“ In a certain sense the liberation of slaves is the destruction of property—property acquired by descent or by purchase, the same as any other property. ”
Abraham Lincoln, State of the Union Address (1 December 1862). copy citation
| Author | Abraham Lincoln |
|---|---|
| Source | State of the Union Address |
| Topic | slavery property purchase |
| Date | 1 December 1862 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/5024/5024-h/5024-h.htm |
Context
“This, it would seem, must further mitigate the dissatisfaction of those who favor perpetual slavery, and especially of those who are to receive the compensation. Doubtless some of those who are to pay and not to receive will object. Yet the measure is both just and economical. In a certain sense the liberation of slaves is the destruction of property—property acquired by descent or by purchase, the same as any other property. It is no less true for having been often said that the people of the South are not more responsible for the original introduction of this property than are the people of the North; and when it is remembered how unhesitatingly we all use cotton and sugar and share the profits of dealing in them, it may not be quite safe to say that the South has been more responsible than the North for its continuance.”
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Meaning and analysis
