Show IS THE anoman SUFFRAGE ACT INVALID asidie anu asu ticie in the herald of this s 1 1 1 V w mor i li ind on the 1 subject sic i of the i W woman 6 in in su suffrage nage rage q act net hiag hias caused consid dilie bon ent and ana we have bee been n rag dy aked if wo we did n not 0 t intend to present the subject in its 6 arki tnie L light as grave errors are set forth in the heralds explanation of the case mt e to come before the supreme court this evening it should be observed however that the herald gives the objectionable points as reasons to be offered tonight to night in favor of the erasure of the names of women voters from the registry list laist not as arguments of its own it does not say anything in support of those alleged reasons nor anything against them we refer to the subject not with the desire to enter into controversy with our esteemed morning contemporary but to answer a very general desire that the points referred to may he be properly explained the merald herald ff erald quotes from the organic act the provision that at the first election in this territory every free frob white male inhabitant above the age of twenty one years shall be entitled to vote and hold office but that the qualifications for voting and holding office at subsequent elections shall be such as shall be prescribed by the legislative assembly I 1 and proceeds to say that portion of the act providing that hat citizens shall be free whites 15 of course obsolete by the provisions of the fifteenth amendment but ta the he other portions that persons shall be 21 years of age males and citizens of the united states are valid and it will be claimed that it is not within the power of the legislature to make laws which conflict with these provisions it may prescribe as is stated such other qualifications asare as are deemed advisable by it such as length of residence in a county or the territory taxpaying and even a qualification for reading and writing but it has no power whatever to pass a law which shall a allow a person who is not a male not a citizen of the united states and not 21 years of age provisions in the organic act the right of suffrage the statement which appears to be the berald heralds own sown whether wilether intentional tent ional or otherwise that the portions of the organic act which declare clare ciare that persons shall be 21 years of age males and citizens of the united states are valid certainly contains a grave error the organic act mak makes es no provision whatever that voters at any election subsequent to the first election shall be males mates the organic act confers upon the legislature power to prescribe the qualifications of voters after the first election in the terri tory with the following as the sole exceptional provisions provided that the right of suffrage and of holding office shall be exercised by citizens of the united states including those recognized as citizens by th the treaty with the republic of mexico concluded february iti irl second eighteen 0 hundred and forty fonty eight there is nothing about mal male e citizens in hi this the word only occurs in reference to the first election A later enactment of congress applying to all the territories extends this power further and gives the legislatures the right to prescribe the qualifications of voters subject only to certain restrictions among which the word mate male does not occur and the first of which is athe the right of suffrage and of holding office shall be exercised only by citizens of the united states above the age of twenty one years and by those above that age who have declared on oath before a co competent court of record their intention to become have taken an oath to support the constitution and government of the united states it should be understood that citizenship is not a matter of sex all persons bom born in the united states are declared citizens thereof and by act of congress the wife of a native bom born or naturalized citizen who might herself become 1 a 1 citizen is de declared arad a citizen by the act of marriage without any oath or ce certificate rt cate cato of naturalization now were there any women citizens zens recognized by the treaty with mexico above named certainly there were well then according to the organic act they were equally entitled with the male citizens to be become core aird voters if the legislature gi slature so prescribed the woman suffrage act is then quoted doted and it is made to appear in tey tem geY the berald herald article that women who wbk agrenot are not 21 years of age are permitted to vote and also that women voters are aire at required require d to reside in in any county or precinct for a specified period this is certainly remarkable in face of the plain wording of the laws th the woman suffrage 1 e iet tet act provides that every woman of the age of twenty one years who lias has r resided asid ed in tho the territory six months next preceding any general or special elec elect i tion bom born or naturalized in the united states or who is the wife widow or the daughter of a native born or naturalized citizen of the united states shall be entitled to vole at any election in this territory tor ton y this law plainly prescribes prescribe s three qualifications for women voters first they must be of the age of twenty one years second they must have resided in the territory six months next preceding the election third they must be either native born bom or naturalized citizens of the united states buti buts but following the precedent set by congress if the woman is the wife widow or daughter of a citizen by this act she is entitled to the same privileges as if she were herself native born or naturalized thatis that is all she cannot vote if she is not twenty on one years eyears of age nor if she has hag not resided in the territory six months and by the registration act she is required to swear that she possesses these qualifications ficat ions and in addition that she has resided in the precinct one month preceding the date of registration tra tion there are other points in the article to which we have not space to refer but these are the most important and whether they are the heralds own views or merely the views of those very liberal persons who so des desire lre ire to elevate the women of utah that they are trying to wrest from them the power df the ballot ballots those points should be correctly understood by the public that none may be under the impression that the legislature g gi I 1 slature has hag been passing laws in violation of acts of congress |