Selections From the Speeches and Writings of Hon. Thomas L. Clingman of North Carolina, 1877 edition.

Written by Hon. Thomas L. Clingman. First edition, 1877. John Nichols, Book and Job Printer, Raleigh.

Thomas Lanier Clingman (1812 - 1897), born in Huntsville, North Carolina, was a prominent figure in the state's history, nicknamed "The Prince of Politicians." Educated by private tutors and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he graduated in 1832 and was admitted to the bar two years later. Clingman's political career began in the State House of Commons in 1835, and he later served in the State senate in 1840. His tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives spanned from 1843 to 1845 and again from 1847 to 1858, initially as a Whig and later as a Democrat. In 1858, he was appointed to the U.S. Senate, a position he subsequently ran for and won, and held until 1861 when he left the Senate to join the Confederate war effort. A Unionist despite his views on slavery, he was the last Southerner to leave Congress and was later expelled in absentia for joining the rebellion. Clingman served as a brigadier general in the Confederate Army.

Clingman was one of the more outspoken defenders of state sovereignty, or states' rights, arguing that as a federal republic, the Constitution explicitly limited the federal government's power over the states, including their policies on slavery.

After the war, former Confederates were prohibited by law from holding public office, which left Clingman to pursue interests in local economic development, North Carolina history, and science. One of his passions was exploring and measuring the heights of the tallest peaks in the Black Mountains of in the Blue Ridge region of Appalachia.

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Condition: Good. Lacks dust jacket, as issued. Quarter-bound blue and red marbled cover boards with blue cloth backstrip and corners: Covers are loose, though text block is square and tight; heavy wear with scuffing front and back; corners are bumped; heavy wear along the spine. Dampstain on front and back endpapers, and light staining on most pages along the top and lower right. Extent of moisture is visible on top and fore edge of the textblock. Pages are otherwise undamaged and complete.