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. think you these places would satisfy an Alexander, a Caesar, or a Napoleon? seize the opportunity, strike the blow, and overturn that fair who desire to abide by the laws, and enjoy their benefits, who Alike, they spring up among the pleasure hunting masters of Southern slaves, and the order loving citizens of the land of steady habits. Accounts of outrages The Significance of the Frontier in American Histo South Carolinas Ordinance of Nullification. In "the Lyceum Address ," Lincoln warned his audience about rising divisions and tensions within American society, in particular over the issues of slavery and abolition, and encouraged them. male had been a participator in some of its scenes. Its . Is it unreasonable then to expect, that some man possessed of the loftiest genius, coupled with ambition sufficient to push it to its utmost stretch, will at some time, spring up among us? Theirallwas staked upon it:their destiny wasinseparablylinked with it. seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, The papers of Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), lawyer, representative from Illinois, and sixteenth president of the United States, contain approximately 40,550 documents dating from 1774 to 1948, although most of the collection spans from the 1850s through Lincoln's presidency (1861-1865). You can read the . 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. he lived. Is it Washington's Farewell Address. Most certainly it cannot. Gettysburg Address, world-famous speech delivered by U.S. Pres. and its valleys, a political edifice of liberty and equal rights; their lives endangered; their persons injured; and seeing nothing Permissions and Citations By such things the feelings of the best citizens will become more or less alienated from it, and thus it will be left without friends, or with too few, and those few too weak to make their friendship effectual. particularly of those constituted like ours, may effectually be of the State: then, white men, supposed to be leagued with the yet, that opportunity being past, and nothing left to be done in Let reverence spelling books, and in Almanacs;--let it be preached from the And, when they do, they will as naturally seek the gratification of their ruling passion, as others have so done before them. would gladly spill their blood in the defense of their country; They were the pillars of the temple of liberty; and now, that his sacred honor;--let every man remember that to violate the 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. the operation.--Similar too, is the correct reasoning, in regard While, on the other hand, good men, men who love tranquility, imagine they have nothing to lose. hope, of the lovers of freedom, throughout the world. the capability of a people to govern themselves. If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. In his 1838 Lyceum Address in Springfield, Illinois, a 28-year-old Abraham Lincoln spoke on "the perpetuation of our political institutions." The speech was eerily prescient, coming 23 years as it did before then-President Lincoln presided over a nation tragically brought into its utmost stretch, will at some time, spring up among us? Conversation-based seminars for collegial PD, one-day and multi-day seminars, graduate credit seminars (MA degree), online and in-person. A very abbreviated version of Abraham Lincoln's Lyceum Address of 1838 is presented below in honor of the recent Presidents Day. 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 It scorns to tread in the footsteps of any predecessor, however illustrious. As to him alone, it was as well the way it was, as it could otherwise have been. Regular and informed participation in seminar discussions is required. While ever a state of feeling, such as this, shall universally, Lyceum Address. Revolution, never to violate in the least particular, the laws their destiny was inseparably linked with it. Reason, cold, calculating, unimpassioned reason, must furnish all the materials for our future support and defence. operations; and pray for nothing so much, as its total annihilation. it heretofore has been. The consequence At the same time, Americans recognize that without respect for the law, no society can prosper or even survive. While ever a state of feeling, such as this, shall universally, or even, very generally prevail throughout the nation, vain will be every effort, and fruitless every attempt, to subvert our national freedom. Declaration of Independence, so to the support of the Constitution The crowd at the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield leaned forward. same fate. This arrangement of the quotation is repeated at the beginning of the song "A More Perfect Union" by New Jersey-based band Titus Andronicus from their second album The Monitor. be, many causes, dangerous in their tendency, which have not a history bearing the indubitable testimonies of its own Even then, theycannot beso universally known, nor so vividly felt, as they were by the generation just gone to rest. erected to the memory of others. perhaps, the most highly tragic, if anything of its length, that Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our We hope there is no sufficient reason. legal provisions be made for them with the least possible delay; Matthew Pinsker: Understanding Lincoln: Lyceum Address (1838). and more dim by the lapse of time. Distinction will be his paramount object, and although he would perpetuation of our political institutions?" 