[WESTWARD EXPANSION] [SLAVERY] Speech of Daniel Webster, in Rely to Mr. Hayne, of South Carolina: The Resolution Offered by Mr. Foot. Relative to the Public Lands, Being Under Consideration. Delivered in the Senate, January 26, 1830

WEBSTER, Daniel

Published by Gales & Seaton, Washington DC, 1830

About this Item

12mo, 76pp. Removed, with stitching perished, but still sound and intact. First issue, with "Rely" for "Reply" on the title leaf. In good condition, with moderate foxing thoughout, but a sound, clean copy, untrimmed along the fore edge and bottom edge. A note on the title leaf reads "From the Hon. D. Webster." This note is secretarial; certainly not in Webster's hand. Though not signed by Webster himself, it is nevertheless is a presentation copy of the scarce first issue; one of a small number likely given by Webster to his colleagues right off the press. Though Howes does not explicitly identify this as the first issue, other specialists have done so for a very long time. It makes sense, after all, that a typo would be corrected, rather than introduced. The speech is often cited as one of the most important of the era, a major event in the long political battle over sectionalism, the expansion of slavery, and the use of the western land which was rapidly being overtaken by the United States during this period. The subject came up due South Carolina's attempt to nullify federally imposed tariffs, which would become a central event in the debate over states' rights and the ability for a state's government to contravene federal policy. Webster was having none of this, and used this speech to advocate for a national identity and a unified policy of distributing land in the west, in part to prohibit the expansion of slavery, and also to avoid a sectional crisis. The lengthy speech was certainly Webster's finest, and is regarded by many historians as among the very best by an American politician in the 19th century. It addressed the numerous ideological currents which were threatening to divide the country in its early decades, and which, remaining unresolved, would culminate in the Civil War a full thirty years after this speech. As Webster was advocating for a strong, centralized, national identity, it's no wonder that Lincoln would borrow and adapt some of his turns of phrase for his own presidential oratory. Rare in the first issue, and desirable thus. Howes W200 (aa); Sabin 102272.

Seller Inventory # 13924

Bibliographic Details

• Title: [WESTWARD EXPANSION] [SLAVERY] Speech of Daniel Webster, in Rely to Mr. Hayne, of South Carolina: The Resolution Offered by Mr. Foot. Relative to the Public Lands, Being Under Consideration. Delivered in the Senate, January 26, 1830
• Publisher: Gales & Seaton, Washington DC
• Publication Date: 1830
• Edition: First Edition.
• Seller catalogs:
  • American History