Gadsden, James (1788-1858) to John Cripps
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03587.01 Author/Creator: Gadsden, James (1788-1858) Place Written: Vera Cruz, Mexico Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 7 March 1853 Pagination: 3 p. : address ; 27 x 20.7 cm. Order a Copy
Writes to his Secretary regarding a successful journey. Encloses public documents that require attention (not included). Is disappointed because Secretary of State William Marcy has not drawn up a Treaty of Extradition. Gadsden feels that his successful work in Mexico will be hailed in Washington. Reports that his recent meetings with Ward, Escandon, and L.S. Hargous, the U.S. Consul in Vera Cruz, have gone well and that he holds the upper hand. Mentions having dealt with the Mexican government regarding a treaty that is honorable to both parties. Asks Cripps to send the minutes of those conferences to him via the State Department. Discusses problems at the Custom House pertaining to missing goods and the inability to administer justice. Closes with the hope that once the treaty's wording is clarified, all parties will be satisfied.
Gadsden was a railroad promoter and advocated a Southern rail system, the purpose of which would be to control the trade of the South and the West, thereby freeing those regions from their dependency on the North. To further this end he promoted Southern commercial conventions, and at a convention in 1845 he boldly urged the construction of a railroad to the Pacific. In 1853, when Jefferson Davis was Secretary of War in Pierce's cabinet, Gadsden was appointed minister to Mexico to negotiate for territory along the border. The result was the Gadsden Purchase. He was recalled in 1856 for exceeding his instructions. Cripps was General Gadsden's Secretary and a sawyer by profession.
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