TWENTIETH CENTURY TEXT-BOOKS EDITED BY A. F. NIGHTINGALE, Ph.D., LL.D. SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS FORMERLY SUPERINTENDENT OF HIGH SCHOOLS, CHICAGO TWENTIETH CENTURY TEXT-BOOKS A HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION BY Andrew c. Mclaughlin PROFESSOR OF AMERICAN HISTORY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN NEW YORK D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 1903 ■ \ Copyright, 1899, By IX APPLETON AND COMPANY. HENRY MOftSE STEFHM» PKEFACE. The purpose of this book is to trace the main outlines of national development, to show how the American people came to be what they are. These main outlines include the struggle of the nations of western Europe for possession of the New World and the final victory of England over France ; the foundation of English colonies and their de- velopment as effective instruments for winning and hold- ing dominion for the English king; the steady progress of these colonies in strength and self-reliance until they were fit for independence ; the growth of political ideas and governmental forms in preparation for the organization of the new republic ; the separation from the mother country and the assertion of distinct nationality; the difficulties and disorders of the confederate period, when the country presented the " awful spectacle " of a " nation without a national government " ; the finding of suitable and proper political organization by the adoption of the Constitution of the United States ; the effort to maintain national inde- pendence and to keep free from entangling alliances with Europe at a period when much of the civilized world was at war, and the nations of Europe had neither respect nor regard for the feeble democracy on this side of the ocean ; iii 510838 i v HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the continuing problem as to whether the American repub- lic, stretching over so wide a territory and embracing so many interests, could continue to exist or would be broken into pieces by the operation of local prejudices and jeal- ousies — a problem that became more serious after 1820, when it began to come home to the minds of men that the North and South, though not legally separated, were actually divergent ; the growth of slavery and of antislavery senti- ment and the gradual separation of the sections, until the uth sought to sever the bonds of union and to establish a proslavery confederacy ; the declaration of the civil war that there must be one nation, and that, as a house divided against itself will surely fall and a nation can not exist half slave and half free, the nation should be wholly free ; the events of the period of reconciliation that followed after strife, a period during which the two sections were welded anew into a nation stronger and sounder than ever before. The main outlines of national progress must also show how American territory has been extended ; how the Flori- das, Louisiana, Texas, Oregon, California and the great West, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, became part of the United States, and how Western expansion has gone on until now the newest West is in the farthest Orient. I have endeavored in this volume to mark out these different phases of progress, and hope that I have not been unsuccessful. I have sought chiefly so to narrate the events of the past that the reader will come to an appreciation of his political surroundings and of the political duties that devolve upon him. For this reason especial attention has been paid to political facts, to the rise of parties, to the issues involved in elections, to the development of govern- PREFACE. v mental machinery, and, in general, to questions of govern- ment and administration. While all references to indus- trial changes and facts of interest in industrial history have not been omitted, those events have been selected which seem to have the most marked effect on the progress or the make-up of the nation. Isolated and unrelated facts in any field of historical inquiry do not constitute history. The short lists of references which appear here and there throughout this volume contain only a few of the best and most readable books. As a rule, only those are mentioned that are easily accessible, and that are of such a character that high-school pupils will be likely to read them and en- joy them. A small pamphlet has been prepared to accom- pany this volume, which will, it is thought, be of service to teachers. It contains a bibliography and list of topics for outside study, suggestions on methods of teaching, and kindred matter. It is to be hoped that the illustrative material contained in this volume will prove to be truly illustrative and help- ful. I have sought to select only trustworthy portraits of leading persons, and a few pictures that have in themselves historical value, either because they are contemporary rep- resentations of a situation or because they actually repro- duce a past condition. Merely imaginative pictures which have no real historical value are altogether out of place in a high-school text-book. A great deal of time and patient work have been expended on the preparation of the maps, and while one can hardly dare hope that they are absolutely without error, I trust that they will be found, on the whole, accurate, truthful, and illustrative. I desire to express my thanks to Prof. Isaac N. Dem- VI HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. mon, who kindly read the whole of my manuscript. I received many helpful suggestions from the editors of the series. I wish to make special acknowledgment to Prof. Burke A. Hinsdale, who examined my manuscript with care, and gave me valuable advice both as to content and as to method of treatment. Acknowledgments are due to Houghton, Mifflin & Co., the publishers of Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America and of Winsor's Christopher Columbus, for per- mission to reproduce the picture of Columbus, page 11, and two of the old maps, also to Osgood & Co., publishers of Winsor's Memorial History of Boston, and to the Magazine of American History for two or three of the illustrations in the text. Short as this book is and carefully as it has been writ- ten, I do not expect to find it faultless, and I shall be under obligation to any one who will point out its mistakes. The necessary brevity makes perfect accuracy of statement very difficult, inasmuch as less than the whole truth is sometimes as bad as falsehood. University of Michigan, March 1, 1899. A* Lake of tfU& * / Tor^^^tA^A^. ouis CITY^ C^r^; _/n ° /S'^< ft" G V - ASHVj^-® E s S ^> &HLEQUAH // v \LwS.^ | \Yicksbuilg«S ^ACKSO^ j (0 M oNTGOMlER > | Kn'U-oii ;-,!■: k. Odea K Q U L O F J 3f E TROPIC OF r c CANCEn 23. W ^ *^ « T | $:~-- --v TJXITED STATES SCALE OF MILES 100 200 300 400 500 West 90 from Greenwich 80 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. — Discovery and exploration 1 II.— The Southern colonies— 1607-1700 .... 28 III.— The New England colonies— 1607-1700 ... 67 IV.— The Middle colonies— 1609-1700 97 V. — History of the colonies in the eighteenth century. 116 VI.— France and England— 1608-1763 129 VII. — Social, industrial, and political condition of the colonies in 1760 151 f VIII. — Causes of the Revolution 169 IX.— The Revolution— 1775-1783 189 X. — The Confederation and the Constitution — 1781-1789. 216 XI. — Federal supremacy — Organization of the Govern- ment— 1789-1801 233 XII. — The supremacy of the Republicans — Foreign com- plications— War— 1801-1817 260 x XIII. — Political and industrial reorganization — 1817-1829. 296 XIV. — Democracy and slavery — Industrial and economic controversies — The annexation of Texas — 1829- 1845 322 XV. — Territorial expansion — Shall slave territory be extended ?— 1845-1861 359 XVI.— Secession and civil war — 1861-1865 .... 417 XVII. — Political and social reconstruction — 1867-1877 . 469 XVIII.— The new nation— 1877-1899 499 XIX. — Conclusion 536 Appendix 548 Index 573 vii LIST OF ILLUSTKATIONS. PAGE George Washington Frontispiece Restoration of a Norse ship 5 Building a ship of the fifteenth century 9 Earliest engraved likeness of Christopher Columbus ... 11 Drawing attributed to Columbus 17 Facsimile of the sentence in which America was first named . 21 The house where Columbus died 27 Captain John Smith 39 Captain John Smith's adventures 40, 43 Sir Walter Raleigh 66 First page of the Bradford manuscript 73 John Winthrop 81 John Winthrop, Jr 87 Peter Stuyvesant 103 William Penn 110 Title-page of the Frame of Government of Pennsylvania . . 112 Penn's house in Philadelphia 115 James Oglethorpe 126 Christ Church, Boston 128 Defeat of the Iroquois 131 Samuel Adams 152 Gunston Hall 155 New York city in 1732 161 Benjamin Franklin 162 Franklin's birthplace 162 William and Mary College 168 Patrick Henry 170 James Otis 174 A newspaper broadside on the day before the Stamp Act went into effect 176 Handbill issued to check opposition to the Stamp Act . . .177 Handbill announcing repeal of the Stamp Act .... 179 ix X HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. PAGE John Dickinson 180 Portion of a handbill recalling the Boston massacre . . . 182 The Boston massacre 188 The battle of Lexington 190 Jefferson's draft of the Declaration of Independence . . . 195 Robert Morris 201 Nathanael Greene . . . 211 A page of Washington's accounts 214 Independence Hall, Philadelphia 215 James Wilson 224 Gouverneur Morris 225 Rufus King 226 Cuts from a Boston newspaper published while the Constitution was being ratified 229 John Jay 234 Wall Street in 1789 236 Henry Knox 238 Alexander Hamilton 240 The Campus Martins, Marietta, Ohio, 1798 248 John Adams . . 253 Reception of Washington at Trenton, 1789 259 Thomas Jefferson 260 Albert Gallatin 261 John Marshall 266 James Madison 276 The frigate Constitution 284 The house where the Treaty of Ghent was discussed . . . 295 James Monroe 296 Cincinnati in 1810 298 Henry Clay 309 John Quincy Adams 311 John Randolph 313 Advertisement of the first passenger train in Massachusetts . . 316 Marietta, Ohio, in early days 321 Andrew Jackson 322 John C. Calhoun 326 Daniel Webster 327 William Lloyd Garrison 342 The first message sent by the Morse telegraph .... 358 Winfield Scott 367 Zachary Taylor 375 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. XI PAGE William H. Seward 380 Charles Sumner 396 James Buchanan 398 John Brown's fort 408 Newspaper announcement of the secession of South Carolina . 411 Jefferson Davis 415 Abraham Lincoln 417 Joseph E. Johnston 424 George B. McClellan 425 Edwin M. Stanton 429 Albert Sidney Johnston 430 Union gunboats on the Cumberland 431 Robert E. Lee 437 Stonewall Jackson 439 Lincoln's draft of the Emancipation Proclamation . . . 