On the record
It is true, too true, alas! that our fathers were engaged in this traffic; but that is no apology for it.
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gutenberg.orgEditor's note · Context
Sumner acknowledges the historical involvement of ancestors in slavery but argues it cannot be justified.
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More from Charles Sumner
They who strive after it, Ixion-like, embrace a cloud.
The most distant are not without a present influence on our daily lives.
Their existence is a disgrace to civilization; for it implies the common consent of nations to the Arbitrament of War, as regulated by these laws.
Endeavor, for a moment, by comparison with other interests, to grapple with this sum.
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