The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1863-12-12

| urlVerS used to Dc-there none OF theI
left now-they were God-fearing mel
pious, Thoughtful and rejecting men, ju,
the kind OF men to trust your life an
fortunes to, just the kind of men to u
lustrate, as they are made to do by N
Dickinsons simile, our illustrious chic
magistrate, Abraham Lincoln, who, accor
ding to the simile, is driving the coach @
the Constitution and the Union down bill
at a fearful rate, with imminent danger @
going to eternal smash with all on board
Perhaps might think it would men,
the simile a little il one OF the passenger
might be supposed to be powerful ant
sagaclous man, better acquainted wltl
horses, and their ways in fright, than tn
stage driver was, who should succeed il
getting hold of the reins, and would there
lore have better prospect Of arrestini
the runaway team than the stage drive
had. But no matter; SO Mr. Dickinson
did not think, so you enlighten anc
| excellent people who listened 10 him die
not think, and therefore | pray you pardon
this passing thought of mine.
| The proposition that in time of war, ht
who IS the head of the State, is the State
or that, more nearly to Use Mr. Dickin-
sons language, in time of war, the author
| ity Of HIM who is the head of the State
has no boundary except the will and dis,
| cretion Of such magistrate, honestly exer
cised, is one that We think we have heard
uttered before The Chicago Journal run
itself into that utterance in 1861 or the
beginning Of lS62-it looked a that time
both monstrous and stupid-but i: has
been repeated on the street corners several
times since, 10y numerous well dressed
gentlemen, each OF whom uttered it with
an oracular solemnity proceeding from the
conviction that he was the inventor Of q
magnificent truth-and this vaticinatIon
was more heartily cheered by the intell;-
gent people there assembled than anythinr =
else saiu by the distinguished lecturer
Strange exhibition Of human,-what? pas
sion, or reason? That such man should
utter, and such people should applaud
such a principle and that it should be
uttered and applauded as though It were
new, With passion, with prejudice, it is
in vain 20 reason. Let not the attempt
be made But the distin guished lecturer
knew, if those who heard nm did not.
that it was this principle which sent the
dagger of Brutus TO the heart Of Caesar and
imperial Rome the empire OF the world
that struck from his shoulders the head OF
Louis the XVI, drenched France with
blood, led her, for her own salvation, to
deliver herself, bound by the same gnob!e
chain 10 the despotism of Napoleon, and
cost Napoleon himself, the wisest and
ablest OF mankind, his empire, his liberty
The learned lecturer knew, II his hearers
did not, that this iienGica! question was
not new. lie was aware that 1t had arisen
and in almost the precise form in which
he presented it, n England two hundred
years ago He kne= that then and there
King Charles the /, proposed to the
Judges Of England, this precise question
" Whether, In case OF necessity for tito
defense OF the kingdom he might not i'm
pose taxes: and whether he was not the
sole judge of the necessity? 2 the judges,
ahjsct for once, (for that has not been the
general character of the judges Of England)
answered in- NIzgs proposition IN the
affirmative, and he proceeded 10 endeavor
to exercise the unconstitutional power
that the judges had conceded to hira.-
the attempt cost the KIM his throne and
his life, drew England into sanguinary
civil war, and delivered her, too, at the
end of it into the de<potic grasp of Crom
well, as France was afterwards delivered
into the mailed band OF Napoleon. His
tory is something, if reason is not; facts
are something !! argument Is not; and
NAV fail 10 reach. may yet deduce reason
and argument for themselves from these
Iucontestib!e facts.
Another portion Of Mr. Dickinson's dis
course assigned to slavery the origin of the
war. portrayed it, agsre-sons upon tie
political power of the North, its endeavor,
with some success, to eHtrench itself be-
hind the Constitution, its insolence III
succesa, and its madness and its malice
when it snuifed from af.r, on the election
Of Mr.. Lincoln, danger to its further en-
croachments No ore, Republican or
Democrat, unless Il may be an insignificant
portion of the latter. like Nallandi CHAM or
the Woods, Ben and Fernando (for it must
be remembered that the canvass in Ohio
was prosecuted upon quite other principles
than that of Mr.. Sallandigham teing an
exponent of Democratic princip.es) will
be likely TO contest with Mr.. Dickinson
this exposition of the origin of the war
and the wick edDess of the southern lead
e,s who instigated it. There may have
been something not very statesmanlike in
his views of suhjugation and contiscation,
both of which he advocated without as
signing any limits to them, but the legal
principle involved therein will not be con-
tested
And this brought Mr. Dickinson to that
part of his discourse best suited to Lis
genius, a poetical description of the future
greatness of America, illustrated by myth
ology, (Which he wittily said nobody ever
questioned the truth of and tnat tribute,
so appropriately due, to the genius which
assigns to woman, all that most soothes,
alleyiates, and ennooles this rugged hu
manity of ours. The poets were laid un>
der a most liberal and graceful contribu-
tion, in this part of the learned lecturers $
DISCOURSE and nothing could exceed the
grace, the deicacy, and the pathos with
which Mr. Dickinson dramatized the part
he was acting In these respects, rarely,
we think, has Mr.. Dickinson been excel
led by the most celebrated of those who
have made the rendition of such sentl-
ments their specially. And so the lecture
ended Those who listened, heard that
which was well worth hearing, however
they may have failed to hear that which
they expected.