“ To educate the men who were to vote upon the question, a State-wide canvass of voters was begun by Mrs. Crowley, which was carried on up to election day. A body of from five to seven intelligent women, informed on the question, re-enforced by local volunteers, called from house to house, talking to the voter or his wife, leaving suffrage literature and if possible getting the voter's signature to a card pledge to vote yes. ”

“ By appealing adroitly to all kinds of prejudices, as on the religious question, the opposition got out an enormous number of men who generally did not vote at all.
Both sides were required by law to file at the State House a record of their campaign expenses. An analysis of the lists showed that the bulk of the anti-suffrage campaign fund was made up of personal contributions, four-fifths of them from men, and more than three-fifths of the total from 135 men, whose average donation was $235. The slogan of their campaign had been that women did not want to vote. ”

“ Most of the literature, most of the money and a liberal supply of speakers for anti-suffrage campaigns all over the country had emanated from this association. While always posing as a woman's protest, the real strength of the movement was in the men.
In May, 1912, a Man's Anti-Suffrage Association had been organized, its Executive Committee consisting of ten lawyers, one cotton broker, one Technology Professor, the treasurer of Harvard College and the treasurer of the Copley Society. Other societies were organized later. ”

“ The association's petition for a constitutional amendment was rejected without a division and without even discussion. Petitions were rejected for License suffrage, for a vote on school nominations and to enable women to vote for the appointing officer if the Boston school board should be made appointive instead of elective. The association always joined with other societies in asking for measures for the public welfare. ”

“ From 1910 onward what had tended most to increase membership was the formation of the Woman Suffrage Party to work as the State association, with a non-dues-paying membership of men and women, similar to the political parties, having district leaders, precinct captains and ward chairmen, strictly non-partisan and solely to promote woman suffrage. ”

“ All through the summer and fall of 1915 the women's and the men's organizations and various groups and combinations of men, who for one reason or another did not want equal suffrage, worked publicly and privately in every conceivable way against the amendment. ”

“ Under the Corrupt Practices Act a political committee, so called, of at least five men, had to be formed to handle the funds of any group that spent more than $20 to carry or defeat a constitutional amendment. ”

“ Through the campaign year of 1914, preceding the vote on a constitutional amendment, which had been submitted by the Legislature, the association kept five salaried speakers continually in the field, besides numerous volunteers. On the list of the speakers' bureau there were 125 women and 76 men. The State and the Boston headquarters had a large office force, and in the field were nine organizers, giving full or half time. The State College Equal Suffrage League handled the retail literature for the association and took charge of the office hospitality. ”

“ In 1872 the New England Women's Club had given a reception for the only three college women then in this city. In 1907 this association had 3,147 members, several hundred of them in Boston alone. At the Whittier Centennial celebration at Amesbury on December 17 the poet's championship of equal rights for women was recalled with his work for other reforms. The Boston Federation of Suffrage Societies was organized by the Association for Good Government. The State Federation of Labor and the State Letter Carriers' Association endorsed woman suffrage. ”

“ Among the means employed to draw attention were huge "Votes for Women" kites, voiceless speeches (a series of placards held up to view in a store window or other public place) , distribution of literature in the baseball parks; a suffrage automobile or a section in the parades on Labor Day, Columbus Day, etc.; a pilgrimage to Worcester on the anniversary of the First National Woman's Rights Convention, led by Miss Florence Luscomb in old-fashioned costume, in Lucy Stone's carriage ”

“ The Act calling it, in describing those to whom its recommendations should be submitted for ratification, used the word "people." A bill drawn by Mrs. Crowley was filed in the Legislature by the State Suffrage Association asking that women be considered people within the meaning of this Act. The Senate asked the opinion of the State Supreme Court as to its constitutionality and she filed a brief. The Supreme Court decided adversely and in view of the rapid advance of the Federal Suffrage Amendment the association decided that no State amendment should be submitted by the convention. ”

“ The huge crowd of women made a deep impression and was largely featured in the press, which said that nothing like it had ever been seen in Boston. [7] The hearing was conducted for the petitioners by Mrs. Crowley and for the "antis" by Mr. Saunders. He was so impressed by the crowd that his usual sneering and jeering manner was wholly changed. The suffrage speakers were Dr. Shaw, John F. Tobin, president of the Boot and Shoe Workers' Union; Rabbi Charles Fleischer, Miss Josephine Casey, secretary of the Women's Trade Union League; Henry Abrahams of the Central Labor Union ”

