tice, and next because of
the good-humored tolerance with which the suffragists accepted it.

The Atlanta convention, by the way, was arranged and largely financed by
the Misses Howard--three sisters living in Columbus, Georgia, and each
an officer of the Georgia Woman Suffrage Association. It is a remarkable
fact that in many of our Southern states the suffrage movement has been
led by three sisters. In Kentucky the three Clay sisters were for many
years leaders in the work. In Texas the three Finnegan sisters did
splendid work; in Louisiana the Gordon sisters were our stanchest
allies, while in Virginia we had the invaluable aid of Mary Johnston,
the novelist, and her two sisters. We used to say, laughingly, if there
was a failure to organize any state in the South, that it must be due to
the fact that no family there had three sisters to start the movement.

From the Atlanta convention we went directly to Washington to attend
the convention of the National Council of Women, and on the first day of
this council Frederick Douglass came to the meeting. Mr. Douglass had a
special place in the hearts of suffragists, for the reason that at the
first convention ever held for woman suffrage in the United States (at
Seneca Falls, New York) he was the only person present who stood by
Elizabeth Cady Stanton when she presented her resolution in favor of
votes for women. Even Lucretia Mott was startled by this radical step,
and privately breathed into the ear of her friend, "Elizabeth, thee is
making us ridiculous!" Frederick Douglass, however, took the floor in
defense of Mrs. Stanton's motion, a service we suffragists never forgot.

Therefore, when the presiding officer of the council, Mrs. May Wright
Sewall, saw Mr. Douglass enter the convention hall in Washington on this
particular morning, she appointed Susan B. Anthony and me a committee to
escort him to a seat on the platform, which we gladly did. Mr. Douglass
made a short speech and then left the building, going directly to his
home. There, on entering his hall, he had an attack of heart failure
and dropped dead as he was removing his overcoat. His death cast a gloom
over the convention, and his funeral, which took place three days
later, was attended by many prominent men and women who were among the
delegates. Miss Anthony and I were invited to take part in the funeral
services, and she made a short address, while I offered a prayer.

The event had an aftermath in Atl