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New York corporal, as quoted in For Cause and Comrades: Why Men Fought in the Civil War (1997), by James M. McPherson, New York City: Oxford University Press, Inc., p. 108
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I know enough of the southern spirit that I think they will fight for the institution of slavery even to extermination.

— American Civil War

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "I know enough of the southern spirit that I think they will fight for the institution of slavery even to extermination." in the context of "New York corporal, as quoted in For Cause and Comrades: Why Men Fought in the Civil War (1997), by James M. McPherson, New York City: Oxford University Press, Inc., p. 108" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "American Civil War" (Quotes, War aims, Confederate war aims, Contemporaries) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed February 05, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
American Civil War

About American Civil War

The American Civil War (ACW), also known as the War of the Rebellion, the Great Rebellion, and several other names, was a civil war that was fought in the United States of America from 1861 to 1865. Fearing that the future of slavery was in jeopardy after the election of an anti-slavery U.S. president, eleven slave-holding U.S. states located in the southern United States declared their secession from the country and formed the Confederate States, also known as "the Confederacy", sparking war. Led by Democrat Jefferson Davis, they fought against the United States, also known as "the Union", led by Republican Abraham Lincoln, which consisted of every free U.S. state as well as five slave-holding states, known as "border states". In 1865, after four years of warfare, the Confederacy surrendered, and slavery was abolished in the United States with the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution by three-fourths of the states.

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