第15章

thonydiedin1906，fourAmericanstateshadgrantedsuffragetowoman。AtthetimeIwrite——1914——theresultoftheAmericanwomen’sworkforsuffragemaybebrieflytabulatedthus：

SUFFRAGESTATUS

FULLSUFFRAGEFORWOMEN

NumberofStateYearWonElectoralVotesWyoming18693

Colorado18936

Idaho18964

Utah18964

Washington19107

California191113

Arizona19123

Kansas191210

Oregon19125

Alaska1913——

Nevada19143

Montana19144

PRESIDENTIALANDMUNICIPALSUFFRAGEFORWOMEN

NumberofStateYearWonElectoralVotesIllinois191329

STATESWHEREAMENDMENTHASPASSEDONELEGISLATUREAND

MUSTPASSANOTHER

NumberGoestoofElec—

StateHouseSenateVoterstoralVotesIowa81—2631—15191613

Massachusetts169—3934—2191518

NewJersey49—415—3191514

NewYork125—540—2191545

NorthDakota77—2931—1919165

Pennsylvania131—7026—22191538

Totabulatethewonderfulworkdonebytheconventionsandcouncilsisnotpossible，butacon—

secutivelistofthemeetingswouldrunlikethis：

FirstNationalConvention，Washington，D。C。，1887。

FirstInternationalCouncilofWomen，Washington，D。C。，1888。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1889。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1890。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1891。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1892。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1893。

InternationalCouncil，Chicago，1893。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1894。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Atlanta，Ga。，1895。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1896。

NationalSuffrageConvention，DesMoines，Iowa，1897。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1898。

NationalSuffrageConvention，GrandRapids，Mich。，1899。

InternationalCouncil，London，England，1899。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1900。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Minneapolis，Minn。，1901。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1902。

NationalSuffrageConvention，NewOrleans，La。，1903。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1904。

InternationalCouncilofWomen，Berlin，Germany，1904。

FormationofIntern’lSuffrageAlliance，Berlin，Germany，1904。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Portland，Oregon，1905。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Baltimore，Md。，1906。

InternationalSuffrageAlliance，Copenhagen，Denmark，1906。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Chicago，III。，1907。

InternationalSuffrageAlliance，Amsterdam，Holland，1908。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Buffalo，N。Y。，1908。

NewYorkHeadquartersestablished，1909。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Seattle，Wash。，1909。

InternationalSuffrageAlliance，London，England，1909。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。，1910。

InternationalCouncil，Genoa，Italy，1911。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Louisville，Ky。，1911。

InternationalSuffrageAlliance，Stockholm，Sweden，1911。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Philadelphia，Pa。，1912。

InternationalCouncil，TheHague，Holland，1913

NationalSuffrageConvention，Washington，D。C。；1913。

InternationalSuffrageAlliance，Budapest，Hungary，1913。

NationalSuffrageConvention，Nashville，Tenn。，1914。

InternationalCouncil，Rome，Italy，1914。

Thewinningofthesuffragestates，theworkinthestatesnotyetwon，theconventions，gatherings，andinternationalcouncilsinwhichwomenofeverynationhavecometogether，haveallcombinedtomakethisquarterofacenturythemostbrilliantperiodforwomeninthehistoryoftheworld。I

havesetforththerecordbaldlyandwithoutcom—

ment，becausethebarefactsarefarmoreeloquentthanwords。Itmustnotbeforgotten，too，thatthesegreatachievementsoftheprogressivewomenofto—dayhavebeenaccomplishedagainsttheopposi—

tionofalargenumberoftheirownsex——who，whiletheyareoutintheworld’sarenafightingagainstprogressfortheirsisters，stillshattertheear—drumwiththeirincongruouswar—cry，``Woman’splaceisinthehome！’’

OfourSouthDakotacampaignin1890therere—

mainsonlyoneincidentwhichshouldhaveaplacehere：WewereattendingtheRepublicanstatenominatingconventionatMitchell——MissAnthony，Mrs。Catt，otherleaders，andmyself——havingbeentoldthatitwouldbeatoncethelargestandthemostinterestinggatheringeverheldinthestateasitprovedtobe。Alltheleadingpoliticiansofthestatewerethere，andinthewakeofthewhitemenhadcometribesofIndianswiththeircampoutfits，theirwivesandtheirchildren——thegroupsformingapicturesquecircleoftentsandtepeesaroundthetown。Itwasagreatoccasionforthem，anIndianpowwow，forbythelawallIndianswhohadlandsinseveraltyweretobepermittedtovotethefol—

lowingyear。Theywerepresent，therefore，tostudythewaysofthewhiteman，andanedifyingexhibitionofthesewaspromptlyofferedthem。

