The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony Volume II Part 13

[31] Both Senator Vest and Senator Brown had appealed wholly to the emotions in their speeches upon this question, which were overflowing with sentiment and "gush."

[32] This hardly corresponds with Senator Brown's glowing description of the physical strength conferred by the Creator on man so that he could do the voting for the family.

[33] _Yeas_: Blair, Bowen, Cheney, Conger, Cullom, Dolph, Farwell, h.o.a.r, Manderson, Mitch.e.l.l of Oregon, Mitch.e.l.l of Pennsylvania, Palmer, Platt, Sherman, Teller, Wilson of Iowa. _Nays_: Beck, Berry, Blackburn, Brown, Call, c.o.c.krell, c.o.ke, Colquitt, Eustis, Evarts, George, Gray, Hampton, Harris, Hawley, Ingalls, Jones of Nevada, McMillan, McPherson, Mahone, Morgan, Morrill, Payne, Pugh, Saulsbury, Sawyer, Sewell, Spooner, Vance, Vest, Walthall, Whitthorne, Williams, Wilson of Maryland. _Absent_: Aldrich, Allison, Butler, Frye, Gibson, Gorman, Miller, Plumb, Ransom, Camden, Cameron, Chace, Dawes, Edmunds, Fair, Hale, Harrison, Jones of Arkansas, Jones of Florida, Kenna, Maxey, Riddleberger, Sabin, Stanford, Van Wyck, Voorhees.

[34] The skeptical can not but wonder whether the Republican party ever will have the grace and wisdom to justify the confidence which Miss Anthony has steadfastly placed in it, as regards this question, from the day of its birth.

[35] Conventions were held at Evansville, Vincennes, Bloomington, Kokomo, Logansport, Wabash, Lafayette, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Muncie, Anderson, Madison and New Albany. The largest of the series was at Terre Haute, where the opera house, donated by the citizens, was crowded both evenings with an audience representing the culture and intelligence of the city, and the convention was welcomed by the mayor, Jacob C.

Kolsom.

CHAPTER x.x.xV.

UNION OF a.s.sOCIATIONS--INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL.

1888.

A preceding chapter described the forming in 1869 of the American Woman Suffrage a.s.sociation at Cleveland, O., the overtures for union by the National a.s.sociation the next year, and their rejection. No further efforts were made and each body continued to work in its own way. At the annual meeting of the American a.s.sociation in Philadelphia, October 31, 1887, the following resolution from the business committee was unanimously adopted:

WHEREAS, The woman suffragists of the United States were all united until 1868 in the American Equal Rights a.s.sociation; and _whereas_, The causes of the subsequent separation into the National and American Woman Suffrage Societies have since been largely removed by the adoption of common principles and methods; therefore

_Resolved_, That Mrs. Lucy Stone be appointed a committee of one from the American Woman Suffrage a.s.sociation to confer with Miss Susan B. Anthony of the National and, if on conference it seems desirable, that she be authorized and empowered to appoint a committee of this a.s.sociation to meet a similar committee appointed by the National to consider a satisfactory basis of union, and refer it back to the executive committee of both a.s.sociations for final action.

HENRY B. BLACKWELL,

_Corresponding Secretary, A. W. S. A_.

After conferring with the officers of the National a.s.sociation, Miss Anthony informed Mrs. Stone that she would meet her in Philadelphia any time until December 9, and after that in Was.h.i.+ngton. She replied that she was not able to travel even so far as Philadelphia and, after some correspondence, Miss Anthony agreed to go to Boston. On the afternoon of December 21, 1887, accompanied by Rachel Foster, corresponding secretary of the National, she met Mrs. Stone and Alice Stone Blackwell, at No. 3 Park street, Boston, and held an extended conference in regard to the proposed union. Two days later Mrs. Stone sent to Miss Anthony, who was still in that city, the following:

In thinking over the points raised at our informal conference, it seems to me that the substantial outcome is this: The committees appointed by us respectively, if we conclude to appoint them, must each agree upon a common name, a common const.i.tution and a common list of officers for the first year. A subsequent acceptance of these by each a.s.sociation will thereafter const.i.tute the two societies one society. If you think there is a fair probability of coming to an agreement I will proceed to appoint my committee.

