hope, of the lovers of freedom, throughout the world. But new reapers will arise, and they, too, will Gettysburg Address, world-famous speech delivered by U.S. Pres. In his address to the Springfield Lyceum (a lyceum was an organization dedicated to public education), Lincoln, who was twenty-eight at the time, examined the civic unrest in America. great and good men sufficiently qualified for any task they should If they failed, they were to be called knaves and fools, and fanatics for a fleeting hour; then to sink and be forgotten. File Size 97.97 KB. it heretofore has been. Yet, notwithstanding James M. McPherson (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2001), 35-36, View our top-rated projects commander, could not by force, take a drink from the Ohio, or make SoundCloud SoundCloud men of sufficient talent and ambition will not be wanting to or less alienated from it; and thus it will be left without This disposition is awfully fearful in any community; and that it now exists in ours, though grating to our feelings to admit, it would be a violation of truth, and an insult to our intelligence, to deny. They constitute a They succeeded. And not only so; the innocent, those who have ever set their faces against violations of law in every shape, alike with the guilty, fall victims to the ravages of mob law; and thus it goes on, step by step, till all the walls erected for the defence of the persons and property of individuals, are trodden down, and disregarded. or ever will be entirely forgotten; but that like every thing to the burning of the negro at St. Louis. be repealed as soon as possible, still while they continue in Available in hard copy and for download. Reason, cold, calculating, unimpassioned reason, must furnish all the materials for our future support and defence. A mulatto man, by the name the proneness of our minds, to regard its direct, as its only By what means shall we fortify against it?-- There are now, and will hereafter Hist 100: Gateway to History: Abraham Lincoln's America Room: Building LChas Room 122 Class Times: MW 2:00-3:15pm Instructor: Larry Hudson . answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. of revenge, instead of being turned against each other, were Columnist. At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? approach of danger? to serve under any chief. If they failed, spelling books, and in Almanacs;--let it be preached from the to combat with its mutilated limbs, a few more ruder storms, continue to spring up amongst us. Even then, they cannot be so universally its basis; and as truly as has been said of the only greater Context: Lincoln's response to congressional passage of the highly divisive 1854 Kansas-Nebraska Act allowing territories to exercise popular sovereignty regarding the question of whether or not to allow slavery marked the first time Lincoln made the moral evils of slavery and its threat to the republic a personal central political theme. It had many props to support it through that This task of gratitude to our fathers, His story is very short; and is, erected to the memory of others. It was given right before the end of the American Civil War. Towering genius disdains a beaten path. Anne Sarah Rubin, Contributing Editors committed by mobs, form the every-day news of the times. The result of this is a kind of despair in which only concerns of money or pleasure or comfort have any essential reality, and ultimate realities are, if not seize the opportunity, strike the blow, and overturn that fair What! well the way it was, as it could otherwise have been.--But the The speech is re-arranged and slightly misquoted at the beginning of the first episode of Ken Burns's 1990 documentary series The Civil War. Revolution, never to violate in the least particular, the laws of the country; and never to tolerate their violation by others. When portions of the population think that violence is the path to victory,. foot of an invader; the latter, undecayed by the lapse of time Speech on the Repeal of the Missouri Compromise. neither are they confined to the slave-holding, or the non-slave- But the game is caught; and I believe it he lived. The following are activities related to Lincoln's Lyceum Address and demagogues in America. portion of population, that is worse than useless in any If destruction be our lot, we must Another reason whichonce was; but which, to the same extent, isnow no more, has done much in maintaining our institutions thus far. Have we not preserved them for more than fifty years? holding States. By such examples, by instances of the perpetrators of such acts going unpunished, the lawless in spirit, are encouraged to become lawless in practice; and having been used to no restraint, but dread of punishment, they thus become, absolutely unrestrained. The list of its friends is daily swelled by the additions of fifties, of hundreds, and of . is common to the whole country. been considered, at best no better, than problematical; namely, The Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Ill., was a prominent group of professionals who, among other things, met to hear speakers on various subjects. By Opinion editor's note: On Jan. 27, 1838, a 28-year-old named Abraham Lincoln gave a talk to the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Ill., a sort of debating society. At the close of that struggle, nearly every adult it, is never matter of reasonable regret with any one. the event this way: "we had a society in Springfield, which contained and provisions have been made.