DAVID CROCKETT AND FELLOW U.S. REPRESENTATIVES ATTEST TO MILES TRAVELLED TO ATTEND CONGRESS
An historic volume of 247 signatures of members of the House of Representatives, and a few additional signatures or duplicates, gathered at the commencement of the 23rd United States Congress by Clerk of the House of Representatives Walter S. Franklin (1799-1838) immediately upon his assumption of the office in late 1833 and given by him to fellow Pennsylvania politician Adam J. Glossbrenner (1810-1889) who himself would serve in the same position from 1843 to 1847. The signatures were gathered by Franklin to determine the mileage each Representative had travelled in order to attend Congress so that their travel expenses could be reimbursed. Every entry bears the Representative's name on the left-hand page, and at right appears his state, the date of his arrival in Washington, and the number of miles travelled. Each representative has attested to the entry by signing their name beneath. There are generally two entries per page, and all are contained with a quarter leather-bound journal with marbled covers and endpapers. The book is filled with some of the rarest and most important political names of the era. Notable among them are: DAVID CROCKETT (who had travelled 1,000 miles to serve his constituents), JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, JAMES K. POLK, FRANKLIN PIERCE, MILLARD FILLMORE, CAVE JOHNSON, PHILEMON DICKERSON, BENJAMIN HARDIN, JOHN BELL, JOHN BLAIR, HENRY A. MUHLENBERG, JOHN Y. MASON, JOHN M. PATTON, HENRY A. WISE, HENRY L. PINCKNEY, RUFUS CHOATE, EDWARD EVERETT, JOHN EWING, C. C. CLAY, LEVI LINCOLN, JOSEPH TRUMBULL, BENJAMIN GORHAM, JOHN REED, JABEZ HUNTINGTON, etc. An important volume, in fine condition. The 23rd Congress met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1833 to March 4, 1835, during the fifth and sixth years of Andrew Jackson's presidency. The House had 240 Representatives with three delegates and was composed of 63 Anti-Jacksons, 143 Jacksons, 25 Anti-Masonics, and nine Nullifiers. The 1832 election produced divided rule. Whigs controlled the Senate, and Democrats controlled the House. Jackson and the House Democrats treated his re-election as a mandate in favor of their party platform. When Jackson dispersed federal investments to "pet banks" in the states, rather than depositing them in the Second Bank of the United States, Congress demanded evidence justifying his decision. Jackson refused and argued that Congress was interfering with presidential prerogatives. The Senate then censured the President. Congress adjourned in dispute whether it could even pass legislation on inauguration day, March 4th.