East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1860-10-25
DOUGLAS GREAT SPEECH
IN DETROIT.
MONDAY, OCTOBER rs, 1850.

Fellow CITIZENS - 1t is not my pur
pose to-day to vindcate my character
against the assaults and SANDERS in which
| am told the Representative in Congress
from this district is in the habit of in
dulging, nor against those which l am
informed an itinerant preacher, who
accompanied Mr.. Seward from Auburn
is now retaiing in the interior of thi'
State. | can only treat such ISLANDERS
and slanderers with that scorn and con.
tempt which they deserve. [Cries OF
Good" aud applause.
Since | arrived here this morning, |
have read, for the first time, the speech
Of Senator Seward, delivered in tnis city
a few weeks ago. In that speech he lays
down the proposition that it is the duty
of all governments to command respect
abroad, and 10 preserve security, peace,
aud harmony at home. He then assumes
that our government has failed to per
form this duty, and points to the fact
that the North is dissatisfied with the
South, and the South with the North, as
the evidence to sustain his statement
! He informs us that the South demands
that Congress shall extend slavery and
maintain it in all the Territories of the
| United States, to the end that all the new
States shall he slave States; aud also that
! the North demands that Congress shall
prohibit slavery in all the Territories of
the United States, to the end that all the
now States shall be free States. In this
classification Of parties, Mr.. Seward has
committed two blunders: First, he takes
it for granted that the secession party of
the South, under the lead of Major Breck
inridge, is the whole South; and, secondly,
that the republican party Of the North,
under the lead Of Mr.. Lincoln, is the
whole North. General cry of "Never." u
Granting his proposition that the south
ern fire eaters, under the lead of Major
Bfeckinrid ge, do demand that Congress
shall maintain and protect slavery every
where in the Territories, for the purpose
Of making all the new States slave States,
and granting his other proposition, that
the republican party demand that Con
grcss shall prohibit slavery everywhere
in the Terrsories, to the end that the
new States shall all be free States, and
what conclusion can we draw from these
premises? The conclusion is inevitable
that Mr.. Seward wishes you to understand
that there is an irrcpressible conflict"
which must be determined either by the
North subduing the South, or the South
subduing the North.
So long as this country shall be divid.
ed into geographical parties, and all the
northern people shall belralled under one
banner and all the southern people under
another banner, and the two engaged in
fierce conflict with each other, there new.
er can be peace. ["That's true. Mr.,
Seward was bound as a statesman, when
he laid down these propositions, to have
told us the causes that produced this ,rri
tation and sectional strife, and then to
have pointed out the remedies with which
he proposed to allay it. lie has failed to
do this But he has called our attention
TO a great historical fact which throws
light on this subject. He declares that
from the time the constitution of the
United States was adopted up to 1920,
there was peace on the slavery question:;
but that in 1920 new national direction
was given to this government - a ma
tional deviation, as he called it. And
what was that deviation? 1t was the at
tempt on the part Of the Federal govern
ment to interfere with slavery in the
States and Territories. From the day
the constitution was made down to 1920.
Congress never attempted to touch the
question of slavery in the Territories
[ [Applause.] Just so long as Congress
left that subject alone, lust so long there
was peace, harmony, and fraternity in
this country. ["Sound," "rhat'S 50. !
The moment that Congress meddled with
the question of slavery, and undertool,
to control it, instead of allowing the
people to exercise that right, there arose
fearful strife, which threatened to de-
stroy this Union. What is the inference
which Mr.. Seward, as an impartial states
man, ought to have drawn from these
facts? The conclusion is inevitable, and
we should have told you so, that all the
strife on this question of slavery arises
from the attempt on the part Of Congress
to interfere with it. During the period
of more than thirty years that this gov
ernment was in operation prior to 1920,
Congress organized several Territories
without interfering with the question of
slavery ut all. 1t created the Territory
of Orleans, now comprising the State of
Louisiana; it created the Territory Of
Louisiana, now including the State Of
Arkansas, Missouri, and Iowa; and the
Territories of Kansas and Nebraska; it
organized the Territory of Mississippi
and the Territory of Alabama; and in
no one of them did it.attcmpt to inter
fcrc with the question of slavery. 1t
did not prohibit slavery on the one hand,
or establish and protect it on the other.
But, in each Of those Territorial govern
ments, it left the Territorial Legislature
free to maintain slavery as long as it
chose, and to get rid of il when it pleased.
So loug as this great principle of non-
interference by Congress was maintained,
we are told by Mr.. Seward himself, there
was peace and harmony; but, in 1920,
when the Missouri controversy arose,
this government started off on a new