200 résultats
1864M13597New York: Derby & Miller 1864. 1864. Volume II. 8vo. xxxi 1 711 1 pp. Subtle waterstain at top margin viewable from pages 500-712. Original full dark blue-green pebbled cloth gilt spine titles; light wear to extremities. Bookplate of the Essex Institute; small rubber stamp on title C.W. Post College Documents Library. The Emancipation Proclamation declared freedom for all slaves by January 1 1863. This proclamation is dated January 2 1863. Lincoln in writing this one of the most important documents in all US history declared "And by virtue of the power and fpr the purpose aforesaid I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said designated States and parts of the States are and henceforward shall be free; and that the Executive government of the United States including the military and naval authorities thereof will recognize and maintain the freedom of said persons." / The War Orders of 1863 are among the most historical during the Civil War. The volume includes: General Orders No.1: Emancipation Proclamation Liberty for Slaves. / General Orders No.100: The Lieber Code How soldiers should conduct ethically themselves in wartime. / General Orders No. 143: Order for the creation of the United States Colored Troops. / General Orders No.1. President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1 1863. With this Executive Order. He took a decisive stand on the most contentious issue in American history redefined the Union's goals and strategy and sounded the death knell for slavery. / Lincoln had always believed slavery to be immoral and fought its expansion. The President took the action "sincerely believed to be an act of justice" knowing that it might cost him the election. / With the Emancipation Proclamation Lincoln dramatically tied the Union's war aims to ending slavery. Whether they approved or not after January 1 1863 Americans could no longer deny that emancipation was central to the Union war effort. / Though ready to lay the groundwork for emancipation Lincoln feared that delivering the Proclamation at the wrong time would doom its chances for public acceptance and harm the Union cause. / On September 22 1862 Lincoln issued his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation giving the South 100 days to end the rebellion or face losing their slaves. / His final Proclamation on January 1 1863 further demonstrated his own evolving views by eliminating earlier references to colonizing freed blacks and compensating slave-owners for voluntary emancipation. Lincoln also added provisions for black military enlistment. Pausing before he signed the final Proclamation Lincoln reportedly said: "I NEVER IN MY LIFE FELT MORE CERTAIN THAT I WAS DOING RIGHT THAN I DO IN SIGNING THIS PAPER." Despite the political risks by 1864 he insisted on both reunion and emancipation as preconditions to any peace negotiation. Though the battle for civil rights would have to follow Lincoln rightly regarded the Proclamation as: "THE CENTRAL ACT OF MY ADMINISTRATION AND THE GREAT EVENT OF THE 19TH CENTURY" Derby & Miller, 1864. hardcover books
1864WB163441864. Hardcover. Very Good. Rare broadside tipped into a copy of The Early Life of Abraham Lincoln: Containing many unpublished documents and unpublished reminiscences of Lincoln's early friends. TARBELL Ida M. Assisted by James McCann Davis. Published by McClure New York 1896. The broadside printed in two columns presents the platforms of the Republicans who in June in Baltimore nominated Lincoln and the Democrats who in August in Chicago nominated McClellan. <br/><br/> hardcover books
188938654Boston: Roberts Brothers 1889. Early edition. 8vo pp. 536 plus advertisements. Index. Marbled paper 3/4 brown cloth. Flyleaves missing owner's bookplate on pastedown. Stained in places cover somewhat worn but VG. See Bitting page 288. Roberts Brothers unknown books
186424901.02<p>"<i>with the same determination to divide the country unless they can secure universal abolition we are exposed to the same dangers every day and God only knows in what unlucky hour our ruin may be consummated. Compare his policy with McClellan's expression of readiness to receive any State when its people offer to submit to the Union.</i>"</p><p>This Democratic Party campaign pamphlet quotes an April 1864 letter to argue that Lincoln gave Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant free rein to conduct the war after having interfered with and micromanaged McClellan's Peninsula Campaign in 1862. The publication also declared that Republicans were stained with "<i>The Taint of Disunion</i>" and quoted from Republican speeches and editorials to insist that the Democrats were the party of "<i>UNION AND PEACE</i>."</p> <b>ABRAHAM LINCOLN.</b>Printed Document. Democrat Campaign "<i>Document No. 12</i>" with headings "<i>Lincoln's Treatment of Gen. Grant</i>" "<i>Mr. Lincoln's Treatment of Gen. McClellan</i>" and "<i>The Taint of Disunion</i>." New York 1864. 8 pp. 5¾ x 8â… in.<p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>Excerpts:</b></p><p>Lincoln to Grant April 30 1864</p><p>"<i>I wish to express in this way my entire satisfaction with what you have done up to this time so far as I understand it. The particulars of your plans I neither know nor seek to know. You are vigilant and self-reliant; and pleased with this I wish not to obtrude any restrains or constraints upon you while I am very anxious that any real disaster or capture of our men in great numbers be avoided.</i>" p1/c1</p><p>"<i>Such in brief are some of the most notable instances in which Mr. Lincoln interfered with General McClellan when he occupied a position similar to that held by General Grant. They reflect so severely upon the President that no attempt to gloss them over by his apparent subsequent repentance can disabuse the patriotic portion of the nation of the matured conviction that he is to be held responsible for the lack of decisive victories in Eastern Virginia. The blame must and will rest upon him to whom it belongs.