BENTON'S ABRIDGMENT OF THE DEBATES OF CONGRESS.
ABRIDGMENT OF THE DEBATES OF CONGRESS,
FROM 1789 TO 1856.
FROM GALES AND SEATON'S ANNALS OF CONGRESS; FROM THEIR REGISTER OFDEBATES; AND FROM THE OFFICIAL REPORTED DEBATES, BY JOHN C. RIVES.
BY
THE AUTHOR OF THE THIRTY YEARS' VIEW.
VOL. I.
NEW YORK:
D. APPLETON & COMPANY, 346 & 348 BROADWAY.
CHICAGO:
S. C. GRIGGS & CO., 111 LAKE ST.
1857.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1856, by
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New
York.
PREFACE.
The title-page discloses the sources from which this abridgment is made,and shows them all to be authentic, and reliable,—well known to thepublic, and sanctioned by resolves of Congress. Of the latter of theseauthorities—"Gales and Seaton's Register of Debates," "TheCongressional Globe and Appendix, by Blair and Rives," and the sameafterwards by "John C. Rives"—it is not necessary to speak, furtherthan to remind the reader, that they are original reports, made eitherby the publishers or their special reporters, and revised by thespeakers, and accepted as authority by Congress; and therefore needingno historical elucidation to show their correctness. But of thefirst—"The Annals of Congress by Gales and Seaton"—being acompilation, a special, but brief notice is necessary to show the creditto which they are entitled. And first, of the qualifications of thecompilers for their work. To education and talent, and a particular turnfor political disquisition and history, they added, at the time, morethan forty years' personal connection with the Debates of Congress, asreporters and publishers of the speeches and proceedings in that body.Both of these gentlemen reported, on extraordinary occasions; and bothwith great aptitude and capacity for the business, and Mr. Galesespecially, (under whose particular care the compilation of the Annalswas made,)—of whom Mr. Randolph, a most competent judge, was accustomedto say, that he was the most perfect reporter he had ever known—aperfection which resulted not merely from manual facility[Pg vi] in notingdown what was said, but from quickness and clearness of apprehension,and a full knowledge of the subject spoken upon.[1] To this capacity forthe work, these gentlemen added peculiar advantages for knowing andreaching the sources of information. The father of one of them, and thefather-in-law of the other,—(Mr. Joseph Gales, Senior,)—had been anearly reporter of the Debates of Congress;—in the time of Washingtonand the first Mr. Adams,—and, of course, a collector and preserver ofall contemporary reports. These came into their hands, with ampleknowledge of all the sources from which further collections could bemade. To these capabilities and advantages, were added the pride ofcharacter which exults in producing a perfect work;—and they sparedneither pains nor cost to produce such a work—and succeeded. Thefollowing extracts from a letter of the late Mr. Justice Story, of theSupreme Court of the United States, dated January 14th, 1837—and fromone from Mr. Justice McLean, still of that high court, dated 24th ofFebruary, 1843—sufficiently attest the value of the Compilation, andthe excellence of its execution. Mr. Justice Story says:
"I have examined t