Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1911-11-30
VIRGINIA WOMEN
WILL HAVE BALLOT
So Said Mrs. Benjamin Valentine and Miss
Mary Johnston in Two Able Addresses
Here on Tuestay Night.

10 connection with the Worlds Col
umbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893,
there were held series of congresses
on every conceivable thing for the
worlds betterment One of these con-
crosses was the Congress of Women
Suffragettes, and at one of the morn
ing sessions, with Miss Susan B. An
thony presiding, at the close of an in
teresting address by one of the dele
gates, tall, handsome, well-groomed
woman arose, walked briskly to the ros-
trum and taking the chairman by the
hand, said:
Il have never been with you, Susan,
but what have seen and heard here
convinces me you are right, and in the
future l will be one of you.''
Glad to have you with US, Kate"
responded the veteran suffragette, for
the woman who had thus greeted her
was none other than the brilliant writer,
Kate Field, editor of Kate Fields
Washingtonian.
This incident is recalled by the fact
that at the close of the addresses by
Miss Johnston and Mrs. Valentine here
Tuesday night many of the audience
looked as though they would like to take
the speakers by the hand and say: "I
am with you"
A large crowd, taxing the capacity of
the hall, greeted the speakers. This
was particularly gratifying to those
who had the matter in charge, as the
preliminary canvass indicated an apathy
to hearing addresses on the subject of
woman's suffrage.
The speakers were introduced by Mr..
E. L. Greever, who took gentle dig
at the people of Tidewater Virginia for
thinking the sun set when it passed be-
yond the Blue Ridge.
Miss Johnston was the first to address
the audience. In eloquent and we'll
rounded sentences she traced the his
tory of woman from the dawn of the
civilized races, age by age, century by
century, from servile subjection of the
earliest period to economic independ-
ence of the nineteenth century.
She surprised some Of the younger
generation by stating that much inter-
est had been taken by the women of
the Southern states in the middle of the
last century in the equal suffrage move
ment, but that the war and reconstruc-
tion periods had given the subject a set
back in this section. WAR" declared
the speaker, ''always sets back the
hands of progress. and, sometimes, sets
back the hands of time century"
The twentieth century, she said,
would be the woman's century, and in
which they would achieve political
equality, and that by 1850, except in a
few Latin countries, they would be fully
enfranchised.
The speaker then gave the historic
definitions of politics, the ballot, suf-
frage, franchise and political equality,
and in an eloquent and convincing man.
ner answered the question: "Why do
women want to votei"
The address of Mrs. Valentine was of
an entirely different order. Sharp and
pointedly and in clear and convincing
manner she quoted figures to show how
much, where tried, the enFranchisement
of women had done for the progress of
the race, and by concrete illustration of
known facts here and in her home city.
Richmond, showing wherein women
wanted voice in the expenditure of
the money they paid in for taxes, and
she believed that they could spend it to
better advantage than men had shown
they could do.
Masterful addresses by mastery wo-
men was the verdict of the large audi
dience that gave their undivided atten-
= tion to the brilliant speakers from start
to finish.
At the close of the speaking the vis-
, itors were given an informal reception
st the residence of Mr. James D. Har-
risson, where Mrs. Valentine was en-
tertsined during her stay here. Miss
Johnston stopped at the home of her
cousin, DR.. Prentiss d. Johnston.