The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-01-09
of the Federal
Amendment Claim They
Expect Its Passage
EX-SENATOR BAILEY
A STRONG OPPONENT
Claims That Women Are Incapable of
Performing the Three Principal .Du-
ties of Citizenship-Commit Ap
pointed to Get Out Vote.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 9.-Canvasses
made by group of congressman friend
ly to woman suffrage showed that the
proposed constitutional amendment ex-
tending suffrage to women as grad
ually growing in strength. Democratic
members of the house representing
Southern states, who were reported sol
idly against the resolution, are now
breaking up their forces. The result
of this changed condition, adherents of
suffrage said, was that there was pos
sibility of the resolution commanding
a two-thirds vote when it comes to 4
vote in the house Thursday.
Encouraged by the optimistic reports
given them by women lobbyists. the
group of congressman, in addition to
making a quick canvass, decided to di-
vide the country into five zones, with a
committee for each zone. The duty of
the committee is to see mat all the
members are in their seats and voting
next Thursday. Representative Fred
Taylor of Colorado is chairman of this
committee, which will not only devote
Itself to keeping an attendance, but
will also seek TO influence votes for the
resolution.
Hearings were closed by the houso
woman suffrage committee late Mon
day after listening to arguments by
representatives. of the National Asso-
citation Opposed to Woman Suffrage
and final appeals for favorable action
by officials of the National American
Woman Suffrage association
Former Senator Bailey of Texas. Ill
long speech against the resolution
Contcnded that women were incapable
of performing the three principal duties
Of citizenship, military service, Sheriff
service. and jury service, and should
not help enact laws which they were
not capable of obeyin2. He insisted
that the saffraeiys eonstitatted1a small
percentage of the women of the coun.
try, and added:
There are too many ignorant voters
now, aud | would not add to the mum
Der.
Henry y. Wise Wood of New York
formerly an advocate of woman sui
lfdSc, Sald that women, ii gwen the
vote. would insist ON holding govern
ment Offices, invading even congress
the supreme court, and the White
House, and would succeed in unnannine
the government and blocking the coun
try S military program.
Mrs. James W. Wadsworth. n, pres
ident of the association opposed to wo
man suffrage, and other speakers de
nounced methods used by the suf'ragists
III their efforts to put the resolution
through congress, particularly tho
White House demonstrations of the mil
itants and the threatening of oppos
ing legislators with political defeat.
The suf1ragists, Mrs Edwin Ford Of
Boston said. were ''weH organized
over financed. and already provided
with a split in their ranks. =
Mrs. Carrie Chapman Gait and Mrs
Maud Wood Park, officers of the Na
tional American Woman Suffrage asso
citation, briefly replied saving they
were before the committee to present
facts not theory.
The alffra2ists made public mum
Der of kilograms and letters ADVOCATING
the passage of the resolution, amons
them one from Colonel Theodore Roosc
welt