The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-03-12


check perhaps to spend the money in
work, refused to admit
Ihat she owes anything to the advo-
Gates of a cause she desires to re-
pudiate- She glories in the fact that
the money is her. own to DO with as she
pleases, but does not know, or will not
admit that the statutes which guar
antee to her this independence were
passed by the efforts OF Miss Anthony
and her cempeers.
Poor Most of Her Life.
Miss Anthony has never regarded
money as being especially useful except
to further the cause Of equal rights for
women. She vas a. poor woman most
OF her life, a Wage-earner A small
fortune came to heE-by inheritance IN
1882, and the first thing she did with
the money was to publish History
OF w Woman Suffrage in four immense
volumes and to place the volumes free
of charge in. twelve hundred public IL
brar1es. In addition to the libraries,
she presented hundreds of sets of the
books to schools. colleges, writer's, pub
lie speakers and others. Wherever she
felt the cause might be futhered by q
gift of the books, she promptly sent.
them. For twenty years she paid stor-
age on the books, stereotype plates ana
manuscripts.
The first of the volumes was begun
in 1876 Miss Anthony was then fifty
six years old and in the prime of her
life. For years she had saved letters,
speeches, reports, newspaper articles,
published accounts of conventions and
congressional and legislative hearings.
She and Mrs. Stanton had often dis
cussed the project of writing a history
Of the woman suffrage moyeme nt,
which they expected could be contain
ed in one faiT-siZed volume. What
must have been the dismay Of Mrs.
Stanton when, the time having arrived
for beginning the work, she received
by. express from Miss Anthony, trunks
full and boxesful of material. Moth
ing daunted, they set tn emselves to the
task of sorting, wedding out and select
ing from the confused mass OF papers.
Mrs. Matilda Joslyn Gage was called in
to help All three announced to their
friends that they had gone into a four
months retirement to write book. At
the expiration of the four months, they
had barely made a beginning. They
sat back and looked at one another in
perplexity. All were under contract to
lecture bureaus. Mrs. Stanton was
busy mother; Miss Anthony had her
Miss Anthony. 1--WE will find time TO
do it." Where was the money coming
from to pay the cost of publication
She did not have the least idea. Susan
B. Anthony never had the money in
advance to carry outany of her under
takings. She always did things first
and paid for them afterwards. In
1880, a woman friend in New York
gave neT $I,UUU To begin the DuDiicd-
ton Of the history, which, after four
years of labor, was nearing completion.
This money did not pay the actual ex-
penses already incurred, but it was
beginning. In 1882, Mrs. Eliza Jack
son Eddy Of Boston left Miss Anthony
$4,000, to be used "for the advance
ment of Woman's cause" For several
years, the money was in litigation. but
Miss Anthony ultimately received most
of it. The third volume was sent to
hi Oh ~
the debts wiped out.
Mrs. Stanton and Mrs. Gage were not
entirely in sympathy with Miss Anth-
ony's desire to present the history to
public libraries. but Miss Anthony per-
sisted. and as the easiest way out of the
difficulty purchased the rights OF her
co-laborers outright. There was not
money enough left of her inheritance to
publish the fourth volume, but Miss
Anthony cheerfully went or writing it.
She was 80 years old when she sat down
to the task. Among her birthday gifts
was purse of $1,000 contributed by ad-
Tnirers from all over the country. The
money has already begun to come In,
said Miss Anthony. It had. and the rest
Of the sum was soon available.
a Life of Struggle and Anxiety.
Out of her long life Of constant strug-
gle and anxiety. during Which for many
years her portion was abuse, hatred,
ridicule. and aspersion, Susan B. An
LnOfX I6aDEQ Only ODtlUllSlIls MOI tIAC
optimism of the enthusiast. the fanatic,
who wraps in the mantle of an idea
and refuses to look at the rest of the
world of ideas. Here was the clear
sighted, sure optimism of genius that
sees very far ahead, and is satisfied.
Miss Anthony would assuredly have
sunk beneath the abuse which has been
heaped upon her head had it not been
for the keen sense of humor which IS
one of her characteristics. A laugh was
always just behind her lips. Once her
appearance in a western New YORK
town was announced in local paper
about as follows: Susan 3. Anthony
blew into town yesterday, wearing q
bonnet that looked as if it belonged to
Methuselah's youngest daughter. MISS
AnthOny'S complacent comment was;
IF had a vote and he wanted 1t ne
wouldn't care If looked like Methuse-
labs Oldest daughter
lust why Miss Anthony more than all
the other early advocates OF woman
suffrage was picked out for personal
abuse is not clear at the present time.
No one who knows her can understand
it. No woman of her dignity, sweetness,
and gracious Womanliness could ever
have been the unexed Virago described
in the newspap ers of 40 years ago II IS
possible that the fact OF her belng un-
married had something to do with It,
II her youth it was disgrace ana d
humiliation to be an "old maid MRS.
Stanton for example, was a peIsisIeII0
fighter, as radical a thinker, anu III ee
e~v vav as prominently in pubic Ire.
Sse had the backing of a husband, and
vas treated with a degree of respect IN
consequence.
A Lawrence Incident.
single instance VIII illustrate. A
convention was called in 1867 IN Law
renee. Kan, ana friends OF the SUI
fraqe movement were asked to enter
tain he visitors. The woman who was
asked to entertain Mrs. Stanton was
overioved and the prospect and made
great prepara tons. in spite of the TACT
That sbehad illness in the family. At the
last moment she received word that
Mrs Stanton had found relatives IN
town with whom she would stay, and
that Miss Anthony would come in her
Disca Her own account of the disap-
pointrnent is interesting. I hastily
pllt on my bonnet and shawl, saying,
7 don't want Miss Anthony. and l
won't have her, and I'm going to tell
craTe