Today -100: April 13, 1913: Folded arms and not raised fists

New York state bans discrimination by hotels, theaters, music halls bath houses, barber shops, etc on the basis of race, color or creed, with fines of $100 to $500 and/or imprisonment up to 90 days.

The NYT has an article about the first issue of The New Statesman that somehow neglects to mention the magazine’s name. The Times does quote one of George Bernard Shaw’s articles, on the Marconi scandal: “We are an incorrigibly intemperate and ridiculous people in our cups of virtuous indignation. We are a nation of governesses.”

Emmeline Pankhurst is released from prison, nine days into her three-year prison term. The NYT criticizes the British government’s “feeble policy.” Mrs. Pankhurst is “stronger than the Home Office and the whole Liberal Government.” The New Statesman (possibly Shaw again) says of forcible feeding, “The fact that Mrs. Pankhurst can make [Home Secretary Reginald McKenna] unpopular by dying on his hands does not give him a right to add one ounce to the weight of her sentence.”



Headline That Sounds Dirty But Really Isn’t of the Day -100: “Still Pounding Scutari.”

Belgium is preparing for a general strike tomorrow for universal suffrage (or universal male suffrage, depending on which article you read). According to the Socialists’ posters, “This is a strike of folded arms and not of raised fists.” Currently, the vote is held by males over 25, with extra votes if they own property, have university degrees, work for the government, are married or a widower with children (max. 3 votes each). 60% of voters have 1 vote, 25% 2, and 15% 3. The current Catholic Party government would not have been elected without plural voting.

Nebraska bans marriages between a white person and anyone with 1/8th or more of black, Japanese or Chinese blood. Presumably blacks and Asians can inter-marry, because the Nebraska Legislature doesn’t care about the “purity” of any race but one. Native Americans were originally included in the bill, but were later removed; I don’t know why.

John B. Henderson, the former US senator (1862-9) from Missouri who wrote the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery, dies at age 86.

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