Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1854-07-25
lFrom he commonwealthl
The Worcester Convention.

The Worcester Convention.
The Boston Eceniag Journal of to-day, in
an article on the Worcester Convention,
makes the following statement;
We know that a Wing who was placed on
the Committee on resolutions, was not even
| notified of the meeting of that committee, and
took no part in its deliberations. We know
that another of the seven members of that
committee went into the committee room in
| good faith, with the intention of expressing
his views, and that of many other good Wings
who were present at the meeting, but found
that the series of resolutions which was final
| " reported to the meeting, had in reality been
prepared and adopted before the meeting of
the committee Indeed, we have been as
sured that the resolutions were privately ex-
hibited III the Convention, and copy of them
was given 10 a reporter before the committee
on resolutions was appointed!
OF the doings in the committee room, we
find the following account in the Forester
Transcript of this morning;
"But we wish to call attention particular
", to the composition of the Committee on
Resolutions, and to its actions. The nominal
chairman was Wing, but the real chairman,
was Seth Webb, Jr., very enterprising Free
Soiler. He it was who reported the resolu-
tons, and it is presumed that it was he also
who, either alone, or in connection with other
Free Soil leaders, prepared them. AT any
rate, they were laid before the committee al
ready prepared, and were adopted as they
stood. 1t is proper to say, however, that they
| were not unanimously adopted by the commit
tee. An attempt was made by the minority
| of the committee to procure the substitution
| of the following, i'll the place of those which
committed the Convention to the formation Of
anew party.
ResolUed, That the reelection of our pres
ent Representatives in Congress, by the uni
ted suffrages of their constituents, will be the
most immediate, direct, practical, and poten-
| tial demonstration which the people of Massa-
chusetts can make against the wrong and out
| rage perpetrated by the abrogation of the anti
slavery clause of the Missouri Compromise
| and we therefore earnestly recommend to the
| voters of this Commonwealth to unite with
| but distinction of party, in their reelection
| next November.
ResolUed, That inasmuch as the object which
has called us together is of a national charac-
ter, and is to be effectively prosecuted only by
suitable agents in the National Legislature (;
and, inasmuch as it is not the design of this
Convention to organize fourth party in this
Commonwealth, but to give a united and har-
monious expression of the sentiment Of exist
ing parties therefore, it is not expedient for
this Convention to nominate State officers, or
to adopt measures for the organization Of
new party.
These were promptly voted down by the
Il. Ala
of Mr.. Webb We're reported unaltered. So
entirely predominant was the Free Soil in
huence, that it was deemed useless to make
any further effort to give catholic and unpar
tizan character to the Convention"
AS member of the Committee on Resolu-
tons of the Worcester Convention, l feel
bound to say that nearly every assertion iii the
foregoing extract is unfounded or inaccurate.
The history of that Convention, so far as its
Resolutions are concerned, is this:
went to Worcester on Wednesday after
noon, as did many others of all parties, under
the impression that, according to custom,
preliminary meeting would be held in the
evening, to make some preparations for the
business of the ensuing day. | took with me
some resolutions which l had drawn up,
chiefly from the excellent series of Resolves
on the slavery question, passed previous to
1850 by the Wing majorities of the Massachu-
sets House of Representatives. 1t was my
intention to offer these to the consideration of
the caucus, if one should be held, or to the
Convention itself, if l found occasion. 1t was
to be presumed that the Wings who might at
tend the Convention would not be likely to
object to resolutions for which they had once
voted with apparent alacrity.
Soon after our arrival at Worcester. it was
decided at an informal conversation between
gentlemen of all parties, that it was not eX-
pedient to hold caucus or take any steps that
might be construed into an attempt to FORE
stall the free action of the Convention. Ac-
cordingly, nothing whatever was done, in the
way of preparation, at least by Free Sellers. l
passed the entire evening III company with
Gen. Wilson, Mr.. Bird, Mr.. Webb, and
others Of our party, and very little was said
about the Convention, nothing was proposed
about the organizations and no resolutions
were read or discussed.
Next morning, becoming dissatisfied with
my resolutions, which after the fashion of the
Wings from whose records they had been CO.
pied, were somewhat prolix, threw them
aside and wrote those which finally passed the
Convention. They were written without con-
sultation with any one, although in the course
of the forenoon | showed them at different
times to three or four of my personal friends.
At half past eleven the Convention organ
lied itself in the most harmonious and spon-
taneous manner. Though toierably familiar
with political Conventions, never before saw
one OF any size, great or small, really organize
itself without management or preparation.-
All the officers and committees were appointed
by free nomination BY the Convention at