The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1857-06-27
Speech of Judge Douglas,
Deliuered in The State House at Springfield
June 18th. 1857.

i THE following embraces so much Of {
3 3 speech of Judge Douglas on the above occ
sion heretofore mentioned) as relates to Il
o Dred Scott decision and the Mormons.
> account of the great length Of the speec
we omit the portion relating to Kansas,
it only reiterates the views Of Judge
which he has frequently expressed heret
fore, and which are well known and unde
. stood BY our readers. The speech was d.
livered before very large audience, ove
which Gov. Matteson presided, and elicite
the heartiest commendation from men of a
parties present
The case of Dred Scott was an action c
trespass, ri ct armis, In the Circuit Court G
the United States for the district of Missouri
for the purpose of establishing his claim t
be free man, and was taken by writ of erro
on the application of Scott to the Suprem
Court of the United States, where the fina
decision was pronounced by Chief Justic
| Taney. The facts of the case were agreed
upon and admitted TO be true by both parties
and were in substance, that bred Scott wa!
| a negro slave in Missouri; that he went will
! his master, who was an officer in the army
to Fort Armstrong. on Rock Island; anC
thence to Fort Smelling, on the west bank o
the Mississippi river and within the country
covered by the act of Congress known a:
the Missouri Compromise; and thence he re-
accompanied his master to the State of Mis-
souri,, where he has since remained slave.
Upon this statement of acts two important
and material questions arose, besides several
incidental and minor ones, which it was in
cumbent upon the court to take notice OF
and decide. The court did not attempt to
avoid responsibility by disposing Of the case
upon technical points without touching the
merits, nor did they 60 out Of their way to
decide questions not properly before them
and directly presented by the record. Like
honest and conscientious judges, as they are,
they met and decided each point as it arose,
and faithful 'ly performed their whole duty,
and nothing but their duty, to the country
by determining all the questions in the case,
and nothing but what was essential to the
decision of the case upon its merits. The
State courts of Missouri had decided against
Dred Scott, and declared him and his chill
dren slaves, and the Circuit Court Of the
United States for the district Of Missouri had
decided the same thing in this very case,
which had thus been removed to the Supreme
Court Of the United States by Scott, with
the hope of reversing the decision of the
Circui, Court and securing his freedom. II
the Supreme Court had dismissed the writ of
error for want Of jurisdiction, without first
examining into and deciding the merits of
the case, as they ae now denounced and
abused for not having done, the result would
have been to remand Dred Scott and his
chi dren to perpetual slavery under the de-
oh had al hee
by the Supreme Court of Missouri, as well
as by the Circuit Cour; of the United States
without obtaining decision on the merits
Of his case by the Supreme Court Of the
United States. Suppose Chief Justice Taney
and his associates had thus remanded Dred
Scott and his children back to slavery on a
plea in abatement or any mere technical
point not touching the merits Of the ques-
ton, and without deciding whether under
the constitution and laws. as applied to the
facts Of the case, Dred Scott was free man
or a slave, would they not have been de-
Rounced with increased virulcnce and bitter
ness, on the charge of having remanded
bred Scott to perpetual slavery without first
examining the merits OF his case and ascer-
tanning whether he was slave or not,
If the case had been disposed of in that
way, who can doubt that such would have
been the character Of the denunciations
which would have been hurled upon the de-
voted heads of those illustrious judges, with
much more plausibility and show of fairness
than they are now denounced for having de-
cided the case fairly and honestly upon its
merits,
The material and controlling points in the .
case-those which have been made the sub
ect OF unmeasured abuse and denunciation,
may be thus stated:
ist. The court decided that under the .
constitution of the United States negro de- !!
scended from slave parents is not and cannot .
be citizen of the United States.
I'd. That the act of the 9th Of March, 1920, (
called the Missouri compromise
act, was unconstitutional and void before it /
was repealed by the Nebraska act, and con- |
did not and could not have the le- 4
.al effect of extinguishing a masters right |
to his slave in that territory. While the |
right continues in full force under the qua 4
rantees of the constitution, and cannot be
Invested or alienated by an act Of Congress, |
it necessarily remains barren and a worth |
less right, unless sustained, prot cted and /
enforced by appropriate police regulations
and local legislation, prescribing adequate
remedies for its violation. These regulations
aud remedies must necessarily depend en-
tirely upon the will and wishes of the people /
Of the territory as they can only be pre-
seribed by the local legislatures Hence the |,
great principle Of popular sovereignty and
self government is sustained and firmly es- |
by the authority of this decision. !
Thus it appears that the only sin involved
in the passage Of the Kansas Nebraska act |
consists in the fact that it removed from the |
oct nf h,ch
by the constitution Of the |
United States, and void because passed with
out constitutional authority, and substituted
in lieu of it that great fundamental principle |
Of self government which recognizes the |
right of the people of each State and terri |
tory to form and regulate their domestic in
stitutions and internal affairs to suit them
selves, in accordance with the constitution.
Applause The wisdom and propriety of
the measure have been sustained by the de-
cision of the highest judicial tribunal on
earth, and ratified and approved by the voice
Of the American people in the election Of
James Buchanan to the Presidency OF the
United States upon that naked and distinct
issue. l am willing to rest the vindication
Of the measure and my action in connection
with it upon that decision and that verdict
Of the American people. Immense ap-
plause. -,
Passing from this, will proceed to the
discussion of the main proposition decided
by the court. which is, that under the con-
stitution of the United States a negro de-
scended from slave parents imported from
Africa is not and cannot be citizen of the
United States.
We are told by the leaders of the Repub-
|ican or Abolition party that this proposition
is cruel, inhuman and infamous, and should
not be respected nor obeyed by any good
citizen. In what does the objection consist?
wherein is the cruelty, the inhumanity, the
1t is supposed to consist in de-
priving the negro Of citizenship, and conse-
quentiy excluding him from the exercise Of
those rights and privileges which are enjoy