recommended that, in order to protect
young men of immature years from women of immoral life, inquiry as to
the character of the woman bringing the charge should be permitted.
Gov. Lyman U. Humphrey urged that such an amendment should be adopted,
which could be done without lowering the age of protection for girls.
No change, however, has been made in the law.

In 1889 the divorce law was so amended as to give the wife all the
property owned by her at the time of marriage and all acquired by her
afterward, alimony being allowed from the real and personal estate of
the husband.

This year a bill was passed creating the Girls' Industrial School.
Mrs. S. A. Thurston was one of the prime factors in securing this
bill.

As the Legislature was overwhelmingly Republican the greatest effort
was put forth to secure a law making it mandatory to place women on
the State Boards of Charitable Institutions. Thirty-six large
petitions were introduced by as many members in each House but all
failed of effect.

In 1891 the Populist party gained control of the House of
Representatives, although the Senate was still Republican. Mrs. Annie
L. Diggs had been appointed by the Farmers' Alliance on their State
legislative committee and she began a vigorous campaign to secure Full
Suffrage for Women by Statutory Enactment, which it was believed
could be done under the terms of the constitution. The bill was
introduced into the House and urged by J. L. Soupene. Mrs. Diggs had
the assistance of Col. Sam Wood and other ardent friends of suffrage.
The Committee on Political Rights of Women reported the bill
favorably, and said through its chairman, D. M. Watson:

While the constitution declares in the first section of its
suffrage article that "every white male person, etc., shall be
deemed a qualified elector," in the second section it names
certain persons who shall be excluded from voting. Women are not
given the right to vote in the first nor are they excluded in the
second, and this indicates that the question of their right to
vote was intended to be left to the Legislature. The Supreme
Court (Wheeler vs. Brady, 15th Kas., p. 33,) says: "There is
nothing in the nature of government which would prevent it. Women
are members of society, members of the great body politic,
citizens as much as men, with the same natural rights, united
with men in the same common destiny, and are ca