Volume IV Part 85 (1/2)

In October the American W. S. A. held its national convention in Topeka. Lucy Stone, Henry B. Blackwell, the Rev. Anna Howard Shaw and Mrs. Julia Ward Howe, of Ma.s.sachusetts, and the Hon. William Dudley Foulke and Mrs. Mary E. Haggart, of Indiana, were present. The meeting was of incalculable benefit at this time. For the next few months Mrs.

Gougar, with her strong speeches, was everywhere in demand; Mrs. Saxon was continuously at work; Mrs. Zerelda G. Wallace of Indiana made a number of powerful addresses, and the whole State was aroused in the interest of the bill.

Instead of holding the usual State convention in 1886 it met in Topeka, Jan. 11-13, 1887, when the Legislature was in session, and was largely attended for success seemed near at hand. Mrs. Belva A.

Lockwood of Was.h.i.+ngton, D. C., made an able address. The other speakers were Professor Carruth, the Rev. C. H. Rogers, Mrs. Saxon and Mrs. Colby. Miss Sarah A. Brown, as chairman of the committee, reported a resolution urging the Legislature to confer Munic.i.p.al Suffrage on women, which was unanimously carried, and the most determined purpose to secure its pa.s.sage by the Legislature then in session was manifested. Mrs. Johns was elected president, an office which she held eight consecutive years.

The bill pa.s.sed and became a law February 15. The next annual meeting took place in Newton, Oct. 13-15, 1887, with the usual large attendance.[266] Miss Anthony, Mr. Blackwell, the Rev. Miss Shaw and Rachel G. Foster (Avery) were the speakers from abroad. Two notable events were the appearance of Kansas' first woman mayor, Mrs. M. D.

Salter of Argonia, and the reading of a carefully compiled statement relative to the first vote of women in the towns and cities at the election the preceding April. This paper was the work of Judge Francis G. Adams, for many years secretary of the State Historical Society, and a lifelong friend and helper of woman's enfranchis.e.m.e.nt. It answered conclusively the question whether women would vote if they had an opportunity.

This convention was followed by a very successful series of meetings in many cities to arouse public sentiment in favor of Full Suffrage, under the management of Mrs. Johns and Mrs. Let.i.tia V. Watkins, State organizer, with Miss Anthony, Miss Shaw and Miss Foster as speakers.

Considerable attention was given to the speech recently made by U. S.

Senator John J. Ingalls at Abilene, vigorously opposing woman suffrage.

Mrs. Mary A. Woodbridge of the National, and Mrs. Rastall of the Kansas W. C. T. U., also made an active canva.s.s of the State. These organizations united in a strong appeal to women to be equal to their new responsibilities, which was supplemented by one from the national president, Miss Frances E. Willard.

The State convention met at Emporia, Nov. 13-15, 1888, with Miss Anthony as its most inspiring figure. A notable feature was the address of Mrs. Johns, the president, in which she said:

And this brings me to speak of our att.i.tude toward political parties. Whatever may be the individual preferences of the officers of our State a.s.sociation, _our organization is non-partisan_. I have hitherto regarded it as necessary that it should be strictly non-partisan, just as I have believed that it must remain non-sectarian, so that no one of any faith, political or religious, shall be shut out from our work.... I believe that this att.i.tude toward sects will be necessary to the day of our full enfranchis.e.m.e.nt; but not as it now is will our relations to _party_ remain. The time is not yet ripe perhaps, but the years will not be many to go over our heads before we shall feel the necessity of declaring our allegiance to a party, and it is possible that to this we will be compelled to come before we secure an amendment to the const.i.tution of the State striking out the word ”male.”

A strong speech was made by Secretary Adams, urging that women should do aggressive political work with a view of securing the franchise.

From this time on women were not only welcomed as political allies, but their influence and active partic.i.p.ation were sought in party politics. Many women lent their aid chiefly owing to their belief that they would thus become so valuable as to win party support to their full enfranchis.e.m.e.nt; others were enlisted by reason of their interest and devotion to the issues. Whether for good or ill as it should affect full suffrage, Kansas women thenceforth entered fully into party affiliations, but as individuals and not as representing the suffrage a.s.sociation.

The State convention of 1889 a.s.sembled in Wichita, October 1-3. Miss Anthony was an honored guest and among those who made addresses were Mrs. Colby, Mrs. Mary D. Lowman, mayor of Oskaloosa, and the Hon.

Randolph Hatfield.

At the convention of 1890 in Atchison, November 18-20, Miss Anthony was again present accompanied by Mrs. Carrie Chapman Catt and Mrs.

Colby.

The annual meeting of 1891 was held in Topeka, November 20, 21. During the past year the great political change from Republicanism to Populism had taken place in Kansas. Women had been among the most potent factors in this revolution, and as woman suffrage was at that time a cardinal principle of the Populist party, and there always had been considerable sentiment in favor of it among Republicans, the prospects of obtaining the Full Franchise seemed very bright.

