The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-02-08
AND SENATE, TOO
Suffrage Resolution Passes That
Body This Afternoon.
Amendment Will Be Submitted
to People.
NO VOTES TO SPARE.
Just Required TwO-Thirds Ma
jOrity Obtained.
Only a Few Women Present at
the Time.
Senators Send Hamilton Suf-
frage Bill to Committee.

By a vote of 27 to IL. the senate this
afternoon passed the bill giving TO
women equal suffrage. The opposition
needed but one vote to defeat the
measure and the fight on the resolution
was short and of little interest
Less than fifty women were in the
senate when that body took up the
consideration of the minority resoiu-
ton Evidently the women had not
generally grasped the morning move
ments of the Rawlins senator and the
biq house party which was planned
was missed by hundreds of women
who attended the Tuesday nght SUI
frage parade in the house
Senator Glenn Immediately moVeo 70
substitute house bill No ), whlch was
messaged to the senate this morning.
AS the house bill is a Democratic docu-
nent. Robertson and Hodges acceoe''
TO the substitution and the fight on Tie
real measure was on.
Price and Potter Immediately tan
rIed on the necessity of a lengthy doc
ument and Price pointed out nan
dozen repetitions in the bill which he
said assisted in overlooking the han-
saa constitution. The Clark county
senate wanted the section held to two
lines which would read, The rlghts
of citizens of the state of Kansas 10
vote and hold office shall not be de-
MED or abridged on account OF sex.
He said the latter part of the section
should be stricken out and be sent
back to the house for needed repairs
His motion to reduce the size OF the
paragraph was adopted
This was the only fight on the reso-
luton. Many of the members explain
ed their votes and within forty min
rites after the session was called, the
resolution was adopted and messaged
to the house.
This puts the amendment up to the
people to be voted on at the next gen
erai election. The governors sigma
ture is not necessary
The roll call was as follows:
For-Anderson, Avery, Brady Brew
ster. Brown, Cambern, Carey, Cooke,
Denton. Fagerberg, Fowler, Ganse,
Glenn. Harris, Hamilton, Hodges
HUFFMAN, Hunter. Milton, Murphy
Myers, Porter Potter; Rooerlsol'
Smith Stavely, Travis-2I-
Against-Bender, Caldwell, Hostrup,
Lower. MiIligan, Overfield, Price, Quln-
cy. Reed, Stannard. Stewart, Stillings
~.
The senate this morning by vote
Of "a to Is, sent to the judiciary COM
mittee, the Hamilton bill giving to wo-
men the right to vote for presidential
electors.
There was any amount of trouble
over the constitutionality of the Ham
iIton bill and it was this split among
the lawyer members which caused the
ardent advocates of equal suffrage to
take notice and divided the vote in
such a manner as to temporarily side
step the issue. Potter and Hamilton
declared that the members were
afraid of the lobby and Brewster
vowed that the opponents of the bill
were insincere in their charges.
The constitutionality of the bill was
most vigorously attacked by Francis
Price, who challenged the lawyer
members to cite one decision of the
courts which bore out the proposed ac-
ton of the legislature. He urged that
If women were to vote for presidential
electors=then why not for all He
challenged the members to produce
the statutes which set in operation the
machinery which would carry out the
purpose of the bill. Price declared
that in 100 years in which a clamor
had been made for equal suffrage,
that the court records did not over
flow with authority for such action
as was proposed.
Brewster and Hamilton brought cheer
10 the suffragettes when they defend
ed the constitutional side of the bill
and declared that the Kansas legislature
was empowered to give to women the
right to vote for any set of men they
might choose. They declared the bill
was of vital Importance and should not
he sidetracked. Brewster suggested an
amendment to the original bill which
provided separate ballots for the female
voters, but this olive branch did not
promote harmony.
Price said hasty action should not
be taken and that to pass the bill with
out due investigation of the statutes,
might give the women a gold brick and
not the proposed basket of roses
Porter wanted the bill referred to
the open senate and ample time pre-
scribed for dissecting the legal COM
pIications. His seatmate, Potter of
Marion, declared this action was not
necessary and urged that the women
be not withheld from their rights. The
porter motion was lost % to IT,
Then a happy thought struck Reed
of Smith. He would send the bill to
Judiciary committee and this bodv
the quiet of the committee rooms
This lengthy discussion OF unknown
legal complications had puzzled a good
many members. The most ardent ad-
vocates were uncertain. A portion of
them went to the ants and the i'm
mediate victory of Kansas women in
the upper house was sidetracked by q
count of "a to Is.
When the committee arose. Glenn
moved to nonconcur in the report OF
the transactions; but the same vote
that sent the bill to the senate sIaugh-
member from Greeley The vote tC
refer the report to the judiciary com.
mittee was as follows: