The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-03-31
THE woMEN,s COUNCIL.


WAsHINGToS March 30-"Social Purity"
the subject chosen by Mrs. Elizabeth Lis.e-
Saxon, vice-president of the National Woman's
Suffrage Association of Tennessee, created de-
cided sensation IN the woman's suffrage conven-
tion this morr ing After an address by Mrs
Herbert. Mrs. Saxon stepped forward She
spoke very plainly OF the social evil. of the i'm
prudence of women in not confding to their
children the great secrets and truths of life in
stead of learning them from children and
servants Sons and daughters, alike should be
taught the awful power Of sex. for the building
OF character begins in the very hour
Of conception. Intemperance in desire
has marred the happiness OF thousands
of families. Young girls should be
taught the sacredness of marriage. and hold
the control of her person against her husbands
lust. Christ preached the first sermon Of equal
rights for men and women. but society con-
demns the woman aud con ndones the man. Only
through woTnan's own efforts can she be free In
the control of her person. Men perpetnally
blame woman for the sins OF the world. because
of the Bible story of Adams fall through Eve
Mrs. Saxon has talked and preached freely on
this subject for twelve years. before audiences
in some cases composed entirely OF men. Mrs.
Saxon spoke of herself as the champion of those
who have never yet had a champion-the i'm
pure woman, made So not by fault OF her own.
but by mans lust. Slavery caused the indiffer-
ence of man to purity of women, and the colored
man. above all, was most bestial in being indif-
ferent to the purity of$vsn his own household,
but since emancipation he has begun to look
upon impurlty in his own household as does his
white brother.
Annie Rice Powell. OF the commissi on for the
prevention Of State regulation of vice. intro
duced her subject by saying that it has been as
serted the history of prostitution is the his
tory of woman, but she has always been its VIC
tim. There have always been certain women
set apart and it has been stated that the virtue
of the favored woman 10 safe only at the ex-
pense of these pariahs. The result OF such
state of affairs has been the effort to license this
vice by legalized mm orality. to evade its
natural consequence, loathsome disease; but this
has proven failure in a sanitary sense and 1s
morally most deplorable. because 1t does not
check licentiousness. only gives man 8 safe In
diligence. Society never fcrgiyes in a woman
what it condones in a man. Innocent girls, BY
the license system, through the necessary med
ical inspection, liable 20 be subjected 10 this
awful degradation merely suspicion. She
then spoke of the age of protection In various
Staras, and paid tribute to Kansas hsving
made that age eighteen years, while in one State
] it 1ses az lOw. seven years.
Mrs. Armiston Chant was then introduced.
She has been engaged in this work for twenty
FIVE years She vouched for the truthfulness of
Mr.. Steadis charges, published in the Pail Mall
Gazette. saying she would stake her life On their
correctness. She spoke principally of the work
of the Social Purity Societies in Great Britain
Since the beginning of Mrs. Chants work she
has marvellous results. She has given
meetings for women alone, as well as mixed
meetings. In her meetings for women, they
came at first heavily veiled, but the wells were
thrown aside. She denounced the British gov
ernment's blue book, containing stories of the
wrong doings of the peers of Crest Britain even
worse than those published In the Fall Mall
Gazette. One member of Parlia-
ment. when the question of increasing
the age at which consent could be given
being agitated. said that for his part he wished
il was ten years The ladies of his borough got
together and made t SO hot for him that he had
to get out Girls, before there was legislation
in the matter, were taken In droves by pro-
70 he trf hon pf aNuA
under the pretense of getting them places at
service. Now ladies' of high character and stand
ing to be found at all seaport towns and
railroad stations to guard unsuspscting girls
who may be thus deluded by false advertise
menrs. Some of the women OF England who
might have done and are doing excellent work
in all philanthropic branches asked, what has
women to do with politicsW This question Mrs.
Chant answered by saying that it has been
splendid education for women. She intimated that
a woman should decide when and how often
children should be born TO her, and especially as
she is the moder of their minds and souls,
we'll of their bodily frames. She was the first
one to put the criminal amendment bill into
force. If anyone says that 1t Is dangerous Tor
women to engage in work of this kind, the an
swer is that the women who have been engaged
IN it stand forth to-day with whole skins and
hearts. She preferred to speak to the mixed
meetings, because the men and the women are
equally responsible for the commission of sin
She also said that the dressing of our children
should bs moral as we'll as a physical cover
ing. Mrs. Chants address was enthusiasiasti-
in the council the Edinburg National Society
for Woman Suffrage.
Mrs Caroline NJ S. Frazier. of the National
Moral Educational Society. and DIR. Caroline b.
Winslow, delegate from the District of Column
bia Moral Educational Society, spoke upon
''The Starting Point" Harriet B. Shattuck
said that wrong TO one was wrong to all, and
that no woman had right to forgive man
who had done a wrong to another woman. She
also discussed, briefly. the question of marriage
and divorce. Marriage she declared. is not a
contract, but institution or God.
Clara Cayborne Hoffman said that pregnant
women should receive the same attention as
cattle, and yet ninety five times out of one hun
dred she is the victim of mans lust, and she
knows it is wrong, and her nature rebels against
it. All remedies would be but partial and dis
appointing until woman stands everywhere in a
perfect equality with man: until society, and
church, and law regard marriage az a perfect
partnership and she an equal partner. The hor-
ror of lustfui children being brought into the
world will continue until woman is recognized
as having the right TO say when the new life
shall begin. When the parents themselves
pure they will stand on different grounds of
equality with each other, and the man will
honor and cherish his wife. instead of loving her
and lusting after her. Parents, when that time
arrives, will have shame in teaching their
children the sacred mysteries of life, instead of
having them learn them from ignorant servants.
When this arrives. children will be born
who can say MY strength is as the strength of
ten, because my heart 10 pure.n
1t was voted to send cablegrams to Queen
Victoria and the Empress or Germany.
Frances Willard. the next speaker, preface
to mar remarks. read petition to be signed by
the womsn of the council urging Congress to
pass bill to raise the age OF consent, wherever
IL has absolute control to eighteen years. She
attacked low necked dresses and said that those
wearing them borrowed the idea from women
whom she would be ashamed to touch. She
also said that in the the haf-nude
pictures of women used as advertisements by
cigar dealers would not stay in the windows
over night She also touched upon the inpro-
priety OF stage dressing and the evils of round
dancing. The Arabs love to say of a pure man
'he is brother of girls" as IMPLYING their
best and greatest idea of purity. When women
not dolls toys, but duchesses crowned
with hearts of love and Grains of fire, the new
day would come. The professors in the Ger
man universities, she said, impress upon the
young men the necessity of chastity if they
wish to have magnificent brain.
Standing room was at a premium when the