le of justice to women. Nor are we wanting in
Conservative support. Sir Stafford Northcote, has always given his
friendly approval to the movement, and has very recently repeated
his assurances of cooeperation in answer to a deputation of ladies
who waited on him. After repeated balloting, Mr. Mason obtained a
day, July 6, on which to bring forward his resolution. It was thus
worded:

That in the opinion of this House the parliamentary franchise
should be extended to women who possess the qualifications which
entitle men to vote, and who, in all matters of local government
have the right of voting.

Mr. Edward Leatham, also a Liberal, gave notice to oppose the
resolution affirming with a curious liberalism, that "it is
undesirable to change the immemorial basis of the franchise, which
is that men only shall be qualified to elect members to serve in
this House." Thus after a silence of four years, years of apparent
inertia, but really fraught with progress, the debate once again
revived in parliament. Mr. Jacob Bright said:

They have told us women can get what they want without the
franchise. That used to be said of working men--but since they
have had a vote, members in every part of the House have had a
generosity and sympathy and courage in all matters affecting
working men which they never had before. Precisely the same
effect would follow if you gave women the franchise. I admit that
women have gained much without the franchise, and I will tell the
House when that gain began: It began with the introduction of the
question of women's suffrage to the House, and the gain has been
mainly due to the awakening intelligence of women on political
questions owing to the wide-spread agitation and the demand for
women's suffrage. They have gained without the franchise,
municipal votes, school-board votes, the right to sit on
school-boards, the magnificent act of last year--an act which
ought to confer lasting fame on the present lord chancellor--the
Married Women's Property act. And owing to the untiring energy of
the right honorable member for Halifax (Mr. Stansfeld), they have
succeeded in inflicting a blow on an act of parliament[554] more
unjust to women than anything which has ever been passed, a blow
from which that act will never recover. These things have been
gained without the franchise. B