the Press Club of New York made the startling
innovation of giving a dinner to which ladies were invited. Among the
guests were Phoebe and Alice Gary, Mary L. Booth, Elizabeth Oakes
Smith, Olive Logan, Mary Kyle Dallas and Miss Anthony. J. W. Simonton,
of the Associated Press, was toast-master. Not having had the slightest
intimation that she was expected to speak, Miss Anthony was called upon
to respond to the question, "Why don't the women propose?" Without a
moment's hesitation she arose and said: "Under present conditions, it
would require a good deal of assurance for a woman to say to a man,
'Please, sir, will you support me for the rest of my life?' When all
avocations are open to woman and she has an opportunity to acquire a
competence, she will then be in a position where it will not be
humiliating for her to ask the man she loves to share her prosperity.
Instead of requesting him to provide food, raiment and shelter for her,
she can invite him into her home, contribute her share to the
partnership and not be an utter dependent. There will be also another
advantage in this arrangement--if he prove unworthy she can ask him to
walk out." It will be seen by this original and daring reply that Miss
Anthony could not attend a dinner party even without creating a
sensation.

The passage of the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery, and the
Fourteenth establishing the citizenship of the negro, did not prove
sufficient to protect him in his right of suffrage and, although Sumner
and other Republican leaders contended that another amendment was not
necessary for this, the majority of the party did not share this
opinion and it became evident that one would have to be added.[48]
Those proposed by Pomeroy and Julian securing universal suffrage were
brushed aside without debate, and the following was submitted by
Congress to the State legislatures, February 27, 1869:

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be
denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State, on
account of race, color or previous condition of servitude.

Amendment XIV had settled the status of citizenship. "All persons born
or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction
thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein
they reside." Now came the next measure to protect the citizen's right
to vote, which proposed to guard against any discrimination on account
of race, of c