April 7. General Husted, Mayor James Haggerty and
Dr. J. T. Williams spoke in favor; Gen. N. M. Curtis and Kidder Scott
in opposition. The vote stood 57 ayes, 56 noes, but a constitutional
majority was lacking.

During the summer Mrs. Blake spoke in almost every district whose
member had voted against the measure.

In 1886 a bill for Municipal Suffrage only was presented, drawn by
Augustus Levy and introduced in the Senate by George Z. Erwin, in the
House by Speaker Husted. On February 10 a hearing took place in the
Assembly Chamber. Mrs. Blake presided and the speakers were Mrs.
Matilda Joslyn Gage, Mrs. Howell, Mrs. Rogers and Mrs. Annie Jenness
Miller. On March 2 the Senate gave a hearing to Mr. Levy and James
Redpath. The campaign this winter was one of the most vigorous ever
made. Besides the executive officers of the State association, who
were in Albany some days of every week, much help was secured by the
occasional visits of prominent women and the numerous letters of
influential people from all parts of the State. On the night of the
final vote the Assembly Chamber was filled by friends of the measure
and many officials were present, including the Lieutenant-Governor and
the Attorney-General. As this bill would give women only the right to
vote in municipal affairs, it had many supporters who would not have
favored full suffrage. The debate was long and earnest, Mr. Erwin,
General Husted, Mr. Longley of Brooklyn, Mr. Freligh of Ulster and
others speaking in favor, and General Curtis, William F. Sheehan and
others in opposition. The roll-call was taken in great excitement, and
the ayes went up until their number reached 65, the constitutional
majority. A round of applause broke out, but in an instant two men
arose and changed their votes from the affirmative to the negative, so
that on the final call the vote stood, 63 ayes, 52 noes.

This winter another law was enacted to remove all doubts as to the
constitutionality of the one of 1880, which conferred School Suffrage
on women in villages and country districts. Representative Charles
Sprague introduced a bill making mothers and fathers joint guardians
of their children, but it was defeated.

In 1887 Mrs. Howell drew up the Municipal Suffrage Bill, which was
introduced by Senator Erwin. She spent ten days personally
interviewing every senator until she had the promise of the twenty
votes which were given the bill on its final passage, seventeen being
neces