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Show Washington and Lincoln Speak to Their Fellow-Americans Today "The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether Americans are to be Freemen, Free-men, or Slaves, whether they are to have any property they can call their own, whether their Houses, and Farms, are to be pillaged and destroyed, de-stroyed, and they consigned to a state of wretchedness from which no human efforts will probably deliver de-liver them. The fate of unknown millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this Army. Our cruel and unrelenting Enemy leaves us no choice but a brave resistance, or the most Abject Submission; this is all we can expect We have therefore to resolve to conquer or to die." Gen. George Washington in an order to the Continental Con-tinental Army on July 2, 1776. "God knows, there is not a difficulty, difficul-ty, that you very justly complain of, which I have not in an eminent degree experienced, that I am not every day experiencing; but we must bear up against them, and make the best of mankind as they are since we cannot have them as we wish. Let me, therefore, conjure you to lay aside such thoughts (resigning (re-signing from the army) thoughts injurious to you and excessively so to your country, which calls aloud for a gentleman of your ability." Gen. George Washington in a letter to Gen. Philip Schuyler, December 24, 1775. |