Previous | Next
Part: 123456789 Session: 1 Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173 [missing]174 [missing]175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342342a343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444 of 444
was made in a beautiful, strong voice.”
We all sat and listened to him. We had never heard my father more enthusiastic about anything. My mother, who was pretty shrewd, said, “Well, did she make a convert of you?”
“Yes, indeed,” he said, “Yes, indeed.” My father was the sweetest looking person. He was a very attractive man, kind of elderly, very good looking, wide space between the eyes with broad blue eyes. He said, “As a matter of fact, when she finished her speech and the applause died down, she said they had no funds to defray the expenses of these meetings and so it was the custom to take up a voluntary contribution at the close of the meeting. And then she saw me sitting in the front row” - my mother began to laugh - “and she turned to me and she said, ‘Sir, will you pass your hat to the audience?’” My father rose, passed his hat and took up the contribution, as indeed he was accustomed to doing in church Sunday morning. We had a good family laugh about it - that she had spotted at once a respectable, elderly man in the front row, who looked as though he wouldn't steal the money.
From that time on, he was for woman suffrage. She made a convert as easily as that. This must have been in about 1905, '06 or '07. From that time on, I had a slant towards
© 2006 Columbia University Libraries | Oral History Research Office | Rights and Permissions | Help