</i>" p5/c2</p><p>"<i>Having shown by copious extracts from the speeches of Abraham Lincoln W. H. Seward Wendell Phillips Wm. Lloyd Garrison and from the editorial writings of the Chicago Tribune and the N. Y. Tribune… that they were all <b>original secessionists and disunion men</b> we propose now to give the evidence that Mr. Lincoln himself has within the last three months been concerned in a movement to make peace with Jeff. Davis on terms involving the direct proposal to divide the Union and let the South go.</i>" p7/c2-p8/c1</p><p>"<i>with the same determination to divide the country unless they can secure universal abolition we are exposed to the same dangers every day and God only knows in what unlucky hour our ruin may be consummated. Mark how Mr. Lincoln constantly keeps up the idea of negotiating only with Jefferson Davis. Why does he never address himself to the people or the States of the South. Compare his policy with McClellan's expression of readiness to receive any State when its people offer to submit to the Union.</i>" p8/c2</p><p><b>Historical Background</b></p><p>The 1864 presidential election pitted President Lincoln against his Democratic challenger General George B. McClellan. Although McClellan had been the commander of the Army of the Potomac and general-in-chief of the Union Army the Peace platform adopted by the Democratic National Convention in Chicago declared the war a failure. The party was bitterly divided between War Democrats who favored continuing the war to restore the Union while leaving slavery alone; moderate Peace Democrats who favored an armistice and a negotiated peace that would likely protect slavery in a reconstructed union and radical Peace Democrats who favored an immediate end to the war without securing Union victory. McClellan was a War Democrat but the platform was written by radical Peace Democrat Clement Vallandigham and Peace Democrat George H. Pendleton was nominated for vice president.</p><p>In 1864 Republicans created the National Union Party to attract War Democrats Unconditional Unionists and Unionist Party members who would not vote for the Republican Party though most state Republican parties did not change their name. President Abraham Lincoln won the nomination of the "National Union Party" at its Baltimore convention and won re-election with new running mate War Democrat Andrew Johnson.</p><p>Although Lincoln was convinced by August 1864 that he would not be reelected General William T. Sherman's capture of Atlanta in early September and General Philip Sheridan's successes in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia from August to October ensured his victory. Without the participation of the seceded states Lincoln and Johnson won 55 percent of the popular vote and an overwhelming 212-to-21 victory in the Electoral College. McClellan and Pendleton carried only Kentucky Delaware and McClellan's home state of New Jersey.</p> books
187329274Washington: Polkinhorn 1873. 3" x 5 3/4" mounted on the top margin of the blank verso on old card stock. Light wear Good or so. Polkinhorn unknown books
186230007.01<p>On the front page under <i>"News from the North" </i>is the text of Abraham Lincoln's reply to <i>New York Tribune</i>editor Horace Greeley. Greeley's letter urging Lincoln to emancipate all slaves in Union-held territory was known as "The Prayer of Twenty Millions." It was first published on August 20 1862. Lincoln responded on August 22 declaring that his paramount goal is to save the Union regardless of its effect on slavery as well as his personal views that all men should be free.</p> <b>ABRAHAM LINCOLN.</b>Newspaper. <i>Richmond Whig</i> Richmond Va. August 30 1862. 2 pp. 17 x 24 in.<p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>Excerpt:</b></p><p><i>"…As to the policy I 'seem to be pursuing' as you say I have not meant to leave any one in doubt. </i></p><p><i> I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored the nearer the Union will be 'the Union as it was.' If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time </i>save<i> slavery I do not agree with them. If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time </i>destroy<i> slavery I do not agree with them—My paramount object in this struggle </i>is <i>to save the Union and is </i>not<i> either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing </i>any<i> slave I would do it and if I could save it by freeing </i>all<i>the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that.—What I do about slavery and the colored race I do because I believe it helps to save this Union and what I forbear I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union. I shall do </i>less<i> whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause and I shall do </i>more<i>whenever I shall believe doing more will help the cause. I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors; and I shall adopt new views so fast as they shall appear to be true views. </i></p><p><i> I have here stated my purpose according to my view of </i>official<i> duty; and I intend no modification of my oft-expressed </i>personal<i> wish that all men every where could be free." </i></p><p><b>Historical Background</b></p><p>Though this letter is often as proof that Lincoln did not intend to abolish slavery unknown to Greeley and most Americans Lincoln had already drafted the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation and was only waiting for a Union military victory to deliver it. Moreover Lincoln makes a "divide and conquer" rhetorical move: he splits the issue by stating that his constitutional duty as president is to keep the Union together while simultaneously expressing his personal view of universal freedom at the end.</p><p>Additional content in this issue includes a front page editorial <i>"European Recognition" "The Indian Atrocities in Minnesota" "Yankee Finances" "An Order From Gen. Burnside" "The Peninsular Campaign—Gen. </i><b><i>J. Bankhead </i></b><i>Magruder's Official Report"</i> which takes over two columns with considerable detail.