Page:History of Woman Suffrage Volume 5.djvu/764

 McCormick, its second vice-president, had been appointed general chairman of the War Service Department. In many States the president of the suffrage association became chairman of the War Service Committee. Thus the suffragists of the United States started their war activities with as much vigor as they had been accustomed to put into efforts for their own cause.

There had been created in August, 1916, by an Act of Congress, the Council of National Defense, composed of the Secretaries of War, Navy, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce and Labor. This council was formed in order that an emergency might not find the country without a central agency to direct the mobilization of troops back of the regular army. It was not an executive body; its function was to consider and advise. By a wise provision of the Congressional Act the formation of subordinate agencies was authorized and upon the declaration of war advantage of this was quickly taken. Large fields of action were mapped out and assigned to committees on which were appointed the foremost men and women of the country. It was at once evident that the women of the United States had a, definite and powerful role to play in the great war and the council decided that "for the purpose of coordinating the women's preparedness movement a central body of woman should be formed under the Council of National Defense.'"? On April 19, 1917, the director, Secretary of War Baker, telegraphed to Dr. Anna Howard Shaw that Secretary of the Interior Lane and he would like to consult her in regard to important matters concerning the relations of women to the council. She was on a lecture tour in the South but arranged to meet with them in Washington on April 27. On April 21, before the time for this meeting, the Council of National Defense voted that a Woman's Committee be formed with the following personnel: Dr. Anna Howard Shaw, Mrs. Carrie Chapman Catt, Mrs. Katharine Dexter McCormick, Mrs. Josiah Evans Cowles, Mrs. Philip North Moore, Mrs. Antoinette Funk, Miss Ida Tarbell, Miss Maude Wetmore, Mrs. Joseph R. Lamar. Later Miss Agnes Nestor and Miss Hannah J. Patterson were added. Of the eleven members of the committee all were prominent suffragists except Miss Tarbell, Mrs. Lamar and Miss Wet-