“ Much interest was aroused and permanent Springfield headquarters were opened soon afterwards. Boston started to organize by wards and invitations were printed in various languages. The first meeting, in Ward 8, arranged by Mrs. Leonard, was attended by nearly 1,000 women and there were speeches in English and Yiddish. A class to train suffrage speakers was started. A suffrage club was organized in the College of Liberal Arts of Boston University. The suffragists sent Alfred H. Brown to help the campaign in the State of Washington. ”

“ The speakers for the Woman's Party were Mrs. Morey, Miss Betty Gram, Michael O'Leary, chairman of the Democratic State Committee, and Mrs. Louise Sykes. On the anti-suffrage side sixteen women representing the sixteen congressional districts told of their vote against suffrage in 1915. Miss Blackwell spoke in rebuttal for the suffragists, Miss Charlotte Rowe of Yonkers, N. Y., for the "antis." B. Loring Young, Republican floor leader in the House, acted as chairman of the suffrage Steering Committee in the House and Joseph Knox in the Senate. ”

“ Among the speakers at the Festival in May were Mrs. Frances Squire Potter, former Professor of English at the University of Minnesota; Professor Max Eastman of Columbia University, secretary of the New York Men's League for Woman Suffrage, and Professor Henry S. Nash of the Episcopal Theological School. At the State annual meeting in Lowell, October 27, 28, Philip Snowden, M. P., of England was a speaker. In connection with the convention Mrs. Park spoke before the Woman's Club ”

“ A noteworthy meeting was held on March 23, 1907, by the Boston Equal Suffrage Association to consider "the indebtedness of women of collegiate and professional training to the leaders of the suffrage movement." Every woman's college in the State was represented, as well as law and medicine. Mrs. Fanny B. Ames presided and college girls in cap and gown acted as ushers. The speakers were Mrs. Howe, Miss Georgia L. White, Assistant Professor of Economics at Smith College ”

“ One of the most significant features in the fall of 1911 was the political work of Miss Margaret Foley, as it marked the beginning of a new type of effort. She had made a special trip to England the year before with Miss Florence Luscomb and Miss Alice Carpenter to observe the methods of the English suffragettes, who were then receiving great publicity. ”

“ Shaw as president, Mrs. Fanny B. Ames, chairman of Executive Committee, and Mrs. Park as executive secretary. [2] It continued to be a power in the State till suffrage was won and aimed to devote itself not only to suffrage but to all activities in which women could be especially useful to the community.
The National Woman Suffrage Association of Massachusetts, a smaller organization, disbanded in 1901 after nearly twenty years of existence. Mrs. Sarah A. P. Dickerman was acting president, Miss Lavina A. Hatch secretary. ”

“ It compiled a list of about forty persons ready to give addresses on suffrage and sent a speaker free to every woman's club or other organization willing to hear the subject presented. It held ten public meetings and sent out 11,000 circulars to increase the women's registration and school vote in Boston. ”

“ Crowley. The attendance was small; people were shy at first of seeming to countenance such an innovation but the crowds grew as the meetings continued and it was found to be the best if not the only way to reach the mass of voters. A summer campaign of 97 open-air meetings was held, the speakers traveling mainly by trolley, covering a large part of the State and reaching about 25,000 persons. [4] Suffrage buttons and literature were distributed, posters put up, and sometimes mammoth kites flown to advertise the meetings. ”

“ Crowley and Mrs. Luce conducted the hearing for the two sides. The petitioners had arranged delegations representing different groups of women—mothers, home-makers, leisure women, lawyers, mission and church workers, artists, authors and journalists, doctors and nurses, Socialists, W. C. T. U., the "unrepresented" (widows and single women) , business women, trade unions, teachers, social workers, taxpayers, saleswomen, clerks and stenographers and college women. ”

“ Blackwell's 80th birthday (May 4) , with the presentation of a silver pitcher from the State association and addresses by William Lloyd Garrison and Mrs. Livermore. She had insisted upon coming, although by no means able. She said, "Mr. Blackwell and I have worked together for nearly half a century; we have gone anywhere and everywhere for woman suffrage. This evening he has been doing his best to persuade me to go out to the Oregon convention. ”

“ An enrollment of suffragists was begun. There was an increase of women's registration for the school vote in fourteen cities, in Boston of about 5,000. An investigation of the tax records by Mr. Blackwell showed that in Boston alone 18,500 women paid taxes on several hundred million dollars' worth of property.
1903. At the annual meeting of the State association on January 13, Mrs. Shaw and Mrs. Park presided. Mrs. Livermore was made honorary president and Mrs. Lucia Ames Mead president, Mrs. Mary Schlesinger, vice-president; Miss Harriet E. Turner, corresponding secretary ”