<br /><br />The back page has additional content with: <i>"A Brilliant Cavalry Exploit" "The Impressment of Slaves In Georgia" "Outrages in Arkansas" "From Kentucky"</i> and more. Additionally there are various reports from the <i>"Confederate Congress"</i> and numerous advertisements including a <i>"$100 Reward"</i> for a runaway slave.</p><p>The <i>Richmond Whig</i> is one of the less common—but still important—newspapers from the capital of the Confederacy.</p><p>In <i>Four Years in Rebel Capitals: An Inside View of Life in the Southern Confederacy from Birth to Death</i> journalist T. C. DeLeon wrote that the <i>Richmond</i> <i>Whig</i>was among the South's best wartime newspapers. Their pages "recorded the real and true history of public opinion during the war. In their columns is to be found the only really correct and indicative 'map of busy life its fluctuations and its vast concerns' in the South during her days of darkness and of trial."</p><p>One of the more interesting episodes in the history of the <i>Whig</i> is its alleged involvement in a terror plot against New York City during the Civil War. The <i>Whig</i>was reputed to have worked with the Confederate government to use advertisements and editorials to convey secret messages to Southern sympathizers in the North. In October 1864 the <i>Whig</i> was alleged to have run an editorial that signaled Southern supporters to embark on a terror campaign that called for widespread fires to be set in New York city and federal offices to be taken over and the capture of the city's military commander Maj. Gen. John Adams Dix.</p><p><b>Condition</b></p><p>Good. Never bound several folds with minor wear at the folds.</p> books
186322448.01New York N.Y. 1863. No binding. Fine. New York Journal of Commerce. Newspaper. New York Journal of Commerce. New York N.Y. January 3 1863. 4 pp. 24 x 32 1/2 in. An early report of the Emancipation Proclamation where the editors describe Lincoln's bold move as ""a farce coming in after a long tragedy.Most of the people regard it as a very foolish piece of business."" Historical BackgroundThe Emancipation Proclamation was the single most important act of Lincoln's presidency. Its text reveals the major themes of the Civil War: the importance of slavery to the war effort on both sides; the courting of border states; Lincoln's hopes that the rebellious states could somehow be convinced to reenter the Union; the role of black soldiers; Constitutional and popular constraints on emancipation; the place of African Americans in the United States and America's place in a worldwide movement toward the abolition of slavery. In sounding the death knell for slavery and the ""Slave power"" the President took a decisive stand on the most contentious issue in American history and the United States joined other western nations in embracing a future of free labor.In addition to the moral impact of this ""sincerely believed.act of justice"" the Proclamation aided the Union cause tangibly and decisively. Because it focused on territory still held by the Confederacy only small numbers of slaves compared to the total slave population were immediately freed. However the Proclamation deprived the South of essential labor by giving all slaves a reason to escape to Union lines. Failing that it freed slaves immediately upon the Union Army's occupation of Confederate territory. The Proclamation also encouraged the enlistment of black soldiers who made a crucial contribution to the Union war effort. Moreover England and France who had already abolished slavery were restrained from supporting the Confederacy which would have been in their own economic interests. Lincoln summed up the Proclamation's importance in 1864: ""no human power can subdue this rebellion without using the Emancipation lever as I have done.""Nonetheless the editors of the Journal of Commerce disagreed and their opinion reflects the truly controversial nature of the act for many contemporary Americans. books
187727595Providence RI: Reid 1877. 8vo pp. 51. Paper wraps. Cover little chipped and torn o/w VG. Reid unknown books
1865236784Boston: Printed by Order of the City Council 1865. 1 vols. 8vo. Original pebbled bevelled cloth. Fine. 1 vols. 8vo. Includes speeches by Mayor of Boston Lincoln Senator Charles Sumner the eulogy Charles G. Loring A.H. Rice and Richard Henry Dana Jr pp. 56-61. BAL 4465 Printed by Order of the City Council unknown books
186549673Troy N. Y.: A. W. Scribner Book and Job Printer Cannon Place 1865. 1st Printing Monaghan 802. Original printed self-wrappers stiched. Now housed in an archival mylar sleeve. Bit of age-toning & soiling to outer leaves overall VG. 47 1 blank pp. 8vo. 9" x 5-3/4" <br/><br/>"If it be that the South is avenged in his death she will find it to be a vengance that will recoil upon her own head; for in him she has lost her best friend and however little we could afford to spare him she could afford it less still." <br /> <br />One of the many such sermons that were published shortly after the tragic event of April 15th 1865; this particular one uncommon in the trade with RBH showing a 1945 Goodspeed catalogue as their most recent appearance. A. W. Scribner, Book and Job Printer, Cannon Place unknown books
1861690201861. Military commission signed by Abraham Lincoln Washington August 1861. Folio on vellum with vignettes. Light wear along the folds. Countersigned by Simon Cameron. Matted and framed. Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He led the United States through its Civil War and in doing so preserved the Union of the United States of America abolished slavery and strengthened the federal government. hardcover books
186522051Boston MA 1865. No binding. Fine. Photograph. Lincoln funerary stereoview. c. April 1865 E.F. Smith photographer Boston Mass. This double card from a stereopticon shows a large room with tables a globe and two men sitting. Mourning bunting reads ""A Nation Mourns Him Who Has Honored It."" unknown books
