prospect. If the South becomes a slave empire, what relation will it
have to you as a customer? [A voice: "Or any other man." Laughter.] It
would be an empire of 12,000,000 of people. Now, of these, 8,000,000 are
white, and 4,000,000 black. [A voice: "How many have you got?" Applause
and laughter. Another voice: "Free your own slaves."] Consider that one
third of the whole are the miserably poor, unbuying blacks. [Cries of
"No, no!" "Yes, yes!" and interruption.] You do not manufacture much for
them. [Hisses, "Oh!" "No."] You have not got machinery coarse enough.
[Laughter, and "No."] Your labor is too skilled by far to manufacture
bagging and linsey-woolsey. [A Southerner: "We are going to free them,
every one."] Then you and I agree exactly. [Laughter.] One other third
consists of a poor, unskilled, degraded white population; and
the remaining one third, which is a large allowance, we will say,
intelligent and rich.

Now here are twelve million of people, and only one third of them are
customers that can afford to buy the kind of goods that you bring to
market. [Interruption and uproar.] My friends, I saw a man once, who was
a little late at a railway station, chase an express train. He did not
catch it. [Laughter.] If you are going to stop this meeting, you have
got to stop it before I speak; for after I have got the things out, you
may chase as long as you please--you would not catch them. [Laughter and
interruption.] But there is luck in leisure; I 'm going to take it easy.
[Laughter.] Two thirds of the population of the Southern States to-day
are non-purchasers of English goods. [A voice: "No, they are not"; "No,
no!" and uproar.] Now you must recollect another fact--namely, that this
is going on clear through to the Pacific Ocean; and if by sympathy or
help you establish a slave empire, you sagacious Britons--["Oh, oh!"
and hooting]--if you like it better, then, I will leave the adjective
out--[laughter, Hear! and applause]--are busy in favoring the