y period in our history
should make the principle of equality so self-evident as to
end at once all class legislation.

It is now over half a century since Frances Wright with
eloquent words first asserted the political rights of women
in our republic; and from that day to this, inspired
apostles in an unbroken line of succession have proclaimed
the new gospel of the motherhood of God and of humanity. We
have plead our case in conventions of the people, in halls
of legislation, before committees of congress, and in the
Supreme Court of the United States, and our arguments still
remain unanswered. History shows no record of a fact like
this, where so large a class of virtuous, educated,
native-born citizens have been subjugated by the national
government to foreign domination. While our American
statesmen scorn the thought that even the most gifted son of
a monarch, an emperor or a czar should ever occupy the proud
position of a president of these United States, and by
constitutional provision deny to all foreigners this high
privilege, they yet allow the very riff-raff of the old
world to make laws for the proudest women of the republic,
to make the moral code for the daughters of our people, to
sit in judgment on all our domestic relations.

England has taken two grand steps within the last year in
extending the municipal suffrage to the woman of Scotland
and in passing the Married Woman's Property bill. They are
holding meetings all over the country now in favor of
parliamentary suffrage. Statistics show that women generally
_exercise_ the rights already accorded. They have recently
passed through a very heated election for members of the
school-board in various localities. Miss Lydia Becker was
elected in Manchester, and Miss Eva Mueller in one of the
districts of London, and several other women in different
cities.

A little incident will show you how naturally the political
equality of woman is coming about in Queen Victoria's
dominions. I was invited to dine at Barn Elms, a beautiful
estate on the banks of the Thames, a spot full of classic