SLAYEBY  AND  FREEDOII.  471

Arcade,  (then)  Genesee  County,  January  28tk  and  29tli|
18:10,  attended  by  Myron  HoUey  and  Gerrit  Smith ;  Beuben
Sleeper,  of  Livingston  County,  presiding.  This  Convention
issued  a  Call*  for  a  National  Convention  to  be  held  at  Albany,
April  1,  1840,  **  to  discuss  the  question  of  an  independent
nomination  of  abolition  candidates  for  the  two  highest  offices  in
our  National  Government,  and,  if  thought  expedient,  to  make
such  nomination,  for  the  friends  of  freedom  to  support,  at
the  next  election."

The  National  Convention  at  Albany  was  accordingly  held,
at  the  time  appointed,  Alvan  Stewart  presiding.  After  a
full  discussion,  the  Liberty  party  was  organized,  and  James
G.  Birney  and  Thomas  Earle  were  nominated  for  President
and  Vice-President  of  the  United  States.  The  traveling,  at
that  season  of  the  year,  was  exceedingly  bad,  but  delegates
were  in  attendance  from  six  States.
The  entire  vole  of  the  Liberty  party  at  the  Presidential
Election,  in  the  autumn  of  1840,  amounted  to  a  little  less
than  7000.  In  1844,  the  Liberty  candidates,  James  G.  Bir»
ney  and  Thomas  Morris,  received  upwards  of  60,000  votes.
These  were  but  a  small  part  of  the  professed  abolitionists  of
the  United  States.  A  few  hundreds,  perhaps,  abstained  from
voting,  from  conscientious  scruples,  and  other  considerations.
But  the  great  majority  of  those  who  did  not  vote  for  the
Liberty  candidates,  unquestionably  voted  for  the  nominees
of  the  old  parties,  Harrison,  Van  Buren,  Polk,  and  Clay,  the
two  latter  being  slaveholders,  and  the  two  former  openly
opposed  to  the  measures  and  objects  of  abolitionists.
