Which detail from the article BEST supports the idea that the delegates disagreed about some of the issues the declaration should address? Debate in the Congress followed, and Jefferson watched painfully as the other delegates tweaked his writing. Finally on July 4, 1776, the colonies approved the document. For instance, Abigail Adams suggested to her husband John that in the new laws of the Continental Congress, he should, "Remember the ladies, and be more generous and favorable to them." It didn't work out that way. His original draft of the declaration included a passage that blamed King George for allowing the slave trade to flourish. This implied criticism of slavery was deleted by a vote of the Continental Congress. While the signers of the declaration thought of "the people" more narrowly than we do today, they stated principles that are still American ideals.