New Britain herald., 1919-05-31
CONNECTICUT SUFFS SEEK $IOO,OOO FUND
Need This Amount to Wage De-
 termined Campaign

Mrs. Samuel Russell. Jr., of Middle town, who is well known through her activities in Connecticut with war ! work. particularly as chairman of the
 Junior Food Army and as chairman 1 of the Connecticut Woman's Motor [ Corps division, but who has not been
 actively identified with woman sui 1 frage, today told why she decided to 1 accept the chairmanship of the state 1 campaign committee that will con 1 duct the campaign throughout the l state to raise by public subscriptions $10O,O00 for the Connecticut Woman suffrage association.
 The money is to be devoted 10 a citizenship program and other public services to help in training the women Of the state to be competent citizens when full enfranchiscment arrives
 The campaign for funds will be con- ducted from June to June 16 by a vast army of volunteer workers, and every inhabtant of the state will be gwen the opportunity to subscribe, Mrs. Russell said.
 America is giving women the vote: the women must give America an in tclligent vote,' Mrs. Russell said Every thinking person knows that the majority of new voters will be { without experience and training in 1 political and civic thinking, and that { the state, for it's own welfare, must l take some action to prepare these vot- 1 CTS to be competent citizens.
 There will be more than 350,00, , and probably nearly 100000 women
 voters in this state, and in the inter- 1 val before the coming of full enfran- ! rh 1 organization should see to it that these 1 women are given unbiased training ] and information that will help them ] to decide ntelligently as to their party ] alignment and as to their civic duties 1 and responsibilities.
 ] Two extremes must be guarded
 aealnst-comDlete, and therefore fu- l tile, Independence and complete 1 party docility. Thirty-eig fight per cent l of the women of Connecticut are of 1 native parentage, "A per cent. are of l foreign or mixed parentage, and 3S
 per cent. are foreign born.
 The world war has linked us so
 closely with the lands across the seas that the good and bad come to us
 swiftly. The forces that are playing | on the hearts and minds of the peoples
 of Europe make it vitally important that a knowledge of the principles and orderly processes by which good | government IS maintained should be l taught to our coming voters.
 AS this work of training our won1-
 en must be done by somebody it is l only a question of finding who can do
 it most effectively and economically l The efficient executive who is con- | frOnted with task looks for those l best qualified and most capable to do l the work.
 l "Tt seems to me and to others who ! have come into this movement that 1 the Connecticut Woman Suffrage as
 sociation is the best qualified It has l ready at hand the necessary machin- 1 cry and the organization. It Is thor l oughly organized throughout the 1 state, is in close touch with the wom- 1 on and it's experience peculiarly fits ! it for the task of carrying the mes | sage of good citizenship and good 1 government to our women. It's meth
 ods have always been constructive and orderly
 l Above all. the women of this or 1 ganization have long devoted their ! their and energies in behalf of suf- | fragc, and it Is certainly now their
 duty and responsibility to help in ere | ] of the new voters.
 "l would like to make it clear that this is not solely d womarS move- 1 ment. The men of the state are alive
 to the necessity for this citizenship
 work, and we expect as much, if not | moro, support from them as from the ! WOmen
 "Everybody will be given the op-
 portunity to subscribe 10 the fund.- and am sure that every citizen who ls | alive to the need of the state and na- ! ton for good citizenship will want TO l help.
 ''The war revealed the fact that an ! appalling proportion of the electorate 1 is illiterate and when full suffrage i comes Connecticut must be prepared 1 We do not want a quantity increase ! merely. We must have a quality in 1 crease.
 l "Citizenshp committees are being l organized all over the country for the
 men, and various plans arc being put
 into effect The need for this work