Omaha daily bee., 1910-04-15

The National American Woman Suffrage
association meets today in Washington in
its forty-second annual convention. Next
Tuesday morning at 10 o'clock the Ameri-
can suffregists will move on congress and
win present petition signed by more than
10000 American citizens, men and women.
praying for the submission OF an amend
ment TO the constitution giving women the
right to vote. When the English suf-
fragettss rushed" the House Of Commons
the police became very active many
women were injured and many were sent
to jail. The House Of Commons has not
yet acted on the question Of votes for
women" The American congress will be
much more polite and courteous, and the
American suffragists will be much more
gentle and womsnly. Americans have
much better political manners than Eng
lishmen. anyhow. and this superiority will
be demonstrated In Washington during this
week or next
Congress has made a habit OF being
polite and courteous TO advocates Of wom-
ans suffrage. For more than thirty years
the senate has maintained a committee on
womans suffrage. The members of this
committee are regularly elected with as
much gravity as are those Of the finance
committee. The ehairmanship, by one OF
the unwritten laws Of the senate, is given
always TO a minority member. Every sena-
tor on the majority side Is chairman Of
some committee, gaining thereby the use
OF a more or less palatiai committee room
and the services OF clerk and messenger
paid by the government. Only a few OF
the older minority senators have chair
manships. One OF these is Senator Alex
ander s. Clay OF Georgia, chairman Of the
committee on woman suffrage. His com
mittee will awake from a Information Of
several years next Tuesday and will hear
Rev. Anna Howard Shaw. president Of the
National Woman Suffrage association.
plead for another amendment to the con-
stitution giving the ballot TO women Then
the committee will go TO sleep again and
pay no further attention to the subject
on the same day the judiciary committee
OF the house OF representatives will give
the suffragists a hearing. and will listen
to arguments presented by representatives
of working women. The Judiciary COM
mittee will listen, and then do nothing else.
Probably the good women who are at
the head OF the suffrage associations do
not expect anything to be done by con-
gress. The suffrage fight in America must
be waged in the states first, but the agita-
ton for a constitutional amendment and
the storming Of congress will have an ex-
cellent effect in stirring up enthusiasm
in the several states. The cause OF woman
suffrage - advancing-it is impossible to
deny that sact. And in the United states
the women will get the vote Just as soon
as even half of the women OF the country
seriously demand it. And that without
throwing bricks through the skylight of
the house to hit Speaker Cannon on the
head, or without any women going to jail
and being fed with a pump through her
nose.
The National woman's Suffrage asso-
ciation, having for it's sole object the
amendment of the federal constitution to
permit women to vote, was organized in
1853 by Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Susan B.
Anthony and other women who already
were famous for their victories in the
cause OF womens rights in other spheres
Of activity. There was some division Of
sentiment at the time and another organ
ization. The American Woman Suffrage
association was organized in 1870 with
Henry Ward Beecher as president and
Julia Ward Howe and Lucy Stone as NOV
ing spirits. This organization sought to
obtain its end by amendments to state
constitutions
Both associations held annual meetings
regularly. but as time Lassed by the bit
terness OF the original difference was d.
lutsd and In 1890 the two organizations
merged under the present title. National
American Woman Suffrage association.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was elected presi-
dent: Susan B. Anthony. vice presidential
large, and Lucy Stone was made chairman
of the executive committee. Since that
time the association has pursued it's work
along both lines. fighting for both federal
and state constitutional action.
| In 1882 Mrs. stanton retired from the
presidency because OF advancing years and
was succeeded by Miss Anthony. She re-
signed in 1900 and was succeeded by Carrie
Chapman Gait. Mrs. Gait retired in 1901
and was followed by Anna Howard Shaw
/ the incumbent Rachael Foster Avery oi
Pennsylvania Is first vice president. The
convention now meeting in Washington is