Speech of Mr. Severance, of Maine, on the Right of Petition

Luther Severance (1797-1855) was a printer, politician, and diplomat. He established the Kennebec Journal in Augusta, Maine in 1825 and served in both the Maine House of Representatives and State Senate. A prominent member of the Whig party, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives serving during the 28th and 29th sessions of Congress (March 4, 1843–March 3, 1847). Rep. Luther Severance response to efforts Rep. Edward Black of Georgia and Rep. George C. Dromgoole of Virginia to amend the rules of the U.S. House of Representatives to prohibit discussion on the floor of any proposal of measures to limit or outlaw slavery in the United States: No petition, memorial, resolution, or other paper, praying the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, or any State or Territory, or the slave trade between the States or Territories of the United States in which it now exists, shall be received by the House, or entertained in any way whatever.”https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mainebicentennial/1101/thumbnail.jp