Such plain blunt reasonings could put to flight the assumption that voting at the polls was a test of membership: but of course it did but increase the bitterness of feeling of those who sought a cause of offence against the Society, to find none. That Mr. Garrison was personally aimed at, and the Massachusetts Society also, because it would not consent to his ignominious expulsion, no one doubted, who was at the receipt of clerical custom. The _on dits_ were plentiful, authenticated and conclusive. “Garrison has too much influence,” said one. “We must take it down little by little.” “Have you got Garrison down yet?” said another; “we are ready to come in when he is out of the way.” “All the Massachusetts meetings are mere Garrison-glorifications,” said a third; “they forget the _poor slave_.” “Oh, the Massachusetts Society is the mere creature of Garrison,” said a fourth. “So many good abolitionists as there are in the State, opposed to him, why not get rid of him at once?” said the outside row. “All in good time--a new paper first, as the organ of the Society--and we can make advantageous changes in the Board of Managers also, _as they wish to resign_,”--replied the inner circle, that were most closely hemming round the Massachusetts Society, with hostility in the disguise of friendship. Charitable judgment is an excellent thing. _Possibly_, Arnold thought that the revolutionary principles might be promoted by giving up Washington to the discontents of the factious, and the demands of the foe; and exactly the same possibility exists that these men of great professions and hitherto unattainted names, were sincere blunderers,--not treacherous apostates. An excellent thing _in its place_, is charitable judgment. Whether its place be to refuse to see or to sum up evidence, admits of controversy. The accusations against the Massachusetts Society, however, appeared, on _evidence_, to be unfounded. Its Board of Managers had issued an address to abolitionists preparatory to the political campaign, and had concentrated their agents upon the fourth Congressional District, where the political parties were so nicely matched against each other, that the abolitionists, though but the dust of the balance, might, it was hoped, by successive defeats of the election, at length procure a candidate from one or the other party on whom they could unite. This one fact of the personal labors and concentration of effort for political effect on the part of the Managers of the Society, presented itself to every mind and neutralized the misrepresentations that were so industriously circulated. In reality, the whole force of the Society had been bent to this one point; and the Board, knowing that the County Societies were deeply pledged in the matter of funds, relied upon abolitionists in their _county_ capacity to raise the money now due to the National Society, on the Massachusetts pledge.