Historical and Legal Examination of that part of the Decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the The Dred Scott Case, which Declares the Unconstitutionality of the Missouri Compromise Act

(Dred Scott) Benton, Thomas H.

Published by D. Appleton and Company, New York, 1857

About this Item

First Edition. 193, [1], [6]pp. Ads in the rear. 1 vols. 8vo. "When the Wilmot Proviso against slavery in the territories acquired from Mexico produced angry debates, Benton denounced the proviso, but he also refused to support the southern demand for territorial expansion. He insisted that slavery where it existed was in no danger, while geography, climate, and the opposition of existing territorial populations would prevent its expansion. Though a slaveholder himself, Benton described the institution as an incurable evil, preserved only by racial fears and animosities. He hoped that it would ultimately disappear, but meanwhile he prayed that it would never be expanded . In 1857 the Supreme Court, in the Dred Scott decision, ruled that the federal government could not bar slavery from any federal territory. Benton answered this ruling with a 192-page Historical and Legal Examination of the Dred Scott Case (1857), which glorified the Union, appealed for sectional peace, and denounced the decision as bad constitutional law" (ANB). Howes B367; Sabin 4785 Publisher's dark blue cloth blocked in blind, upper cover lettered in gilt, very minor fading to spine 193, [1], [6]pp. Ads in the rear. 1 vols. 8vo.

Seller Inventory # 345827

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Historical and Legal Examination of that part of the Decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the The Dred Scott Case, which Declares the Unconstitutionality of the Missouri Compromise Act
• Publisher: D. Appleton and Company, New York
• Publication Date: 1857
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Seller catalogs:
  • Americana