ThecrowdwassogreatthatitwasonlythroughthecourtesyofMajorPickler，amemberofCon—

gressandadevotedbelieverinsuffrage，thatMissAnthony，Mrs。Catt，andtherestofuswereabletosecurepassestotheconvention，andwhenwereachedthehallwewereescortedtothelastrowofseatsonthecrowdedplatform。Asthespacebe—

tweenusandthespeakerswasfilledbyrowsuponrowsofmen，aswellasbythebandandtheirin—

struments，wecouldseeverylittlethattookplace。

Someofourfriendspointedoutthisconditiontothelocalcommitteeandaskedthatwebegivenseatsonthefloor，butreceivedthereplythattherewas``absolutelynoroomonthefloorexceptfordele—

gatesanddistinguishedvisitors。’’OurpersistentfriendsthensuggestedthatatleastafrontseatshouldbegiventoMissAnthony，whocertainlycameundertheheadofa``distinguishedvisitor’’；

butthiswasnotdone——probablybecausealargenumberofthebestseatswerefilledbyRussianla—

borerswearingbadgesinscribed``AgainstWomanSuffrageandSusanB。Anthony。’’Weremained，perforce，inourrearseats，findingsuchinterestaswecouldinthebackviewofhundredsofheads。

JustbeforetheconventionwascalledtoorderitwasannouncedthatadelegationofinfluentialIn—

dianswaswaitingoutside，andamotiontoinvitetheredmenintothehallwasmadeandcarriedwithgreatenthusiasm。Acommitteeofleadingcitizenswasappointedtoactasescort，andthesegentlemenfiledout，returningafewmomentslaterwithapartyofIndianwarriorsinfullwarregalia，eventotheirgayblankets，theirfeatheredhead—dresses，andtheirpaint。Whentheyappearedthebandstruckupastirringmarchofwelcome，andtheen—

tireaudiencecheeredwhiletheIndians，flankedbytheadmiringcommittee，stalkedsolemnlydowntheaisleandweregivenseatsofhonordirectlyinfrontoftheplatform。

Allwecouldseeofthemwerethebrilliantfeathersoftheirwar—bonnets，butwegotthefulleffectoftheirreceptioninthemusicandthecheers。IdarednotlookatMissAnthonyduringthisremarkablescene，andshe，craninghervenerablenecktogetaglimpseoftheincidentfromherobscurecorner，madenocommenttome；butIknewwhatshewasthinking。ThefollowingyeartheseIndianswouldhavevotes。Courtesy，therefore，mustbeshownthem。Butthewomendidnotmatter，thepoliti—

ciansreasoned，foreveniftheywereenfranchisedtheywouldneversupporttheelementrepresentedatthatconvention。Itwasnotsurprisingthat，notwithstandingourhardwork，wedidnotwinthestate，thoughalltheconditionshadseemedmostfavorable；forthestatewasnew，themenandwomenwereworkingsidebysideinthefields，andtherewasdiscontentintheranksofthepoliticalparties。

Aftertheelection，whenweanalyzedthevotecountybycounty，wediscoveredthatineverycountywhoseresidentswereprincipallyAmericanstheamendmentwascarried，whereasinallcountiespopulatedlargelybyforeignersitwaslost。Incer—

taincounties——thoseinhabitedbyRussianJews——

thevotewasalmostsolidlyagainstus，andthisnot—

withstandingthefactthatthewivesoftheseRus—

sianvotersweredoingaman’sworkontheirfarmsinadditiontotheusualwomen’sworkintheirhomes。ThefactthatourCausecouldbedefeatedbyignorantlaborersnewlycometoourcountrywasahumiliatingonetoaccept；andwerealizedmoreforciblythaneverbeforethedifficultyofthetaskwehadassumed——ataskfarbeyondanyeverunder—

takenbyabodyofmeninthehistoryofdemocraticgovernmentthroughouttheworld。WenotonlyhadtobringAmericanmenbacktoabeliefinthefundamentalprinciplesofrepublicangovernment，butwehadalsotoeducateignorantimmigrants，aswellasourownIndians，whosedegreeofciviliza—

tionwasindicatedbytheirwar—paintandtheflauntingfeathersoftheirhead—dresses。

TheKansascampaign，whichMissAnthony，Mrs。

Catt，Mrs。Johns，andIconductedin1894，heldaspecialinterest，duetothePopulistmovement。

