Dayton daily empire. [volume] (Dayton [Ohio]) 1850-1865, 1859-09-19
Lincoln's Speech.

Linoolns Speech.
On Saturday last, instead Of tens of thou.
sands of persons being assembled in our city,
and the streets being deluged with people,
as one Of our morning contemporaries
prophesied would b. the case, upon the oc,
casiOn Of Mr.. Liucoln's speech, mcagre
crowd, numbering scarce 200, was all that
could be drummed up, and they were half
Democrats, who attended from mere curios
ity. Mr. Lincoln is q very seductive reason
er, and his address, although net work at
fallacies and false assumptions throughout
was calculated to deceive almost any man,
who would not pay very close attention to
the subject, and keep continually on the
guard. BE opened his speech by saying
that he was aware what were the objections
of Judge Douglas, to the irrepressible CON
Hiet doctrine, promulgated by himself and
Gov Seward. He had read aud heard his
speeches upon that subject, and the inquiry
had always been made by Douglas why our
country could not remain part slave and
part free, as our fathers made itR This ques.
ton, Mr.. Lincoln assumed, implied that our
fathers did make the country part slave and
part free. He assumed that Douglas con.
veyed the idea by this question, that our fa>
theirs, by actual legislation, at the formation
Of the government forced, compelled one
partsof the country to be slave and the 9th,
er part free and having made this assump-
ton, he proceeded to prove that it was false
Having succeeded, after the labor of half an
hour in setting up this wooden man, he
commenced TO knock him down.
Now the fact is, that the declaration, that
Douglas ever embraced or promulgated, Ell
ther in whole or in part, the doctrine which
Lincoln charges upon him, is entirely graf,
uitons. His late speeches at Columbus and
Cincinnati are very clear upon this subject
In both of those addresses, he distinctly sta,
ted that the existence of Slavery in these
United States, was owing to the agency of
England, in aiding and giving countenance
to the African Slave trade, while we were
yet colonies He said that the country was
part save and part free, at the time the Con,
stitution was formed not because our fathers
made 1t 30, when they entered into an uni,
on among themselves, but because England
had fixed the curse of Slavery upon us, and
had made US part slave and part free, long
before the revolution. And when the revo.
luton did come, and Independence was de.
ciared, and our liberty was achieved. and a
government was constructed, then our ia
theirs left the institution Of Slavery Just as it
was, to be regulated by each separate State,
within her own bounds, and the United
states took their position among the nations
oil the world in the same condition, as FAR as
slavery was concerned, as when they were
colonies, that is part slave and part free
Our fsisefs-the fFs; congress did not make
them part slave and part free, but they sim
ply recognized and re affirmed their preyi-
ous condition, allowing each Sovereign State
to regulate the institution as she pleased. =
This is the opinion set forth in the speeches
OF Douglas, in characters so legible that he
that runs may read and yet Mr.. Lincoln
attempts to transform his meaning and char.
ges upon him doctrine which he never
avowedi and when he has sueceeded in de-.
molishing that doctrine, takes credit to him
self, for having demolished one of Douglas
great principles He says that Douglas de-
olared thai our fathers made the country
part slave and part free, (whereas Douglas
declares no sneh thing, and would fight such
a doctrine to the bitter end, and when he
has proved this doctrine to be untrue. he
supposss that he has over thrown one of
Douglas strong holds,
Having made this point clear to bis satis-
faction, nearly all the remainder of his
speech was taken up in attempting TO prove
that the ordinance Of 1887, had all the va,
hdity of a Congressional law; and because
II excluded slavery from the North West
Territory, therefore Congress had right to
exclude Slavery from any territory in the
United States, at the present day. He said.
that this ordinance was re affirmed, when
the Constitution of the United States was
adopted, that II was re affirmed in 1902, when
Ohio was admitted into the Union, under an
act Of Congress declaring that her constitu,
tion should be republican, and should con.
tain nothing ropngnant to the provisions Of
the ordinance Of 1887, and that its validity
also was 70 affirmed by Congress in the adj
mission Of indiana, Illinois, Michigan and
Wisconsin. He entirely over looked the
fact, that the Ordinance of 1887 although
subsequently, recognized by Congress, at diff,
fersnt times. was simply soOatract, between
the General GOVsrUment and the State of
Virginia, that Virginia ceded the North
West Territory, with ProVisO prohibiting
IlAyery therein, as long Is the tract Of coun-
~ should remain in . territorial condition.
slavery was sxslndod then, not By the action
e the FsdsEsl Government bat By Virginia