Speeches & Writings File
[Reminiscences of Frederick
Douglass, 1934-54 and undated] 

Remarks on Frederick Douglass by Mary Church Terrell, Feb. 4, 1934

     Frederick Douglass was undoubtedly the greatest man this country
has ever produced. One has only to consider the depths from which he
came and the heights to which he finally rose to realize that this is true

     Other men born in lowly conditions and reared in humble surroundings
have achieved distinction and won success in various walks of life, 
it is true. But not one of these was born a slave and subjected to the
cruelties which Frederick Douglass endured from the time he was ushered
into this world till he became a man and then threw off his shackles by
the sheer force of his unbreakable determination, [and] his indomitable will
and his fearless courage. 

     Frederick Douglass was the first bondman to prove that slaves were
were endowed by nature with the same qualities of head and heart which men of
other racial groups possess. By thousands of so-called Christians slavery
was justified on the ground that God intended that the African should be
held as a slave, because he had neither a brain nor a soul. As an orator
Frederick Douglass was considered the equal, if not the superior of Wendell 
Phillips, Charles Sumner, William Loyd Garrison and others of his
day. Each and every one of those men enjoyed advantages superior to his
in heredity, environment, education and the wherewithal to meet his daily
needs..

     Long before History Week was conceived while I was a member of the
Board of Education in the [this] National Capital in 1897 I introduced a resolution
which was unanimously passed by the Board to make February 14th Douglass
Day in our public schools. I was convinced then as I am to day that it is
our duty to teach our youth that men and women of our [their] racial group have [heard]
distinguished themselves in various ways just as those of other races
have done .For many years Douglass Day was faithfully observed in our
public schools. If I had done nothing else during the 11 years I served 
as a member of the Board of Education than to make it possible for our

2
boys and girls in Washington to learn what a great man Frederick Douglass
was I should consider [considered] that my service in that capacity was well worth
while. 

     It was my privilege to be well acquainted with Mr. Douglass from the
time I [he] was a young woman till he passed away. I was with him at  a meeting of the National Council of Women
held in [what is now] the Columbia Theatre and walked a distance with him at noon on the
day he passed away suddenly at his home in Anancostia, as he was telling
his wife how the members of that organization had honored him by inviting
him to the platform and giving him the Chautauqua salute. 

     Judge Terrell and myself spent many a pleasant Sunday evening in Mr. 
Douglass' home. Being in the company of that great man was a joy, an education
and an inspiration which it is impossible to describe. 

     No matter how poor in this world's goods I might become, if one
should promise to give me a fortune to sell him the honor and the pleasure
which being Frederick Douglass' friend afforded and thereby [there] deprive myself
of that blessed, rich experience I should reject his offer and remain in
poverty the rest of my life.

Written by
Mary Church Terrell
Feb. 14, 1947

Frederick Douglass Day
Celebration, Friday, Feb. 14, 1947

Personal Recollections of Frederick Douglass
Meeting Frederick Douglass was certainly a red-letter day in
my life. When I was a Freshman in Oberlin College in 1880 and '81 my
father permitted me to accept the invitation to attend Garfield's inauguration
which was extended to me by Mrs. Josephine Bruce, wife of
Senator B.K. Bruce of Mississippi, the only colored man then in the United
States Senate.
As a friend and I were walking down a Washington street one
day, a short distance ahead of us I saw two men talking to each other. 
Instantly and instinctively and intuitively I knew that one of the men who had magnificent,
majestic proportions and a distinguished bearing could be none other 
than the great Frederick Douglass. Fortunately, my friend was acquainted
with him and introduced me to him then and there. And thus began a 
friendship which I prize more highly than words can portray because I
derived so much inspiration and pleasure from it as long as Mr. Douglass
lived.
While I was a student at Oberlin, my attention was first attracted
to the intermarriage of the races when Frederick Douglass married Miss
Helen Pitts, a white woman, who lived near his residence in Anacostia, D.C.
In the reading room of Ladies Hall, where I lived, I read the editorial columns
of the newspapers and magazines. Few, if any, really approved of intermarriage,
while the majority attacked it bitterly. After reading both
sides of the question I was convinced that no sound argument or reason
could be produced to prove that there is anything inherently wrong in
the intermarriage of the races. A great hue and cry was raised against
Frederick Douglass' marriage to Miss Pitts because it defied the customs
and traditions of a country calling itself a Democracy even though reeking
with a cruel race prejudice which humiliates, handicaps and harasses millions
in a minority group. They are [disfranchised, segregated] victims of disfranchisement, segregation
and discriminations of various kinds which often make it impossible



2
[for them to earn their daily bread.]
for them to earn their daily bread.
And yet, the colored people who criticized Frederick Douglass because he
married a white woman were continually clamoring for EQUALITY-ABSOLUTE
EQUALITY along all lines - equality of opportunity, equality in the Courts,
educational, political and social equality, world without end, amen!
But when Frederick Douglass, the foremost representative of their race, actually
practiced equality by choosing as his mate a woman classified as
white, these very advocates of equality attached him bitterly and condemned
him for practicing the equality which [that] they themselves had preached long and loud. 
When the first World's Fair was held in Chicago in 1893, a year later 
than it should have been, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery
of America by Columbus. Mr. Douglass was the commissioner in charge of
the exhibit from Haiti and he employed Paul Dunbar to assist him.  Mr. 
Douglass was accustomed to entertain his friends at the fair [there] by taking them to
see the exhibits which he especially liked. Following this custom he invited
me to go with him one afternoon to take in some of the sights. As we
walked along, either through the grounds or in the buildings, Mr.. Douglass
was continually halted by admiring people who begged the privilege of 
shaking hands with him. Great honor was paid to him by people of the dominant
race. A mother would stop him and say, " You are Frederick Douglass, 
aren't you?" Please shake hands with my little son (or daughter), because
when he grows up I want him to be able to say that he has shaken hands with
the great Frederick Douglass."
"Let's get on the scenic railway", suggested Mr. Douglass, "so that 
we may have a chance to talk a little. Nobody can get us there." But he
had reckoned without his host, for we had no sooner settled ourselves on
that little railroad then a man reached over two seats to touch him on the
shoulder and greet him. "Well, we'll go up on the Eiffel Tower," chuckled
Mr. Douglass." "I know nobody can interrupt us when we are in one of 
those cages. But just as we started to ascend, a man in another cage

3
shouted, "Hello, Mr. Douglass, the last time I saw you was in Rochester."
The great man had become deeply interested in Paul Dunbar, because
his struggle for existence and recognition had been so desperate. The fact
that Mr. Douglass was the first person I ever heard mention Paul Dunbar's 
name is a recollection that I cherish. By appointment I had gone to see
him in his home in Anacostia, across the Potomac River from Washington.
After we had finished the business I had gone to transact, the "Sage of
Anacostia" inquired "Have you ever heard of Paul Dunbar?" I told him I had
not. Then Mr. Douglass rehearsed the facts in the young man's life. 
"He is very young, but there is no doubt that he is a poet," he 
said. "He is working under the most discouraging circumstances in his home
Dayton, Ohio. He is an elevator boy, and on his meagre wage of four dollars
a week he is trying to support himself and mother. Let me read you one
of his poems," said Mr. Douglass. And then he arose to get it. I can see
his fine face and his majestic form now, as he left the room. He soon returned
with a newspaper clipping and began to read "The Drowsy Day." When
Mr. Douglass had read several stanzas, his voice faltered a bit and his
eyes grew moist. "What a tragedy it is," he said, "that a young man with
such talent as he undoubtedly possesses should be so terribly handicapped
as he is."
Recording how the public [and] acclaimed and honored Frederick 
Douglass at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 recalls quite a different episode
in the great man's life many years previously in Peoria, another city
in Illinois. On the anti-slavery platform in the United States and England,
with William Lloyd Garrison and other abolitionists Frederick Douglass depicted
the horrors of slavery, the suffering of the slaves and did everything
he could to hasten the day of their emancipation. When he went to
fill an engagement in Peoria no hotel would accommodate him and he literally
had no place to lay his head. Robert G Ingersoll, the famous orator and lawyer, who
lived in Peoria at that time heard of Mr. Douglass' plight and invited
him to stop in his home. Mr. Ingersoll had the reputation of being an 

4
infidel, but when he took Mr. Douglass in his home, he followed the precepts
laid down by Jesus Christ much more closely than those claiming to
be Christians had done when they closed their doors in Mr. Douglass' face because he was 
colored.
A very pleasant collection of Mr. Douglass' friendship is the invitation
he extended to play [with] croquet with him on the lawn of his beautiful estate
"Cedar Hill." He enjoyed this game and was an adept at it. It goes
without saying that the invitations to Sunday evening tea extended to 
Judge Terrell and myself were always accepted with pleasure. Mr. Douglass
enjoyed conversing, discussing and relaxing with his friends. He had a 
keen sense of humor and was an artist at telling stories and jokes. Occasionally
he played the violin, he sometimes called his "fiddle." When
he played certain tunes which he especially like he would take  few
steps and dance. 
[Shparly] Shortly after our marriage we were invtied by Major Charles
Douglass, one of Frederick Douglass' sons, to take dinner with his father
and himself at Highland Beach, which is about five miles from the Naval
Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Major Douglass had bought a tract of land
on Chesapeake Bay which he [inteded] intended to convert into a summer resort for 
our group. Frederick Douglass selected a corner lot, facing the Bay and
asked my husband and myself to take the one next to his. We decided to do
so. Our neighbor on the left, therefore, was Frederick Douglass, and on 
the right a short distance away, Paul Dunbar bought a lot. 
After dinner, as we were going to the Bay, Major Douglass told his
father thatthe next summer he intended to have a fine garden on the plot
through which we were walking. [Mr. Douglass seemed very] It was a very sandy patch of ground and
his son's idea of having a garden on it seemed to amuse Mr. Douglass very 
much. "Why Charles," said he laughing, "Do you really think you can raise 
vegetables on this ground? Why you cant raise an umbrella on it."
It is pleasant to recall that the first time I went to the White 
House to see the President of the United States I went with Frederick
[Dougllass]

4
infidel, but when he took Mr. Douglass in his home, he followed the precepts 
laid down by Jesus Christ much more closely than those claiming to 
be Christians had done, when they closed their doors in his face because he was
colored man.
     A very pleasant recollection of Mr. Douglass' friendship is the invitation
he extended to play croquet with him on the lawn of his beautiful estate
"Cedar Hill."  He enjoyed this game and was an adept at it.  It goes
without saying that the invitations to Sunday evening tea extended to
Judge Terrell and myself were always accepted with pleasure.  Mr. Douglass
enjoyed conversing, discussing and relaxing with his friends.  He had a
keen sense of humor and was an artist at telling stories and jokes.  Occasionally
he played certain tunes which he especially liked he would take a few
steps and dance.
     Shortly after our marriage we were invited by Major Charles
Douglass, one of Frederick Douglass' sons, to take dinner with his father
and himself at Highland Beach, which is about five miles from the Naval
Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.  Major Douglass had bought a tract of land
on Chesapeake Bay which he intended to convert into a summer resort for
our group.  Frederick Douglass selected a corner lot, facing the Bay and
asked my husband and myself to take the one next to his.  We decided to do
so.  Our neighbor on the left, therefore, was Frederick Douglass, and on
the right a short distance away Paul Dunbar bought a lot.
     After dinner, as we were going to the Bay, Major Douglass told his
father that the next summer he intended at very sandy patch of ground and [?]
garden on the plot through which we were walking.  
his son's idea of having a garden seemed to amuse Mr. Douglass
much.  "Why Charles,' said he laughing, "Do you really think you can raise
vegetables on this ground?  Why you cant raise an umbrella on it."
     It is pleasant to recall that the first time I went to the White
House to see the President of the United States I went with Frederick
Douglass.
4
infidel, but when he took Mr. Douglass to is home, he followed the precepts
laid down by Jesus Christ much more closely then those claiming to be
Christians had done when they closed their doors in Mr. Douglass' face because
he was a colored man.
     A very pleasant recollection of Mr. Douglass' friendship is the invitation
extended me to play coronet with him on the lawn of his beautiful
estate, "Cedar Hill."  He enjoyed this game and he was adept at it.  It goes
without saying that the invitations to Sunday evening tea extended by Mr.
and Mrs. Douglass to Judge Terrell and myself were always accepted with
pleasure.  Mr. Douglass enjoyed conversing, discussing and relaxing with
his friends.  He had a keen sense of humor and was an artist at telling
stories and jokes.  Occasionally he played the violin which he sometimes
called his "fiddle."  And now and then when he felt especially jovial as he played certain old tunes he
especially liked he would take a few steps and dance.  Sometimes my husband
joined with him.    [*(over)*]
     Shortly after our marriage we were invited by Major Charles Douglass
one of Frederick Douglass' sons, to take dinner with his father and himself
at Highland Beach, which is about five miles from the Naval Academy
in Annapolis, Maryland.  Major Douglass had bought a tract of land on Chesapeake
Bay, which he intended to convert into a summer resort for our group.
Frederick Douglass selected a corner lot, facing the Bay and asked my husband
and myself to take the one next to his. We decided to do so.  Our
neighbor on the left, therefore, was Frederick Douglass, and on the right
a short distance away Paul Dunbar bought a lot.
     After dinner, as we were going to the Bay, Major Douglass told his
father that he intended to have a fine garden next summer on the plot 
through which we were walking.  It was a sandy patch of ground, and his
son's idea of having a garden on it seemed to amuse Mr. Douglass very
much.  "Why Charles," said he laughing, "Do you really think you can
raise vegetables on this ground?  Why, you cant raise an umbrella on it."

