the national workers,
Miss Lavinia Engle, to assist. This year Mr. Heard, president of the
Heard National Bank, gave the league the use of a large front room on
its first office floor.

On Feb. 13, 1913, the Political Equality Club of Lake Helen was formed
with Mrs. S. A. Armstrong president and Mrs. Irene Adams secretary. On
the 27th the Equal Suffrage League of Orlando was organized with the
Rev. Mary A. Safford president, and in October the first demand for
suffrage was made here. The Mayor issued a notice that all freeholders
must register for the sewerage bond election by the 9th, and a few
suffragists saw their opportunity. Very secretly and hurriedly, before
the Mayor could get word of it and give notice that the election was
meant for men only, Miss Emma Hainer and Mrs. Helen Starbuck gathered
together several women who owned valuable property and they went to
the city clerk's office and announced that they had come in response
to the Mayor's call to register for the coming election. He referred
them to the Mayor, who referred them to the Council, which referred
them to the city attorney. He told them that the law did not permit
women to register. This they knew, but their action caused a
discussion of the question and disclosed a widespread belief that
women should have the right to vote.

At a meeting of the executive board of the Orlando league in the home
of Mrs. J. C. Patterson April 21 the question of forming a State
Association was earnestly considered and Miss Safford was requested to
prepare a "call" for this purpose. Soon afterwards she and Mrs.
Starbuck were sent to Tallahassee by the league to aid the suffrage
work being done in the Legislature. Here the great need of a State
organization was very apparent, as legislators constantly asked,
"Where are the suffragists from my district?"

During the summer through conversation with interested suffragists
and correspondence with Mrs. Cooley, president of the Jacksonville
league, arrangements were made for calling a convention to organize a
State association at Orlando at the time of the meeting of the State
Federation of Women's Clubs. This took place Nov. 4, 1913, Miss
Safford was chairman, Mrs. Isabel Stanley secretary of the convention
and addresses were made by women from half a dozen towns. A committee
was appointed to draft a constitution and by-laws which reported at an
adjourned meeting on the 6th, when they were adopted and the following
off