New-York tribune., 1920-08-18

very door, and even within our gates,
to prevent ratification"
Powerful Lobby Charged
7. X. Riddick, chairman of the COM
mlttee on constitutional amendments,
who presented that Dody's favorable re-
port, also charged that certain subter-
ranean influences more powerful than
all parties were at work to stop
women from voting. "If they do so, no
member can avoid the odum of this
defeat.' he shouted, amid cheers of
the gallery. "If beaten will leave this
hall a dishonored man, ashamed of the
name Of Tennessee and doubly ashamed
of the name of being Tennessee Dem
ocrat. The Senate has vindicated the
name of Tennessee. The same in
fluences were at work on it, in vain.
I'VE have the written pledges of
sixty-two members of this House that
members say a great deal Of violation
of their oaths. What do they say of
violation of their written pledge?" He
served notice on them, as did Hanover,
that these pledges would be published
Speaker Seth Walker directed the
fight for the antis. Every trick of
parliamentary procedure was used by
them. Men and women from through
out the state who were sitting by
members who had been pledged to suf
frage, but who had been worked on by
the anti lobby, were made to leave the
hall. Several of the members there
upon wabbed on the test votes. Walker
made the fight for time he m de the
principal anti speech, and he forced
the motion for adjournment.
D., 0f EorJ;,r o+to,
He made an hours speech before ad-
journment and had the anti gallery
shouting the roof off. In his speech
Senator Warren G. Harding, Solicitor
General Frierson and a Los Angeles
negro women's club. He did not read
all Of Senator Harding's letter, omi5ting
that part which refused to commit the
Senator to pass on the Tennessee con-
stitution, but referred again and again
to the part of the communication which
admitted that the Republican candidate
chad not before known" of the pro-
vision of Tennassee's constitution on
which the conscientious objectors base
their position.
The Frierson letter declared that he
opinion holding that if the Tennessee
Legislature should ratify, that ratih-
cation would be binding" 1t said,
however, that "the question Of the pro-
priety of so doing is an entirely diff
ferent question, and one as to which
| have expressed no opinion"
Speaker Walker then turned to an
examination of the party platforms
and after admitting the present plat
forms committed both parties to rati-
fication, asserted that the Legislature
had been elected on the 1916 PLATFORM
and the 1920 ones did not bind th.m
He quoted from speech made by
President Wilson January 6, 1917
that changes Of this sort (suffrage)
ought to be brought about state by
state
Reads Answer to Wilson
81 am sorry to say that on August
IA. 1920, received q telegram from
the President asking the House to con:
cur in ratifcation,' he shouted. and
read his answer emphasizing the phrase
Surrender of honest convictions for
political expediency."
"Ths is now white mans country
and we have a white mans God" he
said Hell is going to break loose IN
! Georgia if the Nineteenth Amendment
is ratified"
Walker read the letter purporting te
ccme from a Los Angeles negro wom-
ems club asking Tennessee to ratlty
''for us as we'll as our white sisters
Ninety per cent of us vote while Just
% per cent of our white sisters vote
This he denounced as absolutely In
| famous
Immediately after his speech the
an+is tried to force the previous ques-
uo,o,cr h1ocko1 II and SWnnc