Charles Sumner: his complete works, volume 17 (of 20)

A collected set of speeches, lectures, resolutions, and tributes addressing postwar governance and public policy. Topics include claims and compensation arising from conflict, questions of civil and political equality and the congressional power to prohibit caste, the readmission of former rebellious states, currency reform and restoration of specie payments, postal and foreign relations, professional exclusion and civil rights, locality in appointments, and ceremonial memorials. Pieces combine legal argumentation, policy proposals, moral appeals, and procedural observation, offering a survey of legislative debate and public rhetoric on national reconstruction, finance, and international and domestic affairs.