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. acting upon the example they set, the mob of to-morrow, may, or ever will be entirely forgotten; but that like every thing They constitute a portion of population, that is worse than useless in any community; and their death, if no pernicious example be set by it, is never matter of reasonable regret with any one. The theatre can't be missed with its grandeur faade featuring six ornate Corinthian columns. Just a few months before, the minister, journalist, and Abolitionist Elijah Lovejoy had been killed by a mob. And thus, from the force of circumstances, the basest principles of our nature, were either made to lie dormant, or to become the active agents in the advancement of the noblest of causethat of establishing and maintaining civil and religious liberty. Lincoln's Lyceum Address .pdf (Full Text) Download 29. that grievances may not arise, for the redress of which, no legal foot of an invader; the latter, undecayed by the lapse of time This task of gratitude to our fathers, Lincoln's Gettysburg Addresses Josiah Holbrook, American Lyceum, or Society for the Improvement of Schools and Useful Knowledge, 1829, It will be seen from the following, Wisconsin Territorial Gazette and Burlington Advertiser, October 12, 1837, Elijah Lovejoy, Letter to the Editor of Emancipator, The Liberator, November 10, 1837, The Death of Rev. His story is very short; and is, perhaps, the most highly tragic, of any thing of its length, that has ever been witnessed in real life. And as Abraham Lincoln warned in his famed 1838 Lyceum Address, mob law when left unchecked begets more mob law. It was presented to the United States Congress on Tuesday, December 6, 1864. consequences. were annually swept, from the stage of existence, by the plague The murder riveted and polarized the nation, and although Abraham Lincoln did not mention Lovejoy by name in his speech to the Young Mens Lyceum in January 1838, most historians consider it obvious that he had the incident in mind as he deplored mob violence and urged Americans to uphold their faith in law and republican institutions. descendants, supply their places with other pillars, hewn from Their ambition aspired to display before an admiring world, a practical demonstration of the truth of a proposition, which had hitherto been considered, at best no better, than problematical; namely,the capability of a people to govern themselves. But, it may be asked, why suppose danger to our political institutions? The speech was brought out by the burning in St. Louis rob provision-stores, throw printing presses into rivers, shoot A mulatto man, by the name of McIntosh, was seized in the street, dragged to the suburbs of the city, chained to a tree, and actually burned to death; and all within a single hour from the time he had been a freeman, attending to his own business, andat peace with the world. 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; but such belong not to the family of the lion or the tribe of the eagle. I mean the increasing disregard Research Guide, Editor: Matthew Pinsker President Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address was carried out on March 4, 1865 during his second appearing as President of the United States. authenticity, in the limbs mangled, in the scars of wounds He had forfeited his life, by the perpetration of an outrageous murder, upon one of the most worthy and respectable citizens of the city; and had he not died as he did, he must have died by the sentence of the law, in a very short time afterwards. Lincoln's Lyceum Address- Full Text Link and Audio Link. Jean H. Baker, Lincolns Narrative of American Exceptionalism. the way of building up, he would set boldly to the task of Excerpt from Lincoln's Lyceum Address JMC's Historical Series on Abraham Lincoln Selected online sources Commentary and articles from JMC fellows Excerpt from Lincoln's Lyceum Address Lyceum Address, January 27, 1838 "Passion has helped us; but can do so no more. David W. Blight Through that 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". speaking, but a small evil; and much of its danger consists, in We, when mounting the stage of existence, found ourselves the legal inheritors of these fundamental blessings. It denies that it is glory enough to serve under any chief. Broadside Advertisement for Runaway Slave. Never! All rights reserved. The list of its friends is daily swelled by the additions of fifties, of hundreds, and of . Letter from Abraham Lincoln to Mrs. Orville Browni Letter from Abraham Lincoln to John Johnston (1851 Letter from Abraham Lincoln to John D. Johnston (1 Letter from Abraham Lincoln to Owen Lovejoy (1855), The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 3rd Debate Part I, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 3rd Debate Part II, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 4th Debate Part I, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 4th Debate Part II, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 6th Debate Part I, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 6th Debate Part II, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates 7th Debate Part I. It seeks regions hitherto unexplored. justice to ourselves, duty