第14章

类别:其他 作者:Olive Schreiner字数:8733更新时间:19/01/07 15:11:14
``No,no,’’sheobjected。``Youcannotbethejudgeofthat。Promisemeyouwillremainuntilthefriendsyoumosttrusttellyouitistimetowith— draw,ormakeyouunderstandthatitistime。 Promisemethat。’’ Imadethepromise。Sheseemedcontent,andagainbegantotalkofthefuture。 ``Youwillnothaveaneasypath,’’shewarnedme。``Insomewaysitwillbeharderforyouthanithaseverbeenforme。Iwassomucholderthantherestofyou,andIhadbeenpresidentsolong,thatyougirlshaveallbeenwillingtolistentome。Itwillbedifferentwithyou。Otherwomenofyourownagehavebeenintheworkalmostaslongasyouhavebeen;youdonotstandoutfromthembyageorlengthofservice,asIdid。Therewillbeinevi— tablejealousiesandmisunderstandings;therewillbeallsortsofcriticismandmisrepresentation。Mylastwordtoyouisthis:Nomatterwhatisdoneorisnotdone,howyouarecriticizedormisunder— stood,orwhateffortsaremadetoblockyourpath,rememberthattheonlyfearyouneedhaveisthefearofnotstandingbythethingyoubelievetoberight。Takeyourstandandholdit;thenletcomewhatwill,andreceiveblowslikeagoodsoldier。’’ Iwastoomuchovercometoanswerher;andafteramomentofsilenceshe,inherturn,mademeapromise。 ``Idonotknowanythingaboutwhatcomestousafterthislifeends,’’shesaid。``Butifthereisacontinuanceoflifebeyondit,andifIhaveanyconsciousknowledgeofthisworldandofwhatyouaredoing,Ishallnotbefarawayfromyou;andintimesofneedIwillhelpyouallIcan。Whoknows? PerhapsImaybeabletodomorefortheCauseafterIamgonethanwhileIamhere。’’ Nineyearshavepassedsincethen,andineachdayofthemallitseemstome,inlookingback,I havehadsomeoccasiontorecallherwords。WhentheywereutteredIdidnotfullycomprehendalltheymeant,ortheclearnessofthevisionthathadsuggestedthem。ItseemedtomethatnopositionIcouldholdwouldbeofsufficientimportancetoattractjealousyorpersonalattacks。Theyearshavebroughtmorewisdom;Ihavelearnedthatanyonewhoassumesleadership,orwho,likemyself,hashadleadershipforceduponher,mustexpecttobearmanythingsofwhichtheworldknowsnothing。 Butwiththisknowledge,too,hascomethememoryof``AuntSusan’s’’lastpromise,andagainandyetagaininhoursofdiscouragementanddespairIhavebeenhelpedbytheblessedconvictionthatshewaskeepingit。 Duringthelastforty—eighthoursofherlifeshewasunwillingthatIshouldleaveherside。SodayandnightIkneltbyherbed,holdingherhandandwatchingtheflameofherwonderfulspiritgrowdim。 Attimes,eventhen,itblazedupwithstartlingsud— denness。Onthelastafternoonofherlife,whenshehadlainquietforhours,shesuddenlybegantoutterthenamesofthewomenwhohadworkedwithher,asifinafinalroll—call。Manyofthemhadprecededherintothenextworld;otherswerestillsplendidlyactiveintheworkshewaslayingdown。Butyoungorold,livingordead,theyallseemedtofilepastherdyingeyesthatdayinanendless,shadowyre— view,andastheywentbyshespoketoeachofthem。 Notallthenamesshementionedwereknowninsuffrageranks;someofthesewomenlivedonlyintheheartofSusanB。Anthony,andnow,forthelasttime,shewasthankingthemforwhattheyhaddone。Herewasonewho,atamomentofspecialneed,hadgivenhersmallsavings;herewasanotherwhohadwonvaluablerecruitstotheCause;thisonehadwrittenastrongeditorial;thatonehadmadeastirringspeech。Inthesefinalhoursitseemedthatnotasinglesacrificeorservice,howeversmall,hadbeenforgottenbythedyingleader。Lastofall,shespoketothewomenwhohadbeenonherboardandhadstoodbyherloyallysolong——RachelFosterAvery,AliceStoneBlackwell,CarrieChap— manCatt,Mrs。Upton,LauraClay,andothers。 Then,afterlyinginsilenceforalongtimewithhercheekonmyhand,shemurmured:``Theyarestillpassingbeforeme——faceafterface,hundredsandhundredsofthem,representingalltheeffortsoffiftyyears。