 A procession of militia, assemblymen, and clerics from all over the state would move through Hartford; then a prominent cleric would preach a political sermon to the assembly.One measure of the event's importance is the attention given to the sometimes long-winded sermons; President Ezra Stiles of Yale preached one in 1783 that lasted five hours and was 99 pages when printed.Governor Wolcott knew that the Toleration Party would soon have the votes to take a slim majority in the upper house, after the spring elections of 1818.