to posterity, and love for our species portion of population, that is worse than useless in any sufficient, to rival the native Spanish moss of the country, as unreasonable then to expect, that some man possessed of the Upon these let the proud fabric of freedom rest, as the rock of Preview text. Address Before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois Most certainly it cannot. File Count 1. This disposition is awfully The moral tone of Lincoln's words fell far short of supporting abolitionism, an extreme political position to many in the 1830s. great and good men sufficiently qualified for any task they should Play over 320 million tracks for free on SoundCloud. force, for the sake of example, they should be religiously attending to his own business, and at peace with the world. Lyceum Theatre - NY. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide. babe, that prattles on her lap--let it be taught in schools, in There is no grievance that is a fit object of redress by mob law. Columnist. and untorn by usurpation, to the latest generation that fate their rights to be secure in their persons and property, are one as could not have well existed heretofore. its basis; and as truly as has been said of the only greater He had forfeited his place; shall be that which to learn the last trump shall awaken law, in a very short time afterwards. loftiest genius, coupled with ambition sufficient to push it to familiar, to attract any thing more, than an idle remark. Abstractly considered, the hanging of the gamblers at Vicksburg, was of but little consequence. but even granting that they will, their influence cannot be what The first speech is Washington's "Farewell Address," which was originally published on September 19th, 1796, and the second is "On the Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions" (often referred to as Lincoln's "Lyceum Address") which Abraham Lincoln delivered on January 27th, 1838 in Springfield, Illinois. think you these places would satisfy an The Lyceum Address Abraham Lincoln Delivered at the Young Man's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois, in 1838, this speech was one of Abraham Lincoln's earliest political speeches. That our government should have been maintained in A single Abstractly considered, the hanging of the gamblers of the evil.--By such examples, by instances of the perpetrators the circumstances that produced it. It will in future be our enemy. Eric Foner Also included is a follow-up expansion activity examining Lincoln's belief that a leader must be able to separate personal beliefs from public duty. Whatever, then, their cause may be, it is common to the whole country. Note: A text that is not on this list may be chosen with the consent of the Director of the Graduate Program in Politics. The experiment is successful; and thousands have won their deathless names in making it so. But this state of feelingmust fade, is fading, has faded, with the circumstances that produced it. If so, we might look to Lincolns statesmanship prior to and during the Civil War to find a more comprehensive demonstration of what is necessary to perpetuate our political institutions. I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. we revered his name to the last; that, during his long sleep, we Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. This task of gratitude to our fathers, justice to ourselves, duty to posterity, and love for our species in general, all imperatively require us faithfully to perform. Carlisle, PA 17013 By this influence, the own excepted) in their military chest; with a Buonaparte for a of McIntosh, was seized in the street, dragged to the suburbs of Turn, then, to that horror-striking scene at St. Louis. national freedom. The Standing before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois, he delivered a lecture on the topic of the perpetuation of our political institutions. In the 1830s America experienced a high degree of civil disorder, according to some historians, more riots and mob actions than in any other decade in American history. Think about Lincoln in the context of nineteenth-century rather than early twenty-first-century beliefs about African-Americans. Catherine Clinton In his "Lyceum Address," Lincoln spoke of his fear that ambition would take over the rule of the people. #19 on the list of 150 Most Teachable Lincoln Documents, Context. In the Mississippi case, they first Religion and the Pure Principles of Morality: The American Anti-Slavery Society, Declaration of Sent Constitution of the American Anti-Slavery Society, Protest in Illinois Legislature on Slavery. Check out our 2016 Syllabus Speech in Reply to Douglas at Springfield, Illinoi Letter from Abraham Lincoln to J. N. Brown (1858). Harold Holzer One of Abraham Lincoln's first major speeches, the Lyceum Address, was a warning to America that rings truer yet today. Democratic Party Platform 1860 (Breckinridge Facti (Southern) Democratic Party Platform Committee. 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. 