Year: 1860

maintained. For this Republicans con
tend, and with this, so far as | know or
believe, they will be content, Ap-
plause.


And now, if they would lsten-as l
suppose they will not-I would address
a few words to Southern people Laugh
ter. | would say to them You con
slider yourselves a reasonable and Just
people, and | consider that in the gener
al qualities of reason and justice you are
not inferior to any other people still,
when YOU speak of us Republicans, you
do so only to denounce US as reptiles,
or at the best, as no better than outlaws.
You will grant hearing to pirates or
murderers, but nothing like it to Black
Republicans. Laughter. In all your
contentious with one another each of
YOU deems an unconditional condemna-
ton OF Black Republicanism as the
first thing to be attended to. Laugh
ter. Indeed, such condemnation of us
seems to be an indispensable prerequisite
license, so to speak-among you, to be
admitted or permitted to speak at all
Now, can you or not be prevailed upon
to pause and to consider whether this is
quite just to us, or even to yourselves
Bring forward your charges and speciff-
cations, and then be patient long enough
TO hear us deny or justify. You say we
are sectional. We deny it, Loud ap-
plause, That makes an issue, and the


burden Of proof is upon you. Laugh


ter and applause. You produce your
proof; and what is it? Why that our
party has no existence in your section
gets no votes in your section. The fact
is substantially true but does it prove
the issue Ii it does, then, in case we
should, without change of principle, be-
GIN to get votes in your section, we should
cease 10 be sectional. [Great merriment. |


\ ou cannot escape this conclusion and
yet are you willing 10 abide by ii Ii
you are, you will probably soon find that
We have ceased to be sectional for we
shall get votes in your section this very
year. Loud cheers. You will then
begin to discover as the truth plainly is,
that your proof does not touch the issue.
The tact that we get no votes in your
section is fact of your making, and not
of ours. And ii there be fault in that
fact, that fault is primarily yours, and re-
mains so until you show that we repel
you by some wrong principle or practice


1t we do repel You by any wrong princi-
pie or practice, the fault is ours but
this brings you to where YOU ought 10
have started-to discussion of the right
or wrong of our principle. Loud ap-
plause. II our principle, put in prac-
tice, would wrong your section for the
benefit OF ours, or for any other object,
then our principle, aud we with it, are
sectional, and are Justly opposed aud de
nounced as such. Meet us then on the
question of whether our principle, put
in practice, would wrong YOUR section
and so meet it as if it were possible thar
something may be said on our side


Laughter. Do You accept the chal.
iense No. Then you really believe
that the principle which our fathers who
framed tue Government under which we
live thought So clearly right as to adopt
1t, and endorse II again aud again, upon
their official oaths, is, in fact SO clearly
wrong as 10 demand your condemnation
without moments consideration. Ap-
plause Some of YOU delight to haunt
IN our faces the warning against section
al parties given by Washington IN his
Farewell Address. Less than eight wears
before Washington gave that warning, he
had, as President OF the United States.
approved and signed an act Of Congress.
enforcing the prohibition OF slavery in
the Northwestern Territory. which act
the policy OF the Government
upon that subject, up 10 and at the very
moment he penned that warning and
about one year after he penned it, he
wrote Lafayette that he considered that
prohibition wise measure. expressing
IN the same connection his hope that We
should some time have coufederacy of
free States. (Applause.) Bearing this
IN mind, and seeing that sectionalism has
since arisen upon this same subject is
that warning a weapon in your hands
against us, or IN our hands against YOU
Gould Washington himself speak, would
he cast tho blame OF that seclionalism
upon Us who sustain his policy. or upon
You who repudiate il? (Applaase y
We repeat that warning OF Washington,
and We commend il 10 you, together with
his example pointing to the right appli.
cation Of H. (Applausc.


But You say YOU are conseryati We
eminently conseryative-while we are
revolutionary, destructive, or something
OF the sort. What is conservatism Is
il not adherence 20 the old and tried
against the new aud untried ? We stick
70, contend for. the Identical old policy
on the point IN controversy which was
adopted by our fathers who framed the
Government under which we live. while
you with one accord reject aud scout
and spit upon that old policy. and in
slst upon substituting something new.


Then, you disagree among yourselves as
to what that substitute shal! be You
have considerable variety OF new propo-
sItions aud plans, but YOU are unanimous
IN rejecting and denouncing the old pol.


icy OF the fathers. Some Of YOU are tol


revlving tho foreign slave trade som,


for Congressional slave code for tbs


Territories Soma far CON cross farh,