Davy Crockett & Rand Paul – “I Love This Collectible!”

May 20, 2024 by  
Email This Post Email This Post | Print This Post Print This Post

I recently overheard someone on the radio mention a speech Rand Paul gave on the Senate Floor on May 18, 2022 regarding “spending” in which he quoted portions of an earlier speech by beloved Senator Davy Crockett given in the same chamber back in 1867. What caught my attention was Senator Paul’s source: a Harper’s Magazine from 1867 – a title which we have in relative abundance within our archives. Rand Paul’s oration, now referred to as his “Makes No Sense” speech, is found here:

Of course, being collectors and resellers of Rare & Early Newspapers (and some 18th and 19th century magazines), the fun was about to begin. Might we have a copy of this speech? Might we have the very Harper’s Monthly issue Rand Paul referenced?

Problem 1: He said it was from Harper’s Magazine, 1867; however, Harper’s was a monthly magazine. Thanks to the internet, we soon discovered several websites (some highly respectable) which stated it was from the January issue. Off we went to our archives to check to see if we had the January, 1867 issue. Bingo! We had it.

Problem 2: After searching through the issue multiple times, it was obvious that all of the websites must have relied on a single, wrong source. Bummer. So, where could it be? Might the year be wrong? Perhaps a different month within 1867? A different title? After a bit more digging we found a reference which stated that an article related to Davy Crockett was present within the April issue of Harper’s New Monthly Magazine (April, 1867). Might we have this one? If so, might it contain Senator Crockett’s speech? Back to the archives we went, and before long we dug out the desired issue and were elated to find the referenced speech!!!

Whether you agree with Rand Paul’s or Davy Crockett’s position on the spending of taxpayer’s money, the trek was rewarding. AND, after all this effort, the speech is shown below. Enjoy.

If you liked this post, you may also enjoy...

Filed under: Post Civil War, The Collectible Community, The Hobby
Tagged: , ,

Comments

Feel free to leave a comment...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!