The Washington times., 1915-12-08
SPIRITED DEBATE IN
SUFFRAGE HEARING
Pros and Ants Exchange Per-
sonaIities and Kisses Before
Democratic Committee.

Women from both the suffrage ano
the anti-surfrage camps packed inc
ball room Of the New willard Hote'
yesterday afternoon for the first hea' =
ing ever granted by the Democratic
| ns tional committee on the suffrae
question.
| Today found both the "suffs' ana
| tn. "antis" explaining some of the
| lively incidents that occurred at the
meeting, including the kissing of one
oe the anti speakers, and the al
| legation, made in loud tones by n
woman wearing the suffrage colors,
| that Mrs. Arthur Dodge. president
of the National Association Opposed to
Woman Suffrage, came down here
to speak for $75."
The doors of the committee room. in
| the New willard ball room. were thrown
open at 4 o'clock for the hearing. Wo-
men from both the suffrage bodies, the
National American Woman Suffrage As
sociation and the Congressional Union
for Woman Suffrage. promptly filed into
the room. and they were followed by a
large delegation of "antis."
Champ Clark There.
Speaker Champ Clark was in front
row and he was invited to sit on the
platform during the hearing.
"Ill stay right here" he replied,
amid laughter from the delegates.
The women filled up the hall in such
a hurry that many OF those whom
they had come to address, includ-
ing members of the national COM
mittec, and members of both houses of
Congress. were left standing outside.
TWO OF those who tried to get in were
Col. John Temple Graves and Con-
gressman Rainey OF Illinois. Colonel
Graves was seized by q stalwart mem
Der OF the committee. and in football
fashion was projected through the jam,
but Congressman Rainey's bulkier
hgure was not amenable to such efforts.
and he walked away after vain efforts
to get through the crowd.
Each Given Is Minutes.
Chairman McCombs announced ttat
the national association. the Congress
sional Union. end the "antis" would he
allowed fifteen minutes each Mrs.
Florence Kelley, OF New York. intro
Gon; Miss Frances Jolliffe, OF [alifor-
MIA, and Mrs. Mary Wolstenholm. a
member of the Utah legislature. fer the
union; Mrs Antoinette Funk and Mrs.
Ida Hustled Harper spoke for the Ma
tional American Association.
Then came Mrs. Arthur Dodge. who
read a brief statement. in which she
pointed out that the Democratic party
STOOD FOR states rights. and that Pres-
dent Wilson had said that suffrage was
State. not a national. Issue.
AS she sat down the trouble began.
suffragist sitting near her said
You were paid SIS for coming down
here and doing that"
Mrs. Dodge flushed. then replied:
II am woman Of independent means
and ! not only have not received cent
for nv services. but I have financed
the work of others"
Kisses For "Anti."
Pv this time the second "anti" speaker
had begun to talk. She was Mrs. A. J.
George, Of Boston. She said the only
States which had shown Democratic
gains in the last election were States In
which the Congressional Union had
been working against the Democrats.
At this she was hissed and Mrs
George remarked:
Sometimes we have the fitness OF
women to go into politics illustrated
while We wait"
The kissing subsidized
Miss Alice Paul. chairman OF the Con.
gressional Union. last evening stated
the woman who made the remark to
Mrs. Dodge was unknown to her and
was not a member of the union.
The hearing before the committee
was most satisfactory. and. on a day
when two suffrage bills were introduced
in the Senate. and national commit
tee heard us. and we were given a date
for a hearing before Senate commit
tee. we feel suffrage has taken long
step ahead