On the record
In regard to slaves, the constitution says,--“No person HELD to service,” &c.; but in regard to criminals, its language is, “A person CHARGED,” &c.
Source
gutenberg.orgEditor's note · Context
Mann highlights the constitutional language regarding slaves versus criminals, emphasizing the implications of the terms used.
Share
More from Horace Mann
The general system of slaveholding farmers and planters, in all times and places, has been, and now is, and ever will be, to cultivate much land, badly, for present gain,--in short, to kill the goose that lays the golden egg.
The aged and the infant she left for the vultures; but the strong men and the strong women she drove, scourged and bleeding, to the shore.
Is there not one spot where we can stand side by side, as friends, sympathize with each other, and act together in harmony?
Whoever intercepts knowledge, therefore, on its passage to a human soul; whoever strikes down the hand that is outstretched to grasp it, is guilty of one of the most heinous of offences.
Other voices in this conversation
