Evening journal., 1914-07-06
DID NOT OFFICIALLY
Represent CLUBS ON
WASHINGTON TRIP

That the club women who went in
the suffrage delegation to Washington
last week to call on President Wilson
did not officially represent the clubs Of
which they are members is the state
ment made by Miss Mary r. deVou. cor
responding secretary OF the Delaware
Equal Suffrage Association, and active In
womcn's club circles. Miss deNou today
made the following statement to clear up
any misunderstood that may exist about
the status of the clubwomen who were
in the suffrage delegation:
To the Editor of THE EVENING JOUR
NAL, Sir; In justice to the club
women who went to Washington under
the auspices of the Congressional Union
for Woman Suffrage on Tuesday. June
30. and in response to requests from var
ious quarters for statement, / take
/ this opportunity of making widely
known what is a fact-that not one of
the party went with the idea that she
was officially representing The New
Century Club Of Wilmington or The
Delaware State Federation of Women's
Clubs
Loyalty also. to the New Century
Club and TO the Equal Suffrage organ
izations, of which ! am a member. i'm
pels me TO disavow thus openly. any
/ desire or intention on the part of OuI
/ delegation TO produce the impression
that we represented the New Cen
tury Club of this city.
! No great knowledge of parliamentary
usage is requisite to know that indi
vidual members of an organization can
not arrogate to themselves the righi
and for whatsoever they will
That they could not do so and must
not appear to be doing do was repeat
edly emphasized at headquarters, wher
plans were in progress and as Otter
acknowledged by Miss Hill. who held
however, that members of the Delaware
/ Federation who were sutfragists, could
without improperly, go as women from
many other states were going, as in
dividual club members, standing for thl
principle of political equality regard
less of sex" which had been overwhelm
ingly endorsed in June, by the Genera
] Federation of Womcn's Clubs in bien
nial session at Chicago.
Aware that this action of the con
vention did not bind the state fedora
tions and that the clubs We're not II
session. every woman concerned llney
that to 90 officially or in. any sense q
| represent the clubs" was impossible
even had these been disposed to tax
favorable action, which in Delaware
they are probably not yet ready TO do.
That the comparatively small mum
Der OF women who round it convenien
to 90 to Washington, adequately rep
| resents the organized or unorganize
strength of the suffragists in Whining
ton. or the number even OF club mem
bers who are suffragists, is far from be
ing the case. The delegation OF twelv
women was very satisfactory fron
point of numbers to those interested
and in passing it may be said tina
about one-third of the members of tn
Wilmington Equal Suffrage Club, ar
also members of the New Century Cmt
In closing il is a pleasure again I
emphasize the fact that the suifragisti
including members of the State Fedora
tion, who represented suffrage sent
mcnt in Delaware IN their individua
capacity at the interview with Prcsiden
Wilson, went as part OF a great bod
of women from many states, compose
largely of club members, who are ais
suifragists
That they so went and that they wen
to bring to President Wilson's atten
tion in an emphatic way, the endorse
ment of political equality for men an
women by the General Federation j
convention assembled Is what has le
TO the erroneous impression, here a
least, that the clubs were officially rep
resented
Mary r. deNou.
Corresponding Secretary, Equal Suiirag
Association of Delaware.
Wilmington, July 4, 1914
II IS the day of schemes an
L. L.