1849 – A pamphlet incorporating resolutions passed by the Missouri Legislature regarding the Dred Scott decision into the official record of the U.S. House of Representatives
Washington DC: 1849. Slavery. Resolutions of the General Assembly of Missouri on the Subject of slavery in the Territories, District of Columbia and States.” Miscellaneous No. 5, House of Representatives, 31st Congress 1st Session, December 31, 1849. Two-pages. In nice shape.
This summary delineates the resolutions passed by the Missouri Legislature following the Dred Scott decision.
They were introduced into the House of Representatives to make them available to
“The executive of each of the States of the Union, with the request that the same be laid before their respective legislature [and also] to each of our senators and representatives in Congress.”
The resolutions reiterated the findings of the Supreme Court affirming the unconstitutionality of federal legislation usurping states’ rights, particularly with regard to abolition and slavery. They include:
“1st. In no part of the [Constitution] is to be found any delegation of power to Congress to legislate on the subject of slavery, excepting . . . the African slave-trade, and for the recovery of fugitive slaves. . ..“2d. Excluding the citizens of any part of the Union from removing to such Territories with their property . . . by Congress inconsistent with the spirit upon which our federal compact was based. . ..
“3d. The conduct of the northern States on the subject of slavery [releases] the slave-holding States form all further adherence to the basis of [the Missouri] compromise . . . of the 6th of March 1820. . ..
4th. The right to prohibit slavery in any Territory belongs exclusively to the people thereof. . ..
5th. Any act of Congress conflicting with the principles herein expressed [authorizes] slave-holding states [to act in any manner] deemed necessary for . . . protection against the encroachments of northern fanaticism. . ..
6th. That our senators in Congress be instructed, and our representatives be requested, to act in conformity to the foregoing resolutions…”
. Very good. Item #010559The U. S. Supreme Court decision in the Dred Scott case was the most significant ruling regarding the status of Africans who were brought to the United States as slaves and their descendants.
In 1846, Dred Scott, an African-American slave who lived in St. Louis with his Army Surgeon owner, John Emerson, filed for freedom in St. Louis Circuit Court, basing his claim on the “once free, always free” doctrine which grew from precedents related to a complex and stringent 1807 Louisiana Territory statute that granted slaves the right to sue for their freedom under some conditions. (In 1802, Missouri had been part of the Louisiana Territory.)
Scott based his claim on Emerson having previously taken him to Fort Armstrong in Illinois and Fort Snelling in the Wisconsin Territory, which included leasing Scott’s labor to a local, while Emerson departed to perform military duties. Scott lost his case, which was tried at the federal-state courthouse (now known as the “Old Courthouse”) in St. Louis but requested a retrial in which he prevailed three years later.
That case was appealed to the Missouri Supreme Court in 1852, which reaffirmed the first ruling and decreed that Scott remained the slave of Emerson’s widow, who had since married a Massachusetts abolitionist.
Scott’s attorneys then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in 1857. The Supreme Court’s decision went considerably beyond the specifics of the Scott case. It decreed that African-American slaves were not U.S. citizens and therefore had no standing to sue for their freedom. It also ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional.
Following the ruling, the former Mrs. Emerson manumitted Scott and his family.
The outcome infuriated abolitionists who, in turn, increased political pressure on Northern politicians and pushed the country ever closer to the brink of civil war.
A surprisingly scarce document. At the time of listing, no other examples are for sale in the trade. Neither the Rare Book Hub nor Worthpoint identify any having made an appearance at auction. OCLC shows only one example held by an institution, although digital copies are available.
.Price: $350.00