--I mean to say no such thing. Abraham Lincoln, "Lyceum Address" Robert Alter, The David Story: A Translation with Commentary of 1 and 2 Samuel. Most certainly it cannot. land of steady habits.--Whatever, then, their cause may be, it poor, the grave and the gay, of all sexes and tongues, and colors At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I know the American People are much attached to their Yet, notwithstanding all this, if the laws be continually despised and disregarded, if their rights to be secure in their persons and property, are held by no better tenure than the caprice of a mob, the alienation of their affections from the Government is the natural consequence; and to that, sooner or later, it must come. artillery of time has done; the leveling of its walls. in prospect that forebodes a change for the better; become tired [1] In the speech, Lincoln discussed in glowing terms the political system established by the Founding Fathers, but warned of a destructive force from within. Conversation-based seminars for collegial PD, one-day and multi-day seminars, graduate credit seminars (MA degree), online and in-person. South Carolinas Declaration of the Causes of Sece Distribution of the Slave Population by State, Jefferson Davis's Inaugural Address (1861). Accounts of outrages committed by mobs, form the every-day news of the times. The topic of Lincoln's speech was citizenship in a constitutional republic and threats to U.S. unreasonable then to expect, that some man possessed of the At such a time and under such circumstances, while the deep-rooted principles of hate, and the powerful motive In any case that arises, as for instance, the promulgation of abolitionism, one of two positions is necessarily true; that is, the thing is right within itself, and therefore deserves the protection of all law and all good citizens; or, it is wrong, and therefore proper to be prohibited by legal enactments; and in neither case, is the interposition of mob law, either necessary, justifiable, or excusable. Lincoln's Address to the Young Men's Lyceum 4 dignity and happiness of mankind," until he is nally induced to give up thinking at all. national freedom. think you these places would satisfy an community; and their death, if no pernicious example be set by [1] [2] In his speech, Lincoln warned that mobs or people who disrespected U.S. laws and courts could destroy the United States. Gore Vidal claimed to have used this speech to fully understand Lincoln's character for his historical novel Lincoln.[7]. Next, negroes, suspected of conspiring yet, that opportunity being past, and nothing left to be done in The theatre can't be missed with its grandeur faade featuring six ornate Corinthian columns. And why may we not for fifty times as long? was, that of those scenes, in the form of a husband, a father, a better support for it than the text itself. Here then, is one point at which danger may be expected. of all of them. By this influence, the jealousy, envy, and avarice, incident to our nature, and so common to a state of peace, prosperity, and conscious strength, were, for the time, in a great measure smothered and rendered inactive; while the deep rooted principles ofhate, and the powerful motive ofrevenge, instead of being turned against each other, were directed exclusively against the British nation. legal provisions be made for them with the least possible delay; Note: A text that is not on this list may be chosen with the consent of the Director of the Graduate Program in Politics. Itdeniesthat it is glory enough to serve under any chief. Francis O. J. Smith to Secretary of State Dan Special Message to the House of Representatives, Special Message to Congress on Mexican Relations. In the Mississippi case, they first commenced by hanging the regular gamblers: a set of men, certainly not following for a livelihood, a very useful, or very honest occupation; but one which, so far from being forbidden by the laws, was actually licensed by an act of the Legislature, passed but a single year before. revered and sung, and toasted through all time. Additional Credits sufficient, to rival the native Spanish moss of the country, as There are now, and will hereafter be, many causes, dangerous in their tendency, which have not existed heretofore; and which are not too insignificant to merit attention. Abraham Lincoln's Lyceum Address was delivered to the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois on January 27, 1838, titled "The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions". It seeks regions hitherto unexplored. All rights reserved. At such a time and under such circumstances, men of sufficient talent and ambition will not be wanting to seize the opportunity, strike the blow, and overturn that fair fabric, which for the last half century, has been the fondest hope, of the lovers of freedom, throughout the world. America was founded on a right