And hence it follows
that no man, by birth or nature, has any right in political affairs to
control his fellow-man; and hence it follows further, as there is
neither subjection anywhere nor authority anywhere, that all men are
created equal, that governments derive their "just powers from the
consent of the governed." And hence it must, ere long, be demonstrated
by this country, under the light of Christianity, and in the presence of
the world, that man cannot have property in his fellow-man.
And, again, let no one despair of the Republic or of the Union; nor let
any, with rash confidence, believe that they are indestructible. They
are human institutions built up through great sacrifices, and by the
exercise of a high order of worldly wisdom. But the government is not an
end--it is a means. The end is Liberty regulated by law; and the means
will exist as long as the end thereof is attained. But, should the time
ever come when the institutions of the country fail to secure the
blessings of liberty to the living generation, and hold out no promise
of better things in the future, I know not that these institutions could
longer exist, of that they ought longer to exist. To be sure, the
horizon is not always distinctly seen. The sky is not always clear;
there are dark spots upon the disk of Liberty, as upon the sun in the
heavens; but, like the sun, its presence is for all.
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