1838 Franked Letter From John Davis To Emory Washburn About Duel Where One Representative Dies. RARE

John Davis (future Governor of Massachusetts, member of Congress for the United States, and business lawyer partner of Emory Washburn (also future Governor of Massachusetts, Congressional member, and historian) is recounting the death of Jonathan Cilley (July 2, 1802 – February 24, 1838) who was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine. The letter is 4 hand written pages in good condition with no tears affecting the text. Minimal toning as well. Sent via ordinary post as to avoid other eyes from seeing the correspondence. It is marked Confidential. Postal marks on the front confirm the date. Initialed by John Davis as "J.D." which he often did in his intimate correspondence to friends and close associates.

Reference: 206-774
Estimate: $300-$500

Shipping Cost: Add $4.00 to direct USPS mailing costs from zip 01907 for an estimate. International, add $4.00 to International Priority Mail costs.

A rare glimpse at a time when being in Congress could be a deadly profession. There is plenty on the internet about both of these gentlemen as well as the duel. We used much of what we found but it is extensive and is provided in a print out along with the item to the buyer.

He served part of one term in the 25th Congress, and died as the result of a wound sustained in a duel with another Congressman, William J. Graves of Kentucky. Graves only lived to be 43 was never re-elected and died in Kentucky.

Fatal duel
Cilley died in office after sustaining a fatal wound in a duel with Congressman William J. Graves of Kentucky.[8] The climate surrounding the Twenty-fifth U.S. Congress was one of increasing political partisanship.[8] Majority Democrats fought with minority Whigs over the response to the Panic of 1837, which was generally blamed on the policies of Democratic President Martin Van Buren. Underlying this conflict was lingering bitterness over the decision of Van Buren's predecessor, Democrat Andrew Jackson, not to re-charter the Second Bank of the United States. One of the pillars of the Whig press was the New York Courier and Enquirer, a newspaper edited by James Watson Webb.
Democrats, including Jonathan Cilley, considered Webb's coverage of Congress to be biased and unfair; Cilley vented some of his party's bitterness in remarks made on the House floor, and suggested that Webb's change from opposing to supporting the rechartering of the bank came about because Webb received loans from the bank totaling $52,000. Webb, who considered himself insulted by Cilley's suggestion of quid pro quo corruption, persuaded a Whig friend, Congressman William J. Graves, to deliver Webb's challenge to a duel.[8] Cilley refused to accept the letter, in terms which Graves decided were an insult to his honor; Graves then challenged Cilley, and Cilley felt honor bound to accept.[8] Dueling was prohibited within the boundaries of the District of Columbia, so the participants and their seconds – George Wallace Jones for Cilley and Henry A. Wise for Graves – arranged to meet on February 24, 1838, at the Bladensburg Dueling Grounds, just outside the city limits and inside the Maryland border.
As the challenged party, Cilley had the choice of weapons.[8] Because of Graves' reputation as an expert pistol shot, Cilley selected rifles, with the distance between the duelists to be 80 yards, a distance far enough apart to negate Graves' supposed shooting skill; in actuality, the marked off distance was 94 yards. After their first fire missed, the participants shortened the distance and fired again, but again both shots missed.[8] On the third exchange of shots, Graves fatally wounded Cilley by shooting him through the femoral artery. Cilley bled to death on the dueling ground within a matter of minutes. He was buried at Congressional Cemetery, and re-interred at Elm Grove Cemetery in Thomaston, Maine.

Notes: Good condition

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8" x 0.01" x 10"

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Richard Gabriel | (781) 883-6639 | gabriel@calixbooks.com

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450B Paradise Rd; #281, Swampscott MA 01907

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