dministration. I demand
of Judge Douglas by whose authority he meant to say those articles were
published, if not by the authority of the President of the United States
and his Cabinet? I defy him to show whom he referred to, if not to these
high functionaries in the Federal Government. More than this, he says the
articles in that paper and the provisions of the Lecompton Constitution
are "identical," and, being identical, he argues that the authors
are co-operating and conspiring together. He does not use the word
"conspiring," but what other construction can you put upon it? He winds
up:

"When I saw that article in the Union of the 17th of November, followed by
the glorification of the Lecompton Constitution on the 18th of November,
and this clause in the Constitution asserting the doctrine that a State
has no right to prohibit slavery within its limits, I saw that there was a
fatal blow being struck at the sovereignty of the States of this Union."

I ask him if all this fuss was made over the editor of this newspaper. It
would be a terribly "fatal blow" indeed which a single man could strike,
when no President, no Cabinet officer, no member of Congress, was giving
strength and efficiency to the movement. Out of respect to Judge Douglas's
good sense I must believe he did n't manufacture his idea of the "fatal"
character of that blow out of such a miserable scapegrace as he represents
that editor to be. But the Judge's eye is farther south now. Then, it
was very peculiarly and decidedly north. His hope rested on the idea of
visiting the great "Black Republican" party, and making it the tail of
his new kite. He knows he was then expecting from day to day to turn
Republican, and place himself at the head of our organization. He has
found that these despised "Black Republicans" estimate him by a standard
which he has taught them none too well. Hence he is crawling back into his
old camp, and you will find him eventually installed in full fellowship
among those whom he was then battling, and with whom he now pretends to be
at such fearful variance.

THIRD JOINT DEBATE, AT JONESBORO,

SEPTEMBER 15, 1858

Mr. LINCOLN'S REPLY.

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:--There is very much in the principles that Judge
Douglas has here enunciated that I most cordially approve, and over which
I shall have no controversy with him. In so far as he has insisted that
all the States have the right to do exactly as they please about all thei