It is pleasant to recall that the first time I went to the White House [t]
to see the President of the United States I went with Frederick



5
Douglass to urge President Harrison to speak out boldly against lynching
in his annual message.
When the sixtieth anniversary of the first Woman's Rights Convention
was celebrated in May, 1908, Frederick Douglass' contribution to that cause
was strongly featured. The descendants of those who called this first meeting
to demand equal political rights for women were asked to represent their
forebears and I was asked to represent Frederick Douglass. This sixtieth anniversary 
was celebrated in Seneca Falls, New York where the first meetinh
was held July 19th and 20th, 1848.
There is certainly a very good reason why Frederick Douglass should always
be represented at an anniversary celebration which woam [*women*] suffragists
hold. When Elizabeth Cady Stanton presented a resolution demanding equal political 
rights for women at that Seneca Falls meeting in 1848, it seemed 
doomed to defeat. Even dear, brave Lucretia Mott, who was a great abolitionist for years had courageously
championed the caused of woman suffrage begged Mrs. Stanton to withdraw her
resolution. "Lizzie," she plead, "thee will make us all ridiculous if thee
insist upon pressing this resolution through this meeting." But Mrs. Stanton 
refused to yield. 
And so there was not a man or a woman at that meeting who had the
courage to second Lizabeth Cady Stanton's resolution demanding equal political 
rights for women. But there was present at that meeting a single, solitary
man through whose veins the blood of Africa flowed. He was the incomparable 
Frederick Douglass, a run away slave, upon whose head his master had set
a big price. And Frederick Douglass in the dignity and majesty of a broad-minded, 
justice-loving manhood had the courage to arise in that meeting
and second Mrs. Stanton's resolution. And it was largely due to to his
masterful arguments and his matchless eloquence that the resolution passed
in spite of the opposition of its powerful foes.
The women of this country owe a debt of gratitude to Frederick Douglass
which they can never repay. At the risk of doing an irreparable injury
to hinself personally and to the cause of abolition, so dear to his heart,

Wherever and whenever women meet to discuss the
cause they should pursue to advance their
cause or secure their rights which are denied
them today they should mention Frederick douglas
name. The women of this country owe a debt of
gratitude to F. D which they can never repay - 

I grant to refer very briefly to what F. D. did to contribute
to the progress and welfare of the women of the US

6
he did everything he could to secure the elective franchise for women, so
that they would no longer be classified with idiots and infants and criminals. 
If Frederick Douglass had not had the courage to second Mrs. Stanton's
resolution and the delegates to that first Woman's Rights Convention had
gone home disheartened, it is anybody's guess how much longer suffrage for 
women would have been delayed. As it was women had to work and wait for it
seventy eight years.
That was truly a wonderful meeting in the Johnson Opera house in
Seneca Falls, New York, on May 26th 1908 when the pioneer suffragists were honored. 
Harriet Stanton Blatch, the daughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton represented
her mother. Mrs. Henry Villard, the daughter of the great abolitionist, 
William Lloyd Garrison, represented Lucretia Mott. Mrs. Alice
Hooker Day, the daughter of Isabella Beecher Hooker, the sister of Harriet
Beecher Stowe, related the efforts made by her father and mother to secure
suffrage by petitioning the legislature of Connecticut. It was a great
privilege to be invited to represent Frederick Douglass in a company
like that.
It was a proud and happy moment in my life when on May 27th 1908 at
11:30 A.M. I witnessed and participated in the unveiling of the bronze tablet
which was placed on the wall of the opera house now occupying the site
on which stood the Methodist Church in which the first Woman Suffrage Convention 
was held. This tablet shows in relief the figure of a woman supporting
a shield on which was inscribed"On this spot stood the Wesleyan Chapel
where the first Woman's Rights Convention in the world's history was held
July 19 and 20, 1848." Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved this resolution which
was seconded by Frederick Douglass:"That it is the duty of the women of
this country to secure to themselves the sacred right to the elective franchise."
This bronze tablet makes it impossible to withhold from Frederick
Douglass the credit due him for his heroic stand on woman suffrage.
[The Seneca Falls Historical Society printed a book recording the]

6
he did everything he could to secure the elective franchise for women, so
that they would no longer be classified with idiots and infants and criminals. 
If Frederick Douglass had not had the courage to second Mrs. Stanton's
Mrs. Stanton's resolution and the delegates to that first Woman's Rights Convention had
gone home disheartened, it is anybody's guess how much longer suffrage for
women would have been delayed. As it was, women had to work and wait for it 
seventy eight years.
That was truly a wonderful meeting in the Johnson Opera house in
Seneca Falls, New York, on May 26th 1908 when the pioneer suffragists were honored.
Harriet Stanton Blatch, the daughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton represented 
her mother. Mrs. Henry Villard, the daughter of the great abolitionist,
William Lloyd Garrison, represented Lucretia Mott. Mrs. Alice
Hooker Day, the daughter of Isabella Beecher Hooker, the sister of Harriet
Beecher Stowe, related the efforts made by her father and mother to secure
suffrage for women by petitioning the legislature of Connecticut. It was a great
privilege for me to be invited to represent Frederick Douglass in a company 
like that.
It was a proud and happy moment in my life when on May 27th at 
11:30 A.M. I witnessed and participated in the unveiling of the bronze tablet
which was placed on the wall of the opera house now occupying the site
on which stood the Methodist Church in which the first Woman Suffrage Convention
was held. This tablet shows in relief the figure of a woman supporting
a shield on which was inscribed"On this spot stood the Wesleyan Chapel
where the first Woman's Rights Convention in the world's history was held
July 19 and 20, 1848." Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved this resolution which
was seconded by Frederick Douglass:"That it is the duty of the women of 
this country to secure to themselves the sacred right to the elective franchise."
This bronze tablet makes it impossible to withhold from Frederick 
Douglass the credit due him for his heroic stand on woman suffrage.
[*Omit*] [The Seneca Falls Historical Society printed a book recording the]

7
The morning on which the memorial tablet was unveiled only one address
was delivered after the chairman of the meeting welcomed the audience. And
that was an address on"Woman Suffrage " delivered by the women who represented
Frederick Douglass. After that the President of the New York State
Suffrage Association unveiled the beautiful bronzememorial tablet on which the
names of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Frederick Douglass are inscribed and which 
had been placed on that old historic building.
The Seneca Falls Historical Society printed in book form the proceedings
of the Sixtieth anniversary of the Woman's Rights Convention which
was held in their city. And this book contains among other things both
[the] my address on Frederick Douglass and the one on "Woman Suffrage."
After Mr. Douglass died it occurred to me that a day should be set
apart in our public schools in his honor. In my opinion by all odds Frederick
Douglass is the greatest man whom this country has produced. If it were 
customary to judge human beings by "points", I am sure that it could be
proved mathematically that Mr. Douglass possessed as many of the points mentally 
morally and spiritually which are necessary to make a great man [great] as
any man born in the United States, if not in the whole world. In reading
history I can not recall a man who was born into such depths of poverty and degradation,
who was reared in such a quagmire of handicaps and ignorance, and
who largely by his own efforts was able to rise to such lofty heights as Frederick
Douglass did.
While I was a member of the Board of Education here in 1897 I introduced 
a resolution which was unanimously passed to make February 14th
Douglass Day in our public schools. And for many years Douglass Day was
faithfully observed. In its issue of February 18, 1897, the Washington Correspondent
of the New York Age commented upon this as follows: "About a month
ago Mrs. Mary Church Terrell concenived the idea that the colored children
of this community ought to celebrate in a fitting manner the day on which
Frederick Douglass was said to be born. In her capacity as a member of the 
Board of Education she introduced a resolution to this effect at this regular

8
meeting, which resolution was unanimously adopted. Through her efforts, therefore, and by virtue of her foresight, the 14th of February will hereafter
known in our school system as "Douglass Day". On this day songs of
freedom will be sung, essays will be read. Declmations given by the pupils
and orations delivered by distinguished men and women touching the career
of Frederick Douglass." Perhaps Carter Woodson was inspired by my "Douglass 
Day" to establish Negro History Week.
Fate decreed that I should be with Mr. Douglass just a few hours before
he died suddenly at his home. A little before noon he had attended a meeting of
the National Council of Women. As soon as one of the officers spied him at
[the] entering door, she announced from the platform that Frederick Douglass was in the 
house. A committee was immediately appointed to escort him to the platform,
and when he reached it those women of the dominant race gave him a royal
Chautauqua salute.
When the meeting adjourned and the admiring women had ceased paying homage
to Mr. Douglass, which I enjoyed at a distance, I came forward and greeted
him. He and I left what is now Called the Columbia Theatre and walked together to
the corner. There he stopped and asked me to have lunch with him. But I was
not feeling very well and declined the invitation, alas. Lifting the large,
light sombrero which he often wore, he bade me good-bye. About seven o'clock
that evening a friend came by our house to tell us that Frederick Douglass
had just died suddenly , while he was at the table describing[g] to his wife
the ovation tendered him in the forenoon by the members and officers of the
National Council of Women. How deeply I regretted then that I had been unable
to spend another hour in the company of that great man whom I would never
see again!
Judged by any stander whatever or subjected to any test thereis
no question that among the greatest men this or any other country has produced
Frederick Douglass stands conspicuous in the foremost rank.
To have been well acquainted with that great man and to have been
honored with his friendship I consider a priceless possession and it is one 
of the most cherished memories of my life.

An Appreciation of Frederick Douglass.
Personal Recollections.
Established Douglass Day, Jan. 12, 1897

When and where did you meet Frederick Douglass?
When I was a freshman in Oberlin College in 1881, Senator & Mrs 
B.K. Bruce invited me to come to Washington to witness the 
inauguration of James Garfield. The Oberlin faculty granted the 
permission to do so. And one day after coming here, while I walking while talking to each other
an elderly woman & lady [and], I saw only a short distance away [from us] two men talking to each other
Instantly and intuitively I knew that one, the man who had a magnificent, 
majestic proportious was Frederick Douglass. My
friend was acquainted with Mr. Douglass and [with whom I was walking] introduced me to him.
And thus began a friendship from which I have derived inspiration
and pleasure all my life.
Can you remember any special occasion when you were
in Mr. Douglass' company to which you would like to refer?
There were many such occasions to which I should like to refer
but perhaps the one which I am about to relate is interesting
because it depicts Mr. Douglass' attitude toward his friends and also to & one relation to a [noted poet] our noted illustrious
During the [from a]  World's Fair which was [held] in Chicago [in 1893], Mr. 
Douglass was commissioned in charge of the Haitian exhibit
It was his custom to take his friends who visited the Fair to
see the exhibits which he especially liked. So he invited me
to go with him one afternoon [to go with him]. As we walked the grounds or thru the 
buildings, Mr. Douglass was continuously stopped by people who
admired and revered him and who begged the privilege of shaking 
hands with him. A mother would stop him and say "You are
Frederick Douglass, aren't you? Please shake hands with my
little son or daughter. When he grows up, I want him to say he
has shaken hands with the great Frederick Douglass."
"Let's get on the scenic railway," suggested Mr. Douglass, "so that we
may have a chance to talk a little. Nobody will get us 
there." But we had no sooner seated ourselves on that little train

Page 8
bit interested in carrying out the law. Until there is a Supreme Court decision
br ad there is no knowing whether any one of these non-citizens is subject to deportation
decause of past or present membership in the Communist Party. We feel that
we have a very strong case since the deportation law would clearly deprive non-citizens 
fo freedom of speech and freedom of belief and actually destroy the Bill
of Rights for all Americans.
Now, obviously, all 135 cases do not have to go before the Supreme Court.
All you need for the Supreme Court test is one case. And today we have that test
in the case of Peter Harisiades. The Harisiades case is nowin the Federal District
Court in New York. It is the first of the 135 political deportation cases
to reach the Federal courts. After the District Court, it will go to the Court of
Appeals, and from there to the United States Supreme Court. At this time, we
estimate that the Harisiades case should be before the United States Supreme Court
in November 1950.
The Harisiades case has, therefore, become a test case for those facing
deportation because of their political opinions. The decision in the Harisiades
case may well decide all other deportation cases.
Now, while we feel that the deportation law is unconstitutional, and while
we feel that we have a very good case, and while we have the utmost reliance on 
the abilities of our attorneys to present a good case and make a good arguemtn,
we are not going to rely on the courts alone. The very existence of our country
as a democracy may well be decied by the decision that will be made in the Harisiades
case.
We know that the Supreme Court responds to public sentiment. We can rest
assured that the Justice Department is going to use every influence it has in 
an attempt to get the Supreme Court to rule in its favor. In fact, they already
have an emissary on the bench in the person of Tom Clark, who is responsible
for launching the whole deportation drive.
The only way we are going to win the Harisiades case is if the American
people are made aware of the issues and, by giving expression of their democratic
belief, make it impossible for any court in this land to make any decision that
runs contrary to the welfare and democracy of this country. It should be clear
that we have, as our first responsibility, the mobilization of every possible
force for a real nationwide campaign to win the Harisiades case in the Supreme
Court since, if we win it, we may well have defeated this entire deportation 
drive. And we have only the next eleven months in which to organize to win the
Harisiades case.
Revocation of American Citizenship
The Justice Department announced some time ago that it is preparing to
proceed for the denaturalization of 238 naturalized American citizens, because
of their political opinions or political activities.
During the past several months, a large number of naturalized American
citizens have been called in to the offices of the Immigration and Naturalization 
Service and subjected to all kinds of questioning. They have gone so far as
to send Justice Department agents to citizens' homes to question them there. And
most of the questions have to do with what the individual has been doing since he 
became a citizen and not with what he did before he became a citizen.
Let us make one thing clear. This questioning of American citizens by
the Immigration and Naturalization Service is illegal. This questioning is an in-

