Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 16, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 January 1920 — SUFFRAGE TO “WEAKER SEX’ [ARTICLE]

SUFFRAGE TO “WEAKER SEX’

AMENDMENT GIVING WOMEN BALLOT FRANCHISE IS PASSED. ' Indianapolis, Jan. 16. —With the announcement to the special »e»sion of the general assembly at 3:30 o’clock, that joint resolution number 43 had been signed by Governor James P. Goodrich, ratification of the federal suffrage amendment, granting women the privilege of the ballot, became an accomplished fact in Indiana. The signature of the governor was announced ten minutes after the resolution had been signed by Lieut. Governor Edgar D. Bush. Within one hour the special session had adjourned sine die. Indiana is the twenty-sixth state to ratify the amendment. Bush Enters Protest. The federal resolution was adopted after the assembly had organized under the rules of the regular session, and re-employed the same staff that served during the session which ended in March. In the senate, activities were prefaced-- by: an address by the lieutenant governor, in which he declared that the members of the general assembly who had signed a pledge to act only on a pre-arranged program, had violated their oaths .of office, and that they had a choice of “throwing this pledge or the constitution of the state of Indiana in the waste basket.” / There was the usual interest in the presentation of his message to the special session, by Governor Goodrich. The governor set out the purpose of the session and the importance of ratifying the federal amendment. 2 , There was no division on the amendment in the house, the vote being 93 to 0, while in the senate the only opponents of ratification were Senator Charles Hagerty, of South Bend; Senator Oliver Kline, of Huntington and Senator Franklin McCray of Marion county. Senator Kline declared he believed he was “voicing the sentiments of a majority of his constituents” in voting against the resolution. Senator McCray said he believed that the matter should not come to the attention of the assembly at this time when “all the world is crying out for relief,” and, furthermore, he believed the proceedings irregular and unconstitutional for the reason that it had never been submitted to a vote of the people. During the short afternoon session of the senate. Senator Joseph Cravens of Madison, offered’ a bill appropriating $10,000,000 and naming a commission to consist of the governor, lieutenant governor and speaker of the house of representatives to acquire ground and erect buildings as a permanent home and memorial to the American Legion. Senator Cecil Tague of Brookville, saying he was a member of the Legion and that he “knows it is not the wish of members of the Legion that such legislation be considered at this time,” objected to receiving the bill. On roll call this objection Was sustained, 32 to 10, and a motion to reconsider was lost, 30 to 14. It was charged that politics influenced the presentation of the bill, by republican senators who voted to sustain Senator Tague’s objection. A resolution offered by Senator Kiper of Warrick county, asking that the federal government send to Nancy Hanks Lincoln burial

ground in southern Indiana, the statue of Abraham Lincoln, now being dismantled in Washington, was adopted unanimously m both houses. .. An appropriation bill setting aside SIO,OOO to cover- the cost of the special session was adopted. Further efforts were made by democratic senators to introduce bills, but they failed, amidst the confusion and persistent motions on the part of republican senators to effect adjournment, which efforts prevailed after more than a third of the senators had left the chamber. The house, adjourned promptly upon receipt of notice from the senate that it had no further business, although the house committee was held waiting for an hour, while the senate discussed parlimentary rules.