186095830c. 1860. Rare original painting of the 16th President of the United States Abraham Lincoln. After a photograph by Civil War photographer Alexander Gardner. Scottish photographer Alexander Gardner immigrated to the United States in 1856 where he became best known for his photographs of the American Civil War President Abraham Lincoln and the execution of the conspirators to Lincoln's assassination. In near fine condition. In a period frame. The entire piece measures 20.75 by 16.75 inches. Rare and desirable. Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He led the United States through its Civil War and in doing so preserved the Union of the United States of America abolished slavery and strengthened the federal government. Lincoln began constructing his cabinet on election night and sought to create a cabinet that would unite the Republican party. His eventual cabinet would include his primary rivals for the Republican nomination and although his appointees held differing views on economic issues all were opposed to the expansion of slavery into the territories of the United States. The most senior cabinet post of Secretary of State was appointed to William Seward who had recently failed to win the 1860 Republican presidential nomination and Lincoln's choice for Secretary of the Treasury was Ohio Senator Salmon P. Chase Seward's primary political rival and the leader of a radical faction of the Republican party that sought the immediate abolition of slavery. unknown books
1864109547Cincinnati: E.C. Middleton 1864. Rare oloegraphic portrait of Abraham Lincoln by E.C. Middleton. With Middleton's Warranted Oil Colors imprint to the verso of the frame dated 1864. Between 1861 and 1873 E.C. Middleton of Cincinnati published a series oval oleographic portraits intended to have the appearance of oil paintings including thirteen "Portraits of American Statesmen and Heroes." Middleton invented the method of oleography which used the process of chromolithographic printing with oil based inks mounted on canvas. The portraits were exclusively sold in frames directly through agents by subscription. In fine condition. Framed. The portrait measures 17 inches by 14 inches. The entire piece measures 22 inches by 19 inches. Rare and desirable. Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He led the United States through its Civil War and in doing so preserved the Union of the United States of America abolished slavery and strengthened the federal government. Lincoln began constructing his cabinet on election night and sought to create a cabinet that would unite the Republican party. His eventual cabinet would include his primary rivals for the Republican nomination and although his appointees held differing views on economic issues all were opposed to the expansion of slavery into the territories of the United States. The most senior cabinet post of Secretary of State was appointed to William Seward who had recently failed to win the 1860 Republican presidential nomination and Lincoln's choice for Secretary of the Treasury was Ohio Senator Salmon P. Chase Seward's primary political rival and the leader of a radical faction of the Republican party that sought the immediate abolition of slavery. E.C. Middleton unknown books
18641142051864. Rare Civil War era military endorsement signed by Abraham Lincoln as President. Two pages the appointment is dated July 26th 1864 addressed to Secretary of War Edward M. Stanton and contains a request from J.M. Francis of Hudson County New Jersey that Edward Z. Laurence be appointed Secretary of Subsistence in the Volunteer Army of the United States. The request is approved and endorsed at the conclusion by Lincoln "Let the appointment be made if his service can be made useful A. Lincoln Aug. 17 1864." Framed. The entire piece measures 27 inches by 9.5 inches. In very good condition with a bold inscription from Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He led the United States through its Civil War and in doing so preserved the Union of the United States of America abolished slavery and strengthened the federal government. Lincoln began constructing his cabinet on election night and sought to create a cabinet that would unite the Republican party. His eventual cabinet would include his primary rivals for the Republican nomination and although his appointees held differing views on economic issues all were opposed to the expansion of slavery into the territories of the United States. The most senior cabinet post of Secretary of State was appointed to William Seward who had recently failed to win the 1860 Republican presidential nomination and Lincoln's choice for Secretary of the Treasury was Ohio Senator Salmon P. Chase Seward's primary political rival and the leader of a radical faction of the Republican party that sought the immediate abolition of slavery. unknown books
186125965<p><b>ABRAHAM LINCOLN.</b>Chromolithograph. <i>Presidents of the United States</i> Philadelphia: Published by F. Bouclet lithographed by A. Feusier. Sheet size: 21 in. x 27 in. Image size: 24½ in. x 18¾ in. </p><br />A large patriotic chromolithograph issued around the time of Abraham Lincoln's first inauguration. The central image is the goddess Columbia wearing a draped American flag flanked by bald eagle and Union shield. Behind her is a steam ship and the artist's rendition of what the then-uncompleted Capitol building was expected to look like. Surrounding Columbia is an ornate frame made up of portraits of the presidents of the United States from 1789-1861—including a beardless Abraham Lincoln: George Washington John Adams Thomas Jefferson James Madison James Monroe John Quincy Adams Andrew Jackson Martin Van Buren William H. Harrison John Tyler James K. Polk Zachary Taylor Millard Fillmore Franklin Pierce James Buchanan and Abraham Lincoln.