Inspiring communities to become better places to live

1800's

This address by the third President of the United States is a classic exposition of democratic philosophy, expressed with a rare literary beauty and clarity of thought. Delivered March 4, 1801, it bears the indelible stamp of Thomas Jefferson’s true genius in the art of government and his greatness as a man and patriot. The original manuscript is in the Library of Congress. Its pages 1 and 2 are reproduced in the Freedom Shrine. The text of the entire address is printed here.

In transcribing Jefferson’s address it is interesting to note that he intermittantly employed an unusual form of shorthand combined with frequent abbreviations. In many instances the often used words beginning with “th” are indicated by a symbol resembling a lower case “y” with the final sound of the word written over it in smaller
e os o
letters. Thus, “the” is y, “those” -y , “though” -y,
m
“them”-y, etc. Other abbreviations are equally odd to the unpracticed eye. The sixth line of the first page of the document, for example, if set in type exactly as Jefferson wrote it would be almost unintelligible at first glance: ” & that I approach

th   os   s  i  ts   che   ss

it w  y   anx presentim.w  y greatn.

e  e   ss   rs 

of y charge & y weakn . of my pow . so justly 

inspire.” 

Transliterated, this line reads:”& that I approach it with those anxious & awful presentiments which the greatness of the charge & the weakness of my powers so justly inspire.” The symbols for 

“and” remain as they are in the original. 

Because of the difficulty of reading such abbreviations, the following text is presented in the familiar idiom. In addition, capitals have been added at the beginnings of sentences where Jefferson seemed to disregard them. 

Friends & fellow citizens 

Called upon to undertake the duties of the first Executive office of our country, I avail myself of the presence of that portion of my fellow citizens which is here’ assembled to express my grateful thanks for the favor with which they have been pleased to look towards me, to declare a sincere consciousness that the task is above my talents, & that I approach it with those anxious & awful presentiments which the greatness of the charge &. the weakness of my powers so justly inspire. 

A rising nation spread over a wide and fruitful land, traversing all the seas with the rich produc­tions of their industry, engaged in commerce with nations who feel power, and forget right, advancing rapidly to destinies beyond the reach of mortal eye. When I contemplate these transcendant ob­jects, & see the honor the happiness, & the hopes of this beloved country committed to the issue & the auspices of this day, I shrink from the contem­plation, & humble myself before the magnitude of the undertaking. Utterly indeed, should I despair, did not the presence of many whom I here see, remind me, that in the other high authorities pro­vided by our Constitution, I shall find resources of wisdom of virtue, & of zeal on which to rely under all difficulties. To you then gentlemen who are charged with the sovereign functions of legis­lation & to those associated with you, I look with encouragement for that guidance & support which may enable us to steer with safety, the vessel in which we are all embarked amidst the conflicting elements of a troubled world. 

During the contest of opinion through which we have passed, the animation of discussions and of exertions, has sometimes worn an aspect which might impose on strangers unused to think freely & to speak & to write what they think. But this being now decided by the voice of the nation anounced according to the rules of the constitu­tion, all will of course arrange themselves under the will of the law, & unite in common efforts for the common good. All too well bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the Ma­jority is in all cases to prevail, that will, to be right­ful, must be reasonable: That the Minority possess their equal rights, which equal laws must protect, & to violate would be oppression. 

Let us then, fellow citizens, unite with one heart & one mind; let us restore to social intercourse that harmony and affection without which Liberty, & even life itself, are but dreary things. And let us reflect that having banished from our land that religious intolerance under which mankind so long bled & suffered, we have yet gained little, if we countenance a political intolerance as despotic, as wicked, & capable of as bitter & bloody perse­cution. 

