The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1913-03-07
.SUFFRAGETTES
WITNESSES In
PARADE PROBE
Prominent Women Testify Before
the Senate Investigating
Committee.
POLICE ENCOURAGED THE
CROWD TO JEER WOMEN
Many Witnesses Tell of the Al
legged Insults TO Women
During the Parade.

WASHINGTON. ID. G.. March g..
Tales OF indignities and affronts from
the crowds and indifference and
laughing comments from the police
were recounted today before the Sem
ate committee that has begun an in
vestigation into the alleged lack OF
! protection given the great suffrags
pageant OF last Monday.
Women prominent in national af-
/ fairs and in suffrage councils told of
their harassed progress through surg.
! ing crowds OF men and boys. whom
! the police. they said. made little ef.
fort TO hold back. Their stories diff
iered In detail because OF the various
viewpoints from which the Pennsyl-
vania avenue march had been OBJ
served. but their statements as TO the
general attitude OF the police were
endorsed by Rear Admiral Van Roy
pen. retired. and George F. Bower.
man. librarian of the Carnegie library
of Washington. who appeared as wit
nesses against the police department
Police Fail in Duty.
Miss Julia Lathrop. chief OF the
children's bureau of the Department
of Commerce and Labor. one of the
marchers in the suffrage parade. said
] the few police she saw seemed to be
merely standing in the front row OF
I the spectators" Mrs. Harriet Taylor
1 Upton. OF Warren. o.. in charge OF
the Ohio division OF the parade. de-
clared that crowds OF "youngish men"
surFCd in so close that the marchers
could hardly walk two abreast: that
good natured drunken men" pushed
4 "a .fr,ae -.
restraint by the police. and that the
few officers in sight did nothing TO
protect the procession.
Congress had pa ssed special act
directing tho Washington police de-
parirrent 20 prevent any interference
with The suffrage procession"
In tho questions put To- the women
with sscs today SENATOR Jones, Dn-
I bingham ana trul.renc tried 10 scctTT1
/ dchritc Information ae t. why ths
protection had bccu so Inadequate and
as go The number of police on hand
/ ana ihy manner Ia which they acted
-Oward the womci. marchcrs.
Well dressed women. many of then
/ leaders in national suffrage affairs
| packed the committee room where tho
I hearings were hold. and from then
ranks came IN. Wituo-s-e who wcr.
, called 20 IN" stand under Tho direction
Of Miss Alice Paul Iu a. statement
furnish to thu committee ~ ia
ortu.f. Major Ri,hrrd ~.1r.etor. SUI
rrriui"ud'ut OF police. declared h,
G'Vartin'T - Lad CiV"u rho parade all
tho protection ~ could Eth the limit
cd number ~ ro.iremcu available. and
z Tint fEr disorder on tho strrots Wai
due ." the breaking of cable along
thr r"Ht" and the uuruly character Of
Tho crowd
l'urs'~ II laughter carc frequently
as women told 81 their experiences
Mrs. Tn'on 7aid thor" were soms
elderly women IN the ohio division
and 4h" WIS afraid good -naturct
drunken man would fan AGAINST
80 We an hurried and got past
atd r' t.l iI'h Zoo Wisconsin or WvO-
Wir-. "r somewhere back thcre." she
said.
Police Laughed.
Sne dcclar'i OBJ. police laughed at
th' scenes auc made no effort 20 help.
rh. MOST inefficient she said. were
thr rl|l clothes men sworn in fer
The occasion. who carried their ap-
fuorff iu fIc BADGES ON their coats
Mrs Agnes VI jerks. Of Concord. n.
o. Who had her daughcr and other
young girls with kEy in the New
Hampshire division. told one % the
most striking stories She declares
uniformed policemen had encouraged
[ Tho crowd u its disorder. and that sha
had been so alarmed at the action of
/ The officers toward fhc young girls
/ that The children were placed in the
center of the procession. where they
were protected hy older women
The crowd hoot'd and jecred." she
said. men tried to Eet the flowers
from our coats and one man stuck his
foot ou ir front of my daughter and
! tried 'o trip her. ~ another point two
/ policemen iu uniform were standing
together .aIk'nE. and we're eucouraR-
.ne tHe crowd to jeer us. We were
moro frightened by the police than By
fh" crowd
Some of The women could give the
number az 'he policemen who had ex.
rihted Indifference or autaFonism. M.
fIourh several thoueht they could
identify some Of them The Witnesses
u'rr almost unanimous On declaring
,hat fev policemen we're in siEht. and
r1 mounted officers. and that there
-e'mcd to be no successful effort "a
control fbe crowds until the cavalry.
m.u came on the scene
HHUu an nWu M 10