A REFUTATION OF THE CHARGE OF ABOLITIONISM, BROUGHT BY DAVID HENSHAW, AND HIS PARTIZANS, AGAINST THE HON. MARCUS MORTON.
Boston: Felch's Press, 4 Water Street, 1845. Stitched, 32pp. Lightly dusted, Very Good. With the contemporary ownership signature of Edward Casneau of Hingham [MA].
Henshaw founded the Boston Democratic Statesman, and held various state and federal offices. But in late 1844 the Senate overwhelmingly rejected his appointment as Secretary of the Navy. Morton was Governor of Massachusetts, and had also held other federal offices. Though they were both Democrats, their rivalry became increasingly intense as the controversy over slavery heated up. Morton aligned himself with the Free Soil elements of the Democratic Party; Henshaw advocated the pro-slavery position of the National Democratic Party, particularly the annexation of Texas.
This pamphlet asserts that Henshaw's assault is designed to derail President Polk's nomination of Morton as Collector of the Port of Boston, a coveted political plum. "To do this, he craftily charges Governor Morton with abolitionism," in order "to create a prejudice against him in the minds of our Southern Senators, so that his nomination by the President may be rejected." Invectives are unleashed against Henshaw, including the charge that Henshaw himself is "the most arrant abolitionist."
FIRST EDITION. AI 45-5496 [6]. Item #28543
Price: $250.00