The national Republican., 1861-03-05
PRESIDENT LINCOLN's INAUGURAL
ADDRESS

ADDRESS.
Fcllow Citizens ofhe United States. .H
In compliance with a custom rs old al the
Government itself, appear before you to ad
dress you briefly, aud to take, in your presence
the oath prescribed by the Constitution Of the
United States, to be taken by the President
"before he enters on the execution of his
Office"
do not consider it necessary at present for
me to discuss those matters of administration
about which there is no special anxiety or ex.
citement.
Apprehension seems to exist among the
people Of the Southern States, that by the ac.
cession Of Republican Administration their
property and their peace and personal secu.
rity are to be endangered. There has never
been any reasonable cause for such apprehen.
sion. Indeed, the most ample evidence to the
contrary has all the while existed, and been
open to their inspection. 1t is found in nearly
oil the public speeches of him who now ad
dresses you. do but quote from one Of those
speeches when declare that ~ have no pur.
pose, 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 l have no inclination to do so."
Those who nominated and elected me did so
with full knowledge that had made this, and
many similar declarations, and had never
recanted them. And more than this, they
placed in the platform for my acceptance, and
as law to themselves and to me, the clear
and emphatic resolution which l now read:
Resolped, That the maintenance inviolate
Of the rights Of the States, and especially the
right of each State to order and control its
own domestic institutions according 10 its own
judgment exclusively, is essential to the bal
ance of power on which the perfection and en-
durance of our political fabric depend, and we
denounce the lawless invasion by armed force
of the soil Of any State or Territory, no matter
under what pretext, as among the gravest Of
| crimes"
l now reiterate these sentiments and in do.
ing so, only press upon the public attention
the most conclusive evidence OF which the case
is susceptible, that the property, peace, and Sc.
cuSity Of no section are to be anywise endnnger.
ed by the now incoming Administration. l add,
too, that all the protection which, consistently
with the Constitution and the laws, can be
given, will be cheerfully given to all the States
when lawfully demanded, for whatever cause
as cheerfuly to one section as to another.
There is much controversy about the deliver.
ing up Of fugitives from service or labor. The
clause l now read is as plainly written in the
Constitutions any other of its provisions:
"No person held to service or labor in one
State, under the laws thereof, escaping into an.
other shall, in consequence of any law or reg.
ulaton therein, be discharged from such ser.
vice or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim
of the party to whom such service or labor may
be DUE
1t is scarcely questioned that this provision
was intended by those who made it, for the
retaining Of what we call fugitive slaves and
the intention of the lawgiver is the law. All
members Of Congress swear their support to
the whole Constitution-to this provision as
much as any other. To the proposition, then,
that slaves whose cases come within the terms
of this clause shall be delivered up" their
oaths are unanimous. Now, il they would make
the effort in good temper, could they not, with
nearly equal unanimity, frame and pass law
oath?
There is some difference of opinion whether
this clause should be enforced by national or
by State authority; but surely that difference is
not very material one. II the slave is to be
surrendered, it can be Of but little consequence
to him, or to others, by which authority it is
done. And should any one, in any case, be
content that his oath shall go unkept, on q
merely unsubstantial controversy as to hop it
shall be kept2
Again, in any law upon this subject, ought
not all the safeguards Of liberty known in civ.
lized and humane jurisprudence to be in.
| troduced, SO that free man be not, in any
case, surrendered as a slaveY And might It
not be well at the same time to provide by law
for the enforcement OF that clause in the Con.
stituion which guarantees that "the citizens
OF each State shall be entitled to all privileges
and immunities of citizens in the several
States 2"
take the official oath to-day, with no mental
reservations, aud with no purpose to construe
the Constitution or laws by any hypercritical
rules. And while l do not choose now to
specify particular acts Of Congress as proper to
be enforced, do suggest that it will be much
safer for all, both in official and private sta.
tons, to conform to, and abide by, all those
acts which stand unrepealed, than to violate
any OF them, trusting to find impunity in hav.
ing them held to be Unconstitutional.
1t is seventy-two years since the first inaugu.
ration of President under our national Con.
stitution. During that period, fifteen different
and greatly distinguished citizens, have, in sue.
cession, administered the Executive branch OF
the Government They have conducted il
through many ,Ierilsi and, generally, with
great success. Yet, with all this scope for pre-.
cedent, now enter upon the same task for the
brief constitutional term of four years, under
great and peculiar difficulty. A disruption of
the Federal Union, heretofore only menaced, is
now formidably attempted.
hold, that in contemplation of universal
law, and OF the Constitution, the Union of these
States is perpetual. Perpetuity is implied, il
not expressed, in the fundamental law of all
national Governments. 1t is safe to assert that
no Government proper ever had provision in
its organic law for its own termination. Con.
tinue to execute all the express provisions of
our national Constitution, and the Union will
endure forever-it being impossible to destroy
it, except by some action not provided for in
the instrument itself.
Again, if the United States be not Govern.
ment proper, but an association of States in
the nature of contract merely, can it, as con.
tract, be peaceably unmade by less than all