Lot 102
Fillmore, Millard. Autograph letter signed ("M. Fillmore"), 1 page, 12½ x 7¾ in., Buffalo, Feb. 18, 1837. To John C. Spencer in Canandaiqua, New York, with holograph address on verso. Spencer (1788- 1855) was a New York lawyer, judge, and politician who would become Secretary of State of New York (1839-1841) and would serve as Secretary of War and Secretary of the Treasury under President John Tyler. In part: "We have generally advised persons that it was unnecessary to appear in the suit by the assignees to enable them to recover their own demands, but the question of appearance to contest others has never been a subject of consideration. We see no objection, however, to the course indicated by you if the court will sanction it, and we see no reason why they should not depart from the ordinary practice of the court, if desired by us to save expense….The assignees wish your opinion as to their power to arbitrate claims due the estate….Also whether they have a right to compromise doubtful claims to the estate, or to dispose of such claims below their nominal value."
A beautifully penned letter by Fillmore as a lawyer less than a month before he began his second term as U.S. representative from New York (the first term was 1833-1835). He would serve as New York State Comptroller (1848-1849) before being elected Vice President of the United States in 1848. When President Zachary Taylor died in 1850, Fillmore was left to handle the slavery crisis, which, with the Compromise of 1850, was basically swept under the carpet to be dealt with later.
Estimated Value $800 - 1,000.
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| Realized $690 |
