Iceland, a dependency of Denmark, with its own Parliament, gave municipal suffrage in 1882 to all widows and spinsters who were householders or maintained a family, or were self-supporting.  In 1902 it made these voters eligible to all municipal offices, and since then a fourth of the council members of Reykjavik, the capital, have been women.  In 1909 this franchise was extended to all those who pay taxes.  A petition signed by a large majority of all the women in Iceland asked for the complete suffrage, and during the present year the Parliament voted to give this to all women over 25 years old.  It must be acted upon by a second Parliament, but its passage is assured, and Icelandic women will vote on the same terms as men in 1913.

OTHER COUNTRIES

First place must be given to the Grand Duchy of Finland, far more advanced than any other part of the empire.  In 1905, by permission of the Czar, after a wonderful uprising of the people, they reorganized their Government and combined the four antiquated chambers of their Diet into one body.  The next year, on demand of thousands of women, expressed by petitions and public meetings, this new Parliament, almost without a dissenting voice, conferred the full suffrage on all women.  Since that time from 16 to 25 have been elected to the different Parliaments by all the political parties.

In Russia women as well as men are struggling for political freedom.  In many of the villages wives cast the votes for their husbands when the latter are away; women have some suffrage for the zemstvos, local governing bodies; the Duma has tried to enlarge their franchise rights, but at present these are submerged in the general chaos.

In Poland an active League for Woman’s Rights is cooperating with the Democratic party of men.

A very strong movement for woman suffrage is proceeding against great difficulties in the seventeen provinces of Austria, where almost as many languages are spoken and the bitterest racial feuds exist.  Women are not allowed to form political associations or hold public meetings, but 4,000 have paraded the streets of Vienna demanding the suffrage.  In Bohemia since 1864 women have had a vote for members of the Diet and are eligible to sit in it.  In all the municipalities outside of Prague and Liberic, women taxpayers and those of the learned professions may vote by proxy.  Women belong to all the political parties except the Conservative and constitute 40 per cent, of the Agrarian party.  They are well organized to secure the full suffrage and are holding hundreds of meetings and distributing thousands of pamphlets.  In Bosnia and Herzegovina women property-owners vote by proxy.

In Hungary the National Woman Suffrage Association includes many societies having other aims also, and it has branches in 87 towns and cities, combining all classes of women from the aristocracy to the peasants.  Men are in a turmoil there to secure universal suffrage for themselves and women are with them in the thick of the fight.