The Oskaloosa herald., 1904-09-29
LACEY At OTTUMWA
Emancipation Day Address to the
Colored People.

nual celebration of Emancipation Day
in this city and he delivered most
excellent and pleasing address.
Major Lacey's Address.
Mr.. Lacey spoke at considerable
length He addressed his colored
hearers as fellow citizens and called
attention to the fact that ut is only
thirty-nine years ago today that they
became fellow citizens. He said in
part:
They were spoken Of in the federal
constitution, but not referred to as
slaves. The word slave never appear
ed in the constitution, but when the
colored race was referred to it was
spoken of as persons held to service
and labor in one place and in anoth-
er it was spoken of as three-fifths Of
other persons, You were then known
as merely other persons. The ed of
September, 1868, was one of the land
marks of human history. Mr.. Lin
coin had promised his God in prayer
that If victory came to our arms he
would issue this proclamation. Vicks.
burg fell, Lee was hurled back from
Gettysburg, the proclamation was is
sued and through that day, slavery
was doomed in all parts of the globe.
The serf in Russia, the slaves in Bra
I'll, in Cuba, have all become free.
Lincoln's pen welded the master
stroke forty-three years ago today.
From that hour slavery anywhere was
doomed. The slave catcher no longer
plies his trade even in darkest Africa.
In 1909 two great men were born,
William E. Gladstone and Abraham
Lincoln. Born in lowly circumstances,
he afterwards had the advantage Of a
stepmother, who loved him as her
own child and taught both Lincoln's
father and the boy to read and write.
Born in Kentucky, proudly reared in
Indiana, grown-to manhood in Illinois,
he was not Kentuckian, he was not
an Indianian, he was not an Illinois
an, he was in a proud sense, an Amer
lean. Though he only reached the
rule Of three, in his school arithme-
tic at school, he studied at nights and
became sufficient mathematician to
be an expert land surveyor. Though
he knew no Greek, he picked up such
little Latin as he found absolutely
necessary in his studies of the law.
He became master of the English
tongue, equal to the most cultured
scholars.
Twenty-three hundred years ago
Pericles, the Athenian ruler, delivered
his great Grafton over the Greek sol.
diers who had died in battle, and for
more than twenty-three centuries that
Grafton stood alone unequalled as the
greatest of the world But on his
way to Gettysburg at the dedication
of the monument over that field of
victory, Lincoln penciled upon mis-
knee on the back of an envelope his
immortal Gettysburg speech of only
twenty-nine printed lines Pericles'
Grafton had found its companion piece
One of the greatest speeches of all
times was delivered by Abraham Lin.
coin on that great occasion. When
Lincoln was twenty-three years of age
the Black Hawk war broke out. Lin.
coin was TALL ungainly country boy,
working in store, spending his
highs and Sundays in study. The
Bible and Shakespeare were his con.
slant companions. He learned his
morality from one and his knowledge
of languages from both When his
company gathered together for the
purpose of electing captain, Lincoln
was a candidate. He went to one
side of the field and his opponent to
the other. All who would have Lin.
coin gathered around their choice
His few opponents went to the other
side of the field, and Lincoln was soon
chosen almost unanimously. After
the close of that war, ne became a
candidate for the state legislature
and he was elected to several success
i've terms. In 1876 he was elected tc
congress for a single term and in that
term he found time to prepare bill
for the abolition of slavery, in the
District Of Columbia. From that time
to 1858 he devoted his time to the pro
fession of the law, and to occasional
campaign speeches. In 1858 when
the great Douglas was candidate fol
reelection to the United States sen
ate from Illinois, no opponent was
thought of but Lincoln The cam
paign attracted attention throughout
the whole country. Lincoln was al
once the public favorite.
''Tne popular majority in Illinoi:
cast their votes for Lincoln but the
legislative districts had been SO ar
ranged that Douglas had the majority
of the legislature. Lincoln lost the
senatorship but reached the presiden
cy. Douglas won the senatorsnip ant
lost the presidency. From the time
of Lincoln's election in 1860 his life's
story could constitute the history o.
the United States, for he became {
part of all its great events until the
assassin's bullet slew him in April