The record-union., 1896-05-31
THE SUFFRAGE CONVENTION.
Il Ended Its LabOrS Last Nieht and
Adjourned.
Miss Anna Shaw Lays Down Reasons
Why Woman Should Have
the Ballot.

| About forty persons, one-f1fth Of
whom had the appearance of men. &C.
cupied the seats in the center Of the
| Assembly Chamber yesterday after
noon, when the convention of the State
Woman Suffrage Association was
called to order by Miss Mills of New
York. and quite a number of spectators
occupied seats round the sides.
| After the singing of suffrage hymn
an invocation was delivered by Rev.
Shook, in which he prayed that all
the men might vote to lift the women
out of their present bondage.
| The first paper was on the subject
why We Need the Ballot" and was
read by Miss Naomi Anderson, the col
ored suffrage evangelist.
| She said she spoke in behalf of the
daughters of America who have been
compelled to kiss the dust and drink the
dregs of womanhood. They had been
defrauded of their birthright, the
proud name Of Ethiopia. She depicted
the sufferings of the women in the days
of slavery, when their children were
sold away from them
| Those days were over, but these
daughters of America to- day want the
ballot because 1t Is power, and will give
them social equality.
| She said that as they were begotten
in the days Of Democratic rule, the
Democrats must be their fathers. Then
came the Republicans, who, from
sense Of policy and justice, gave them
the ballot, and they must be their fos-
ter fathers. Next came the Populists
and as they were a hybrid mixture of
the other two, they must be the half
brothers and sisters Of these daughters
who are asking the ballot.
| Miss Mills gave an outline Of the cam
paign that is being pursued by the suf-
fragists. Most Of those who are going
from place to place, speaking for the
cause, are from other States, Miss Su-
san B. Anthony being foremost among
them, as she has been for many years.
She is very anxious to see the move
ment succeed in this State 1t is very
necessary, however, to have funds with
which to send out canvassers into the
country.
| The speaker made an earnest appeal
to the audience for pledges Of money
with which to carry ON the campaign,
and after considerable talking secured
two S. pledges from Mrs. Purnell and
Mrs. Domingos. After long pleading
for similar subscriptions, she descended
to asking for So pledge, but even
then, with the promise of a photograph
of Miss Anthony and Miss Shaw, she
only secured one pledge for that
amount.
Mrs. Purnell then took up the appeal
and succeeded in getting another
pledge. This seemed to be the limit of
the number of women present who
thought the priceless boon of suffrage
worth 81 to them, and canvassers went
through the audience with no better
| success.
| Mrs. Morrow Of Oak Park next read
paper on Does the Wife and Mother
Require the Ballot?"
| She said that it seemed almost absurd
to ask the question, or for her to speak
upon 1t. The woman has the home and
desires to guard 1t from contamina-
ton. The chief interest Of the wife
and mother is the home. and legislation
touches it at every point. She had
been talked to about woman's influence,
ence woman has One Of the greatest
hindrances to the cause Is the indiffer-
ence or opposition of SO many women
who say that they do not want to vote
Home and heaven are not so far sep
arated as many people seem to think
Next came a paper by j. H. Liggett
on docs the State Need the Woman's
Ballot?"
He said 1t was the assertion Of the
opponents Of female suffrage that the
great majority Of women do not wish tc
vote. Leaving this aside, there are
many great questions affecting the vel.
fare of the State, that will never BIZ
properly settled by the vote of the ig.
norant and uneducated. Where would
higher or better educated mass oil
voters be found than among the women
of their homes?
He believed that female suffrage
would shift the balance of power from
the single men to the married ones, anG
make the home the dominant factor ir
politics.
He thought it would benefit the State
to extend the suffrage to it's intelligent
women and thought the action of the
recent State Conventions would bring ii
about.
Miss Anna Shaw OF Philadelphia then
took the speakers desk to answer ques-
tons from the box, and explained that
there was no disrespect intended to-
ward Decoration Day, and that she
thought the day could not be better eel
ebrated than by asking those who
fought for the flag and their descend
ants to aid in lifting up those who are
in bondage. She believed her father
who was a soldier, would rather see he1
engaged in this work than any other
Women who cannot vote are in the
deepest kind of bondage. There is a
great difference between having the
right to vote or not. Woman's suffrage
viii elevate man and will not degrade
woman
WOmans suffrage should be urged
only upon the ground of Justice. bur
men offer only sentimental reasons for
opposing it. She did not believe one
woman in ten is competent to marry
and raise a family. and not one man in
a hundred is There have been en-
tirely too many marriages. The papers
OF the State are reeking with the rec
ords Of marriage scandals that are a
disgrace to California. She did not
think that women, when they vote. will
ever be SO partisan as men. 1t is non
sense to bring partisanship into city
government.
| All civilization proves the higher the
privileges accorded to women the high
er the civilization. Women's votes in
Wyoming have brought about temper
ance reforms. Women Of higher intelli-
gence are the ones who ask for suf-
| frage, and the bad Women hava nauox