The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1871-09-15
Miss AnthOnv's Speech.
HE RIGHT OF woNEx TO THE BALLOT.

THE RIGHT or WOMEN TO TIE BALLOT.
We did not, unfortunately, get into
the theater last evening in time to hear
the whole of Miss Susan B. AnthOny's
argument on the right of women, under
the l4th and 18th Amendments; but we
did hear enough of it to understand, we
think, the general drift of it. She
claimed that the Declaration of indie
pendence, the Constitutions of the
United States and of the States each
recognized the rights of the people as
inherent, and no attempt or pretence
was made in any of them 10 confer
rights. They were established to secure
and not to create or give rights. The
Declaration insists that rights and
powers belong TO the people The Con-
stitutiOn declares that the Just powers
of government are derived from the
people; and the State constitutions gen.
orally follow, substantially, the same
form of expression. She quoted from
several of these documents to show that
they all acknowledge the people rs SOW
ereign, and desired her auditors to mark
that none of them recognized any pecu-
liar class or portion of the people as the
source from which power is derived; but
that the entire people constitute the
governing element. None of them
make any distinctions invidiOus to
women rs a constituent portion of the
people. The deduction from this is
that whatever rights or privileges wom-
en- or any other portion of the people
may be admitted by law to have, be-
long to them originally and inherently.
The l4th Amendment, she said, de
clares that all persons born or natural
lied in the United States are citizens.
She then went on to show what il is to
be citizen, and gave the definitions OF
| Webster's, WOrcester's and the law die
| tiOnarieS, in substance that citizen Is
an inhabitant of republic who has the
| rights and privileges of a freeman and
/ the right to vote. If, then, every person
/ born or naturalized in the United States
/ is a citizen, and IA citizen is one who has
/ the right to vote, il follows incOntrOver-
! tibly that women have the right to vote
unless it be held that n woman is not &
person. She cited decisions of Judges
| Taney and Daniels of the L. 5. Supreme
| Court, rendered before the war and tho
/ nth Amendment, which sustained the
/ conclusion that women are citizens anC
that as such they had every right whicl
any citizen could have.
She next stated what were the reports
]
woman suffrage works in Wyoming anC
elsewhere where women have a voice il
any manner in public affairs, stating tn,
results as highly beneficial to the stat'
of morals, temperance, schools, etc
She also gave, in this connection, the
names of many distinguished men
Senators, members of Congress an,
Judges-who have expressed their Opin
ions in favor of woman suffrage and tn,
right OF women to vote, under the lltl
and 18th Amendments. She urged th'
women to claim their right and persis
in the claim; to pay no taxes and beaI
no public burdens till their correspond
ing right to representation be aeknowl
edged. The objects of the woman suf
frage movement could be reached in III
other way.
The audience, which listened atten
lively and with apparent deep interest t.
this address, was a large one and com
posed mostly of the intelligent portion
of our citiZens.-OregOHidn, Of Septem
Der 7th.