The Suffragette: The History of the Women's Militant Suffrage Movement, 1905-1910

by E. Sylvia Pankhurst

The object of the Conciliation Bill's promoters was, of course, not merely to secure the passage of the second reading by a substantial majority, but also that it should be sent for discussion to one of the standing committees instead of being referred to a Committee of the whole House; because, if the latter course were pursued no further progress could be made unless the Government were prepared to provide more time.

As usual the attitude of the Government was anxiously awaited. It was rumoured that Mr. Lloyd George would speak in opposition to the bill, but those who believed his professions of friendship for the women's cause hoped against hope that he would not do so. Mr. Winston Churchill had been several times in conference with the officials of the Conciliation Committee and had expressed sympathy with their object. They counted confidently upon his help. It is true that some days before the debate, they had received a letter from him criticising the terms of the Bill, but they still regarded him as a friend to the measure. Nevertheless early in the second days' debate he rose to make a bitter and uncompromising attack upon it. He began by seeking to prove that the grievance of excluding women from the franchise was greatly exaggerated, that they did not suffer any legislative disability therefrom, and that neither the mass of the women themselves nor of the male electorate desired the enfranchisement of women. He went on to speak vaguely of the danger of creating "a vast body of privileged and dependent voters who might be manipulated, manœuvred in this division or in that." Then, having elaborately striven to build up a case against the granting of votes to women on any terms, he proceeded with an air of considerable magnanimity to admit that a slight grievance existed because all women were disfranchised. He was of the opinion that this grievance could only be redressed in one or two ways; either by giving the vote "to some of the best women of all classes" or by giving the vote to every woman. The former method he described as "the first way," and he said, "I always hoped the Conciliation Committee would travel along that road." In particularising his favourite method of proceeding by means of his proposed special franchises he admitted that no doubt these would be "disrespectfully called 'fancy franchises,'" and explained that they would give the vote to "a comparatively small number of women of all classes on considerations" of "property," "earning capacity" or "education." These special franchises would, he said, "be fairly balanced, one against the other, so as not on the whole to give an undue advantage to the property vote as against the wage earning vote." "That," he said, "would not be a Democratic proposal...." "It would provide for the representation of the sex through the strongest, most capable and most responsible women in every class and that would meet the main grievance in my humble judgment."

Thus the loudly professing democrat, Mr. Churchill, proposed to enfranchise only those women whom the members of the Conciliation Committee, in the earnest and patient effort to comply with Mr. Asquith's proviso that their Bill must be democratic, had gradually weeded out. They had excluded the property owners as such in favor of their poorer sisters, the graduates, because only the comfortably circumstanced can go to college, and the lodgers, because the majority of women wage earners, to the shame of our country, cannot afford to pay four shilling a week for their rooms. These three classes, the women who own property, those who have graduated at college and those who earn comparatively high wages, were surely those whom Mr. Churchill had intended to indicate. The women had agreed to their exclusion because, as compared with the householders, their numbers were small. This was the very reason for which Mr. Churchill had selected them for inclusion, for he described the Conciliation Bill as "an enormous addition to the Franchise," though it would only enfranchise one million women as against seven million men.

He went on to attack the terms of the Conciliation Bill describing it as "anti-Democrat," and declaring that it gave representation to property as against persons. "The more I study the Bill," he said, "the more astonished I am that such a large number of respected Members of Parliament should have found it possible to put their names to it." He complained that the bulk of married women would not be able to qualify, but that a man who owned a house and stable would be able to qualify his wife for the former and himself for the latter, as though that would not also be the case under his own proposed "fancy franchises." He asserted that the young inexperienced girl of twenty-one would be enfranchised under the Conciliation Bill, whilst "the woman who keeps by her labour an invalid husband and his family" would get no vote. Yet in practice we all know that girls of twenty-one are not usually qualified either as householders or occupiers, and in justice, and let us hope in its practice also, the woman who works to maintain her husband and family, is counted as the responsible householder and would vote instead of the husband she maintains.

He ended with a final appeal to Members to vote against the Bill, saying that a vote on the Second Reading of this Bill was equivalent to that on the Third Reading of any other, and that those who cast their votes for it, should be able to say, "I want this Bill passed into law this session regardless of all other consequences. I want it as it is; and I want it now."

Mr. Asquith spoke against the principle of Women's enfranchisement in general, and against the Conciliation Bill in particular. He began by saying that a franchise measure ought not to be sent to a standing committee but to one of the Whole House. He declared also that his conditions that proof must be shown that the majority of the women desired any proposed measures for their enfranchisement and that the measure should be democratic in its character, had not been complied with.

Towards the end of the debate Mr. Lloyd George also threw the weight of his influence into the scale against the Bill. He stated that he agreed with every word both relevant and irrelevant that had been uttered by Mr. Churchill. Nevertheless he refrained from depreciating the abstract principle of Women's Suffrage as the Home Secretary had done, and directed his attack wholly against the terms of the Bill. In defiance of the fact he persistently declared that the Conciliation Committee which had drafted the Bill was "a committee of women meeting outside the House," and that they had come to the House saying, "not merely must you vote for Women's Suffrage, but you must vote for the particular form upon which we agree, and we will not even allow you to deliberate upon any other form." He said that this was a position which "no self-respecting legislature could possibly accept;" yet the Government had all the Parliamentary year at their disposal to introduce what measures they chose, and for years and years the women had been calling upon them to formulate a Women's Suffrage measure of their own. It had been urged, he said, that this Bill was better than none at all.

"Why should that be the alternative?" he asked. But when a member called out, "What is the Other?" he answered evasively, "Well I cannot say for the moment; but allow me, I am trying to concentrate for the sake of others who desire to follow me in this debate."

Later he said: "If the promoters of this Bill say that they regard the Second Reading merely as an affirmation of the principle of Women's Suffrage, and if they promise that when they reintroduce the Bill it will be in a form which will enable the House of Commons to move any Amendment either for restriction or for extension I shall be happy to vote for this Bill."

"Will the Government give time?" asked Mr. Roch, a Liberal member, but the only answer was: "That is a question for the Prime Minister."