When Leagues of Women Voters were authorized by the National American Suffrage Association in 1919, the organization disbanded and the members entered the league formed in Georgia. Mrs. Whiteside had been continually the president and there had been only two changes in the board of the following officers: First vice-president, Mrs. Elizabeth McCarty; second, Miss Laura Barrien; corresponding secretary, Mrs. Jack Hawkins; recording secretaries, Mrs. William H. Yeandle, Mrs. Mary Peyton; treasurer, Miss Ethel Merk; auditors, Mrs. A. G. Helmer, Miss Minnie Bellamy. Mrs. Yeandle died in 1915 and Mrs. Mary Peyton was elected in her place. This year Mrs. Helmer became president of a branch league and was succeeded as auditor by Miss Minnie Bellamy.
THE EQUAL SUFFRAGE PARTY OF GEORGIA.[36]
For some time there had seemed a necessity in Georgia for an organization which would undertake more aggressive work in behalf of woman suffrage. Early in 1914 the psychological time for it became apparent and a meeting was held at the home of Mrs. Emily C. McDougald in Atlanta. A group of influential men and women were present, who declared themselves in favor of an active campaign and pledged their support. On motion of Linton C. Hopkins a committee was appointed to nominate temporary officers, and reported for president Mrs. McDougald; for vice-president, Mrs. Hopkins, and for secretary, Mrs. Hugh Lokey. A constitution and by-laws were adopted and a petition for a State charter was filed under the name of the Equal Suffrage Party of Georgia.
On July 29 a meeting was called for permanent organization and with representatives from different parts of the State present the following were elected: President, Mrs. McDougald; first vice-president, Mrs. John Dozier Pou of Columbia; second, Miss Mildred Cunningham of Savannah; secretary, Mrs. Henry Schlesinger; treasurer, Mrs. Benjamin Elsas; organizer, Mrs. Mary Raoul Millis; auditor, Miss Genevieve Saunders, all of Atlanta. Members of the Executive Board were: Mrs. Mary Meade Owens of Augusta; Mrs. Mayhew Cunningham of Savannah; Miss Anna Griffin of Columbus; Mrs. Charles C. Harrold of Macon. Affiliated branches were organized with presidents as follows: In Savannah, Mrs. F. P. McIntire; in Augusta, Mrs. Owens; in Columbus, Miss Anabel Redd; in Atlanta, Miss Eleanore Raoul; in Macon, Mrs. Harrold; in Athens, Mrs. W. B. Hill; in Albany, Mrs. D. H. Redfearn.
From these centers a great deal of work was done for suffrage in the adjacent smaller towns. The city organizations opened offices and committees of local women were put in charge of the work of raising money and distributing suffrage propaganda. Tens of thousands of letters, leaflets, books and speeches were distributed throughout the State. All of the women's clubs were urged to endorse suffrage; schools were asked to debate the subject and prizes offered for the best arguments in debate and in written composition. Suffrage parades on foot and in automobiles were had in all the cities, suffrage plays put into the theaters, suffrage slides into the movies and every means of educating the public was used. The best national speakers were brought into the State and immense audiences worked up for them. The beloved Dr. Anna Howard Shaw spoke in Atlanta to one of 6,000. The National American Woman Suffrage Association, of which the Equal Suffrage Party was an affiliated branch, gave hearty co-operation in securing these speakers. The party held annual conventions, where new officers were generally elected as a matter of democratic policy. The second took place in Atlanta Nov. 17, 1915, where Mrs. McDougald was re-elected president and the other officers selected were Mrs. J. D. Pou of Columbus, first vice-president; Mrs. Cunningham, second; Miss Schlesinger, secretary; Miss Aurelia Roach, treasurer; Mrs. Millis, organizer. The party already had branches in 13 counties, including the largest cities.
