I do hope you will have no serious trouble in Iowa.  What thinks Grimes about it?  I have not known him to be mistaken about an election in Iowa.  Present my respects to Col.  Carter, and any other friends, and believe me

Yours truly,

A. Lincoln.

SPEECH AT COLUMBUS, OHIO.

September 16, 1859.

Fellow-citizens of the state of Ohio:  I cannot fail to remember that I appear for the first time before an audience in this now great State,—­an audience that is accustomed to hear such speakers as Corwin, and Chase, and Wade, and many other renowned men; and, remembering this, I feel that it will be well for you, as for me, that you should not raise your expectations to that standard to which you would have been justified in raising them had one of these distinguished men appeared before you.  You would perhaps be only preparing a disappointment for yourselves, and, as a consequence of your disappointment, mortification to me.  I hope, therefore, that you will commence with very moderate expectations; and perhaps, if you will give me your attention, I shall be able to interest you to a moderate degree.

Appearing here for the first time in my life, I have been somewhat embarrassed for a topic by way of introduction to my speech; but I have been relieved from that embarrassment by an introduction which the Ohio Statesman newspaper gave me this morning.  In this paper I have read an article, in which, among other statements, I find the following: 

“In debating with Senator Douglas during the memorable contest of last fall, Mr. Lincoln declared in favor of negro suffrage, and attempted to defend that vile conception against the Little Giant.”

I mention this now, at the opening of my remarks, for the purpose of making three comments upon it.  The first I have already announced,—­it furnishes me an introductory topic; the second is to show that the gentleman is mistaken; thirdly, to give him an opportunity to correct it.

In the first place, in regard to this matter being a mistake.  I have found that it is not entirely safe, when one is misrepresented under his very nose, to allow the misrepresentation to go uncontradicted.  I therefore propose, here at the outset, not only to say that this is a misrepresentation, but to show conclusively that it is so; and you will bear with me while I read a couple of extracts from that very “memorable” debate with Judge Douglas last year, to which this newspaper refers.  In the first pitched battle which Senator Douglas and myself had, at the town of Ottawa, I used the language which I will now read.  Having been previously reading an extract, I continued as follows: