The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-12-20

Skirts.
One afternoon two white haired ladies
sat opposite each other in a parlor over
looking the park and told stories of other
times. These two ladies were Mrs. Eliza
beth Cady Stanton and Miss Susan r.
Anthony.
How long have you and Miss An
thony been friends?" asked the reporter
who was present
I'VE first met in May. 1851, didn't we,
Susan?" said Mrs. Stanton. Eyes, there
was an anti-slavery convention in SYRIA
cuse, and Miss Anthony came. George
Thompson and William Lloyd Garrison
were my guests. We were going home
to dinner when we met Miss Anthony
on the street. Who was with you,
Susan?''
why, Mrs. Bloomer. Don't you re-
member I was her guest?" replied Miss
Anthony, with as keen a recollection of
the circumstance as if it had all hap
BlooIner introduced a new fashion in
dress skirts" she said, turning to the re-
porter with a quizzical smile.
Did you adopt the costume Of your
"Oh, no, she didn'tF' said Mrs. STAN
ton. Il remember exactly how she was
!The History 7'' of Wom a2isni sunrage g!
and show how you looked. She had on
gray silk dress and gray hat, and
wore pale blue ribbons. She was the
perfection Of neatneSs and sObriety.''
BY this time Miss Anthony had found
her picture in volume 1, and showed
the reporter steel engraving OF a
young woman with fine, clear features
and soft hair. brushed, as now, down
over the ears. 1t was face both sweet
and strong, but not more so than the
one which scanned il through the
glasses which the clear eyes of forty
years ago had not needed.
They used TO ridicule me so much"
said Miss Anthony looking at the en-
craving with sort of curious interest.
How did you two happen to take up
frage?"
wen. Mrs Stanton began it long be-
fore l did, so let her tell first" said
Miss Anthony.
What first Influenced me- began Mrs.
Stanton, was my fathers habit Of say
ing to me, when l was but a child, one
boy
$50, to be as much like a boy as pos
sible, l studied Greek and, what was
much harder, learned to ride my pony
even scaled the cupOlas Of the house
because boys scaled cupolas and such
things, and of course 1 must do as they
did. But every time 1 went to my faith
er in triumph over some achievement
expecting to be at last informed that 1
was Just like a boy all 1 heard was,
If only you were a boyr
"All this made me feel very strongly
about the subject of the standing of
women, and there were other things
that helped. My father was Judge
Cady, and his office was in the house.
Whenever there was any mischief or
turmoil going on 1 was supposed to be
the guilty party, and was sent into my
fathers Office by way of punishment.
Consequently it happened that 1 spent
a good deal of my time there. l used
TO hear the women come in with their
complaints, and I would listen with
such sympathy and ask my father why
he didn't make things different, so that
women wouldn't have so much trouble.
And then he'd tell me that the law was
so and so and would take down the
books and show it TO me. 1t wasn't
long, 1 assure you, before 1 had all those
hateful laws marked.
AT last the old woman who used to
bring us chickens and maple sugar and
such things, came in one day and told
my father all about her troubles, and
when she went out 1 followed her.
Now, Flora l said. don't you worry
any more about this. I've been thinlxine
things over. and 1 know what I'm going
TO do. Tomorrow is Sunday. Now. I
shan't go to church tomorrow. I shall
stay at home, and after they are gone
III come in and cut all those bad laws
out of the books, and then it will be ali
right
Flora of course told my father about
my intentions, and that night he called
me in and explained it all to me; told
me that even if all his books were
burned there were hundreds of LAWYERS
all through the state with libraries like
his
What you must do" he said. is 70
wait till You are older. and then go up
TO the Legislature and ask them to
change these laws So from that time
on 1 lived, 1 am still living. with that
purpose in view. Now, Susan, tell your
story
well" said Miss Anthony. cit was
entirely different with me. 1 guess 1 was
like 'TOpsy and jest growed' to be
lieve in women and their rights. You
see, my father was a. Quaker and trained
us to think that girls were Just as good
as boys and had as good a right to earn
money and to be paid as we'll I think
my first sense of injustice was when I
began to teach school when I was fifteen
years old. At first 1 taught for 81 a
week and my board. But when I had
= 1NanceQ TO SlO a month L saw that
sons, who were no better teach
ers than 1, received $50 a month That
interested me in the right of women to
their wages, and 1 began to work for
the women's property law. Still. | had
never thought of voting
I'm 1S4S my sister Mary who was
then young girl, and my father and
mother went to an anti-slavery conven-
ton at Rochester. and when they came
home / heard nothing but Mrs. Stanton
and Mrs. Mott. How lovely they were,
and how brilliant! Well, ] just laughed
at them and at the idea of women vot-
ing But in 1850 there was a convention
in Worcester, Mass, and Horace Gree
ley sent a reporter. so that 1 read the
reports Of the speeches, something / had
never had an opportunity to do before.
In 1881, at Syracuse, 1 met Mrs. Stan
ton on the corner on her way home to
dinner, you know. She didn't invite me
home with her, but Mrs. Bloomer and l
went over and called in the afternoon,
and I've been woman suffragist ever
since"
And have you and Mrs Stanton
worked together for forty years without
a falling out?"
eve agree in the main and differ just
enough in detail to make things interest
ing" said Mrs. Stanton.-N. Y. Sun.