abraham lincoln and the union-第8章

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extremists。　Though　his　reasons　for　doing　so　have　been　debated　to　this　day；　they　have　not　yet　been　established　beyond　dispute。　　What　seems　to　be　the　favorite　explanation　is　that　Buchanan　was　in　a　panic。　　What　brought　him　to　that　condition　may　have　been　the　following　events。

The　free…state　men；　by　refusing　to　take　part　in　electing　the　convention；　had　given　control　to　the　slaveholders；　who　proved　they　were　not　slow　to　seize　their　opportunity。　　They　drew　up　a　constitution　favoring　slavery；　but　this　constitution；　Walker　had　promised；　was　to　be　submitted　in　referendum。　　If　the　convention　decided；　however；　not　to　submit　the　constitution；　would　not　Congress　have　the　right　to　accept　it　and　admit　Kansas　as　a　Mate？　This　question　was　immediately　raised。　　It　now　became　plain　that；　by　refusing　to　take　part　in　the　election；　the　free…state　Kansans　had　thrown　away　a　great　tactical　advantage。　　Of　this　blunder　in　generalship　the　Yancey　men　took　instant　advantage。　　It　was　known　that　the　proportion　of　Free…Soilers　in　Kansas　was　very　great　perhaps　a　majorityand　the　Southerners　reasoned　that　they　should　not　be　obliged　to　give　up　the　advantage　they　had　won　merely　to　let　their　enemies　retrieve　their　mistake。　　Jefferson　Davis　formulated　this　position　in　an　address　to　the　Mississippi　Legislature　in　which　he　insisted　that　Congress；　not　the　Kansas　electorate；　was　entitled　to　create　the　Kansas　constitution；　that　the　Convention　was　a　properly　chosen　body；　and　that　its　work　should　stand。　　What　Davis　said　in　a　stately　way；　others　said　in　a　furious　way。　Buchanan　stated　afterward　that　he　changed　front　because　certain　Southern　States　had　threatened　that；　if　he　did　not　abandon　Walker；　they　would　secede。

Be　that　as　it　may；　Buchanan　did　abandon　Walker　and　threw　all　the　influence　of　the　Administration　in　favor　of　admitting　Kansas　with　the　Lecompton　constitution。　　But　would　this　be　true　to　that　principle　of　〃popular　sovereignty〃　which　was　the　very　essence　of　the　Kansas…Nebraska　Act？　　Would　it　be　true　to　the　principle　that　each　locality　should　decide　for　itself　between　slavery　and　freedom？　On　this　issue　the　Southerners　were　fairly　generally　agreed　and　maintained　that　there　was　no　obligation　to　go　behind　the　work　of　the　convention。　　Not　so；　however；　the　great　exponent　of　popular　sovereignty；　Douglas。　　Rising　in　his　place　in　the　Senate；　he　charged　the　President　with　conspiring　to　defeat　the　will　of　the　majority　in　Kansas。　　〃If　Kansas　wants　a　slave　state　constitution；〃　said　he；　〃she　has　a　right　to　it；　if　she　wants　a　free　state　constitution；　she　has　a　right　to　it。　　It　is　none　of　my　business　which　way　the　slavery　clause　is　decided。　　I　care　not　whether　it　is　voted　up　or　down。〃

There　followed　one　of　those　prolonged　legislative　battles　for　which　the　Congress　of　the　United　States　is　justly　celebrated。　Furious　oratory；　propositions；　counter…propositions；　projected　compromises；　other　compromises；　and　at　the　end　nothing　positive。　But　Douglas　had　defeated　the　attempt　to　bring　in　Kansas　with　the　Lecompton　constitution。　　As　to　the　details　of　the　story；　they　include　such　distinguished　happenings　as　a　brawling；　all…night　session　when　〃thirty　men；　at　least；　were　engaged　in　the　fisticuff；〃　and　one　Representative　knocked　another　down。

Douglas　was　again　at　the　center　of　the　stage；　but　his　term　as　Senator　was　nearing　its　end。　　He　and　the　President　had　split　their　party。　　Pursued　by　the　vengeful　malice　of　the　Administration；　Douglas　went　home　in　1858　to　Illinois　to　fight　for　his　reelection。　His　issue；　of　course；　was　popular　sovereignty。　　His　temper　was　still　the　temper　of　political　evasion。　　How　to　hold　fast　to　his　own　doctrine；　and　at　the　same　time　keep　to　his　programme　of　〃nothing　doing〃；　how　to　satisfy　the　negative　Democrats　of　the　North　without　losing　his　last　hold　on　the　positive　men　of　the　Southsuch　were　his　problems；　and　they　were　made　still　more　difficult　by　a　recent　decision　of　the　Supreme　Court。