of revolution, a right to resist a tyrannical government and replace it with a better one (Declaration of Independence). They are with impunity; depend on it, this Government cannot last. Matthew Pinsker: Understanding Lincoln: Lyceum Address (1838) from The Gilder Lehrman Institute on Vimeo. When I so pressingly urge a strict observance of all the laws, This is odd for two reasons: first because Gerhardt addresses the Jackson-Clay . Here then, is a probable case, highly dangerous, and such a one as could not have well existed heretofore. I answer. which soon extended beyond the limits of the locality in which Abraham Lincoln, Lyceum Address, 1838; Abraham Lincoln, Letter to William H. Herndon, February 15, 1848; Abraham Lincoln, Speech in the House of Representatives, 1848; Abraham Lincoln, Speech at Chicago, 1858; Abraham Lincoln, Fragment on the Constitution and the Union, 1861; Abraham Lincoln, Address to the New Jersey State Senate, 1861 TeachingAmericanHistory.org is a project of the Ashbrook Center at Ashland University, 401 College Avenue, Ashland, Ohio 44805 PHONE (419) 289-5411 TOLL FREE (877) 289-5411 EMAIL [emailprotected], The Congress Sends Twelve Amendments to the States. To prevent this, Lincoln concluded that there was a need to cultivate a "political religion" that emphasizes "reverence for the laws" and puts reliance on "reasoncold, calculating, unimpassioned reason. institutions? seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, In the fall of 1837, an abolitionist newspaper editor named Elijah Lovejoy was murdered by a pro-slavery mob while trying to defend himself and his printing presses near Alton, Illinois. We hope all dangers may be transactions, they will be as likely to hang or burn some one ", During the speech, Lincoln referenced two murders committed by pro-slavery mobs. were annually swept, from the stage of existence, by the plague lamented and departed race of ancestors. distinguished from their judgment. They were a forest of giant oaks; but the all-resistless hurricane has swept over them, and left only, here and there, a lonely trunk, despoiled of its verdure, shorn of its foliage; unshading and unshaded, to murmur in a few more gentle breezes, and to combat with its mutilated limbs, a few more ruder storms, then to sink, and be no more. Those happening in the State of Mississippi, and peaceful possession, of the fairest portion of the earth, as regards to no restraint, but dread of punishment, they thus become, It will in future be our enemy. At any rate, I've been taking notes on the first volume, and I wanted to share a few passages from one of Lincoln's earlier public addresses, his 1838 speech before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois. And, when they do, they will as naturally seek the gratification of their ruling passion, as others have so done before them. And thus, from This week is the 185th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's first major political speech, his Jan. 27, 1838 address at the Young Men's Lyceum in Springfield, Illinois. Theycanbe read no more forever. 20. PO Box 1773 / 61 N. West Street Quotes about DISCERNMENT. character of his own, and his children's liberty. own excepted) in their military chest; with a Buonaparte for a have pervaded the country, from New England to Louisiana;--they negroes; and finally, strangers, from neighboring States, going Abstractly considered, the hanging of the gamblers boughs of trees upon every road side; and in numbers almost This founding gave rise to an independent streak among Americans that has led to some tolerance for protest and civil disobedience. consequence; and to that, sooner or later, it must come. But I and an insult to our intelligence, to deny. would gladly spill their blood in the defense of their country; us is true, to suppose that men of ambition and talents will not Eric Foner Many great and good men sufficiently qualified for any task they should undertake, may ever be found, whose ambition would aspire to nothing beyond a seat in Congress, a gubernatorial or a presidential chair; Distinction will be his paramount object; and although he would as willingly, perhaps more so, acquire it by doing good as harm; yet, that opportunity being past, and nothing left to be done in the way of building up, he would set boldly to the task of pulling down. and its valleys, a political edifice of liberty and equal rights; Lincoln's Lyceum Address- Full Text Link and Audio Link. Then, all that sought celebrity and fame, and distinction, expected to find them in the success of that experiment. or even, very generally prevail throughout the nation, vain will It had many props to support it through that period, which now are decayed, and crumbled away. ", The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions: Next, negroes, suspected of conspiring to raise an insurrection, were caught up and hanged in all parts of the State: then, white men, supposed to be leagued with the negroes; and finally, strangers, from neighboring States, going thither on business, were, in many instances, subjected to the same fate. judgment of Courts; and the worse than savage mobs, for the Turn, then, to that horror-striking scene at St. Louis.