The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1922-05-24

me to head my article with such a
sweeping title as the above, but since
have returned from Columbia, the
women and the part they played in
the convention has been the question
most frequently asked of me.
! We'll, WELL" say my, good friends.
Back from Columbian" "How's the
convention?'
| Fine as fiddle" say |.
Whats up?"
yeah, l know. But the women
Farm bloc was up too
| On sure! But tell me. How did the
women behave?"
The women! SO THAT was it! PEOPLE
wanted to know just about our new
citizens, whether they overran the
convention, whether they kept silent
as admonishcd by the good Saint Paul,
whether they had bobbed hair and sur
reptlt!ously indulged in chewing gum
or sat pcering behind scholarly spec
taclcs and talked of the unknown
quantity in politics. The soldiers
bonus and the farm bloc were inter
estlng, but could wat-the women
now! Whereupon my enquirer and I
| usually sat ourselves down then and
there and talked about this new fem
mine element which has come silently
but surely in the political life of orr
state and nation.
But let me start at the beginning
| When the announcement came from
the county convention that l had been
selected delegate for the state con-
vention my mind flew back to the eX
pressed wish of my mother that she
might some day participate in the
politlcs OF her state. Aunt Kate"
how she would have arisen to days
like these! She was the first suffra.
lSist ever knew and the finest. Her
home and personal life was a direct
contradiction to all the pitfalls pre-
dlcted by those not in sympathy with
the participation Of women in public
Ire and had she been living today She
would have had my place at the con-
|
could ever hooe to do. It. therefore,
seemed to me, as I'VE set our faces to-
ward Columbia on Tuesday morning.
that unseen delegates-my mother and
all the other women who dared to
Dack women suffrage in it's unpopular
ity, sat beside us, delegates represen
tative Of the honesty, of the earnest
ness and purity of purpose that women
everywhere are bringing with them
INTO their new duties Of suffrage. Two
other women, representing the fine
type Of womanhood of Laurens county.
Mrs. II. l.. Gray and Mrs. Alvin Curry,
OF Gray Court, and our genial repre-
sentative Mr. Carol Nance, Of Cross
Hill, our automobile host, and a fine
one, made up the party.
1t was the complaint of the women
, or one delegation, that their men had
done all in their power to make them
uncomfortable, and it was with great
complacency that I comforted her and
invited her to move up to Laurens
county where the men gave us square
deals! Mr.. Nance did everything in
his power, as did our other delegates,
iDr. Douglas, Dr.. Miller and Gov. Coo
per, to make our debut into politics
| easy, even going tho second mile to
see that the two committee places of
this county were given to women, the
places on the rules committee going to
Miss Kate " Wofford, and the one on
platform to Miss VIII Lou Gray.
The opening hour of the convention,
to the surprise of everyone, including
the weather man, broke bright and
clear, happy omen Of the good demo-
cratic fellowship to follow. Arriving
at the capitol and the convention hall,
I found it already comfortably full,
and the air buzzing with the pleasant
hum of political bees in the different
bonnets scattered over the hail. Pla-
| cards with the names Of the different
counties studded the hall and under
meath these placards sat the delegates
the men and the women! Thirty
| five Of the latter, and not a bobbed
head Of hair among them! Intelligent
looking, intelligent thinking, and in
telligent talking, they were marked,
though candor makes me confess that
comparatively little talking was done
by the women, which may or may not
+, give you, dear reader, food for thought!
z; The attitude Of the women OF the con-
lvention was one of frankly wanting
to learn, of our open announcement OF