During the throes and convulsions of the antient world, during the agonizing spasms of infuriated man, seeking through blood & slaughter his long lost liberty, it was not wonderful that the agitation of the billows should reach even this distant & peaceful shore; that this should be more felt & feared by some, & less by others, & should divide opinions as to measures of safety. But every differ­ence of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names, brethren of the same principle. We are all republicans: We are all federalists. If there be any among us who wish to dissolve this union, or to change it’s repub­lican form, let them stand undisturbed, as monu­ments of the safety with which error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to com­bat it. I know indeed that some honest men have feared that a republican government cannot be strong; that this government is not strong enough. But would the honest patriot, in the full tide of successful experiment abandon a government which has so far kept us free & firm on the theo­retic & visionary fear that this government, the world’s best hope, may by possibility, want energy to preserve itself? I trust not. I believe this, on the contrary, the strongest government on earth. I believe it the only one where every man, at the call of the law, would fly to the standard of the law, & would meet invasions of public order, as his own personal concern. Sometimes it is said that Man cannot be trusted with the government of himself.- Can he then be trusted with the gov­ernment of others? Or have we found angels in the form of kings to govern him? – Let History answer this question. 

Let us then, pursue with courage & confidence our own federal & republican principles, our at­tachment to Union, & Representative government, kindly separated by nature, & a wide ocean, from the exterminating havoc of one quarter of the globe, too high-minded to endure the degrada­tions of the others; possessing a chosen country, with room enough for our descendants to the 1000th & 1000th generation; entertaining a due sense of our equal right, to the use of our own faculties, to the acquisitions of our own industry, to honor & confidence from our fellow citizens resulting not from birth, but from our actions & their sense of them, enlightened by a benign re­ligion, professing indeed & practising in various forms, yet all of them inculcating Honesty, truth, temperance, gratitude, & the love of man, ac­knowledging & adoring an overruling providence, which by all its dispensations prooves that it de­lights in the happiness of man here, & his greater happiness hereafter: With all these blessings, what more is necessary to make us a happy and pros­perous people? Still one thing more, fellow citi­zens, a wise & frugal government, which shall re­strain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry & improvement, and shall not take, from the mouth of labor, the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government, & this is necessary to close the circle of our felicities. 

About to enter, fellow-citizens, on the exercise of duties which comprehend everything dear and valuable to you, it is proper you should under­stand what I deem the essential principles of our Government, and consequently those which ought to shape its Administration. I will compress them within the narrowest compass they will bear, stat­ing the general principle, but not all its limitations. Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political; peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none; the support of the State governments in all their rights, as the most competent administrations for our domestic concerns and the surest bulwarks against antire­publican tendencies; the preservation of the Gen­eral Government in its whole constitutional vigor, as the sheet anchor of our peace at home and safety abroad; a jealous care of the right of elec­tion by the people – a mild and safe corrective of abuses which are lopped by the sword of revo­lution where peaceable remedies are unprovided; absolute acquiescence in the decisions of the ma­jority, the vital principle of republics, from which is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and immediate parent of despotism; a well disciplined militia, our best reliance in peace and for the first moments of war, till regulars may relieve them; the supremacy of the civil over the military au­thority; economy in the public expense, that labor may be lightly burthened; the honest payment of our debts and sacred preservation of the public faith; encouragement of agriculture, and of com­merce as its handmaid; the diffusion of informa­tion and arraignment of all abuses at the bar of the public reason; freedom of religion; freedom of the press, and freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus, and trial by juries impartially selected. These principles form the bright constellation which has gone before us and guided our steps through an age of revolution and reformation. The wisdom of our sages and blood of our heroes have been devoted to their attain­ment. They should be the creed of our political faith, the text of civic instruction, the touchstone by which to try the services of those we trust; and should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, and safety. 

I repair, then, fellow-citizens, to the post you have assigned me. With experience enough in subordinate offices to have seen the difficulties of this the greatest of all, I have learnt to expect that it will rarely fall to the lot of imperfect man to re­tire from this station with the reputation and the favor which bring him to it. Without pretensions to that high confidence you reposed in our first and greatest revolutionary character, whose pre­eminent services had entitled him to the first place in his country’s love and destined for him the fairest page in the volume of faithful history, I ask so much confidence only as may give firmness and effect to. the legal administration of your affairs. I shall o􀀚ten go wrong through defect of judgment. When right, I shall often be thought wrong by those whose positions will not command a view of the whole ground. I ask your indulgence for my own errors, which will never be intentional, and your support against the errors of others, who may condemn what they would not if seen in all its parts. The approbation implied by your suffrage is a great consolation to me for the past, and my future solicitude will be to retain the good opinion of those who have bestowed it in advance, to con­ciliate that of others by doing them all the good in my power, and to be instrumental to the happi­ness and freedom of all. 