As the formal overtures for union have come from the American a.s.sociation, it will be appropriate that our committee should draw up the plan for union which appears to them the most feasible, and forward it to Miss Foster, to be submitted to yours. Then your committee will suggest such modifications as they may think needful; and, if a mutually satisfactory result can be reached, the name, const.i.tution and list of officers will go to the executive committee of each a.s.sociation for final action.

Christmas Day Miss Blackwell sent to Miss Foster a comprehensive plan for a union of the two societies, closing as follows: "Since many members of the National society regard Mrs. Stone as the cause of the division, and many members of the American regard Mrs. Stanton and Miss Anthony as the cause of it, Mrs. Stone suggested that it would greatly promote a harmonious union, for those three ladies to agree in advance that none of them would take the presidency of the united a.s.sociation."

Early in January this formal announcement and letter were sent to Miss Foster:

The committee of the National to sit in counsel with that of the seven appointed by Lucy Stone, of the American, shall be: May Wright Sewall, _Chairman_, Harriette R. Shattuck, Olympia Brown, Helen M. Gougar, Laura M. Johns, Clara B. Colby, Rachel G. Foster, _Secretary_.[36]

I hope all will sink personalities and exalt principles, seeking only the best good for woman's enfranchis.e.m.e.nt, and that surely will come through the union of all the friends of woman suffrage into one great and grand national a.s.sociation which shall enable them to present a solid front to the enemy. This must be based on the principle of a genuine democracy, which shall give to each of its members a voice in all its deliberations, either in person or through representatives chosen by them, and to a const.i.tution thus based I am sure each of my seven chosen ones will contribute her aid. Hoping that a consolidation of all our forces will be the result of this overture from Lucy Stone and her society, I am, very sincerely,

SUSAN B. ANTHONY.

On January 18, Miss Foster received from Miss Blackwell the list of the conference committee appointed by Mrs. Stone: Julia Ward Howe, _Chairman_, Wm. Dudley Foulke, Margaret W. Campbell, Anna H. Shaw, Mary F. Thomas, H. M. Tracy Cutler, Henry B. Blackwell, _Secretary_.

Miss Anthony again wrote Miss Foster: "I can not think of any stipulation I wish to make the basis of union save that we _unite_, and after that discuss all measures and ways and means, officers and newspapers, and cheerfully accept and abide by the rule of the majority.

I do not wish to exact any pledges from Lucy Stone and her adherents, nor can I give any for Mrs. Stanton and her followers. When united we must trust to the good sense of each, just as we have trusted during the existence of the division. As Greeley said about resuming specie payment, '_the way to unite is to unite_' and trust the consequences."

It is not essential for the completeness of this work to reproduce in detail the official proceedings, which extended through two years and caused Miss Anthony often to write, "I shall be glad when this frittering away of time on mere forms is past." A basis of agreement finally was reached, and the union was practically completed at the National Convention which met in Was.h.i.+ngton, January 21, 1889. A committee of thirteen was selected to confer with the committee from the American. This consisted of Miss Anthony and Mesdames Hooker, Minor, Duniway, Johns, Sewall, Perkins, Colby, Spofford, Brown, Blake, Gougar and Foster Avery. The Woman's Tribune thus described the result:

At the business session, January 24, 1889, they reported in substance as follows:

_Name, etc._--The a.s.sociation to be called the National-American W.

S. A. The annual convention to be held at Was.h.i.+ngton.

_Chronology._--The next annual meeting of the joint society to be--as it would be for the National--the twenty-second annual Was.h.i.+ngton convention.

_Work._--To be for National and State legislation protecting women in the exercise of their right to vote.

_Representation._--As provided in the new National const.i.tution.

Where two a.s.sociations exist in one State and will not unite, both are to be accepted as auxiliary societies.

An earnest debate followed. Miss Anthony threw her influence strongly in favor of union and carried many with her, even those who openly expressed themselves that their judgment would be to continue the two societies. The vote was then taken on union, thirty voting for, eleven against.

Miss Alice Stone Blackwell and Rev. Anna H. Shaw were present on behalf of the American a.s.sociation, accepted the deviations from the propositions as presented by that a.s.sociation, and felt reasonably certain that it would endorse their action.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Autograph: "Yours for equal rights, Alice Stone Blackwell."]

