The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1858-09-25

I the north should succeed in conquering tn
south, how much would she be the gamer
or suppose the south should conquer tn,
north, could the Union be preserved in tha
wayf Is this sectional warefare to be wageC
between the northern and southern state.
until they all shall become uniform in theiI
local and domestic institutions merely be-
cause Mr.. Lincoln says that house divided
against itself cannot stand, and pretsnds
that this scriptuai quotation, this language
Of our Lord and Master, is applicable to the
American Union and American constitu.
ton! Washington and his compeers in the
convention that framed the constitution,
made this government divided into free and
slave states. 1t was composed then OF thir-
teen sovereign and independent states, each
having sovereign authority over its domes-
tic and local institutions, and all bound to-
gether bv the federal constitution. Mr..
Lincoln likens that bond of the federal con-
stitution joining free and slave states togeth-
er like house divided against itself, and
says that it is contrary to the law Of God
and cannot stand. When did he learn and
by what authority does he proclaim. that
this government is contrary to the law Of
God. and cannot stand, Ii has stood thus
divided into free and slave states from its
organization up to the present day. During
that period we have increased from four
million to thirty millions of people; We have
extended our territory from the Mississippi
to the Pacific ocean; we have acquired the
Flordas and Texas and other territory suf-
hcient 10 double our geographical extent;
we have increased in population, in wealth,
and in power beyond any example on earth;
we have risen from a weak and feeble pow
or to become the terror and admiration OF
the civilized world; and all this has been
done under q constitution which Mr.. Lin
coin, in substance. says is in violation, OF
the law of God, and under a union divided
into free and slave sta'es, which Mr.. Lincoln
thinks because Of such division, cannot
stand Surely, Mr.. Lincoln is wiser man
than those who framed the government
Washington did not believe. nor did his
compatriots, that the local laws and domes-
tic institutions that were well adapted to
the Green mountains Of Vermont, were suit
ed TO the rice plantations OF South Carolina;
they did not believe at that day that in q
republic so broad and expanded as this
such variety Of climate, soil
and interest, that uniformity in the local
laws and domestic institutions. was either
desirable or possible. They believed then
as our experience has proven to us now,
that each locality, having different interests,
q different climate and different surround
ings. required different local laws, local pol
icy and local institutions adapted to the
wants of that locality. Thus our govern
ment was formed on the principle Of diversi.
ty in the local institutions and laws and not
on that of uniformity.
As my time flies. can only glance at
these points and not present them as fully
as | would wish, because desire to bring
all the points in controversy between the
two parties before you in order to have Mr..
Lncoln's reply He makes war on the Su-
preme Court in the case known as the Dred
Scott case. wish to say to you feilow-citi-
Zens. that have no war to make on that
derision, or any other ever rendered by the
Supreme Court. / am content to take that
decision as it stands dsliysreed I ;b iiSh H.
est judicial tIIuuDal on esrtp, "."o"'
tsbjished by the Constitution OF the United
States for that purpose, and hence that oe-
cis,nn becomes the law oil the iaho' o,hoins
on you, on me, and every other good cti-
zen, whrther we like it or not. Hence / do
not choose to 90 into an argument to prove
Justice fancy understood the law better
than Mr.. Lincoln. Uaughter.)
Mr. Lincoln object to that decision, first
and mainly because its deprives the negro
Of the rights of citizenship. ! am as much
opposed to his reason for that objection as ]
am to that objection itself ] hold that .
negro is not and never ought to be a citizen
of the United States. Good, good, and tre-
mendous cheers) hold that this govern
msnt was made on the white basis, by white
men, for the benefit af white men and their
pos,erity forever, and should be admins
tered by white men and none others. do
not believe that the Almighty made the ne
gro capable of self government. am aware
that all the abolition lecturers that you
fini travelling about the country are in the
habit Of reading the Declaration of Indepen.
dence to prove that all men were created
equal and endowed by their Creator with
certain inalienebl rights, among which are
life, liberty, and the pursuit Of happiness
Mr.. Lincoln is very much in the habit Of
following in the track Of Lovejoy in this
particular, by reading that part Of the Dec
iaration of Independence to prove that the
negro was endowed by the Almighty with
the inalienable right Of equality with white
men. Now, I say to you, nv fellow citl-
zcns, that in my opinion the signers Of the
Declaration had no reference to the negro
whatever when they declared ali men to be
created equal. they desired to express by
that phrase, white men, men Of European
birth and European decent and had no ref
fe, ence either to the negro, the savage Indi-
ans, the Fejee, the Malay. or any other infe-
rior or degraded race, when they spoke of
the equality Of men. One great evidence
that such was their understanding, is to be
found in the fact that at that time every
one ofthe thirteen colonies was slavehoi-
ding colony, every s'gner of the Declare.
ton represented . siaveholding constituent
cy. and We know that no one Of them eman-
cipated his slaves, much less offered citizen
ship to then: when they signed the Declara-
ton, and yet, if they had intended to de.
clair that the negro was the equal with :he
with the white man, and entitled by
a divine right to an equality with him, they
were bound as honest men, that day and
that hour to have put their negroes on an
equality with themselves. (Cheers.) In
stead Of doing SO, with upifted eyes to hea-
ven they implored the Divine blessing upon
them, during the seven years bloody war
they had to fight to maintain that Declara-
ton, never dreaming they were violating
Divine law, by still holding their negroes in
bondage and depriving them of equality.
My friends, am in favor Of preserving
this government as our fathers made II. 1t
does not follow by any means, that because
a negro is not your equal or mine that hence
he must necessarily be . slave. On the con-
trary, it does follow that We ought to extend
to the negro every right, every privilege.
every munity which he is capable OF enjoy
ing consistent with the good Of society
When you ask me what these rights are,
what their nature and extent is, l tell you
that that is question which each state OF
this Union must answer for itself. Illinois
has already decided the question. We have
decided that the negro must not be, q slave
within our limits, aud We have also decided
that the negro shall not be citizen within
our limits; that he shall not vote, hold Office
or exercise any political rights. maintain
that Illinois, as . sovereign state, has .
riOhf fhtrc m Az hor pOl;cv with reffcrcnce