Thereweresomanyproblemsbeforethepeople——

prohibition，freesilver，andthePopulistpropaganda——thatwefoundourselvesinvolvedinthebitterestcampaigneverfoughtoutinthestate。Ourdesire，ofcourse，wastogettheindorsementofthediffer—

entpoliticalpartiesandreligiousbodies，Wesuc—

ceededinobtainingthatofthreeoutoffouroftheMethodistEpiscopalconferences——theCongrega—

tional，theEpworthLeague，andtheChristianEn—

deavorLeague——aswellasthatoftheStateTeachers’

Association，theWoman’sChristianTemperanceUnion，andvariousotherreligiousandphilanthropicsocieties。Toobtaintheindorsementofthepolit—

icalpartieswasmuchmoredifficult，andwewerefacingconditionsinwhichpartialsuccesswasworsethancompletefailure。Ithadlongbeenanun—

writtenlawbeforeitbecameawrittenlawinourNationalAssociationthatwemustnottakepartisanactionorlineupwithanyonepoliticalparty。Itwashighlyimportant，therefore，thateitherallpartiesshouldsupportusorthatnoneshould。

ThePopulistconventionwasheldinTopekabe—

foreeithertheDemocraticorRepublicanconvention，andaftertwodaysofvigorousfighting，ledbyMrs。

AnnaDiggsandotherprominentPopulistwomen，asuffrageplankwasaddedtotheplatform。ThePopulistpartyinvitedme，asaminister，toopentheconventionwithprayer。Thiswasaninnova—

tion，andservedasawedgefortheadmissionofwomenrepresentativesoftheSuffrageAssociationtoaddresstheconvention。Wealldidso，MissAnthonyspeakingfirst，Mrs。Cattsecond，andI

last；afterwhich，forthefirsttimeinhistory，theDoxologywassungatapoliticalconvention。

AttheDemocraticconventionwemadethesameappeal，andwererefused。Insteadofindorsingus，theDemocratsputananti—suffrageplankintheirplatform——butthis，asthepartyhadlittlestandinginKansas，probablydidusmoregoodthanharm。

Troublecamethickandfast，however，whentheRepublicans，thedominantpartyinthestate，heldtheirconvention；andamightystrugglebeganovertheadmissionofasuffrageplank。TherewasaWoman’sRepublicanClubinKansas，whichhelditsconventioninTopekaatthesametimetheRepublicanswereholdingtheirs。TherewasalsoaMrs。JudithEllenFoster，who，bystirringupop—

positioninthisRepublicanClubagainstthein—

sertionofasuffrageplank，causedaserioussplitintheconvention。MissAnthony，Mrs。Catt，andI，ofcourse，urgedtheRepublicanwomentostandbytheirsex，andtogivetheirsupporttotheRepubli—

cansonlyonconditionthatthelatteraddedsuffragetotheirplatform。Atnotime，andinnofieldofwork，haveIeverseenamorebitterconflictinprog—

ressthanthatwhichragedfortwodaysduringthisRepublicanwomen’sconvention。Liquor—dealers，joint—keepers，``boot—leggers，’’andallthelawlesselementofKansasswungintolineataspecialcon—

ventionheldundertheauspicesoftheLiquorLeagueofKansasCity，andcasttheirunitedweightagainstsuffragebythreateningtodenytheirvotestoanycandidateorpoliticalpartyfavoringourCause。TheRepublicanwomen’sconventionfinallyadjournedwithnothingaccomplishedexceptthepassingofaresolutionmildlyrequestingtheRe—

publicanpartytoindorsewomansuffrage。Theresultwas，ofcourse，thatitwasnotindorsedbytheRepublicanconvention，andthatitwasdefeatedatthefollowingelection。

ItwasatthetimeofthesecampaignsthatIwaselectedVice—PresidentoftheNationalAssociationandLectureratLarge，andthelatterofficebroughtinitstrainaglitteringvarietyofexperiences。Ononeoccasionanepisodeoccurredwhich``AuntSusan’’neverafterwardweariedofdescribing。

TherewasawrecksomewhereontheroadonwhichIwastotraveltomeetalectureengagement，andthetrainsgoingmywaywerenotrunning。Look—

ingupthetrack，however，Isawatraincomingfromtheoppositedirection。Iatoncegraspedmyhand—luggageandstartedforit。

``Wait！Wait！’’criedMissAnthony。``Thattrain’sgoingthewrongway！’’

``Atleastit’sgoingSOMEWHERE！’’Ireplied，tersely，asthetrainstopped，andIclimbedthesteps。