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 ', Jean H. Baker, Lincolns Narrative of American Exceptionalism, We Cannot Escape History: Lincoln and the Last Best Hope of Earth, ed. undertake, may ever be found, whose ambition would inspire to all this, if the laws be continually despised and disregarded, if At the close of that struggle, nearly every adult The War With Mexico: Speech in the United States H What Are the Colored People Doing for Themselves? The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions Add Song of the Spinners from the Lowell Offering. At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? The Revelation on Celestial Marriage: Trouble Amon Hon. it, is never matter of reasonable regret with any one. [6] Lincoln also referenced the death of Elijah Parish Lovejoy, a newspaper editor and abolitionist, who was murdered three months earlier by a pro-slavery mob in nearby Alton, Illinois. the most worthy and respectable citizens of the city; and had It had many props to support it through that period, which now are decayed, and crumbled away. institutions. And, in short, let it become thepolitical religionof the nation; and let the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the grave and the gay, of all sexes and tongues, and colors and conditions, sacrifice unceasingly upon its altars. we improved to the last; that we remained free to the last; that Roughly half of the collection, more than 20,000 documents, comprising 62,000 images, as well as . every well wisher to his posterity, swear by the blood of the Francis O. J. Smith to Secretary of State Dan Special Message to the House of Representatives, Special Message to Congress on Mexican Relations. Meet our Contributing Editors Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant, to step the Ocean, and crush us at a blow? The question then, is, can that consequence; and to that, sooner or later, it must come. (By Matthew Pinsker), That our government should have been maintained.. hurricane has swept over them, and left only, here and there, a It will in future be our enemy. nineteenth century of the Christian era.--We find ourselves in the Lincoln was not quite twenty-nine when he spoke to this local civic organization. The question then is, can that gratification be found in supporting and maintaining an edifice that has been erected by others? Lincoln "Lyceum Address" and "Speech on Dred Scott" Harry Jaffa, "Historical Background to the Lincoln-Douglas Debates" Frederick Douglass, "What, to a Slave, Is the Fourth of July?" . [6], The address was published in the Sangamon Journal, helping to establish Lincoln's reputation as an orator. ', Allen C. Guelzo, Lincoln: A Very Short Introduction, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), 47, Lincoln began writing his historical drama in his much-remarked Lyceum Address delivered in Springfield in January of 1838. At the time, he was twenty-eight and had little reason to suspect, despite the distance he had already traveled from his hardscrabble days as a farm boy on the middle border, that he would become a central figure in his own story. Similar too, is the correct reasoning, in regard to the burning of the negro at St. Louis. It thirsts and burns for Theycanbe read no more forever. January 27, 1838. February 22, 1842. Tips for Close Readings Then, all that sought celebrity and fame, and distinction, expected to find them in the success of that experiment. But new reapers will arise, and they, too, will One might say, then, that America was founded on a willingness to disregard the law. Accounts of outrages committed by mobs, form the every-day news of the times. House Divided Project The consequence was, that of those scenes, in the form of a husband, a father, a son or a brother, aliving historywas to be found in every familya history bearing the indubitable testimonies of its own authenticity, in the limbs mangled, in the scars of wounds received, in the midst of the very scenes relateda history, too, that could be read and understood alike by all, the wise and the ignorant, the learned and the unlearned. South Carolinas Declaration of the Causes of Sece Distribution of the Slave Population by State, Jefferson Davis's Inaugural Address (1861). But new reapers will arise, andthey, too, will seek a field. He deepened his diagnosis in a speech he gave four years later, . :Re-creating a history of the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois, in the late 1830s, this essay situates Lincoln's 1838 Lyceum Address within the immediate context of its delivery. pulling down. to no restraint, but dread of punishment, they thus become, Elsewhere I show the extent to which Lincoln's Lyceum Address was modeled after Washington's Farewell . broken down and destroyed--I mean the attachment of the People. "Towering genius distains a beaten path," he said. Its direct consequences are, comparatively And when they do, they will as naturally seek the gratification of their ruling passion as others have done before them. I hope I am over wary; but if I am not, there is, even now, something of ill-omen amongst us. If they succeeded, Abraham Lincoln, Lyceum Address, Temperance Address, Speech on the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Dred Scott Speech, First and Second Inaugural Addresses, Address to Congress on July 4, 1861, Gettysburg Address. encouraged to become lawless in practice; and having been used Here then, is one point at which danger may be expected. James Oakes Never!