Relying, then, on the patronage of your good will, I advance with obedience to the work, ready to retire from it whenever you become sensible how much better choice it is in your power to make. And may that Infinite Power which rules the destinies of the universe lead our councils to what is best, and give them a favorable issue for your peace and prosperity. 

After witnessing the unsuccessful British attack against Fort McHenry on September 13 and 14, 1814, Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star Spangled Banner,” which in 1931 was made the national anthem by Act of Congress. The manuscript, in Key’s writing, belongs to the Wafters Art Gallery at Baltimore.

star spangle Banner

This 19th century version of the Star-Spangled Banner was performed on original instruments from the National Museum of American History’s collection. Arranged by G. W. E. Friederich, the music is played as it would have been heard in 1854.

O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight
O’er the ramparts we watch’d were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there,
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream,
’Tis the star-spangled banner – O long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore,
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a Country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
Between their lov’d home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace may the heav’n rescued land
Praise the power that hath made and preserv’d us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto – “In God is our trust,”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Andrew Jackson, leader of the American forces in the decisive defeat of the British in the Battle of New Orleans, described the action and generously paid tribute to his men in a letter to the Secretary of War that was written and signed on January 9, 1815. The Treaty of Ghent, ending the War of 1812, had been signed in Europe on December 24, 1814, but this news had not yet reached the battlefield. The original letter is in the National Archives at Washington.

Camp 4 miles below Orleans

9th Jan: 1815

Sir:

During the days of the 6th. & 7th. the enemy had been actively employed in making preparations for an attack on my lines. With infinite labour they had succeeded on the night of the 7th in getting their boats across from the lake to the river, by widening & deepening the Canal on which they had effected their disembarkation. It had not been in my power to impede these operations by a general attack: Added to other reasons, the nature of the troops under my command, mostly militia, rendered it too hazardous to attempt extensive offensive movements in an open Country, against a numerous & well disciplined army.- Altho my forces, as to number, had been increased by the arrival of the Kentucky division – my strength had received very little addition; a small portion only of that detachment being provided with arms: Compelled thus to wait the attack of the enemy I took every measure to repell it when it would be made, & to defeat the object he had in view. Genl. Morgan with the Orleans Contingent the Louisiana Militia, & a strong detachment of the Kentucky troops occupy an entrenched Camp, on the opposite side of the river, protected by strong batteries on the bank erected & superintended by Commodore Patterson.

In my encampment every thing was ready for action, when early on the morning of the 8th the enemy, after throwing a heavy shower of bombs & congreve rockets, advanced their columns on my right & left, to storm my entrenchments. I cannot speak sufficiently in praise of the firmness & deliberation with which my whole line received their approach:-more could not have been expected from veterans, inured to war. For an hour the fire of the small arms was as incessant & severe as can be imagined. The artillery too, directed by officers who displayed equal skill & courage did great execution. Yet the columns of the enemy continued to advance with a firmness which reflects upon them the greatest credit. Twice the column which approached me on my left was repulsed by the troops of genl. Carrole – those of genl. Coffee, & a division of the Kentucky Militia, & twice they formed again & renewed the assault.

At length however, cut to pieces, they fled in confusion from the field, leaving it covered with their dead & wounded. The loss which the enemy sustained on this occasion cannot be estimated at less than 1500 in killed, wounded & prisoners. Upwards of three hundred have already been delivered over for burial; & my men are still engaged in picking them up within my lines, & carrying them to the point where the enemy are to receive them. This is in addition to the dead & wounded whom the enemy have been enabled to carry from the feild during & since the action, & to those who have since died of the wounds they received. We have taken about 500 prisoners, upwards of 300 of whom are wounded: & a great part of them mortally. My loss has not exceeded, & I believe has not amounted to ten killed & as many wounded. The entire destruction of the enemy’s army was now inevitable had it not been for an unfortunate occurrence which at this moment, took place on the other side of the river. Simultaneously with his advance upon my lines, he had thrown over in his boats, a considerable force to the other side of the river. These having landed, were hardy enough to advance against the works of genl. Morgan; & what is strange & difficult to account for, at the very moment when their entire discomfiture was looked for with a confidence approaching to certainty, the Kentucky reinforcements in whom so much reliance had been placed, ingloriously fled,-drawing after them, by their example, the remainder of the forces; & thus, yielding to the enemy that most fortunate position. The batteries which had rendered me, for many days, the most important services-tho bravely defended were of course, now abandoned; not however until the guns had been spiked.