The　now　famous　case　of　Dred　Scott　had　been　decided　in　the　previous　year。　　Its　bewildering　legal　technicalities　may　here　be　passed　over；　fundamentally；　the　real　question　involved　was　the　status　of　a　negro；　Dred　Scott。　　A　slave　who　had　been　owned　in　Missouri；　and　who　had　been　taken　by　his　master　to　the　State　of　Illinois；　to　the　free　territory　of　Minnesota；　and　then　back　to　Missouri；　now　claimed　to　be　free。　　The　Supreme　Court　undertook　to　decide　whether　his　residence　in　Minnesota　rendered　him　free；　and　also　whether　any　negro　of　slave　descent　could　be　a　citizen　of　the　United　States。　The　official　opinion　of　the　Court；　delivered　by　Chief　Justice　Taney；　decided　both　questions　against　the　suppliant。　　It　was　held　that　the　〃citizens〃　recognized　by　the　Constitution　did　not　include　negroes。　　So；　even　if　Scott　were　free；　he　could　not　be　considered　a　citizen　entitled　to　bring　suit　in　the　Federal　Courts。　Furthermore；　he　could　not　be　considered　free；　in　spite　of　his　residence　in　Minnesota；　because；　as　the　Court　now　ruled；　Congress；　when　it　enacted　the　Missouri　Compromise；　had　exceeded　its　authority；　the　enactment　had　never　really　been　in　force；　there　was　no　binding　prohibition　of　slavery　in　the　Northwestern　territories。

If　this　decision　was　good　law；　all　the　discussion　about　popular　sovereignty　went　for　nothing；　and　neither　an　act　of　Congress　nor　the　vote　of　the　population　of　a　territory；　whether　for　or　against　slavery；　was　of　any　value　whatsoever。　　Nothing　mattered　until　the　newmade　state　itself　took　action　after　its　admission　to　the　Union。　Until　that　time；　no　power；　national　or　local；　could　lawfully　interfere　with　the　introduction　of　slaves。　　In　the　case　of　Kansas；　it　was　no　longer　of　the　least　importance　what　became　of　the　Lecompton　constitution　or　of　any　other　that　the　settlers　might　make。　　The　territory　was　open　to　settlement　by　slaveholders　and　would　continue　to　be　so　as　long　as　it　remained　a　territory。　　The　same　conditions　existed　in　Nebraska　and　in　all　the　Northwest。　　The　Dred　Scott　decision　was　accepted　as　orthodox　Democratic　doctrine　by　the　South；　by　the　Administration；　and　by　the　〃Northern　men　with　Southern　principles。〃　　The　astute　masters　of　the　game　of　politics　on　the　Democratic　side　struck　the　note　of　legality。　　This　was　law；　the　expression　of　the　highest　tribunal　of　the　Republic；　what　more　was　to　be　said？　　Though　in　truth　there　was　but　one　other　thing　to　be　said；　and　that　revolutionary；　the　Republicans；　nevertheless；　did　not　falter　over　it。　　Seward　announced　it　in　a　speech　in　Congress　on　〃Freedom　in　Kansas；〃　when　he　uttered　this　menace：　〃We　shall　reorganize　the　Court　and　thus　reform　its　political　sentiments　and　practices。〃

In　the　autumn　of　1858　Douglas　attempted　to　perform　the　acrobatic　feat　of　reconciling　the　Dred　Scott　decision；　which　as　a　Democrat　he　had　to　accept；　with　that　idea　of　popular　sovereignty　without　which　his　immediate　followers　could　not　be　content。　　In　accepting　the　Republican　nomination　as　Douglas's　opponent　for　the　senatorship；　Lincoln　used　these　words　which　have　taken　rank　among　his　most　famous　utterances：　〃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。　Either　the　opponents　of　slavery　will　arrest　the　further　spread　of　it；　and　place　it　where　the　public　mind　shall　rest　in　the　belief　that　it　is　in　the　course　of　ultimate　extinction；　or　its　advocates　will　push　it　forward　till　it　shall　become　alike　lawful　in　all　the　states；　old　as　well　as　newNorth　as　well　as　South。〃

No　one　had　ever　so　tellingly　expressed　the　deathgrapple　of　the　sections：　slavery　the　weapon　of　one；　free　labor　the　weapon　of　the　other。　　Though　Lincoln　was　at　that　time　forty…nine　years　old；　his　political　experience；　in　contrast　with　that　of　Douglas；　was　negligible。　　He　afterward　aptly　described　his　early　life　in　that　expressive　line　from　Gray；　〃The　short　and　simple　annals　of　the　poor。〃　　He　lacked　regular　schooling；　and　it　was　altogether　from　the　practice　of　law　that　he　had　gained　such　formal　education　as　he　had。　　In　law；　however；　he　had　become　a　master；　and　his　position；　to　judge　from　the　class　of　cases　entrusted　to　him；　was　second　to　none　in　Illinois。　　To