them; for he had declared in the most positive way that he "did not care whether Slavery was voted down or up." They believed that in his action on the Lecompton bill, he was actuated fully as much by the certainty that any other action would be followed by his immediate and utter overthrow at home, as from any other considerations. And they therefore determined, in opposition to the views of some influential Republicans at home as well as in other States, to fight the battle through against him, with all the energy that they could bring to the work. And to this end, on the 17th of June, 1858, at their State Convention at Springfield, they nominated Mr. Lincoln as their candidate for the Senate of the United States.

The speech of Mr. Lincoln to the Convention which had nominated him, was the beginning of the campaign. Its opening sentences contained those celebrated words, which have been often quoted both by friends and enemies: "A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this Government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved-I do not expect the house to fall, but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other." Little idea could he have had then how near the time was when the country should be united upon this point. Still less could he have dreamed through what convulsions it was to pass before it reached that wished-for position-into what an abyss of madness and crime the advocates of Slavery would plunge in their efforts to "push it forward till it should become alike lawful in all the States, old as well as new-North as well as South." But there seemed

to him to be manifest indications of their design thus to push it forward, and he devoted his speech to showing forth the machinery which they had now almost completed, for the attainment of their purpose; it only needing that the Supreme Court should say that the Constitution carried Slavery over the States, as they had already in the Dred Scott decision declared that it was carried over the Territories. And he closed his speech with a sharp attack upon Douglas, as being a party to this plan to legalize Slavery over the Continent. It was plain from the first that the struggle would take the shape of a personal contest between the two men. Each recognized the other as the embodiment of principles to which he was in deadly hostility. Judge Douglas was the champion of all sympathizers with Slavery at the North, of those who openly advocated it, and still more of those who took the more plausible and dangerous part of not caring whether it

was voted down or up." Mr. Lincoln's soul was on fire with love for freedom and for humanity, and with reverence for the Fathers of the Country, and for the principles of freedom for all under the light of which they marched. He felt that the contest was no mere local one, that it was not of any great consequence what man succeeded in the fight, but that it was all-important that the banner of Freedom should be borne with no faltering step, but "full high advanced." And thus through the whole campaign he sought with all his power to press home to the hearts of the people the principles, the example and the teachings of the men of the Revolution.

The two combatants first met at Chicago, in July.

There was no arrangement then about their speaking against each other, but Judge Douglas having addressed a meeting on the 9th July, it was inevitable that Mr. Lincoln should answer him on the 10th. One week later both spoke in Springfield on the same day, but before different audiences; and one week later Mr. Lincoln addressed a letter to Douglas, challenging him to a series of debates during the campaign.

The challenge was accepted, though not without an attempt to make a little capital out of it, which was quite characteristic. It was also quite characteristic that the terms which Douglas proposed were such as to give him the decided advantage of having four opening and closing speeches to Mr. Lincoln's three; and that Mr. Lincoln, while noticing the inequality, did not hesitate to accept them.

The seven joint debates were held as follows:-at Ottawa on August 21st; at Freeport on August 27th; at Jonesboro on September 15th; at Charleston on September 18th; at Galesburg on October 7th; at Quincy on October 13th; at Alton on October 15th. These seven tournaments raised the greatest excitement throughout the State. They were held in all quarters of the State, from Freeport in the north to Jonesboro in the extreme south. Everywhere the different parties turned out to do honor to their champions. Processions and cavalcades, bands of music and cannonfiring, made every day a day of excitement. But fargreater was the excitement of such oratorical contests between two such skilled debaters, before mixed audiences of friends and foes, to rejoice over every keen thrust at the adversary; to be cast down by each fail

ure to parry the thrust so aimed. We cannot pretend to give more than the barest sketch of these great efforts of Mr. Lincoln's. They are and always will be, to those who are interested in the history of the Slavery contest, most valuable and important documents.

In the first speech at Ottawa, besides defending himself from some points which Douglas had made against him, and among others, explaining and enlarging upon that passage from his Springfield speech, of "A house divided against itself," he took up the charge. which he had also made in that speech of the conspiracy to extend Slavery over the northern States, and pressed it home, citing as proof of its existence a speech which Douglas himself had made on the Lecompton bill, in which he had substantially made the same charge upon Buchanan and others. He then showed again that all that was necessary for the accomplishment of the scheme was a decision of the Supreme Court that no State could exclude Slavery, as the Court had already decided that no Territory could exclude it, and the acquiescence of the people in such a decision, and he told the people that Douglas was doing all in his power to bring about such acquiescence in advance, by declaring that the true position was not to care whether Slavery was voted down or up," and by announcing himself in favor of the Dred Scott decision, not because it was right, but because a decision of the Court is to him a "Thus saith the Lord," and thus committing himself to the next decision just as firmly as to this. He closed his speech with the following eloquent words: "Henry Clay, my beau ideal of a Statesman-the man for whom I fought all my humble life-once said of a class of

แ

men who would repress all tendencies to liberty and ultimate emancipation, that they must, if they would do this, go back to the era of our Independence and muzzle the cannon which thunders its annual joyous return; they must blow out the moral lights around. us; they must penetrate the human soul and eradicate there the love of liberty; and then, and not till then, could they perpetuate Slavery in this country. To my thinking, Judge Douglas is, by his example and vast influence, doing that very thing in this community, when he says that the negro has nothing in the Declaration of Independence. Henry Clay plainly understood the contrary. Judge Douglas is going back to the era of our Revolution, and to the extent of his ability muzzling the cannon which thunders its annual joyous return. When he invites any people, willing to have Slavery, to establish it, he is blowing out the moral lights around us. When he says he cares not whether Slavery is voted down or up'-that it is a sacred right of self-government, he is, in my judgment, penetrating the human soul and eradicating the light of reason and the love of liberty in this American people. And when, by all these means and appliances, he shall succeed in bringing public sentiment to an exact accordance with his own views-when these vast assemblages shall echo back all these sentiments, when they shall come to repeat his views and to avow his principles, and to say all that he says on these mighty questionsthen it needs only the formality of the second Dred Scott decision, which he indorses in advance, to make Slavery alike lawful in all the States-old as well as new, North as well as South.”