The Last of the Series.
The last of the seven discussions between Lincoln and Douglas, into which the latter was forced by his friends much against his own inclination and judgment, takes place to-day at Alton. As in every other instance in which the two have met, the discomfiture of Douglas will doubtless be overwhelming and complete. By Douglas’ own arrangement, in this final debate he has the closing half hour, into which we presume he will concentrate and pour out all his accumulated wrath, consequent upon the seven defeats which he has suffered at the hands of the tall Kentuckian. His closing speech will be a rare specimen of bad temper and of unscrupulous misrepresentation – a political and literary curiosity, entirely in keeping with the Senator’s well earned reputation in these particulars. It is entirely safe to predict, whatever may be the future political relations of the two men, that Douglas will never again dare to break a lance with Lincoln. He has had enough of that to satisfy him the remainder of his natural life.
