The people have said in the late election, “We care nothing for your past; but what is your present character and work?” And in rendering judgment they have said, “We see little ground for preferring one to the other.
Douglass notes that voters prioritize current character and work over past actions in their judgments.
Share
More from Frederick Douglass
Our very lack of preparation for the conflict disposed us to look for some other than the way of blood out of the difficulty.
I wished it was possible I could remain small all my life, knowing that the sooner I grew large the shorter would be my time to remain with them.
It was perhaps better for the country and for mankind that the good man could not know the end from the beginning.
The sentiment that brings us here to-day is one of the noblest that can stir and thrill the human heart.