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Show Gertrude Atherton, Novelist, Attacks the Women of San Francisco GKRTKODI5 ATI1ERTON, novellit, having put her hat on straight qud taken a final glimpse of her stuuulngj apparel, told the pub.lo that the wag going go-ing to campaign California in favor of Wood row Wilson as candidate for the Presidency of tbe United States. California Cali-fornia took notice, alMhe wa from Bed Dog, 1'ou Bet, Hangtown and Dutch and Poker Flats to Siskiyou on the north, San Diego and Los Angeles on the feouth, Table Mountain on the east and San Francisco on the west Thc talented Gertrude Ger-trude Jias such discernment that it has been u foregone conclusion that she would campaign in a novel way; that there would be plenty of lights and Ebadcs in the work ; that she would bring eloquence to bear upon tho susceptible, and that, take it all In all, there would bo such a campaign of elegance, beauty and strength as would serve for a model for cen lu riei. A paug of eny felung the mcutal con-sciouanoB con-sciouanoB of thc women of thc State of California as they realized what capacity she had to outshine her competitors, and smelling suits were worked overtime when the subject was discussed. The belle of Sausalito and tbe wise "co-eds' of Berkeley Berke-ley and Stanfoid learned of hec Intentions, Inten-tions, which were pnblibhed in big, black type, and wcro dismajed. Mere man tat up o' nights and waited for the fair and famous authoress to begin. The followers follow-ers of Woodrow Wilson eeut word to New Jersey that all was -nell. Candidates for positions in California custom houses and postmasterahlps in every one of California's Cali-fornia's fifty-eight counties under a democratic demo-cratic regime mode additionally sure by Gertrude Atherton, began to find out that tberc was merit In woman suffrage as a lift tp affluence, and already promisee positions po-sitions to prospective subordinates who "clinked the cannikin" oft and well in hpnpr of Uertrudo Atherton. Lcj-s than a week olapsed between the announcement of Gertrudo Atherton as a political campaigner and her first official offi-cial attempt to win over the favor ot tho voters of the State for Woodrow Wilsou.j Then her anger at the political inertia of Sap Fronciyco women, from the political point of view alone, boiled over, and shu cooed to those wlusc votes she sought lo bring into the political corral of the sago! of Now Jersey with such phrases hs: "The women of San Francisco live like a lot of oysters, without mental alertness. "Thc Ipw order pf intelligence of the Snn Francisco -women is shown by their not beinjr for &uffrage. "The pottlug and spoiling of thc women of San b'raneisco is a relic of the early mining duys, when womcu were scarce, when money waa made more rapidly, aud when women of obscure Hfc were speedily speedi-ly made Into fine ladies." This bort of campaign opening began July 30. "It marked an epoch," as political campaigners of the other sex might have said. Gertrude Athorton wus not content with bowling over tho -anity of San Francisco women with these opening gum?. She fpcedily prepared vitriol to pour Into the wounds that her onslaught had caused by comparing thcni -with their California bisters In other cl'.IcB in tills fashion : "Here arc the women of Los Angeles, Berkeley and Oakland, and all the uprthcrn part of the Stalo hoavily registered (as voters) and ready to take their part In civic iluties, and the women of San Francisco looking out of windows and reading novels. They arc an idle, lazy, spoiled lot. The women from Los Angeles aro alive. They aro , women mainly from thc Eastern and Middle Western States, and Uiey arc workers and keen, Bil in San Francisco Fran-cisco there is evidently a great number of very silly women." Were ever voters in buch manner wpped and won? Was ever man's vanity man the voter ever so outraged regarding his lady friends? Never was tho old political proverb that "it takes molasses to catch tliufs" so ruthlessly defied. Never was n campaign lo get otcs ever begun onuch lines iu thc knowledge of thc Forty-niner. Forty-niner. Gertrude Atherton doe? not leave any chance for doubt concerning her estimate of the women cf Califprnia who happen to livo in San Francisco. To make as surancc doubly sure on this point she has, written words, words, words, ou this very point; "Those who read at all confine thorn selves to novels that aro not even trashy. I havo noticed them iu libraries where, at tho close of the day, the tables arc covered cov-ered with stuff written by people you never hear of. '-i-'bo librarians tell me that thero uro plenty of women who read ono of these novels every day. It's a kind of drug. No wonder that their brains are atupefied and that they arc incapable 'of thought on any subject." All this matter has borne fruit alrvudy. Wherever San Francisco women gather thero is talk about Gertrudo Athorton. Hpstilc women are attacking thc npvelbt. They aro interested, whether in a clnb or in a cafe amusing theinselrcrt with the pink delicicusncss of a strawberry ice. Col. urans nnd columns of matter navo been doveloped by the Ingenuity of local news paper men intent upon making "good copy." It should be borne In mind that the Atherton compateu for Woodrow WU-Mm WU-Mm a yet very young- "Voters may be surprised by additional developments. In i iy event, tlili is the political campaign extraprdiuary; bojond. parallel in the history his-tory of woman campaigners; filled -71th' so many posiibllitiea that the enfranchised j and tbe disfranchised women voters nljko look on with mingled feelings. The whole epibode contain? enough now matter lo fill a now sort of book. On ouq bide is Gertrude Atherton, sland-lug sland-lug by her guns. On the other sjdc are irate women ".uelaring hat "eituenosses arc not oystcietcc,s." |