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My Friends: It will readily occur to you that I cannot, in half an hour, notice all the things that so able a man as
Judge Douglas can say in an hour and a half; and I hope, therefore, if there be any thing that he has said upon which you would like to hear something from me, but which I omit to comment upon, you will bear in mind that it would be expecting an impossibility for me to go over his whole ground.
I can but take up some of the points that he has dwelt upon, and employ my half-how specially on them.
The first thing I have to say to you is a word in regard to
Judge Douglas's declaration about the “vulgarity and blackguardism” in the audience — that no such thing, as he says, was shown by any Democrat while I was speaking.
Now, I only wish, by way of reply on this subject, to say that while I was speaking, I used no “vulgarity or blackguardism” toward any Democrat.
Now, my friends, I come to all this long portion of the
Judge's speech-perhaps half of it — which he has devoted to the various resolutions and platforms that have been adopted in the different counties in the different Congressional Districts, and in the Illinois Legislature--which he supposes are at variance with the positions I have assumed before you to-day.
It is true that many of these resolutions are at variance with the positions I have here assumed.
All I have to ask is that we talk reasonably and rationally about it. I happen to know, the
Judge's opinion to the contrary notwithstanding, that I have never tried to conceal my opinions, nor tried to deceive any one in reference to them.
He may go and examine all the members who voted for me for
United States' Senator in 1855, after the election of 1854.
They were pledged to certain things here at home, and were determined to have pledges from me, and if he will find any of these persons who will tell him any thing inconsistent with what I say now, I will resign, or rather retire from the race, and give him no more trouble.
The plain truth is this : At the introduction of the
Nebraska policy, we believed there was a new era being introduced in the history of the
Republic?
which tended to the spread and perpetuation of slavery.
But in our opposition to that measure we did not agree with one another in every thing.
The people in the north end of the
State were for stronger measures of opposition than we of the central and Southern portions of the
State, but we were all opposed to the
Nebraska doctrine.
We had that one feeling and that one sentiment in common.
You at the north end met in your Conventions and passed your resolutions.
We in the middle of the
State and further south did not hold such Conventions and pass the same resolutions, although we had in general a common view and a common sentiment.
So that these meetings which the
Judge has alluded to, and the resolutions he has read from, were local, and did not spread over the whole State.
We at last met together in 1856, from all parts of the
State, and we agreed upon a common platform.
You, who held more extreme notions, either yielded those notions, or if not wholly yielding them, agreed to yield them practically, for the sake of embodying the opposition to the measures which the opposite party were pushing forward at that time.
We met you then, and if there was any thing yielded, it was for practical purposes.
We agreed then upon a platform for the party throughout the entire
State of Illinois, and now we are all bound as a party,
to that platform. And I say here to you, if any one expects of me — in the case of my election — that I will do any thing not signified by our Republican platform and my answers here to-day, I tell you very frankly that person will be deceived.
I do not ask for the vote of any one who supposes that I have secret purposes or pledges that I dare not speak out. Cannot the
Judge be satisfied?
If he fears, in the unfortunate case of my election, that my going to
Washington will enable me to advocate sentiments contrary to those which I expressed when you voted for and elected me, I assure him that his fears are wholly needless and groundless.
Is the
Judge really afraid of any such thing?
I'll tell you what he is afraid of. He is afraid we'll all pull together.
This is what alarms
