The Power and Duty of Congress to Provide for the Common Defence and the Suppression of the Rebellion

The Civil War was underway, and the question of financing the prosecution of the war effort was on the table in the House. "The Power and Duty of Congress to Provide for the Common Defence and the Suppression of the Rebellion" -- Speech of Hon. Jno. A Bingham, of Ohio, in the House of Representatives, January 15, 1862 opens with Mr. Bingham saying "I am for this joint resolution, which orders the enactment of a bill to supply the Treasury for the common defence, by taxation direct and indirect, $150,000,000 annually. I hail such legislation as responsive to the living issue of the hour – the suppression of the rebellion which strikes at the nation's life...".

The paper has a handwritten inscription on the top of the first page reading "M Goodman July 26, 1863 From Hon Jno A Bingham". It is not clear if the inscription was written by Mr. Bingham or someone else. The speech is contained in an eight page double-columned booklet, without covers, that measures approximately 6 x 9 ¼ inches. The booklet is a first edition, as printed in 1862 by Scammell & Co., Printers. It is not a modern reprint or scanned copy of an original.

The pages, which are unopened, are tanned and chipped along the edges. The text is clear and easily read. The is a very small hole in the center of the last page and three very small holes, presumably from an earlier binding, along the spine edge of the booklet. The overall condition of the item is good.

The illustration accompanying this description shows the first page of the speech.

John Armor Bingham (January 21, 1815 – March 19, 1900) was an American politician who served as a Republican representative from Ohio and as the United States Ambassador to Japan. In his time as a congressman, Bingham served as both assistant Judge Advocate General in the trial of the Abraham Lincoln assassination and a House manager (prosecutor) in the impeachent trial of U.S. President Andrew Johnson. He was also the principal framer of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. [Wikipedia].