This unfortunate route had totally changed the aspect of affairs. The enemy now occupied a position from which they might annoy us without hazard, & by means of which they might have been enabled to defeat, in a great measure, the effects of our successes on this side the river. It became therefore an object of the first consequence to dislodge him as soon as possible. For this object all the means in my power, which I could with any safety use, were immediately put in preparation. Perhaps however it was owing somewhat to another cause that I succeeded even beyond my expectations. In negotiating the terms of a temporary suspension of hostilities to enable the enemy to bury their dead; & provide for their wounded, I had required certain propositions to be aceeded to as a basis; among which this was one – that altho, hostilities should cease this side the river until 12 OCLK of this day yet it was not to be understood that they should cease on the other side; but that no reinforcements should be sent across by either army until the expiration of that hour. His Excellency Majr Genl. Lambert begged time to consider of those propositions until 10 OCLK of to day; & in the meantime recrossed his troops. I need not tell you with how much eagerness I immediately regained possession of the position he had thus hastily quitted.

The enemy having concentrated his forces may again attempt to drive me from my position by storm: Whenever he does: I have no doubt my men will act with their usual firmness, & sustain a character now become dear to them.

I have the honor to be with great respect

Yr. Obt st

Andrew Jackson

Major genl comdg

President James Monroe enunciated the famous Monroe Doctrine in his address to Congress of December 2, 1823. “The American continents, by the free and independent conditions which they have assumed and maintained, are henceforth not lo be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers,” and any attempt to interfere with them would be regarded as “the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition towards the United States,” he said. The original manuscript is in the National Archives at Washington.

james monroe

   At the proposal of the Russian Imperial Government, made through the minister of the Emperor residing here, a full power and instructions have been transmitted to the minister of the United States at St. Petersburg, to arrange, by amicable negotiations, the respective rights and interests of the two nations on the northwest coast of this continent. A similar proposal has been made by His Imperial Majesty to the Government of Great Britain, which has likewise been acceded to. The Government of the United States has been desirous, by this friendly proceeding, of manifesting the great value which they have invariably attached to the friendship of the Emperor, and their solicitude to cultivate the best understanding with his Government. In the discussions to which this interest has given rise, and in the arrangements by which they may terminate, the occasion has been judged proper for asserting as a principle in which the rights and interests of the United States are involved, that the American continents, by the free and independent condition which they have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers. . .

It was stated at the commencement of the last session that a great effort was then making in Spain and Portugal to improve the condition of the people of those countries, and that it appeared to be conducted with extraordinary moderation. It need scarcely be remarked that the results have been, so far, very different from what was then anticipated. Of events in that quarter of the globe with which we have so much intercourse, and from which we derive our origin, we have always been anxious and interested spectators. The citizens of the United States cherish sentiments the most friendly in favor of the liberty and happiness of their fellow-men on that side of the Atlantic. In the wars of the European powers in matters relating to themselves we have never taken any part, nor does it comport with our policy to do so. It is only when our rights are invaded or seriously menaced that we resent injuries or make preparation for our defense. With the movements in this hemisphere we are, of necessity, more immediately connected, and by causes which must be obvious to all enlightened and impartial observers. The political system of the allied powers is essentially different in this respect from that, of America. This difference proceeds from that which exists in their respective – Governments, and to the defense of our own, which has been achieved by the loss of so much blood and treasure, and matured by the wisdom of their most enlightened citizens, and under which we have enjoyed unexampled felicity, this whole nation is devoted. We owe it therefore, to candor, and to the amicable relations existing between the United States and those powers, to declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere, as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not interfered and shall not interfere. But with the Governments who have declared their independence, and maintain it, and whose independence we have, on great consideration and on just principles, acknowledged, we could not view any interposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in any other manner, their destiny, by any European power in any other light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States. In the war between those new Governments and Spain, we declared our neutrality, at the time of their recognition, and to this we have adhered, and shall continue to adhere, provided no change shall occur, which in the judgement of the competent authorities of this Government, shall make a corresponding change, on the part of the United States, indispensable to their security.

