umbus, Douglas was again forced to break his journey; and again
he was summoned to address the crowd that gathered below his window.
It was already dark; the people had collected without concert; there
were no such trappings, as had characterized public demonstrations in
the late campaign. Douglas appeared half-dressed at his bedroom
window, a dim object to all save to those who stood directly below
him. Out of the darkness came his solemn, sonorous tones, bringing
relief and assurance to all who listened, for in the throng were men
of all parties, men who had followed him through all changes of
political weather, and men who had been his persistent foes. There was
little cheering. As Douglas pledged anew his hearty support to
President Lincoln, "it was rather a deep 'Amen' that went up from the
crowd," wrote one who had distrusted hitherto the mighty power of
this great popular leader.[991]

On the 25th of April, Douglas reached Springfield, where he purposed
to make his great plea for the Union. He spoke at the Capitol to
members of the legislature and to packed galleries. Friend and foe
alike bear witness to the extraordinary effect wrought by his words.
"I do not think that it is possible for a human being to produce a
more prodigious effect with spoken words," wrote one who had formerly
detested him.[992] "Never in all my experience in public life, before
or since," testified the then Speaker of the House, now high in the
councils of the nation, "have I been so impressed by a speaker."[993]
Douglas himself was thrilled with his message. As he approached the
climax, the veins of his neck and forehead were swollen with passion,
and the perspiration ran down his face in streams. At times his clear
and resonant voice reverberated through the chamber, until it seemed
to shake the building.[994] While he was in the midst of a passionate
invective, a man rushed into the hall bearing an American flag. The
trumpet tones of the speaker and the sight of the Stars and Stripes
roused the audience to the wildest pitch of excitement.[995] Men and
women became hysterical with the divine madness of patriotism. "When
hostile armies," he exclaimed with amazing force, "When hostile armies
are marching under new and odious banners against the government of
our country, the shortest way to peace is the most stupendous and
unanimous preparation for war. We in the great valley of the
Mississippi have peculiar interests and inducements in