measure. When she finished not a man raised his voice against it. The House adjourned to permit Mrs. Dudley and Mrs. Scott to speak to the members and the final roll call registered only fourteen noes. It passed the Senate with only three dissenting votes. The leagues all over the State had brought strong pressure to bear upon their representatives. In 1917 it was replaced by the Presidential suffrage bill.
On May 17 a conference was held at Tullahoma, where the Campaign Committee was formed. Two joint-chairmen headed the executive committee, Mrs. Kenny and Mrs. Henry J. Kelso of Knoxville, with Mrs. Scott vice-chairman. On the resignation of Mrs. Kelso, Mrs. Milton was elected in her place.[1] Miss Flizabeth Breen, executive secretary, gave untiring and efficient service. Headquarters were opened in Nashville. This Campaign Committee was the trail-blazer. Although in operation only seven months it organized thirty-two leagues; enrolled 9,600 names; printed and distributed 75,000 pieces of literature and expended on organization work over $4,000. State-wide publicity was gained; the workers received valuable training in organizing and public speaking and it was a harmonizing force.
It was difficult to enlist Tennessee suffragists in street speaking, not that they had not the courage of their faith but they feared to violate the conservative traditions of their southland. After seeing its wonderful effect during the national suffrage convention in Atlantic City in 1916 a few of the bold-hearted summoned courage and the first attempt was made in Jackson and Memphis in 1917 by Mrs. Kimbrough, Mrs. Kenny, Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Reno and Miss White. At the State Fair in Nashville in 1918 the Campaign Committee took charge of the open air meetings, these women speaking eight or ten times each day, and they were rewarded by the great number of enrollment cards signed by those who received the message favorably.
In 1917 the legislative campaign was conducted under the friendly administration of a Democratic Governor, Tom C. Rye, and under the direction of Mrs. Dudley, State president, and
- ↑ The other congressional district chairmen were Mrs. Ferd. E. Powell, Johnson City; Miss Sara Ruth Fraser, Chattanooga; Mrs. Sam Young, Dixon Springs; Mrs. Walter Jackson, Murfreesboro; Mrs. Kimbrough, Nashville; Mrs. Ben Childers, Pulaski; Miss Sue S.—s Jas. B. Ezzell, Newsom Station; Mre. M. M. Betts, Memphis.
