Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 6.djvu/353

MISSISSIPPI 339 hand against the onward march of this progressive movement !" The newly elected Governor, Lee M. Russell, in his inaugural address, delivered in front of the Capitol to an audience of thousands, devoted more time to woman suffrage than to any other topic, making a clear cut, logical argument for ratification and a powerful plea for the enfranchisement of women. On January 21, W. A. Winter, Representative from Grenada county, offered the following resolution : "Resolved that the proposed amendment to the Constitution of the United States be and hereby is rejected as an unwarranted, unnecessary and danger- ous interference with the rights reserved to the States, or to the people, in both State and Federal Constitutions. . . ." This came without warning to the friends of ratification and was not referred to a committee but rushed to a vote after Representative Guy W. Mitchell of Lee county had spoken strongly against it. It was carried by a vote of 94 ayes to 25 noes and the announce- ment received with cheers and laughter. Sennett Conner of Cov- ington county was the Speaker of the House whose ruling per- mitted this unparliamentary action. Sent to the Senate the Winter Resolution of Rejection was referred to the Committee on Constitution, of which Senator Minor was chairman. At the meeting of the committee W. B. Mixon of Pike county was authorized to draft a resolution ratify- ing the amendment, to be offered in the Senate as a substitute. This was done and Senators Minor, Mixon and Fred B. Smith made a majority report. This resolution was earnestly advocated by Senators Percy Bell and Walton Shields of Washington county, W. B. Roberts of Bolivar, Fred B. Smith of Union, A. A. Cohn of Lincoln and E. F. Noel of Holmes. It failed of adoption and the Winter resolution was recommitted to the Committee on Constitution, where it remained. In the meantime Senator Mixon had introduced a bill in the Senate giving the right to women to vote in Primary elections and Representative A. J. Whitworth of Pike county a similar one in the 11 In Mississippi a nomination is equivalent to an election. Both bills were defeated. A resolution for a woman suffrage amendment to tin- Slate constitution to be submitted to the voters at the election of November, 1920, passed both