[John S.] Rock to Frederick Douglass, October 7, 1856

FREDERICK DOUGLASS, ESQ: DEAR SIR:— I have been absent one month in New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey. In each of the above States I have found a strong anti-Nebraska feeling. New York city is the hardest place I have been in. While in that city I went to hear the Hon. Mr. Stanton make a speech before the Central Club; and in my opinion it was the strongest pro-slavery speech that I have heard during the campaign. He not only got off the usual slang of a few party papers and leaders, that the Republican party is not the black man's party; but he said," the issue is not against slavery, but it is, white men and white labor, against black men and black labor." If he speaks the sentiments of the Republican Party in New York, I am certain that he does not speak the sentiments either of New England, Pennsylvania, or New Jersey.

In Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as well as New England, the Republican party aims and seeks to check the slave power and to restore the Government back to its original intentions. In Pennsylvania, "the work goes bravely on;" and hundreds are being daily added to the Republican ranks. It is quite probable, that in the election which is to come off on the 14th inst.; the vote may be a close one; but in November, when all the anti-Nebraska [focus?] will be in the field, the victory will be a glorious one. Our foes are now secretly at work trying to coalesce the Democratic and Know Nothing parties; and it is reported that a certain prominent Know Nothing did actually agree to sell out the American party, at least to separate the Fillmore from the Fremont portion of the party, and transfer them over to Buchanan for thirty thousand dollars; that a colored waiter overheard the conversation, and, true to the instincts of freedom, exposed the base plot to certain prominent Fremont Americans. When Mr. "Thingabob" had everything "cut and dried," as he thought, he called a mass meeting of the Americans, and when he was about to make his incendiary speech, which was to divide between the joints and the marrow, the people refused to hear him, and so Mr. "Thing-

abob" gets frantic, and is provided for at the Lunatic Asylum, "The way of the transgressor is hard."

We will cite you another incident worthy of your notice, which I have not seen published.— Some of the Republicans in Philadelphia having heard through a private source that the Democrats were to come out the next day in a long and flaming advertisement in the Ledger, denouncing the Black Republicans, they immmediately set to work and made out an advertisement, which they headed, "The New Democratic Doctrine," in which they quoted from numerous Democratic papers and speakers, showing that the design of the Democratic party is to enslave all the laboring classes of society: and this they had inserted immediately under the Democratic advertisment! A prominent Democrat, who has a large factory in the northern part of the city, in which some 450 hands are employed, knowing that their great advertisement was to appear, gave his hands at half an hour extra to listen to the treasonable designs of the "wooly heads."— They all listened with attention; and when he had finished, some of them commenced to denounce the Republicans. On[e] of them (a Fremont man) having seen the paper early in the morning, told the man to finish reading it. He then read "The New Democratic Doctrine;" and when he had finished, though nine-tenths of them were Democrats, they had their eyes opened! They formed a Republican Club on the spot, and over three hundred joined it!

In New Jersey, the Republican cause progresses finely. I regret to say that there has been but little done in that State. Mr. Burlingame's speech in Trenton drew the largest audience that ever assembled in that city to hear one ma. The speech was able and eloquent, and every way worthy of the man. It has done immense good in that city. The southern section of New Jersey has been almost entirely neglected by our Republican lectures. Much efficient service may yet be done in Cumberland, Atlantic, Cape May, Salem and Gloucester Counties. They are much in need of documents. A few hundred dollars spent in the gratuitous distribution of documents would render the cuase efficient servie. There is plenty of money some where; why not do something in New Jersey?

In Delaware, there are many good Republicans. Fillmore is evidently, the strongest man there now, thought it is thought that they will go over to Buchanan before the election. The

laws are becoming very oppressive on the free colored people in that State. A colored man told me that it is now a State's Prison offence for a free colored man to buy powder and shot to go gunning with, and that any white man who may see a colored man carrying a gun, even if it has no lock on it, can take it from him and keep it, and if he refuses to give it up, can have him arrested and sent to the State's Prison.

The case of Wm. A. White vs. John Doe, alias James Reed, was decided on Thursday. The action was brought before the Supreme Court for damages alleged to have been committed by the defendant in forcibly ejecting the plaintiff from the Court House during the Burns' trial. The defence set up a plea of justification by reason of acting under authority of U.S. Marshal Freeman, and that no more force was used than was in accordance with that authority. The jury returned a sealed verdict for the plaintiff for three hundred dollars.

Quite an exciting discussion has been going on between the newspapers et al, in relation to an alleged expulsion of Mr. John Stephenson, a colored member of the Mercantile Library Association, on the 17th ult., by Mr. Ira Chase, Jr., President of said Association. Mr. Stephenson is a gentleman, and I can conceive of no reason why he should have been expelled. Mr. Stephenson started the discussion, and so far he has decidedly the best of it. Mr. McCrea and Mr. Chase had some angry words in relation to it a few days since in Mr. C.'s store, when Mr. C. called Mr. McCrea a liar. The chivalric Mac, who drove Hallett out of his shop, and proposed to shave the proprietor of the National Theatre in his wood-house, said, "If you were not in your own place, I would knock you down." Whether this was the explosion of the gas, or whether there was a mosquito fight, I am unable to say. I regret that the Association has been drawn into this affair, and I hope they will disclaim any participation of the disgraceful act. If Mr. Stephenson was a full member, he had a perfect right to keep his place. If he was not, Mr. Chase had a right to ask him to withdraw. Mr. Stephenson's membership is not denied.

ROCK.

BOSTON, Oct. 7, 1856.