Francis Jackson Garrison, William Lloyd Garrison, 1805-1879; the story of his life told by his children: volume 3

It was, however, a strong Gerrit Smith delegation which³ H. C. Wright accompanied on the boat from Cleveland. For six hours during the passage the saloon was crowded with a caucus over which Owen Lovejoy presided, with George Bradburn and Asa Mahan among the disputants as to men and measures. What was left undiscussed overnight was taken up the next morning. The drift was for a diversity of planks in the party platform, and, by general consent, land reform should be one; nor did the Western mind shrink from anticipating that woman suffrage might ultimately be another. Some wild talk concerning the power of Congress to abolish slavery in the States, and the power of the President in disregard of the Supreme Court, was heard and noted by Mr. Wright.

Two days and nights were consumed by the Convention⁴ in adjusting differences. Joshua Leavitt led the Eastern wing, with the aid of Henry B. Stanton, whose politician's progress had been shown in January at a Liberty Party⁵ Convention in Faneuil Hall, Boston, where he said openly that there were in the community ‘a set of soulless scamps⁶ that could only be brought into our cause by the prospect of office; and if the Liberty Party could only get 40,000 votes, as a capital to trade upon, they would soon have these miserable scamps jumping upon their backs to ride⁷ into office.’ Quite naturally at Buffalo he joined Leavitt in contending that the Liberty Party was not a permanent party, whereas Gerrit Smith and the Liberty Leaguers insisted that it was or should be, and should at once consider and advocate all the interests which ought to be represented in a civil government, in order to put them in practice on taking office. Leavitt was likewise in opposition to Goodell and Gerrit Smith and⁸ Lysander Spooner on the question of the constitutionality of