The sun., 1916-09-07
Resolution Proposing state
and National Action Meets
" Opposition.
.SOUTHERNERS OPPOSE 1T
Invasion Of Rights, Miss Clay
Professionalism Up
for Debate To-day.

wv "a s"S 'sse
ton Of that body at st. Paul's Metho-
dist Episcopal Church this afternoon
that long heralded discussion YOU
shave been exceedingly tame. But she did
drop the bomb. in the shape OF a resO-
luton that the State work (Which the
delegates had just voted not to drop)
should be considered merely preparatory
20 the Federal amendment and that the
latter was the Immediate and principal
aim"
The resolution provided that article
II Of the Nationals constitution. which
instructs the a%uxiiaries to secure the
vote by appropriate national and State
action should be ~ interpreted.
Instantly that old Democratic war
horse Miss Laura Clay OF Kentucky
WA on her feet protesting against this
~stnvasion Of the principle OF state SOW
ersiGnty."
what right have a few hundred dele
gates to say to the hundreds OF thou
sands OF women In this association that
those who came into 1t Prohibitionists,
Socialists. Democrats. shall be branded
~ Republicans?' she demanded. Il say
this IL an invasion Of liberty and OF the
principle OF self.government.'
Mr.. Gait protested the resolution was
not debatable. But though she is a
match for Senates, Legislatures and any
convention en- masse. she can't queN
MiSs Clay. Finally. with the Southerner
stil waving the banner Of state rights
over the excited gathering, the chair
ruled that the discussion Of the resoiu-
tion be taken up tomorrow morning.
Question IL Debated.
Leaders in the three cornered debate
on the policy were Miss Clay. who spoke
TO the topic "Shall the National, drop
work on the Federal amendment ana
confne its activities to State legisla-
ton ~; Mrs. Ida Hustled Harper. who
sopke to the topic "Shal, the Nationai
drop work for state referenda and con-
c~ertrate on the Federal amendment?"'
and Mrs. Raymond Brown. whose SUB
tect was shall the Nationals present
policy TO work for suffrage by sppro-
HHriatc national and State legislation he
continued
Their respective seconds were Miss
Kate Gordon Of Louisiana. Mrs. Glen
uower Evans O. sias.aeius.;;s and
Miss Florence Allen of Kentucky. After
they had spoken. the leaders ten minutes
each and tn, seconds five, the delegates
were allowed three minutes apiece until
the convention got tired and put It to
n vote.
So evident was II that the organ'za
ton was going TO keep right along IN
~ present road that the discussion
seemed cut and dried. As Mrs. Harper
said when she rose to make her re-
Etnttal just before the vote: II could
no this with more heart II FELT there
WAS a single person In this room on my
side"
z IF you separate n team or oxen.
said n farming woman, both the haw
10Y and the gee OK are helpless. II would
ne that way with us II We dropped either
branch OF our work. Let us haw and
zee together
slavery Fight Recalled.
Miss Clay's argument was mainly a
rsview of United States history. The
slaves, she said. were enfranchised as a
war measure, and the Fifteenth Amend
5nent was the logical result OF that
s%neasure. Nothing but coercion made 1t
possible she declared. and As military
coercion is no longer possible 1t is pro-
posed to try political coercion 10y the
votes of women. That is too much to
expect of ~enfranchised American women.
b. THE hearts Of the world 70 out to
ireland in it's fight for home rule. lf the
Irish are willing to die for that princi-
lple, shall the women Of our various
States strike it the blow that is proposed
there?"
, Miss Gordon asserted that the race
question was the 'inpasse" which would
make It impo %sible to get the Southern
Estates to ratify the Federal amendment.
Some Of the Southern women evidently
wanted to bring this question to the
fore, for at the opening Of the session
a leafiet was found in each seat describ-
! ing. in maps and figures. the pre-
ponderance OF. the negro vote in those
States.
=. Tut neither the of the
E.6Outherners nor of Mrs. Harper prevailed.
And even II Mrs. Brown hadn't cl!nched
trhe matter by getting Dr. Anna Howard
Shaw to speak for a middle course Just
before the vote 1t would have been
Overwhelmingly for the policy she de-
Tended.
Ovation for Dr. shaw.
The convention made a real old time
demonstration over I,r. Shaw. 1t is
tho first one In many years over which
her gavol has not ruled, and TO many
delegates 1t didn't seem natural to see
the beloved leader sitting quietly at one
eide while others conducted the business.
But when there WAS quiet and she could
kpeak she declared that she had been
SAAving "the time ~ her life"
y snow ! can only say hat II Is non-
sense TO talk of the Federal amendment
MT going to the voter, II goes TO the
legislators and the legislator is the tool
,of the voter. Well have another sixty
years to work for our cause II we are
so mad as to desert State work.
y No one seems TO know Just why, but
N cannot he denied that the leaning in
this assembiage is strongly Democratic.
i"Oh, they are mad at the Congressional
Union and lake this way OF expressing
81" was one explanation but it doesn't
explain.
Hope I o Convince Wilson.
When Mrs. Frank NJ. Roessing, first
ryice-president and Congressional chair
man. read the report of her committees
work In Washington she tool occasion to
inject this sentence:
1.-THE Republican party hai not done
Spnc bit more for suffrage than has the
Democratic party. The personal indorse-
.fHent OF Il candidate for the Presidency
can do nothing for the Federal amend
fnent. a suffrage paper said the other
Nay that the Republican party had in
aorsed the amendment. Alas. nothing OF
the sort.
president Wilson Is a fair and omen
minded man, and our committee has not
,Riven UP hope OF convincing him Of. the
lfnaatiCa NJ fha np,anlVpay,t