IknowhowhardtheyhaveworkedIknowthesacrificestheyhavemade。Butithasallbeenworthwhile!’’ Justbeforeshelapsedintounconsciousnesssheseemedrestlessandanxioustosaysomething,search— ingmyfacewithherdimmingeyes。 ``Doyouwantmetorepeatmypromise?’’I asked,forshehadalreadymademedososeveraltimes。Shemadeasignofassent,andIgavehertheassuranceshedesired。AsIdidsosheraisedmyhandtoherlipsandkissedit——herlastconsciousaction。FormorethanthirtyhoursafterthatI kneltbyherside,butthoughsheclungtomyhanduntilherownhandgrewcold,shedidnotspeakagain。 Shehadtoldmeoverandoverhowmuchourlongfriendshipandassociationhadmeanttoher,andthecomfortIhadgivenher。ButwhateverImayhavebeentoher,itwasasnothingcomparedwithwhatshewastome。Kneelingclosetoherasshepassedaway,IknewthatIwouldhavegivenheradozenliveshadIhadthem,andenduredathousandtimesmorehardshipthanwehadbornetogether,fortheinspirationofhercompanionshipandthejoyofheraffection。TheywerethegreatestblessingsIhavehadinallmylife,andIcherishasmydearesttreas— urethevolumeofherHistoryofWomanSuffrageonthefly—leafofwhichshehadwrittenthisin— scription: REVERENDANNAHOWARDSHAW: ThishugevolumeIVIpresenttoyouwiththelovethatamotherbeareth,andIhopeyouwillfindinitthefactsaboutwomen,foryouwillfindthemnowhereelse。Yourpartwillbetoseethatthefourvolumesaredulyplacedinthelibrariesofthecountry,whereeverystudentofhistorymayhaveaccesstothem。 Withunboundedloveandfaith,SUSANB。ANTHONY。 Thatfinallineisstillmygreatestcomfort。WhenIammisrepresentedormisunderstood,whenIamaccusedofpersonalambitionorofworkingforper— sonalends,Iturntoitandtosimilarlinespennedbythesamehand,andtellmyselfthatIshouldnotallowanythingtointerferewiththeserenityofmyspiritortodisturbmeinmywork。Attheendofeighteenyearsofthemostintimatecompanionship,theleaderofourCause,thegreatestwomanIhaveeverknown,stillfeltforme``unboundedloveandfaith。’’Havinghadthat,Ihavehadenough。 Fortwodaysafter``AuntSusan’s’’deathshelayinherownhome,asifinrestfulslumber,herfacewearingitsmostexquisitelookofpeacefulserenity; andhereherspecialfriends,thepoorandtheunfor— tunateofthecity,camebyhundredstopaytheirlastrespects。Onthethirddaytherewasapublicfuneral,heldintheCongregationalchurch,and,thoughawildblizzardwasraging,everyoneinRochesterseemedincludedinthegreatthrongofmournerswhocametoherbierinreverenceandleftitintears。Thechurchserviceswereconductedbythepastor,theRev。C。C。Albertson,alifelongfriendofMissAnthony’s,assistedbytheRev。Will— iamC。Gannett。JamesG。Potter,theMayorofthecity,andDr。RushRhees,presidentofRochesterUniversity,occupiedprominentplacesamongthedistinguishedmourners,andMrs。JeromeJeffries,theheadofacoloredschool,spokeinbehalfofthenegroraceanditsrecognitionofMissAnthony’sservices。Collegeclubs,medicalsocieties,andre— formgroupswererepresentedbydelegatessentfromdifferentstates,andMissAnnaGordonhadcomeonfromIllinoistorepresenttheWoman’sNationalChristianTemperanceUnion。Mrs。CattdeliveredaeulogyinwhichsheexpressedtheloveandrecognitionoftheorganizedsuffragewomenoftheworldforMissAnthony,astheonetowhomtheyhadalllookedastheirleader。WilliamLloydGarrisonspokeofMissAnthony’sworkwithhisfatherandotheranti— slaveryleaders,andMrs。JeanBrooksGreenleafspokeinbehalfoftheNewYorkStateSuffrageAssociation。Then,as``AuntSusan’’hadrequested,Imadetheclosingaddress。Shehadaskedmetodothisandtopronouncethebenediction,aswellastosaythefinalwordsathergrave。 Itwasestimatedthatmorethantenthousandpersonswereassembledinandaroundthechurch,andafterthebenedictionthosewhohadbeenpa— tientlywaitingoutinthestormwerepermittedtopassinsideinsinglefileforalastlookattheirfriend。