2
than a man reached over 2 seats to touch him on the shoulder 
and to say "Hello, Mr. Douglass- Well, we'll go up on the Eiffel
Tower," chuckled Mr. Douglass. I know nobody can interrupt
us when we are in one of those cages." But just as soon
as we started up a man in another cage shouted, Hello,
Mr Douglass, the last time I saw you was in Rochester"
When Mr. Douglass had charge of the [?]
Bldg at the Worlds Fair he employed Paul Laurence Dunbar to [?]
him. He was deeply interested in the young man
because he was so gifted and struggle to earn a living had been so hard and desperate
By appointment one day I had gone to see Mr Douglass at his
house in Anacostia. After we had finished the business I had gone there to transact
Mr Douglass inquired "Have you ever heard of Paul Dunbar?"
I told him I had not. "He is a very young man" said Mr Douglass
"but there is no doubt he is a poet He is working under the
most discouraging circumstances. He is an elevator boy in a
Dayton Ohio store and on the meager wage of $4.00 a week he
is trying to support his mother and himself. Let me read you 
one of his poems," said Mr. Douglass. Then he read a newspaper
clipping entitled The Drowsy Day. When Mr Douglass had read several stanzas
his voice faltered a bit and his eyes grew moist. "What a tragedy 
it is," he said, "that a young man with such talent as he undoubtedly
possesses should be so terribly handicapped as he is." [he said]
What do you consider the greatest contributions Frederick 
Douglass made to this country as
He was one of the most [eloquent] In the first place eloquent abolitionsts among
a galaxy of great men who worked hard and long to free the
slaves. Once He went to Great Britain to urge Englishmen to do everything
in their power to emancipate the slaves of this country
He spoke at the same meeting, addressed [?]

STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN JEWISH CONFERENCE
The so-called "Hebrew Committee of National Liberation"is an
irresponsible adventurer which comes to the American public without
credentials and menaces the cause it presumes to espouse.
The committee pretends to speak in the name of the "Hebrew nation"
in Palestine, but it has no mandate from the Jewish National Assembly,
which is the authorized and democratically-elected spokesman of the Jews
of Palestine.  On the contrary, the leaders of this committee are linked 
with an extremist clique in Palestine, which amounts to less than one
per cent of the Jews of that country, and which has been outlawed by the
Jews of Palestine because of its anti-democratic and terroristic tactics.
It pretends to see a distinction between "Jews" and "Hebrews," which no
Jew would be able to appreciate or understand, but which is intended to
divide and disrupt the Jewish people. The real object of the Hebrew
Committee is to destroy the Jewish Agency for Palestine, the official
and internationally recognized body created by the League of Nations to
act with the Mandatory Power "to secure the co-operation of all Jews who
are willing to assist in the establishment of the Jewish National Home."
The great majority of the Jews of the United States favor the
establishment of a Jewish National Home in Palestine as the one positive
solution for Jewish homelessness in the post-war world.  This was made
clear at the AMERICAN JEWISH CONFERENCE last September.
The bizarre ideology of the "Hebrew Committee of National Liberation"
would fragmentize the Jewish people instead of uniting them.  Its
separatist and undisciplined tactics aim to undermine established Jewish
agencies and institutions.  The Jewish cause is prejudiced and humiliated 
by such irresponsible enterprises on the part of a group that pretends to
speak for Jews.



3
Lloyd Garrison,Wendell Phillips a wealthy aristocrat & Harvard graduate
and Charles Sumner. And many Englishmen considered
Frederick Douglass the greatest orator of them all.
In the second place Frederick Douglass rendered the women of this country
a service which is impossible correctly to estimate adequately to express.
In

3 1/2
[Frederick Douglass rendered a service to the women of the
country which it is impossible to overestimate.] In 1848 the
1st Womans Rights Convention in the history of the world
was held at Seneca Falls N.Y. At that convention Elizabeth
Cady Stanton introduced a resolution demanding Equal Political
Rights for women. Even though the meeting had
been called to do that very thing the delegates to the convention
could not have been more shocked & horrified than they were
if Mrs Stanton had thrown a Hydrogen bomb at
them. Even dear brave Lucretia Mott who had for years
courageously championed the cause of Woman Suffrage
begged Mrs Stanton to withdraw the resolution
"Lizzie", she plead, "thee will make us all ridiculous
if thee insist upon pressing this resolution thru the meeting."
Mrs Stantons resolution seemed doomed to defeat. There was not a man or
a woman at that convention who had the courage to
second her motion. But there was one man there
thru whose veins the blood of Africa flowed. He was the
incomparable F.D- a run away slave upon whose
head his master had set a high price. But Frederick Douglass who was the only colored person there was the
only person at that meeting who had the courage to second Mrs Stanton's motion and it was
largely due to FD's masterful argument & matchless eloquence
that Mrs Stantons resolution passed in spite of [the] fierce opposition
[*Over*]


American Zionist Emergency Council
342 MADISON AVENUE
NEW YORK 17, N. Y.
MUrray Hill 2-1160

CONSTITUENT ORGANIZATIONS                                                             
Hadassah Women's Zionist Organization of America                              
Mizrachi Organization of American                                                          
Poale Zion-Zeire Zion of America
Zionist Organization of America

July 6, 1944
Miss Mary Church Terrell                                                                          
1615 S Street, N.W.
Washington, D. C.

Dear Miss Terrell:

I am taking the liberty of sending you herewith three statements recording the
background and purposes of the Hebrew Committee of National Liberation and the
American League for a Free Palestine.
Your name has appeared in advertisements in support of one or both groups. No
doubt you permitted this out of a desire to be of service to the Jewish people
at a time of crisis. I am sure, however, that your good will is being misdirected,
and that your name is being used to further the designs of a group of
men who have been denounced by the Jews of both Palestine and the United States
through the latter's accredited spokesmen. Ample proof of this is contained in
the enclosed documents, each of which is an official pronouncement by a duly
authorized agency of the Jewish people. These agencies are:
The American Jewish Conference -- a democratically chosen body representing
the Jews of America, and elected by them to act and speak in 
their behalf. Heading the Interim Committee of the Conference are
Dr. Israel Goldstein, Henry Monsky, and Dr. Stephen S. Wise.

The American Zionist Emergency Council -- a delegated council of the 
Zionist Organization of American, Hadassah, Poale Zion, and Mizrachi--
four American Zionist bodies with a membership of about 500,000. Dr. Abba
Hillel Silver and Dr. Stephen S. Wise are co-chairmen of the Council. 

The Jewish Agency for Palestine -- an international body recognized
under the Mandate for Palestine as representing the Jewish people in
all matters concerning the upbuilding of the Jewish National Home in 
Palestine.  The distinguished British scientist and statesmen,
Dr. Chaim Weizmann, heads the Jewish Agency.

Neither the League for a Free Palestine nor the Hebrew Committee of National
Liberation can show an honest claim to act as a spokesman for a single Jew anywhere
in the world. The few individuals who organized these groups and who are feeding
on the gullibility of well-intentioned Americans who are always ready to respond
to the plea of the unfortunate, represent no one but themselves.

If, after a study of the enclosed material, you realize, as we do, that you are
being imposed upon, we trust that you will cease to serve as sponsor of these
groups which are committing a great disservice to the Jewish cause and which are
serving only to create dissention and confusion among Jews and non-Jews alike.
Sincerely yours, 
Harry L. Shapiro
Harry L. Shapiro
Director
HLS:TEG
Enc.

An Appreciation of Frederick Douglass.
(Personal Recollections)

Meeting Frederick Douglass face to face was a greatable event in anybody's
life.One could not easily forget the circumstances under which she
was introduced to such a marvellous personality and such a striking figure
as that great man possessed.
I met him for the first time, when as a young girl I was visiting Washington. 
Just as I was leaving a friend's house, I saw walking majestically
down the street a tall man with broad shoulderslooking the picture of
one's ideal of a king. His strong, beneficent, handsome face was surmounted
by a shock of snow white hair. Intuitively I knew who it was.
"That's Frederick Douglass, isn't it?" I asked my friend . By that time
Mr. Douglass had reached us and I was presented to him. Now I rejoice in 
the fact that I am a Hero Worshiper. To be sure very wise folks who are
calm. judicial and philosophical warn you against hero worship. It is 
not only bad form and poor taste, they tell you, but it is exceedingly foolish
they say. No doubt they are entirely right. But I would not exchange
the pure and unadulterated joy, the exaltation, the inspiration and the perfect
delight which my hero worship of Frederick Douglass brought to my 
mind and heart for all the wisdom, philosophy and poise in the world.
From the moment I beheld him for the first time till he walked here
among mortals no more not one of his words , not one of his deeds ever
caused me to regret the high estimate I had put [placed] upon him as a man or the
value I placed upon him as a personal friend.
It is difficult for me to write an appreciation of Frederick Douglass without
laying myself liable to the charge of exaggeration. He was a perfect
Chesterfield in manner. It was hard [difficult] to believe that a man of such culture
and refinement could ever have been a slave with no educational advantages afforded
in colleges or schools . He was a brilliant conversationalist. His
[?]lish was faultless, although Mr. Douglass was never pedantic. He

2
through such wonderful experiences and could relate them with such force,
such clearness and such charm of manner that it was a delight to listen
as he talked. Very few people cared to say much, when Mr. Douglass could
be heard.. Although he did not try to occupy the center of the stage in a 
small company( for he was very modest and as far removed from conceit as
a many can well be), if he felt like talking even the most garrulous and
irrepressible individual seemed perfectly willing to [yield] be silent.
Mr. Douglass was no sedate, long-faced, solemn-looking or solemn-acting
personality, I assure you. He enjoyed being in a merry complany. hearing
jokes and cracking jokes himself. He liked to laugh, when he saw or
heard anything really humorous and made no effort to repress his mirth.
On certain afternoons Mr. Douglass was accustomed to invite some
of his friends to come to Cedar Hill to play croquet with him, for he enjoyed
[playing] the game and was very skillful indeed. More than once Judge
Terrell and myself have had the the pleasure of playing croquet with Mr. 
Douglass and we cherish the recollections of those delightful afternoons,
so full of pleasure and profit as well.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Douglass were very hospitable and enjoyed entertaining 
their friends in their home. Sunday evenings Judge Terrell and my self
were sometimes invited to tea and asked to spend the evening. How I regret
that I did not keep a diary these days, so that Imight remember some of
the wise and witty remarks I have so often heard Mr. Douglass make. Verily
during these never-to-be forgotten Sunday evenings there was literally a
feast of reason and a flow of soul. I have heard Mr. Douglass sing the 
Scotch songs of which he was very fond and play several tunes on his violin.
When Mr. Douglass was Commissioner for Haiti at the Worlds Fair
in Chicago he was in the habit of setting aside an afternoon which he devoted 
to sight-seeing with his friends. To me it was not only gratifying
but affecting to see the deference paid him by old and young, by bl[?]
and white, by rich and poor, as he walked through the grounds [?]

3
World's Fair. Sometimes a woman would rush up to him with a child and say 
"You are the great Frederick Douglass, I am sure." Then without waiting for
a reply she would lift the child up to him and say, "Please shake hands
with my little girl ( or my little boy) , when they grow up, I want them to
say they have had the honor of shaking hands with Frederick Douglass."
After he had been stopped a great many times the afternoon he invited
me to go sightseeing with himhe said, "Come, lets take a ride on the little
elevated road, and get away from the crowd a minute or two, so that we may
have a chance to talk.".But we were no sooner seated on the car than a hand
stretching from somewhere behind us tried to touch Mr. Douglass on the
shoulder. A man, and he was a very distinguished-looking individual, had
reached clear over the seat between himself and Mr. Douglass, so that he 
might shake hands with him.
"Well, we'll take a ride on the Ferris wheel," said my host,."We'll
be swinging between heaven and earth in a cage , and no one can interrupt
us then." But just as Mr. Douglass stepped into the cage three or four
people saluted him. "Its no use", he said, "I give it up."
It is safe to say that at the World's Fair no one human being received
more homage that was paid to Frederick Douglass.
It is a great temptation to talk about Frederick Douglass as ano
orator. But I will not yield to it, because there are many others who
can discuss this phase of his life much better than I can. But I must relate
an incident which shows how modest and free from pretension he was.
One evening at the Bethel Literary and Historical Society here in Washington,
' which was founded by the way, by Bishop Payne) Mr. Douglass
was called upon suddenly to speak on a paper which had been read.
He spoke with surpassing eloquence. After the meeting had adjourned, I rushed
up to him and said, "Mr. Douglass, woman that I am, I would give ten
years of my life, if I could speak extemporaneously as brilliantly as you 
can."   "That speech was not extemporaneous", he replied,  "It

4
been," I insisted."For you did not know you were to be called upon. Nobody
know you were coming to night."
"Well", said Mr. Douglass, "I will have to explain what I mean relating
something [I said] to Wendell Phillips, who had spoken eloquently when
suddenly called upon to talk at a public meeting once said to me. I marveled at the ease
with which Mr. Phillips spoke extemporaneously and told him so. 
"Do you think that was extemporaneous, Frederick?" he asked me with 
just a sus picion of sarcasm in his tone, " Well , I assure you it was not.
I have been thinking out that speech for fifty years.' And that is my reply
to you ," said Mr. Douglass, "I have been thinking about that speech
I  made to night for fifty years."
[Some years] A long time ago one of Mr. Douglass's sons, Major Charles Douglass, now deceased
bought a large plot of land about seven miles from Annapolis, Md. directly
on the Chesapeake Bay which he intended to convert into a summer
resort. Among the number invited to look at the section and purchase
lots were Frederick Douglass, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Dr. John R. Francis,
a well-known physician, Mr. Terrell and myself. All of these have passed
into the Great Beyond except my husband and myself. 
Mr. Douglass selected a corner lot on the road in front of the Bay and ask-
me to buy the lot next to him. It will surprise no one to learn that I
cheerfully complied with this request.
The almost insurmountable obstacles which young colored people
of high aspirations and genuine talent had to overcome in this prejudice-ridden country affected and
pained Mr. Douglass very much, for he had a kind and tender heart. 
The first time I ever heard of Paul Dunbar was in Frederick Douglass's
study one beautiful [autumn day] afternoon. He referred with deep feeling to the hard
conditions which confronted the young poet and read me the Rainy Day.
When Mr. Douglass was reading the second stanza his voice broke and tears
trickled down his cheeks. I learned afterward that Mr. Douglass had done a 
great deal to encourage Paul and had helped him  financially to some extent.

