Year: 1859

/ EXTRACT FROM HIS SPEECH AT CLEVELAND.


My democratic friends and my republican


friends you will yet have to meet this dues-


tion not for the protection of freedom in the


territories alone, but in the States themselves.


This slave power that the gentleman told me


the other day he bud never seen but told him


he had often felt, takes no step backward in the
advancement OF its interest Every month
every year, it adds some new demand. My
friend asked me why we should be so much


alarmed by this slave power? I'll tell him
/ why. It is because it is threatening the liber-


ties Of the people. Because they are seeking


to overthrow the Constitution, as it is under
stood by the men who frarnee, discussed and
adopted it, tell hin that that Constitution


was based upon the great truths of the Decla-


ration of Independence, and that when it was


adopted, all men regarded it as shield for the
protection OF the freedom of the people, and
supposed that the great mission of that Con-
stitution was to extend freedom over every foot
OF territory that was, or was to be owned by
or annexed to the .. S. For while it was


never intended to intefere with slavery in the |


States themselves, slavery was regarded as a |
temporary institution whichwould be soon extin-


guished, and under the panoply of that Coz


stituticn, the songs of freedom would be heard |
coming up from every hill and every vale,


through all the forests, across all the prairies |
and over all the lakes and mountains of the |
land. And it is because the original purposes
of the trainers Of the Constitution are all be
ing threatened with everlasting subversion, by
this slave power at the S outh, that ve say that
the time has come when we should be united
as one man fof the advancement of freedom,
as they of the South are united as one man
for the advancement Of slavery. This then,
my fellow citizens, is my answer to this ques-
ton put by the gentleman, and pray you to
bear in mind that this Democratic party-or
what there is left Of ii, for the greater portion
of the vitality Of that party in the North left 7
it upon the fepeal of the Missouri Compromise
has ever been found, the willing and suppIi-
ant instrument fol the execution Of the purpo-
ses Of the South. 1t was because of this that
they refused the right Of petition to the peo-
pie of the North. It was because of this that
they authorized Southern Postmasters to rifle
the mails to prevent newspapers, &c. from be
ing circulated at the South 1t was because :
Of this that Texas, with an area six times as
great as that Of Ohio was annexed at such
cost of treasure and principles 1t was be-
cause of this that Gen. Cass, who had been
the advocate of the Wilmot Protiso, found it
to change opinion and become the I
apologist of this disjointed and nlishapen thing
called Squatter Sovereignty. I


And it is because of this thet territorial
'laye code is now eoolly demanded, and we, as t
L nation, will soon be called upon formally to s
the re-opening Of the famous Afri-
IAN Slave Trade, and, as the Democratic party ]
lave uniformly heretofore bowed the knee to this {
power of the South, so will they in all time to |
,ome until every landmark of freedom made by
he bleeding feet of our fathers shall have been
plotted out by the blood Of the slave, and we
hall be hopelessly and everlastingIy left to the
control of this dark, dismal, bligthting power,
Is yet kept south of Mason & Dixon's line :


L say then my fellow citizens, that the great
mission of the Republican party is to carry out $
he original plans of the trainers Of our gov
,rnment. We make no new demands, we ask ,
,othing they did not ask, we claim nothing /;
hey did not claim but we are determined to !
lave and to use all our constitutional rights to ,
ecure what we do demand. We have to real !
ze all they sanctioned from the formation of 8
he government down to the prohibition of s
layery in Oregon approved by James K. Polk 7


Democratic President and himself slave =
lelder.'