Abraham Lincoln to William M. Meredith, 9 March 18491
Copy.
Washington, March. 9. 1849.Hon: Secretary of the Treasury.Dear Sir:Col[Colonel] E. D. Baker and myself are the only Whig members of Congress from Illinois– I, of the 30th & he of the 31stWe have reason to think the whigs of that state hold us responsible, to some extent, for the appointments which may be made of our
citizens– We do not know you personally; and our efforts to see you have, so far,
been unavailing– I therefore hope I am not obtrusive in saying, in this way, for him
and myself, that when a citizen of Illinois is to be appointed ^in your Department^ to an office either in or out of the state, we desire ^most respectfully ask^ to be heard.2
Your Obt Servt[Obedient Servant]A. Lincoln2As a lame-duck, one-term Congressman, Lincoln was somewhat disappointed at his inability
to command appointments from the new Whig presidential administration of Zachary Taylor, for whom he had campaigned and strongly supported in the presidential election of 1848.
Abraham Lincoln to George W. Rives; Michael Burlingame, Abraham Lincoln: A Life (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008), 1:294-95.
Autograph Letter Signed, 1 page(s),
Abraham Lincoln Papers, Library of Congress (Washington, DC).