Who has conferred this great privilege upon the women of America? The voters of America decided that every State should grant this privilege.
The amendment to the Constitution is as follows:
"_The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex._"
The people did not vote directly upon this constitutional amendment, but they voted for the members of the House and the members of the Senate who voted for the amendment and they voted for the members of the legislatures of the different States which ratified the amendment. Thus the responsibility rests with the people. This is true of course as to nearly all the laws enacted by State and Nation--the people do not vote directly upon them, but they select their agents, who, under the law, are authorized to act for them.
Under this amendment we have the written guaranty in the Constitution that so far as men and women are concerned they shall have equal rights to vote.(112)
Perhaps you were not in favor of woman suffrage. Many good men and women were opposed to it. Many are still opposed to it. This is a good illustration of the way we do things in a democracy. We have different temperaments, different dispositions. We are reared in different surroundings. We have different interests. We look at life in different ways. Each of us has a right to his opinion and each of us has the right to express it by our vote. When we finally vote, a decision is made. If we belong to the majority, we find that our wish is carried out. If we are in the minority, we cheerfully follow what the majority of the people, what most of the people in America desire.
The thing that I wish to impress to-night is that to vote on election day is not only a right, it is a duty. Whether we were for woman suffrage or not it has come. It is settled. It brings into power twenty-seven million new voters. Each of these women, whether she desires it or not, must assume this new share of the responsibilities of government. It is a patriotic duty. At every election we must cast our votes. Before every election we must study the issues, the problems to be met. Unless we do that we are failing in patriotism and loyalty. Unless we vote we are not good citizens.