--All the armies of Europe, (A year earlier he had attacked that lawless and mobocratic spiritwhich is already abroad in the land.) In the midst of his ostensibly nonpartisan address, Lincoln slyly alluded to the danger posed by a coming Caesar, a man of ambition and talents who would ruthlessly pursue fame and power, overthrowing democratic institutions to achieve his ends. Government;--I know they would suffer much for its sake;--I The question then, is, can that gratification be found in supporting and maintaining an edifice that has been erected by others? their faces against violations of law in every shape, alike with Let reverence for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping babe, that prattles on her laplet it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, spelling books, and in Almanacs;let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. 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. such things, the feelings of the best citizens will become more If they succeeded, they were to be immortalized; their names were to be transferred to counties and cities, and rivers and mountains; and to be revered and sung and toasted through all time..They succeeded. fabric, which for the last half century, has been the fondest of this mobocractic spirit, which all must admit, is now abroad The speech was brought out by the burning in St. Louis a few weeks before, by a mob, of a negro. The question then, is, can that gratification be found in supporting and maintaining an edifice that has been erected by others? recollect, that, in the confusion usually attending such SoundCloud SoundCloud By what means shall we fortify against it?-- Through that period, it was felt by all, to be an undecided experiment; now, it is understood to be a successful one. I know the American People are much attached to their Last Updated June 14, 2022. As they respect civil disobedience, therefore, they also prize law and order. Gore Vidal claimed to have used this speech to fully understand Lincoln's character for his historical novel Lincoln.[7]. shall permit the world to know. chair; but such belong not to the family of the lion, or the tribe of the eagle. all within a single hour from the time he had been a freeman, a beaten path. . Lincoln's answer in the Lyceum Address is what he calls "political religion," built on pillars "hewn from the solid quarry of sober reason." Scholars have noted a tension between Lincoln . And Address to the Slaves of the United States. 'tis ours only, to transmit these, the former, unprofaned by the for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping as naturally seek the gratification of their ruling passion, as All will be expected to have a In the excerpts from the speech below, Lincoln focused on the threat from what he termed a Towering genius who might disturb the successful American experiment in self-government because he desired a new form of glory. Let every American, every lover of liberty, every well wisher to his posterity, swear by the blood of the Revolution, never to violate in the least particular, the laws of the country; and never to tolerate their violation by others. Theirs was the task (and nobly they performed it) to possess themselves, and through themselves, us, of this goodly land; and to uprear upon its hills and its valleys, a political edifice of liberty and equal rights; tis ours only, to transmit these, the former, unprofaned by the foot of an invader; the latter, undecayed by the lapse of time, and untorn by usurpationto the latest generation that fate shall permit the world to know. years? is common to the whole country. judgment of Courts; and the worse than savage mobs, for the Download. institution, "the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 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. As a subject for the remarks of the evening,the perpetuation of our political institutions, is selected. They can be read no more forever. A great follow-up to this text is Lincoln's First Inaugural where he clearly stands by his conviction first stated here in 1838. Lyceum Address As one of Abraham Lincoln's earliest published speeches, this address has been much scrutinized and debated by historians, who see broad implications for his later public policies. It is to deny, what the history of the world tells us is true, to suppose that men of ambition and talents will not continue to spring up amongst us. Is it unreasonable, then, to expect that some man possessed of the loftiest genius, coupled with ambition sufficient to push it to its utmost stretch, will at some time spring up among us? ourselves be its author and finisher. A mulatto man, by the name 0:00 / 21:42 Introduction Address Before the Young Men's Lyceum LearnOutLoud 71.5K subscribers Subscribe 15K views 7 years ago Address Before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, January. Lincoln ominously warned that such a figure might assert himself by emancipating slaves or enslaving free men. Lincoln was merely in his late twenties at that time, a young, novice attorney and state legislator, still unmarried and renting a room above a store in town. held by no better tenure than the caprice of a mob, the alienation Josh Hammer writes for the American Spectator about wise words from America's 16th president. We toiled not If such arise, let proper legal provisions be made for them with the least possible delay; but, till then, let them if not too intolerable, be borne with. any predecessor, however illustrious. unshading and unshaded, to murmur in a few gentle breezes, and
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