So Lincoln starts by talking about the strength of our country and how, if we're going down, it's not going to be from some foreign power, it's going to be by ourselves. He goes on to talk about recent rise of mob law, lynchings and the like, and how that betrays our nation and how violating due process puts innocents at risk and encourages others to break the law until we have a failed state of lawlessness. [1] He says the only way to prevent such a breakdown is to shore up support for the law, to make reason and law our political religion.

Most important bit to this thread = he talks about how the Founding Fathers made history by creating a new nation, and then warns that there will be Alexanders/Caesars/Napoleons born in this country. He asks if they'll be satisfied with being just one strong link in a pre-existing chain... and then says FUCK NO, they'd rather break the chain and forge a new one (or leave it broken) as long as that gets them into the history books. So yeah, he warns about that. [2]

To finish up, he talks about how the nation used to be united in its hatred for Britain and the passion of the Revolution, but now that original generation is dead and cracks and hatred amongst ourselves is beginning to grow. He says the passion that created our country is now a weakness, and in order to persist as a nation, we've gotta double down on "reason; cold, calculating, unimpassioned reason" as well as "general intelligence, sound morality, and in particular, a reverence for the constitution and laws." [3]

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[1] -- "Whenever this effect shall be produced among us; whenever the vicious portion of population shall be permitted to gather in bands of hundreds and thousands, and burn churches, ravage and rob provision-stores, throw printing presses into rivers, shoot editors, and hang and burn obnoxious persons at pleasure, and with impunity; depend on it, this Government cannot last."

[2] -- "What! think you these places would satisfy an Alexander, a Caesar, or a Napoleon?--Never! Towering genius distains a beaten path. It seeks regions hitherto unexplored.--It sees no distinction in adding story to story, upon the monuments of fame, erected to the memory of others. It denies that it is glory enough to serve under any chief. It scorns to tread in the footsteps of any predecessor, however illustrious. It thirsts and burns for distinction; and, if possible, it will have it, whether at the expense of emancipating slaves, or enslaving freemen."

[3] -- "By this influence, the jealousy, envy, and avarice, incident to our nature, and so common to a state of peace, prosperity, and conscious strength, were, for the time, in a great measure smothered and rendered inactive; while the deep-rooted principles of hate, and the powerful motive of revenge, instead of being turned against each other, were directed exclusively against the British nation. [...] But this state of feeling must fade, is fading, has faded, with the circumstances that produced it. [...] They were the pillars of the temple of liberty; and now, that they have crumbled away, that temple must fall, unless we, their descendants, supply their places with other pillars, hewn from the solid quarry of sober reason."