The late events in Spain and Portugal, shew that Europe is still unsettled. Of this important fact, no stronger proof can be adduced, than that the allied powers should have thought it proper, on any principle satisfactory to themselves, to have interposed by force in the internal concerns of Spain. To what extent, such interposition may be carried, on the same principle, is a question, in which all independent powers whose governments differ from theirs, are interested; even those most remote, and surely none more so than the United States. Our policy in regard to Europe, which was adopted at an early stage of the wars which have so long agitated that quarter of the globe, nevertheless remains the same, which is, not to interfere in the internal concerns of any of its powers; to consider the government de facto, as the legitimate government for us; to cultivate friendly relations, with it, and to preserve those relations by a frank, firm, and manly policy, meeting in all instances, the just claims of every power; submitting to injuries from none. But, in regard to those continents, circumstances are eminently and conspicuously different. It is impossible that the allied powers should extend their political system to any portion of either continent without endangering our peace and happiness; nor can anyone believe that our southern brethren, if left to themselves, would adopt it of their own accord. It is equally impossible, therefore, that we should behold such interposition, in any form, with indifference. If we look to the comparative strength and resources of Spain and those new Governments, and their distance from each other, it must be obvious that she can never subdue them. It is still the true policy of the United States to leave the parties to themselves, in hope that other powers will pursue the same course. . .

This copy of the Gettyshuq Address, in Lincoln’s own handwriting, contains the address he delivered on November 19, 1863, at the dedication oi the cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The original is on display at the White House.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure. We are met on a great battle field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate – we can not consecrate – we can not hallow – this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Abraham Lincoln

November 19, 1863

Gettysburg Address

This proclamation, issued on January 1, 1863, freed the slaves in the territory in rebellion against the United States. It did not abolish slavery; that required a constitutional amendment. The original proclamation, bearing Lincoln’s signature and the seal of the United States, is in the National Archives at Washington.

By the President of the United States of America:

A PROCLAMATION

Whereas, on the twenty-second day of in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a proclamation, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, to wit:

“That on the First day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the executive government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom.

“That the executive will; on the first day of January aforesaid, by proclamation, designate the States and parts of States, if any, in which the people thereof respectively shall then be in rebellion against the United States; and the fact that any State, or the people thereof, shall on that day be in good faith represented in the Congress of the United States by members chosen thereto at elections wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such States shall have participated, shall in the absence of strong countervailing testimony, be deemed conclusive evidence that such State and the people thereof are not then in rebellion against the United States.”

Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, by virtue of the power in me vested as Commander-In-Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, in time of actual armed rebellion against the authority and government of the United States, and as a fit and necessary war measure for supressing said rebellion, do, on this first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty three, and in accordance with my purpose so to do, publicly proclaimed for the full period of 100 days from the day first above mentioned, order and designate as the States and parts of States wherein the people thereof, respectively, are this day in rebellion against the United States, the following, to wit:

Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana (except the parishes of St. Bernard, Palquemines, Jefferson, St. John, St. Charles, St. James, Ascension, Assumption, Terre Bone, Lafourche, St. Mary, St. Martin, and Orleans, including the city of New Orleans), Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia (except the forty-eight counties designated as West Virginia, and also the counties of Berkeley, Accomac, Northhampton, Elizabeth City, York, Princess Ann, and Norfolk, including the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth), and which excepted parts are for the present left precisely as if this proclamation were not issued.

And by virtue of the power and for the purpose aforesaid, I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said designated States and parts of States are, and henceforward shall be, free; and that the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authorities thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of said persons.

And I hereby enjoin upon the people so declared to be free to abstain from all violence, unless in necessary self-defense; and I recommend to them that, in all case when allowed, they labor faithfully for reasonable wages.

And I further declare and make known that such persons of suitable condition will be received into the armed service of the United States to garrison forts, positions, stations, and other places, and to man vessels of all sorts in said service.

And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, warranted by the Constitution upon military necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment of mankind and the gracious favor of Almighty God.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the eighty-seventh.

