think I may do my friend Judge
Douglas the honour of calling him such,--advocating the present
Democratic policy, never himself says it is wrong. He has the high
distinction, so far as I know, of never having said slavery is either
right or wrong. Almost everybody else says one or the other, but the
Judge never does. If there be a man in the Democratic party who thinks
it is wrong, and yet clings to that party, I suggest to him in the first
place that his leader don't talk as he does, for he never says that it
is wrong.

In the second place, I suggest to him that if he will examine the policy
proposed to be carried forward, he will find that he carefully excludes
the idea that there is anything wrong in it. If you will examine the
arguments that are made on it, you will find that every one carefully
excludes the idea that there is anything wrong in slavery.

Perhaps that Democrat who says he is as much opposed to slavery as I am
will tell me that I am wrong about this. I wish him to examine his own
course in regard to this matter a moment, and then see if his opinion
will not be changed a little. You say it is wrong; but don't you
constantly object to anybody else saying so? Do you not constantly argue
that this is not the right place to oppose it? You say it must not be
opposed in the free States, because slavery is not there; it must not be
opposed in the slave States, because it is there; it must not be opposed
in politics, because that will make a fuss; it must not be opposed in
the pulpit, because it is not religion. Then where is the place to
oppose it? There is no suitable place to oppose it. There is no plan in
the country to oppose this evil overspreading the continent, which you
say yourself is coming. Frank Blair and Gratz Brown tried to get up a
system of gradual emancipation in Missouri, had an election in August,
and got beat; and you, Mr. Democrat, threw up your hat and hallooed,
"Hurrah for Democracy!"

So I say again, that in regard to the arguments that are made, when
Judge Douglas says he "don't care whether slavery is voted up or voted
down," whether he means that as an individual expression of sentiment,
or only as a sort of statement of his views on national policy, it is
alike true to say that he can thus argue logically if he don't see
anything wrong in it; but he cannot say so logically if he admits that
slavery is wrong. He cannot say that he would as soon see a wrong voted
up as voted down