Question

What does this mean?

" I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong nothing is wrong. I cannot remember when I did not so think and feel; and yet I have never understood that the Presidency conferred upon me an unrestricted right to act officially in this judgment and feeling. It was in the oath I took that I would to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. I could not take the office without taking the oath. Nor was it in my view that I might take the oath to get power, and break the oath in using the power. "

Answer 1

Its saying slavery is wrong and anybody who does not think its wrong think anything else anybody do is  wrong.So it saying like if you  dont think slavery wrong then killing somebody  is not wrong. Its saying  its going by the constitution and sticking to the law that  all man are created equal.So all this saying whoever  wrote this want to get the power and change the oath.

Answer 2

It means that though Abraham Lincoln may be the President of the country, his opposition of the slavery system is not something he can just simply take into consideration. His duty to the nation precedes his personal opinions.

Step-by-step explanation:

The above excerpt is from the letter written by Abraham Lincoln to Albert G. Hodges, editor of the newspaper Frankfurt, Kentucky, Commonwealth. President Lincoln had been an avid supporter of the emancipation of slaves.

In the letter, he wrote that though he is personally against the slavery system, being the President doesn't ensure that he should abolish it. He might be the President of the country, with absolute power, but he had taken an oath to protect and preserve the interest of all the citizens. And he knows there are a lot of people who still wants the slavery system. So, he can't just ignore these people's interest and act like a dictator. His first duty is to the nation and the constitution, which he had sworn an oath to do so.