Abraham Lincoln

By the President: William H. Seward, Secretary of State.

abraham Lincoln and William Seward

Lincoln’s brief, intensely moving message, delivered March 4, 1865, a few weeks prior to his assassination, indicts “American Slavery” as the cause of the civil conflict, and an offense against God who “gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came.” His charity, compassion and greatness as a man and President shine forth in this address, particularly in the immortal closing paragraph. The original manuscript is in the Library of Congress.

Fellow-Countrymen:

At this second appearing, to take the oath of the Presidential office, there is less occasion for an extended address than there was at the first. Then a statement, somewhat in detail, of a course to be pursued, seemed fitting and proper. Now, at the expiration of four years, during which public declarations have been constantly called forth on every point and phase of the great contest which still absorbs the attention, and engrosses the energies of the nation, little that is new could be presented. The progress of our arms, upon which all else chiefly depends, is as well known to the public as to myself; and it is, I trust, reasonably satisfactory and encouraging to all. With high hope for the future, no prediction in regard to it is ventured.

On the occasion corresponding to this four years ago, all thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending civil war. All dreaded it – all sought to avert it. While the inaugural address was being delivered from this place, devoted altogether to saving the Union, without war, insurgent agents were in the city seeking to destroy it without war; seeking to dissolve the Union, and divide effects, by negotiation. Both parties deprecated war, but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive; and the other would accept war rather than let it perish. And the war came.

One eighth of the whole population were colored slaves, not distributed generally over the Union, but localized in the southern part of it. These slaves constituted a peculiar and powerful interest. All knew that this interest was, somehow, the cause of the war. To strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this interest was the object for which the insurgents would rend the Union, even by war, while the Government claimed no right to do more than to restrict the territorial enlargement of it. Neither party expected for the war, the Magnitude, or the duration, which it has already attained. Neither anticipated that the cause of the conflict might cease with, or even before, the conflict itself should cease. Each looked for an easier triumph, and a result less fundamental and astounding. Both read the same Bible, and pray to the same God; and each invokes his aid against the other. It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God’s assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men’s faces; but let us judge not, that we be not judged. The prayers of both could not be answered, that of neither has been answered fully. The Almighty has His own purposes. “Woe unto the world because of offenses! for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh!” If we shall suppose that American-slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God; must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South, this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him?  Fondly do we hope – fervently do we pray – that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue, until all the wealth piled by the bond-man’s two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said “the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.”

With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.

In a letter of August 24, 1865, to a committee of the Board of Trustees of Washington College, General Lee notified them of his acceptance of the presidency of the college because he thought it “the duty of every citizen in the present condition of the country, to do all in his power to aid in the restoration of peace and harmony.” The original letter belongs to Washington and Lee University at Lexington, Va.

Powhatan Co: 24 Aug 65

Gentlemen:

I have delayed for some days, replying to your letter of the 5 inst: informing me of my election by the Board of Trustees, to the Presidency of Washington College, from a desire to give the subject due Consideration. Fully impressed with the responsibilities of the office, I have feared that I should be unable to discharge its duties, to the satisfaction of the Trustees, or to the benefit of the Country. The proper education of youth requires not only great ability, but I fear more strength than I now possess, for I do not feel able to undergo the labour of Conducting Classes in regular Courses of instruction. I could not therefore undertake more than the general administration & supervision of the Institution. There is another subject which has Caused me serious reflection, & is I think worthy of the Consideration of the Board. Being excluded from the terms of amnesty in the proclamation of the President of the U. S. of the 29 May last, & an object of censure to a portion of the Country, I have thought it probable that any occupation of the position of President, might draw upon the College a feeling of hostility; & I should therefore Cause injury to an Institution, which it would be my highest desire to advance. I think it the duty of every Citizen in the present Condition of the Country, to do all in his power to aid in the restoration of peace & harmony, & in no way to oppose the policy of the State or Genl Governments, directed to that object. It is particularly incumbent on those charged with the instruction of the young, to set them an example of submission to authority, & I could not Consent to be the Cause of animadversion upon the College.

Should you however take a different view, & think that my services in the position tendered me by the Board will be advantageous to the College & Country, I will yield to your judgment & accept it. Otherwise I must most respectfully decline the office.

