to encounter danger and
to brave death. The men and women who suffered at Concord and at
Lexington 100 years ago to-day, were martyrs to the sacred cause
of personal liberty! Looking over the records of the past we
find, again and again repeated, the burden of their complaints.
Not that they were starving or dying, but that they were taxed
without their consent, and that they were denied personal
representation.

The congress which assembled at Philadelphia in 1774, declared
that "the foundation of liberty and of all free governments is
the right of the people to participate in their legislative
council"; and the House of Burgesses, assembled in Virginia in
the same year, asserted "That a determined system is formed and
pressed for reducing us to slavery, by subjecting us to the
payment of taxes imposed without our consent." Strong language
this, as strong as any we women have ever employed in addressing
the men of this nation. Our ancestors called the imposition of
taxes without their consent, slavery, and the denial of personal
representation, tyranny. Slavery and tyranny! words which they
tell us to-day are too strong for our use. We must find some mild
and lady-like phrases in which to describe these oppressions. We
must employ some safe and gentle terms to indicate the crimes
which our forefathers denounced! My friends, what was truth a
century ago is truth to-day! Other things may have changed, but
justice has not changed in a hundred years!

In 1876 a presidential election was again approaching, and to meet
the exigencies of the campaign a woman suffrage committee was
formed to ask the legislature to grant presidential suffrage to
women, as it was strictly within their power to do without a
constitutional amendment. To this end Mrs. Gage prepared an appeal
which was widely circulated throughout the State:

Within a year the election of President and Vice-President of the
United States, will again take place. The right to vote for these
functionaries is a National and not a State right; the United
States has unquestioned control of this branch of suffrage, and
in its constitution has declared to whom it has delegated this
power. Article 2 of the Constitution of the United States, is
devoted to the president; the manner of choosing him, his power,
his du