American Hotel, New York, July 12th/48.
Dear Howell, Don't forget
my passports, as I sail on Monday in the ship Fidelia for Liverpool.
P. S. — I hope to
God Congress will not adjourn before the nigger question is settled about the
newly acquired territory. If it does adjourn and leave that question open until
after the Presidential election the “cake is all dough” with this Union, you
may depend upon it. Now is the time to settle it while both parties are
disposed to conciliate to effect their ends, but if you wait until after
election the successful party will have no inducement, and the defeated party
too much exasperated, to yield anything. I hope Congress will not adjourn until
the question is settled; and if you love your country better than president
making, you will use all your influence to have it settled before you adjourn.
It is more important than people are aware of generally to settle the question
before Congress adjourns.
SOURCE: Ulrich
Bonnell Phillips, Editor, The Annual Report of the American Historical
Association for the Year 1911, Volume 2: The Correspondence of Robert Toombs,
Alexander H. Stephens, and Howell Cobb, p. 116
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