FEMALE FRANCHISE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 4943, 5 February 1895, Page 3

FEMALE FRANCHISE.

THE GOOD OLD DAYS.

When unveiling a statueof Burko. erected at Bristol, Lord Rosebery is reported to have thus spoken on the relations of females to the franchise 100 years ago. He said-Well, gentlemen, you must remember that as I have said, you were then the second city of the Empire, and your seat was not au easy one to win, You now get through your poll in al day, The poll then lasted from three weeks to five. All that time new electers were being admitted under the guise of freemen, and as often as they were admitted they voted. Two thousand of these freemen and more were admitted during the course of the three weeks' poll when Mr Burke was elected, and the certificates of these freemen -copies as they were called—were begged, borrowed, and stolen with the greatest readiness in the world-(Laughter) and when it was impossible to beg, borrow, steal, or manufacture any moroof thesecertifioates,onedesperatecourse was at last resorted to, which was this—the widow or tho daughter of a freeman in Bristol, could confer on, her second husband, or her husband,; tho privilege of enfranchisement by marriage—(Laughter)—and so these interesting ladies were dug out and discovered, wherever they might exist—(Laughter)—oven in the recesses of the workhouse, and were taken to church to be marriod! to some enterprising and ambitious politician who wished to exercise for the occasion the privilege of the franchise. (Laughter.) It is recorded that these conscientious couples, as they were called, were invariably separated at the church door, tho husband hurried to fulfil the new duties which had been imposed upon him by his union, and when ho had done that the ceremony of divorce was gone through with equal expedition. (Laughter.) Proceeding to the churchyard the couple stood each on one Bide of a grave, and in allusion to the solemn words of the marriage service they said to each 57 i*h wsb true in a sense) .Death does.nspart," and both parto went theiiv way rejoictog.

(Laughter.) That was considered a sufficient divorce for such a marriage, and I am not sure thai the opinion was ill-founded. (Cheers and laughter.)