The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-03-04
Foot By Foot the
Women Struggle
Through Mob
SCENE ONE
OF RIOTING
Suffrage Pageant Consider
ably handicapped by the
Surging Mob, Which
Defies Police
CAVALRY RUSHED TO
AID OF POLICE IN
DISPENSING CROWD
Suffragettes Encounter Hostile Crowd
in Streets of National Capital
Hoodlnms Hoot Marchers and
Crowd Scatters Forces
Until Ridden Down

Washington, March 3.--Five thous-
and women marching in the woman
suffrage pageant today, practically
fought for their way foot by foot up
Pennsylvania avenue, through surg
ing mob that completely defied the
Washington police, swamped the
marchers and broke their pro-
cession into little companies. The
women, trudging stoutly along
under great difficulties, were
able to complete their march only
when troops of cavalry from Fort
Myer were rushed into Washington to
take charge of Pennsylvania avenue.
No Inauguration has produced such
scenes which in many instances
amounted to nothing less than riots.
Later in continental hall, the women
frage demo- tration into an indigna-
tion meeting in which the Washington
police were roundly denounced for their
Inactivity, and resolutions were passed
calling upon President-elect Wilson and
tho iu0onling Cons resss y 1,la'ss ~ n
vestigation and locate the responsibility
ty for the indignities the marchers .suf-
fered. Miss Helen Keller the noted
deaf and blind girl. was so exhausted
and unnerved by the experience in at
tempting to reach a grandstand where
she was to have been a guest of honor
that she was unable to speak later at
Continental hall.
Fight Their Way Through Crowds
The scenes which attended the entry
of General Rosale Jones and her
"hkers" on Thursday when the be-
draggled women had to fight their way
up Pennsylvania avenue, swamped by
a mob with which few policemen strug-
gled in vain, were repeated today but
upon a vastly larger scale. The march
ers had to fight their way from the
start and took more than one hour In
making the first 10 blocks. Many of
the women were in tears under the
jeers and insults that lined the route.
Although stout wire ropes had been
stretched up and down the length Of
Pennsylvania avenue from the Peace
monument to the Mall behind the White
House, the enormous crowds that gath
cred early to obtain points of vantage
overstepped them or crawled beneath.
Apparently no effort was made to drive
back the trespassers in the early hours,
with the result that when the parade
started 1t faced at almost every 100
yards a solid wall of humanity.
On the whole 1t was a hostile crowd
through which the women marched.
Miss Inez Milholland, herald of the pro-
cession, distinguished herself by aiding
In riding down a mob that blocked the
way and threatened to disrupt the pa
rade. Another woman member of the
"petticoat cavalry" struck a hoodlum
a stinging blow across the face with
her riding crop In reply to a scurrilous
remark. as she was passing. The
mounted police rode hither and yon, but
seemed powerless to stem the tide of
humanity.
A froup of hoodlums gathered in
front OF the reviewing stand In which
sat Mrs. Taft and Miss Helen Taft and
half dozen invited guests from the
White House. They kept up running
fire OF caustic comments. Apparently no
effort was made to remove them and.
evidently disgusted the White House
party left before the procession had
passed in its hating and interrupted
journey toward Continental hall
The tableaux on the steps of the
treasury building, framed in the great
columns and the broad stairway of the
government treasury house, were begun
when the parade started from its rem
devious at the base of the capitol. Beau
tiful in coloring and grouping the
dramatic symbolization of women's as
pirations for political freedom was com
pleted long before the head of the pa
rade was in sight.
In their thin dresses and bare arms
(COntinued ON Page EighO