The Irish standard., 1905-03-04

NouAu AVI NuCll SAAC loIAO11 SACdICA
by the repeal of the misnamed Mis-
souri, compromise, which was no COM
promise at all, but surrender of her
constitutional right by the South, and
so characterized by Henry Clay, the
real author of it. 1t is true that
Douglas defeated Lincoln for the SEN
ate in 1858, but it was at frightful
cost-at the cost of the presidency
itself.
Like Douglas and Carpenter, Trum-
bull was New England-born, and, like
them, he was Democrat in political
faith. Like Seward and Blaine, he
went South and taught school, and,
like them, he afterward returned to
the North and gained great political
honors. He was born at Colchester,
Conn.,, in 1918, the year Stephen A.
Douglas and Allen G. Thurman first
saw the light, and with both Of them
he was destined to serve in the United
States Senate. When he left his ma
tive place, with all his belongings in
a small bundle, to seek his fortune
among strangers, villager remarked: !:
''That boy will some day be president
of the United States," and it is scarce
too much to say that he narrowly es-
capped that distinction. After teach
ing while in the South young Trum-
bull went to Illinois, studied law, and
was admitted to the bar, of which he
became leader and ultimately he
came to be recognized as one Of the
great jurists of the West. He was a
Democrat, Jackson man, and sup
ported Van Buren, in 1910, Polk in
1914, Cass in 1913, and perhaps Pierce
in. 1852. Illinois was traditional
Democratic state, and even in 1910 re-
mained steadfast in that faith. 1t
was not till 1860 that Illinois cast her
vote against the party of Douglas.
But day came when the question
of slavery in the territories was not
only the paramount issue, but the sole
issue, and Trumbull parted company
with Douglas and Logan, and with
Palmer, another Democrat, Joined Lin
coin, and with him became a charter
member of the Republican party. Both
Trumbull and Palmer disagreed with
Lincoln upon all questions except the
integrity Of the Union and the extern
sion Of slavery, and as soon as the
Union was preserved and slavery abol-
ished, Palmer returned to the Demo-
cratic fold and Trumbull was not far
behind him. Certain it is that both
again battled for the Democratic
ticket in 1872. Trumbull was elected
Senator in 1854, though Lincoln was
the choice of the new Republican
party. but, as now recall it, there
We're some old Democrats in the Legis-
lature who would not vote for Lincoln,
but would vote for Trumbull, and so
lie got the Senatorship as the sue
cessor of General Shields. 1t was a
situation exactly like that which
brought Salmon P. Chase into the
Senate from Ohio, and something very
much like it made Sumner Senator
from Massa sachusetts.
Lincoln and Trumbull never had
any use for the sentimentalism of the
anti-slavery movement. They thought
very little about the negro-they were
intent on benefiting the withstand
there is very good grounds for the be-
lief that Lincoln hoped that the final
result of the race problem would be
an exodus of the negro from the
United States, for he did not believe
that an adequate Industrial develop
ment of the South could be had until
the two races were separated. At least
some Of Mr.. Lincoln's utterances were
to that effect.
Those IS years Q955-1S73) that
Trumbull was a Senator were preg-
nant with mighty political events.
The Know-Nothing party was yet on
the stage, and the Republican party,
though but babe in arms, had Sc
cured plurality in the Thirty-fourth
Congress, of which one Republican
was elected speaker and another was
- 4. q A.,jSIET "a IfXH