The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-01-28
NE WIS ABOUT
 THE SUFFRACISTS
BY ANNIE G. PORRITT.
Press Chairman of the Conencticut Branch, National Woman's Party


 Branch, National Woman's Party.
 The news that Senator Jones has announced that the Suffrage amend ment must now be indefinitely post poned, because the final vote in the Senate Is still lacking, has stirred Suffragists to the soul. This an- Eouncement means that in the next Congress the women will have to begin all over again to get the Suf- frage amendment through. It means that they will again have to tackle the House of Representatives that they will have to present their case to the Suffrage committee of tha House and to the rules committee to get rule for the consideration Of the amendment. It means that all the long work of lobbying will have to be repeated, for although there is a majority-a more thar two-thirds majority-or the Repre- sentatives pledged to women Suf- frage by Federal amendment the women have been too often cheated and deceived by men legislators to trust them to keep their word or guard the interests of the women, there on the spot to keep them up to the mark.
 Start Again in Senate.
 The news means also that the work with the Senate will have to foe commenced. It means that the majority will once more have to be carefully built up one by one until the full two-thirds is reached It means that the splendid oppor- tunity for ratification that is offered | just now through the fact that fl Legislatures are in session or just about to convene will be lost, and 1 1920 and 1921 will have to pass be- | fore the long promised boon of po- | litical freedom Is given to American women.
 It means more than this. It mean. | that the women of every civilized nation on earth will receive theil enfranchisement before the womer | of this country. It means tha | American men are setting a brant | on the foreheads of every one O their women - branding them a unfit for liberty. It means tha | American men are offering to thei | women the greatest insult tha could well be inflicted on them, ant this at a time when fulsome flatter, | is in their mouths, as a result O | the immense amount of work am sacrifice that they have been called | upon to offer to their country dur ing the recent war.
 "WiIlfuI 33.''
 The responsibility for this insul | and for this deep abiding injur l to American women rests prmar fly, of course, on the B men in th' United States Senate who are re fusing to give their support to tht Suffrage amendment. But these me, are not alone responsible. In fact they are only a little more responsi ble than the rest of the men O l America. Here and there we cal find man who has really done hi utmost for woman Suffrage who ha given himself to the cause, as me, gave themselves to the cause of tn enslaved negro, or as men hav given themselves repeatedly to tn, cause of liberty for men. But hoy few there are of such men!
 There are thousands, tens O thousands, hundreds of thousands even millions of men who acknowI edge that woman Suffrage is just but the men who have made of it life cause, to be struggled for witt their whole strength, with the sac l Iv-ifi and even of life itself are few in deed. One may say with truth tha woman Suffrage is the one cause - the one great moral issue whicl has left men in general lukewarm for which few men have reall struggled, ond none have died. l seems as if the imagination of me- cannot be touched by a wrong tha affects women, although they ma be quick and alert to take up tn cause of men of any class or an color.
 The hardship of this for the wo men is the greater because it men against whom they must strug gle. They have to fight men, arme with full constitutional rights an with the political power, while the themselves are unarmed and pow erless And the men who say tha they believe in Woman Suffrage look calmly on, watch the wome agonizing for their freedom. an patronizingly tell them that tn Suffrage cause is progressing yer we'll and that they ought to be pa tient. It is as though American looked on without emotion whil men were striking their wives an daughters and took no step to hel the women against their oppressors
 There seems to be a sort of su perstition that this Is a woman fight and that men need not cor cern themselves about it. Tn might be all right if it were a figf oL women against women on party of women ranged up again: 1 another party of women. Then tn men might stand aside and leav the women to fight their own bal tie. But the struggle Is nothing ( the kind It is a fight of wome against men, and the men are fort fled in the strongest possible pos ton, with every advantage of wear , ons and battlements while the wc men are exposed. weaponless an , feeble.
 "Glorious Victory
 Is it not a glorious victory for tt , anu-suffrage men to secure tt , postponement of the Suffrag amendment? They are able $ throw upon the women, who hay . fought so hard and for so mar |,