Newspaper Clippings for
March, 1846
from the Little Fort Porcupine and Democratic Banner 10 March 1846LAKE COUNTY LIBERTY ASSOCIATION
At
the Lake County Liberty Convention held at Libertyville on the
4th day of March for the purpose of organizing a County Liberty
Association, the meeting was opened by prayer by the Rev. Mr.
Paine; the Rev. Mr. Dodge was elected President, Mr. C. C. Cadwell
Vice Pres., and Lathrop Bullen Secretary.
Committees
for various objects were appointed, -and the committee
on business reported the following Resolutions and Constitution,
which were adopted:
Resolved,
That this Convention deem it expedient to organize for
this county, a Liberty Association.
Constitution of the Lake County Liberty Association.
Preamble:
Believing that God hath 'created of one blood all
nations of men,' and commanded them to love their neighbors as
themselves; that our national existence is based upon the same
principle as declared in the Declaration of Independence, 'That
all men are created equal, and endowed by their Creator with the
inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness,' and that it is the duty of this country to do all
which is lawfully in their power to secure these rights, and this
equality to all persons in our nation, without regard to color
birth place, or condition. We, the undersigned, relying on the
Divine aid, agree to form our selves into a society for this
purpose, and to be governed by the following Constitution:
Article 1.
This society shall be called the 'Lake County Liberty
Association.'
Art. 2.
The objects of this association are to do all it can
consistently with Law, Humanity, and Religion to effect the entire
abolition of Slavery in the United States. This object it will
endeavor to accomplish chiefly by the dissemination of its
principles among the people, and the election of such men to the
offices of law makers as are the well known enemies of
slavery.
Art. 3.
It shall be deemed a violation of principle and duty for
any member of this association to vote for the election of any man
as law maker, judge, or ruler who is a slaveholder or a pro
slavery man.
Art. 4.
Any person consenting to the foregoing principles,
objects, and pledge may become a member of this association by
signing this Constitution.
Art. 5.
The officers of this association shall be a President,
one Vice President from each precinct in the county, a Secretary,
and Treasurer, all of whom shall constitute a central committee
and five of whom shall be a quorum with power to call meetings,
employ agents, fill vacancies which may occur in their number
during the _________ of the society’s meetings, and do all other
acts and things necessary to accomplish the objects of the
association. The officers shall continue in office till others
shall be elected to their place.
Art. 6.
The Association shall hold an annual meeting on the first
Tuesday of February, annually, for the choice of officers and the
transaction of any other business which may come before it. At
any annual meeting this constitution may be amended by a vote of
two thirds of the members present, except the first and third
articles which shall not be altered.
The
following resolutions were passed.
Resolved,
That we recommend our friends to organize liberty
associations in all the precincts in the county in which it may be
practicable, to appoint committees in all the different
neighborhoods in which suitable persons can be found to see to the
distribution of publications, secure the labors of lecturers, and
take all measures necessary to spread our principles among the
people.
Resolved,
That the legislative acts of Illinois popularly known as
the ‘black law’, presuming colored people to be slaves, and
authorizing them to be arrested, imprisoned and advertised as such
and to be sold to pay their jail fees, robbing them of legal
protection and outlawing them by denying them the right to testify
against white persons in the courts of law - subjecting them to the
necessity of stealing for the means of subsistence, by prohibiting
our fellow citizens from employing, harboring, or aiding them
under the pain of severe fines and imprisonments, and converting
this free state into a hunting field for slaveholders and
kidnappers, by inviting them to come here and spirit away into
slavery the former victims of their oppression, is immoral,
despotic, and inhuman, a palpable and daring infraction on the law
of God, and a burning disgrace to this state, and ought to be
immediately repealed.
Resolved,
That we have heard with mortification and alarm that the
representative of this county voted in the last legislature for
this atrocious law, and that we will omit no honorable effort,
next August, to secure the election of some friend of our common
humanity, who will move immediately to free our county and state
from this foul reproach.
Resolved,
That the central committee be instructed to secure as
many lecturers in this county, between this and the August
election, as the means at their command will authorise; and that
in this labor they be requested to have special reference to those
precincts in which our principles are least understood, and that
to aid them in this effort we will contribute liberally and use
our utmost exertions.
Resolved,
That we desire our friends to make a general and
thorough effort through the county to obtain subscribers for the
Campaign Western Citizen.
Resolved,
That a Pro Slavery man is one, who, when the principles
of the liberty party are fully and fairly before his mind, does
not take decided ground in favor of the abolition of slavery.
The following were elected officers for the ensuing year:
President, Seth Paine; Vice Presidents, Thos. Hagerty, Lake Zurich
precinct; Joseph Cook, Lake; Rob’t Pollock, Mill Creek; F. H.
Porter, Little Fort; A. B. Patridge, Burlington; Theron Parsons,
Middlesex; T. Q. Gage, Bristol; Secretary, H. W. Blodgett, Little
Fort; Treasurer, Eli Gage, Antioch.
Resolved.
That the proceedings of this convention be published in
the Little Fort Porcupine, Lake County Herald and Western
Citizen.
On motion,
the meeting adjourned, sine die.
WM. B. DODGE. Pres.
Lathrop Bullen, Sec.
