|
What constitutes the bulwark of our
own liberty and independence? It is not our frowning battlements,
our bristling seas coasts, the guns of our war steamers, or the
strength of our gallant and disciplined army. These are
not our reliance against a resumption of tryanny in our fair land.
All of them may be turned against our liberties, without
making us stronger or weaker for the struggle. Our reliance
is in the love of liberty which God has planted in our
bosoms. Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit
which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men, in all lands,
every where. Destroy this spirit, and you have planted the
seeds of despotism at your own doors.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, speech at Edwardsville,
Illinois,
September 11, 1858
|