Buy this book on-line

Ashmun, George : Speech of Mr. G. Ashmun, of Massachusetts, On the Revolution in France, and Emancipation in Its Colonies. Delivered in the House of Representatives of the United States

J. & G. S. Gideon, Printers., Washington, D.C.

Original publisher's beige paper wrappers. Text printed in black ink. No date, circa 1848. 5 3/4" x 9." Sixteen pages, complete. Pages are clean and intact except for light age toning throughout, small occasional spots of foxing or discoloration on rest of pamphlet, and moderate chipping and splitting along spine. A Very Good copy. A speech that was originally delivered before the United States House of Representatives on April 10, 1848 by George Ashmun (1804-1870), an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts from 1845-1851. He began his political career as a Whig but later joined the Republican Party as one of its founding members. In this speech, Ashmun discusses the recent French Revolution and its implications, namely, the emancipation of slaves in all of the French colonies. Included herein are some interjections (some of which are paraphrased in the third person) by some of his colleagues including Messrs. Hilliard, Haskell, Duer, and Bayly. Preceding the main speech is a paraphrased summary of some of the resolutions offered by Congressman Cummins on April 3, 1848, to which Ashmun and Mr. Schenck added two amendments that expressed goodwill toward France for its abolition of slavery in its colonies. In his main speech of April 10, Ashmun discusses the French Revolution of 1848. While he states he would rejoice to see a republican government in France, he says of the present French government under Napoleon Bonaparte, "It is a bayonet government. It is not a republican government. It was not established by the exercise of any constitutional rights or liberty; and it guarantees none." Ashmun derides President James K. Polk's apparent comment in which the latter described France as being a republic. Ashmun proceeds to reference the correspondence of Lamartine, a French diplomat. He also responds to past statements made by his colleagues. Thomas Bayley, a Democratic slaveholder, had lambasted Ashmun's amendment as "libel" to the Southern states because it expressed abolitionist sentiments. Ashmun counters that he made the amendment in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence and cites its famous statement, "all men are created equal." Ashmun is confounded that his Southern colleagues would take the amendment as an insult because he aligns said amendment with the Declaration of Independence. He also points out that the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 had existed for quite some time and wonders why Southern Congressmen do not consider it an insult as well. Ashmun expressly states he will not interfere with slavery as it already exists in the Southern states but is adamant about it being restricted, and he pledges, along with his Northern colleagues, to resist any attempts to introduce slavery at the federal level or to admit new slave states. He also argues that the Oge Rebellion led by Vincent Oge, a Creole merchant, in Saint-Dominque was not a result of the emancipation of slaves (as charged by Bayly) but other causes and proceeds to describe those causes. Much of the remainder of the speech appears to be Ashmun's heated response to criticism by Bayly and ongoing arguments between the two. Among Bayly's past accusations was that Massachusetts acted unconstituionally and committed an act of nullification. This appears to relate to fugitive slave laws. However, Ashmun counters that Massachusetts, compared to Virginia (the state Bayly represents) has acted more constitutionally. Ashmun briefly references the "privileges and immunities" clause as related to fugitive slave law, "The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens in several States.". Book. Book Condition: Very Good. Binding: Soft cover

Bibliophile Bookbase for antiquarian books, maps and prints.