Year: 1860

will well repay a careful perusai.l


Delaware. Ohio, July I, 1860,


Ny DEAE BRorHERs


/ 3 ! have this morning


mailed you our couliy paper containing


speech of Mr.. Lincoln, setting forth amon;


other things the doctrines oi "a our fathers


with regard to the Territories as to slavery


was struck with the clearaess Of his pre-


sentation of this subjecl, and / thought yol


would be glad TO see the speech in full.


My friends, wish to say word or tive far
I'ther. Now am not proesscaly a politician


though do think and hold that it is the dat
of every man 70 study to. some extent the IA


tnre and workings of of his own nations gov
ernment, and seek 10 know something of tht
: prineipleg and policy of fhe leading politica
parties Of MS country, With this view Of m,
! duty as citieen of this great and good eoun


try, have watched with some, yes eonsidera


bic, interest the management Of the vital ques
tions now agitating our nation. The leading


issue, it cannot be denied, is now upon thl


slavery question, and it IS destined 50 TO con


tinue for some time to come how long no one


can predict certainly. Il is no loliger a war
betweeo political factions merely, but is aeon


test between two great principles which have
existed longer than our world-it is a contest
between righ and 1crong and will continue t6


be waged in some form as long as advocates OF
justice find the hated evil existing


Ny friends, win speak candidiy aud unrc-
servediy, though briefly, have always voted
| with the Republican party and no other, not
however because 1 think that party the best
theoretically the nearest right in principle
but because l think it right 50 far as 1t goes
and that practically pliilanthropist in this
country can do no letter than to support its
chosen candidates. mean for the present.
like the Gerrit Smith view of our fundamer-
tai law the best, but for long time to come l
can see plainly enough the policy of that or
gnrizatioIi, the Smith party, cannot and will
not be tested IN the administration Of our gov
ernncnt.


AT the other. extreme We find the present
administration party proving by its acts that
it is pledged to adopt and carry out any and
every policy that sill most likely sccrtre the
prevalence Of slavery in our country. And So
far as it relates to the means to carry its favor
ite measures into effect, and perpetuate the ex-
isteuce Of the party in power. the forth coming





it corruption enough. or tbs party think
may say truthfully that no man who loves i'm
portant moral principles more than he loves
mere party name can conseientiously support
lis ciirif:is after he has carefully, candidly
and inpartially examined its policy. Every
man wills. Will stop long enough to think and
reason inteliigently but a very few minutes.
cannot help seeing that the leading idea OF
this party, that mon raay hcAt property IN
man Incorporated IN tie CiHsfitutt Of o1tr
nation and clearly sci ,fo'tt IN that instrument,
tends to the naturalization of slavery, and
places exclusive freedom, even in the Free
States themselves, at the option arc mercy OF
the shareholders and proaavery officials. Just
look at it Il moment If the fundamental law
of our land declares that man shall be common
property as the horse or any other species Of
ordinary property, what legislation dare enact
q Law torbidding that slaves shall be held in
that State for the benefit of their owners as
the horse is held for the benefit of his owner
To say nothing of free Territories, what must
inevitably become of free States even, under
such d doctrine.


If you say such policy never will be car
rird out to the fullest extent Of its spirit, an
swer that you presume too much upon the len
ity Of the slaveholding spirit of our country,
while you do not deny that the doctrine is ca
pabe of this extreme administration nay
that it demands it.


Now let US take what some might be pleas
ed to call one step hgher,-though I shall not
designate it thus-and glance at the position OF
the Douglas faction of the Democratic party.
The doctrine currently knawn under the very
popular title of I" Popular SoUereignty" is all,
! believe, that was ever claimed as an impor-
tant characteristic difference between the two
great factions of the old Democratic party
The idea that the people received from this |
term set forth by Mr.. Douglas and others
must necessarily be fayorite with the masses
under Republican government like ours but
the peculiar, tacit, ingenious manner in which
the doctrine was formally stated long ago, led
shrewd, clear-sighted statesmen to foresee the
direction that the actual administration of this
doctrine wonld ultimately take; and subse-
quent developments have clearly shown that the
judgment of those statesmen was correct, who
foretold that this fabrication was mere sham !
and deception cunpingly devised to cheat the
public and deceive the masses into the vain be-
lief that the people of the Territories were ac-
tually to be left with the whole power of self
government in their own hands.


A professional politician becomes too cum |
ming sometimes, to be detected in his intrigues |
Immediately, by the people. but people used
to self-government will soon discover the most
carefully concealed deception presented under
the mask of patriotism. The phrase, subject
only to the Constitution of the United States,
was phrase that seemed unnecessary in bill |
of any kind under the Constitution, it is true
but that phrase in its peculiar association in
this case suggested itself to the minds of
statesmen Immediately, as the key by which |
the deception concealed beneath might be I'M
locked and discovered. Strange as at first it |
would seem, the true state Of the case is now |
most manifestiy turning out to be just what
was long ago predicted.


My friends, wish to deal fairly with this
matter, know I am now noticing your favor
ite idea, and / want to reason as an unpreju-
diced, honest, rational friend, with unprejudi-
ced, honest, rational friends who care more for
principles, and the good of their country than |
for party names and party connections
Names are nothing, principles are what every
lover Of man and his country should contend |
for.


Whether subject to the Constitution was
originally left Intentionally for a secret door
through which the advocates of Popular Sow
eregnty might escape when pressed by the ne
cessity of the times, or not, shall not under |
take to say but ore thing is now quite evil
dent, that it is the door through which they
are fleeing before the pressing demands of the
crushing slave power of our country. Where
is true Popular Sovereignty, as understood by
the people of the last year or two, under the
present position of the leaders of the Popular
Sovereignty party? Now notice carefully
according to their creed the territorial legis-