No. 21—Suffrage Record: Outside of Congress, In Congress.
No. 22—Votes cast in Election of Member.
In an interview in the New York Times of March 2, 1919, Miss Younger describes the working of this system.
If a Congressman said to a lobbyist, for instance, “I do not think my district is much interested in Woman Suffrage, I get very few letters in favor of it from my constituents,” then, immediately, by means of the information gained through the card-index, a flood of pro-Suffrage letters would descend upon him. Always, as far as possible, these letters would come from people he knew or who were influential.
If a Congressman had a financial backer, they tried to get at him. If he were from a strong labor district, they appealed to Labor to bring its influence to bear upon him.
When the lobbyist started for Congress, she was given a lobbying slip which had a list of entries printed on it. For instance, one heading was “Exact statements and remarks.” Miss Younger told me of one Congressman who said to her: “Put me down on the mourners’ bench. I am thinking about it.” Immediately Headquarters became very busy with this Congressman.
Another said, “Women in my State do not want it.” Miss Younger, commenting on that, said that it was always an encouraging case. We see immediately that he gets shoals of letters and telegrams from his State. One Congressman on whom such a campaign was waged said finally: “If you will only stop, I will vote for the Amendment. It keeps my office force busy all day answering letters about Suffrage alone.”
The hardest Congressmen to deal with were those who said, “I will not vote for it if every voter in my State asks me.” To such a one, we would send a woman from his own district. In one case, the Congressman was so rude to her that she came back to Headquarters, subscribed a hundred dollars to our funds, departed, and became a staunch Suffragist. We kept a list of men of this type and we sent to them any woman who was wavering on Suffrage. It never failed to make her a strong Suffragist.
Any bit of information on these cards might be used. If a man played golf, that might be a happy moment for a member of the Woman’s Party to talk Suffrage with him. If he had the kind of mother who was an influence in his life, they tried to convert the mother. If it was the wife who was the ruling influence, they tried to convert the wife. They were careful even in regard to brothers. The habits of Congressmen as disclosed by this index were of great importance. Some of them got to their office early, and that was often the best time to speak with them. If a Congressman drank, it was necessary to note that. Then when the lobbyists found him muddled and inarticulate, they knew to what to impute it.
Of course information of a blackmailing order was occasionally offered from outside sources to the Woman’s Party, but, of course, this was always ignored.