ion, as well as man. Her participation in public life would
impart a strong stimulus thereto, and open manifold new vistas.

Such demands, however, are met with the curt rebuff: "Women know nothing
of politics, and most of them don't want to, either; neither do they
know how to use the ballot." True, and not true. True enough, until now,
very few women, in Germany at least, have ventured to demand political
equality also. The first woman, who, as a writer, came out in its favor
in Germany was, as far as we know, Frau Hedwig Dohm. More recently, it
is mainly the Socialist working-women, who are vigorously agitating for
the idea; and their number is ever larger.

Nothing is proved with the argument that women have, until now, shown
little interest in the political movement. The fact that, hitherto,
women have troubled themselves little about politics, is no proof that
they should continue in the same path. The same reasons, advanced to-day
against female suffrage, were advanced during the first half of the
sixties in Germany against manhood suffrage. Even as late as 1863, the
author of this book himself was of those who opposed manhood suffrage;
four years later he owed to it his election to the Reichstag. Thousands
of others went through the same mill: from Sauls they became Pauls. Many
are the men, who either do not care or do not know how to use their
important political rights. And yet that fact was no reason to withhold
the suffrage from them, and can be none to now deprive them of it. At
the Reichstag elections in Germany, 25 to 30 per cent. of the qualified
voters do not vote at all. These non-voters are recruited from _all_
classes: among them are scientists and laborers. Moreover, of the 70 to
75 per cent. of those who participate in the election, the majority,
according to our judgment, vote in a way that they would not, if they
realized their true interests. That as yet they have not realized them
comes from defective political training, a training, however, that these
70 to 75 per cent. possess in a higher degree than the 25 to 30 per
cent., who stay away altogether. Among the latter, those must be
excepted who remain away from the hustings because they cannot, without
danger, vote according to their convictions.

Political education is not gained by keeping the masses from public
affairs; it is gained by admitting them to the exercise of political
rights. Practice makes perfect. The ruling classes have hithe