<p><b>Historical Background</b></p><p>Erin Mast curator of "My Abraham Lincoln" a 2009 exhibition at President Lincoln's Cottage Museum noted that the print "both commemorates Lincoln's election and recognizes the challenges and opportunities facing the 16th president. The 16 presidential portraits encircle symbols of the republic at a time when a divided nation faced secession and civil war. In the center Columbia holds a shield and liberty cap the latter being a symbol both of revolution and of freed slaves. A bald eagle grasps arrows and an olive branch and carries a ribbon with the motto 'E Pluribus Unum.' The Capitol dome shown completed at a time when it was still unfinished symbolizes the founding of the democratic republic while a steamship symbolizes development and progress. The allegorical images relate to concepts that Lincoln expressed in his first inaugural address; that seceding and breaking the Constitution would be a step backward not forward and violates the very principles of the Union a Union which is 'older than the Constitution.' By commemorating Lincoln's election and illustrating the troubled and complex scene he faced this chromolithograph encapsulates the spirit of Lincoln's presidency."</p><p><b>Provenance</b></p><p>From the Estate of Malcolm S. Forbes.</p><p><b>Condition</b></p><p>Damp stains at top two corners light mat burn but generally a very fine example.</p> books
1864WRCAM45849Boston 1864. 88110pp. plus folding map. Antique-style three-quarter calf and marbled boards. 19th-century ink stamp on titlepage contemporary inscription on second leaf. Internally clean. Very good. Devoted almost entirely to the Massachusetts war effort published early in January 1864. The folding map shows the Soldier's National Cemetery at Gettysburg dedicated Nov. 19 1863 with the long speech of Edward Everett of Massachusetts and the short "Dedicatory Speech by President Lincoln" better known as the Gettysburg Address. Also printed is the "Programme of Arrangements" of that day a list of Massachusetts soldiers killed at Gettysburg and buried there and details of the cemetery. Monaghan notes this as an early printing of the Gettysburg Address. MONAGHAN 48. hardcover books
184721117.99<p>A list of stockholders entirely in Lincoln's hand filed as evidence in his first significant railroad case. Lincoln's own appearance in the shareholder list represents only the second known instance of a stock purchase by the future president. The Illinois Supreme Court's ultimate ruling in favor of Lincoln and the railroad set an important legal precedent upholding the binding nature of a stockholder's contractual and financial obligations. "The decision subsequently cited in twenty-five other cases throughout the United States helped establish the principle that corporation charters could be altered in the public interest and it established Lincoln as one of the most prominent and successful Illinois practitioners of railroad law" Donald p.155.</p> <b>ABRAHAM LINCOLN.</b>Autograph Manuscript Signed by Lincoln in text constituting his official transcript of the "<i>Subscription Book of the Capital Stock of the Alton and Sangamon Rail Road Company</i>" incorporated February 27 1847 transcribed in early 1851. Comprising a cover sheet titled in Lincoln's hand the joint stock subscription statement and list of 91 shareholders with the number of shares subscribed and leaf with Lincoln's legal docket: "<i>Alton and Sangamon Railroad Company vs. James A. Barret. Copy of contents of subscription book</i>." 8 pp. 6â… x 8¼ x ¼ in.<p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>Historical Background</b></p><p>The Alton and Sangamon Rail Road Company was chartered in 1847 to construct a line from Alton via New Berlin to Springfield. In 1850 however the Illinois General Assembly approved a more direct route bypassing the landholdings of some investors. Claiming breach of contract James A. Barret refused to make further installment payments for his 30 shares of stock as did several others who no longer stood to benefit from the new line. In 1851 Lincoln was hired to compel the defaulting shareholders to pay the balance of their promised investment.</p><p>The tactical details are spelled out in a February 19 1851 letter from Lincoln to William Martin a commissioner for the sale of the company's stock. Four suits were to be brought against stockholders who had subscribed to the initial offering but had then failed to make the additional installment payments. In preparation Lincoln listed the essential documents he would need in order to win a judgment. "We must prove" he advised Martin "that the defendant is a Stockholder" "that the calls have been made" and "that due notice of the calls has been given." To show that the defendants were in fact stockholders Lincoln explained he needed to produce "the subscription book with the defendant's name and proof of the genuineness of the signature together with any competent parole or evidence that he made the advance payment" Basler 2:99.</p><p>Lincoln's meticulous transcript of the subscription book was a key piece of the evidence filed in Sangamon Circuit Court on February 22 1851. The book includes Barret's name and the subscription statement transcribed by Lincoln on page two is explicit about the shareholders' obligations.</p><p><i>We the subscribers to the Capital Stock of the Alton and Sangamon Rail Road Company.do hereby agree.to pay the balance of the installments due on said stock by us subscribed when the same may be called for by the board of Directors of said Company when duly organized in conformity with the Charter approved February 27th 1847.</i></p><p>"<i>A. Lincoln</i>" with six shares for $600 is prominent among the 91 subscriber names. The only other known record of a Lincoln stock purchase dates from 1836 when he bought one share in the Beardstown and Sangamon Canal.