National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1873-01-18
WOMAN SUFFRAGE.
THE NATIONAL CONVENTION.

tohNFfEs-NhV W w
". Josiyn Gage on the Capitalization
Of Power-A Few Pertinent Questions
Mrs. Elizabeth stanton Declines to
Auswrr-Adiournmrnt Amidst ENcitc-
mrnt.
The second and last days session Of the wo- |
mems Convention was held yesterday at Lincoln
hall.
Miss susan u. Anthony called the meeting TO
order and said that the session was chiefly for
business, and to consider the best means to be
employed In securing them the right Of suffrage.
Mrs. sara J. Spencer was introduced, who de-
scrbed the attempt Of some q the females Of
this city to vote at recent election. The de-
cisiun Of the supreme Court Of the District Of
Columbia, given by Judge Cartier, although not
entirely decisive waa generally ,sga,nsH as
frage. The speaker then gave a Caustic review
Of the decision Of the District Supreme Court,
reading from printed report the opinion Of each
Of the Judges, which created much amusement
In the audience.
There are women without number who are
being smothcred to death daily all over this land
Of the free and home OF the brave; and though
they die and make no sign, II hurts Just rs much
TO be legally and financially and morally and spir-
ltually fettered and dwarfed and stranged and
smOthered, as II they filled the land with their
cries. And It doesn't help the matter, but makes
II decidedly worse, that the majority Of those
who iniiCt the injury actually believe they are
protecting the women, and are so sound asleep
to the actual state OF things that II seems as
though nothing short OF moral earthquake or
spiritual volcanic eruption would arouse them.
But, perhaps, the women themselves don't know
that they are being smothefed, and wouldn't
breathe freely II they could. Well, give them
Referring TO the lack Of laws for the protec-
ton Of women, Mrs. Spencer said: There Is no
law In this District TO punish the highest crime
against womanhOOd known In the calendar. The
crime Of seduction Is no crime, according to the
laws that men have made, and a child may be
ruined soul and body, aud the law Offers afew
to the mother, broken heart; to the child, the
dark, downward road to everlasting despair.
The Held must he theirs In the end, for they
have all the unseen powers Of wOmanhOOd at
work, and should they fail In one generation
other aud able advocates would rise up TO de-
fend their cause.
DR.. MARY Y. WALKER
was the next speaker, and opened her speech Ivy
nlimatlng that on account Of her prominence as
leader IN the woman suffrage movement, and
other great reforms, there was an apparent dis
pOsitlsn to ignore her, she felt sensitive on this
subject, and proposed to be heard. She then
went on give her experience In London, where
the women blessed her for coming forward to
aid them. She said that the laws Of New York
require challenged voter to swear that he Is q
male" citlEen,a and insinuated that Miss Anthony
aud the other women who recently voted In
Rochester stultinod themselves by taking this
oath. She then detailed her attempt to vote In
OswegO, AMI said that when confronted with this
oath she saw At once that she could not take II.
An attempt was made to crowd her OF the stage
, at the woman suffrage convention last year, but
she was gnatifed TO notice the attention with
which the few remarks she did make were re-
Ceiyed She had talked to large audiences, to
| intelligent audiences, and had been received with
favor; consequently she did not propose to Keep
| silence IN the face Of the sOphlstry which had
! recently been heard from this stage.
During her speech she took occasion TO give
Miss Anthony, Miss stanton and others frequent
! digs" She said the time was when the ladies
named, and also Lucy stone, favored dress re-
form, aud wore apparel somewhat similar to her
own, but they were too cowardly TO continue TO
wear Il and fight II out on that line ~ she, the
speaker, had done. She, DR.. W., had been ar
rested seven times for wearing her present easy
and comfortable costume, and the latter had
been put forward as preteNt for keeping her
on the woman suffrage platform.
! The Doctor repeated some Of her speech Of last
year when she clearly set forth her views In re.
| gard to the way women must secure their right
| TO the ballot. She maintained that the "negro
amendments' had nothing TO do with white
women any more than they had with Indians,
and that the ballot must be secured by a pro,
tectiye law, as the old Constitution secured the
! rights Of citizenship to women; the fathers
| having very ngeniOusly worded the same so that
| no logic could prevent women from the exercise
| Of citizenship.