TheyfoundthecoffincoveredbyalargeAmericanflag,onwhichlayawreathoflaurelandpalms;arounditstoodaguardofhonorcomposedofgirlstudentsofRochesterUniversityintheircollegecapsandgowns。Alldaystudentshadmountedguard,relievingoneanotheratintervals。 Oneverysidetherewereflowersandfloralemblemssentbyvariousorganizations,andjustover``AuntSusan’s’’headfloatedthesilkflaggiventoherbythewomenofColorado。Itcontainedfourgoldstars,representingthefourenfranchisedstates,whiletheotherstarswereinsilver。OnherbreastwaspinnedthejeweledflaggiventoheronhereightiethbirthdaybythewomenofWyoming——thefirstplaceintheworldwhereintheconstitutionofthestatewomenweregivenequalpoliticalrightswithmen。Herethefourstarsrepresentingtheenfranchisedstatesweremadeofdiamonds,theothersofsilverenamel。JustbeforethelidwasfastenedonthecoffinthisflagwasremovedandhandedtoMaryAnthony,whopresentedittome。 FromthatdayIhavewornitoneveryoccasionofimportancetoourCause,andeachtimeastateiswonforwomansuffrageIhaveaddedanewdiamondstar。AtthetimeIwritethis——in1914——therearetwelve。 AsthefuneralprocessionwentthroughthestreetsofRochesteritwasseenthatallthecityflagswereathalf—mast,byorderoftheCityCouncil。Manyhousesweredrapedinblack,andthegriefofthecitizensmanifesteditselfoneveryside。AllthewaytoMountHopeCemeterythesnowwhirledblind— inglyaroundus,whilethemassesthathadfallencoveredtheearthasfaraswecouldseeafittingwinding—sheetfortheonewhohadgone。Underthefir—treesaroundheropengraveIobeyed``AuntSusan’s’’wishthatIshouldutterthelastwordsspokenoverherbodyasshewaslaidtorest: ``Dearfriend,’’Isaid,``thouhasttarriedwithuslong。Nowthouhastgonetothywell—earnedrest。 WebeseechtheInfiniteSpiritWhohasupheldtheetomakeusworthytofollowinthystepsandtocarryonthywork。Hailandfarewell。’’ XI THEWIDENINGSUFFRAGESTREAM InmychaptersonMissAnthonyIbridgedthetwentyyearsbetween1886and1906,omittingmanyofthestirringsuffrageeventsofthatlongperiod,inmydesiretoconcentrateonthosewhichmostvitallyconcernedher。Imustnowretracemystepsalongthewideningsuffragestreamandde— scribe,consecutivelyatleast,andasfullyastheseincompletereminiscenceswillpermit,otherinci— dentsthatoccurredonitsbanks。 Ofthesethemostimportantwastheunionin1889ofthetwogreatsuffragesocieties——theAmeri— canAssociation,ofwhichLucyStonewasthepresi— dent,andtheNationalAssociation,headedbySusanB。AnthonyandElizabethCadyStanton。AtaconventionheldinWashingtonthesesocietiesweremergedasTheNationalAmericanWomanSuffrageAssociation——thenameourassociationstillbears—— andMrs。Stantonwaselectedpresident。Shewasthennearlyeightyandpastactivework,butshemadeawonderfulpresidingofficeratoursubsequentmeetings,andshewasaspicturesqueasshewasefficient。 MissAnthony,whohadanimmenseadmirationforherandagreatpersonalprideinher,alwaysescortedhertothecapital,and,havingworkedherutmosttomakethemeetingasuccess,invariablygaveMrs。Stantoncreditforallthatwasaccom— plished。SheoftensaidthatMrs。Stantonwasthebrainsofthenewassociation,whilesheherselfwasmerelyitshandsandfeet;butintruththetwowomenworkedmarvelouslytogether,forMrs。 StantonwasamasterofwordsandcouldwriteandspeaktoperfectionofthethingsSusanB。Anthonysawandfeltbutcouldnotherselfexpress。UsuallyMissAnthonywenttoMrs。Stanton’shouseandtookchargeofitwhileshestimulatedthevenerablepresidenttothewritingofherannualaddress。 Then,atthesubsequentconvention,shewouldlistentothereportwithasmuchdelightandpleasureasifeachwordofithadbeennewtoher。