</p><p>In June of 1847 as head of a committee to promote subscriptions for the projected railroad Lincoln wrote an open letter to the "People of Sangamon County" appealing for their support. Railroad construction was booming and Lincoln anticipated that a line between Springfield and Alton would prove a lucrative investment for himself and his state. "The whole is a matter of pecuniary interest" he argued. "The proper question for us is whether with reference to the present and the future and to direct and indirect results it is our interest to subscribe. If it can be shown that it is we hope few will refuse" Basler 1:396-398.</p><p>The list of subscribers is itself of considerable interest. It includes John Hay 1775-1865 the grandfather of Lincoln's later secretary John Hay 2 shares Ninian W. Edwards 1809-1889 husband of Mary Todd Lincoln's sister 20 shares John T. Stuart 1807-1885 Lincoln's law partner 5 shares Henry Yates 1786-1865 father of Illinois governor Richard Yates 10 shares Noah W. Matheny 1815-1877 clerk of Sangamon County and others. In the subscription book Henry Yates hedging his bets has added a condition beneath his name: "<i>if the Road intersects the M. & S R R at New Berlin.</i>"</p><p>Lincoln was mindful of the critical issues raised by the Alton and Sangamon lawsuits and "took extraordinary pains to construct an airtight case for his client" Donald p.155. To Martin he pointed out the legal issues adding "I have labored hard to find the law" in preparation for the trials. In the end two of the defaulting stockholders paid their delinquent calls. The suits against James A. Barret and Joseph Klein came to trial in the Sangamon Circuit Court in August of 1851 with Lincoln handling both the trials and the appeals for the railroad.</p><p>Lincoln's preparation proved its worth – the rulings were in favor of the railroad. "Illinois Supreme Court Justice Samuel H. Treat ruled that public utility superseded private profit. If Barret had won the case other stockholders would balk at fulfilling their obligations. The rule of caveat emptor protected corporate management from stockholder's personal interests and encouraged subsequent investment" <i>Lincoln Legal Briefs</i> Oct-Dec 1990 no. 16 online.</p><p>At the time he transcribed this document Lincoln was an attorney on the 8th Judicial Circuit and also managed a thriving appellate and federal court practice. He handled a number of railroad-related cases representing both private individuals as well as the railroads themselves. He was not as some have argued a hired gun for corporate interests. Rather as his law partner William Herndon described him Lincoln was "purely and entirely a case lawyer."</p><p>The fact that Lincoln despite his commitment to railroading often handled suits against the carriers casts light on his understanding of the lawyer's role in society…He simply could not afford to take only one side in legal disputes. Nor did Lincoln pursue some political or philosophical agenda through litigation. He was not concerned with developing a consistent legal ideology. His business as Donald reminds us "was law not morality." James W. Ely "Lincoln as Railroad Attorney" Indiana Historical Society Symposium April 15-16 2005</p><p>Though a prominent lawyer Lincoln was still smarting over recent political defeats. Elected to the U.S. Congress in 1846 he had served out his term but his outspoken opposition to the Mexican-American War had cost him any chance at a second term. He subsequently failed in his attempt to become commissioner of the General Land Office. Lincoln declined an appointment as governor of the Oregon Territory instead returning to his law practice with William H. Herndon in Springfield Illinois. He would not attempt a political comeback until 1854.</p><p>The rail line was ultimately highly profitable. Lincoln's overriding belief in the broader benefits of internal improvements is best expressed in a speech he delivered before Congress in 1848.</p><p>Let the nation take hold of the larger works and the states the smaller ones; and thus working in a meeting direction discreetly but steadily and firmly what is made unequal in one place may be equalized in another extravagance avoided and the whole country put on that career of prosperity which shall correspond with it's extent of territory it's natural resources and the intelligence and enterprize of it's people.</p> books
1865102324<p> Newspaper 16" x 22" six columns of text small Lincoln engraving 4 pp. Folded at center a few tears and chips at folds and extremities some loss of text at the center fold some aging and browning and a little uneven darkening; despite these faults the paper is in decent condition overall for a newspaper from this period. Dated April 26 1865 this paper provides considerable detail on Lincoln's funeral. The coverage includes an OBIT on Lincoln and a small engraving of the slain president. Most of the coverage is on the second page of the newspaper. The articles include stories on events at the capital to honor Lincoln and the impact of the event on a grieving nation.</p> books
18389774New York: John F Trow 1838. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good. Light shelf/edge wear sunning at spine dampstain marks on front board evidence of a lifted book plate at front pastedown small closed tear at ffep light foxing at endpages loss at the top of rfep likely an owner name removal else tight bright and unmarred. Green textured cloth binding frontispiece. 12mo. 158pp plus advert. Illus. b/w plate. <br/><br/>On November 7 1837 Elijah Parish Lovejoy borning in Albion Maine was killed by a pro-slavery mob while defending the site of his press The Saint Louis Observer renowned for producing abolitionist tracts. For many Lovejoy was a martyr to the cause of free speech. His death deeply affected many Northerners and greatly strengthened the abolitionist anti-slavery cause and effectively proved that slavery posed a danger to the liberties of all Americans. Emerson was appalled by the incident and in response delivered an address in Concord focusing on the necessity of preserving free speech.the address does not survive in finished form. OCLC locates 11 copies. Howes L-348; Sabin 41268; Cohen Bibliography of Early American Law 12163 John F Trow hardcover books
