The Great Conspiracy, CompleteLogan, John Alexander
History
The Great Conspiracy, Complete
Logan, John Alexander
Slavery -- United States; United States -- Politics and government -- 1861-1865
At Bloomington, July 16th (Mr. Lincoln being present), Judge Douglas
made another great speech of vindication and attack. After sketching
the history of the Kansas-Nebraska struggle, from the introduction by
himself of the Nebraska Bill in the United States Senate, in 1854, down
to the passage of the "English" Bill--which prescribed substantially
that if the people of Kansas would come in as a Slave-holding State,
they should be admitted with but 35,000 inhabitants; but if they would
come in as a Free State, they must have 93,420 inhabitants; which unfair
restriction was opposed by Judge Douglas, but to which after it became
law he "bowed in deference," because whatever decision the people of
Kansas might make on the coming third of August would be "final and
conclusive of the whole question"--he proceeded to compliment the
Republicans in Congress, for supporting the Crittenden-Montgomery Bill
--for coming "to the Douglas platform, abandoning their own, believing
(in the language of the New York Tribune), that under the peculiar
circumstances they would in that mode best subserve the interests of the
Country;" and then again attacked Mr. Lincoln for his "unholy and
unnatural alliance" with the Lecompton-Democrats to defeat him, because
of which, said he: "You will find he does not say a word against the
Lecompton Constitution or its supporters. He is as silent as the grave
upon that subject. Behold Mr. Lincoln courting Lecompton votes, in
order that he may go to the Senate as the representative of Republican
principles! You know that the alliance exists. I think you will find
that it will ooze out before the contest is over." Then with many
handsome compliments to the personal character of Mr. Lincoln, and
declaring that the question for decision was "whether his principles are
more in accordance with the genius of our free institutions, the peace
and harmony of the Republic" than those advocated by himself, Judge
Douglas proceeded to discuss what he described as "the two points at
issue between Mr. Lincoln and myself."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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