stion of submitting a suffrage amendment be referred to the next
Legislature--three dissenting and favoring its submission this year.
On March 23 consideration of the question was voted down and the yeas
and nays were refused.

On March 31 and April 1 License Suffrage was discussed and finally
defeated by 93 yeas, 116 nays, including pairs.

The Committee on Election Laws reported in favor of Municipal Suffrage
but the bill was defeated.

The Supreme Court decided that women could not be made notaries public
because they are not distinctly named as eligible in the State
constitution.

Thomas F. Keenan, an opponent of woman suffrage, introduced a bill to
license houses "for commercial sexual intercourse," which he alone
voted for.[322]

_1897_--It was decided to ask this year for a thorough revision and
equalization of the statutes bearing on domestic relations, in view of
the fact that the last Legislature had appointed a committee of
lawyers to revise and codify the laws. Especial attention was called
to the need of a law making fathers and mothers joint guardians of
their children. Mr. Ernst, in behalf of the association, prepared a
bill equalizing the property rights of husbands and wives. Mr.
Russell, in behalf of the M. A. O. F. E. S. W. (which had for years
been circulating leaflets declaring that the laws of Massachusetts
were already more than just to women) prepared a bill tending in a
similar direction; and a Judge of Probate prepared a more limited
bill. All three appeared before the revising committee and, after
repeated conferences, a bill making some improvements was recommended
by the committee and enacted by the Legislature, but with a proviso
that it should not go into effect until the following year, in order
that the next Legislature might have a chance to amend it.

On February 10 the committee gave a hearing to the petitioners for the
submission of an amendment to enfranchise women. It was addressed by
Mr. Blackwell, Mrs. Cheney, Mrs. Boland, the Rev. Thomas Scully, the
Rev. Mr. Ames, the Rev. Augusta Chapin, Miss Blackwell and others. No
remonstrants appeared. The committee reported favorably, but on
February 18 the bill was defeated by 74 yeas, 107 nays.

On February 24 the Committee on Election Laws heard arguments for
Municipal and Presidential Suffrage, and also on the petition of the
W. C. T. U. for License Suffrage. The committee had before it 144
largely signed petitions for suffrag