Dealer selling find signed by Lincoln, his Cabinet

[March 08, 2012]  PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- A rare document signed by President Abraham Lincoln found inside an old book is for sale and is expected to fetch $35,000.

The sheet of paper signed by Lincoln and his entire Cabinet was sold in 1864 as a donation from the president to benefit Civil War soldiers. Only about five such documents are known to exist.

The Raab Collection is a Philadelphia-based historic documents dealer selling the document. Its vice president, Nathan Raab, said Tuesday it was recently discovered bound inside a 19th-century history book.

The eight autographs are of Lincoln and his Cabinet secretaries. Lincoln assembled for his Cabinet a "team of rivals" including his competitors for the Republican presidential nomination in 1860.

It comes from the granddaughter of the book's longtime owner, an Ohio judge.

[Associated Press]

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