Begging you to express to the trustees of the College my heartfelt gratitude for the honors Conferred upon me, & requesting you to accept my Cordial thanks for the kind manner in which you have Communicated its decision,

I am Gent with great respect

your most obl sert

RE LeeRobert E Lee

The Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution abolished slavery throughout the United States. It was adopted on December 18, 1865, when the last of the necessary number of States ratified it. The original amendment in the usual form of a Joint Resolution of Congress, approved February 1, 1865, is in the National Archives at Washington.

Thirty-Eighth Congress of the United States of America; At the Second Session, Begun and held at the City of Washington, on Monday, the fifth day of December, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.

A RESOLUTION

Submitting to the legislatures of the several States a proposition to amend the Constitution of the United States.

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, (two-thirds of both houses concurring), that the following article be proposed to the legislatures of the several States as an amendment to the Constitution. of the United States, which, when ratified by three-fourths of said Legislatures shall he valid, to all intents and purposes, as a part of the said Constitution, namely:

Article XIII

Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2.Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Schuyler Colfax
Speaker of the House of Representatives.

H Hamlin
Vice President of the United States.
and President of the Senate.

Abraham Lincoln

Approved, February 1. 1865.

Anthony and thirteen other women were indicted Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 1872, in Roches­ter N. Y. Fourteen had registered to vote in Anthony’s ward on November 1, citing their rights as citizens under the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. Anthony, her sister Mary, and four other women voted in the presidential election on November 5.

For his first criminal case, Judge Ward Hunter penned his decision before hearing the case, discharged the jury, found Anthony guilty of voting illegally and fined her $100, which she never paid. In the long run, this travesty of justice actually stimulated discussion of the rights of citizens to vote and trial by jury and gained supporters for the women’s rights movement.

From the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 23, 1874.

MISS ANTHONY’S CASE

The account of the proceedings had, on the trial of Susan B. Anthony, on the charge of illegal voting, and the trial of the inspectors of election who received her vote, makes, with certain additional matter hearing upon the cases, a book of over 200 pages. Its contents are as follows: the indictment against Susan B. Anthony; the evidence taken upon her trial; Judge Seldens opening in her behalf; his argument for the defendant; the opinion; the verdict; judge Seldens remarks on the motion for a new trial; Miss Anthonys objections to the imposition of the sentence; the indictment against the inspectors; the objections to the said indictment by Mr. Van Voorhis; the evidence taken on the trial; the argument in behalf of the defence by Mr. Van Voorhis; the verdict; the motion for a new trial and its denial; the verdict and the sentence; the address of Susan B. Anthony delivered in twenty-nine places in Monroe, and twenty-one in Ontario, in her canvass of these counties previous to her trial, the speech of Matilda joslyn Gage, delivered in sixteen towns of Ontario county, and an article by John Hooker on judge Hunt and the right of trial by jury. It is proper to say that District-Attorney Crowley was applied to for a copy of his argument in the case of Miss Anthony, but neglected to furnish it for publication. With this exception, we have a complete history of a case destined to become celebrated.

We believe the book is the most important contribution yet made to the discussion of the woman suffrage issue, from a legal stand-point. It deals, to a very small extent, with either the emotional or expediential phases of the question – phases which are necessarily involved in the broader debate as to whether the ballot shall be given to woman, but which are, of course, excluded from the determination of her right to vote under existing statutory regulations. Upon this limited branch of the subject it must be conceded that Judge Selden makes a very strong argument, as, indeed, does Miss Anthony in her addresses before the electors of this and an adjoining county. Judge Selden’s analysis of the term “citisenship” is very exhaustive. He holds that the right to vote inheres in the citisen, and fortifies his positions by the definitions of the lexicographers and the dicta, if not the decisions, of the courts. If this be so, we cannot see how the conclusion is to be resisted that the fourteenth amendment includes in its sweeping effect the prohibition of the states from making laws which shall abridge the suffrage of any of their citisens. The constitution of the state of New York in prescribing the qualifications of an elector, says, every male citisen, &c., and thereby seems to concede that women are citisens. The fourteenth amendment to the constitution of the United States uses these express words: “All persons born or naturalised in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citisens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.” If this does not include women, whom does it include?

