Stephen A. Douglas

Stephen A. Douglas

The Project Gutenberg EBook of Stephen A. Douglas, by Allen
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Title: Stephen A. Douglas A Study in American Politics
Author: Allen Johnson
Release Date: March 30, 2005 [EBook #15508]
Language: English
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STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS:
A STUDY IN AMERICAN POLITICS
By ALLEN JOHNSON

PROFESSOR OF HISTORY IN BOWDOIN COLLEGE; SOMETIME
PROFESSOR OF HISTORY IN IOWA COLLEGE
New York
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 1908
All rights reserved * * * * *
COPYRIGHT 1908
By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
Set up and electrotyped. Published February 1908
THE MASON-HENRY PRESS SYRACUSE, N.Y.
* * * * *
To
PROFESSOR JESSE MACY
whose wisdom and kindliness have inspired a generation of students

PREFACE
To describe the career of a man who is now chiefly remembered as the
rival of Abraham Lincoln, must seem to many minds a superfluous, if
not invidious, undertaking. The present generation is prone to forget
that when the rivals met in joint debate fifty years ago, on the prairies
of Illinois, it was Senator Douglas, and not Mr. Lincoln, who was the
cynosure of all observing eyes. Time has steadily lessened the prestige
of the great Democratic leader, and just as steadily enhanced the fame
of his Republican opponent.
The following pages have been written, not as a vindication, but as an
interpretation of a personality whose life spans the controversial epoch
before the Civil War. It is due to the chance reader to state that the
writer was born in a New England home, and bred in an anti-slavery
atmosphere where the political creed of Douglas could not thrive. If
this book reveals a somewhat less sectional outlook than this personal

allusion suggests, the credit must be given to those generous friends in
the great Middle West, who have helped the writer to interpret the spirit
of that region which gave both Douglas and Lincoln to the nation.
The material for this study has been brought together from many
sources. Through the kindness of Mrs. James W. Patton of Springfield,
Illinois, I have had access to a valuable collection of letters written by
Douglas to her father, Charles H. Lanphier, Esq., editor of the Illinois
State Register. Judge Robert M. Douglas of North Carolina has
permitted me to use an autobiographical sketch of his father, as well as
other papers in the possession of the family. Among those who have
lightened my labors, either by copies of letters penned by Douglas or
by personal recollections, I would mention with particular gratitude the
late Mrs. L.K. Lippincott ("Grace Greenwood"); Mr. J.H. Roberts and
Stephen A. Douglas, Esq. of Chicago; Chief Justice Melville W. Fuller
and the late Hon. Robert E. Hitt of Washington. With his wonted
generosity, Mr. James F. Rhodes has given me the benefit of his wide
acquaintance with the newspapers of the period, which have been an
invaluable aid in the interpretation of Douglas's career. Finally, by
personal acquaintance and conversation with men who knew him, I
have endeavored to catch the spirit of those who made up the great
mass of his constituents.
Brunswick, Maine,
November, 1907.

CONTENTS
BOOK I. THE CALL OF THE WEST

CHAPTER I
FROM THE GREEN MOUNTAINS TO THE PRAIRIES 3

CHAPTER II
THE RISE OF THE POLITICIAN 18

CHAPTER III

LAW AND POLITICS 51

CHAPTER IV
UNDER THE AEGIS OF ANDREW JACKSON 68

CHAPTER V
MANIFEST DESTINY 84

CHAPTER VI
WAR AND POLITICS 109

CHAPTER VII
THE MEXICAN CESSION 127
BOOK II. THE DOCTRINE OF POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY

CHAPTER VIII
SENATOR AND CONSTITUENCY 145

CHAPTER IX
MEASURES OF ADJUSTMENT 166

CHAPTER X
YOUNG AMERICA 191

CHAPTER XI
THE KANSAS-NEBRASKA ACT 220

CHAPTER XII

BLACK REPUBLICANISM 260

CHAPTER XIII
THE TESTING OF POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY 281
BOOK III. THE IMPENDING CRISIS

CHAPTER XIV
THE PERSONAL EQUATION 309

CHAPTER XV
THE REVOLT OF DOUGLAS 324

CHAPTER XVI
THE JOINT DEBATES WITH LINCOLN 348

CHAPTER XVII
THE AFTERMATH 393

CHAPTER XVIII
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1860 412

CHAPTER XIX
THE MERGING OF THE PARTISAN IN THE PATRIOT 442

CHAPTER XX
THE SUMMONS 475

BOOK I

THE