'I see,' said Victoria, 'but how is the vote going to help?'
'Help,' echoed Miss Welkin. 'It will help because it will enable women to have a voice in national affairs.'
'You must think me awfully stupid,' said Victoria sweetly, 'but what use will it be to us if we do get a voice in national affairs?'
Miss Welkin ignored the interruption.
'It is wrong that we should not have a vote if we are reasonable beings; we can be teachers, doctors, chemists, factory inspectors, business managers, writers; we can sit on local authorities, and we can't cast a vote for a member of Parliament. It's preposterous, it's . . .'
'Yes, I understand, but what will the vote do for us? Will it raise wages?'
'It must raise wages. Men's wages have risen a lot since they got the vote.'
'Do you think that's because they got the vote?'
'Yes. Well, partly. At any rate there are things above wages,' said the suffragist excitedly. 'And you know, we know that the vote is wanted especially because it is an education; by inducing women to take an interest in politics we will broaden their minds, teach them to combine and then automatically their wages will rise.'
'Oh, yes.' Victoria was rather struck by the argument. 'Then,' she said, 'you admit men are superior to women?'