Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 5.djvu/69

 an advocate of prohibition but I do say that the interest of the mother is different from that of the man who sells liquor, Or suppose she is bringing up a daughter; she has a sacred right to protect that daughter from a libertine. Her interest is certainly different from that of the tempter.We do not realize what an immense waste there is in denying woman entrance to political life. She ought to have free access to anything she is qualified to do and where she is not qualified she will drop out."

John S. Crosby, a prominent Democratic leader of New York, made a thorough analysis of the functions of the State and the Government, showed the utter fallacy of constituting men the governing and women the governed class and closed as follows: "Attempt to prove that woman's claim to the right of suffrage is as valid as any that man can make would be like trying to demonstrate the truth of a self-evident proposition. We ask the ballot for woman not merely because she has a right to it but quite as much because it is her duty to exercise that right. The irresistible power of that all-embracing organization, the State, holds you and me and all that are dear to us as its helpless and often hopeless subjects. The combined wisdom of all of us would be none too great for its intelligent administration and we demand for our own sake and for the sake of those that shall come after us that the wisdom of woman shall be included; not only that her delicate, intuitional sense of justice shall leaven the lump of public opinion but that her deft hand shall help to knead it into the bread of righteous law. We ask as one of the rights that government is bound to secure that in the administration of its power it shall make use of the fullest wisdom of the whole people; that the entire popular brain and social conscience shall take cognizance of and be responsible for all acts of government. Not until then shall we see true democracy; not until then shall we indeed have a government of the people, by the people and for the people."

The next day was one always commemorated by suffragists— the birthday of Susan B. Anthony—this time the 82nd. The "Woman's Journal" began its account: "As Miss Anthony sat at breakfast on February 15, with one of the jars of delicious cream