The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-02-13
EARNEST oRAT0RY
<Continusd from First Page

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lature act.
Judge Williams. chairman Of the
committee on privileges and elections.
stated that the committee would take
the bill under serious consideration
and there would be no unnecessary
delay In submitting their report.
Afternoon Meeting.
Long before the hour set, the cham
Der of the house of delegates was
crowded with women representing
the highest circles of Richmond's ana
the States social life. Both the gal
leries and the floor were crowded to
capacity.
- ha-meeting- opaaaa- with intro
duction of Mrs. Il. Il. Valentine, by Mr..
Chalkley. delegate from Wise county.
who is one of the patrons of the bill.
Mrs. Valentine made a short adj
dress in which she declared woInan's
suffrage was not n forlorn hope as
stated in some of the newspapers.
that four States had been added to the
list of those already having woman's
suffrage, and that slowly but surely
the tide was sweeping over the States,
and each in its turn was coming to
the front, and granting the women the
privilege of the ballot. She said that
the question had become a great prac-
"A ISSUE in national and State poll
tics. and would force its way, whether
wanted or not. She introduced Mrs.
John II. Lewis, of Lynchburg. who
IKE stated was the grandmother OF
twelve children.
Mrs. Lewis Given Ovation.
Mrs. Lewis was given an ovation
as she took the floor. Mrs. Lewis said
that she came before the committee
with a plea on the behalf of the peo-
pie the general assembly represented.
and when the committee understood
that these people. whose plea she pre-
scented. only asked for the same thing
that men prize SO high. the free mans
vote, she was sure they would not re-
fuse it, because it iightfuily belonged
to them.
She said that women had the same
convictions that men hold. quite as
high and quite as strong that they did
not seek the ballot for the right to
hold office and distribute patronage.
but merely 10 add their moral CON
victions to those of the men. The
body of all the bills handled by the
general assembly touched women, she
declared-the money question, proh-
bition and all, and then in most elo-
Quent manner she described how each
/ of the measures affected the status of
the feminine gender.
Mrs. Lewis took a letter written by
Thomas jefferson and wove around it
one of the prettiest speeches heard for
many days in the general assembly. In
the letter il was found that jefferson
had said men were rational animals,
( but Mrs. Lewis declared that men were
not the only rational animals, and
described to the committee just what
/ Mr.. jefferson had meant. and just how
a woman should use the ballot II given
to her. She took the Democratic plat
form of 1912, which advocated free
thought. free press and equality be-
fore the law of all citizens
Has Strong Argument.
! Mrs Lewis declared that. more ar
/ less, it was a farce; that women were
not given an equality before the law,
that when they were tried before a
! jury. IL was not before a jury of their
peers, nor by laws in which women
had hand in making. Her address
was both eloquent and logical, and she
kept her hearers In tense interest
| Throughout.
! A dramatic situation was presented
when Mrs. Lewis asked that the ques-
/ ton be put fairly and squarefy to the
| legislature.
! That her whole heart was in the
| project could not be doubted, and
when she spoke of the baekwardn ess
| OF Virginia in this matter. her voice
| broke and with tears streaming down
| time when Virginia was not behind in
/ its duties TO its women. the time when
Mr.. Jefferson spoke and thought. But
| she declared the tide was sweeping
closer and ii would not be long be-
! fore the women had their rights.
/ She told the committee that they
now had L. chance TO give freely that
which later they would have to give
begrud gingly, for later they would
/ have to grant woman's suffrage be-
cause It would be Il national issue, and
if they were behind. they would no
| longer be fit to hold the seats in the
national capitol.
The Woman's Side.
| Mrs. George c. Barksdale. founder
and manager OF Summer Rest, the
/ summer home for working girls in
Albemarle county, followed Mrs
Lewis, giving the working woman's
\ side of the question. Mrs. Barksdales
\ talk received a generous applause. In
! her utterances she made great fun Of
I Woodrow Wilson and the manner in
| which he had received the delegation
( of suffragists. She said that she was
still a Democrat. but the Democrats
would have to do something for their
cause as the Bail Meesers- under The
| oiore Roosevelt had promised them
many things.
| Rev, w. A. Cooper. of the Central
/ Methodist church. also made an ex-
| cellent talk on the subject. He de-
/ clared that organized and CONNER
cialized vice was fighting woman
! suffrage and this, for one reason. was
why he was for ii, but the principle
| reason was because it was only right,
and he always championed the cause
| of right.
The Voice OF Labor.
| HowardsA. Colvin. representative of
| organized labor, next took the floor.
! declaring that he came in the name
| of that great body of workers who
| believed that women should be given
! the ballot and asked that a fair con-
! sideration be given by the legislature.
! He said that of 80. 900 members In the
! State-ef Virginia. one ef-them
/ had declared unequivocally for wo-
/ mans suffrage.
Mrs Kate Waller Barrett. of Alex
andria, president OF the National
iCouncil of Women and the National
| Florence Crittenden mission. made one
1 of the most eloquent speeches OF the
afternoon Mrs. Barrett told of her
/ early life and how she had raised her
4 boys. bringing into her argument the
! necessity Of having the ballot for wo-
4 men to properly raise her children. 1t