100 years ago in Spokane news: Elizabeth Poindexter’s latest column touched on the emerging feminism in the other Washington

Elizabeth Gale Poindexter’s latest missive from the other Washington had a modern theme – feminism.

The wife of Sen. Miles Poindexter of Spokane wrote in her weekly syndicated column that Washington, D.C., was guaranteed to “delight the heart of a feminist.”

“Women hold down a lot of very good jobs here,” she wrote. “… There was a time when a woman in a government job above the grade of a clerkship was almost a curiosity. Nowadays, they get almost as many plums as the men. I am not referring here to those wives, sisters, cousins and aunts of members of Congress who get on the payroll up on Capitol Hill and thereafter never do anything to justify it except to drive around once a month or so in their limousines to the disbursing office to collect their pay. … But nowadays there are plenty of women who really work, who hold responsible offices and who are every day showing the men that they can do quite as efficient work as the ‘lords of creation.’ ’’

Poindexter identified the catalyst for this change: the women’s suffrage movement. She said it was “extremely dubious” that women would be in this position without the equal suffrage amendment. She said “the power of the feminine vote is considerable,” and politicians like to please their voters. Another catalyst was World War I, which had resulted in manpower shortages and catapulted many women into jobs.

There were several congresswomen, too, including Jeanette Rankin of Montana, described by Poindexter as “young, active, with a tendency to radicalism,” and Alice Robertson of Oklahoma, “middle-aged and intensely conservative.”

Poindexter had already caused a sensation with her pointed, sometimes humorous, sometimes acerbic descriptions of the DC culture. It was unclear how much longer she would be able to do so. Her husband had just left the Senate, and the couple had now embarked for Peru, where he had been appointed ambassador.