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Duer, William : Speech of Mr. Duer, of New York, on the Origin of the War with Mexico, and the Objects of the Administration in its Prosecution, Delivered in the House of Representatives of the U. States, February 14, 1848

Printed by J. & G. S. Gideon, Washington, D.C., 1848

Original publisher's beige paper wrappers. Text printed in black ink. Page 14 unopened. 5 3/4" x 9." Fourteen pages, complete. Pages are very clean and intact overall except for light age toning, moderate foxing, some chipping and splitting along spine, and small dampstains limited to margins at tail of spine. A Very Good copy. A speech originally delivered before the United States House of Representatives on February 14, 1848 by William Duer (1805-1879), an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from New York from 1847-1851 and U.S. Consul to Valparaiso, Chile from 1851-1853. He began his political career as a Whig but later became a Democrat. During the Civil War, Duer remained a Democrat but was a Unionist and took a moderate view on slavery in which he supported the existence of slavery in states where it had already been established but opposed the expansion of slavery. In a bid to end the war, he also proposed that Southern states rejoin the Union so they could then secede from it through a Constitutional amendment. Duer was a Whig at the time of this speech. This speech is Duer's response to a loan bill that would authorize an additional $18,500,000 for the Mexican-American War. Most of the speech contains Duer's stance toward the war. He appears to vehemently oppose the bill, and in no uncertain terms, Duer voices his opposition to the Mexican-American War and President James K. Polk. Duer begins his speech by talking about the annexation and boundary of Texas and how the war started. Duer states, "Sir, when we annexed Texas we annexed the war." In discussing the annexation of Texas, he also addresses the role of John C. Calhoun and the ongoing contentions between free and slave states. In addressing the movement of American troops to the Mexican border, Duer makes the argument that when American troops gathered at the Rio Grande, they were the ones invading Mexican territory, not the other way around. Duer also questions Polk's claim that he sought peace with Mexico and wished to preserve her nationality. He says of Polk, "He has sought peace, and found only war; in seeking to preserve the nationality of Mexico, he may find her destruction." Duer also argues that Polk is acting on a strictly partisan basis that vilifies Whigs. In another part of his address, Duer also denounces Polk for allowing an exiled Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna back into Mexico and argues that this decision paved the way for Santa Anna to regroup his army and decimate U.S. forces.. Book. Book Condition: Very Good. Binding: Soft cover

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