The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-06-17

n.,.sstes and Negro Men Delegates.
:, .sems that Congress, adjourned without
lin, anv action on Senator Aoar's resolu-
.e"n for an investigation as to whether the
.,,b, NJ citizens TO vote IS abridged or denied
a. onv state" 1t does not need any investiga-
AZ, IN disclose the fact that in the case Of
women it Is denied and abridged in 'forty-one
~, oS the forty-tlve States. 1t is difficult to
.oa why the moral wrong ia any greater in
Counting a colored man in tho basis of repre-
..ntation and denying him the suffrage than
4, /. in counting all women. colored and white.
In this basis and refusing them the ballot. The
.avooates Of this method OF conducting n Re-
n,bllcan government justify II on the ground
,b,t suffrage is not a right" but the Fifteenth
Amendment, which a number Of States are
NOW proposing to repeal, says definitely:
.The rtolt Of citizens Of the United States TO
vo.e hail not he denied or abridged" &c.
The Fourteenth Amendment, adopted In
,sos SAWS. An persons born or naturalized
m the United States and subject To the juris-
Action thereof are citizens" The supreme
Court Of the United States has decided, how
aver, that women are not entitled to vote under
these amendments.
The trainers Of these articles. which were
Intended 10 protect the negro In the right to
vote, realized that they would not be sufl-
silent for this purpose unless some penalty
we're provided for their disregard; therefore
they added another section TO Amendment
Fourteen. which said;
Representatives shall be apportioned
among the several States according to their
respective numbers. counting the whole num-
bel Of Persons Ia each state. excluding In
dams not taxed. But when the right to vote
At any election i denied
20 any Of the inhabitants Of such State, being
n years Of age and citizens of the
United States. or in any way abridged. ex-
cept for participation in rebellion or other
crime, the basis Of representation therein shall
be reduced in the proportion which the number
Of such citizens shall bear to the whole number
Of citizens q years OF age in such State
As each State would want its representa-
ton In Congress to be as large a. possible, this
penalty seemed adequate, but 10 and behold!
II would enfranchise all the women in the
United States who were not untaxed Indians.
rebels or crimlnalsl There was Just one thing
10 be done 10 prevent this, and it was done.
For the first time during our government OF
nearly one hundred years the word male"
vas put into the Federal Constitution. not only
once but three times in one paragraph, 20 bar
out all women from the exercise OF the right
guaranteed In this Fourteenth Amendment.
Charles Sumner l. on record "a saying that he
covered nineteen pages of f~ool,cap in the eff
fort 10 avoid using this word. The Amend
ment as finally submitted and ratified by the
State Legislatures reads; When the right
TO vote is denied to any male inhabltant
'''' the basis OF representation shall
be reduced In the proportion which the number
Of such male citizens shall bear to the whole
umber of male citizens in such State"
The handful of women who represented the
woman suffrage movement at that time pro-
tested vehemently against the putting up Of
this insurmountabls barrier in the Federal
Constitution. but they were solemnly assured
BY the leading men who claimed to be their
friends that If they only would stand
aside till the fruits of the war were realized in
the Acknowledgement OF the negro men, their
own case should be the next to be taken up and
carried 70 success. Finally. the most Of them
yielded. but a very few. led by the indomita-
Bile Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan b. An
thony, fought TO mo last ditch and went down
n defeat with the cry Of bitter protest on their
Nps. There are no finer State papers on record
than those prepared at that time on this sub
Jet. Again and again. in their speeches from
the platform and their memorials TO Congress.
they pointed out that this denial OF the rights
Of one half the race was only repeating the
experiment. of all those nations which had risen
but to fall. Over and over they declared that
the party which was capable of this treason TO
It, own principles would not be able 10 enforce
the laws which 1t was enacting. and that those
whom they were attempting to benefit would
b. the very ones to suffer these disastrous con-
sequences.
len years ago. when the fnIhlment Of these
prophecies began to dawn, Mrs. stanton said
IN an address before the Judiciary Committee
Of the National House Of Representatives:
When our rulers began their teIgiversa,,ons In
women carried to the Supreme Court. denying the
very principles for women they admitted for the slaves,
We ~piopheSied that the time would come, when they
would react against the freedmen themselves
We cannot play fast and loose with the eternal
principle OF Justice without being caught sooner or
later In the net Of our own weaving,
The legitimate results Of the war have been FILTERED
away by political manpuyring.
While Northern statesmen have made a football
Of the rights Of 10000, 900 women OF legal age as
voters, and by Supreme Court decisions driven them
nom the polls, why arraign the men OF the South
Are the rights Of that class OF citizens more sacred
than ours Arc the violations OF the fundamental
principles OF our Government In their case more dan
gfouS than In ours
One half Of the press of the country Is now
protesting against the wholesale violation Of
these war amendments" and demanding that
The States which practise II shall have their
representation reduced. No, newspaper is
voteto the women citizens Of the United States,
Or demanding that the representation Of the
various States shall be reduced in consequence.
But, II j. said in excavation, no provision
Of thA Constitution Is violated in the case of
women" Possibly not the letter of IL. but il
ine Constitution Of the United states stands
!r anything II stands for a guarantee that the
right, privileges and immunities OF all citizens
slal have the same protection.
Ihetivil VA, withallits terrible consequences
syeh down 10 the present day. was q Just pun
lhmen, Of a nation which intrenched human
slavery IN its Constitution and permitted IL to
exist Tor generations. The troubles and COM
llcations which have arisen(and are TO increase
Wah extent which cannot be foretold)i from the
Changes in the Constitution which were a re-
sWt OF This war. are tho deserved heritage Of a
patty which might have enfranchised women
slahy time within the Last thirty-fve years. In
.~ohierrlng ~" suffrage upon only another por-
Won Of manhood II gained a temporary politi-
cal advantage. but Il added to itself no moral
q Intellectual force. This is still in reserve,
coping, longing TO be called into action.
The press dispatches announced last week,
snUn me usual embellishments, that Miss Susan
3 anthony had been snubbed BY the National!
brewers convention in Atlantic City. WHO'RE
sne sent a letter 10 them asking II they would
sioN Oh" OF her orators to cypolnd the cause
Sp, TbME'T ram before their meeting. Mrs
sttabl' names, Drt she H. not generally con-
se,t'd any kind oi n fool Her orators" are
mver cent ont 10 eKpound the temperance
u%>uon or any other except that Of woman
outrage, and She never would make so idiotic
SIro!ositlon A. 10 furnish Temperance advo-
Io a brewers convention. As she was