Year: 1860

deeds the memory which are commemorated by this
tponng to Battle Monument and that other monument


still when you come to consider the rights of
egn States under the Constitution, claim that
your equals tApplause) Equality of rights under the
Constitution is fundamental principle of Govern
ment-we will accept no less and will claim
(Cres of good and appause)


With reference to the territorial question, which has
cupied so large portion of The public mind, have only
to say that the Northern man, with his property emf
CRATES to the territories on terms OF precise equality with
the Southern man. (''Good again, :" and cheers) You
have the right to go territory and carry your
negro property with you that have to go there with
my horses my cattle, my merchandise, any other de-
scription of property. "a voice-"Thas the idea y
You carry your property and hold it subject to the
same limitations and restrictions that the Northern
goes into the Territories under with his property lie
goes there subject to the local law whatever it may be
If we take our horses and cattle to territory do
subject to the local law and rely upon it for prot
ton If we a:e engaged in merchandise, We carry it
there subject to the same law If imam is a pediler
and the local law imposes high onerous terms as the
conditions of his trade, he had better, when he
to Territory, select in which the laws IA
vorable to his occupation.


If he is engaged in the manufacture and sale of bran
dies whskS and other ardent spirits and concludes to
move to territory it would be wise for him inquire
whether OF not the Main liquor law is in force in the
rory t" which he purposes going tcheersl and if he
should find that it is in force in territory he had
better 90 to another where that law does prevail
daughter and applause.) So if you going to emf
be prudent to ascertain what the laws in that terrific
ry before you take your slaves there. (Good) If you
will tell me what the climate, the SOIL and the produc-
ons of the Territory are will tell you whether its
will favor slavery not. (VOices"Thats it') Where
| favorable
of tobacco and rice and sugar and cotton there slave
will be in demand there the interests and necessities
of the people will require it, and there the laws will
| cessariy favor it.


Wherever the climate is cold rigorous that
no Southern staple he produced-where the negro
cannot enjoy either health comfort and the white
is in his natural element there will be slavery for
that the interests of the people will be opposed
it. Cheers Slavery question of political economy
founded upon climate soil and productons and upon
laws Voices that's SOY Slavery will go wherever
it profitable and necessary it will go where
| and where !


You might Just well attempt TO force cotton to grow
upon the tops of the Rocky Mountains by act of Con.
gress as to compel slavery to exist where the climate is
not favorable to it. (Applausel l never people
yet who had not enough to know that it their
interest to buy their supplies where they could get them
cheapest and sell the products of their labor where they
could obtain the highest price In like manner when
man comes to the employment of labor he will employ


at which Is cheapest ana most profitable and reject
that which dearest and least profitable Wherever
gro labor is most profitable and rendered essential by
climate there will supersede all other kinds wherever
| white labor be maintained consistently with the
health of the laborer and cheaper than slave labor
there white labor will take the priority All you have
to do, therefore, in settling this slaveay question, is to
ascertain what the wants and necessities of the people
and adopt your laws to their necessities, to their
| wants and to their interests.


But you find extreme visionary men in the South who
assume that because slavery is profitable where they
live therefore ought to exist everywhere and, the
other hand you find extreme visionary in the North
who assume that because slavery cannot be maintained
in the ryeed of New York or on the granite hills of
New Hampshire therefore it should not be permitted to
rxit anywhere They seem TO consider that law or in
stuon which is well adapted to the people in place
| is necessarily wise and useful everywhere else


There more fatal mistake in the science OF
government Our fathers knew when they formed this
unrivaled unequalled system of government, that in
country broad as this with such variety of SOIL and
climate and productions there must necessarily be
responding variety OF interests, requiring different laws
suited wants and conditions of the people in each
locality The trainers OF the Constitution knew that the
laws which well suited to the hills of New England
unsuted to the rice and sugar plantations of South
Carolina and Louisiana


They knew that code of laws which might be neces-
sary to regulate the miners in 4 mining country like
California, in the gulches and paeers, would be totally
thata lumber region like Maine might require bOOms
and other regulations concerning lumber and logs
absolutely unnecessary prairie country like Illinois,
where we have no saw logs and no lumber. daughter
| and applause With these facts in view fathers
provided that each State might have Legislature of its
own authorized to make just such Jaws and just such
institutions within their respective limits they pleased
without interfering with those of their neghbor. Great


Now if you will apply this fundamental principle in
complex system of the several States and
Territories of this UnOn there will be of quar-
rel the North and the South between the free
and the slave States. You people in Maryland know
better whether your interests require slavery than we in
Illinois We on the plains of Illinois once tried slavery
We egalized it by law and maintained it until we be-
satisfied it longer interest to have it,
| and then abolished it.


