The Project Gutenberg EBook of Woman Suffrage By Federal Constitutional
Amendment, by Various

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Title: Woman Suffrage By Federal Constitutional Amendment

Author: Various

Release Date: October 1, 2004 [EBook #13568]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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Produced by Audrey Longhurst, S.R.Ellison and the Online Distributed
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NATIONAL SUFFRAGE LIBRARY

WOMAN SUFFRAGE BY FEDERAL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

COMPILED BY CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT

PUBLISHED BY NATIONAL WOMAN SUFFRAGE PUBLISHING CO., INC. 171 MADISON
AVENUE NEW YORK

1917

THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO

THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE LEGISLATURES OF THE
SEVERAL STATES. IT GOES WITH THE HOPE THAT IT MAY LEAD TO A BETTER
UNDERSTANDING OF THE REASONS FOR A FEDERAL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
PROVIDING THAT NO STATE SHALL DENY THE RIGHT TO VOTE ON ACCOUNT OF
SEX.

INTRODUCTION

No effort is made in the following pages to present an argument for
woman suffrage. No careful observer of the modern trend of human
affairs, doubts that "governments of the people" are destined to
replace the monarchies of the world. No listener will fail to hear the
rumble of the rising tide of democracy. No watcher of events will deny
that the women of all civilized lands will be enfranchised eventually
as part of the people entitled to give consent and no American
possessed of political foresight doubts woman suffrage in our land as
a coming fact.

The discussion herein is strictly confined to the reasons why an
amendment to the Federal Constitution is the most appropriate method
of dealing with the question. This proposed amendment was introduced
into Congress in 1878 at the request of the National Woman Suffrage
Association. Since 1882 the Senate Committee has reported it with a
favorable majority every year except in 1890 and 1896. Twice only has
it gone to vote in the Senate. The first time was on January 25, 1887;
the second, March 19, 1914. In the House it has been reported from
Committee seven times, twice by a favorable majority, three times by
an adverse majority and twice without recommen