Lookingbackwhenthetrainhadstartedagain，Isaw``AuntSusan’’standinginthesamespotontheplatformandstaringafteritwithincredulouseyes；butIwasright，forIdiscoveredthatbygoingupintoanotherstateIcouldgetatrainwhichwouldtakemetomydestinationintimeforthelecturethatnight。Itwasafineillustrationofmypettheorythatifoneintendstogetsomewhereitisbettertostart，eveninthewrongdirection，thantostandstill。

Againandagaininourworkwehadoccasiontomarvelovermen’slackofunderstandingoftheviewsofwomen，evenofthosenearestanddearesttothem；andwehadanespeciallystrikingillustra—

tionofthisatoneofourhearingsinWashington。

Acertaindistinguishedgentleman（wewillcallhimMr。H————）waschairmanoftheJudiciary，andafterwehadsaidwhatwewishedtosay，heremarked：

``Yourargumentsarelogical。Yourcauseisjust。

Thetroubleisthatwomendon’twantsuffrage。

Mywifedoesn’twantit。Idon’tknowasinglewomanwhodoeswantit。’’

Asithappenedforthisunfortunategentleman，hiswifewaspresentatthehearingandsittingbesideMissAnthony。Shelistenedtohiswordswithsur—

prise，andthenwhisperedto``AuntSusan’’：

``HowCANhesaythat？_I_wantsuffrage，andI’vetoldhimsoahundredtimesinthelasttwentyyears。’’

``TellhimagainNOW，’’urgedMissAnthony。

``Here’syourchancetoimpressitonhismemory。’’

``Here！’’gaspedthewife。``Oh，Iwouldn’tdare。’’

``ThenmayItellhim？’’

``Why——yes！Hecanthinkwhathepleases，buthehasnorighttopubliclymisrepresentme。’’

Theassent，hesitatinglybegun，finishedonasud—

dennoteoffirmness。MissAnthonystoodup。

``ItmayinterestMr。H————，’’shesaid，``toknowthathiswifeDOESwishtovote，andthatfortwentyyearsshehaswishedtovote，andhasoftentoldhimso，thoughhehasevidentlyforgottenit。Sheisherebesideme，andhasjustmadethisexplana—

tion。’’

Mr。H————stammeredandhesitated，andfinallydecidedtolaugh。Buttherewasnomirthinthesoundhemade，andIamafraidhiswifehadabadquarterofanhourwhentheymetalittlelaterintheprivacyoftheirhome。

Amongotherdutiesthatfelltomylotatthisperiodwerenumeroussuffragedebateswithpromi—

nentopponentsoftheCause。Ihavealreadyre—

ferredtothedebateinKansaswithSenatorIngalls。

EqualingthisinimportancewasaboutwithDr。

Buckley，thedistinguishedMethodistdebater，whichhadbeenarrangedforusatChautauquabyBishopVincentoftheMethodistChurch。Thebishopwasnotabelieverinsuffrage，norwasheoneofmyadmirers。Ihadoncearousedhisirebyreplyingtoasermonhehaddeliveredon``God’sWomen，’’

andbyproving，tomyownsatisfactionatleast，thatthewomenhethoughtwereGod’swomenhaddoneverylittle，whereastheworkoftheworldhadbeendonebythosehebelievedwerenot``God’sWomen。’’Therewasconsiderableinterest，there—

fore，intheBuckley—Shawdebatehehadarranged；

weallknewheexpectedDr。Buckleytowipeoutthatoldscore，andIwasdeterminedtomakeitasdifficultaspossibleforthedistinguishedgentlemantodoso。Weheldthedebateontwosucceedingdays，IspeakingoneafternoonandDr。Buckleyreplyingthefollowingday。OntheeveningbeforeIspoke，however，Dr。Buckleymadeanindiscreetremark，which，blownaboutChautauquaonthelightbreezeofgossip，wasgenerallyregardedasbothunchivalrousandunfair。

Asthehallinwhichweweretospeakwasenor—

mous，hedeclaredthatoneoftwothingswouldcer—

tainlyhappen。EitherIwouldscreaminordertobeheardbymygreataudience，orIwouldbeun—

abletomakemyselfheardatall。IfIscreameditwouldbeapowerfulargumentagainstwomenaspublicspeakers；ifIcouldnotbeheard，itwouldbeanevenbetterargument。Ineithercase，hesum—

medup，Iwasdoomedtofailure。Followingoutthistheory，hepostedmenintheextremerearofthegreathallonthedayofmylecture，toreporttohimwhethermywordsreachedthem，whilehehim—

selfgraciouslyoccupiedafrontseat。BishopVin—

cent’santagonisticfeelingwassostrong，however，thatthough，asthepresidingofficeroftheoccasion，heintroducedmetotheaudience，hedidnotwaittohearmyspeech，butimmediatelyleftthehall——

andthislittleslightaddedtothepublic’sinterestinthedebate。Itwasfeltthatthetwogentlemenwerenotquite``playingfair，’’andthechampionsoftheCausewereespeciallyenthusiasticintheireffortstomakeupforthesefailuresincourtesy。