1838716931838. New York 1838 Only edition. New York 1838 Only edition. An Important Event in the History of Freedom of the Press and Abolition Trial. Lincoln William S. Reporter. Trow John Fowler Editor. Alton Trials: Of Winthrop S. Gilman Who Was Indicted with Enoch Long Amos B. Roff George H. Walworth George H. Whitney William Harned John S. Noble James Morss Jr. Henry Tanner Royal Weller Reuben Gerry And Thaddeus B. Hurlbut; For the Crime of Riot Committed on the Night of the 7th of November 1837 While Engaged in Defending a Printing Press From an Attack Made on It at That Time By an Armed Mob. Written Out From Notes of the Trial Taken at the Time By a Member of the Bar of the Alton Municipal Court. Also The Trial of John Solomon Levi Palmer Horace Beall Josiah Nutter Jacob Smith David Butler William Carr And James M. Rock Together with James Jennings Solomon Morgan And Frederick Bruchy; For a Riot Committed in Alton On the Night of the 7th on November 1837 in Unlawfully and Forcibly Entering the Warehouse of Godfrey Gilman & Co. And Breaking Up and Destroying a Printing Press. Written out from notes taken at the time of trial by William S. Lincoln. New York: Published by John F. Trow 1838. iv 5-158 1 pp. Lithographed frontispiece. Last page is a publisher's advertisement. 12mo. 7" x 4-1/4". Original patterned cloth gilt title to spine. A few minor dampspots to boards spine ends and corners bumped and lightly worn front hinge just starting at head. Light toning somewhat heavier in places occasion light foxing. $650. Only edition. In 1837 a mob destroyed a printing establishment in Alton Illinois that produced abolitionist tracts owned by Elijah Parish Lovejoy an important abolitionist. He was killed while trying to defend his press. For many Lovejoy was a martyr to the cause of free speech. Abolitionists said this event proved that slavery posed a danger to the liberties of all Americans. OCLC locates 11 copies in U.S. law schools. William Lincoln was a member of the Alton Bar. Cohen Bibliography of Early American Law 12163. unknown books
183857334NY: John F Trow 1838. First Edition. 12mo. iv 5-158 pp. Lithographed frontispiece. Final leaf is a publisher's advertisement. Bound in rubbed later 3/4 calf library pocket on rear end paper. Toning to the title page a very good copy. OCLC locates 11 copies in U.S. law schools. Cohen Bibliography of Early American Law 12163. In 1837 a mob destroyed a printing establishment in Alton Illinois that produced abolitionist tracts. Elijah Parish Lovejoy was killed while trying to defend his press. For many Lovejoy was a martyr to the cause of free speech. Abolitionists said this event proved that slavery posed a danger to the liberties of all Americans. An important freedom of the press trial. John F Trow unknown books
1863WRCAM55251Washington 1863. 20pp. Original printed wrappers. Light toning. A near fine copy in wonderful condition. In a cloth chemise and green half morocco and cloth slipcase spine gilt. The rare pamphlet printing of Lincoln's December 8 1863 proclamation read before Congress the next day offering amnesty to citizens of the Confederacy providing they take an oath that they "will abide by and faithfully support all proclamations of the President made during the existing rebellion having reference to slaves" i.e. the Emancipation Proclamation. When the number of persons in any state taking the oath reached ten percent of the number of voters in 1860 this group of loyal voters could form a state government that could be recognized by the President. The Amnesty Proclamation was issued with President Lincoln's third Annual Message to Congress i.e. State of the Union Address on December 8 1863; the State of the Union Address follows the Amnesty Proclamation here. <br> <br> Toward the close of 1863 with the Confederate Army in full retreat discussions in Congress centered on how to restore the southern states to the Union. "The crisis which threatened to divide the friends of the Union is past" announced Lincoln. Now it was the duty of Congress to ensure that all citizens in the South regardless of race were guaranteed the equal protection of the law. A number of competing proposals emerged from deliberations but in the end during his message to Congress on December 8 1863 Lincoln declared reconstruction of the South a wholly executive responsibility and "offered 'full pardon.with restoration of all rights of property except as to slaves' to all rebels who would take an oath of future loyalty to the Constitution and pledge to obey acts of Congress and presidential proclamations relating to slavery" Donald p.471. <br> <br> Those excluded from taking the oath were the highest ranking members of the Confederacy - government officials judges military and naval officers above the rank of army colonel or navy lieutenant former congressmen and "all who have engaged in treating colored persons or white persons otherwise than lawfully as prisoners of war." Lincoln further encouraged the southern states to make provisions "in relation to the freed people of such State which shall recognize and declare their permanent freedom provide for their education and which may yet be consistent as a temporary arrangement with their present condition as a laboring landless and homeless class." <br> <br> "Lincoln indicated that this was only one plan for reconstructing the rebel South and while it was the best he could think of for now he would gladly consider others and possibly adopt them. He might even modify his own classes of pardons if that seemed warrantable.Afterward almost everybody but die-hard Democrats seemed happy with the plan" Oates p.371. <br> <br> A lovely copy of Lincoln's hugely important Amnesty Proclamation. MONAGHAN 191. SABIN 41162 note. David Herbert Donald LINCOLN New York 1995 p.471. Stephen B. Oates WITH MALICE TOWARD NONE: A LIFE OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN New York 1977 p.371. hardcover books
