The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1861-03-06
INAUGURAL ADDRESS
OF
PRESIDENT LINCOLN

! liz compliance with custom as Old rs th
government itself, / appear before you t
t address YOU briefly, and TO take, in you
presence, the oath prescribed by the Consti
! tuition of the United States to be taken b,
| the President before he enters on the execu
| ton of his office. | do not consider it neces
sary. MT present, for me 70 discuss those mat
tiers of administration about which there j,
no special anxiety or excitement. Apprehen.
sion seems TO be excited among the people
of the Southern States, that by the accession
of Republican Administration, their proo-
erty, and their peace, and personal security
are to be endangered. There never has
been any reasonable cause for such appre-
hcnsion. Indeed, the most ample evidence
TO the contrary has all tho while existed, and
been open to their lnspeetian---it is found in
nearly all the published speeches Of him who
now addresses YOU. / do but quote from
one Of those speeches when declare that
have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to
interfere with the institution of slavery in
the States where it exists. believe have
no lawful right TO do so, and have no incli-
nation TO do so. Those who nominated and
elected me did so with the full knowledge
hat Il had 1nHdE this at many similar de-
clarations, and had never recalled them and
more than this-they placed in the Platform
for my acceptance, as n law to themselves
and to me, the clear and emphatic resolution
which now read: Resolved,
4. That the maintenance inviolate of the
Rights of the States and especially the right
of each State to order and control it's own
domestic institutions according to its own
Judgment exclusively, is essential to that bal
ance of power on which the perfection and
endurance of our political fahric depends;
and we denonnce the lawless invasion by
armed force of the soil Of any State or Ter
ritory, no matter under what rretext, as
among the gravest Of crimes.
! now reiterate these sentiments, and doing
so only press upon the public attention the
most conclusive evidence Of which the case
is susceptible that the property, peace, and
security of no section are TO be in any wise
endangered by the now incoming administra-
ton.
| add too that all the prots ction which, con-
sistently with the Constitution and the Laws.
can be given, will be cheerfully given to all
the States when lawfully demanded, for
whatever cause, ms cheerfully to one section
as to another. There is much controversy
about tie delivering of fugitiyes from SER
vice or labor. The clause now read is rs
plainly written in the Constitution as any 9TH
or of it's provisions. "No person held to SER
vice, or labor in one State, under the laws
thereof, escaping into another, shall, in con-
sequence of any law or regulation therein. be
discharged from such service or labor. but
shall be delivered up on claim of the party to
whom such service or labor may be due. -
Ii was intended by those who made it, for the
retaining Of what We call fugitive slaves;and
the intention of the law giver is the law. All
members Of Congress swear their support 70
the whole Constitution, to this provision as
much as to any other.
To the proposition, then, that slaves, whose
cases come within the terms Of this clause,
and shall be delivered up, their oaths are
unanimous. And If they would make the eff
fort, in good temper, could they not. with
nearly equal unanimity, frame and pas, "
law by means of which to keep good that
unanimous th. There is some difference
of opinion whether this clause should be en-
forced by national or state authority, but
surely that difference is not very material
one. If the slave il to be surrendered, it
can be Of but little consequence GO him, or to
others. by which authority it is done; and
should any one, in any case, he content that
his oath shall be unkept, on merely unsup-
stantial controversy as to how it shall be
kept2
Again, in n Inv upon this subject, ought
not all safeguards o. liberty known in civil
iged and humane Jurisprudence to be intro
duced, 30 that n free man may not be in any
case surrendered rs slave, and might It
not be we'll MT the same time to provide by
law for the enforcement Of that clause in the
Constitution which guarantees that the citi-
zens Of each State shall be entitled TO all the
provisions and immunities Of citizens of the
several States.
take the official oath day with no men,
tai reservation and with no purpose to con-
struc the Constitution or Laws BY any hyper
critical rules, and while do not choose now
to specify particular acts Of Congress. rs
proper TO be enforced, do suggest that il
would be much safer for all in official and
private stations 70 conform to and abide by
MI those acts which stand un repealed, than
to violate any of them trusting to find impu.
nifty in having them held to be unconstitu
tional.
| LII lis seventy-two wears since the first in
! auguration of "a President under our.nationa
constitution. During that period hfteel
different and greatly distinguis he'd citizen
have in succession adm nistered the govern
,ncnt; they have conducted 1t through man
perils, and generally " til great success; yc
with all this scope for precedcnts, now ente
upon the same task for the brief constitu
tional term Of four years, under great AM
peculiar difficulties. Disruption Of the fede
raj union--heretofor only menaced--is nov
formdably attempted.
hold, that in contemplation Of universe
law, and OF the Constitutions, tho union o
these States is perpetual. Perpetuisy is i'm
piled ii not expressed in the Fundamental
law of all national governments. II is SAT
TO assert tina, government proper never hac
provision III It's organic law for its own ter
fattatfoh. continue 10 execute all the express
provisions Of our national constitution, ans
the Union will endure forever, it being i'm
possible to destroy il, except by some actor
not provided for in The :rst ...s1tt Itself
Again, if the United States be not govern
nent proper, but an association Of States in
the nature Of contract merely can H. MS ,