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Purviance, Samuel A : Speech of Hon. Samuel A. Purviance, of Pennsylvania, on the Slavery and Presidential Questions. Delivered in the House of Representatives, August 4, 1856

Printed at the Congressional Globe Office, Washington, D.C., 1856

Original publisher's pamphlet. Text printed in black ink on beige paper. No binding. Leaves of paper laid in and folded. Some pages are unopened. 6 1/4" x 9 3/4." Fourteen pages, complete. Pages are clean and intact overall except for light age toning, slight darkening (most apparent on front and back; mostly limited toward edges of interior pages), and occasional foxing and small stains. A Very Good copy. Samuel A. Purviance (1809-1882) was an American politician who served as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania from 1855-1859. He also served at the Pennsylvania Attorney General in 1861. Over the course of his political career, Purviance was a Whig, member of the Opposition Party, and a Republican. In this stirring speech originally delivered in the U.S. House of Representatives on August 4, 1856, Purviance lays out his case against slavery and discusses current front runners in the upcoming 1856 presidential election. Purviance begins his speech by associating the Democrats with Catholics, both of whom he has no high opinion of. Purviance argues that Democrats have recently colluded with Catholic clergymen during elections and that this collusion is a violation of the separation of church and state. Purviance shifts the subject to the national debate over slavery and references several historical figures and recent events relating to it. He uses quotes from historical figures, even those who were or are slaveholders, that denounce the institution of slavery. Among the people he quotes is Thomas Jefferson, who, while being a slaveholder, made several statements that pointedly connect slavery with moral depravity. Throughout his speech, Purviance vehemently opposes slavery on both practical and moral grounds. Purviance also references the recent repeal of the Missouri Compromise by the Kansas-Nebraska Act, the latter of which was a loophole allowing more slave states to be added to the Union. Purviance criticizes the Kansas-Nebraska Act and prominent individuals who facilitated its passage. Later in his speech, Purviance openly criticizes the current president, Franklin Pierce, and future-president James Buchanan for their anti-slavery and anti-Republican policies.. Book. Book Condition: Very Good. Binding: No Binding

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