EvenafterMrs。Stanton’sresignationfromthepresidency—— attheend,Ithink,ofthreeyears——andMissAn— thony’selectionashersuccessor,``AuntSusan’’stillwenttoheroldfriendwheneveranimportantreso— lutionwastobewritten,andMrs。Stantonloyallydrafteditforher。 Mrs。Stantonwasthemostbrilliantconversa— tionalistIhaveeverknown;andthebesttalkI haveheardanywherewasthattowhichIusedtolisteninthehomeofMrs。ElizaWrightOsborne,inAuburn,NewYork,whenMrs。Stanton,SusanB。Anthony,EmilyHowland,ElizabethSmithMiller,IdaHustedHarper,MissMills,andIweregatheredthereforouroccasionalweek—endvisits。 Mrs。Osborneinheritedhersuffragesympathies,forshewasthedaughterofMarthaWright,who,withMrs。StantonandLucretiaMott,calledthefirstsuffrageconventioninSenecaFalls,NewYork。I mustaddinpassingthatherson,ThomasMottOsborne,whoisdoingsuchadmirableworkinprisonreformatSingSing,hasshownhimselfworthyofthegiftedandhigh—mindedmotherwhogavehimtotheworld。 MostoftheconversationinMrs。Osborne’shomewascontributedbyMrs。StantonandMissAnthony,whiletherestofussat,asitwere,attheirfeet。 Manyhumanandfemininetouchesbrightenedtheloftydiscussionsthatwereconstantlygoingon,andthevariedcharacteristicsofourleaderscroppedupinamusingfashion。Mrs。Stanton,forexample,wasrarelyaccurateingivingfiguresordates,whileMissAnthonywasalwaysveryexactinsuchmatters。 ShefrequentlycorrectedMrs。Stanton’sstatements,andMrs。Stantonusuallytooktheinterruptioninthebestpossiblespirit,promptlyadmittingthat``AuntSusan’’knewbest。OnoneoccasionIre— call,however,sheheldfasttoheropinionthatshewasrightastothemonthinwhichacertaininci— denthadoccurred。 ``No,Susan,’’sheinsisted,``you’rewrongforonce。Irememberperfectlywhenthathappened,foritwasatthetimeIwasbeginningtoweanHarriet。’’ AuntSusan,thoughsomewhatstaggeredbytheforceofthistestimony,stillmaintainedthatMrs。 Stantonmustbemistaken,whereuponthelatterrepeated,inexasperation,``ItellyouithappenedwhenIwasweaningHarriet。’’Andsheadded,scornfully,``Whateventhaveyougottoreckonfrom?’’ MissAnthonymeeklysubsided。 Mrs。Stantonhadwonderfulblueeyes,whichheldtotheendofherlifeanexpressionofeternalyouth。Duringourconventionssheusuallytookalittlenapintheafternoon,andwhensheawokeherblueeyesalwayshadanexpressionofpleasedandinnocentsurprise,asifsheweregazingontheworldforthefirsttime——theround,unwinking,interestedlookababy’seyeshavewhensomethingattractiveisheldupbeforethem。 Letmegiveinaparagraph,beforeIswingoffintothebypathsthatalwaysallureme,theconsecutivesuffrageeventsofthepastquarterofacentury。 Havingdonethis,IcandwelloneachascasuallyasIchoose,foritispossibletodescribeonlyafewincidentshereandthere;andIshallnotbedepart— ingfromthestoryofmylife,formylifehadbecomemergedinthesuffragecause。 OfthepreliminarysuffragecampaignsinKansas,madeincompanywith``AuntSusan,’’Ihaveal— readywritten,anditremainsonlytosaythatdur— ingthesecondKansascampaignyellowwasadoptedasthesuffragecolor。In1890,’92,and’93weagainworkedinKansasandinSouthDakota,withsuchindefatigableandbrilliantspeakersasMrs。Catt(towhoseeffortsalsowerelargelyduethewinningofColoradoin’93),Mrs。LauraJohnsofKansas,Mrs。JuliaNelson,HenryB。Blackwell,Dr。HelenV。PutnamofDakota,Mrs。EmmaSmithDeVoe,Rev。OlympiaBrowneofWisconsin,andDr。MarySeymourHowellofNewYork。In’94,’95,and’96 specialeffortsweredevotedtoIdaho,Utah,Cali— fornia,andWashington,andfromthenonourcampaignswerewagedsteadilyintheWesternstates。 TheColoradovictorygaveustwofullsuffragestates,forin1869theTerritoryofWyominghaden— franchisedwomenunderveryinterestingconditions,notnowgenerallyremembered。