Places the events relating to the 1857 Supreme Court decision regarding rights of slaves into the larger context of the conflict about slavery among the states.
Describes the seven debates held from August to October 1858 between Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln who were campaigning for election as Illinois Senator.
Recounts the story of John Brown's failed rebellion in Harpers Ferry in 1859, intended to start a massive slave uprising in the South and the establishment of a state in the Allegheny Mountains for freed slaves.
Tells the story of the document which led eventually to the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment and relates the role of President Lincoln in freeing the slaves.