The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-06-02


article which we published on The 30th ult,
in which We stated that Lincoln, the repubu-
can candidate, Is revolutionary abolthonist
We might have gone further, and said that the
whole republican party ID aboliionist, and the
issue thas raised, and which Is now before the
country, is the abolition Of slavery. The
Chevslier does not like the name, forgetting
that "rcse will smell ~ sweet by any other
name" II II the thing and not the name thst
Is OF any real consequence. Things, however,
may as well be called by their right names. We
donot wish to do any injustice to "Honest Abe
Lincoln" nor to the republican party, and
therefore We insert h another page the prin-
cipsl portion of Webb's leader In defence Of
Abe, together with extracts from the lecture OF
Lincoln himself, delivered In New York In
February last. That lecture was specially and
carefully prepared for this conservative and
Union city, and is consequently far less radi-
cal than his real sentiments, uttered before
audiences of q more kindred spirit We will
take Webb's own article and the most cautious
Of al Lincoln's speeches, and from them show
that beth gentlemen are abolinonists Indeed,
they could not be republicansif they were not
abolitionists. The republican party Is con-
fessedly an anti slavery party. 1t is founded
on hostility to slavery, on the ground that 1t
is q moral social and political evil, and ought
to be abolished. Accordingly Webb says -
Slavery is a great and blighting curse" and
i" he ia ready to do all in his power to alleviate
the condition of those suffering from the Attic
ton" This is the very essence Of aboliionism.
If the republicans believe slavery to be q
"great and bNghting curse" itfollows logically
that they are abolitionists, if they are honest
men; for whatever is q curse to the country it
Is the duty Of all good citizens to do their
utmost to remove and abolish. Now, 90 far
from believing negro slavery curse, we re-.
gard it as great blessing in the tropical eli.
mates, and in the Southern States of our re-
public--a blessing to the slave, to the master,
and to the whole OF this Union-one Of the
great sources Of our national prosperity. Me-
Lincoln, on the contrary, as may be seen by
the extracts from his lecture made elsewhere
in our columns, declares that sit ID bis con-
viction, and the conviction Of the republican
party, that slavery is wrong" and that there is
NO authority for II in the fundamental law of
the land-that, in spite of the decision of the
Supreme Court Of the United States, which, he
says, came to hasty conclusion not war
ranied by fact, ian inspection of the consti-
tuition will show that the right of property in
slave Is not distinctly and expressly affirmed
in IT." but on the contrary, "the idea that
there could be property Ia negro is purposely
excluded from the constitution" This
language applies not merely to slavery
In the Territories, but in the States Mr.. Lin
coins position being that II is both morally
and politically wrong, and that there Is no
warrant in the constitution for It's existence.
The logical consequence from this is that II can
be abolished throughout the whole Union by
Congress, by the Supreme Court and the feds-
raj Executive.
Again, Mr.. Lincoln says
this rstion which cast At lsAss . mnioa aad hail OF
votes You cannot destroy that judgment and feeling
Up !sos
the face Of your hssvis. nrs but you Ooad how much
out Of he peaceful sSsass Of he Ssic. boz MO ssas
other channel
The plain meaning Of this language is,
that the antislavery republican organization,
whether by the ballot box and the peaceful
operAtson ~ s.---- 70 xriven to 1t by force
VI arms, IL destined to sweep away slavery,
root and branch---to abolish the curse And,
In the concluding portion Of the lecture, be
says that the Southern States, 10 meet this war
fare, VIII 60 on, step by ssep,in their demands
till at last they insist on the overthrow of the
free State constitutions, which declare the
wrong Of slavery with more solemn emphasis
than do all other sayings against II, and hold
ing, as they do, that slavery Is morally right,
and socially elevating, they cannot cease to
demand Q full national recognition Of 1t as o
legal right and social blessing. Nor can we
justIaably withhold this on any ground save
our conviction that slavery Is wrong"
Here, then, ID the irrepressible conflict which
Mr.. Lincoln more distinctly announced In his
speech on the 18th Of June, 1858, ct the close
Of the Republican State Convention ct Spring
field, Ill, where be had been nominated q can
didate for United States Senator. He then and
there said:-
Slavery agitation wiii not cease until crisis shah have
been reached and passed house divided aeainss itself
cannot stand Tha government cannot endure pcrna.
nently bali slave and half free. II VIII become Ill
Ting or al the other.
According to these words, the force Of which
no man can mistake or dispute, there must be
complete uniformity In the local laws Of the
several States on the question Of slavery, and
q conflict win rage between the free and the
slave States which will never cease I'll slavery
is either established In all or abolished In all
which latter, according 10 Mr.. Lincoln, Is the
end for which the republican party is organ
lied. IL not the conclusion therefore inevita'
BILE, that Mr.. Lincoln Is "a revolutionary aboIi.
tionist:" In speech delivered at Cincinnati,
in September last, he said