The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-10-04
The ADVERTISERS
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T.
 tion, too that might and probably would seek alliance with European powers there- by becoming perpetual menace to our
 sss sna safety Tnssf wsFs nS if party friends. and. as they could com
 mand votes as well as arguments, the measure was passed when It was brought
 March 5, isis. the " very rsi last % day of of his his term"
 But with the admission of Texas there
 sprung up at once the question of terri
 tory. Mexico had never formally. recog-
 nized the independence of the rebelllous
 State. and assuming that Independence.
 the two States did not agree on, the
 or This claim Mexico would not concede but insisted that her territory included all that district lying between the Rio
 weak nation and therefore Mexico was wrong. It Is not difficult to understand how the advocates of annexation satis-
 fed their judgment: but 1t Is not so easy
 Mexican war justified theraselyes fos their course. The President Mfr Polk. ordered General Taylor to .occupvothe ter iitory and when an attack was made by cd by the act of Mexico.
 After the contest was once begun MT. Douglas, supported the administration
 influence. He made speech in the House that for logical acumen, for strength and eloauence of expression and for It's im-
 mediate effects not only upon his own upon his hearers. in securing support for | the war. has rarely if ever had It's equal | In the popular branch of Congress.
 MT. eo Douglas h stood a0 stify for what he re- re. garded as the rights Of his country | against the claims of England. The Uni-
 ted States claimed the territory including | fhA Zee zf oaht ,uf<, axsI nV-
 egon north to the parallel of 54 degrees 40
 minutes on the basis of the Louisiana l purchase in 1863. England also claimed
 the same territory as hers. In ls44 the l probability seemed to be that the country might be forced into war with England | over the question. The Democrats raised 1 the campaign cry during that year of
 on the 'platferm" of which this plank formed part. He made speeches on the subject. This dispute involved the whole question of the Monroe doctrine, and of
 porter. He believed that no foreign na- tion should be permitted to extend its system on this continent, and that we
 should be prepared to fight if need be
 rather than suffer such extension He said: "1t becomes us to put the nation in a state of defense; and when we are
 told that this will lead to war. all have
 to say ;,. Is this preserve , the J, honor nor
 same time assert our right to the last inch. and then if war comes let it come" He argued that the justice of Americas
 reasonable question. If the occupancy of the whole territory by the United States
 should be used by Great Britain as pre- text for war, he should not shrink from England finally proposed that the forty ninth parallel be taken as the boundary. On this basis the compromise was ef- fected and war probably thereby averted. ThH, 1fan yN0 ofIPN snf <,xt ha
 omnibus bill' as it was called. has been considered in other papers of this series. That famous measure was really the out come of discussion of slavery and its stood with those other gfants-.Webs and Clay in the support of that bill. In discussing the question of admitting slav for "sauattcr sovereignty" that is. for
 the settlement of that matter by the
 people of the territory and not by Con-
 gress. This was consistent Democratic
 doctrine. T have always held, he said,
 that the people have the right to set tie these questions as they choose, not
 only when they come into the union as a
 State. but that they should be permitted
 The history of Mir. Douglas for which
 he Is most remembered today centers
 around the year 1SOS. when he held his
 famous series of debates with Abraham
 Lincoln, and the year 1860 when he and
 Lincoln were opposing candidates for the
 presidency.
 The joint debates were mostly discus-
 sion of the question growing out of slav-
 cry. Douglas in 1858 was candidate for
 reelection to the United States Senate
 and Lincoln was contesting the election
 with him. Which should be cnosen would
 depend upon whether a majority of Dem-
 ocrats or of Republicans should be chosen
 to the State Legislature of Illinois. At
 this time Douglas was regarded as the
 greatest debater in the country. By many
 1t was thought presumption on the part
 of Lincoln to enter into discussion with
 the little giant of Illinois. But the
 progress of the debates rroved his 1ustl-
 fication. It was in these debates that
 Lincoln developed his doctrine of the ut
 ter destruction or the complete estab-
 lishment of slavery in the United States. Tn my opinon;' he said slavery agita-
 ton will not cease until Ii crisis shall have been reached and passed. I believe this government cannot endure perma- nently half slave and half free. It will become all one thing or all the other" In canvassing the State in those debates Douglas was everywhere received with boundless enthusiasm. There were crowds rejoicing. cheers and excitement. Lincoln proved formidable antagonist, and the friends of each claimed that their par ticular knight was the champion of the lists. Douglas never spoke with greater | .eloquence and power. His most funda- mental theme was the doctrine of popular | sovereignty, the principle that the people | of each,S should be left to decide for l themselves WntI1PT they WOulQ or would | not have slavery. We all know the out come of the battle royal. The Democrats | carried the State and Douglas was sent | back to the Senate
 | But this remarkable contest did more | than decide the question of the United States Senatorshp. 1t brought both of | these men prominently to the front for | the presidency two years later. We all know the result Lincoln was elected | and the mightiest conflict of the ages l was begun. One after another the South | ern States passed ordinances of secession | and before Lincoln's inauguration. had ! formed the Confederate States of Amer l lea. In the meantime Douglas. for the 1 ureseryatjor of the union. had proposed | an amendment to the Constitution for | bidding Congress ever to interfere with | slavery in the States. But the amend ment did not pass and the breach con- tinued to widen.
 | Although Mir. Douglas had previously
 acted on most occasions with the South l ern States where it came to a question | of dismnion he did not hesitate. He stood | souarely and heartily with Lincoln in | ali measures adopted to put down the | Resurrection. But he did not live to see | inc end of the bitter struggle. Never of | a very robust frame and doubtless weak I, ened bv the almost superhuman labors | of a quarter If a century, he died in July. 4 1S61 before the fighting of the civil war | had fairly begun.
 "a Copyright. 1900l