No man with the quick apperceptive powers of Douglas could remain
wholly untouched by the sights and sounds that crowd upon even the
careless traveler in the East; yet such experiences are not formative
in the character of a man of forty. Douglas was still Douglas, still
American, still Western to the core, when he set foot on native soil
in late October. He was not a larger man either morally or
intellectually; but he had acquired a fund of information which made
him a readier, and possibly a wiser, man. And then, too, he was
refreshed in body and mind. More than ever he was bold, alert,
persistent, and resourceful. In his compact, massive frame, were
stored indomitable pluck and energy; and in his heart the spirit of
ambition stirred mightily.

* * * * *

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 370: The speech is given in part by Sheahan, Douglas, pp.
171 ff; and at greater length by Flint, Douglas, App., pp. 3 ff.]

[Footnote 371: Sheahan, Douglas, p. 186; Flint, Douglas, App., p. 30.]

[Footnote 372: _Globe,_31 Cong., 2 Sess., Debate of February 21 and
22, 1851.]

[Footnote 373: _Globe_, 31 Cong., 2 Sess., App., p. 312.]

[Footnote 374: _Globe_, 32 Cong., 1 Sess., App., p. 1120.]