Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 4.djvu/900

 of employers to provide seats for female employes beside a work bench or counter shall be punished as a misdemeanor.


 * New Jersey is the first State in which a woman ever cast a ballot. The constitution adopted July 2, 1776, conferred the franchise on "all inhabitants worth $250, etc." In 1790 a revision of the election law used the words "he or she," thus giving legislative sanction to a construction of the constitution which placed women in the electorate. While the records show that women did vote for various officers, including President of the United States and members of the Legislature, yet in — those days of almost absolute male supremacy, when it was not customary for women to own even $250 worth of property and all they possessed became the husband's at marriage, it is not to be supposed that very many could avail themselves of the privilege. Enough did so, however, to make them a factor in the fierce political contentions which soon arose, and to gain the enmity of politicians. In 1807 the Legislature passed an arbitrary act limiting the suffrage to "white male citizens." This was clearly a usurpation of authority, as the constitution could be changed only by action of the voters. Nevertheless, men were in power and women were no longer permitted to exercise the franchise.

In 1844 a convention framed a new constitution in which the suffrage was restricted to "white males," and only men were allowed to vote on its adoption. Women were still electors ace cording to the existing constitution, and yet they were not permitted to vote for delegates to this convention nor for the ratification of the new constitution. No Supreme Court could have rendered any other decision than that this was illegally adopted.

For exactly eighty years women were deprived of any franchise. During the last twenty of this period they made repeated efforts to vote and presented numerous petitions to the Legislature to have their ancient right restored. In 1887 this body enacted that women might vote at school meetings (i. e. in villages and country districts) for trustees, bonds, appropriations, etc.

In 1893 a law was enacted giving the right to vote for Road Commissioner to "all freeholders." An election was very soon contested at Englewood, and in June, 1894, the Supreme Court decided that the act was illegal because "it is not competent for