The Judgment of Women

Waipukurau Press, Issue 9, 23 January 1906, Page 2

The Judgment of Women

- o — Writing to a Wellington paper, a correspondent says:—There is only one point on which I do not quite agree with ‘ Omar * when he doubts if woman are fit to exercise the franchise intelligently. Are most men fit ? Could there be anything more pitiful than an election in a democratic community ? Is not the multitude always deceived by catch phrases and promises ? Does not 44 the gift of the gab ” exercise a more powerful influence than intellect ? Elections are not decided by principles, but by interests. Roads and bridges, billets and contracts, compose the machine which drives the show. Borrowed money Is the fly-wheel. Here you have, say, John Smith, who can talk’ shop, football, and horses. You would not waste two minutes to talk to him. But multiply John Smith with so many thousands, and you get the Voice of the People. Trust the people, and “give them what they ask for, 4 ’ this is called Statesmanship—the old Roman bread and circuses policy. Giving the franchise to to women was simply multiplying ignorance by two. Our leaders are politicians not statesmen, time-servers and waiters on providence. A slab of rough greenstone, weighing twenty-one pounds, was, on Tuesday last, deposited in a Greytown jeweller's shop by a number of natives, of whom three were women, to part-owners. According to their story, the stone has a history. It came from the South Island over thirty years ago, and was buried on the site of Tamahau's house, till Tuesday, when it was unearthed. The wahines now require a fair division of the heirloom, and ' orders have been given to cut the stone into equal portions. The owners are Mrs Rahu and Mrs Richard Pahuru. The price of potatoes has been receding steadily for some weeks past. The ruling price to-day is from £6 to £8 per ton for good sound potatoes. The local market is being adequately supplied from different places along the Manawatu line, Nelson, Motueka, and small quantities from Blenheim. Onions, which reached such phenomenal prices some two or three months back, mae now be purchased at n ormal prices from £5 to £5 10s. Australian supplies are still coming to hand, and these are being supplemented by eA-rly lines from Auckland.—Times. The potato blight, whilst it attacked the early crops in the Auckland district very severely, is not, it is reported, having such a disastrous effect on the latter crops which were planted after the drier part of the season set in. Some of the crops are likely to yield good results, but owing to the prevalence of the blight, the area planted is not so great as would otherwise have been the case. •