The meeting of the Chicago Arbeiterverein held on the seventeenth of May, 1864 was attended by only a relatively small number of members. By a vote of thirty-seven to thirty-five (the organization has a membership of more than a thousand), it was decided to send delegates to the convention which is to meet at Cleveland, Ohio, on May 29, 30, and 31 for the purpose of nominating a liberal candidate for the Presidency of the United States. The following men were chosen to represent the Chicago Arbeiterverein: Doctor C. Schmidt, Mr. Theodore Hilscher, and Mr. W. H. Haase.

However, since this resolution, which was adopted by only one (sic) vote in a meeting attended by only a small part of the membership, is presented to 2the public as the will of the majority of all our members and as an action approved by a real majority of the Verein, we, the undersigned members of the Chicago Arbeiterverein, deem it to be our patriotic duty to declare that we, as liberal Republicans and unconditional Union men, strongly disapprove of appointing delegates to attend the Cleveland Convention; that we consider the entire movement, which was started by so-called liberals, to hold a separate convention as dangerous and detrimental to the cause of the Union; that we will give all our support to the nominee of the Baltimore Convention, whether he be Lincoln, or Freemont, or Butler, or any other able man who is worthy of the nomination; that we will not approve of or support any movement, no matter who starts it or in whose favor it is conducted, if it splits the Union party, and thus weakens that party and furthers the cause of the Secession party.

Chicago, May 19, 1864.

C. Mechelke,

F. Koepke,

C. Krueger,

[and ninety-eight others]