SPEECH OF BENJAMIN WOOD, OF NEW YORK, ON THE STATE OF THE UNION, IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, MAY 16TH, 1862.

New York: Van Evrie, Horton & Co., 1862., 1862. Fair. - Octavo, 10 inches high by 6-1/4 inches wide. Softcover, bound in printed yellow wraps. The edges of the soiled covers are heavily chipped with several short tears and the spine is splitting. 14 pages. The edges of several pages are slightly chipped and there is a tear to the top edge of the pages. Good. RARE. The American publisher and politician Benjamin Wood (1820-1900) was the brother of U.S. Congressman and New York City Mayor Fernando Wood. He purchased the New York Daily News in 1860 but was shut down when the government suspended delivery through the postal system due to its support of the Confederacy. He was able to re-open the paper in 1863 and printed personal columns which the War Department claimed were used by Confederate spies to send coded communication to Confederate forces. Wood was elected as a U.S. Congressman from New York in 1861 serving until 1865. He subsequently served as a New York State Senator before being re-elected to the U.S. Congress.…