The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-08-10
LINCOLN AND DOUGLAS.
Their Views on Negro and Those of
 Roosevelt.

fer back to the celebrated campaign of 1858, when those two giants of intellect and of oratory, Abraham Lincoln and stephen A. Douglas, led the hosts of the great opposing parties. Lincoln, the fed erallst, and Douglas the defender or state sovereignty
 The middle west, as we now call 1t, was the theatre of that bitter conflict and the negro question was the all-absorb- ing topic of discussion, and now, forty six years after that conflict the same question is an important issue in the states of Illinois, Indiana and the states adjoining, except that slavery is elim- mated
 While the spirit of Abraham Lincoln still dwells in that section, likewise do the descendants of ths Douglas school, and each will arise in their might and do battle under the banners that were raised in 1858.
 It must be remembered that Lincoln was not at all times and in all places favorable to either social or political equality between the two races At Charleston, September IS. 1858, he began his speech with the following declara- tion:
 While I was at the hotel today an elderly gentleman called upon me to know whether l was really in favor of producing a perfect equality between the negroes and the white people. While l had not proposed to myself on this occa- sion to say much on that subject, yet as the question was asked me thought 1 would occupy perhaps five minutes in saying something in regard to it. will say then that I am not nor ever have been in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the black and white races; that l am not nor ever have been In favor of mak- ing voters or jurors of negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to in- termarry with white people; and I will say, in addition to this, that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will for ever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality"
 Is not the above utterance food for re-
 
 Roosevelt, who so frequently essays to lilSen himself unto Lincoln and whose fre- quent references to that predecessor give endorsement to his record?
 In the face of this expression of I.in- coin President Roosevelt has more than once, yea, many times drawn the line of difference between himself and his model, l 1,t bers of the negro race, contrary to the wishes of communities most effected, not ably the case of Dr. Crum at Charles ton, not in Illinois; and they do say that he has stopped to social mixture with the black race, notwithstanding the physical difference which Lincoln thought would forbid
 Douglas took bold stand in opposition to granting the elective franchise to the negro. Following Lincoln at Charleston he said:
 T declare that a negro ought not to be citizen, whether his parents were im- ported into this country as slaves or not, or whether or not he was born here. It does not depend upon the place a negro s parents were born, or whether they were slaves or not, but upon the fact that he is a negro, belonging to a race incapable of self-government and for that reason ought not to be on an equality with white men,"
 At Alton Douglas said
 This government was made upon the great basis of the sovereignty of the states, the right of each state to regu- late its own domestic institutions to suit itself"
 From the great speech of Judge Douglas, at Chicago. in the same cam paign, the following extracts are taken:
 'I am driven irresistably to the con- clusion that diversity. dissimilarity. va riety in all our local and domestic insti- tutlons, Is the great safeguard of our liberties; and that the framers of our in- stitutions were wise, sagacous and pa triotic when they made this government confederation of sovereign states, with legislature for each, and conferred upon each legislature the power to make all local and domestic institutions to suit the people it represented without interfererfce from any other state, or from the general conference of the union. If we expect to maintain our liberties we must preserve the rights and sovereignty of the states.
 
 'I am forced to say to you that in my opinion this government of ours is founded on the white basis. It was made by the white man, for the benefit of the white man. to be administered by the determine"
 T am opposed to taking any step that recognizes the negro man or the Indian as the equal of the white man. I am opposed to giving him a voice in the ad- ministration of the government I would extend to the negro and the In- right. every prililege and every immunity consistent with the safety and welfare of the white race; but equality they never shall have, either political or so- cial or in any other respect whatever"
 For my part do not consider the ne- gro any kin to me, nor to any other white man, but I would still carry my human ity and my philanthropy to the extent of giving him every privilege and every immunity that he could enjoy. consistent with our good. We in Illinois have the right to decide upon that question for our selves. and we are bound to allow every