The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1858-07-22


live for these celebrations. But after we
have done all this we have not yet reached
the whole. There is something else conrec-
ted with it. We have besides these men-de-
sceGded by blood from our ancestors-among
us perhaps half our people who are not de-
scendants at all Of these men, they are men
who have come from Europe German, Irish,
French Observation-Disclosures that have come
from Europe themselves, or whose ancestors
have come hither and settled here, finding them
selves our equals in all things. II they look
back through this history to trace their con-
nection with those days by blood. they find
they have none, they cannot carry themselves
back into that glorious epoch and make them
selves feel that they are part Of US, but when
they look through the old Declaration Of In
dependence they find that those old men say
that ssWe hold these truths to be self-evident
that all men are created equal" and then they
feel that that moral sentiment taught in that
day evidences their relation to those men,
that it il the father of all moral principle in
them, and that they have right to claim it as
Though they were blood Of the blood. and flesh
Of the flesh Of the men wro wrote that Dscla-
ration, cloud and long continued applause) and
so they are. That 10 the electric cord in that
Declaration that links the hearts Of patriotic
and liberty lowing men together, that links
those patriotic hearts a. long As the love Of
freedom exists in the minds Of men through
out the world. (Applause.)
Now, sirs, for the purpose of squaring things
with this idea Of sdon't care it slavery is voted
up or voted DOWN. for sustaining the bred
Scott decision IA voice-"Hit him sgain"]
for holding that the Declaration of Indepen-
dence did not mean anything at all, we have
Judge Douglas giving his exposition Of what
the Declaration Of independence means, and
we have him saying that the people Of Ameri-
ca are equal to the people of England. Ac-
cording to his constructio n, Won Germans are
not connected with it. Now ask you in oil
soberness, If all these things, If INDUCED in, If
ratified, il confirmed and endorsed, IL tsnght to
our children, and repeated to them, do not
tend o rub out the sentiment OF liberty in the
country, and to transform this Government in
to government Of some other fern. These
that are made, that the inferior race.
are to be treated with as much allowance as
they are capable OF enjoying tina as much is
to be done for them as their condition will
allow. What are these arguments? They
are the arguments that kings have made FOR
enslaving the people in oil ages Of the world.
You will find thst all the arguments in favor
Of king-craft were Of this class; they always
bestrode the neck Of the people, not that they
want to de II, but because the people were bet
ter off for being ridden. That is their argue
ment, and this argument Of the Judge IL the
same old serpent that says you work and eat,
You tell and win enjoy the fruits Of it,
Turn in whatever way yon will-whether il
comes from the mouth Of a King, an excuse
for enslaving the people Of his country, or
from the mouth of the men Of one race a. rea-
son for the enslaving the men Of another race.
it is all the same old serpent, and hold il
that course of augmentation that is made for
the purpose Of convincing the public mind
that we should not care about this, should be
granted, It does not stop with the negro.
should like to know taking this old Declare
ton Of Independence, which declares that all
men are equal upon principle and mskins ex.
ceptions to it where will it stop. II one man
says that it does not mean . negro, why not
another say that it does not mean some other
man? If that declaration is not the truth, let
Us get the Statute Book, in which we find it
and tear it out Who is so bold as to do it
[ voices-ssme," emo one," Sci Tit is not
true let us tear II out! [cries Of 'no, no,"1 let
us stick to It then. [cheers] let US stand firmly
BY it then. lApplause. @
It may be argued that there are certain coz
ditions that make necessities and impose them
upon US, and to the extent that necessity il
imposed upon man he must submit to It.
think that is the condition in which we found
ourselves when we established this govern
ment. We had slavery among Us, We could
not get our constitution unless we permitted
them to remain in slavery, we could not secure
the good we did secure II we grasped foi more,
and having by necessity submitted to that
much, it does not destroy the principle that
is the charter Of our liberties. Let that charter
stand as our standard.
NV friend has said to me that l am . poor
hand to quote Scripture. l will try 1t again,
however. It ID saie 10 one OF the sdmonitions
81 our Lord, GAS our Father in Heaven is per-
Iect, he ye also perfect" The Saviour, 7 sup
pose. did not expect that any human being
could Be as perfect - the Father in Heaven;
bat He said, GAS your Father in Heaven is
perfect, be ye also perfect, He yet that up
Is standard, and he who did the most to-
ward reaching that standard, attained the
highest degree Of moral perfection. 80 say
10 relation to the principle that all men are
created equal, let it be as nearly reached ~ it
can. II we cannot give freedom to every
creature, let us do nothing that will impose
slavery upon any other creature. [Applause.
Let us then turn this government back into the
channel in which the trainers Of the constitu-
tion originally placed 1t. Let US stand firmly
by each other. five do not do 30 we are
turning in the contrary direction, that our
friend Judge Douglas proposes-not inten-
working in the traces that tend TO
make this one universal slave nation. "a voice,
'sthat is so.") He is one that runs in that di-
rection, and % such resist him.