Page:Democratic Ideals (Olympia Brown).djvu/64

Rh "It has become necessary for the Supreme Court of the United States to decide that we are not a sovereign people, that we have no nation at all, in order to prevent women from exercising the right of suffrage throughout the country."

Farther on, in discussing the claims made by the Court that the United States has no voters, he said: "As the law now is in the Federal Constitution there must always have been a voter in the United States for in the second clause of the first article it is provided that there shall be a House of Representatives elected by the people."

At various times a number of people in different places have manifested an interest in Mr. Minors method of working for Woman's Suffrage by means of an Act of Congress. Among those who took an active part in this propaganda, were Mrs. Sallie Clay Bennett and her sister, Miss Laura Clay. These ladies are near relatives to the great Henry Clay, and they seem to have inherited an ability to discuss constitutional questions. They were among the first to understand the right of women, under the Constitution, to vote for National Officers. By writing for the public press, issuing circulars at their own expense, and distributing articles to educate the public, they have done much in advancing the interest in this line of suffrage work.