Read the excerpt from president lincoln's 1865 inaugural
address, in which he speaks about the civil war.
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one-eighth of the whole population were colored slaves, not
distributed generally over the union, but localized in the
southern part of it. these slaves constituted a peculiar and
powerful interest. all knew that this interest was somehow
the cause of the war. to strengthen, perpetuate, and extend
this interest was the object for which the insurgents would
rend the union even by war, while the government claimed
no right to do more than to restrict the territorial enlargement
of it.