Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-08-19


the suffrage amendment to the Consti-
tuition ends struggle which began IN
this country before the colonies declared
their Independence. 1t will eventually
enfranchise 27,0O0,0 900 women.
Woman suffrage first raised its voice
In America i'm MARYLAND in 1647 when
Mistress Margaret Brent, heir of Lord
Calvert, demanded place in the Legs
lature of the colony asa porperty-holder
of wide extent. And in the days of the
Revolution Abigail Adams wrote her
husband, John Adams, at the Continental
Congress, which was framing the laws
of the infant nation, that 'lt-ln the
new laws-particular care and attention
are not paid to the ladies' we are deter
mined TO foment rebellion and will not
hold ourselves bound to obey any laws
in which we have no voice"
FIRST CONVENTION In 1s4S.
Organized work for woman suffrage
began in the United States with the
Womans Rights Convention IN Seneca
Falls, n. Y, in ls4S, which was called
by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady
Stanton, early leaders of Massachusetts,
and New York, in response to the IN
dignation aroused by the refusal to per-
NIT women to take part in the anti
slavery convention of 1910. From the
date of that convention the suffrage
movement in the United States began
the fight that lasted 20 years and ended
with victory Another convention fol-
lowed in 1852 at Syracuse, n. u, at
which delegates from Canada We're pres
ent, and it was there that Susan Is. An
thony assumed leadership OF the cause
TO which she devoted her life.
In 1869 the National Woman Suffrage
An. md
Mrs. Stanton at its head was formed in
New York, and in the same year the
American Woman Suffrage Association
was organised in Cleveland, with Lucy
Stone and Julia Ward Howe as its lead
ers. At first differing widely in policy,
the National Association working to put
a suffrage amendment through the Fed
eral Congress and Its sister organization
bending its efforts to convert the coun-
try State by State, the two associations
later united under the name of the Ma
tional Woman Suffrage Association. The
associations drive for the vote was led
in turn by Mrs. Stanton, Miss Anthony,
DR.. Anna Howard Shaw and Mrs. Car
rie Chapman Gait, the latter of whom
is now its president.
ANTHONY AMENDMENT.
The Nineteenth Amendment, which
bears her name, was drafted by Miss
Anthony in 1875 and was first introduced
in Congress in 1878 by Senator A. A. Sar-
gent, of California, and it is in the same
language that the newprlnciple OF the ma
tional law reads:
Article. Section /. The right 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.
Section 2. Congress shall have power,
by appropriate legislation TO enforce
the provisions of this article"
The amendment holds the record of
being before the country longer than any
other successful amendment to the Con-
stitution. 1t was introduced as the Six
teenth Amendment and has been success
sively the seventeenth, eighteenth and
nineteenth and has been before every
session of Congress since its initial ap-
pearance.
During the first So years after It's in
PRODUCTION into Congress the amendment
made practically no progress, and until
seven years ago it had not been debated
on the floor for 80 years. But the cam
paign for the movement was slowly but
steadily gaining ground in the States.
WYOMING FIRST TO GIVE VOTE.
State after State gradually enfran-
CniSeu ftS women cltizeOs. btIlnnlng with
Wyoming in 1869, by 1919 is States had
given women the right to vote and IA
States had Presidential suffrage previous
to ratification of the amendment
Militancy in the fight for suffrage in
America made its appearance with the
formation of the National Woman s
Party in 1913. On the eve OF President
Wilson's Inauguration 5000 women, led
by Alice Paul, now the chairman of the
party, attempted to march from the
capitol TO the White House They were
harassed by hostile crowd which overran
an unsympathetic police and the capital
Of the United States had its first expert
ence with suffrage riots
Continuing their demonstrations over
period OF seven years, members OF the
Women's Party picketed the White
House with banners In their hands and
served terms in jail for the distrub-
anoes of the peace which grew out of
their parades and blockade of the Ex-
ecutive Mansion During the last few
months before the adoption of the
amendment the militants redobled their
exertions Several demonstrations were
held on the steps Of the Capitol and on
New Years Day, 1919, watch fires were
lighted IN front Of the White House in
which every speech made bv President