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Letter to Editor
February 16, 1838
The Liberator
Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts
What is this article about?
D.C. Colesworthy writes to Garrison from Portland on Feb. 10, 1838, describing successful abolition lectures by James Birney over the past week with no mob opposition. He notes the mayor granted the city hall and a meeting-house opened, contrasting to mob violence the previous year when access was denied.
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MR. BIRNEY IN PORTLAND.
PORTLAND, Feb. 10, 1838.
Dear Garrison:
We have had a 'feast of fat things' in this city for the last week—brother Birney has lectured every evening but one, and with signal success. There has been no mobbing—no brickbats—and but little opposition. Can you credit it, when I tell you that the mayor of our city readily granted us the city hall on Tuesday evening? How great has been the change within one short year! A twelvemonth since, the hall was denied us, and its walls reverberated with the shouts of the rabble, when R. A. Codman, Esquire, exclaimed, 'The abolitionists must be put down—peaceably if they can be, but forcibly if they must be.' On Thursday evening, we were permitted to assemble in the meeting-house of the 3d parish—the first house for public worship that would throw open their door to the exciting subject of abolition, (if I may except the Friends' house) since Mr. Thompson was here, and then but one house could be obtained. Is not here a triumph of liberty? Soon, I trust, every house will be opened in the city, and then we shall not stand in fear of mobs. There was one pew I noticed in the 3d parish, nailed up and labelled, 'no admittance.' It belonged to a young fellow, unworthy of notice. Had his pew not been labelled, it would have been evident to the audience who had been there, by the intolerable stench left behind. But abolitionists, genuine ones, can live through almost anything—but no thanks to the enemies of freedom. I close, knowing how pressed you are for room, by subscribing myself,
Yours in the cause of the oppressed,
D. C. COLESWORTHY.
PORTLAND, Feb. 10, 1838.
Dear Garrison:
We have had a 'feast of fat things' in this city for the last week—brother Birney has lectured every evening but one, and with signal success. There has been no mobbing—no brickbats—and but little opposition. Can you credit it, when I tell you that the mayor of our city readily granted us the city hall on Tuesday evening? How great has been the change within one short year! A twelvemonth since, the hall was denied us, and its walls reverberated with the shouts of the rabble, when R. A. Codman, Esquire, exclaimed, 'The abolitionists must be put down—peaceably if they can be, but forcibly if they must be.' On Thursday evening, we were permitted to assemble in the meeting-house of the 3d parish—the first house for public worship that would throw open their door to the exciting subject of abolition, (if I may except the Friends' house) since Mr. Thompson was here, and then but one house could be obtained. Is not here a triumph of liberty? Soon, I trust, every house will be opened in the city, and then we shall not stand in fear of mobs. There was one pew I noticed in the 3d parish, nailed up and labelled, 'no admittance.' It belonged to a young fellow, unworthy of notice. Had his pew not been labelled, it would have been evident to the audience who had been there, by the intolerable stench left behind. But abolitionists, genuine ones, can live through almost anything—but no thanks to the enemies of freedom. I close, knowing how pressed you are for room, by subscribing myself,
Yours in the cause of the oppressed,
D. C. COLESWORTHY.
What sub-type of article is it?
Informative
Persuasive
Emotional
What themes does it cover?
Slavery Abolition
Social Issues
What keywords are associated?
Abolition Lectures
James Birney
Portland 1838
Anti Mob Success
Thompson Reference
City Hall Grant
R A Codman
What entities or persons were involved?
D. C. Colesworthy
Garrison
Letter to Editor Details
Author
D. C. Colesworthy
Recipient
Garrison
Main Argument
james birney's abolition lectures in portland have succeeded without mob opposition, marking a significant change from the previous year's violence and denial of venues, signaling a triumph of liberty.
Notable Details
Mayor Granted City Hall
Previous Year's Denial And Rabble Shouts
Quote From R. A. Codman: 'The Abolitionists Must Be Put Down—Peaceably If They Can Be, But Forcibly If They Must Be.'
First Meeting House Opened Since Mr. Thompson
Nailed Up Pew With 'No Admittance' Label And Stench