In February and March of 1892 a series of thirty two-days' conventions was held in the congressional districts and in nearly one-third of the counties of the State, attended by great crowds. Miss Jennie Broderick was chairman of the committee, Mrs. Rachel Foster Avery secretary and treasurer, and Mrs. Martha Powell Davis, Mrs. Martia L. Berry, Mrs.

Diggs and Mrs. Wait were the other members. Mrs. Avery contributed $1,000 toward this canva.s.s. Outside speakers were Miss Florence Balgarnie of England, Mrs. Mary Seymour Howell of New York, Mrs. Clara C. Hoffman of Missouri, and the Rev. Miss Shaw. The State speakers were Mesdames S. A. Thurston, May Belleville Brown, Elizabeth F.

Hopkins, J. Sh.e.l.ly Boyd and Caroline L. Denton. Mrs. Johns arranged all of these conventions, presided one day or more over each and spoke at every one, organizing in person twenty-five of the thirty-one local societies which were formed as a result of these meetings.

The first week in June a two-days' suffrage conference was held at the Ottawa Chautauqua a.s.sembly, with the a.s.sistance of Miss Anthony, president, and Miss Shaw, vice-president-at-large of the National a.s.sociation. From here Miss Anthony went to the State Republican Convention, in session at Topeka, accompanied by Mrs. Johns, Mrs.

Hopkins and Mrs. Brown, officers of the State suffrage society. They were joined by Miss Amanda Way and ”Mother” Bickerd.y.k.e, and by unanimous vote all of these ladies were given seats upon the floor of the convention. Miss Anthony was invited to address the body, conducted to the platform amid ringing cheers and her remarks were cordially received. Later several of the ladies addressed the resolutions committee, and the final result, by 455 yeas, 267 nays, was a plank in the platform unequivocally declaring for the submission of an amendment to the const.i.tution to enfranchise women. A similar plank already had been adopted by the Populist State Convention at Wichita with great enthusiasm.

During the autumn campaign following, Mrs. Diggs and other women spoke from the Populist platform, and Miss Anthony, Mrs. Johns and Mrs. T.

J. Smith from the Republican. Miss Anthony, however, simply called attention to the record of the Republican party in the cause of human freedom, and urged them to complete it by enfranchising women, but did not take up political issues.

The State convention of 1892 was held at Enterprise, December 6-8, and the problem of preserving the non-partisan att.i.tude of the organization so as to appeal with equal force to Republicans and Populists presented itself. With this in view, Mrs. Diggs, a Populist, was made vice-president, as support and counsellor of Mrs. Johns, the president, who was a prominent Republican, and the a.s.sociation, despite the political diversity of its members, was held strictly to a non-partisan basis.

Both Republicans and Populists having declared for the submission of a woman suffrage amendment, the Legislature of 1893 pa.s.sed a bill for this purpose, championed by Representative E. W. Hoch and Senator Householder. From that time forward, Mrs. Johns, Mrs. Diggs and hundreds of Kansas women of both Republican and Populist faith labored with untiring zeal for its success. Nothing was left undone that human wisdom could plan or human effort carry out.

On Sept. 1, 2, 1893, a ma.s.s meeting was held in Kansas City at which Mrs. Chapman Catt ably presented the question. Mrs. Emma Smith DeVoe of Illinois agreed to raise $2,000 in the State. Mrs. Thurston, at the head of the press bureau, announced that hundreds of papers were pledged to support the amendment; the State Teachers' a.s.sociation pa.s.sed a strong resolution for it; the Grand Army of the Republic was in favor; Miss Helen L. Kimber related much success in organizing, and from every county came reports of meetings and debates.

Mrs. Johns, State president, went to the National Suffrage Convention in Was.h.i.+ngton in the winter of 1894 and made a most earnest appeal for a.s.sistance in the way of speakers and funds, both of which were promised by the a.s.sociation. She was appointed chairman of the amendment committee with power to name the members,[267] and they opened up with energy the long campaign of agitation, education and organization. They started enrollment books, appointed polling committees and undertook to put people to work in every one of the 2,100 voting precincts. The National a.s.sociation contributed $2,571 and also a number of speakers. A const.i.tutional amendment campaign was in progress in New York but Miss Anthony made many trips from there to Kansas, and spent months in canva.s.sing the State, donating her services during the entire time.

Work was continued without cessation for the purpose of creating a public sentiment which would be strong enough to compel the delegates to the political State conventions of 1894 to adopt a plank supporting this amendment, just as in 1892 they had adopted one asking for it.

But in 1892 the Populists had swept the State, and in 1894 the Republicans were determined to regain possession of it at all hazards.