Theachievementwasduetotheinfluenceofonewoman,EstherMorris,apioneerwhowasasgoodaneighborasshewasasuffragist。Inthoseearlydays,inhomesfarfromphysiciansandsurgeons,thewomencaredforoneanotherinsickness,andEstherMorris,asithappened,oncetookfullandskilfulchargeofaneighborduringthedifficultbirthofthelatter’schild。Shehaddonethesamethingformanyotherwomen,butthiswoman’shusbandwasespeciallygrateful。HewasalsoamemberoftheLegislature,andhetoldMrs。Morristhatiftherewasanymeasureshewishedputthroughforthewomenoftheterritoryhewouldbegladtointroduceit。 Sheimmediatelytookhimathiswordbyaskinghimtointroduceabillenfranchisingwomen,andhepromptlydidso。 TheLegislaturewasDemocratic,anditpounceduponthemeasureasahugejoke。WiththeamiablepurposeofembarrassingtheGovernoroftheter— ritory,whowasaRepublicanandhadbeenappointedbythePresident,thememberspassedthebillandputituptohimtoveto。Totheircombinedhorrorandamazement,theyoungGovernordidnothingofthekind。Hehadcome,asithappened,fromSalem,Ohio,oneofthefirsttownsintheUnitedStatesinwhichasuffrageconventionwasheld。 There,asaboy,hehadheardSusanB。Anthonymakeaspeech,andhehadcarriedintotheyearstheimpressionitmadeuponhim。Hesignedthatbill;and,astheLegislaturecouldnotgetatwo— thirdsvotetokillit,thedisgustedmembershadtomakethebestofthematter。ThefollowingyearaDemocratintroducedabilltorepealthemeasure,butalreadypublicsentimenthadchangedandhewaslaugheddown。AfterthatnofurthereffortwasevermadetotaketheballotawayfromthewomenofWyoming。 Whentheterritoryappliedforstatehood,itwasfearedthatthewoman—suffrageclauseinthecon— stitutionmightinjureitschanceofadmission,andthewomensentthistelegramtoJosephM。Carey: ``Dropusifyoumust。WecantrustthemenofWyomingtoenfranchiseusafterourterritorybe— comesastate。’’ Mr。CareydiscussedthistelegramwiththeothermenwhowereurginguponCongresstheadmissionoftheirterritory,andthefollowingreplywentback: ``WemaystayoutoftheUnionahundredyears,butwewillcomeinwithourwomen。’’ Thereisgreatinspirationinthosetwomessages—— andagreatlesson,aswell。 In1894weconductedacampaigninNewYork,whenaneffortwasmadetosecureaclausetoen— franchisewomeninthenewstateconstitution;andforthefirsttimeinthehistoryofthewoman—suf— fragemovementmanyoftheinfluentialwomeninthestateandcityofNewYorktookanactivepartinthework。MissAnthonywas,asalways,ourleaderandgreatestinspiration。Mrs。JohnBrooksGreenleafwasstatepresident,andMissMaryAnthonywasthemostactiveworkerintheRoches— terheadquarters。Mrs。LilyDevereauxBlakehadchargeofthecampaigninNewYorkCity,andMrs。 MariannaChapmanlookedaftertheBrooklynsec— tion,whileamoststimulatingsignofthetimeswastheorganizationofacommitteeofNewYorkwomenofwealthandsocialinfluence,whoestab— lishedtheirheadquartersatSherry’s。AmongthesewereMrs。JosephineShawLowell,Mrs。JosephH。 Choate,Dr。MaryPutnamJacobi,Mrs。J。WarrenGoddard,andMrs。RobertAbbe。MissAnthony,theninherseventy—fifthyear,spokeineverycountyofthestatesixtyinall。Ispokeinforty,andMrs。 Catt,asalways,madeasuperbrecord。MissHar— rietMayMills,agraduateofCornell,andMissMaryG。Hay,didadmirableorganizationworkinthedif— ferentcounties。Ourdisappointmentoverthere— sultwasgreatlysoothedbythefactthatonlytwoyearslaterbothIdahoandUtahswungintolineasfullsuffragestates,thoughCalifornia,inwhichwehadlaboredwithequalzeal,waitedfifteenyearslonger。 Amongthesecampaigns,andoverlappingthem,wereourannualconventions——eachofwhichIat— tendedfrom1888on——andthenationalandinter— nationalcouncils,toanumberofwhich,also,Ihavegivenpreliminarymention。WhenSusanB。An—