Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-02-10

The movement for the adoption of a
Federal amendment enfranchising wom-
en- was crystallized forty,four years
ago when the first draft In It's pres
/ ent form was made by Susan II. An
! thony.
Since the amendment. providing that
THE rights of citizens of the United
States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by
any State on account of sex." was first
introduced in Congress in January, 1878
| BY Senator Sergeant, OF California the
sugrage movement continued to gain
| strength. More than thirty times the
measure has been brought before the
Senate and 1t has been reported a dozen
times.
First Voted Upon In 1887
The amendment was first voted upon
in the senate in 1887, when sixteen
senators voted In its favor and thirty
four rejected It, The next vote taken
| In the Senate was in 1914 when the
vote was thirty-fve years. and thirty
four noys, failing by eleven votes. On
October |, 1918. the Senate again voted
on the resolution. casting fifty-three
votes for and thirty-one against, less
than two-thirds majority.
/ ne rouse III 1919 ue1ealeu lne
amendment, the vote being 204 to ia.
On January 10, 1918, the House passed
the amendment. Pa to 1876. with not n
single vote to spare above the required
two-thirds by the Constitution.
voted In ryYoniai Times
While the woman suffrage movement
took definite form with the drafting OF
the amendment in 1875, the demand of
women for votes in the New World ex-
tends back to the Colonial period. when
voted under several Colonial govern
mcnts
At the time of the American Revolu-
tion, women demanded to be included In
the Government. Abigail Adams wrote
to her husband. John Adams. IF women
are not represented in this new republic,
there will be another revolution"
From the revolution to 1S48 women
agitated for suffrage by meetings, and
circulation of petitions In 1Si8 the
Woman's Rights Convention at Senece
Falls. y. Y. was arranged by Lucretia
Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton as the
first big suffrage demonstration in this
country.
Miss Anthony Becomes Lender
From 1s4S to the Civil War, efforts
were made to have State laws altered to
include women. Susan b. Anthony be-
came leader nthe movement for
political freedom.
During the Civil War in spite of Miss
Anthonys efforts and protests. suf-
fragsts were prevailed upon to CIV,
thtlr work by the promise of men In
congress that when the war was over,
justice would be done them" At the
close of the Civil War Miss Anthonv
rounded woman's magazine called.
The Revolution, in contrast with the
Ladies Books" and "Rosebuds'' OF the
day. For five years suffragsts ATTEMPT
ed to secure an Interpretation of the
fourteenth and fifteenth amendments
mat would permit women to vote.
IN 1917 Miss Anthony made the test
OF voting at the pools. She was ar
rested, refused to pay her fine. but was
never jailed. Her step was the drafting
of the amendment in 1875, which was
introduced in the Senate three years
later.
Won in state Campaigns
Side by side with the effort to secure
Federal action the State campaigns be-
gun in 1S4S were Continued Miss
Anthony always advocated securing suf-
frage by Federal action and protested
against the necessity of laborious State
campaigns. Through the efforts of the
National American Woman Suffrage As
sociation. women have won the right to
vote in some States. The presidents of
the associations have been successfully,
Susan b. Anthony. DR.. Anna Howard
Shaw, and Mrs Carrie Chapman Gait
The Congressional Union was or
ganized in 1913 by Alice Paul to finance
an intensive campaign by the Congress
sional committee of the National Ameri-
can Woman Suffrage Association TO
secure the passage of the Federal
amendment through the political power
of western women. The first Washing
ton parade was held at Wilson's in
auguration. At the opening of the
SiXty-third Congress in April 1918, dele
gates from each of the 435 Congressional
Districts held a mass-meeting in Wash
ington and marched to the Capitol.
Suffrage was Immediately thereafter in
troduced in both Houses
When amendment was reported out in
Senate delegates from forty-eight States
came to Washington. were received by
friendly Senator's and on that day suf-