Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 4.djvu/750

 ties—water, sewerage and drainage—could be secured to the city by a tax of two mills on the dollar, covering a period of forty-two years. A similar proposition had been voted down two years before, and little hope was entertained that it would carry this time. Here was the women’s opportunity. They found that one-third of the taxpayers must sign a petition calling the election to establish its legality. This meant that from 9,000 to 10,000 signatures must be secured. They learned also that to carry the measure there must be a majority of numbers as well as of property values.

Realizing that a campaign of education was on their hands, the Era Club called a mass meeting of women, at which prominent speakers presented the necessities of the situation. At its close a resolution was adopted to form a Woman’s League for Sewerage and Drainage, of which Miss Gordon was made president. The papers, which a short time before had been most vehement in their denunciation of suffrage for taxpaying women, were now unanimous in commending their public spirit and predicting ultimate victory through the women.

The first work of the league was to secure a correct list of women taxpayers, the number of whom had been variously estimated from 1,500 to 7,000, Actual count proved that the names of more than 15,000 women appeared on the roll, about one-half the taxpayers of the entire city. Leaving a large margin for possible duplicates, foreign residents and changes by death, a conservative estimate gave at least 10,000 women eligible to vote. Few can realize the magnitude of this undertaking, for the names were without addresses but simply given as owners of such and such pieces of property in such and such boundaries.

The work of location was at last accomplished, and then came the task of securing the names of these women to the petitions. The lists were divided according to wards, with a chairman for each, who appointed lieutenants in the various precincts. Parlor meetings to interest women were held everywhere, in the homes of the rich, the poor and the middle classes. Volunteer canvassers were secured and suffrage sentiment awakened. Occasionally mass meetings of men and women together were called, and good speakers obtained to arouse the people to the necessity