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Gerrit Smith Broadside and Pamphlet Collection

Methodist convention : who wrote that last resolution? how came it to be adopted?

Smith, Gerrit, 1797-1874.

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Call number: Smith 552

THE METHODIST CONVENTION.

WHO WROTE THAT LAST RESOLUTION?
HOW CAME IT TO BE ADOPTED?

I see in the Northern Independent the five Resolutions on Temperance adopted by the recent N.Y. State Methodist Convention. The first four are good, very good. The fifth is bad, very bad.

Instead of any connexion or agreement between it and them, there is the utmost mutual repugnance. The four pronounce "the liquor traffic" a crime and curse, and demand its prohibition. The fifth and final one virtually advises remaining in the political parties, which uphold this traffic, and have not the least idea of ceasing to uphold it. "O, most lame and impotent conclusion!" O, most signal instance of going in at the big end of the horn, and coming out at the little end! Was ever before so bold an assertion of righteous and sublime principles followed by so total and mean a surrender of them ? All honor to him, who wrote the four Resolutions ! - but shame to him who wrote the fifth! Shall we ever know who it was, that thus brought contempt on the four Resolutions, and did what he could to reduce their high and living truths to worthless and dead ashes? We shall be glad to know him, as soon as he shall have repented of his evil work.

But how came this fifth Resolution to be adopted ? The explanation is simple. The cunningly-drawn Resolution took the Convention in the line of the Convention's weakness. Its members were, in common with the whole American people, trained to cling to their political parties. Let these parties become ever so unprincipled or pernicious, outgrown or obsolete, they must, nevertheless, not be deserted. Strong as our people may be to carry out their convictions against every thing else than their party, they have no strength against it. Weak as water are they, when called on to break the attachments and resist the authority of party. Before its despotic commands they sink down into helpless slaves. It is in this wise that we can account for the painful fact that the Convention, notwithstanding it declares "the liquor traffic," which the Democratic and Republican parties legalize and maintain, to be a crime and curse, call still recommend continuance in these parties. Happy is it that perjury, forgery and theft are not, also, parts of the policy of these parties. For, even then, the Convention might still have been in favor of adhering to these parties: and in this it would have been neither inconsistent nor illogical. If the Convention can go with parties, that uphold dramselling, why may it not continue to go with them, even though they combine with this most destructive, depraving and desolating crime, which is, also, the great fountain-head of crimes, such comparative peccadilloes, as perjury, forgery and theft ?

This fifth Resolution, which turns into such a grim farce the four excellent Resolutions that precede it, is in the following words:

"Resolved, that, in carrying out our purpose, we pledge ourselves to attend the nominating caucuses and labor to secure the nomination of good temperance men to office."

It is barely possible that it, may be said the caucuses here referred to are caucuses of the National and State parties recently organized against "the liquor traffic." But it will not be necessary "to labor" in these to secure temperance nominations. In these no other than such nominations will be made, nor so much as thought of. It is only in the caucuses of the dramshop parties, that there could be the slightest plea for such labor - and there the labor would be ridiculously vain. What, however, if, here and there, a sort of temperance man should get into office through the caucus of a dramshop party ? - he would no more be able to stem the rum current of his party than is a feeble little eddy to withstand the river. Each roust be carried down-stream. By the way, it is altogether idle to expect that earnest temperance men will, in any considerable numbers, consent to attend the caucuses of dramshop parties. They will "touch not the unclean thing." It hardly need be added, that the Convention could not have been so silly, as to believe that the attendance of a few nominal or even real temperance men upon the caucuses of our dramshop parties, or, indeed, any other means would have the effect to turn those parties against the dramshop. None of the great political parties of our State have ever proposed to shut up the dramshop. The sale of alcoholic drinks has, for some weeks past, been under discussion in our Legislature: but I have not seen that any member of the Senate or Assembly, Republican or Democrat, has moved to shut up the dramshop. Moreover, the Convention must have been

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aware that no party either in Church or State, involved in and identified with a great sin, ever consents to part with the sin. It will sooner consent to breakup. Our political parties broke up rather than give up slavery; and so was it with our ecclesiastical parties also. Remains there a slavery-bound party, that has not yet broken up ? Then has it not vet repented of its pro-slavery-then is it a pro-slavery party still. Our Methodist sect, to its great credit, flew into flinders-proving thereby how mighty within it was the explosive power of freedom.

I have accounted for the adoption of this fifth Resolution. Perhaps, there is one thing more, that should have been taken into the account. Let me frankly express my fear that the members of the Convention had not all risen entirely above prating for temperance to acting for it. To vote for temperance is to act for it. No man acts for it, who votes against it. The saying is often repeated, that men will talk, write, preach, pray, fight and even die for religion - any thing and every thing but live for it. The mass of our professed friends of temperance are willing to do all things for temperance excepting vote for it.

I love the Methodists. Of him, who was, in effect, the founder of their sect I am, perhaps, too nearly a worshipper. John Wesley stood up, in well-nigh solitary grandeur, against slavery and alcoholic drinks. No other sect has done so much as this toward spreading throughout our land the blessings of the gospel of Jesus. No other sect has, during the last half dozen years, done so much, at the polls, to promote the cause of freedom and equal rights as has this large and emphatically loyal sect. I believe that there is no other sect, which is furnishing anywhere near as many pioneers in our new undertaking to suppress dramselling bylaw. I was struck with an evidence of this at the Chicago Convention, which organized the national party for such suppression. That Convention abounded in Methodists of the most earnest and hardworking type. So, also, did the Convention which, at a later day, organized the N. Y. State Anti-dramsbop party.

Although I stand in no doubt of the good feeling of the great body of the Methodists toward our cause - in no doubt of their coming, sooner or later, out of their dramshop parties into our anti-dramshop party - nevertheless I cannot without shutting my eyes to the past, be sure of the help of every Methodist leader. Leading Methodists may, for a time, sadly mislead the Methodist masses in the matter of temperance, as such did, for a time, sadly mislead them in the matter of slavery. How wide and evil the influence of such an insanely pro-slavery General Conference as that in Cincinnati in 1836! Scarcely less so that of the pro-slavery words spoken, at subsequent periods, by such eminent and authoritative Methodists as Dr. Olin, Bishop Soule, Dr. Bond and Bishop Hedding - one of whom went so far as to say that a man's being a slaveholder should not be allowed to disqualify him for being a bishop, and another of whom positively declined putting a motion, which simply declared shivery to be a moral evil. These things, which were amongst the many things, that helped block the way and grieve the hearts of the little band of abolitionists, I am very far from recalling for the purpose of bringing repreach upon the Methodist sect. I recall them simply that they may serve to warn it against being misled in its action on temperance. It is true that this sect did, in the end, come out bravely and beautifully for the slave; - but it is, also, true that it would have come out for him many years before it did, had none of its leaders contributed to hinder it. I would that it might not be hindered in espousing the only effective measures for shutting up the dramshop; - but it certainly will be, if it shall listen to such absurd counsels as F are contained in this fifth Resolution.

God grant that the Methodists and all other men may quit their dramshop parties now, and join the anti-dramsbop party now. I say now - for the burying every year of fifty thousand of the drunkards of our country, and the entering every year of fifty thousand of our youth into the death-thinned ranks of drunkenness are amongst the facts, which forbid a moment's lingering in parties, that are indissolubly bound up with the dramshop, or a moment's lingering outside of the party, which is organized to suppress it.

GERRIT SMITH.

PETERBORO, March 8, 1870.