanity could bettor afford ta lose any 01 most of man’s achievements than the family life to which all that is best and noblest in our nature is consecrated, and by which it is conserved. No reasoning man believes that the hard-earned man’s home will be disrupted by the strivings of the feminists. Long before this will happen, the brute with whom the suffragist seeks equality and above whom the feminist shrieks superiority will crush her as the law of nature, with its wonted cruelty, will urge. When femininity departs from womankind, tho masculinity of man will unhappily lose the refining influence' that now holds in reverent restraint his normal brutality.” In the foregoing arguments w© cannot help believing there is considerable force. Women have many attributes that bring them immeasurably above men. They are more patient, tender, forgiving; they suffer with less complaint; and they are the mothers of us all. W© do not think the entrance of the female sex into the strife and stress of active political life would enhance the welfare either of that sex or of the nation; and while it must he conceded that there are sufficiently numerous individual instances of high brain power among women to make the extension of opportunities in professional life not only justifiable hut imperative, we believe the Legislature is an unsuitable place for woman’s activities. The Now South Wales Premier appeared to regard the representations of the deputation that he received the other day with a good deal of sympathy, and promised that his Ministry will consider the suggestion that women should be made eligible to sit in the Upper House; but it is not likely that that “reform” will be a very early one- all the same. There are very many spheres of work and influence which belong specially and appropriately to women, and in which the intrusion of men would hardly be otherwise than harmful. Similarly it is, we hold, with men, and the removal of natural lines of demarcation is ono that we trust and believe appeals to no considerable section of the community.