Boston May 27, 1851

Dear Bradburn,

     Yours of the 23d is just rec’d—and the one to your wife mailed.

     I mailed for you last week the Liberator, containing Douglass’s own announcement of his change, and Garrison’s comments upon it.

     I am not the one to broach that subject to Douglass. I am hardly acquainted with him, but I scarcely ever conversed with him two minutes at a time in my life. It would be both impolitic and improper for me approach him [sic] with any suggestions on the subject.

     I had supposed, from your former intimacy with him, that you might feel at liberty to write to him yourself. If you do not, I think of no way of bringing you into communication, unless it has done by Gerrit Smith. He would, I think almost undoubtably, encourage it, but the ambitious selfish hypocrite would probably do it, in the expectation that he would thereby enlist two good trumpeters in his service, and if you did not make yourselves mere instruments of his ambition, and keep his vanity constantly inflated to its almost capacity, he might pick a quarrel with you and set up a rivalry paper, if he dared, of which you can judge. If, however, he should dare do so, I have not very much apprehension as to who would come out ahead.

     Since writing you I have had some doubt of the expediency of removing the paper to Boston. Such removal would probably gain for it an important increase to its present subscription list. But I apprehend, from various straws I see flying, that the Garrison folks some or all of them, are likely soon to come over on the same ground with Douglass. The Commonwealth too is throwing out some feelers, as you will see by the paper of this morning. If either the Commonwealth or the Garrison folks should come over, there would be no room for another paper here. It is probable therefore that Douglass’ present field is the best, having the future, as well as the present, in view.

     W.R. Smith has not found[?] me, but he wrote me sometime ago that he would try to do so soon. Yesterday, I wrote him again.

                                  Yours truly

                                  L. Spooner