The labor standard., 1919-06-01
THE MARTIAL ADVENTURES OF THE
 PRESIDENTIAL SUFFRAGE BILL

before. More women were able to be present, more signatures had been
 secured and plans for transporting the signatures to the Capitol had been perfected.
 The signatures were mounted
 one hundred large white cardboards bound around by gay votes-for- women canvass strips. Early in the afternoon, a long procession of women, each woman carrying pla- card bearing names from her locality quietly marched from suffrage head quarters in Hartford to the State Capitol where the signatures were presented to the Woman Suffrage 1 Committee. Each county delegation was lead by it's county chairman. The method of presenting the signatures was an impressive one and received much favorable comment from press and individuals. 1 In order to follow the winding trail of the presidential bill it is necessary to point out to you other suffrage complications in the legislature. There was before the legislature this year, state suffrage amendment, referring the question to the men voters-to the people, our opponents say-which had been passed by the 1917 legislature and was awaiting action from second legislature. It was frankly the purpose of the opposition, whose chief is the leader of the Republican state machine, to secure action upon the referendum men who felt it their duty to vote for some form of suffrage, from voting for the presidential bill.
 Consequently, when for the first time in the history of Connecticut the Woman Suffrage Committee made a favorable majority report to the sen ate on a suffrage bill, the opposition began to bestir itself actively.
 l After the bill had been reported several days, senators who were inter ested in suffrage inquired why the bill did not appear on the calendar. In- vestigation at first brought out the statement that no one knew where that bill was! Finally, someone -chanced to recall that the House Chairman of the Woman Suffrage Committee, for some remarkable req son, had taken the bill home with him.
 The chairman had become i'll while he was at home with the bill, there fore, neither he nor the bill appeared for over week. Plans had just been made to descend upon his home and extricate the bill which the gentleman returned to the legislature. For a time his arrival did not seem to clarify matters for he maintained that the bill was with the Senate Chair man, who averred that he had not seen it. Suddenly in the midst of the discussion, the bill appeared in the senate, and Senator Dennis M. Clyne, Senate Chairman of the Committee, was able to place it with a favorable report, in the hands of the senate clerk, where it belonged.
 After several days delay for the formality of printing, the bill was finally starred for action on the calen- dar for Tuesday, April 18th. A large number of women came to the Capitol in order to know immediately the re- suit of the vote but once more the action was postponed: This time vote be deferred by senatorial cour- The senate then agreed to make the bill the order of the day for Wednes- day, April 23rd.
 On the eventful Wednesday,, sixteen senators voted for and nineteen voted against suffrage. Four of the eleven Democrats voted "no" in spite of the fact that the Democratic leaders in- terpreted the plank in their state plat form to cover presidential along with all other forms of suffrage. Homer s. Cummings, Chairman of the Demo- cratic National Committee, also tele- graphed several senators urging them to vote in favor of the bill.
 Following the unfavorable vote in the senate, suffragists met at their headquarters in Hartford, and instead of recognizing any setback, pledged $1 ,OOO in addition to the amount already raised at their state conven- tion last Fall for suffrage work. Rising votes of thanks were also taken for Senators Dennis M. Clyne, of New Haven, John B. Dillon of Shelton, and Charles c. Hemenway of Hartford, for their faithful work in attempting to secure the passage of