Francis Jackson Garrison, William Lloyd Garrison, 1805-1879; the story of his life told by his children: volume 2

[314] slavery in the District and other Territories, against the admission of Texas and Florida, against the inter-State slave trade. Of the same mind were the majority of the delegates to the Convention when it met at Cleveland on October 23; 360 out of 400 being from Ohio. Even¹ to ‘lug in’ the woman question appeared impolitic, and so, on motion of H. B. Stanton, all persons were admitted to a share in the proceedings. The political resolutions which he offered, carefully avoided the proposal of a third party, yet did not go unmodified before acceptance. Finally, he felt constrained to vote against Myron Holley's resolution proposing a nominating committee then and there.

Henry B. Stanton to Elizur Wright, Jr.

Cleveland, Monday, Oct. 28, 1839.

² Dear Wright: I believe your brother, whom I saw at our meeting, is to give you a notice of it for the Abolitionist, therefore I will simply answer your good letter, for which I thank you.

Myron Holley brought forward the subject of nominating Anti-slavery candidates for Pres. and V. P. The discussion lasted half an afternoon, the whole of an evening, and half a forenoon. The proposition was finally laid on the table. My main reason for voting for this disposition of it was this:—To have nominated candidates would have been a surprise on the great mass of our friends.

Nothing of the kind was indicated in the call. It was a local meeting, called for special objects at the West. It was local in its representation, being confined chiefly to Ohio. The measure was as extraordinary as would have been a dissolution of the Society, and therefore our auxiliary societies would have been aggrieved by it, greatly. A nomination made before we see whether the parties will put up anybody for whom we can go, would, by the mass of our friends, have been deemed premature—and had we made a nomination, and the Whigs had put up Scott³ and John Davis, and we had called a Convention in New York State to nominate an A. S. electoral ticket, that Conven-