“Oh, That ‘Twere Possible!”

1874 –

1942

With apologies to Lord Tennyson.

(“The grant of suffrage to women is repugnant to instincts that strike their roots deep in the order of nature. It runs counter to human reason, it flouts the teachings of experience and the admonitions of common sense.”—N.Y. Times, Feb. 7, 1915.)

Oh, that ‘twere possible
After those words inane
For me to read The Times
Ever again!

When I was wont to read it
   In the early morning hours,
In a mood ‘twixt wrath and mirth,
   I exclaimed: “Alas, Ye Powers,
These ideas are fainter, quainter
   Than anything on earth!”

A paper’s laid before me.
   Not thou, not like to thee.
Dear me, if it were possible
   The Times should ever see
How very far the times have moved
   (Spelt with a little “t”).

This poem is in the public domain.

Do You Know

    That in 1869 Miss Jex-Blake and four other women entered for a medical degree at the University of Edinburgh?
    That the president of the College of Physicians refused to give the women the prizes they had won?
    That the undergraduates insulted any professor who allowed women to compete for prizes?
    That the women were stoned in the streets, and finally excluded from the medical school?

Alice Duer Miller

1915

Why We Oppose Women Travelling in Railway Trains

1. Because travelling in trains is not a natural right.
2. Because our great-grandmothers never asked to travel in trains.
3. Because woman’s place is the home, not the rain.
4. Because it is unnecessary; there is no point reached by a train that cannot be reached on foot.
5. Because it will double the work of conductors, engineers and brakemen who are already overburdened.

Alice Duer Miller

1915

Why We Oppose Pockets for Women

1. Because pockets are not a natural right.
2. Because the great majority of women do not want pockets. If they did they would have them.
3. Because whenever women have had pockets they have not used them.
4. Because women are required to carry enough things as it is, without the additional burden of pockets.
5. Because it would make dissension between husband and wife as to whose pockets were to be filled.

Alice Duer Miller

1915

Poems

“Oh, That ‘Twere Possible!”

More by this poet

Do You Know

Why We Oppose Women Travelling in Railway Trains

Why We Oppose Pockets for Women

Poems

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“Oh, That ‘Twere Possible!”

More by this poet

Do You Know

Why We Oppose Women Travelling in Railway Trains

Why We Oppose Pockets for Women

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