The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1881-01-27

Marshal Fred Douglass. In Il voice,
full of emotion, the emancipated
slave declared words too poor TO ex-
press the gratitude and love his
heart held for Mrs Mott, whose ac-
tive efforts had been among the pri-
NAL causes that relieved his race
from bondage; then he sat down
amid the flowers again. Hereupon
there.arose a vision of a flank and
lanternjawed woman whose gold
framed spectacles glisten defiance To
the fartherest conner of the hall, and
i'll quavering voice began to plant
for this departed saint" but what
this renowned model OF American
caricaturist would have said for our
enlightenment is forever lost in the
flood of emotion which overwhelm-
ed her. Breaking of in the middle of
her second sentence she exclaimed
81 can say no more and extinguish-
ed herself behind a volumnious
handkerchief. Who was this emo
tiOnal female? Don't Won know?
None less than Susan Ii. Anthony
herself.
Women have many hard lessons
to learn before they can come be-
fore the public with dignity and
force in the character of political
purifiers, and the first of these les
sons is To cOntine heart feeling and
sentiment to the privacy of their
bed-chambers, and show, as men do.
an adamantine front, when they face
the unsympathizing public.
By the time the night session was
reached, however, all requiems were
relegated to the background and
political denunciation made the air
hot. The proceedings were opened
by Mrs. Bolva A. Lockwood, upon
the big front door of whose resi-
dence in this city hangs the impos-
ing announcement: ATTORNEY and
Solicitor This lady, whose appear
ance indicates that she is still ON the
risky side of fifty, has a kind and
matronly exterior, very much at vari-
ance with the willy and wicked fol-
lowing of Blackstone. Her subject
was :"Why women should vote and
why she should study law" Holding
few notes in her left hand and shak-
ing the white-kidded forefinger of
her right at her transfixed audience,
Mrs. Lockwood announced in a
voice, whose dogmatism might have
squelched JOve himself, "Women
should vote in order to prevent
this glorious, SO-cdlled American re-
public from any longer living po-
litical liel!r' following up this
amazing announcement with pause
n hn 70
The audience gasped. Several pa
triotic statesmen entirely collapsed.
Mrs. l.. went on TO explain that our
constitution declared free and equal
rights TO all citizens, and yet our
government classed women with
idiots, minors and lunatics and de-
MED them the privilege of the cleo
tive franchise. She did not
fail to improve the opportunity to
give the electoral college a back
handed slap. Her speech was pithy,
exciting and brief. Its close elected
lively applause from the ladies in
the audience. But the browning eff
fort of the evening, was the lengthy
speech of Mrs. Mary Wright Sewall,
of indianapolis. Though sharing the
the general paucity of beauty in
common with her sister suffragists,
she had decided advantage in COM
parative youth. Mrs. SewalPs..voiee
has a:peculiar unpleasant twang to it,
also complete lack of meditation
which L noticed to be common to
all the speakers, except Mrs. Stan
ton, fact which suggests that after
women have acquired the adaman-
tine stoicism advocated above, their
next step might advantageously be
toward a cultivation of the charms
of elocution, and thorough develop
ment of the lungs. One cannot
divest even a strong argum ent
of an element of weakness
so long as it is presented in a
piping voice, and stripped of the i'm
pressiveness that careful modula-
ton gives. The world has grown
old waiting for a female Demosthe-
mes to arise. Let us have one now.
But to return IT, Nrs Sawa!l Tho
cXquisi.' i;' :,iVl. /. rVH.,ei Ter
whole "i..e,ii : az i!S rH."tc.tlravtcr
istic. 'o"v nyrriI's>iy flayed the
male voter. meeting the sword
of his opposition with the fine point
of a poinard, and evidently believed
that she was leaving him not leg
to stand on. She wasted no words
in those excited denunciations, and
historical assertions, which are so
painfully characteristic of woman
when she is let loose in the political
or religious arena. "a. Miili the
greatest calmness She a.iHcd lar
sharp speeches at The heads %
the grey-heards in the au-
dience, and strange to say, the har-
der they hit, the more manifest be-
came the enjoyment OF her victims.
Her assertion that, before the grey
hairs Of Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
Susan 3. Anthony and Fred Doug
lass are laid in the grave, woman
suffrage will be an. accomplished
fact" gave rise to the thought that
if there were score of Mary Wright
Sewalls. liz that. it would
be accomplished even sooner, and
the thought was fraught with trepi-
dation. For there are many women
so conscientious that, il the supe-
rior logic OF their strong-minded
sisters were TO demonstrate to them
that il was their duty to purify the
ballot box, they would shudder at
the thought that The repulsive power
was really to be placed i'm their
hands, and while shrinking
from Sinking duty would
loathe the performance of il.
The closing act of the first days
session was a speech by Miss An
thOny. There is something pathetic
in the sight of thus grey-haired wO-
man when one remembers the bur-
lesque and caricature she has borne
all her life for her devotion to re-
form she believes imperative. There
is something most cruel in these Mt
tacks, when one remembers that the
association of those ideas of unkind
though witty pens have rendered her
so ludicrous to the mind that TO see
her is TO smile involuntarily. Her
cruise may be chimerical, but her