Randolph County journal. [volume] (Winchester, Randolph County, Ind.) 1855-1862, 1860-08-09
THE REPUBLICAN PLATFORM
As ExPOUyDFD BY
HON. ABRAHAM LINCOLN,
In Speech delivered before the Cooper In
stifnte. FebruarH. leo.

Ia u sVttCH uttCtTcu DfTOTc We cooper In
stnute, February, 1e60.
The announcement that the Hon
Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, would
speak at the Cooper Institute. New
York City, drew together large and
mighty intellectual assemblage on the
evening of February %, 1850. Ex-
Governor King and other distin
guished Republicans were on the plat
form. William Cullen Bryant. edit
OF OF the Evening Post. presided. On
taking the Chair, MIR. Bryant spoke as
follows:
lit is grateful office that | perform
in introducing to you an eminent citi-
zen of the West, hitherto known only
to you by reputation. who has con-
sented to address a New York assem-
bly, this evening. n powerful auxil-
iary. my friends, is the Great West in
that battle which we are fighting in
behalf of freedom against slavery, and
in behalf of civilization against barba-
rism, for the occupation OF some of
the iairest regions of our continent
now open to colonization. recognize
an agency hig' ar and wiser than that
of man in causing the broad and fertile
regions which form the northern part
of the valley OF the Mississippi to be
filled with population of hardy tree
men, who till their own acres with
their own hands, and who would be
ashamed to subsst by the labor OF
slaves.
These children of the West form a
living bulwark against the advance ol
slavery, and from them is recruited the
vanguard of the armies of liberty
One OF them | present to you this
evening. gallant soldier of the pollt-
icsl campaign oil 1886, in which he
rendered good service to the Republi.
can cause, and the great champion oi
that cause in Illinois two years later
when he and his friends would have
won the victory but for the unjust ap-
portionment law, by which minority
of the population are allowed to elect
a majority OF the Legislature. | need
only To pronounce the name OF Abra
ham Lincoln. of Illinois, to secul,
your proioundest attention.
ADDRESS By HON. ABRAHAM LINCOLN
When the prolonged applause which
greeted Mr.. Lincoln had subsidized. h,
said:
Mr.. President, and Fsiio,o- Citizen
of .Lew- lork.-The facts with whicl
| shall deal this evening are mainl,
old ami familiar; nor is there any thin.
new in the general use shall make o
them. If there shall he any novelty
it will be in the mode of presentin,
facts, and the inference and observa
tion following tina: presentation.
In his speech last autumn, at Co
lumbus. Ohio. as reported in the New
York Times, Senator Douglas said:
"Our fathers, when they framed the gov
ernment under which we live, nderstoo,
this question just as well, and even bette
than do now
| fully indorse this. and | adopt il
as a text for my discourse. lso adop
it because it furnishes a precise an,
agreed starting point .betweeI
Republicans and that wing OF the De
mocracy headed ay Senator Douglas
IL simply leaves the inquiry: 'Wha
was the understanding those father
had of the questioned mentioned.
What is the frame of government
under which we live?
The answer must be: The Consti
tuition of thciUnited States 'rha
Constitution consists of the original
framed ia 1877, (and under which th
present government first went into op
eration. aud twelve subsequent,
tanned amendments, ten of whicl
were framed in l1s9.
Who were our fathers that frame'
the Constitution? lsuppose the 'thir
ty-nine" who signed the original in
strument may be fairly called on
fathers who framed that part of tn
present government. Ii is almost ex
actly true that they formed il. and
is altogether true to say they fairl
represented the opinion aud seniimen
o If the whole nation at that time.- =
Their names being familiar to nearl
all. and accessible to quite all, nee
not now be repeated.
take these 'thirty-nine' for I'll
present. as being our fathers wh
!. framed the government under whic
We live
What is the question which. ac
h cording To the text. those fathers IN
derstood just as well and even bette
than we do now?
IL is this: Does the proper divi,
ion of local from federal authority. c
any thing in the Constitution iorbi
|, our federal government to control as Z
slavery in the Territorie,9