Lot 15
Johnson, Andrew (1808-1875) 17th President of the United States (1865-69); first President to be impeached. Small card with signature on one side and a manuscript quotation from an address Johnson gave to the Senate on the other, 3¼ x 2 in., U.S. Senate, 2 March 1861. "Show me the man who makes war on the Government, and fires on its vessels, and I will show you a traitor. If I were President of the United States, I would have all such arrested, and when tried and convicted, by the Eternal God I would hang them." Text in an unknown hand. Written two days before Lincoln's first inauguration and a month and ten days before the opening salvo of the Civil War was fired. Johnson vehemently believed that the South's grievances should be addressed within the Union and not by secession. A year later President Lincoln would appoint Johnson military governor of Tennessee and in the election of 1864, chose Johnson as his Vice President. When Lincoln was assassinated, Johnson became President on April 15, 1865. The "traitors" to whom Johnson refers in this quotation were not arrested but were pardoned by Johnson in one of his last acts as President.
Estimated Value $2,500 - 3,500
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| Realized $4,080 |
