I need not argue these principles to you, my fellow countrymen;
they are your own part and parcel of your own thinking and your
own motives in affairs. They spring up native amongst us. Upon
this as a platform of purpose and of action we can stand together.
And it is imperative that we should stand together. We are being
forged into a new unity amidst the fires that now blaze throughout
the world. In their ardent heat we shall, in God's Providence, let
us hope, be purged of faction and division, purified of the errant
humors of party and of private interest, and shall stand forth in
the days to come with a new dignity of national pride and spirit.
Let each man see to it that the dedication is in his own heart,
the high purpose of the nation in his own mind, ruler of his own
will and desire.
I stand here and have taken the high and solemn oath to which you
have been audience because the people of the United States have
chosen me for this august delegation of power and have by their
gracious judgment named me their leader in affairs.
I know now what the task means. I realize to the full the
responsibility which it involves. I pray God I may be given the
wisdom and the prudence to do my duty in the true spirit of this
great people. I am their servant and can succeed only as they
sustain and guide me by their confidence and their counsel.
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