Sumner, Charles (1811-1874) to Robert Adams
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC07356.01 Author/Creator: Sumner, Charles (1811-1874) Place Written: Washington, D.C. Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 3 July 1852 Pagination: 2 p. ; 25 x 20.1 cm. Order a Copy
Thanks Adams, possibly an underground railroad conductor, for the invitation to Independence Day events at Fall River, Massachusetts, but cannot make it. Sends his sentiments instead which he calls trite but necessary. "Defenders of the Constitution, let us not forget the principles of the Declaration; but for the equal support of both, in the spirit of our fathers, without compromise & with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, let us mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes & our sacred honor." Addressed to Robert Adams as Chairman.
[Draft Excerpt:]
Though trite, it seems to me, in the oblivion of great principles which marks our day, to be worthy of constant repetition...The Declaration of Indpendence & the Constitution of the United States; the two immortal title-deeds of American liberties. Defenders of the Constitution, let us not forget the principles of the Declaration; but for the equal support of both, in the spirit of our fathers, without compromise & with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, let us mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes & our sacred honor.
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