5
[The] Women not only of this country but all over the world owe a debt of
gratitude to Frederick Douglass for his earnest and forceful support of
Woman Suffrage. [For the first time in the history of the world some men] At Seneca Falls New York in 1848 a group of women and a few
men gathered to demand equal political suffrage for women for the first
time in the history of this country. Mrs. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was in
despair, because she could not induce a single man or woman to second the motion
for equal political suffrage which she introduced. Then it was that
Frederick Douglass but a few years out of bondage, a runaway slave arose
in that meeting of cultured, progressive white people and with eloquence
which carried the audience by storm seconded the motion.himself. When the
fiftieth anniversary of the Seneca Falls meeting was observed the honor and
privilege of representing Frederick Douglass was conferred upon me.
A portion of the last day of this great man's life was spent in attending the convention
of the National Council of Women which met here. As Mr. Douglass entered
the hall, he was spied by Susan B. Anthony, Rev. Anna Howard Shaw,
Mrs. May Wright Sewall and others and the proceedings of an important business
meeting were immediately stopped. A motion was made to escort Mr. 
Douglass to the stage.And a royal Chautauqua salute was given him as seen
as he appeared. When the applause subsided, Mr. Douglass made an eloquent
talk in behalf of the recognition of women and ardseever to be in perfect health
After the meeting I congratulated him on his speech and, as we walked
down the street together, he invited me to lunch with him. Unfortunately
for myself I was not feeling well and declined the invitation. How often
have I regretted it. Little did I think I would never see him alive again.
It seems to me I can see him now, as he walked away erect and apparently
strong,wearing a light sombrero which was very [so] becoming to him and in which
he looked so distinguished that few passed him without turning around to
take a second glance.
[That night the door bell rang and] About  seven oclock that evening Mr. Walter Hayson an Oberlin graduate
and a valuable teacher in the High School who has since passed away

6
came to tell me that Mr. Douglass had been suddenly
stricken [the table], while [he was] relating to Mrs. Douglass the courtesies shown him by the National
Council of Women and had gone to his reward.
In the New York Age for Thursday, February 18, 1897, this excert from
the Washington news appears: "About a month ago, Jan. 12, 1897 Mrs. Mary Church Terrell conceived 
the idea that the colored children of this community ought to celebrate 
in a fitting manner the day on which Frederick Douglass was [born] said
to be born. (Mr. Douglass did not know the date of his birth. He said he was 
born in February, so he chose St. Valentine's Day for his birthday.) In
her capacity as a member of the Board of education she introduced a resolution 
to this effect at its regular meeting, which resolution was unanimously
adopted. Through her efforts, [and through her foresight] of her foresight, the 
14th day of February will hereafter be known in our school system as [douglass]
"Douglass Day."
To have been well-acquainted with Frederick Douglass and to have been
honored with his friendship I consider one of the most valued possessions 
and cherished memories of my life.

Written by
Mary Church                                         An Appreciation of Frederick Douglass.
Terrell.                                                            Personal Recollections. 
Washington,D.C.
Meeting Frederick Douglass face to face was a memorable event in
anybody's life. One could not easily forget the circumstances under 
which she was introduced to such a marvellous personality and such a
striking figure as that great man possessed.
I met him for the first time,when as a young girl I was viiting
Washington. Just as I was leaving a friend's house I saw walking majectically
down the street a tall man with broad shoulders looking the
picture of one's ideal of a king. His strong, beneficent, handsome
face was surmounted by a shock of snow white hair. Intuitively I
knew who it was.
"That's Frederick Douglass, isn't it?" I asked my friend. By
that time Mr. Douglass had reached us and I was presented to him. Now
I rejoice in the fact that I am a "Hero Worshiper." To be sure very
wise folks who are calm, judicial and philosophical warn you against
"Hero Worship.""It is not only bad form and poor taste," they tell you,
but it is exceedingly foolish," they say. No doubt these wise folks are
entirely right. But I would not exchange the pure and unadulterated
joy, the exaltation, the inspiration and the perfect delight which my
"hero worship" of Frederick Douglass brought me for all the wisdom,
philosophy and poise in the world.
From the moment I beheld him for the first time till he walked
here among mortals no more, not one of his words, not one of his deeds
ever caused me to regret the high estimate I had put upon him as a
man or the value I placed upon him as a personal friend.
It is difficult for me to write an appreciation of Frederick
Douglass without laying myself liable to the charge of exaggeration.
He was a perfect Chesterfield in manner. It was hard to believe that
a man of such culture and refinement could ever have been a slave with

2
no educational advantages which schoolsand colleges afford. He was a brilliant
conversationalist. His English was faultless, although Mr. Douglass
was never pedantic. He had passed through such wonderful experiences
and could relate them with such force and charm that it was a pleasure to
listen as he talked. Very few people cared to say much when Mr, Douglass
could be heard. Although he did not try to occupy the center of the stage
in a small company( for he was very modest and as far removed from conceit
as a man can well be) if he felt like talking, even the most garrulous
and irrepressible individual ceemed perfectly willing to be silent. 
Mr. Douglass was no sedate,long-faced, solemn-looking or solemn-acting
personality [individual], I assure you. He enjoyed being in a merry company,
hearing jokes and cracking jokes himself. He liked to laugh when he saw or
heard anything really humorous and made no effort to repress his mirth.
On certain afternoons Mr. Douglass was accustomed to invite some
of his friends to Cedar Hill (where he lived) to play croquet with him, for
he enjoyed that game and was very skilful indeed. More than once Judge
Terrell and myself have had the pleasure of playing croquet with [him] Mr.
Douglass and I cherish the recollections of those delightful afternoons
which were so full of pleasure and profit as well. 
Both Mr. and Mrs. Douglass were very hospitable and enjoyed entertaining
their friends in their hope. Sunday evenings Judge Terrell and
myself were sometimes invited to tea and asked to spend the evening with
the great man and his fine wife. How I regret that I did not keep a diary
those days, so that I might be able to quote some of the wise and witty
remarks which I have so often heard Mr. Douglass make. Verily during those
never-to-be-forgotten Sunday evenings there was literally a feast of reason
and a flow of soul. I have heard Mr. Douglass sing Scotch songs [of]
which he liked very much and play several tunes on his violin. 
When Mr. Douglass was Commissioner for Haiti at the Worlds Fair
in Chicago in 1893 he was in the habit of setting aside an afternoon

3
which he devoted to sight-seeing with his friends. To me it was not only
gratifying but affecting to see the deference paid him by young and 
old, by black and white, by rich and poor, as he walked through the
grounds of the World's Fair. Sometimes a woman would rush up to him
with her child and say "You are the great Frederick Douglass, I am sure."
Then without waiting for a reply she would lift the child up to him and
say,"Please shake hands with my little girl (or my little boy). When 
they grow up, I want them to be able to say they have had the honor of
shaking hands with Frederick Douglass."
After he had been stopped a great many times the afternoon he
had invited me to go sight-seeing with him, he said, "Come, lets take a
ride on the little elevated train, and get away from the crowd for a 
minute or two, so that we may have a chance to talk." But, we were no
sooner seated on the car than a hand stretching from somewhere from behind
us tried to touch Mr. Douglass on the shoulder. A very distinguished
looking man had reached clear over the seat between him and Mr. Douglass,
so that he might shake hands with him.
"Well," said he," well take a ride on the Ferris Wheel. We'll be
swinging between heaven and earth in a cage, and nobody can interrupt
us then." But, just as Mr. Douglass stepped into the compartment three 
or four people saluted him. "Its no use trying to get away from these
people," he said. "I give it up." It is safe to say that at the World's
Fair no one human being received more homage than was paid Frederick
Douglass.
It is a great temptation to talk about Frederick Douglass as an 
orator. But I will not yield to it, because there are many others who
can discuss this phase of his life much better than I can, But I must
recall an incident which shows how modest and free from pretension he
was. One evening at the Bethel Literary and Historical Society here in
Washington (which, by the way was founded by Bishop Payne of the A.M.E?

4
Church) Mr. Douglass was suddenly called upon to speak on a paper
which had been read. He spoke with surpassing eloquence. After the
meeting had adjourned, I rushed up to him and said, "Mr. Douglass, woman
that I am, I would give ten years of my life , if I could speak extemporaneously
as brilliantly as you can."           "That speech was not extemporaneous,"
he replied. "It must have been." I insisted, "You did not
know you were to be called upon to speak. Nobody knew you were coming to
night."
"Well," said Mr. Douglass,"I will have to explain what I mean
by relating something Wendell Phillips once said to me, when he had
spoken eloquently after he had been suddenly called upon to talk at a
public meeting. I marveled at the ease with which Mr, Phillips spoke extemporaneously 
and told him so. 'Do you think that was extemporaneous,
Frederick?'he asked me with a merry twinkle in his eye. Well, I assure
you it was not. "I have been thinking out that speech for his fifty years'
And that is my reply to you," said Mr. Douglass  ."I have been thinking
about that speech I made to night for fifty years."
A long time ago one of Mr. Douglass' sons, Major Charles Douglass
now deceased, bought a large plot of land about seven miles from Annapolis,Md. 
directly on the Chesapeake Bay, which he converted into a summer
resort.Among the number invited to look at the section and purchase lots
were Frederick Douglass, Paul Laurence Dunbar, the poet. Dr. John R. 
Francis, a well-known physician, Mr. Terrell and myself. All of these
have passed into the Great Beyond except myself. Frederick Douglass selected
a corner lot on the road in front of the Bay and asked me to but the
lot next time him. Of course I cheerfully complied with this request.
The towering obstacles which young colored people of high aspirations and
genuine talent have to overcome in this country affected and pained Mr
Douglass very much, for he had a kind and tender heart.
The first time I ever heard of Paul Laurence Dunbar was in Freder-


5
ick Douglass' study in his Cedar Hill home one beautiful sunny afternoon.
He referred with deep feeling to the hard conditions which confronted
the young poet and read me the Rainy Day. When Mr. Douglass was reading
the second stanza, his voice broke and tears trickled down his cheeks. I
learned afterwards that Mr. Douglass had done a great deal to encourage
Paul and had helped him financially to some extent. 
Women, not only of this country, but all over the world owe a debt
of gratitude to Frederick Douglass for his earnest and forceful support
of Woman Suffrage. At Seneca Falls, New York in i848 agroup of women and
a few men gathered to demand equal political suffrage for women for the
first time in the history of this country. Mrs. Elizabeth Cady Standon,
one of the leaders in the movement, was in despair, because she could not
induce a single man or woman to second the motion for equal political suffrage
which she had introduced. Then it was that Frederick Douglass, but
a few years out of bondage, a runaway slave, arose in that meeting of cultured,
progressive white people and with eloquence which carried the audience
by storm seconded the motion himself. And it was largely due to Mr.
Eouglass' logic and eloquence that this motion was passed. When the fiftieth
anniversary of the Seneca Falls meeting was observed the honor and
privilege of presenting Frederick Douglass on that occasion was conferred upon me. 
A portion of the last day of this great man's life was spent in attending 
the convention of the National Council of Women which met here.
As Mr. Douglass entered the hall, he was spied by Susan B. Anthony, the
great woam suffrage leader, Rev. Anne Howard Shaw, Mrs. May Wright Sewall
and other prominent women. The proceedings of an important business meeting
were immediatelt stopped. A motion was made to escort Mr. Douglass to
the sage, and a royal Chautauqua salute was given him as soon as he appeared.
When the applause subsided Mr. Douglass made an eloquent talk
in behalf of recognition of women in every walk of life. He seemed to be

6
in excellent health. After the meeting I congratulated him upon his
speech and, as we walked down the street together, he invited me to
lunch with him. Unfortunately for myself, I was not feeling well and 
declined the invitation. How often have I regreeted that I did! Little
did I think , as I left him that day, that I would never see him alive
again. It seems to me I can see him now, as he walked away, erect, and
apparently strong, wearing a light-colored sombrero which was very becoming
to him and in which he looked so distinguished that few passed 
him without turning around to take a second glance at that heroic form.
About seven o'clock that evening Mr. Walter Hayson, an Oberlin
graduate and a valuable teacher in the High School who has since passed
away came to tell Mr. Terrell and myself that Mr. Douglass had been
suddenly stricken while he was relating to Mrs. Douglass the courtesies
shown him by the National Council of Women that morning and that the
great man had gone to his reward. 
In the New York Age for Thursday, February 18th, 1897 this extract
from the Washington News appears. "About a month ago Mrs. Mary
Church Terrell conceived the idea that the colored children in this
community ought to celebrate in a fitting manner the day on which Frederick
Douglass was born. (Mr. Douglass did not know the date of his
birth, He said he was born in February, so he chose St. Valentine's Day
for his birthday.) In her capacity as a member of the Board of Education
she introduced a resolution to this effect at its regular meeting
which resolution was unanimously adopted. Through her efforts, therefore 
and through her foresight, the 14th day of February will hereafter
be known in our school system as Douglass Day."
To have been well acquainted with Frederick Douglass and to have
been honored with his friendship I consider one of the most valued
possessions and cherished memories of my life. 


