f the law, who declare
that these expressions, "privileges, and immunities" include the
elective franchise. And the whole people of these United States
have solemnly declared "that all persons are citizens, and no
State shall make or enforce any law to abridge the privileges and
immunities of the citizens." If such authority and such reasoning
were presented to a court on the trial of any other case in the
wide world, save that of women and their rights, an advocate
would be stopped by the court before he had gone half the length
I have in this argument. The court would say that they would hear
from the other side. (Laughter.) But this thing of opposition to
woman's rights does not rest in intelligence so that it can be
grasped in argument. It has no intellectual foundation anywhere.
No logic supports it. No reason or argument sustains it. It
rests upon no foundation of the human understanding; hence, it
can not be combated; for, as Mr. Mills says, the worse it is
beaten in argument the stronger it is fortified in prejudice. Men
seem to think that inasmuch as this thing has always been,
somehow or other, in some way or other, there was somewhere, at
some time some reason for it, which could be shown now if
somebody could only think of it or find it; but, of course,
nobody ever did and nobody ever will. There never was any.
(Laughter.)

One consideration alone is absolutely conclusive of this
argument, and from it escape is impossible. "Persons born or
naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction
thereof," were already in the full and complete enjoyment of
every privilege and immunity known to our political system,
except the elective franchise and its correlative, the right to
hold office. The only difference between the naturalized and
unnaturalized individual is this right of voting. I pray our
opponents to tell us then what is conferred by this first section
of this wonderful article, if it be not these rights? Nothing
else remained that it could confer; and this view alone silences
cavil, even. If this section does not confer or guarantee the
exercise of the elective franchise, then at infinite pains have
we mined among the foundations of our marvelous structure, and
have deposited there as one of them an utter sh