She then gave an account Of the services rem.
dered by her IN the army during the late war,
and closed with an eulOgy on Horace Greeley.
! MRS. LAvISIA c. DUSDoRR,
! Of Baltimore, was next introduced, and made a
In Maryland, aud said that, although II met with
mucn opposition, there were still In "My Mary
| land large number of women who desire IL
vote, and that the cause II daily gaining ground.
ArrEAL TO COSGREss.
Mrs. Belya A. Lockwood introduced the follow.
ing resolution:
Rcsoirei That we, the officcrs and members Of
the National Woman Suffrage Association, In
convention assembled, respectfully ask Congress
to enact appropriate legislation, during the pres
several states OF this linton in their Fight to vote.
! Miss Anthony was about to put the question to
the audience, when directly Or. Walker was on
her feet, saying: "Ladies and gentlemen, there
Is already bill pending before Congress, IN sub
stance the same as the resolution Just read, and,
consequently, the latter Is superfuous.
! Mrs. lockwood. 81 don't care II there are ten
thousand bills and resolutions before Congress
/ TO the same effect; what we want Is an expires
sion OF opinion by THIS convention"
was unanimously adopted.
| Mr.. Edward X. Davis followed with few re-
marks, after which Miss Anthony put the vote on
the resolutions offered gu Thursday, and de-
clared them adopted.
, The convention then took recess.
Afternoon Session.
] Alta y. m. the convention reassembed, and the
hall was well filled, In fact the best audience be-
ing present that has yet been seen. Considerable
/ fun was created by u yOungsteT going up on the
platform before the opening Of the convention
aud turning sOmeTsaults, and being encouraged
IN ms acrobatic feats by three drunken men who
occupied front seats, styling themselves report
ers, but better subjects for the penitcntiary.
Miss anthony called the meeting to Opler at
! E'oV OtlOVk, anu MIS-, lIllhn DeNereuN BAKE
made Few remarks on the old theme.
FRANCIS MILLER, ESQ.,, SAID
that he had one reason for COngratulatiOn In be-
ing engaged In the suit with Mr.. Riddle, as 1t
gave him an opportunity to do something for the
women OF his country. Under the l4th amend
ment he commended that women had the right to
vote, and no lawyer that read the amendment
could help deciding In any other way.
1t was not true that the cohorts OF this Issue
had been defeated every time, but II was true
tlal they had gained two victories. Chief Justice
Cartier had lpplRl that Ngua mil .slfl
zen, and only had not the right to vote, because
they had not passed d law necessary for the pur-
pose. II the fourteenth amendment did not
confer suffrage they must go through the states
with new amendment and fight a battle In
each. He thought that very obscure ideas pre-
vailed on the subject. How could any one that
mad no selt-gOyernment have any inalienable
rght7 II Is said that the ballot was creature
OF legislation, consequently not natural. This
was an absur1lly. There was no way In the
world tor man to govern himself except by
the ballot. To deny any one the only means Of
exercising that right Is wrong before Heaven,
and should he redrrssed. lie did not propose To
90 Into legal argument; the best OF his ability
the public
Let every one help in the good cause, each
operating In their own way but giving their best
endeayOTs 10 aid II. This contest was not TO be
settled by courts OF laws. The work was right
among tue female sex. Let them unite under
one strong head aid there was no man that
would dare deny their request, until their rights
were recognized ut the billOt-boX. Man for six
thousand years had attempted to govern the
world with one half OF II, and he had better loon
round and see II 1t had been success. Is II moi
time that they should call to their aid those whom
God appointed as their aids.
MRS. ELIIABETH CADY STANTON
sail that she thought that the last speaker made
n blundeT when he said the work OF women waf
entirely with their own sex. The constitutional
open for thirty years, and she found them sc
benlghted TO the true condition and position oil
women that she found 1t herculCan effort tC