No, there can be no discussion as to the citizenship of our mothers, our wives and our sisters. They are as much citizens of the republic and of the commonwealth as the mightiest man among us all; and Judge Seldens authorities are very cogent, if not entirely conclusive, as to “the privileges and immunities” which citizenship embraces. And yet, whatever the lexicographers and the courts have said, it is evident that citizenship, in the eyes of the lawmakers, has not been held necessarily to include the right of suffrage. And here we reach the vital point. May suffrage be conferred and may it be restricted by the separate states? judge Hunt answers, yes! and it is certainly the principle upon which the states have proceeded, and are still proceeding. The constitution of the United States, in its amended form, specifically declares that the right of citizens shall not be denied or abridged by any state, on account of certain human conditions, one of which conditions is not that of being a woman; and it also affixes a penalty for the denial of the right to vote to male inhabitants; but does it anywhere declare that citizenship and suffrage are synonymous?

Without, however, attempting to decide the vexed issue upon which the learned doctors are so thoroughly disagreed. we have no hesitation in recommending the work before us as an elaborate presentation of the legal points to which we have alluded. We believe it will hereafter be quoted as high authority and will be an arsenal from whence the champions of female suffrage will draw some of their most formidable weapons in the baffle before them. We cannot close this article without saying that, although not entirely convinced of the tenableness of the position taken by Miss Anthony in asserting her right to vote under our present laws, we are in full accord with the general movement in which she is engaged and in which she has exhibited so much of courage and independence -has done so much to entitle her to the thanks of her American sisters in whose behalf she has fought, and is still fighting, such a noble battle. Woman suffrage is only a question of time. It is coming for the republic, bringing blessings in its train, so surely as the sun to-day illumines the earth. If the law is against her it will be amended. If prejudices emcompass her they will vanish. If she is the victim of injustice she will rise superior to its thraldom. Reason, equity and expediency are on her side; and, in the long run, they will assert their power.

Sold by Erastus Darrow, D.M. Dewey, and Williamson & Co., booksellers, Rochester, N.Y. The book may also be obtained by addressing Susan B. Anthony, Rochester, N.. Price, 50 cts., exclusive of postage, which is 7 cents.

“All men are created equal, and endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights. Among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Here is no shadow of government authority over rights, nor exclusion of any class from their full and equal enjoyment. Here is pronounced the right of all men, and “consequently”, as the Quaker preacher said, “of all women”, to a voice in the government. And here, in this very first paragraph of the declaration, is the assertion of the natural right of all to the ballot; for, how can “the consent of the governed” be given, if the right to vote be denied. Again:

“That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government, laying its foundations on such principles, and organizing its powers in such forms as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.”

Surely, the right of the whole people to vote is here clearly implied. For however destructive to their happiness this government might become, a disfranchised class could neither alter nor abolish it, nor institute a new one, except by the old brute force method of insurrection and rebellion. One-half of the people of this nation to-day are utterly powerless to blot from the statute books an unjust law, or to write there a new and a just one. The women, dissatisfied as they are with this form of government, that enforces taxation without representation, – that compels them to obey laws to which they have never given their consent, – that imprisons and hangs them without a trial by a jury of their peers, that robs them, in marriage, of the custody of their own persons, wages and children, – are this half of the people left wholly at the mercy of the other half, in direct violation of the spirit and letter of the declarations of the framers of this government, every one of which was based on the immutable principle of equal rights to all. By those declarations, kings, priests, popes, aristocrats, were all alike dethroned, and placed on a common level, politically, with the lowliest born subject or serf. By them, too, men, as such, were deprived of their divine right to rule, and placed on a political level with women. By the practice of those declarations all class and caste distinction will be abolished; and slave, serf, plebeian, wife, woman, all alike, bound from their subject position to the proud platform of equality.

The preamble of the federal constitution says:

“We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution for the United States of America.”

It was we, the people, not we, the white male citizens, nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed this Union. And we formed it, not to give the blessings of liberty, but to secure them; not to the half of ourselves and the half of our posterity, but to the whole people- women as well as men. And it is downright mockery to talk to women of their enjoyment of the blessings of liberty while they are denied the use of the only means of securing them provided by this democratic-republican government – the ballot.

PRIVACY POLICY

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