A former Senator and Secretary of State from New Hampshire, Webster was a key figure in the debates over slavery’s expansion to new U.S. territories that dominated congress during the first half of the 19th century, advocating for compromise between slave and non-slave states to preserve the Union. This edition of The Works of Daniel Webster was owned by John Jay II; it contains a biography of Webster by Edward Everett, and a collection of his letters, speeches, and other writings.