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

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W. L. Garrison to S. J. May.

Boston, Sept. 27, 1852.

¹ Thanks for your letter. You say, ‘come,’ and the travelling² expenses shall be paid. . . . I will be with you. My plan is, to leave Boston on Wednesday morning, and lecture in Albany that evening, in compliance with a request of some³ friends in that city; and on Thursday morning to proceed to⁴ Syracuse, arriving in your city, I suppose, by 1 or 2 o'clock. Perhaps it might be well, on that evening, to have a social but somewhat select meeting of friends, to confer together as to the next day's order of proceedings; for the occasion will be one of vast responsibility and importance, and we need great wisdom to direct as well as courage to execute. Every document, and all the resolutions, to be submitted to the meeting, should be most carefully prepared and critically examined, both in a moral and legal point of view. There ought to be a reliable report of the proceedings, cost what it may; for we may anticipate any amount of misrepresentation on the part of such pro-slavery papers as the Star, etc., etc. . . .

Theodore Parker has put into my hands an admirable letter from his pen, to be read to the meeting, provided any one can decipher his manuscript who shall undertake to read it.

J. Miller McKim to Miss Sarah Pugh, abroad.⁵

Philadelphia, Nov. 1, 1852.

⁶ The observed of all observers at our [State] meeting was⁷ William Lloyd Garrison. He had never before been at West Chester, and as a consequence the people were very anxious to see and hear him. I need not tell you that the impression he made was highly favorable to himself and to the cause. This, you know, is the case wherever he goes. The prejudice which used to exist against him, excited by the fact that he was the earliest and always the ablest assailant of the slave system, is passing entirely away, so that now there is not one in our ranks who enjoys more largely, or even so largely, the respect of all classes. Indeed, it is observed that people will listen to him who will not patiently hear a word from any one else on the subject. His early services and unswerving devotion to the cause seem to have earned for him a prescriptive right to speak