Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent,
a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition
that "all men are created equal"
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation,
or any nation so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are
met on a great battle field of that war. We have come
to dedicate a portion of it, as a final resting place for those who
died here, that the nation might live. This we may,
in all propriety do. But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate
-- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow, this ground -- The brave
men, living and dead, who struggled here, have hallowed
it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little
note, nor long remember what we say here; while it
can never forget what they did here.
It is rather for us, the living, we here be dedicated
to the great task remaining before us -- that, from these honored dead we
take increased devotion to that cause for which they here, gave the last
full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve these dead shall not
have died in vain; that the nation, shall have a new birth of
freedom, and that government of the people by the people for the people, shall
not perish from the earth.
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Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this
continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and
dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation,
or any nation, so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are
met here on a great battlefield of
that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of it as a final resting
place for those who here gave their lives that that
nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that
we should do this.
But in a larger sense we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate
-- we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who
struggled, here, have consecrated it far above our
poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember,
what we say here, but can never forget what they did
here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here
to the unfinished work which they have, thus far, so nobly carried on.
It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great
task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased
devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure
of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these
dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation
shall have a new birth of freedom; and that this government
of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from
the earth.
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