The Washington bee., 1910-02-12

RaCe-MrS, WIZARD L AXIS OF IleI
Father-The Ballot the Best Hope
For Reform.
New York City.)
Mrs. o. H. P. Belmont crossed the
color line in her fight for political
equality. Her carriage drew up un-
der the elevated railroad in West
Fifty-third street and Mrs. Belmont
entered the Mount Olivet Baptist
Church to get the Negroes into the
equality line and form the first col
ored branch of the organization
There was a large attendance at the
meeting, including a considerable
number of men. Pastor Gilbert of
the Mount Olivet Church in opening
the meeting and turning the church
aver to the women said that he was
very glad to do so, as he firmly be-
keved in the subject for which Mrs,
Belmont and her associates were
working, and moreover, because this
was, he said, the first time in the his
tory of the Negro race in this coun-
Try that such a meeting had been held
n Negro church.
Mrs. l. L. Moorman, president of
the Negro Women's Business League
who had arranged the meeting with
Mrs. Belmont, said that when she
was making the arrangements she did
not realize that she was engaged in
a work which was to go down into
history, but she beamed her pleasure
at this ennobling prospect.
Mrs. Belmont invites us to join
Aer Political Equality Association, "
said Mrs. Moorman. IF politics are
dirty it's the men who have made
them dirty and it is for us now to
clean them up"
Mrs. Belmont, who was seated on
the platform with Mrs. Henry Vii
lard, Mrs. Ella Hawley Crossett,
president of the New York State
Woman Suffrage Association; Mrs.
NJ. c. Lawton OF Brooklyn, Mrs. F.
z. Keyser, president of the New
York State Federation of COlored
Women's Clubs, and Mrs. Norman
said:
Already, although you may not
know it, you are perhaps feeling the
call to the great work before US, I'm
less this call means freedom and
equality for all it is a failure. The
women of the country are still slaves
m the twentieth century. We need
earnest workers in the woman suf-
lrage cause. ! EARNESTLY invited you
all to Join, and the smallest contribu-
mons are gratefully received
Mrs. Moorman, before treating the
audience to a solo, said that the au-
dience was disappointed only in the
srevity of Mrs. Belmont's address.
Mrs. Willard, who was introduced
As the daughter of William Lloyd
Garrison, said: 81 need not assure
his audience that | have a deep in
terest in the people of the Negro
race
She said that it was always to her
a great privilege to be permitted to
talk of her father. which she did.
Then she spoke of the days when it
was hard for women to get chance
70 hold meetings in churches when
women who were against Negro
slavery had difficulty in finding
places in which to hold their meet
ings. And she told of her father 5
taking a seat in the gallery beside
the women delegates to great in
ternatiOnal anti-slavery conference
N London because the managers had
not permitted the women delegates
10 have seats on the floor of the
house
MY father" said she. said that
he was not a woman'S rights man.
but human rights man. feel that
philanthropy cannot be we'll done un-
III women have a voice in the NUM-
cipal housekeeping. The ballot IS
the great thing that is needed to up
lift the unfortunates who without it
must stay as they are and not only
imperil themselves but imperil the
whole community We should all
stand together, and hope that the
colored women will see eye to eye
The freedom of the body was a good
thing. Freedom of the mind is a
.Is-B