Broadcast by Mary Church Terrell Over station WOOK, Sunday,February 12, '50
When and where did you meet Frederick Douglass?
When I was a Freshman in Oberlin College in 1881,Senator and Mr. B.K. Bruce
invited me to come to Washington to witness the inauguration of James A
Garfield. [and] The Oberlin College faculty granted me permission to do so.
And one day after coming here while I was walking down the street with a
friend, a short distance away from us I saw two men talking to each other. 
Instantly and intuitively I know that one of the men who had magnificent,
majestive proportions was Frederick Douglass. My friend was acquainted
with him and she introduced me to him. And thus began a friendship from 
which I have derived inspiration and pleasure all my life. 
[*Question 2*] Can you remember any special occasion when you were in Mr. Douglass' company
to which you would like to refer?
There were many such occasions to which I should like to refer. But perhaps
the one which I am about to relate is interesting because it depicts Mr. Douglass' attitude toward his friends and toward one of our noted literature.
During the World's Fair in Chicago Mr. Douglass was Commissioner in charge
of the Haitian exhibit. It was his custom to take his friends who visited
the Fair to see the exhibit which he especially liked. So he invited me
to go with him one afternoon. As we walked through the grounds or through
the building . Mr. Douglass was continually stopped by people who admired
and revered him and who begged the privilege of shaking hands with him. Another
would stop him and say "You are Frederick Douglass, aren't you?
Please shake hands with my little son" or daughter, "because when he grows
up I want him to be able to say he has shaken hands with the great Frederick
Douglass."
[?] get on the scenic railway", suggested Mr.. Douglass,so that 
we may a [?] to talk a little. Nobody will get us there." But we had no
sooner seated ourselves on this little train than a man reached over two
seats to touch him on the shoulder and to say "Hello, Mr. Douglass."
"Well, we'll go up on the Eiffel Tower", chuckled Mr. Douglass."I know

2
nobody can interrupt us when we are in one of those cages." But just as
soon as we started up a man in another cage shouted "Hello, Mr. Douglass,
the last time I saw you was in Rochester."
When Mr. Douglass had charge of the Haitian Building at the World's 
Fair he employed Paul Laurence Dunbar to assist him. He was deeply interest
in the young man because he was so gifted and his struggle to earn a
living was so desperate and hard. By appointment I had gone to see Mr. 
Douglass at his home in Anacostia. After we had finished the business I 
had gone there to transact,Mr. Douglass inquired "Have you ever heard of
Paul Dunbar?" I told him I had not. "He is a very young man", said Mr. 
Douglass,"but there is no doubt that he is a post. He is working under the
most discouraging circumstances. He is an elevator boy in a Dayton,Ohio
store, and on the meager salary of $4.00 a week, he is trying to support
his mother and himself. Let me read you one of his poems," said Mr. 
Douglass. Then he read a newspaper clipping entitled "The Drowsy Day."
When Mr. Douglass had read several stanzas his voice faltered a bit and
his eyes grew moist. "What a tragedy it is", he said,"that a young man
with such talent as he undoubtedly posses should be so terribly handicapped
as he is."
Question 3. What do you [think] consider the greatest contributions
Frederick Douglass made to this country?
In the first place,he was one of the most outstanding and eloquent
abolitionists among a galaxy of great men who worked hard and long
to free the slaves. Once he went to Great Britain to urge Englishmen to do
everything in their power to emancipate the slaves of this country. He
spoke at the same meetings addressed by William Lloyd Garrison,Wendell
Phillips, a Harvard graduate, a wealthy aristocrat and Senator Charles
Sumner. And many Englishmen considered Frederick Douglass the greatest orator
of them all.
In the second place, Frederick Douglass rendered the women of this
country a service which it is impossible correctly to estimate and adequately 
to express. In 1848 the first Women's Rights Convention in the

3
history of the world was held at Seneca Falls, New York. At that convention
Elizabeth Cady Stanton introduced a resolution demanding political
equality for women. Even though the meeting had been called to do that very
thing. the delegates to that convention could not have been more horrified
and shocked than they were if Mrs. Stanton had thrown a Hydrogen Bomb at
them. Even dear, brave Lucretia Mott, who for years had courageously championed
the cause of Woman Suffrage begged Mrs. Stanton to withdraw the
resolution. "Lizzie", she plead,"thee will make us all ridiculous if thee
insist upon pressing this resolution through the meeting. Mrs. Stanton's
resolution seemed doomed to defeat.
There was not a man or a woman at that Woman Suffrage Convention who
had the courage to second her resolution. But there was one man at that
Convention through whose veins the blood of Africa flowed. He was the incomparable
Frederick Douglass, a run-away- slave, upon whose head his master
had set a high price. Frederick Douglass was the only colored person
at that meeting. And he was the only person there who had the courage to 
second Mrs. Stanton's resolution. And it was largely due to Frederick
Douglass' masterful arguments and matchless eloquence that Mrs. Stanton's 
resolution was passed in spite of the fierce opposition of its powerful
foes.
Frederick Douglass did everything he could to secure the elective
franchise for women, so that they would no longer be classified with infants
and idiots and criminals. If Frederick Douglass had lacked the courage 
to second Mrs. Stanton's resolution, and the delegates to that Convention 
had gone home disheartened becausenobody had had the courage to do
so, it is anybody's guess how much longer suffrage for women would have
been delayed. As it was, women had to work and wait seventy eight years
to become citizens of the United States, so that they could vote. 
At the 60th anniversary of the first Woman's Rights Convention,
in 1908, at Seneca Falls, New York, a bronze tablet was unveiled and placed
on the wall of the opera house which now occupies the site on which 

4
stood the Methodist Church in which the First Woman's Rights Convention 
was held.July 19 and 20, 1848. This tablet shows in relief the figure of a woman
supporting a shield on which was inscribed "On this spot stood the Wesleyan
Chapel where the First Woman's Rights Convention in the World's History 
was held July 19 and 20,1848. Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved this resolution
which was seconded by Frederick Douglass: That it is the duty of the women
of this country to secure to themselves the sacred right to the elective
franchise ."
It is very reassuring to know that this bronze tablet will prevent anybody
from trying to withhold from Frederick Douglass the credit and the honor
of having been largely instrumental in making women citizens of the
United States.
Question 4- Placing such a high estimate upon Frederick Douglass' services
and records have you done anything to convert others to your point of view?
Yes, I have. After Frederick Douglass died it occurred to me that a day
should be set aside in our public schools in his honor. I was a member of the
Board of Education in 1897. At a meeting of the Board On January 12, 1897, I moved that the 14th day
of February should hereafter be known in our school system as "Douglass Day.
The motion was unanimously carried. For many years Douglass Day was faithfully 
observed in our school. Colored children should be taught self respect and
pride in their own group. Nothing can do this more quickly and more surely
than teaching them that representatives of their race have done something
worth while and have reached lofty heights in spite of the fearful disadvantages
under which they have been obliged to labor. Perhaps my Douglass Day
hero in our public schools inspired Dr. Carter Woodson to establish Negro
History Week many years afterward.
Question 5- Had it been a long time since you had seen Frederick Douglass 
before he died?
No. Fate decreed that I should be with Mr. Douglass just a few hours
before he died suddenly at his home. A little before noon that day he had attended
a meeting of the National Council of Women. As soon as one of the [officers
spied him as he entered the 18th [?]]

5
ficers spied him as he entered the 12th Street entrance of what was then
called the Columbia Theatre, but is now a movie house,she announced from
the platform "Frederick Douglass is in the house." A Committee was immediately 
appointed by Susan B. Anthony, well known Woman Suffrage leader, to escort
Mr. Douglass to the platform, and when he reached it the officers and members
of the National Council of Women gave him a royal Chautauqua salute.
When the meeting had adjoined , and the admiring, revering women had
ceased paying homage to Mr. Douglass, which I enjoyed very much standing at
a distance. I came forward to greet him. Then Mr. Douglass and I left the 
Columbia Theatre by the 12th Street exit , and walked together to the corner
of 12th and F Streets. [Then] there he stopped and invited me to have lunch with
him. But I was not feeling very well and was obliged to decline the invitation,
alas!    Lifting the light sombrero which he often wore, he bade me
good bye. About seven o'clock that evening a friend came to our house to tell
us that Frederick Douglass had died suddenly while he was at dinner describing
to his wife the ovation tendered him by the officers and members of the 
National Council of Women. How deeply I had regretted then that I had been 
unable to spend another hour in the company of that great man whom I would never
see again. 
Judged by an standard whatsoever, subjected to any test there is no question 
that among the greatest men this or any other country has produced Frederick
Douglass stands conspicuous in the foremost rank.

Mary Church Terrell [*With a few changes and omissions this
address was used May 26, 50 when I talked to children of the Public Schools at Cedar [?], where Frederick Douglass- I was [?] by Douglass' Home Committee of the Public Schools*]
Personal Recollections of Frederick Douglass.
Meeting Frederick Douglass was certainly a red-letter day in
my life. When I was a Freshman in Oberlin College in 1880 and 81 my
father permitted me to accept the invitation to attend Garfield's inauguration
which was extended to me by Mrs. Josephine Bruce, wife of
Senator B.K. Bruce of Mississippi, the only colored man then in the United
States Senate.
After I came to Washington As a friend and I were walking down the a Washington street one
day, a short distance ahead of us I saw two men talking to each other.
Instantly and instinctively I knew that one of the men who had magnificent,
majestic proportions and a distinguished bearing could be none other
than the great Frederick Douglass. Fortunately, my friend was acquainted
with him and introduced me to him then and there. And thus began a
friendship which I prize more highly than words can portray because I
derived so much information, inspiration and pleasure from it as long as Mr. Douglass
lived [*Stop   Omit*]
While I was a student at Oberlin, my attention was first attracted
to the intermarriage of the races when Frederick Douglass married Miss
Helen Pitts, a white woman, who lived near his resident in Anacostia,D.C.
In the reading room of Ladies Hall ,where I lived, I read the editorial columns
of the newspapers and magazines. Few, if any, really approved of intermarriage,
while the majority attacked it bitterly. After reading both
sides of the question I was convinced that no sound argument or reason
could be produced to prove that there is anything inherently wrong in
the intermarriage of the races. A great hue and cry was raised against
Frederick Douglass' marriage to Miss Pitts because it defied the customs
and traditions of a country calling itself a Democracy, even though reeking
with a cruel race prejudice which humiliates, handicaps and harasses millions
in a minority group , They are victims of disfranchisement, segregation
and discriminations of various kinds which often make it possible

2
for them to earn their daily bread.
And yet, the colored people who criticized Frederick Douglass because he
married a white woman were themselves continually clamoring for EQUALITY-ABSOLUTE
EQUALITY along all lines- equality of opportunity, equality in the Courts,
educational, political and social equality, world without end,amen.'
But when Frederick Douglass, the foremost representative of their race, actually 
practiced equality by choosing as his mate a woman classified as
white, these very advocates of equality attacked him bitterly and condemned
him for practicing the equality which [what] they themselves had preached long and loud.
[*Begin*] When the first World's Fair was held in Chicago in 1893, a year later
than it should have been, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery
of America by Columbus,Mr. Douglass was the commissioner in charge [?]
the exhibit from Haiti and he employed Paul Dunbar to assist him. Mr.
Douglass was accustomed to entertain his friends at the fair [there] by taking them to
see the exhibits which he especially liked. Following this custom he invited 
me to go with him one afternoon to take in some of the sights. As we 
walked along, either through the grounds or in the buildings,Mr.. Douglass
was continually halted by admiring people who begged the privilege of
shaking hands with him. Great honor was paid to him by people of the dominant 
race. A mother would stop him and say, "You are Frederick Douglass,
aren't you?" Please shake hands with my little son( or daughter), because
when any child he grows up I want him to be able to say that he has shaken hands with
the great Frederick Douglass."
"Let's get on the scenic railway", suggested Mr. Douglass,"so that 
[?] won't be interrupted so often and we may have a chance to talk a little. Nobody can get us there." But he
had reckoned without his host, for we had no sooner settled ourselves on
that little railroad than a man reached over two seats to touch Mr. Douglass [him] on the
shoulder and greet him. "Well, we'll go up on the Eiffel Tower," chuckled
Mr. Douglass." "I know nobody can interrupt us when we are in one of 
those cages." But just as we started to ascend, a man in another cage

