Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 5.djvu/538

504 HISTORY OF WOMAN SUFFRAGE sideration of such a measure, the Senators agreed that if we would have the vote taken without debate it would probably be possible, since this would not consume the time of the Senate. We believed that this was best in order to make sure of the vote. On July 22 Senator Thomas wrote to every Senator asking whether he would consent to a vote being taken without debate. He informed us that on both the Republican and Democratic sides there were men who would not give such consent, some stating that they had been asked by certain suffragists of the other organization not to consent. After the endorsement of the Federal Amendment by Judge Hughes, the candidate for President, frequent remarks were made in the Senate on it by members of both parties. Senator Clark (Republi- can) of Wyoming and Senator Pittman (Democrat) of Nevada were among those who urged action at this session but finally in August Senator Thomas gave up the effort. The unfair treatment of the amendment resolution in the House Judiciary Committee and its final suppression by Chair- man Edwin Y. Webb (N. C.) were described in full and the unsuccessful efforts, led by Mrs. Catt, to obtain action on it. [See Chapter on Federal Amendment.] The report continued: Federal Elections Bill : On December 6 Representative Raker intro- duced at the request of the Federal Suffrage Association a bill to protect the rights of women citizens of the United States to regis- ter and vote for Senators and members of the House. The bill was referred to the Committee on the Election of the President, Vice-President and Representatives in Congress and has not yet been reported out. On December TO this same bill was introduced by Senator Lane of Oregon, referred to the Committee on Woman Suffrage and is still there. United States Elections Bill: The United States Elections Bill, introduced by Senator Owen at the request of Miss Laura Clay on February 3, aims also to secure to women the right to vote for Senators and Representatives in Congress. Miss Clay says it is simply a declaratory act; that it does not permit Congress to specify qualifications of voters and therefore does not involve the issue of State's rights. This bill was referred to the Committee on Privileges and Elections, where it remains. Your committee assisted the suf- fragists in the District of Columbia in the effort for a bill enabling it to elect a delegate to the Lower House. . . . Planks i 1 For some time prior to June your committee used every 1 On June i, a short time before the meeting of Republican and Democratic National Conventions, twenty-nine members of the Lower House of Congress from States where women vote, who wished the conventions to put woman suffrage in their platforms, had a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee. The Representatives, both Democratic and Republican, who made brief arguments for the Federal Amendment were: Ariz., Carl Hayden; Cal., Denver S. Church, Charles H. Randall, William Kettner, John E.