The annual convention on Oct. 28, 1916, was held in Atlanta and Mrs. L. S. Arrington of Augusta was elected president; Mrs. S. B. C. Morgan of Savannah, first vice-president; Mrs. Harrold, second; Miss Julia Flisch, secretary, and Miss Annie G. Wright, treasurer, both of Augusta. The effort in Atlanta to secure a petition for Municipal suffrage for women had resulted in obtaining the signatures of 6,000 women and 3,000 men. All the delegates to three national Presidential conventions had been circularized in behalf of a plank for Federal woman suffrage, and all the members of the Legislature asking for the submission of a State amendment. The next annual convention was held in Augusta Nov. 24, 1917, and Mrs. Frank P. McIntire of Savannah was selected for president. The convention was omitted in 1918, as the women were occupied with war work.
At the convention held in Savannah Jan. 15, 1919, Mrs. McDougald was again elected president. The splendidly efficient service of women in all the departments of war work proved that without them it would have been most difficult to succeed in the Liberty Bond sales, the Red Cross and all the "drives" for raising money. The officers of the Equal Suffrage Party and those of its affiliated societies were selected as leaders in the work of the Woman's Council of Defense, National and State.
From every part of the State hundreds of letters were sent to the U. S. Senators Smith and Hardwick, asking them to vote for the Federal Suffrage Amendment, but to no avail. The year had been a fruitful one, even though the Legislature had failed to ratify the Federal Amendment, which was submitted by Congress in June. An adverse influence, which it was very hard to combat, was that of the State Federation of Women's Clubs. Its president, Mrs. Z. L. Fitzpatrick of Madison and other officials were violently opposed. A large majority of the women in the city clubs were suffragists and not influenced by the attitude of the federation officers but this was not true of the rural women, who were constantly warned that woman suffrage was a great evil not to be even mentioned in their clubs. This anti-suffrage influence reacted upon the rural legislator and gave him ground for the oft-repeated argument, "The women of my district do not want the vote, they won't even discuss it in their clubs." There had long been a strong desire to have woman suffrage endorsed by the State Federation, the largest organization of women in the State, with 30,000 members, and every year the Equal Suffrage Party had sent to all the club presidents an earnest letter urging them to give their members an opportunity to vote on the question and pointing out the greater achievements of the clubs in States where women had the franchise. At every annual meeting, however, when a resolution would be offered from the floor, the president of the federation would declare it out of order and prevent action on it. In 1917, at its convention in Augusta, a resolution was offered to send a congratulatory telegram to the women of New York on their newly acquired enfranchisement, whereupon a storm of protest arose, the president ruled it out of order and it was tabled.
In 1919 every club was again circularized and the answers showed that the women throughout the State wanted favorable action by the State Federation. At its convention in Columbus in November, 1919, two resolutions were prepared, one or the other to be presented, as seemed most expedient at the time. One was a simple endorsement of woman suffrage; the other, submitted by Mrs. Morgan, asked for an endorsement of the Federal Amendment and its ratification by the Legislature. At the last moment, the suffragists decided to take a bold step and send the latter to the Resolutions Committee, which was done, and this committee recommended its adoption. The president, Mrs. James E. Hayes of Montezuma, ruled it out of order. Mrs. Rogers Winter of Atlanta appealed from the decision of the chair; Mrs. Alonzo Richardson of Atlanta seconded the appeal and was sustained and the resolution was brought before the convention. It was carried by a vote of 85 to 40.[37]
When the report of this action was received in Macon, an indignant protest went up from the anti-suffragists. Mrs. Bruce Carr Jones, secretary of the State Federation, sent in her resignation. Mrs. Walter D. Lamar and Mrs. Thomas Moore went before the women's clubs of the city and urged that they withdraw from the federation. The Macon Telegraph devoted much space to denouncing it as a most dishonest trick and approved heartily the efforts of these women to dismember the federation. Through their influence six clubs resigned. Sixty-nine new clubs joined the federation in the twelve months following its endorsement of the Federal Amendment.[38]