Others
gave a similar experience.]
I have listened with great interest to the earnest appeal made to
Illinois men by the gentleman from Lawrence [James S. Emery] who has just
addressed us so eloquently and forcibly. I was deeply moved by his
statement of the wrongs done to free-State men out there. I think it just
to say that all true men North should sympathize with them, and ought to
be willing to do any possible and needful thing to right their wrongs.
But we must not promise what we ought not, lest we be called on to
perform what we cannot; we must be calm and moderate, and consider the
whole difficulty, and determine what is possible and just. We must not be
led by excitement and passion to do that which our sober judgments would
not approve in our cooler moments. We have higher aims; we will have more
serious business than to dally with temporary measures.
We are here to stand firmly for a principle--to stand firmly for a right.
We know that great political and moral wrongs are done, and outrages
committed, and we denounce those wrongs and outrages, although we cannot,
at present, do much more. But we desire to reach out beyond those
personal outrages and establish a rule that will apply to all, and so
prevent any future outrages.
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