3
shouted, "Hello, Mr. Douglass, the last time I saw you was in Rochester."
[*Mr D*] The great man had become deeply interested in Paul Dunbar, because
his struggle for existence and recognition had been so desperate. The fact
that Mr. Douglass was the first person I ever heard mention Paul Dunbar's
name is a recollection that I cherish. By appointment I had [*come*] gone to see
[*Mr D right here one day*] him in his home in Anacostia, across the Potomac River from Washington.
After we had finished the business I had [*come*] gone to transact, Mr. Douglass called the "Sage of
Anacostia"inquired "Have you ever heard of Paul Dunbar?" I told him I had 
not. Then Mr. Douglass rehearsed the facts in the young man's life.
"He is very young, said Mr. D but there is no doubt that he is a poet," he
said. "He is working under the most discouraging circumstances in his home,
in Dayton, Ohio. He is an elevator boy, and on his meagre wages of four dollars
a week he is trying to support himself and mother. Let me read you [one]
of his poems," said Mr. Douglass. And then he arose to get it. I can see 
his fine face and his majestic form now, as he left the room. He soon returned
with a newspaper clipping and began to read "The Drowsy Day." When
Mr. Douglass had read several stanzas, his voice faltered a bit and his
eyes grew moist. "What a tragedy it is," he said," that a young man with
such talent as he undoubtedly possesses should be so terribly handicapped
as he is."
[*[?] you*] [*Omit*] Recording how the public [and] acclaimed and honored Frederick
Douglass at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 [*I recall*] recalls quite a different episode 
in the great man's life many years previously in Peoria, another city
in Illinois. On the anti-slavery platform in the United States and England
with William Lloyd Garrison and other abolitionists Frederick Douglass depicted
the horrors of slavery, the suffering of the slaves and did everything
he could to hasten the day of their emancipation. When he went to 
fill an engagement in Peoria no hotel would accommodate him and literally
had no place to lay his head. Robert G. Ingersoll, the famous orator and lawyer who
lived in Peoria at that time heard of Mr. Douglass' plight and invited
him to stop in his home. Mr. Ingersoll had the reputation of being an 

4
infidel, but when he took Mr. Douglass into [to] his home, he followed the precepts
laid down by Jesus Christ much more closely than those claiming to be
Christians had done, when they closed their doors in Mr. Douglass' face because
he was a colored man.
[*Begin*] A very pleasant recollection of Mr. Douglass' friendship is the invitation
extended me to play croquet with him on the beautifully kept lawn of his [beautiful] lovely
estate right here at "Cedar Hill." [*Mr. D*] He enjoyed [*croquet*] this game and was an adept at it. It goes
without saying that the invitations to Sunday evening tea extended by Mr. 
and Mrs. Douglass to Judge Terrell and myself were always accepted with
pleasure. Mr. Douglass enjoyed conversing, discussing and relaxing with 
his friends. He had a keen sense of humor and was a perfect artist at telling
stories and jokes. Occasionally he played the violin which he sometimes
called his "fiddle." And now and then when he felt especially jovial as he played certain old tunes he
[*very much*] especially liked he would take a few steps and dance. Sometimes my husband 
joined with them. 
Shortly after our marriage my husband and myself [we] were invited  by Major Charles Douglass,
one of Frederick Douglass' sons, to take dinner with his father and himself
and Highland Beach, which as many of you know is about five miles from the Naval Academy
in Annapolis,Maryland. Major Douglass had bought a tract of land on Chesapeake Bay,
which he intended to convert into a summer resort for our group.
Frederick Douglass selected a corner lot, facing the Bay and asked my husband
and myself to take the one next to his. We decided to do so. Our
neighbor on the left, therefore, was Frederick Douglass, and on the right,
a short distance away, Paul Dunbar bought a lot.
After dinner, as we were going to the Bay, Major Douglass told his
father that he intended to have a fine garden next summer on the plot
through which we were walking. It was a sandy patch of ground, and his
son's idea of having a garden on it seemed to amuse Mr. Douglass very 
much. "Why Charles," said he laughing, "Do you really think you can
raise vegetables on this ground? Why, you cant even raise an umbrella on it."
It is pleasant to recall that the first time I went to the White House
to see the President of the United States I went with Frederick

5
Douglass to urge President Harrison to speak out boldly against lynching 
in his annual message.
When the sixtieth anniversary of the first Woman's Rights Convention
even held in the history of the world was celebrated on May 27, 1908, [I
was asked to represent Frederick Douglass] Frederick Douglass' contribution to that cause was strongly featured.
The descendants of those who called this first meeting to demand equal political
rights for women were asked to represent their forbears and I was
asked to represent Frederick Douglass. This sixtieth anniversary was celebrated
in Seneca Falls, New York where that first meeting was held July 19th and
20th,1848.
Harriet Stanton Blatch, the daughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton,represented
her mother. Mrs. Henry Villard, the daughter of the great abolitionist,
William LLoyd Garrison ,represented Lucretia Mott. Mrs. Alice
Hooker Day, the daughter of Isabella Beecher Booker and the niece of Harriet
Beecher Stowe related the efforts made by her father and mother to secure
suffrage by petitioning the legislature of Connecticut.
It was a great privilege to be invited to represent Frederick 
Douglass in a company like that. And there is certainly a very good reason
why Frederick Douglass should always be represented at an anniversary celebration
which woman suffragists hold. When Elizabeth Cady Stanton presente[]
a resolution demandingequal political rights for women at that Seneca
Falls meeting in 1848,, it seemed doomed to defeat. [There was not] Even dear, brave Lucretia
Mott, who for years had courageously championed the cause of suffrage,
begged Mrs. Stanton to withdraw her [matter] resolution. "Lizzie," she please,"thee
will make us all ridiculous if thee insist upon pressing this resolution
through the meeting."
And so there was not a man or a woman at that meeting who had the 
courage to second Elizabeth Vady Stanton's resolution demanding equal political
[equality] rights for women. But there was present at that meeting a single
solitary man through whose veins the blood of Africa flowed. He was the incomparable 
Frederick Douglass, a run away slave, upon whose head his
master had set a price. And Frederick Douglass in the dignity of a


5
Douglass to urge President Harrison to speak out boldly against lynching
in his annual message.
When the sixtieth anniversary of the first Woman's Rights Convention
was celebrated in May, 1908, Frederick Douglass' contribution to that cause
was strongly featured. The descendants of those who called this first meeting
to demand equal political rights for women were asked to represent their
forebears and I was asked to represent Frederick Douglass. This sixtieth anniversary
was celebrated in Seneca Falls, New York, where the first meeting
was held July 19th and 20th, 1848.
There is certainly a very good reason why Frederick Douglass should always
be represented at an anniversary celebration which woman suffragists
hold. When Elizabeth Cady Stanton presented a resolution demanding equal political
rights for women at that Seneca Falls meeting in 1848, it seemed
doomed to defeat. Even dear, brave Lucretia Mott, who for years had courageously 
championed the cause of suffrage begged Mrs. Stanton to withdraw her
resolution. "Lizzie," she plead, "thee will make us all ridiculous if thee
insist upon pressing this resolution through this meeting." But Mrs. Stanton
refused to yield.
and so there was not a man or a woman at that meeting who had the 
courage to second Lizabeth Cady Stanton's resolution demanding equal political
rights for women. But there was present at that meeting a single, solitary
man through whose veins the blood of Africa flowed. He was the incomparable
Frederick Douglass, a run away slave, upon whose head his master had set
a price. And Frederick Douglass in the dignity and majesty of a broad-minded,
justice-loving manhood had the courage to arise in that meeting
and second Mrs. Stanton's resolution. And it was largely due to to his
masterful arguments and his matchless eloquence that the resolution passed
in spite of the opposition of its powerful foes.
The women of this country owe a debt of gratitude to Frederick Douglass
which they can never repay. At the risk of doing an irreparable injury 
to hinself personally and to the cause of abolition, so dear to his heart,

6
and majesty of a broad-minded, generous-hearted manhood had the courage
to second Mrs. Stanton's motion demanding equal political rights for women. 
And it was largely due to [through] Frederick Douglass' masterful arguments and masterful
eloquence that the resolution passed inspite of its powerful foes.
The women of this country owe a debt of gratitude to Frederick Douglas[]
which they can never repay. [He did everything] At the risk of doing an irreparable injury to
himself personally and to the cause of abolition which was so dear to his
heart he did everything he could to secure the elective franchise for women,
so that they would no longer be classified with idiots and infants and
criminals. If Frederick Douglass had no had the courage to second Mrs.
Stanton's motion and the delegates to that first Woman's Rights convention had
gone home [*disheartened,*] discouraged, it is anybody's guess how long suffrage for women
would have been delayed.
It was a proud and happy moment in my life when on May 27th,1908 at
11:30 A.M. I witnessed and participated in the unveiling of the bronze tablet
which was placed on the wall of the opera house now occupying the site on
which stood the Methodist Church in which the first woman suffrage convention
was held. This tablet shows in relief the figure of a woman supporting
a shield on which was inscribed "On this spot stood the Wesleyan Chapel
where the first Woman's Rights Convention in the world's history was held
Jly 19 and 20, 1848." Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved this resolution which
ws seconded by Frederick Douglass: "That it is the duty of the women of
this country to secure to themselves the sacred right [of] to the elective franchise."
This bronze tablet will make it impossible to withhold from Frederick
Douglass the credit due him for his heroci stand on woman suffrage.

7
[*Begin*] The morning on which the memorial tablet was unveiled only one address
was delivered after the chairman of the meeting welcomed the audience. And 
that was an address on"Woman Suffrage " delivered by the woman who represented 
Frederick Douglass. After that the President of the New York State
Suffrage Association unveiled the beautiful bronze memorial tablet on which the
names of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Frederick Douglass are inscribed and which
had been placed on that old historic building.
The Seneca Falls Historical Society printed in book form the proceedings 
of the Sixtieth anniversary of the Woman's Rights Convention which
was held in their city. And this book contains among other things both 
the addess on [*by*] Frederick Douglass which were made by the speakers [?] and the one on Woman Suffrage 
After Mr. Douglass died it occurred to me that a day should be set 
apart in our public schools in his honor. In my opinion by all odds Frederick 
Douglass is the greatest man whom this country has produced. If it were
customary to judge human beings by "points", I am sure that it could be
proved mathematically that Mr. Douglass possessed as many of the points mentally,
morally and spiritually which are necessary to make a man great [great] as
any man born in the United States, if not in the whole world. In reading
history I can not recall a man who was born into such depths of poverty and degradation,
who was reared in such a quagmire of handicaps and ignorance, and
who largely by his own efforts was able to rise to such lofty heights as Frederick
Douglass did.
While I was a member of the Board of Education here in 1897 I introduced 
a resolution which was unanimously passed to make February 14th
Douglass Day in our public schools. And for many years Douglass Day was
fithfully observed. In its issue of February 18, 1897, the Washington Correspondent
of the New York Age commented upon this as follows: "About a month
ago Mrs. Mary Church Terrell concenived the idea that the colored children
of this community ought to celebrate in a fitting manner the day on which
Frederick Douglass was said to be born, In her capacity as a member of the
Board of Education she introduced a resolution to this effect at its regular

8
meeting, which resolution was unanimously adopted. Through her efforts,
therefore, and by virtue of her foresight, the 14th of February will hereafter
be known in our school system as "Douglass Day", On this day songs of
freedom will be sung, essays will be read, Declmations given by the pupils
and orations delivered by distinguished men and women tpuching the career
of Frederick Douglass." I used often to [?] Perhaps Carter Woodson and [?] him was inspired by my "Douglass
Day" to establish Negro History Week. a long time afterward.
Fate decreed that I should be with Mr. Douglass just a few hours before
he died suddenly at his home. A little before noon that day he had attended a meeting of
the National Council of Women. As soon as one of the officers spied him [at
the] entering the door, she announced from the platform [that] "Frederick Douglass is in the 
house." A committee was immediately appointed to escort him to the platform
and whom he reached it those women of the dominant race gave him a royal
Chautauqua salute.
When the meeting adjourned and the admiring women had ceased paying homage
to Mr. Douglass, which I enjoyed at a distance, I came forward and greeted 
him. He and I left what is now Called the Columbia Theatre and walked together to
the corner at 12th and F St. N.W. There he stopped and asked me to have lunch with him. But I was 
not feeling very well and declined the invitation,alas. Lifting the large,
light sombrero which he often wore, he bade me good-bye. About seven o'cloc
that evening a friend Walter Hayson, a teacher [?] our [?] who has [?] passed away came by our house to tell us that Frederick Douglass
had just died suddenly , while he was at the table describing to his wife
the ovation tendered him in the forenoon by the members and officers of the
National Council of Women. How deeply I regretted then that I had been unable
to spend another hour in the company of that great man whom I would never see again!
Judged by any standard whatever or subjected to any test thereis
no question that among the greatest men this or any other country has produced
Frederick Douglass stands conspicuous in the foremost rank.
To have been well acquainted with that great man and to have been
honored with his friendship I consider a priceless possession and it is one
of the most cherished memories of my life.


