Book excerpt: It was the Era of Good Feelings, but all was not well with the young Republic. From 1825 to 1849, presidents John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, and James K. Polk grappled with the legacy of the Monroe Doctrine, Indian removal, territorial expansion, the National Bank, tariffs, economic depressions, War with Mexico, near war with Great Britain, and the place of slavery in the growing nation. As one would expect from confident citizens of the burgeoning young country, conflicting arguments swirled around the hot-button issues of the day. This rich resource of primary documents enables students to read these arguments first hand, and feel the passions and study the logic driving their often forceful positions. All of the primary documents are annotated and placed into historical context. A thorough index concludes the work.