the war King Albert and Queen Elizabeth had expressed themselves in
favor of the enfranchisement of women but when he opened the first
Parliament after it was over he recommended only equal, universal
suffrage for men. Notwithstanding the unfavorable conditions the
petition soon had 35,000 signatures and was sent to the Parliament. By
midwinter of 1919 the question was one of heated controversy among the
parties, which continued. By April the petition had reached 175,000.
The Catholics favored woman suffrage, the Liberals and Socialists
opposed it, fearing the influence of the church. To avoid a
dissolution of the Parliament a compromise was finally effected by
which the parliamentary vote was given to "all widows of soldiers and
civilians killed by the enemy, or, where there is no widow, to the
mother"; and to "all women condemned or imprisoned for patriotic acts
during the enemy occupation." This enfranchised about 30,000 women and
was only to be in effect until a Constituent Assembly should be
elected which would revise the electoral law.

Meanwhile a bill for the Municipal or Communal franchise for women was
introduced. Plural voting for men was abolished; a general election
took place November 16 and the new Parliament met in December. The
necessary two-thirds vote for the Parliamentary suffrage for women
seemed impossible but the three parties were virtually pledged to give
the Municipal. After three months of controversy and suspense this
Communal franchise was granted in the Chamber of Deputies on March 3,
1920, to all women 21 years of age, by vote of 120 to 37. All the
Catholics voted in favor; all the Liberals but two against
it--Burgomaster Max and Paul Hymans, Minister of Foreign Affairs; the
Socialist vote was divided, 45 of the 56 in favor. It was accepted in
the Senate April 14 by 60 to 33.

The commission on revising the constitution refused by 11 to 9 votes
to include the Parliamentary franchise for women but recommended
unanimously their eligibility to sit in both chambers. This was
accepted in June by the Deputies by 142 to 10 votes. On July 1 they
rejected by a vote of 89 to 74 a bill giving the complete suffrage to
women. On July 28 they voted by a large majority for a clause that
any future Parliament might do this by a two-thirds vote without a
revision of the constitution.

LUXEMBURG.

Under the Treaty of Peace after the war Luxemburg became an
independent government with its own Parliam