1842617581842. Lear's 25pp. speech approx. 4000 words selfwraps with ms. title page bound at left margin with a thin ribbon. Lear's prose celebrates the 40th anniversary of the founding of the United States its Constitution and first President but also speaks of the more recent events of the War of 1812. Lear's summation of the country's virtues include "extensive territory a salubrious climate a fertile soil & a people hardy enterprising brave & virtuous" and a Constitution which has proved its excellence and efficacy in both peace and war: "These are some of the blessings which distinguish us from every other state which has ever been prophesied in history. These attract to our shores the virtuous & the persecuted and will soon raise us to a proud preeminence among the nations." The speech was apparently published in the July 9 1816 edition of the "Daily National Intelligencer" in Washington DC. An autographed note signed by Mayor James H. Blake 1p. approx. 26 words is included here congratulating Lear and requesting a copy for publication though we have found no record of a separate printing. Blake was mayor during the siege and burning of the city by the British in 1814.<br/>This group of material also includes two ms. letters from Benjamin Lear in Washington to his stepmother Fanny Dandridge Henley Lear one from May 7 1815 2 1/4 pp. approx. 400 words and one from May 21 1815 3pp. approx. 625 words. Fanny was away from home visiting relatives in Surry Co. Virginia and Benjamin was reporting on his stewardship of the household his attempts to sell a calf and his settling into the house enough to invite people to dinner. He tell her his business in the city has increased greatly and "my dear father Tobias Lear advises me to go to Philadelphia in the course of the summer to purchase a library- oh! I shall yet be a great man. I trust and it is the height of my ambition to be the greatest lawyer in this country." He also says his father has been suffering with a rheumatic headache. Lear mentions that friends from Gibraltar and Tripoli have recently arrived in the city including Mr. Morgan who "never heard from any of their friends in Cadiz the slightest hint of the malicious report which we had here" regarding Richard S. Hackley Consul to Cadiz.<br/>The remaining three ms. letters in this collection are joint letters from Benjamin Lear's young daughter Louisa nicknamed 'Loulean' and his widow Louisa Sophia Bomford Lear who had married Richard Derby following Benjamin's death to her former mother-in-law Fanny Lear. Though none of the three have year dates Loulean's activities indicate she was under 10 years old at the time. The first letter dated Dec. 30 no year is 3 1/2 pp. approx. 700 words. The first two pages are written in a child's careful hand complete with smudges reporting on practicing her Catechism dancing the "Cachucha" and performing in plays. Her mother's note follows explaining why she has not heard from them sooner saying it took Loulean about three weeks to write what she did. The next two letters from July are equally charming and full of the little girl's activities. Benjamin Lincoln Lear was the only child of Tobias Lear most well known as George Washington's personal secretary and tutor to his step grandchildren. Benjamin was born at the President's house in Philadelphia in 1792 and Washington was named his godparent. His mother Mary "Polly" Long died when he was two and Tobias married second Frances Bassett Washington widow of President Washington's nephew George Augustine Washington and third Frances Dandridge Henley Martha Washington's niece. Benjamin spent his youth at boarding schools or with his grandmother in New Hampshire. In these letters Benjamin addresses Fanny Dandridge Lear 1779-1856 as "dear mother."<br/>Benjamin Lincoln Lear had a successful career as a lawyer in Washington DC until cholera claimed his life in 1832 just shortly before the birth of his only child Louisa. <br/><br/> paperback books
186332764New York: Baker & Godwin 1863. 8vo. 9 x 5 5/8 inches. 48pp. Publisher's lettered wrappers publisher's ad on rear wrapper. Housed in a blue morocco box.<br/> <br/>"Four score and seven years ago.": the earliest publication of the Gettysburg Address in book form preceded only by the exceptionally rare sixteen-page pamphlet The Gettysburg Solemnities known in only three copies.<br/> <br/>Lincoln made his speech at the dedication of a cemetery on the Gettysburg battlefield some four months after the bloody and pivotal battle that turned the tide of the Civil War in favor of the Union. Lincoln's speech was preceded by an address from Edward Everett the most famous orator of his day. Everett's speech took some ninety minutes to deliver and is largely forgotten. Lincoln's speech delivered in only a few minutes is immortal. It is a supreme distillation of American values and of the sacrifices necessary for the survival of liberty and freedom. "The Washington Chronicle of 18-21 November reported extensively on this ceremony and included a verbatim text of 'Edward Everett's Great Oration.' On the fourth day it noted in passing that the President had also made a speech but gave no details. When it came to the separate publication on 22 November Everett's 'Oration' was reprinted from the standing type but Lincoln's speech had to be set up. It was tucked away as a final paragraph on page 16 of the pamphlet The Gettysburg Solemnities. It was similarly treated when the meanly produced leaflet was replaced by a 48-page booklet published by Baker and Godwin of New York in the same year" PMM. Lincoln's address appears on page 40 and parenthetical notes are added indicating "applause" and "long-continued applause." A diagram on page 32 gives the details of the Soldiers' National Cemetery at Gettysburg. A lovely example in original wrappers.<br/> <br/>Howes E232 "b"; Monaghan 193; Grolier American 100 72 note; Streeter Sale 1747; Sabin 23263; cf. Printing and the Mind of Man 351; Garry Wills Lincoln at Gettysburg pp.191-204. Baker & Godwin unknown books
