My name is James Henry Hammond, I was born on November 15, 1807 in South Carolina. My political career started in 1835 when I was elected to serve in the United States House of Representatives for a year. From 1842-1844 I was the 60th Governor of South Carolina, and following that, in 1857 I was chosen by the state legislature to be the United States Senator for South Carolina after the current Senator died unexpectedly. My term as US Senator only lasted 3 years because South Carolina seceded from the Union in 1860.
After marrying my wife Catherine Fitzimmons Hammond I acquired 22 square miles of property, several plantations and houses, and over 300 slaves, along with a boatload of money. I am a democrat and am known best for being an outspoken defender of slavery and a proponent of states rights. I am probably most known for a speech I gave to the US Senate on March 4, 1858, which outlined my famous Mudsill Theory.
The Mudsill Theory states, “In all societies that must be a class to do the menial duties, to perform the drudgery of life." This class makes it possible for the higher class to move civilization forward.1 Since my pro-slavery friends and I believe that the Africans are inferior to white people, slavery gives them a purpose, offers them protection, and allows the progress of white society to continue.
In this speech, which became known as the “Cotton is King” speech, I also say that slaves in the South “are happy, content, uninspiring, and utterly incapable, from intellectual weakness, ever to give us any trouble by their aspirations.”2 The manual laborers in the North who work harder than our slaves are paid very low wages, and are basically slaves, in fact they are worse off because we provide for our slaves.
I am a proud pro-slavery southerner who believes that Africans are better off as slaves, and that slavery is necessary to support the elite white class. This kind of support is important so that the whites the superior race can continue to lead our society to greatness!
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