Year: 1861

terms in which you have been pleased 4
welcome me. 1 thank the Committee an,
citizens Of Chicago for this grand and insyus
ing reception. beg you to believe that


viii not do you nor myself the injuatiee to be
lieve this magnificent ovation is personal hom
age to myself. rejoice to k6Ok that ii ex
presses your devotion 70 the Constitution, thu
Union and the Flag ofOur country. TChecrs
will not conceal qualification al the un-
eontrovertible test this vast audience presents
that what political differences or part,
questions may have divided us, yet you al
had conviction that when the country shouI,
be in danger, my loyalty could be relied on
That the present danger in imminent, no maj
can conceal. II war must eome-if she bay
onet must be used to maintain the COustitu
toni can say before God, my conscience i
clear. l have struggled long for peacefu
solution Of the difficulty. l have not only
rendered those States what was theirs of riRht
but have gone to the very extreme Il mag
uanimity.


The return We receive is War, armies
marched upon our Capitol, distinctions and
danger to our navigation, letters of marque
to invite pirates to prey upon our commerce
a concerted movement to blot ont the United
States of America from the map Of the globe
The question is Are we to maintain the
country of our fathers, or allow it to be
stricken down by those who, Wheh they can
no longer govern, threaten to destroy.


What cause, what excuse do Disunionists
give US for breaking up the best Government
on which the sun of heaven ever shed its rays
They are dissatisfied with the result Of Pres
idenrial election. Did they never get beaten
before? Are We TO resort to the sword when
we get defeated at the ballot box 1 under
stand it that the voice Of the peorle expressed
in the mode appointed BY the Constitution
must command the obedience Of every citizen.
They assume on the election Of particular
candidate that their rights are not safe in the
Union. What eait'eRccs do tlsry present OF
this p? defy stsy man to shOH aly act on
which it is based. What act has been omitted
to be done? I appeal TO these assembled
thousands that so far as the Constitutional
rights OF the Southern States, will say the
Constitutional rights of shareholders are con-
cerned, nothing has been done and nothing O.
mitted of which they can complain.


There has never been time from the Elav
that Washington was iBaugurntetl 6rst Presi-
dent of these United StMtes, when the rights
Of the Southern States stood irmcr under the
laws Of the land, than they do now there
never was time when they had not as good
cause for disunion as they have to-day. What
good cause bave they noW that has not existed
under every administration -as


fthcy suy the Territorial fQueatiou-.uow
for the first time there Is no act of Congress
prohibiting slavery anywhere. II it be the
ron-enforcenient Of the laws, the only com
plants that l have heard have been of the too
vigorous and faithful ful6lEHent Of the Fuei-
tive Slave Law. Then what reason have thcy.


The slavery question Is mere excuse.-
The election of Lincoln is q mere pretext.-
The present secession movement 10 the result
of au enormous conspiracy formed more than
a year since, formed by leaders in the Southerr
Confederacy more than twelve months ago.


They use the Slavery Question as q means
to aid the Accomplishment Of their ensis.-
They desired the election of Northern can
didate by q sectional vote in order TO show
that the two sections cannot live together.-
When the history Of the two years from the
Lecompton Charter down to the late Prcsi-
Dental election, shall be written, it will be
shown tEHt the scheme was deliberately made
to break up this Union.


They desired q Northern Republican to be
elected by purely Northern vote and then
assign this fact as reason why the sections
may not longer live together. II the Disun-
ion candidate in the late Presidential contest
had carried the united South, their scheme
was, the Northern Candidate s1ccessfu, to
seize the Capitol last spring, and By mn united
South and q divided North, hold it. That
scheme wns defeated in the defeat Of the Dis
union candidate in several 0S the SUuthern
States.


But this is no time for u detail of Causes
The conspiracy is BON kBowB. Armies have
been raised. War is levied to SeeoBplish it.
There are only two sides to the question:
Every man must be for the Unised States, or
against it. There can be no neutFzis in this
war, only patriOts-or traitors.


Thank God, Illinois is not divided on this
question. Cheers.) know they expected
to present an united South against divided
North. They hoped in the Northern States,
party questions would bring civil wsv between
Democrats and Republicans, wbeE the South
woul step in with her cohorts, aid one party
to conquer the other, and then make easy
mage and civil war in the North.


There is but one way to defeat this. In
Illinois it is being SO defeated by closing up
the ranks. War will thus be perverted on
our own SOIL While there was a hope of
peace was ready for any reasonable sacrifice
or compromise to maintain il. But when the
question comes of war in the cotton fields OF
the South, or the corn fields Of Illinois5E say
the farther off the better.


We cannot close our eyes to the sad, solemn
fact that war does not ezisW> The Government
must be maintained, its enemies ovefthFOwn,
and the more stupendeus our preparations,
the less the blood shed, and the shorter the
struggle. But VIC must rerAen.6eT certain re-
straints on our actions even in time Of war
We are 4 Christian people, and the waF
must b, prosecuted in q manner recognized by
Christian nations. s....


We must not invade Constitutional rights.
The innocent must not suffer, nor women and
.chiidren be the victims. SaRages must not be
let loose. But while sanction no war on
or the rights of others. will implore my
countrymen not to lay down their arms until
our own rights are recognized. u Cheers.
I The Constitution and its guarantees are
our birthrisht, and l am ready tOenfoFce that
inalienabls riSht 10 the last extent. We cam
not recognize secession. Recognize it once,
and you have not only dissolved government
but you have dissolved social order, upturned
the foundations of society. You have inaugu-
rated anarchy IN is worst fOrRS and will
shortly experience all the horrors OF the French
Revolution.


Then we have solemn duty; to maintGin
the Government. The greater our un0ninlal
ty the'speedier the day Of peace. We have
Iprejudices TO overcome. from the few short
months since of a fierce party contest Yet