When the modern agitation for suffrage began, the women of the state remembered their ancient rights, of which they had been illegally deprived. I well remember Lucy Stone, the noted suffrage leader, whose baby’s cradle was attached because she refused to pay taxes. She was a comely woman, with a motherly face and soft, sweet voice, but possessed of iron determination! It might have paid the anti-suffragists to redeem and restore that cradle, for the baby grew up to be Alice Stone Blackwell. She has carried on, with unfaltering and single-hearted devotion, the work so nobly begun by her parents, Lucy Stone and Henry Blackwell. When they removed to Massachusetts the movement flagged for a time. Through the efforts of Dr. Mary D. Hussey, a most devoted and unselfish suffrage-worker, a state association was formed in 1890. In 1893 I was elected to the office of president, bringing to it the experience already acquired in the club and Federation movement. The New Jersey Woman Suffrage Association now began the active career which has continued for a quarter of a century with ever-increasing momentum. When we, the pioneers, look at its wonderful growth, we are glad to think that ours was the privilege of doing the foundation work. Of this the inauguration of branch leagues was an important part. These we established in Essex County, Union County, Camden, Trenton, Asbury Park, Moorestown. In 1894 the law which permitted women to vote at school meetings was declared unconstitutional. The New Jersey state constitution of 1844 (adopted without consulting the women whom it disfranchised) limited the right of voting for officers elective by the people to male citizens. School trustees are officers elective by the people, therefore women clearly could not vote for them. But this same constitution cheerfully forgot to forbid women to hold office or to vote for the issuance of bonds, etc. Women were already serving acceptably as school trustees in different parts of the state. There seemed to be no reason why they should not continue to do so. They had also been voting during seven years for these officers and always for the benefit of the schools, according to the almost universal testimony of the educational authorities. A number of school-houses in New Jersey owe their existence to the votes of women combined with those of progressive men. The feminine voters were discouraged by the adverse decision of the Supreme Court. It was a part of our task to point out to them the rights still remaining and to encourage them to use these, for the benefit of the children. Finding that the constitution of the state was to be amended, we decided to ask the Legislature to pass an amendment restoring to us the rights of school suffrage that we had lost. We hoped to have these extended to towns and cities, but were assured that it would be impossible to procure any extension of the school suffrage.