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Lot 66
Abraham Lincoln DS for Ardent Abolitionist Judge, Superb Signature Great Association
Description:

Abraham Lincoln DS for Ardent Abolitionist Judge, Superb Signature Great Association

President Abraham Lincoln signed this appointment for Joseph Casey of Pennsylvania to the Court of Claims, established in 1855 to handle claims against the United States government. Casey was a supporter of Simon Cameron for President in 1860 but later campaigned for Lincoln and advocated Lincoln's appointment of Cameron to his cabinet.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Partially Printed Document Signed, Appointment of Joseph Casey as judge of the Court of Claims, May 23, 1861, Washington, D.C. 1 p., 20.5" x 16.75". Also signed by Secretary of State William H. Seward. Blind embossed paper seal. Cockling; marginal tears and minor splits; some reinforcements on the verso along the central folds; very good

Excerpt
"Know Ye, That, reposing special trust and confidence in the Wisdom, Uprightness and Learning of Joseph Casey, of Pennsylvania, I do appoint him to be a Judge of the Court of Claims, under the Act of Congress, approved 24th February, 1855; and do authorize and empower him to execute and fulfil the duties of that Office according to the Constitution and Laws of the said United States...."

Historical Background
While in Congress during the discussion of the admission of California as a part of the Compromise of 1850, Congressman Joseph Casey said in a speech, "I desire to remark, that so far as the territory acquired from Mexico is concerned, that it is now free. The constitution and laws of Mexico made it so beyond a doubt.... Being then, free when ceded to the United States, this territory must remain so.... For my own part, I most ardently desire that it shall remain free; and I will never, by act or vote of mine, do aught to make it otherwise." Later in the same speech, he said, "I defy that gentleman [Congressman Robert Toombs of Georgia, who had said "This is a pro-slavery Government. Slavery is stamped upon its heart—the Constitution."], or any other here, to point to any clause or word in the Constitution that confers the right, upon any mortal man, to own a slave." Reflecting his position as a moderate, however, Casey said three months later in debate, "if California had come here with a recognition of slavery in her constitution, I should have voted for her admission, if there were no other objection.... I am not to be deterred from the assertion of a principle, by an appeal to my constituents, anywhere. I have avowed myself here, and at home, and everywhere, against ultraism."

During the presidential election of 1860, Pennsylvania attorney Joseph Casey worked assiduously for the election of Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln. Pennsylvania was generally conservative on the issue of slavery, and other issues allowed the American Party, or Know Nothings, to exercise considerable influence in statewide elections. Many Pennsylvanians had supported the nomination of U.S. Senator Simon Cameron of Pennsylvania as the Republican nominee in 1860, and Casey was one of his leading managers at the Republican National Convention in Chicago. After the election, Casey wrote to several of President-elect Abraham Lincoln's advisors to press the claim of appointing Simon Cameron to his cabinet.

In February 1855, Congress established the Court of Claims as a federal court to hear claims against the United States government. The immediate purpose was to adjudicate claims against the United States government by veterans of the Mexican War. Prior to the establishment of the Court, Congress had to investigate and approve all claims, but the workload became too heavy. The three-member court investigated claims and reported its findings and recommendations to Congress, who generally approved them pro forma. In his annual message to Congress in 1861, President Lincoln asked Congress to give the court the power to issue final judgments. In March 1863, Congress granted the power and explicitly permitted appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Court of Claims initially met in the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C., but soon was permitted to meet in the chamber of the U.S. Supreme Court in the basement of the Capitol until it acquired its own space there. The court was given expanded jurisdiction in 1887 and renamed the United States Court of Claims in 1948. It was abolished in 1982, and its jurisdiction passed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the United States Claims Court, later renamed the Court of Federal Claims.

Joseph Casey (1814-1879) was born in Maryland and read law in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He was admitted to the bar and practiced in Bloomfield, Pennsylvania (1838-1845), and New Berlin, Pennsylvania (1845-1849). He was elected as a Whig to represent Pennsylvania in the U.S. House of Representatives and served from 1849 to 1851. After his term in Congress, he resumed the practice of law in New Berlin (1851-1855) and Harrisburg (1855-1861). He served as the reporter of the decisions of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania from 1856 to 1861. In May 1861, President Abraham Lincoln appointed him as a judge on the Court of Claims in a recess appointment and reappointed him in July, when he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate. In March 1863, Lincoln appointed Casey as the first Chief Justice of the same court, a position he held until he resigned in December 1870. He practiced law in Washington, D.C., and was a professor at National University (now George Washington University) from 1871 until his death in 1879.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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