Aberdeed to Pakenham, No. 9, December 26, 1843. This is the first of the noted Calhoun-Pakenham letters, and in it Aberdeen, while maintaining Great Britain's right to take ground against slavery wherever found, disclaimed any intention of interfering improperly to secure the abolition of slavery in Texas, or of “seeking to act directly or indirectly in a political sense on the United States through Texas.” The correspondence as published in the United States is in Sen. Doc. 341 (Serial No. 435), 28 Cong., 1 Sess. As published in Great Britain it is in Sessional Papers, 1847-8, Commons, Vol. 64, Return of Pakenham-Calhoun Correspondence (136), and contains an additional letter, Pakenham to Aberdeen, April 28, 1844. There are also two additional unpublished letters, Aberdeen to Pakenham, January 9 (F. O., Texas, 20), and June 3, 1844 (F. O., America, 403). For quotations and analysis, see Adams, British Interests and Activities in Texas, ch. VII. Smith, The Annexation of Texas, p. 200 seq.