No one person contributed so much toward effecting the union of these two societies as Alice Stone Blackwell. On February 17, 1890, both bodies met in Was.h.i.+ngton and it was decided that the official boards of the two should form the voting force until the joint temporary organization was completed. Councils were held in the great parlor and dining-room of the Riggs House. Both Miss Anthony and Mrs. Stanton had been willing, from the beginning of negotiations, to accept the proposition of the Americans that neither one of them, nor Lucy Stone, should take the presidency of the united a.s.sociation, but from the Nationals in every part of the country came a cry of dissent. Letters poured in declaring that Miss Anthony and Mrs. Stanton had borne the brunt of the battle for forty years, that they had not once lowered the flag or made the question of woman suffrage subservient to any other, that they were the head and heart of the movement, and that for them to be deposed was out of the question.[37] It soon became evident that unless this point were conceded all hope of union would have to be banished. While most of the delegates agreed that, in respect to seniority in years and work and also in consideration of her commanding ability, Mrs. Stanton should be president, there were many who thought that, because of her advanced age and the fact that she spent most of her time abroad, it would be better to elect Miss Anthony. The latter was distracted by such a thought and at the final meeting of National delegates preliminary to the joint convention, with all the earnestness of her strong nature and in a voice vibrating with emotion, she said:

I appeal to every woman who has any affection for the old National or for me not to vote for Susan B. Anthony for president. I stand in a delicate position. I have letters which accuse me of having favored the union solely for personal and selfish considerations, and of trying to put Mrs. Stanton out. Now what I have to say is, don't vote for any human being but Mrs. Stanton. There are other reasons why I wish her elected, but I have these personal ones: When the division was made twenty years ago, it was because our platform was too broad, because Mrs. Stanton was too radical; a more conservative organization was wanted. If we Nationals divide now and Mrs. Stanton is deposed from the presidency, we virtually degrade her. If you have any love for our old a.s.sociation, which, from the beginning, has stood like a rock in regard to creeds and politics, demanding that every woman should be allowed to come upon our platform to plead for her freedom--if you have any faith in that grand principle--vote for Mrs. Stanton....

The National always has allowed the utmost liberty. Anything and everything which stood in the way of progress was likely to get knocked off our platform. I want every one who claims to be a National to continue to stand for this principle. We have come now to another turning-point and, if it is necessary, I will fight forty years more to make our platform free for the Christian to stand upon whether she be a Catholic and counts her beads, or a Protestant of the straitest orthodox creed, just as I have fought for the rights of the infidels the last forty years. These are the principles I want you to maintain, that our platform may be kept as broad as the universe, that upon it may stand the representatives of all creeds and no creeds--Jew or Christian, Protestant or Catholic, Gentile or Mormon, pagan or atheist.

At the joint executive session after the union was formally declared to be consummated, the vote was: For president, Mrs. Stanton, 131; Miss Anthony, 90; for vice-president-at-large, Miss Anthony, 213. Lucy Stone was unanimously elected chairman of the executive committee; Rachel Foster Avery, corresponding secretary; Alice Stone Blackwell, recording secretary;[38] Jane H. Spofford, treasurer; Eliza T. Ward and Rev.

Frederick W. Hinckley, auditors. This uniting of the two a.s.sociations was begun in 1887 and finished in 1890, in the most thoroughly official manner, according to the most highly approved parliamentary methods, and the final result was satisfactory to a large majority of the members of both societies, who since that time have worked together in unbroken harmony.

The action of the American a.s.sociation was almost unanimous, but the members of the National were widely divided. Letters of protest were received from many States, and several of its members attempted to form new organizations. The executive sessions in Was.h.i.+ngton were the most stormy in the history of the a.s.sociation, and only the unsurpa.s.sed parliamentary knowledge of the chairman, May Wright Sewall, aided by the firm co-operation of Miss Anthony, could have harmonized the opposing elements and secured a majority vote in favor of the union. There had been no time during the twenty years' division when Miss Anthony was not ready to sink all personal feeling and unite the two societies for the sake of promoting the cause which she placed before all else in the world; and from the first prospect of combining the forces, she used every effort toward its accomplishment. It was a source of especial gratification that this was practically a.s.sured by the winter of 1888, when the International Council of Women met in Was.h.i.+ngton, as it enabled the American a.s.sociation to accept the invitation and send representatives to this great convocation--which will now be considered.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Zerelda G. Wallace (Signed: "To my Dear friend Susan B.

