first president, Mrs Gladstone, who was an anti-suffragist. It was certainly due to the influence of the wives of politicians who saw in the Liberal Federation only an organisation for helping Liberal men. Many enlightened Liberal women members held the view that, if they were good enough to work for Liberal men they were good enough to vote as Liberal women for Liberal measures, and proceeded to educate their organisation on these lines; with the result that in 1883 there was a split in the Women's Liberal Federation, the National Women's Liberal Association being formed. This body differs from its parent in that it declines to make woman suffrage a test question for Liberal candidates, but supports all candidates satisfactory to the Party Caucus. The present President of the Women's Liberal Federation is Rosalind, Countess of Carlisle, a strong and stalwart supporter of woman suffrage.
Since the year 1869, fourteen Bills and a number of resolutions in favour of woman suffrage have been before the House of Commons, and seven have passed their second reading. Since 1886 there has been a majority in the House of Commons pledged to woman suffrage. This satisfactory state of things is due in a large measure to the hard and patient work of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies. This Society
