Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 4.djvu/613

 Miss Elizabeth Preston, president of the State W. C. T. U., and others. In Miss Anthony's letter was outlined the plan of work that she never failed to recommend to State organizations, which said in part:

First, your local clubs should cover the respective townships, and the officers should not only hold meetings of their own to discuss questions pertaining to their work, but should have the men, when they go into their town meetings for any and every purpose pertaining to local affairs—especially into the meetings which nominate delegates to county conventions—pledged to present a resolution in favor of the enfranchisement of women. By this means you will secure the discussion of the question by the men who compose the different political parties in each township—an educational work that can not be done through any distinctively woman suffrage meeting, because so few of the rank and file of voters ever attend these.

Then, when the time comes for the county convention to elect delegates to the State nominating convention, let every town meeting see to it that they are instructed to vote for a resolution favoring the submission and indorsement of a proposition to strike the word "male" from your constitution. If the State conventions of the several parties are to put indorsement planks in their platforms, the demand for these must come from the townships composing the counties sending delegates thereto. Women going before a committee and asking a resolution indorsing equal suffrage, are sure to be met with the statement that they have heard nothing of any such demand among their constituents. This has been the response on the many different occasions when this request has been made of State conventions. From this repeated and sad experience we have learned that we must begin with the constituents in each township and have the demand start there.

Dr. Eaton was elected president of the association.

The second convention took place at Fargo, Nov. 30, 1897. An extra meeting was held this year at the Devil's Lake Chautauqua Assembly on Woman's Day, with Mrs. Julia B. Nelson, president of the Minnesota, and Mrs. Ella Knowles Haskell, of the Montana W. S. A., among the speakers. Dr. Eaton having removed from the State, Miss Mary Allen Whedon was made president.

The third convention met in Larimore, Sept. 27, 28, 1898, with delegates from eleven counties. Mrs. Chapman Catt was present and contributed much to the success of the meetings. These were held in the M. E. Church with the active co-opera tion of the pastor, the Rev. H. C. Cooper. Mrs. Flora Blackman Naylor was chosen president.