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林德先生提交了对州银行的经营管理事务进行调查的议案，林肯对此在州议会发表了一番评论。

在伊利诺斯州议会上关于州银行的演讲（节选）
1837年1月11日
议长先生:
为了避免去犯这种屡见不鲜的错误，也就是说使我的立场问题不至于遭人误解，我首先声明我坚决反对正在审议中的这个议案，好以此消除对我所持立场的种种猜疑。在言归正传之前，我还要向各位坦言，我斗胆与那位来自科尔斯的绅士林德先生背道而驰，心中还是有颇多顾虑的。确实，幸亏那位先生在几天之前慷慨地屈尊俯就，要我们放心，说他绝对不会为了小猎物而浪费一枪一弹，否则我真是不敢相信自己能鼓足勇气来与他交锋的。在这同一个幸运的场合，他进一步让我们懂得，他自认为肯定比我们那位来自于伦道夫的普通朋友希尔兹先生要更胜一筹;而且我真正觉得，我与我们那位来自于伦道夫的朋友相比，最多也就是旗鼓相当，我肯定也会将那位来自于科尔斯的先生权当作我的上司，故此，在我随后的发言中，只要我碰巧提到了那位先生，我必将尽力采用恭恭敬敬的口吻，我知道这是由于上司无可置疑地拥有优势的缘故。至少那位先生有一种本事，无疑要在我和其他大多数人之上，那就是在一个问题上胡搅蛮缠的本事，结果不光使他自己，也使其他任何一个人都对那个问题摸不着头绪。

Speech in the Illinois Legislature on the State Bank (extract)
January 11,1837
MR. Chairman:
Lest I should fall into the too common error, of being mistaken in regard to which side I design to be upon, I shall make it my first care to remove all doubt on that point, by declaring that I am opposed to the resolution under consideration, in toto. Before I proceed to the body of the subject, I will further remark, that it is not without a considerable degree of apprehension, that I venture to cross the track of the gentleman from Coles (Mr. Linder). Indeed, I do not believe I could muster a sufficiency of courage to come in contact with that gentleman, were it not for the fact, that he, some days since, most graciously condescended to assure us that he would never be found wasting ammunition on small game. On the same fortunate occasion, he further gave us to understand, that he regarded himself as being decidedly the superior of our common friend from Randolph (Mr. Shields); and feeling, as I really do, that I, to say the most of myself, am nothing more than the peer of our friend from Randolph, I shall regard the gentleman from Coles as decidedly my superior also, and consequently, in the course of what I shall have to say, whenever I shall have occasion to allude to that gentleman, I shall endeavor to adopt that kind of court language which I understand to be due to decided superiority. In one faculty, at least, there can be no dispute of the gentleman's superiority over me, and most other men; and that is, the faculty of entangling a subject, so that neither himself, or any other man, can find head or tail to it. Here he has introduced a resolution, embracing ninety-nine printed lines across common writing paper, and yet more than one half of his opening speech has been made upon subjects about which there is not one word said in his resolution. 


在伊利诺斯州议会上对奴隶制的抗议
1837年3月3日
本抗议呈递众议院，经宣读之后，决定向各报刊散发，全文如下:
《关于国内奴隶制问题的议案》已经本届州议会参众两院通过，下列签名者对该议案的通过特此提出抗议。
他们确信奴隶制是建立于侵犯他人权利和错误政策之上的，可是传播废奴主义学说相反会增加而绝非能减轻它的罪恶。
他们确信，依照宪法，合众国国会无权干涉各州的奴隶制。
他们确信，依照宪法，合众国国会有权在哥伦比亚特区废除奴隶制，但除非应该特区民众的请求，否则此权不可行使。
这些观点与上述议案中所包括的那些观点之间的差异，就是他们提出本抗议的缘由。
桑格蒙县代表:丹·斯通
A·林肯

Protest in the Illinois Legislature on the Subject of Slavery
March 3, 1837
The following protest was presented to the House, which was read and ordered to be spread on the journals, to wit:
Resolutions upon the subject of domestic slavery having passed both branches of the General Assembly at its present session, the undersigned hereby protest against the passage of the same.
They believe that the institution of slavery is founded on both injustice and bad policy, but that the promulgation of abolition doctrines tends rather to increase than abate its evils.
They believe that the Congress of the United States has no power under the Constitution to interfere with the institution of slavery in the different States. 
They believe that the Congress of the United States has the power, under the Constitution, to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia, but that the power ought not to be exercised, unless at the request of the people of the District. 
The difference between these opinions and those contained in the said resolutions is their reason for entering this protest.
Dan Stone
A. Llincoln
Representatives from the County of Sangamon.


1858年6月16日，林肯迈出了对他的政治生涯来说具有深远影响的一步。他在伊利诺斯州共和党代表大会的闭幕式上被提名为美国国会参议员候选人，在提名后他发表了下面这篇演说。林肯通常很少向他人征求意见，但在本次演说前，他却召集了几个党的领导者和几个亲密的好友，向他们宣读了讲稿的开头一段。他是否应照讲稿所写的这样宣读呢？除了一个人赞同外，其他所有人都劝他别这么做，他们认为这么做将会在即将开始的大选中给他本人及共和党带来毁灭性的后果。而唯一持赞同意见的人就是威廉·H·赫恩登--林肯律师事务所的合伙人。他竭力奉劝林肯就照原稿发表演说，并且声称如果林肯这样做了，这次演说将会使他登上总统宝座。林肯依照原稿发表了这篇演说，结果不出那些精明的共和党人之所料，这一前卫的观点引发了惊慌。在随之而来的竞选活动中，道格拉斯利用此种情形大捞政治资本，林肯败北了。但这次演说，以及之后不久的他与道格拉斯的著名论辩中发表的其他几次演说，使林肯成了具有全国影响力的人物。

在共和党州代表大会闭幕式上的演说
斯普林菲尔德，1858年6月16日
主席先生、诸位代表先生们:
倘若我们可以首先懂得我们身处何等境地，正在走向何方，我们便可以更好地决断该做些什么，如何去做。我们曾经制定了一项目标被公之于众的政策，信心百倍地许诺将结束对奴隶制的鼓动，如今我们已进入了实施这项政策的第五个年头了。在这项政策的指导下，那种鼓吹非但没有停止，反而有不断增强之势。在我看来，我们只有在遭受到一场危机，并度过这场危机之后，这种鼓动才会止息。"一个分崩离析的家是无法继续维持的。" 我相信，一半人赞成蓄奴制，另一半人则赞成让奴隶获得自由，这样的政府是不可能长存的。我不愿看到合众国解体--我不愿看到这个家垮掉--可我真的希望，合众国停止走向分裂。它会完全变成某种样子，或者完全变成另一种样子。要么，是蓄奴制的反对者们制止住蓄奴制的进一步扩大，使公众认为它正在走向最后的灭亡;要么，是蓄奴制的鼓吹者们继续推行蓄奴制，直到它在合众国各州--无论是早先成立还是新近成立的各州，无论是在北方或是南方--全都同样合法。

Lincoln Speech, Close of Republican State Convention
Springfield, June 16,1858
Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Convention:
If we could first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we could better judge what to do, and how to do it. We are now far into the fifth year since a policy was initiated with the avowed object and confident promise of putting an end to slavery agitation. Under the operation of that policy, that agitation has not only not ceased, but has constantly augmented. In my opinion, it will not cease until a crisis shall have been reached and passed. "A house divided against itself cannot stand" I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved-I do not expect the house to fall-but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it, and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction; or its advocates will push it forward till it shall become alike lawful in all the States, old as well as new, North as well as South.