Juliet signal. [volume] (Juliet [i.e. Joliet], Ill.) 1844-1???, 1862-03-18
THE LATE SENATOR DOUGLAS.
A Beautiful Tribute 20 his Memory By
a Political Opponent.


Hon. John Wentworth Of Chicago. in
cur constitutional convention, Jan. 10Th,
delivered the following beautiful euIogy ON
the life and character Of the greatest man
Illinois ever claimed:
Mr.. President 81 was not aware Of the
programme of this afternoon. did not
suppose there would be any rsmarks made
here, except. perhaps, by The B.uver OF the
res"lutl''hs; consequently nathfng was fur
iber from my iDteption than addressing
the Cnnsention on this occasion. MIR did
conclude 10 say anything unfil the ser,ti-
ments fell from the lips Of the gentleman.
frsm Shelby, Mr. rhernton.l f,amaIv -
The good thai men dp isvss after tl.e., :,
The remarks cnnrerniae fbe life and
sctFefacfef tIfs dsStiEEe6 i<tcd ~.,s~>,.,.<.,
which have fallen from The lips Of bnnora-
Gle gentlemen at this time have been con.
fined almost to q single question in Ameri.
can politics, which has row gone o. the
court Ut final resort 1t may be settled by
baile, Tomorrow, or the bex, d4y; or NOT
for years. We are all anxious tor it's set
urment, upon the immutable p-inciple of
justice. Aud there is NO one that joub;s
such settlement will have to abide tho fate
of this war.
propose to enlarge upon the text, s.Tbe
good that men do, lives after them" de
sire to apply the text to the age, to the day.
To the very hour, to the scenes by which
we are surrounded. in which we now live
and to speak of facts with which we are all
familiar.
Judge Douglas died poor. He had filed
almost every position in ,.ublic li'e--aIl but
Que to which he had asrired but he died
poor. He had been a politician He wa.
a part'Zan himself amongst psrtizans and
competitors but never i'll the severestcon
test IN his career was it charged by the
must hitter of h,s opponents that he had
put his fingers too far into the public treas
ury.
Never was he the richer for any position
he ever held, A poor boy he came into
your Legislature; and u mere boy he went
out Of your Legisiature-the richer for no
charter that passed it; for no scheme of
private speculation or plumber. He went
into Congress. He sat in his seat there
session after session, while untold millions
were passed upon but who ever said, much
less who ever believed that enc cent of
public money went wrongfully into the
hands If Stephen A Douglas? Like CLAW.
Webster. Il ntnn, and other great and hen
"st men, he died o.. or How MANY gen
tl-men ar" there now within the sound of
my v"Ire win have had business with Ste-
rhen A. Doug AID where is the man
that rvrr dared 10 breach the proposition
to him, that with his success with this or
that !egi.litve enactment he might ppssi-
lily be the rIcher2 AMI how few of our
ruhlc uIea IN this corruut age, can be So
spoken of?
There l. another evil Of the times, with
respect to which Judge Douglas shines as
as he does in the matter be-
fore alluded to. 1t is the fashion now a.
days when man sttains public position,
to drag all his relatives into Office after
him. 1t Is noted fact in the history Of
mankind that greatness d les not appertain
to a wbrle family that when IA large amt
Of brain ls c"rccntrdied III ne head it i
very often Iak-n, in the same pruportiun
from the heads of others ot the same tam
lily. Judge Dauglas, when elected to office
C. n>Idered that when the peolle voted for
him, tf.ey did not vote for the whole family
of DOuglases and their cnllatserals. Never
did Stephen A. Douglas in his life put his
hand upon a recommendation for one of his
relatives. | know it is true that he had
relatives in Office. but they acquired those
offices as he himself acquired his-upon
their own instriusic merit.
My first acquaintance with Judge Doug
las wa during The campaign against John
/. Stuart. He was then as pnnr a. he was
when he died. He bad not the means OF
rarryIrs Gn the Cant aign in a manner To
secure him proper degree If personal
comfort All his success depended IN his
talent Well do | remember when | ed
with him IN Chicag" after he had made his
first speech there He was having on
horseback ! asked him what | ..nuld do
FIR him. He SAID {: Keep the issue plain
lv before the people" And when 1 asked
him what he considered the issue, he tuJk
a pencil and wrote, shall our governs
ment be a government of the pc PIE ?"--
Words that have never died on nv ears 70
tins hour, and l hope never wi ], while
God gives me strength To tut vote IN the
hall0t-box, for the old JacksunIan pIinci-
Ties.
lie stood on that issue, and no man did
a. much to inIplant the sub-treasnry prin-
cpie in the hearts Of the American people
as Stephen A. Douglas,
The next time | saw Judge Douglas, he
came to Chicago as one of our Supreme
Judges who then performed circuit duties.
He wss ridiculed as the baby Judge and
especially WAS he ridiculed fer his pre-
sumption in daring TO C. me t, Ch;rago to
hold court. where we5had .hep. as now,
some of the ahl,s' lawyers in tie Union
remember an agreement which was made
among his political friends. 1t was that
tha he
evenings, So that he might have an Opp0r-
tunity to study the grave questions of law
Which might come Lefore bIm for deter
mInaIinn. But | never found him with a
law book in bis hand. The fact is. no man
ever studied books as little lie had an
intuitive sagacity. that grasped ever legal
question the moment 1t was submitted bya
member of the bar. He knew what the
authority ought to be, an can safely say
that, unpopular as he was With the bar
when he came to Chicago, he went away
the most popular judge we ever bad in that
circuit.
We met again and that was IN the Amer
iran Congress, to which my colleage. Mr-
Fiekln has alluded shall never forget
The hour--that great hour to me-when lie
arose on that floor AID made tie speech
i ne-rning Js'kson'> firs that great ef.rt
with rr!srs.ce +" which 6 neral JacssOi'
afterwards tGGk his baad ana Commitment
e. him. hy SAYING that he sai ever ionnd
his own full just f"a,jnn u"tii he read II
IN the speech Of Judge Dauglas. That
speech made him a leader n the House OF
representatives
AMI weli d. reno mber the great ceie-
hraiInn bv the Democracy on the Sth OF