Catalogue Review

England. Three years later (this letter was written in 1809), we would be at war with England. Price: $150,000.

Item #17 comes from Aaron Burr. It’s a letter about banking issues, but in it he complains that it took eight days for him to receive a letter because of the poor quality of roads in New York. They still haven’t been fixed and New Yorkers are still complaining. Price: $2,400.

Item #40 contains an argument from unknown authors against a national bank. The writer argues such a bank would be undemocratic and concentrate power in a “monied aristocracy.” Hmm. Price: $400.

Item #53 is a major document, Alexander Hamilton’s first report to Congress as Secretary of the Treasury. In it he outlines his plans for establishing the credit of the nation. The catalogue points out that Hamilton’s controversial proposals start the divisions which in time lead to the development of political parties. Price: $20,000.

Now we get to the fun stuff from Hamilton. Item 61 is a self-defense he is forced to publish when enemies attempt to tie him to financial improprieties of one James Reynolds. Turns out the $1,000 he gave Reynolds was to keep him quiet about the affair Hamilton had with Reynolds’ wife. “The charge against me is a connection with one James Reynolds for purposes of improper pecuniary speculation. My real crime is an amorous connection with his wife.” Things never change. Is Hamilton an improper leader? Depends on what your definition of “is” is. Price: $1,100.

Item #63 is a 1768 broadside attacking the Stamp Act signed by the selectmen of Boston. One of those selectmen’s signatures is unmistakable: John Hancock. Price: $275,000. Evidently the protest is more worthy then the act itself, as item #167, a first printing of the Stamp Act, can be had for $7,500.

Item #180 is an official printing by Congress of the “Assumption Act” of 1790. In it, the federal government assumes the Revolutionary War debts of the states. It is a cornerstone of Hamilton’s economic plan for the new nation, and it is signed, perhaps reluctantly, by Hamilton’s rival, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. Price: $100,000.

We skip ahead in time to Item #186, an 1833 letter from then Vice President Martin Van Buren to the Attorney General describing tensions in Congress after passage of the “Force Bill.” South Carolina had attempted to nullify the federal government’s right to collect customs duties at the port of Charleston. The “Force Bill” gave President Andrew Jackson the authority to use the Army to enforce the tariff. South Carolina objected that the duties, designed to protect Northern manufacturing, were raising costs for South Carolinians, and risked retaliatory tariffs in Europe against South Carolina’s exports. Ultimately, South Carolina got little support from its Southern neighbors, avoiding a

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