Year: 1860

ourselves that even official zeal can perceive no
chance for Mr. BRECKINRIDGE'S election. If
there had ever been any, the recent stump
speech of Mr. BUCHANAN would have effectual-
ly disposed Of it. No ammount of popularity
would be able to stand against the encomium
of such an advocate His midnight appeal
can only be accounted for by supposing the
" old public functionary" was unable to oblit-
crate his animosities towards " the young gen.
tleman of Kentucky" and that his well-known
craft suggested a speech as the readest and
least offensive means of destruction. Such sug
gestions are the more reasonable as it is not to
be imagined that the gyved tenant of the White
House should for moment believe, after the
Investigations which have been had, and the
exposures which have been made, such testi-
mony as be volunteered could be otherwise than
ruinous to any course. The daring evinced by
him on this occasion was only nqualed by his
lack of Retrospect, aud his utter disregard of
the circumstances by which he was surrounded
and which should have restrained him.


Whatever conclusion NAV be drawn as to
my estimate of Mr. Breckinridge's character
as politician, can only say that my esteem
for him is profound when brought into COM
parison with that which | entertain for his
Democratic competitor There are few, if
any, living men concerning whom more has
been said, aud less really known, than Stephen
A. Douglas of Illinois. There are thousands,
by far too many thousands, now sustaining
him under the mistaken and delusive idea that
he is directing his efforts to counteract the
plans of the Southern Democracy This is
frightful halIucination, but natural one,
when we take into consideration the humlll-
ating fact that all that devotion could do has
been done, by those surrounding his person,
to distort true record, aad to stamp coun-
terfeit character for him on the public mind
Viewing him as one of the most unsafe and
treacherous leaders, you will pardon me GER
tain statements which it now seems necessary
should be made, and the correctness Of which
| presume will not be impugned. | have net
yet forgotten when, in the Winter of 1885,
during the first session of the Thirtyfourth
Congress, the residents of Kansas assever-
ating that the cardinal principle of the Ne
braska-K ausas act had been wantony and
wickedly nulifeG that fraud and violence,
concocted in the blue-lodge of Missouri, had
invaded their homes and imposed a foreign
rule upon them for the purpose of forcing up
on them institutions which they abhorred, and





behalf, the prided father of untrammeled
popular sovereignty turned his back upon
bis violated child, and closed his ears, Gs in
death, to complaints of outrage almost with
out parallel in the civilization of the century
These despoiled pioneers, who had taken up
their abode in the Territory under the most
solemn guarantee of selfgovernment only ask
ed to prove their accusation, and to be reev-
ed from oppression. In other words, they de-
clared they had never been able to enjoy self
government, that they were ruled by invaders,
and demanded the sovereignty conferred by
law upon them. Mr. Douglas should have
been the first man to fly to their relief and
if he had been as completely dedicated to the
principles of mis- bill, as some would have US
believe, he would have urged investigation
and carried it, So far from having done so,
he put himself in the lead of those Senators
most hostile to an exposition, and became the
mere mOuthpece, advocate aud apolOgist of
those engaged in the work of forcing Slavery
upon an unwilling people. He enjoyed at that
time the full confidence of the South, and his
Democracy was orthodox because he was
loyal to his task-masters ; willing to do bat
tie for their most eXtravagant demands. He
was then Chairman of the Committee on Ter
ritories, and | call attention to his report as
such, made March -, 1856, as conclusive up
on the point | have stated In that paper he
could find nothing to say against foreign con-
spiracies to invade the soil of Kansas and con-
troll elections, but he had much to offer n con-
demnation of Eastern associations to encour-
age removal thither. He could discover no
irregularities in the return of Mr. Whitfield,
the Pro-Slavery Delegate to the House of
Representatives, but he clearly dScerned that
the Territorial Legislature was legal y-elect-
ed body, with perfect authority to enact the
most cruel and arbitrary slave codes, and that
the complaints of fraud and force were got up
merely to stimulate aud excite Northern emf.
grafton. At the time Of which speak, there
was no one in Congress or out of Congress, in
office or out of Office, who exerted himself more
untiringly to perpetuate that reign of terror
inaugurated to insure the admission of Kan
sas into the Union as Slave State. | fear
there are many now bearing up the banner
inscribed with the name of this Senator who
never have fully understood, or who have for
gotten, this tarnished page in bis history. If
there has ever been q more determined zoe to
the growth of freedom in Kansas, or to the
principles of the Kansas-N Nebraska bill, than
Stephen A. Douglas, he has been able to keep
himself very much under cover 1t is graft
flying, however, to make a single remark in
his favor it is this that he seems as willing
as the most ardent of his friends to divert at
tento on from this period in his career / am
not aware that, in either essay or address, he
has ventured to recur to it f; but, on the con-
trary, he seems disposed to treat it as blank
in his life


Whilst these proceedings were progressing
in the Senate, the other branch of Congress
carried resolutions of investigation under a
close division of parties, and sent Select