How can we understand hammond’s treatment of sally johnson and her daughter as well as his refusal to free his son and son’s children in the context of his 1858 speech and the staunton spectators editorial?

We can understand that Hammond's treated Sally in a very disgusting way by saying that he never cared about Sally or her daughter and that he wouldn't mind sending them to slavery.

Explanation:

By Hammond's speech, we get to know that Sally was a slave and that at that time Slave owners were not supposed to have any kind of relationships with slaves.Hammond doesn't care about them (Sally, her daughter and her son) by saying that he doesn't even know whether they are his children.He tells Sally to take care of them on her own and that he wouldn't help them even a little.By telling that he will send them to slavery Hammond isn't really trying to be the bad guy in this situation but he is doing what he believes is best for them in his own mind.Sally was a slave and she had no right to question or talk back due to her identity.