Journal has
had only what we may perhaps call our "Hope Chest." It was constructed
purely out of the hope that, if the paper filled a need, if it was
found worthy of the movement it represents, its finances would in
some way take care of themselves. And it is a wonderful tribute to the
believers in the cause for equal suffrage that this plan has worked
for better or worse for more than forty years.

As the financial responsibilities of the paper have grown during
the past six years, however, it has become apparent that we must not
merely publish the paper each year and hope to pay our bills but that
we must study the question of financing a growing paper with ever
growing needs of expansion and consequent growing financial risks.

Accordingly, we decided that if we must "raise money" each year in
some way or other, we must go about it in a well thought out way and
not leave such an important matter to haphazard uncertainties. We
have, therefore, formed a small Finance Department and have studied
all of the ways of raising money that are known to us, trying of
course to make out which ones are particularly adapted to our needs.

The result is that we have decided on the following course:

(1) To issue this survey of the Journal's work, and ask suffragists to
consider the value of the paper purely on its merits and contribute to
it and support it if they believe in what it is doing.

(2) To form a Central Finance Committee with a branch in each state in
the Union.

(3) To ask able women and friendly organizations in various towns
and cities throughout the country to give a ball, banquet, bazaar,
festival or other benefit or entertainment with the express purpose of
sharing the proceeds with the Woman's Journal.

Because of the vitality of the paper through the barren pioneer days,
through the days of ridicule and up into these times of great numbers,
splendid prestige and backing for the whole movement, we have faith
that our hopes are not in vain.

[Illustration: Mrs. David Hunt A Generous Supporter of the Woman's
Journal]

One proof of our faith is that we find working in the Woman's Journal
office year after year is in some ways like living in a fairy
story. We never know what is going to happen next. The day after
election--and defeat in New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New
Jersey--a woman came to the Journal office bearing a check for $1,000
in her hand and saying in substance, "Here is a small ch