erty, and
whose name should be retained. He thought an umpire necessary. He did
not see but all business must cease until the consent of both parties
be obtained. He saw an impossibility of introducing such rules into
society. The Gospel had established the unity and oneness of the
married pair.

Mrs. Stanton said she thought the Gospel, rightly understood, pointed
to a oneness of equality, not subordination, and that property should
be jointly held. She could see no reason why marriage by false creeds
should be made a degradation to woman; and, as to the name, the custom
of taking the husband's name is not universal. When a man has a bad
name in any sense, he might be the gainer by burying himself under the
good name of his wife. This last winter a Mr. Cruikshanks applied to
our Legislature to have his name changed. Now, if he had taken his
wife's name in the beginning, he might have saved the Legislature the
trouble of considering the propriety of releasing the man from such a
burden to be entailed on the third and fourth generation. When a slave
escapes from a Southern plantation, he at once takes a name as the
first step in liberty--the first assertion of individual identity. A
woman's dignity is equally involved in a life-long name, to mark her
individuality. We can not overestimate the demoralizing effect on
woman herself, to say nothing of society at large, for her to consent
thus to merge her existence so wholly in that of another.

A well-written speech was read by William C. Nell, which Mrs. Mott
thought too flattering. She said woman is now sufficiently developed
to prefer justice to compliment.

A letter was read from Gerrit Smith, approving cordially of the object
of the Convention.

Mrs. Stanton read the Declaration that was adopted at Seneca Falls,
and urged those present who did not agree with its sentiments, to make
their objections then and there. She hoped if there were any clergymen
present, they would not keep silent during the Convention and then on
Sunday do as their brethren did in Seneca Falls--use their pulpits
throughout the city to denounce them, where they could not, of course,
be allowed to reply.

The resolutions[11] were freely discussed by Amy Post, Rhoda De Garmo,
Ann Edgeworth, Sarah D. Fish, and others. While Mrs. Mott and Mrs.
Stanton spoke in their favor, they thought they were too tame, and
wished for some more stirring declarations. Elizabeth McClintock read,
in an admirabl