The sun., 1899-05-14
TIE CAUSE OF WOMAN.
,unrT-rrRsr ANNUAI NAT1oNAL
-ov1N,s SUFFRAGE CONVENTION.

.hie and Successful-Mrs. Stnnton's Let
,.--sunragists Arc Not Men Bators
women as Pnrliamentarians.
nh. National American Woman Suffrage As
-..,,,ion has Just finished It's thirty-flrst an
s.,lconyenton. presided over by Miss Susan
y Intbony. who was a leading spirit In organ
,.,nr the hrst OF these gatherings. Suffrage
s.nr.ntions we're held about once year from
1913 until the beginning OF the civil war. in
r. York. Massachusetts,. Ohio. Indiana and
so.,,by few other States. The war enlisted
~. d.voted services OF their most active
-o,ters. who put aside the especial cause Of
-om.n in behalf OF the great questions then
.,.,sipg for solution. In 1859 these conven-
Nav. ware resumed and took on national char
,ctsr htthe beginning OF each new congress
,bsy are held in Washington. and an appeal Is
msds for a sixteenth amendment to the Fed
.,,l Constitution. which shall enfranchise
vomen as the Fifteenth enfranchised black
men. On the alternate years this body accents
,ome OF the many invitations, which alwaysare
nresented from various cities.
Grand Rapids extended hospitality this year.
s,tipg the use other beautiful woman's club
sou,e, St. Cecilia. entertaining the officers at
ihe Hotel Warwick. and the nearly one hundred
d.l.gates in private houses. The Board OF
Trade raid for the printing Of the 5000 hand
,one programmes. all Of the women's clubs
saoe official welcome. and twelve churches
invited the suffrage speakers to fill their pull
nits on Sunday. The Board OF Trade took all the
guests in carriages Sightseeing over the city.
hninstituton that gave them especial pleasure
was the great Bssell Carpet Sweeper factory.
which turns out $1,000 machines day. and is
owned and managed by woman. Mrs. Bissell.
All 1.-THE visitors received miniature sweepers
manufactured especially for them.
twenty-five States. from Oregon to Maine.
we're represented by delegates. The treasurer
reported the receipts OF the last year to be
$4,000. In her opening address Miss Anthony
referred to her campaign in Michigan In 1874.
when she rode across Grand Rapids in five
minutes on q dray the only vehicle she could
press into service to enable her to catch a
train and keep an engagement. She told with
atouch Of humOr and a touch Of pathos how
the newspapers called her that ancient
daughter Of Methuselah." and ridicued her
bonnet Her speech had all the old time ring
and vigor as she demanded for the women OF
our new possessions the same rights and priv
leges accorded to the men. In her argument
she said:
when the governments for the Southern and West
,rn Territories were organized there had been no
practical example Of universal suffrage in any OF
the older States; hence It might be pardonable for
h. settlers to ignore the rights OF the women asso-
ej,ted with them TO voice in their government.
But today. after the continuous agitation of tho
night OF women to vote, the demand has been
e.ded in one.h half the states in the manage
ments Of the public schools. in one State added to
that Of the schools the management Of the govern
ment OF its cities and In four States tho full vote ac
corded. in Wyoming for thirty years. In Colorado
SIX years. and in Utah and Idaho three years; while
In England. Scotland and Ireland. with Canada and
nearly all tho colonies Of Great Britain. the different
votes conceded TO women. except the ono vote
for members OF Parliament. and In New Zealand for
the last ave years and in South Australia for three
ye,r the women have had full suffrage.
With these object lessons before Congress IL would
seem that member is 90 blind not to see 1t tho
duty Of that body to base provisional government of
our possessions the principle Of equality Of
rights. privileges, and immunites for all people.
woman included. hope this convention will do
wise plans for securing strong expression Of public
sentiment on this ques ton. to be presented to the
ftysIth Congress-.
Miss Anthony referred to tho demand OF
many Northern papers that II the negroes In
any Southern States were disfranchised
through new constitutions tho Fourteenth
Amendment should be enforced and they
should not be counted in the basis OF repre-
sentation Applying this principle to women.
she declared:
This outrage is practiced in all the States of the
the time has come when this association shall make
tolsatien Of the United states forbddns 20 any 1n
State to count dsfranchised citizens in its basis of
' 1ssa power 'f psf'sn the S0H SoTh
.rn States by the number Of women dis.
basis would be lessened not only by the disfran:
Chsed women; black and white, but also by all
lsth hlapE from iYna fO ina hia
demand has been made. but it seems to me now that
We should begin anew and make most persistent
non Of every State in the Union is based upon the
sGa yters In my opinion nothing t would 50
tSantT s to belief Of the practical a appcation Of
would the accomplishment Of this measure.
In showing the favorable attitude OF the
press at the present time the national Presi-
dent thus compliments THE SUM
The presentation of the woman question in the
Sunday SEw YORK suS since Ian. 10. together with
been of incalculable value. and when you add tC
Gs oers Of people who read TEE sUS the vast
many papers between the two oceans. we all see
What. What an immense reading audience 10 gained b.
EettIg our phase of thought into that one Of the
oestNew York dailies.
Mrs Elizabeth Cady Stanton has not beer
physically able to attend these conventions
since 1892 but. as the honorary President. she
the depths which are not often stirred nova
days in the conciliatory and dispassionate ad
dresses characteristic Of the modern suffra
gists. After citing some Of the many acts o
Injustice and oppression to which women ar,
still subjected. and remembering the fft!
years Of struggle OF herself and her co-labor
ers. Mrs Stanton in her recent paper send
forth this cry:
We do not hold the ignorant class OF men respon
Nole for these. but the published opinions OF mel
10 high positions, Judges, Bishops in tho churches
residents OF colleges. editors. noHelists and poets
t.fection that the chains or woman's bondage hAv
oeen forged by her own sires and sons Every ma
who is not for us in this prolonged struggle for lii
erty Is responsible for the present degradation o
the mothers Of the Il ia pitful to how fe'
men have ever made our cause their own. Blu
while leaving us to fight our own battle they hay
been unspsrinR in their criticism OF every fAlur,
iished with AlAcrity our blunders to the world. c
he battles for liberty IN the long past woman alon
has been left to fight her own. with all the power
of earth and heaven. human and divine. arraye
against her,
There is q disposition on the part OF man
women just now to rush into print with high
ly colored effusions as 10 the soft spot occu
Piled by the women OF the present day, The
quote those OF wealth and fashion: they dt
scribe the matinee girl and her fellow-dlert
they point with pride to the fact that all occr
pations are open to woman. even assertin