Myfriendsturnedoutinforcetohearthelecture，andonthebreastofeveryoneofthemflamedtheyellowbowthatstoodforsuffrage，givingtothevasthallsomethingoftheeffectofafieldofyellowtulipsinfullbloom。

WhenDr。Buckleyrosetoreplythenextdaythesefriendswereagainawaitinghimwithanequal—

lyjocunddisplayofthesuffragecolor，andthisdidnotaddtohisserenity。Duringhisremarkshemadetheseriousmistakeoflosinghistemper；and，unfortunatelyforhim，hedirectedhiswrathtowardaveryoldmanwhohadthoughtlesslyapplaudedbypoundingonthefloorwithhiscanewhenDr。

BuckleyquotedapointIhadmade。Thedoctorleanedforwardandshookhisfistathim。

``Thinkshe’sright，doyou？’’heasked。

``Yes，’’admittedthevenerablecitizen，briskly，thoughalittlestartledbythemanneroftheques—

tion。

``Oldman，’’shoutedDr。Buckley，``I’llmakeyoutakethatbackifyou’vegotagrainofsenseinyourhead！’’

Theinsultcosthimhisaudience。Whenherealizedthishelostallhisself—possession，and，astheBuffaloCourierputitthenextday，``wentupanddowntheplatformravinglikeaBillingsgatefishwife。’’Helostthedebate，andthesupplyofyellowribbonleftinthesurroundingcountieswaspurchasedthatnighttobeusedinthesuffragecelebrationthatfollowed。Myfriendsstillrefertotheoccasionas``thedaywewipeduptheearthwithDr。Buckley’’；butIdonotdeservetheim—

pliedtribute，forDr。Buckleywouldhavelosthiscasewithoutawordfromme。Whatreallygavemesomesatisfaction，however，wastherespectivedegreeoffreshnesswithwhichheandIemergedfromourcombat。AftermyspeechMissAnthonyandIweregivenareception，andstoodforhoursshakinghandswithhundredsofmenandwomen。

Laterintheeveningwehadadinnerandanotherreception，which，lasting，astheydid，untilmidnight，keptusfromourrepose。Dr。Buckley，poorgentle—

man，hadtobetakentohishotelimmediatelyafterhisspeech，givenahotbath，rubbeddown，andputtenderlytobed；andnoteventhesympatheticheartofSusanB。Anthonyyearnedoverhimwhensheheardofhisexhaustion。

ItwasalsoatChautauqua，bytheway，thoughanumberofyearsearlier，thatIhadmymuchmis—

quotedencounterwiththeministerwhodeploredthefashionIfollowedinthosedaysofwearingmyhairshort。Thisyoungman，whowasratherapompousperson，sawfittotakemetotaskatatablewhereanumberofuswerediningtogether。

``MissShaw，’’hesaid，abruptly，``Ihavebeenaskedveryoftenwhyyouwearyourhairshort，andIhavenotbeenabletoexplain。Ofcourse’’——

thiskindly——’’Iknowthereissomegoodreason。I

venturedtoadvancethetheorythatyouhavebeenillandthatyourhairhasfallenout。Isthatit？’’

``No，’’Itoldhim。``Thereisareason，asyousuggest。Butitisnotthatone。’’

``Thenwhy——’’heinsisted。

``Iamrathersensitiveaboutit，’’Iexplained。

``Idon’tknowthatIcaretodiscussthesubject。’’

Theyoungministerlookedpained。``Butamongfriends——’’heprotested。

``True，’’Iconceded。``Well，then，amongfriends，Iwilladmitfranklythatitisabirthmark。Iwasbornwithshorthair。’’

Thatwasthelasttimemyshorthairwascriticizedinmypresence，buttheyoungministerwasrightinhisdisapprovalandIwaswrong，asIsubsequentlyrealized。AfewyearslaterIletmyhairgrowlong，forIhadlearnedthatnowomaninpubliclifecanaffordtomakeherselfconspicuousbyanyeccen—

tricityofdressorappearance。Ifshedoessoshesuffersforitherself，whichmaynotdisturbher，andtoagreaterorlessdegreesheinjuresthecausesherepresents，whichshoulddisturbherverymuch。