We attended the meeting called to rejoice over the passage of the Married Women's Property Bill， which gave to the women of England， in 1882， what we had enjoyed in many States in this country since 1848. Mrs. Jacob Bright， Mrs. Scatcherd， Mrs. Elmy， and several members of Parliament made short speeches of congratulation to those who had been instrumental in carrying the measure. It was generally conceded that to the tact and persistence of Mrs. Jacob Bright， more than to any other person， belonged the credit of that achievement. Jacob Bright was at the time a member of Parliament， and fully in sympathy with the bill； and， while Mrs. Bright exerted all her social influence to make it popular with the members， her husband， thoroughly versed in Parliamentary tactics， availed himself of every technicality to push the bill through the House of Commons. Mrs. Bright's chief object in securing this bill， aside from establishing the right that every human being has to his own property， was to placed married women on an even plane with widows and spinsters， thereby making them qualified voters.
The next day we went out to Barn Elms to visit Mr. and Mrs. Charles McLaren. He was a member of Parliament， a Quaker by birth and education， and had sustained， to his uttermost ability， the suffrage movement. His charming wife， the daughter of Mrs. Pochin， is worthy of the noble mother who was among the earliest leaders on that question杝peaking and writing with ability， on all phases of the subject. Barn Elms is a grand old estate， a few miles outside of London. It was the dairy farm of Queen Elizabeth and was presented by her to Sir Francis Walsingham. Since then it has been inhabited by many persons of note. It has existed as an estate since the time of the early Saxon kings， and the record of the sale of Barn Elms in the time of King Athelstane is still extant. What with its well-kept lawns， fine old trees， glimpses here and there of the Thames winding round its borders， and its wealth of old associations， it is， indeed， a charming spot. Our memory of those days will not go back to Saxon kings， but remain with the liberal host and hostess， the beautiful children， and the many charming acquaintances we met at that fireside. I doubt whether any of the ancient lords and ladies who dispensed their hospitalities under that roof did in any way surpass the present occupants. Mrs. McLaren， interested in all the reforms of the day， is radical in her ideas， a brilliant talker， and， for one so young， remarkably well informed on all political questions.
It was at Barn Elms I met， for the first time， Mrs. Fannie Hertz， to whom I was indebted for many pleasant acquaintances afterward. She is said to know more distinguished literary people than any other woman in London.
I saw her， too， several times in her home； meeting， at her Sunday-afternoon receptions， many persons I was desirous to know. On one occasion I found George Jacob Holyoake there， surrounded by several young ladies， all stoutly defending the Nihilists in Russia， and their right to plot their way to freedom. They counted a dynasty of Czars as nothing in the balance with the liberties of a whole people. As I joined the circle， Mr. Holyoake called my attention to the fact that he was the only one in favor of peaceful measures. "Now，" said he， "I have often heard it said on your platform that the feminine element in politics would bring about perpetual peace in government， and here all these ladies are advocating the worst forms of violence in the name of liberty." "Ah！" said I， "lay on their shoulders the responsibility of governing， and they would soon become as mild and conservative as you seem to be." He then gave us his views on co-operation， the only remedy for many existing evils， which he thought would be the next step toward a higher civilization.
There， too， I met some Positivists， who， though liberal on the religious questions， were very narrow as to the sphere of woman. The difference on sex， which is the very reason why men and women should be associated in all forms of activity， is to them the strongest reason why they should be separated. Mrs. Hertz belongs to the Harrison school of Positivists.
I went with her to one of Mrs. Orr's receptions， where we met Robert Browning， a fine-looking man of seventy years， with white hair and mustache. He was frank， easy， playful， and brilliant in conversation. Mrs. Orr seemed to be taking a very pessimistic view of our present sphere of action， which Mr. Browning， with poetic coloring， was trying to paint more hopefully.
The next day I dined with Margaret Bright Lucas， in company with John P. Thomasson， member of Parliament， and his wife， and， afterward， we went to the House of Commons and had the good fortune to hear Gladstone， Parnell， and Sir Charles Dilke. Seeing Bradlaugh seated outside of the charmed circle， I sent my card to him， and， in the corridor， we had a few moments' conversation.
I asked him if he thought he would eventually get his seat. He replied， "Most assuredly I will. I shall open the next campaign with such an agitation as will rouse our politicians to some consideration of the changes gradually coming over the face of things in this country."
