hoped to cover every polling space with women watchers and probably
about 80 per cent. of the total number of election districts of the
State were so covered. A total of 6,330 women served, many being on
duty from 5 a. m. till midnight.

On election night all over the State suffrage headquarters were open
and victory seemed in the air. Bulletin boards in New York City showed
the amendment winning in every borough and wires from up-State gave
encouraging reports. The State headquarters, an entire floor of the
large office building at 303 Fifth Avenue, New York, and the city
headquarters were thronged with happy crowds. Before midnight it
seemed certain that the four years of continuous campaign had resulted
in final victory for New York State, the stronghold of opposition, the
key to a Federal Suffrage Amendment because of its large
representation and power in Congress. When the complete returns came
in it was found that suffrage had lost up-State by 1,510 votes and
that it was New York City which carried the amendment by its majority
of 103,863, which reduced by 1,510 left a total majority of 102,353.

There were some evidences of fraud but the change of sentiment in
favor of suffrage was State-wide, and every county showed a gain. The
cities gave a better vote than the rural communities. The greatest
overturn was in Buffalo which changed an adverse majority of 10,822 in
1915 to a favorable one of 4,560 in 1917! The saloons of this city
displayed placards, "Vote No on Woman Suffrage," some putting them on
the outside of the building. Albany, in spite of the fight against the
amendment made by the Barnes "machine," although lost, registered a
gain of nearly fifty per cent. Rochester, which was lost, was
dominated by George W. Aldrich, the Republican leader, and Monroe and
adjoining counties were also influenced by their newspapers, which
nearly all were anti-suffrage. In Livingston county, the home of
Senator James W. Wadsworth, Jr., and his wife, who was president of
the National Anti-Suffrage Association, his influence was so strong
and his financial hold on the county so powerful that even men who
were in sympathy with woman suffrage were afraid to vote for it. This
influence materially reduced the favorable vote in adjoining counties.
There were several bitter local "wet" and "dry" fights that were very
bad for the suffrage vote.

The Republican Governor, Charles S. Whitman, spoke for the amendment.
Herbert Pars