Letter from Harriet Beecher Stowe, Andover, [Massachusetts], to William Lloyd Garrison, 1853 Nov[ember] 30
In this letter to William Lloyd Garrison, Harriet Beecher Stowe acknowledges Garrison's letter published in the Liberator on December 23, 1853 in reply to her letter, and she says she did not reply immediately as she "did not wish to speak on so important a subject unadvisedly & without proper thought & reflection." Stowe writes that her purpose in writing to Garrison was to give the Liberator "a genial investigation as to its drift and course of thought" and she attempts to answer Garrison's published reply point by point. She states her objection was not with the Liberator's "free discussion ... [or] the fact of its inquiring into the Bible and the sabbath & other things of that kind but the manner of it." Stowe then defends her arguments and cites examples from Theodore Parker's sermons to support her, arguing the Liberator should assume a "general tone & spirit" that is more cautious and does not rely on "appeals to passion & prejudice". Stowe also declares that her "frankness to you is the best expression of my confidence in your honor & nobleness" and then moves on to discuss other matters, like her planning of anti-slavery lectures in Boston, informing Garrison she has written to Horace Greeley and Mr. Palfrey about lecturing. Before ending the letter, Stowe asks Garrison about assertions made in the Liberator about American clergy, that "accuses them of being unprincipled men, not fit to be trusted in any relation to life" and the effect this is meant to have on readers. She charges H.C. Wright's pieces in particular, of making claims "on the Jewish scriptures which no benevolent & just man ought to make without great research & care & without proper proof."
- Por Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896, Garrison, William Lloyd, 1805-1879
- Fechado en ["[December 1853]"]
- Conservado por Boston Public Library
- Parte de Anti-Slavery Collection
- Derechos: No known copyright restrictions.