Year: 1860

SnOulu not an American cluZcn since
the revolution have as many rights
as British subject before that time


If our American citizens since the revolu-
ton are not entitled to all the rights of self
government which we claimed before that
event, let me ask what we gained by the
sacrifice then made. [GacerS. I repeat,
the revolution was fought and the victories
won in defense of this identical principle of
local selfgovernment' "Oh! but" they
say, ito permit the people to govern them
selves is squatter sovereignty" Laugh
ter. 1t is very often easier to ridicule a
doctrine than it is successfully to attack it,
and during the Revolutionary war the to-
ries were in the habit of representing the
pretensions of the American colonies to
/ self.government as "squatter sovereignty"
tfLaughter] They then told us that the
people of the American colonies were enti
tied no rights, and no privileges, except
such as were granted to them by the King
Of England in their charters, and asserted
that the King could confer the right of self
government and take it away when he
pleased Our fathers told the King and his
tory counsellors that they did not derive
their right of selfgovernment from the
King and he should never take it away
They said they got it from the Great Ruler
of the Universe and they would maintain it
with their hearts blood. And they did
maintain the right. Cheers


Now we find under our constitution a
political party repeating this same old story
argument and declaring that the people Of
the Territories have no rights except those
Congress grants to them in their charters
and inasmuch as Congress confers the
rights Congress can take them away. The
of the North and Secessionists of the South
that American citizens in the Territories
did not get their rights from Congress, and
that Congress cannot and shall not take
them away. Cheers. An American cit
izen claims the right of self-govornment as
an inherent right beyond the power of in
vasion by Congress. [''True."l If the
battles of the Revolution have not establish
ed the inherent right of sclf-government,
| ask again what have we gained by the
bloody sacrifices of that immortal struggle.
souArrER SOVEREIGNTY.


The Republican leaders endeavor to mys-
tfy this right of selfgovernment by con-
fusion of ideas. They want to know
whether the first settler who comes on the
public lands in violation of law, may set up
a government of his own against the rights
of our government. My answer is that
the doctrine Of popular sovereignty applies
to every regularly organized political COM
munity under the constitution. Those who
go upon the public lands in violation of
law, and become trespassers, have no legal
rights of self government until Congress
shall legalize their acts and organize them
into governments. For instance, we have
now at Pixies Peak twenty or thirty thou
sand American citizens engaged in digging
gold and establishing homes, That coun
try still belongs to the Indians. The In
dian title has never been extinguished, and
every man who has gone there has violated
red penalty Of thousand dollars and six
ernment been doing that it did not enforce
the Indian intercourse laws, and protect
the Indians against the invasion of the
white settlers? 1t is bound to do one of
two things: either to keep the white men
out of the country, or to extinguish the In
dian title and give them lawful govern
ment under the constitution. Popular SOY.
ereignty, therefore, consists in the exercise
of the rights of selfgovernment according
to the constitution and laws of the land
Popular sovereignty is where men 60 in vi
| olation of law and set up government in
rebellion against the United States.


HOMESTEAD BILL.


A friend has asked me to explain my po-
sition upon the homestead bill l am lit
tie surprised that should be called upon to
define my position on that subject For
twelve or fourteen years l have devoted
more time to the passage of the homestead
bill than any other live man. Cries of
Good" and cheers. There never has
been homestead bill before Congress
which have not supported. Applause.
l introduced one in the House of Repre-
sentatves fourteen years ago, before I was
Senator, and have renewed it year after
year in the U: S. Senate. Cries of"Good. u
When could not get my own bill always
supported the next best one ["Good,
Good Last year when the House of
Representatives passed homestead bill
and sent it to the Senate, and Senator John
son, of Tennessee, offered substitute for
it, supported the House bill instead of
his, because l thought it was the best
When | failed to get that, l offered an
amendment, which believed to be better
even than the house bill, but it failed, and
then voted for the Senate bill ,as thought
it was better than nothing. Applause. !
| brief, am in favor now, as have been
for years, of that line of policy which au-
thorizes every man to 90 upon the public
lands, record his claim, build his house,
make his fences, and split his own rails,


Laughter and when he Shall have lived on
it long enough to have established his in
tentien of becoming permanent settler,
give him his title free. Tremendous ap-
piause. believe that to be the true policy
of the country


A person in the crowd.-How long will
he live on it?


Mr.. Douglas Il hope he will live on it
forever. [Cries of "Good" and applause
PUBLIC LANDS.


The Public Lands have not been prop
er and legitimate subject of revenue to this
government. On the contrary they have
tended to disorganize the monetary affairs
of the country. Whenever the country is
prosperous, imports are large and money is
plenty, every speculator will fill his pockets
with cash, go West and buy up the public
lands in vast quantities. We then get a
revenue of ten, twenty or twenty five mil
lions of dollars into the treasury, from the
sale of public lands, at the very time we do
not want it, because we have suplus with
out it, but the moment hard times come.
the imports fall off, the banks curtail their
issues and money is scarce, not dollars
worth Of land is sold, and the treasury be-
comes bankrupt for want of money
Sound doctrine."] Hence the land sys-
tenn brings money to the treasury when we
do not want it. [Laughter.] | therefore
would change our whole land system