"Frederick Douglass As I
Knew Him- For Ebony Magazine
July 20 and 21, 1953. Editor Allan
Morrison came from New York to
my home 1615 S St N.W to discuss it with me-

Written by Mary Church Terrell
1615 S Street N.W.
Washington, D.C.
[*[?] Allan Morrison Editor of Ebony
discussed this article with me at my house Monday
July 20 and a short time Tuesday July 21, 1953, took it to New York. It will appear in October, 1953 issue.
Frederick Douglass As I Knew Him.
Meeting Frederick Douglass was [certainly a red letter day] an unforgettable experience in my life. 
Whein I was a Freshman in Oberlin College in 1880 and 1881,my parents permitted
me to accept an invitation extended by Senator and Mrs. B.K. Bruce to attend
Garfield's inauguration. Senator B.K. Bruce from Mississippi was the only
colored man in the Senate of the United States at that time and so far as I can now recall there has been
no colored man from any State in the country to succeed him. 
After reaching Washington,one day Mrs. Bruce invited a friend to take
me out sight seeing. As we were walking down the street a short distance
ahead of me I saw two men talking to each other. One of the men was tall with
magnificent, majestic proportions and a distinguished bearing,which would attract
the attention of any normal person interested in human beings.Immediately,
intuitively, instinctively I knew that he [the great man] was Frederick Douglass, although , 
having attended a white school, I do not recall ever having seen a
picture of him. Fortunately for me, my friend was acquainted with him and introduced
me to him then and there. And thus began a friendship which I prize
more highly than words can portray because I derived so much inspiration, information
and pleasure from it as long as Mr. Douglass lived.
I rejoice in the fact that I am a "Hero Worshipper. To be sure very wis
folks who are calm, judicial and philosophical warn you against hero worship
It is not only bad form and poor taste, they tell you, but it is exceedinly
silly, they say. No doubt they are entirely right. But I would not exchange
the pure and unadulterated joy, the exaltation, the inspiration, the information and the perfect
delight which my hero worship of Frederick Douglass brought to my mind and
heart for all the wisdom, philosophy and poise in the world.
From the moment I beheld him for the first time till he walked here
among mortals no more, not one of his words, not one of his deeds ever caused
me to regret the high estimate I had put upon him as a man or the value
I placed upon him as a personal friend It is difficult if not impossibl e


2
2
for me to write an appreciation of Frederick Douglass without laying myself
liable to the charge of exaggeration. He was a perfect Chesterfield in manner
cultivated and gracious It was hard to believe that aman of such culture and refinement could ever
have been a slave with no formal education [educational advantages afforded him], [in colleges] or
[schools]. He was a brilliant conversationalist. His English was faultless, [alt
although Mr. Douglass was never] without being pedantic. He had gone through such winderful
experiences and could relate them without such force, such clear[ance] [?] and such c
charm of manner that it was a delight to listen to him, [as he talked]. Very few
people cared to say much when Mr. Douglass could be heard. Although he did not 
care to occupy the center of the stage in a small company( for he was very modest
[and as far removed from conceit as a man can well be) if he felt like talking
even the most garrulous (and irrepressible) individual seemed perfectly willing 
to be silent.
Mr. Douglass was no sedate, long-faced, (solemn looking or solemn [setinn]
personality, I assure you. He enjoyed being in a merry company, hearing jokes
and telling funny stories [cracking jokes] himself. He liked to laugh, (when he saw or heard anything 
really humorous and made no effort to repress his mirth.)
Mr. Douglass lived at Cedar Hill, Anacostia about 6 or 7 miles
from Washington - I often visited the Douglass home,
and learned to know it from top to bottom. 
On certain afternoons during the summer Mr. Douglass used [was accustomed] to invite a few friend
friendsto come to Cedar Hill to play croquet with him. [for] He enjoyed the
game and was very skillful at it [indeed]. Many times [More than once] Judge Terrell and myself
had the pleasure of playing croquet with Mr. Douglass in the summer [and] I cherish the recollections
of those delightful afternoons, so full of pleasure [and] which usually
ended with an exchange of views and opinions on the questions of the day.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Douglass were very hospitable  people and enjoyed entertaining
[their] friends in their home. Sunday evening Judge Terrell and myself were
often [sometimes] invited to Sunday tea [and to spend the evening]. [?] [How sorry I am that I]
[*See back*]

3

did not keep a diary those days, so that I might recall some of the wise and witty remarks I have so often heard Mr. Douglass make.  During those Sunday evening sessions there was "a feast of reason."  Sometimes Mr. Douglass took out his "fiddle," sang some Scotch songs of which he was very fond, and played several tunes on his violin, which occasionally moved him and my husband to take a few steps, which added to the entertainment.  Then he and my husband would dance a little to entertain us.

When the World's Fair was held in Chicago in 1893, a year later than it should have been, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus, Mr. Douglass was the Commissioner in charge of the exhibit from Haiti and he employed Paul Lawrence Dunbar to assist him.  Mr. Douglass was usually accustomed to entertain his friends at the fair by taking them to see the exhibits which he especially liked.  Following this custom he invited me to go with him one afternoon to take in some of the sights.  As we walked along through the grounds and the buildings, Mr. Douglass was continually halted by admiring people, who begged the privilege of shaking hands with him.  Great homage was paid to him especially by white people.  A mother would stop him and say, "You are Frederick Douglass, aren't you?"  "Please shake hands with my little son (or daughter) because when he (or she) grows up, I want him (or her) to be able to say that he (or she) has shaken hands with the great Frederick Douglass."

"Let's go on the scenic railway," suggested Mr. Douglass when his patience seemed to be slackening a bit, "so that we may have a chance to talk a little.  Nobody can get us there."  But he had reckoned without his host, for we had no sooner settled ourselves on the little scenic railway than a man reached over two seats to touch him on the shoulder and greet him.  "Well, we'll go up on the Eiffle Tower," chuckled Mr. Douglass, "I know nobody can interrupt us when we are in one of those cages."  But just as we started to ascend, a man in another cage shouted, "Hello, Mr. Douglass, the last time I saw you was in Rochester."

The great man had become deeply interested in Paul Dunbar, because his struggle for existence and recognition had been so desperate.  The fact the

Douglass encouraged 

Mr. Douglass was the first person I ever heard call Paul Dunbar’s name is a reco llection that I cherish. By appointment I had gone to see Mr. Douglass in his the gusvenes in Anacostia. across the Potomac River from Washington. After we had fin-ished I had gone to transact , the “Sage of Anacostia inquired “Have you ever heard of Paul Dunbar?” I told him I had not. Then Mr. Douglass rehaaread the facts in this young man’s life.
     “He is very young, but there is no doubt that he is a poet,” he said. “He is working under the most discouraging circumstances in his home, Dayton, Ohio. He is an elevator boy and on his meager wage of four dollars a week, he is trying to support his mother and himself. "Let me read you one of his poems," said Mr. Douglass. And then he arose to get it. I can see his fine f face and his majestic form now, as he left the room. He soon returned with a newspaper clipping and began to read "The Drowsy Day." When Mr. Douglass had read several stanzas, his voice faltered a bit and his eyes grew moist. "What a tragedy it is," he said, "that a young man with such talent as he undoubtedly possesses should be so terribly handicapped as he is."

I shall never forget Mr. D reading that poem

Recording how the public acclaimed and honored Frederick Douglass at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 recalls quite a different episode in the great man's life. many years previously in Peoria, another city in Illinois. On the Anti-Slavery platform in the United States and England with William Lloyd Garrison, Wendell Philips and other abolitionists Frederick Douglass depicted the horrors of slavery, the suffering of the slaves and did everything he could to hasten the day of their emancipation. When he went to fill an engagement in Peoria, no hotel would accommodate him, and he literally had no place to lay his head.  When Robert G. Ingersoll, the famous orator and lawyer, who lived in Peoria a the time heard of Mr. Douglass' plight, he invited him to stay in his home.  Mr. Ingersoll even then had the reputation of being an infidel, but when he took Mr. Douglass to his home, he followed the precepts laid down by Jesus Christ much better than those claiming to be Christians had done when they closed their doors in Mr. Douglass' face because he was a [deleted text] colored man.


5
Shortly after our marriage my husband and myself were invited by Major 
Charles Douglass, one of Frederick Douglass' sons to take dinner with his
Father, his wife and himself at Highland Beach, which is about five miles
from the Naval Academy in Annapolis ,Maryland. Major Douglass had bought a
large tract of land on Chesapeake Bay which he intended to convert into a
summer resort for our group. Frederick Douglass selected a corner lot facing
the Bay and asked my husband and myself to take the one next to him. We
decided to do so and have built our summer home there. I like to think how
pleased Frederick Douglass would be to see what a brilliant success his
son's plan of making an ideal summert resort for our group has proved to be.
After the dinner to which I have referred when the summer resort was just b
being started we decided to go to the Bay. As we walked over the land in front
Major Douglass' house he told his father that next year he intended to have
a fine garden on the plot. It was a sandy patch of ground, and his son's idea
of having a garden on it seemed to amuse Mr. Douglass very much. "Why Charles,"
said he laughing, "Do you really think you can raise vegetables on this
ground?"I dont believe you can raise an umbrella on it."
It is pleasnt to recall that the first time I went to the White House
to see the President of the United States I went with Frederick Douglass
to urge President Harrison to speak out boldly against Lynching in his
annual message.
While I was a student at Oberlin College my attention was attracted
for the first time to the intermarriage of the races when Frederick Douglass
married Miss Helen Pitts, a white woman who lived near his residence in
Anacostia,D.C.In the reading room of Ladies Hall, where I lived,I read the
editorial columns of the newspapers and magazines, many of which shocked
and disgusted me. Few, if any, really approved of intermarriage, while the
majority bitterly attacked it.
After reading both sides of the question I was convinced that no
sound argument or reason could be produced to prove that there is anything
inherently wrong in the intermarriage of the races. A great hue and cry was

6
raised against Frederick Douglass' marriage to Miss Helen Pitts because it
defied the customs and traditions of [?] a country (calling itself a Democracy
even though in some sections it reeks with a cruel race prejudice which
humiliates, handicaps and harasses millions in a minority group.) These unfortunate
people are victims of disfranchisement, segregation and discriminations
of various kinds which often make it impossible for them to earn
their daily bread. And yet many of the colored people who criticized Frederick
Douglass because he married a white woman were continually clamoring for
EQUALITY -ABSOLUTE EQUALITY along all lines- (equality of opportunity, equality
in the courts ,education, political and social equality, world without end
Amen!) But when Frederick Douglass, the foremost representative of their race
actually practiced EQUALITY by choosing as his mate a woman classified as
white, these very advocates of "EQUALITY" attacked him bitterly and condemned
him, (for practicing the EQUALITY which they themselves had preached long and loud
Incidentally, it is entirely due to this white womans thoughtfulness and determination that Cedar Hill has
been left as a memorial to his memory. In making his will Mr. Douglass neglected
to have it signed by three witnesses which was necessary at that time in
order to pass real estate. For that reason Mrs. Douglass had to purchase the
interests of the other heirs. to hold the property. But as the result of her
heart-breaking experience to succeed in doing this herculean task Cedar Hil
is now "a perpetual memorial to my late husband, Frederick Douglass", to
quote a portion of her will.
It is my duty to [*I must*] refer t some of the falsehoods told about the lowly
position which Mrs. Douglass was said to occupyin her own racil group. Some
colored people declared that they did not object to Miss Pitrs solely because
she was white, but because she was what is called "a poor white woman" whith
no social standing whatever, who had married a colored man because he had a 
good job and was what is known as a distinguished man. The charge that Miss
Pitts was"a poor white woman" was entirely false. She was a well educated w
woman from a good family, and was either the first president of a kindergarten
Association, when the average citizen had never heard of such a curiosity

7
or among the first presidents of kindergarten organizations. Personally,
I think she was the first outstanding leader of kindergartens. When the
various women's organizations held their conventions in Washington the
leaders invited Mrs. Douglass to their special functions and it was Mrs.
Douglass' custom to invite a few friends to a luncheon or dinner at her
Cedar Hill home. On such occasions M rs. Douglass would generally invite Mrs. B.K.
Bruce and myself
When the sixtieth anniversary of the first Woman's Rights Convention 
ever held in the history of the world was celebrated at Seneca Falls,
New York in May 1908, Frederick Douglass' contribution to that cause was
strongly featured. The descendants of the people who called the first meeting
to demand equal political rights for women were asked to represent [the descendants of] their
forebears and I was asked to represent Frederick Douglass. [This sixtieth
anniversary was celebrated July 19th and 20th, 1948]
There is certainly a very good reason why Frederick Douglass should
always be honored [represented] at an anniversary celebration which women suffragists
hold. When Elizabeth Cady Stanton presented a resolution demanding equal political
rights for women at the Seneca Falls meeting in 1848, it seemed
doomed to defeat. Even dear, brave Lucretia Mott, who for yeas had courageously championed
the cause of Woman Suffrage begged Mrs. Stanton to withdraw 
her resolution. "Lizzie" she plead, thee will make us all ridiculous if
thee insist upon pressing this resolution through the meeting" But Mrs.
Stanton refused to [yield] withdraw the motion. 
And so there was not a white man or a woman at that meeting who had the
courage to second Elizabeth Cady Stanton's resolution demanding equal political
rights for women. (But there was present at that meeting a single, solitary
man through whose veins the blood of Africa flowed). But he was the incomparable
Frederick Douglass, a run-a way slave, upon whose head his master
had promised a big price to anybody who captured him. And Frederick Douglass
in the dignity and majesty of a broad-minded, justice-loving manhood
had the courage to arise in that meeting and second Mrs. Stanton's resolution.

