May 1912: Esther Pohl's "Argument for Woman Suffrage" Part II

More from Esther C. Pohl, "An Argument for Woman Suffrage" [Salem] Capital Journal, May 18, 1912, 6.

"... Some opponents to the enfranchisement of women argue that governments depend on force, and women cannot fight, therefore, they should not vote. It will be interesting to read the petitions for disfranchisement which these gentlemen will surely present at the dawn of universal peace. In the meantime women will continue to serve as nurses in times of war, and at a greater risk to their lives than soldiers themselves incur, will produce every man who goes to the front. Insurance companies make a study of life risks, and while none of them discriminate against men on account of potential war, many of them discriminate against women, even in this sterile age, on account of potential motherhood."

May 1912: Esther Pohl's "Argument for Woman Suffrage" Part I

The editors of the Salem Capital Journal asked Esther Pohl to participate in a symposium on woman suffrage published on page 6 of the May 18, 1912 edition. This month I'm posting the article in sections.

She must have been pleased with the lead:

"An Argument for Woman Suffrage:

"(By Dr. Esther C. Pohl of Portland)

"Anyone who will take the trouble to catalogue the reasons why a man should vote will have a pretty good list of reasons why a woman should vote; but above and beyond the claims which men and women have in common, there are reasons why women should vote which are associated with the divine function of motherhood to which no man can lay the slightest claim.

The bible story of creation must have been mixed in translation. Surely woman was created first and given a helpmate because of the handicap of maternity. What would an able-bodied man want a helpmate for? At any rate, God in His wisdom intrusted the female of the species with the larger part of His creative work, and ultimately Kipling saw that it was all good and said: 'Her instincts never fail': therefore we are constrained to believe that God was right. And if her instincts never fail by all means give her a vote, for the so-called logic and reason of her mate fails all too often."

May 1912: Portland Women Physicians

Esther Pohl linked her work as a physician with her votes for women activism.  On May 12, 1912 she contributed a substantial essay titled "Argument for Woman Suffrage" to the Salem Daily Capital Journal with key examples of those links.

I'll be posting segments of that article here throughout the month of May.

To provide some context for Pohl's article I'm sharing the list of women physicians from the 1912 Portland City Directory. Of the 449 physicians listed 34, some 8 percent, were women.

Bixby (Griff)	Alys A		Mrs	6 Lafayette Bldg
Breuer	Berthe			761 Broadway
Brown	Flora A		Mrs	517 Dekum Bldg
Cardwell	Mae H			601 Dekum Bldg
Coe	V M		Mrs	606 Marquam Bldg
Darr	Clara			412 Swetland Bldg
Dearborn	E K		Mrs	800 Union Ave N
Ellis	L A		Mrs	230 ½ Russell
Equi	Marie D			326 Medical Bldg
Erickson	Nellie		Mrs	845 Thompson
French	C Gertrude			525 Medical Bldg
Graves	Luzana E			E 13 Holbrook Block St. Johns
Gray	Kittie P			417 Medical Bldg
Hampton	L Victoria			475 W Park
Johnson		E D			315 Mohawk Bldg
Johnson	L A		Mrs	427 Mohawk Bldg
Kramer	Mary		Mrs	861 Mississippi Bldg
Little	Eugenia G			583 Spokane Ave
McGavin	Jessie M			511 Medical Bldg
MacLachlan	Mary			525 Medical Bldg
Madigan	Mary V			503 Oregonian Bldg
Manion	F S		Mrs	517 Medical Bldg
Manion	K C		Mrs	917 Corbett Bldg
Marquam	L M		Mrs	788 E Yamhill
Norton	Selina			10 E 15th
Patton	Elsie D			300 Marquam Bldg
Pohl	E C		Mrs	216 Failing Bldg
Quigley	Margaret N			412 Swetland Bldg
Schnauffer	E H		Mrs	424 Williams Ave
Spurrier	Ravena T			645 E 21st
Stratton	Margaret			211 23rd N
Talbott	C E C		Mrs	1384 Rodney Ave
Van Alstine	E E		Mrs	512 Marquam Bldg
Warren	A L F		Mrs	301 Dekum Bldg
Welty	Emma J			321 Montgomery
Whiteside	Sarah			216 Failing Bldg
Wood	Nina E			18  Selling-Hirsch Bldg
Ziegler	Amelia			520 Medical Bldg