that, it gave no promise that, having kicked off the king and lords of
Great Britain, we should not at once be saddled with a king and lords of
our own.

I had thought the Declaration contemplated the progressive improvement
in the condition of all men, everywhere; but no, it merely "was adopted
for the purpose of justifying the colonists in the eyes of the
civilized world in withdrawing their allegiance from the British crown,
and dissolving their connection with the mother-country." Why, that
object having been effected some eighty years ago, the Declaration is of
no practical use now--mere rubbish--old wadding, left to rot on the
battle-field after the victory is won.

I understand you are preparing to celebrate the "Fourth," to-morrow
week. What for? The doings of that day had no reference to the present;
and quite half of you are not even descendants of those who were
referred to at that day. But I suppose you will celebrate, and will even
go so far as to read the Declaration. Suppose, after you read it once in
the old-fashioned way, you read it once more with Judge Douglas's
version. It will then run thus: "We told these truths to be
self-evident, that all British subjects who were on this continent
eighty-one years ago, were created equal to all British subjects born
and then residing in Great Britain!"

... The very Dred Scott case affords a strong test as to which party
most favours amalgamation, the Republicans or the dear Union-saving
Democracy. Dred Scott, his wife and two daughters, were all involved in
the suit. We desired the court to have held that they were citizens, so
far at least as to entitle them to a hearing as to whether they were
free or not; and then also, that they were in fact and in law really