8
And it was largely due to his masterful arguments and his matchless
eloquence that the resolution passed in spite of the fierce opposition of
its powerful foes. 
The women of this country owe a debt of gratitude to Frederick Douglass
which they can never repay. At the risk of doing an irreparable injury
to himself personally and to the cause of abolition,so dear to his
heart, he did everything humanly possible to secure the elective franchise
for women , so they would no longer be classified with idiots and infants
and criminals. (If Frederick Douglass had not had the courage to second Mrs.
Stanton's resolution and the delegates to that first Woman's Rights Convention
had gone home disheartened, it is anybody's guess how much longer suffrage
for woman would have been delayed. As it was women had to work and
wait for it seventy eight years.)
That was truly a wonderful meeting in the Johnson Opera House at
Seneca Falls,New York on May 26th, 1908 when the pioneer suffragists were honored.
Harriet Stanton Blatch, the daughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, represented
her mother. Mrs. Henry Villard, the daughter of the great abolitionist,
William Lloyd Garrison, represented Lucretia Mott, Mrs. Alice Hooker
Day, the daughter of Isabella Hooker, the sister of Harriet Beecher Stowe,
related the efforts made by her father and mother to secure suffrage for
women by petitioning the legislature of Connecticut. It was an inexpressible
honor and a great privilege for one to be invited to represent Frederick Douglass.
in a company like that. [*x*]
It was a proud and happy moment in my life when on May 27th at at
11:30 A.M. I witnessed and participated in the unveiling of the bronze tablet
which was placed on the wall of the Opera House now occupying the site
on which stood the Methodist Church in which the first Woman Suffrage Convention
was held. This tablet shows in relief the figure of a woman supporting
a shield on which was inscribed"On this spot stood the Wesleyan Chapel
where the first Woman's Rights Convention in the World's historywas held.

9
July 19 and 20, 1848. Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved this resolution which was
seconded by Frederick Douglass: "That it is the duty of the women of this
country to secure to themselves the sacred right to the elective franchise."
[Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved] this resolution which was seconded by Frederick
[Douglass:"That it is] the duty of the women of this country to secure to themselves
the sacred right to the elective franchise." It is a great relief to 
my mind that this bronze tablet makes it impossible to withhold from Frederick
Douglass the credit due him for his heroic stand on Women Suffrage.
The morning on which this memorial tablet was unveiled only one address
was delivered after the chairman of the meeting welcomed the audience. And that 
was the address on Woman Suffrage delivered by the writer who represented Frederick Douglass.
After that the president of the New York State Suffrage Association unveiled
the beautiful bronze memorial tablet on which the names of Elizabeth Cady
Stanton and Frederick Douglass are inscribed and which had been placed on
that old historic building. The Seneca Falls Historical Society printed in
book form the proceedings of the Sixtieth Anniversary of the Women's Rights
Convention which was held in their city. And this book contains among other 
things both the address on Frederick Souglass and the one on Woman Suffrage
both of which were made by the writer.
After Mr. Douglass died it occurred to me that a day should be set ap
apart in his honor. In my opinion by all odds Frederick Douglass is the greatest
man this country has produced. If it were customary
to judge human beings by "points", I am sure that it could be proved mathematically
that Mr. Douglass possessed by many "points" mentally, morally and 
spiritually which are necessary to make a greatmman as any man born in the U
United States, if not in the whole world. In reading history I cannot recall
a man who was born into such depths of poverty and degredation, who was rear
in such a quagmire of handicaps and ignorance, and who largely by his own efforts
was able to rise to such lofty heights as Frederick Douglass DId. 
While I

10
While I was a member of the Board of Education in Washington [here], in 1897 I introduced
a resolution which was unanimously passed to make February 14th
"Douglass Day"in our public schools . Writing about the Board of Education
reminder me that I have been told that the records show Iam the first colored woman in
the United States to receive such an appointment. On April 1895 the Commissioner
of Education here, Commissioner Ross made that appointment. But
that is not the fact I want to tell. For many years Douglass Day was faithfully 
observed here, as it should have been, but comparatively few [it is rarely] observed now,
[I am sorry to say].
In its issue of February 18, 1897, the Washington Correspondent of
the New York Age commented as follows:"About a month ago Mrs. Mary Church
Terrell conceived the idea that the colored children of this community
ought to celebrate in a fitting manner the day on which Frederick Douglass
was said to be born. In her capacity as a member of the Board of Education
she introduced a resolution to this effect at its regular meeting, which
resolution was unanimously adopted Through her efforts, therefore and by vi
virtue of her foresight, the 14th of February will hereafter be known in
our school system as "Douglass Day". On this day songs of freedom will be
sung, essays will be read, Declmations given by the pupils and orations delivered 
by distinguished men and women touching the career of Frederick
Douglass." [I used to tell Carter Woodson that my "Douglass Day" inspired him
to establish his "Negro History Week."]
Fate decreed that I should be with Mr. Douglass just a few hours befor
before he suddenly passed away at his home. Shortly before noon that day he
had attended a meeting of the National Council of Women which was held in
what was called Metzerott Hall but is now known as the Columbia Theatre.
As soon as one of the officers spied him entering the door, she announced
from the platform "Frederick Douglass is in the house [here]." exactly as she would
say"the President is here." A Committee was immediately appointed to escort 
him to the platform, and when he reached it those white women [of the dominant race]
gave him a royal Chautauqua salute.

11
When the meeting adjourned and the admiring women ceased paying homage
to Mr. Douglass, which I enjoyed at a distance, I came forward and
greeted him. He and I left at the side entrance on 12th Street of what is now called the
Columbia Theatre, and walked together to the corner of 12th and F Street, N.
N.W. There he stopped and asked me to have lunch with him. But I was not
feeling very well and declined the invitation, alas! [*I have always regretted not going to 
lunch with him that last day that was the last time I saw Frederick Douglass alive*] Lifting the large light
sobrero which he often wore, he bade me good-bye. About seven o'clock
that evening a friend, Walter Hayson, a teacher in the High School who has
since passed away came by our house to tell my husband and myself that
Frederick Douglass had just died suddenly, while he was eating his [at the] dinner [table]
and telling his wife about the great ovation tendered himin the forenoon by the
officers and members of the National Council of Women. How deeply I regretted
then that I had been unable to spend another hour in the company of that
great man whom I would never see again. 
Judged by any standard [whatsoever], or subjected to any test there is
no question that among the greatest man this or any other country has produc
produced Frederick Douglass stands conspicuous in the foremost rank. 

4
of its powerful foes.
Frederick Douglass did everything he could to secure
the elective [?] for women so that they would no longer
be classified with infants and idiots + criminals. If Frederick 
Douglass had not had the courage to second Mrs. 
Stanton's motion and the delegates to that convention
had gone home discouraged because nobody
had had the courage to do so it is anybody's guess 
how much longer suffrage for women would
have been delayed. As it was, women had to 
work and wait 78 years to become citizens of
the U.S. that they could vote. A
At the 60th anniversary of the 1st Woman's
Rights Convention at Seneca Falls N.Y. in 1908 a bronze tablet was unveiled
and placed on the wall of the opera house which now occupies
the site on which stood the Methodist Church,
in which the first Woman's Rights Convention was held
July 19 + 20, 1848. This tablet shows us relief the [?] 
of a woman supporting 
met + D-walking with a friend - [?]

To have been well acquainted with that great man and to have been honored 
with his friendship I consider a priceless possession and it is one of the
most cherished memories of my life. 


Page 11
We are concerned only that there be an effective nationwide mass fight 
against the deportation hysteria.

Similarly, we appeal here today to all Americans, regardless of their 
political views, to join in this fight. Every one of us is being affected by 
this hysteria. Every one of us stands to lose our rights and our liberties. 
We feel, therefore, that all Americans - of all faiths, of all beliefs, of all 
convictions - should participate to the fullest. And, again, we offer the 
facilities of our organization. If any individual or group of individuals want 
to carry out independent activity, we will welcome their participation in that 
manner in our fight to preserve the Bill of Rights for all Americans.

I said that we do not intend to diminish in the slightest our fight 
against the deportation hysteria. And we must show it by the decisions made here 
this week-end and by the manner in which we carry out those decisions.

I would propose first, that, in ivew of the fact that the Attorney General 
couldn't find the time to be here with us, that this [o]cnference send a special 
delegation to see him and to tell him what he would have heard if he had been here.

Second, I propose that in the coming months we arrange to send the families 
of deportees - the American citizen families - to call on prominent and influential Americans in all parts of the country to win their support in the fight against 
deportation. During the past year, the most effective demonstration we held 
was the visit in March of more than 40 relatives of deportees to Washington, as 
decided by the Chicago National Conference last year. A delegation headed by 
Bishop Moulton and the Reverend Darr called on the White House; a delegation met with the Assistant to the Attorney General; a delegation met with the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization. Special delegations also visited Congressmen 
and Senators.

Finally, I propose that this Conference select a month to be known as 
FIGHT DEPORTATION MONTH, during which meetings and affairs and special activities 
be organized in all parts of the country. I propose further the month of February 
1950 be designated by this conference as FIGHT DEPORTATION MONTH.

In conclusion, I want to say that we have a great responsibility, not only 
to ourselves and to all of the people we know, but also to the entire American 
people. We are confident that the plans made by this Conference will result 
in many benefits to the American people. We know that we are going to defeat 
this vicious deportation hysteria but we know also that we will defeat it only 
if we conduct a vigorous and effective fight. To that end we will dedicate ourselves 
so that we, as well as all of the American people, can live as a free 
people in a world of peace; so that we can live in a better America where each of 
us can go about our work and lives with dignity, in equality, and peace.

uopwa
16-96



4                       4 1/2
a shield on which was inscribed "On this spot stood
the Wesleyan Chapel where the 1st Womans Rights
Convention in the Worlds History was held July 19 and
20, 1848. Elizabeth Cady Stanton moved this resolution
which was seconded by Frederick Douglass. That it is
the duty of the women of this country to secure to themselves
the sacred right to the elective franchise.
This bronze tablet will prevent anybody from trying to withhold
from Frederick Douglass the credit & honor of having been
largely instrumental in making women citizens of the United
States [so that they would no longer be put in the
same class as that occupied by criminals,idiots & infants.]

Highland Beach

2 Placing such a high estimate upon Frederick Douglass' services and career yourself
have you done anything to convert others to your point of view 2
or Yes, I have tried to do that.

Page 9
-vasion of the rights of American citizens. And the only way naturalized citizens
are going to be able to preserve their rights is going to be by fighting for
their rights and refusing to permit the Justice Department to question them illegally
and depriving them of their rights. 
Naturalized citizens can refuse to answer any questions put to them by
Justice Department agents. Non-citizens, too, can refuse to answer any questions
unless they have had an opportunity to consult an attorney and to be advised as
to their rights under the Constitution.
We have a greater responsibility. We must defeat this attempt to create
new candidates for deportation. We must defeat this attempt to make of 11,000,000
naturalized Americans second-class citizens in this country.
Again, the Justice Department is depending on the changed composition and
changed character of the United States Supreme Court. They are hoping to overthrow
the decision made by the Supreme Court in 1945 in the case of William 
Schneiderman and thereby deprive naturalized citizens of freedom of speech and 
freedom of belief.
This attack on the rights of naturalized citizens is an extension of the
Justice Department's deportation hysteria. It exposes the fact that the Justice
Department is not interested in depriving only the non-citizens of his rights but
is really destroying the Bill of Rights for all Americans. 

81st Congress
Our third main problem arises as a result of the legislative situation
that will confront us in January, when the second session of the 81st Congress
reconvenes. 
The Hobbs Concentration Camp Bill has been reported favorably by the Judiciary
Committee of the House of Representative. It is now before the House
Rules Committee. It is significant that two members of the House Judiciary Committee - 
Representatives Emanuel Celler, of New York, the Chairman of the Committee, 
and Martin Gorski, of Illinois - issued a special minority report condemning
the Hobbs Concentration Camp Bill. And Representative Adolf J. Sabath, of Illinois, 
chairman of the House Rules Committee, has already voiced vigorous opposition
to the provisions of this vicious and un-American bill. 
However, the Justice Department is publicly supporting this bill and we
must expect a concentrated drive by the alien-baiters during the early part of
1950 to pass the Hobbs Bill. 
In the United States Senate, we may be faced with an even more serious
problem. For more than two years now, the Senate Judiciary Committee has had a
sub-committee to Investigate the Immigration Laws at work. This Sub-Committee
is expected to make a report to the Senate in January 1950 and, as part of its
report, to propose legislation. The Sub-Committee will propose an omnibus bill
on immigration and naturalization. I can recall on either omnibus bill - the
Smith Act of 1940. It was as a result of the provisions of this law that the 
leaders of the Communist Party were indicted, that all non-citizens were fingerprinted
and registered in 1940. The Smith Act of 1940 also had a deportation 
provision that is being used today to seek the deportation of most of the 135
non-citizens arrested to date. 
The 1940 omnibus bill must serve as a warning to us. The 1950 omnibus

Transcribed and reviewed by contributors participating in the By The People project at crowd.loc.gov.