Anthony with love & severence, Zerelda G. Wallace")]

It had long been the dream of Miss Anthony and Mrs. Stanton to form an International Suffrage a.s.sociation for purposes of mutual helpfulness and the strength of co-operation. During 1883, when in Great Britain, they discussed this subject with the women there and, as a result, a large committee of correspondence had been established to promote the forming of such an a.s.sociation. After a time it was judged expedient to enlarge its scope and make it an International Council, which should represent every department of woman's work. This was called to meet at Was.h.i.+ngton in 1888, the fortieth anniversary of the first organized demand for the rights of women, the convention at Seneca Falls, and active preparations had been in progress for more than a year. It was decided at the suffrage convention held the previous winter that the National a.s.sociation should a.s.sume the entire responsibility for this International Council and should invite the partic.i.p.ation of all organizations of women in the trades, professions, reforms, etc.

Mrs. Stanton and Mrs. Spofford were in Europe and this herculean task was borne princ.i.p.ally by Miss Anthony, May Wright Sewall and Rachel Foster.[39] Miss Anthony stayed in Was.h.i.+ngton for two months preceding the council, perfecting the last arrangements. The amount of labor, time, thought and anxiety involved in this year of preparation can not be estimated. Nothing to compare with it ever had been attempted by women. Not the least part of the undertaking was the raising of the $13,000 which were needed to defray expenses, all secured by personal letters of appeal and admission fees, and disbursed with careful economy and judgment. The intention was to give the suffrage a.s.sociation the same prominence as other organizations and no more. An entry in Miss Anthony's diary says: "I have just received proof of the 'call' for the council and struck out the paragraph saying, 'no one would be committed to suffrage who should attend.' I can't allow any such apologetic invitation as that! There is no need to say anything about it." To her old friend Antoinette Brown Blackwell, who asked if only those women ministers who had been regularly ordained were to be heard, Miss Anthony wrote:

I have felt all along that we ought to give a chance for the expression of the highest and deepest religious thought of those not ordained of men. Your wish to give the result of your research opens the way for us to make the last day--Easter Sunday--voice the new, the purer, the better wors.h.i.+p of the living G.o.d. We'll have a real symposium of woman's gospel. It is not fair to give only the church-ordained women an opportunity to present their religious thoughts, and now it shall be fixed so that the laity may have the same. I don't want a controversy or a lot of negations, but shall tell each one to give her strongest affirmation. This forever saying a thing is false and failing to present the truth, is to me a foolish waste of time, when almost everybody feels the old forms, creeds and rituals to be only the mint, anise and c.u.min.

So, my dear, I am very, very glad that you and Lucy are both to be on our platform, and we are to stand together again after these twenty years. But none of the past! Let us rejoice in the good of the present, and hope for more and more in the future.

In response to her letter asking him to take part on Pioneer Day, Frederick Dougla.s.s wrote:

I certainly shall, if I live and am well. The cause of woman suffrage has under it a truth as eternal as the universe of thought, and must triumph if this planet endures. I have been calling up to my mind's eye that first convention in the small Wesleyan Methodist church at Seneca Falls, where Mrs. Stanton, Mrs.

Mott and those other brave souls began a systematic and determined agitation for a larger measure of liberty for woman, and how great that little meeting now appears! It seems only yesterday since it took place, and yet forty years have pa.s.sed away and what a revolution on this subject have we seen in the sentiment of the American people and, in fact, of the civilized world! Who could have thought that humble, modest, maiden convention, holding its little white ap.r.o.n up to its face and wiping away the tear of sympathy with woman in her hards.h.i.+ps and the sigh of her soul for a larger measure of freedom, would have become the mother of an International Council of Women, right here in the capital of this nation?

Maria Mitch.e.l.l, who was in feeble health (and died the next year) in expressing her regrets said: "I am taking a rest. I have worked more than a half-century and, like stronger people, have become tired. I am meaning to build my small observatory and keep up a sort of apology for study--because I am too old to dare do nothing. I wish I felt able to take the journey and hear what others have to say and are ready to do.