You may all recollect that in 1877 the old Congress
the Confederation passed law prohibiting slavery for
ever in the Territories northwest of the Ohio river Many
whose goodness OF heart far greater than their
intelligence, have supposed that the Northwestern States
are ali free States Just because Congress prohibited
slavery there The Abotonsts of the North in the
celebrating the 18th of July instead of the 4h of
July the Independence for the reason that
the ordinance of 1887 was adopted day laughter
and the from the Eastern States in the
states from choice but because Congress compelled us to
| be free (Renewcd laughter)


We think there that we hold our liberties our rights,
and institutions by higher title than an act OF Con
gress Applausel History records the undenable fact
that the first Legislature that assembled in Illinois
after the organization of the Territorial government,
passed law introducing and maintaining slavery in de
tance of the ordinance our people, before they became
| n told Congress mind business,
let their domestic institutions alone


We in Illinois maintained and protected slavery under
our Territorial government Just long Congress said
should not have aughterl-and adopted gradual
system of emancipation by which we became free State
on the day that Congress withdrew its prohibition
and said might do pleased by admitting into
the Union State Why did abolish slavery in IL
linois? Not because ahOltionists. There was
not such description of animal in the whole of Illinois
abolitionist Applause and laughter)


There was scarcely Yankee to be found n the whole
State. Renewed laughter.l Nearly every man who was
a delegate in the Convention that framed Constitu-
ton slave holder, and had his slaves with him at
the seat government to black his boots and play the
| fiddle for him to dance by. Laughter. They had no
scrupes against slavery they had all been nursed and
raised by slaves Why, then did they adopt a system
of emancipation? Simply because they had ascerained
by experience that in climate with soil and
productions slavery was not profitable They could not
make any money out of it, hence they turned phan-
thropsts ard abolished it. Laughter and appausel


So it will be in every other Territory and State where
the experiment may be tried. The inhabitants of the
Territory the cultvaors of the SOIL the inter
ested in it's legislation, will ascertain for themselves
| whether their gOOd
the institution. They may come to the conclusion that it
does and they will maintain it, but if they think that
their interests do not require it, all the power in Chris
| tendon cannot force them to haveit.


You have example now before you in the present
condition of our Territories There is the Territory OF
New Mexico, which acquired by the treaty of peace
with Mexico, and was organized into a Territorial
Government by the compromise measures of 1850. Ger
tain Southern reeaters opposed these compromise mea
sures the grounds that they allowed the people OF
the Territory to decide the slavery question for them
selves they would be to exclude slavery and thus
ala / "a frppT Territory


Mr.. Seward Mr.. Chase, Mr.. Sumner, and other free
soers opposed the measures upon the ground that
if they allowed people of the Territory decide
question for themselves they would be to adop
slavery and make the whole slave country daughter
You see from this that the Southern freeaters and the
Northern free-soers united in opposing the ComprOmis
measures of 1850 for directly the opposite reasons


Time rolled on, and two years ago the Legislature
New Mexico enacted slave code, introducing, main
tanning and protecting African slavery within the lim
of that Territory. New Mexico therefore has become
slave Territory under that principal of nonnterventoI
and popular sovereignty, which was denounced by tn
| Southern ire-eaters worse than Abolitionism.
Last winter the abOonsts in Congress passed Law
through House of Representatives repeating the sav
code of New Mexico, in order to abolish slavery there
and when that law was brought into the Senate de
nounced it violation of that great principle of self
government upon which all institutions rest Gap
nlausel The people of New Mexico, after trying fire.
institutions for yeais came the conclusion that saver
better for them and their poserty and hence the
introduced it.


that their good requires them to change again When
ever they get tired of their slave code they may repea





want slavery let them have ii; if it is blessing, it
their bessing-i it be curse, it is their curse. LIE
decide for themselv and upon them rests the
A VoiceV"That's the doctrine"


In the Territory of Kansas about two years ago. tn


Legislature passed law prohibiting slavery in that Tel
ritory Governor Brown, of Mississippi, brought bill
the Senate to repeal that prohibition of slavery be
cause, he said, it was unconstitutional. told him il
if he believed it unconstitutional
him make under the law and appeal it from tn
territorial to the Supreme Court of the Unite
States that court decided that the law of
unconstitutional then it was void and there
emu or tue eVntiV'vrsy' t0'ieS Of That's t., a"'
cheers)


tonal the peop lie had right to it, and it should
until they chose to repeal it. [Voces-"Go2d again ;
and appiausel So when the Abolitionists contende
that the slave code of New Mexico unconstitutional
and therefore wished to repeal by act of Congress-


told them make their under the law in the Terri
oria courts appeal it to the Supreme Court of the Uni
ted States and if that court decided that the slave code
New Mexico unconstitutional it would then becOm
void and would be excuse for Congress inter
ere If the Court however decided it to be consttu
have right to have it, and they should never be de
nriyed of it of Congress if could prevent il
fCres of Good" and cheers.l


So you my fellow citizens, there can be no eXcus


for Congressional intervention upon the subject of saver
in the Territories. If the people of Territory pass
law which violated the rights of under the Con
stitution the be made and the Supreme Cour
will determine the question and annul the law il it b.
unconstitutional Hence the position of the Democrats
party is now what it has been for years. that non
interference by Congress with slavery in the Territories
Immense applause


You all know that few years ago, when the aboli
tonsts attempted exercise the power of Congress
prohbit slavery the Territories by applying the vii
mot proviso all Southern and portion of tn
Northern Democracy denounced the attempt usur
patton of power the part of Congress the domes