From 1884 down to the present women have appeared many times in person and by petition before county and State conventions of the different political parties, asking for a recognition in their platforms of the right of women to the suffrage. Although these efforts have met with no response from the Democratic party, and none from the Republican in State meetings, a few county conventions have adopted planks to this effect. In 1889 the Greenback and the United Labor State Conventions unequivocally indorsed the franchise for women. In 1892 the Populist and the Prohibition State platforms contained declarations for woman suffrage. In 1894 the Populists again adopted the plank. Similar action was taken by the Social Democratic Party in 1900. Among those appearing before these bodies are found the names of Mrs. Sewall, Mrs. Gougar, Mrs. Haggart, Mrs. Pauline T. Merritt, Miss Flora Hardin, Mrs. Florence M. Adkinson, Mrs. Augusta Cooper Bristol and Mrs. Harper.
During the past sixteen years a number of women have sat as delegates in the State conventions of the Greenback, Prohibition, Populist, Socialist and Labor parties. Women have shown great interest in politics for many years, crowding the galleries at the State conventions and forming at least one-half of the audiences at the campaign rallies. Among those who have canvassed the State in national campaigns are the noted orators, Miss Anna E. Dickinson, and Mrs. Nellie Holbrook Blinn of California, for the Republican party; Mrs. Mary E. Lease and Mrs. Annie L. Diggs, both of Kansas, for the Populist; Miss Cynthia Cleveland for the Democratic, and Mrs. Helen M. Gougar for the Republican, Prohibition and Populist.
Legislative Action and Laws: It is most difficult to look up the history of legislation on any subject in Indiana. The original bills are not printed but are presented in writing, stowed away in pigeon-holes and thenceforth referred to only by number, with perhaps a fragment of their titles. After several women, deeply interested in the question, had attempted to make a list of the suffrage bills during the last sixteen years and had given up in despair, they appealed to one of the best lawyers in the State, who is a firm believer in the enfranchisement of women. He responded that no accurate report could be made without first going through all the pigeon-holes and over all the journals of the two Houses during that period, which would require weeks of time and great expense. As very few of these bills ever were reported from the committees, it seemed unnecessary to undertake their resurrection for the purposes of this History.
The Indiana Legislature meets biennially and there is seldom a session in which bills are not presented for municipal or full suffrage. In 1893 bills were before this body asking for the Municipal ballot, and newspaper accounts speak of Mrs. Zerelda G. Wallace, Mrs. Mary S. Armstrong and Mrs. Laura G. Schofield as working industriously for their passage.
In 1895 Judge George B. Cardwill introduced two bills without request, one for an amendment to the constitution striking out the word "male;" the other to amend the law so as to make it obligatory to have one woman on the school board of every city. The women made no effort to secure consideration of these bills, and they lay dormant in committee.
It never has been thought worth while to make the struggle for School Suffrage, as Indianapolis is the only city which elects its school board. In the others this is appointed by the Common Council.
On Feb. 5, 1897, Miss Susan B. Anthony, who was visiting Mrs. Sewall, addressed the Legislature in joint session asking it to recommend to Congress the passage of a Sixteenth Amendment to the Federal Constitution enfranchising women.
In 1898, under the auspices of Mrs. M. A. Tompkins, State superintendent of franchise for the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, an active and systematic canvass was begun to secure from the Legislature the submission of an amendment to the State constitution to strike out the word "male." She was assisted by members of her organization in every county; short, convincing articles were prepared for the newspapers, petitions circulated and 30,000 names of men and women obtained.
Accompanied by these a joint resolution was presented to the Legislature of 1899—in the Senate by O. Z. Hubbell, in the House by Quincy A. Blankinship, and both labored strenuously for its passage. The Senate Bill was referred to the Committee on Revision of Laws, Frederick A. Joss, chairman, and the House Bill to the Judiciary Committee, Silas A. Canada, chairman. They granted hearings, were addressed by Miss Marie Brehm of Chicago, national superintendent of franchise for the W. C. T. U., and reported the bill favorably. It passed the Senate by unanimous vote, January 25. The members of the House had been personally interviewed by Mrs. Tompkins and Miss Brehm, and two-thirds of them were pledged to vote for the measure.
The law provides that not more than two bills for amending the State constitution can be before the Legislature at one time, and, as two preceded this one, Speaker Littleton, who was opposed to it, ruled it out of order and would not permit it to be considered. The same condition existed in the Senate but that body deemed its action perfectly legal, as all which could be done was to submit the bill to the next Legislature. Thus all the work of nearly two years was lost.[251]