442 George G. Meade 444 George II. Thomas 447 Philip 11. Sheridan 455 The Confederate ram Tennessee 456 John B. Hood 458 William T. Sherman 459 Salmon P. Chase 461 Ulysses S. Grant 482 Samuel J. Tilden 495 Buildings of the Centennial Exposition, 1876 498 Rutherford B. Hayes 499 James A. Garfield 507 Grover Cleveland 511 Benjamin Harrison 515 William McKinley 529 The Maine 531 The Court of Honor, Columbian Exposition, 1893 .... 547 LIST OF MAPS AND TABLES. page; Physical map of the United States (colored) . . Facing title Political map of the United States (colored) . . . facing vi Linguistic stocks of American Indians (colored) . . facing 2 Ptolemy map 13 Toscanelli's map 14 Western half of Lenox globe 22 Mercator map of 1541 . . 25 Western half of the Ribero map 26 Territory granted by the charter of 1606 35 Territory granted by the charter of 1609 41 Maryland grant 56 Grant of the Carolinas 62 John Smith's map of New England 68 Rhode Island and Providence Plantations 86 Territory granted to Mason and Gorges 90 New England, 1650 93 Van der Donck's map of New Netherlands, 1656 .... 99 European possessions, 1650 (colored) 101 East Jersey and West Jersey 106 The Iroquois country 132 The Joliet map 134 La Hontan's map of Canada 137 European claims and possessions, 1755 (colored) .... 141 Theater of the French and Indian War .... 142, 144, 146 Contemporary plan of the siege of Quebec . . . facing 146 Central North America, 1763-83 (colored) 149 Boston and surrounding towns 192 Boston and vicinity, 1776 193 New York and vicinity, 1776 198 The Revolution in the Middle States 202 The Revolution in the South 209 The United States, 1783 (colored) 219 xii LIST OF MAPS AND TABLES. xiii PAGE Distribution of population, 1790 (colored) 231 The election of 1796 (colored) 251 Central North America, 1803 (colored) 263 Route of Lewis and Clark 270 The war in the West, 1812 282 War on Niagara frontier 283 War on northern frontier 286 War in the South 288 Vicinity of Baltimore and Washington, 1812 289 Cruise of the Essex 290 Western extension of population in 1820 (colored) .... 299 The Missouri compromise line 305 The election of 1828 (colored) 319 Distribution of population in 1840 (colored) 337 Texas 357 The Mexican War 366 Acquisition of territory in the West, 1803-53 370 The Western Territories, 1854 390 The election of 1856 (colored) • . . .397 Western extension of population, 1860 (colored) .... 405 The United States in 1861 (colored) .... facing 416 Charleston harbor 419 The civil war in the East 423 The war in the West . 426 Battle of Shiloh . 433 Battle of Hampton Roads 435 The Peninsula campaign 436 Battle of Fredericksburg 440 Battle of Gettysburg . 445 Siege of Vicksburg 446 Historical sketch of the war 453 The campaigns of the civil war (colored) . . . facing 458 Western extension of population in 1870 (colored) .... 491 The election of 1876 (colored) 497 The election of 1896 (colored) 527 Puerto Rico 532 Philippine Islands 533 Hawaiian Islands 534 Distribution of population in 1890 (colored) 537 Movement of the center of population 538 Productions of pig iron in the United States , , , 540 xiv HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. PAGE Teachers in common schools and appropriations for schools . . 543 Relative areas of the States of the Union and European States . 548 Summary of popular and electoral votes for President and Vice- President of the United States 549-553 Summary of the States and Territories 554-555 Cities of over 100*000 inhabitants in 1900 ..... 555 United States, showing the territorial acquisitions previous to 1898 facing 572 a^^^^' / ^ K - HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. CHAPTER I. Discovery and Exploration. The Western Hemisphere has been the dwelling place of men for a great many centuries. Long before the existence of the Western World was known to Europeans, Antiquity of j n f ac ^ De f ore Europe itself was civilized or had a history, human beings wandered over these continents. It is even confidently asserted that men were living here in the glacial age, when the northern part of North America, nearly as far south as the present site of Philadelphia, was swathed in a great ice sheet. As to this there are differences of opinion among scholars, but it is plain that the antiquity of man in America is so great that it does not furnish a problem for the historian, for he deals, in the main, with the work and progress of civilized men, who are formed into political bodies or states. There seems likewise little need of prolonged discussion concerning the original home of these primitive men. For • the ethnologists this problem is full of interest, Origin of man an( j C0ll \^ they reach substantial agreement in America. J , ° the student of history would accept their con- clusions ; but special students of the subject seem hope- lessly at variance. Men may have made their way hither from Asia thousands of years ago, when there was a con- tinuous strip of land where the Aleutian Islands now form, as it were, a dotted line between the Old World and the New. l g HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The primitive inhabitants of Central America may be of the same stock as the inhabitants of some portions of southern Asia ; and, indeed, some scholars assert that they find striking similarities between these races. These peoples may have come to this continent by way of the islands of the central Pacific. But of all this there is no substantial proof. It seems probable that there was some contact, in times far past, between the civilizations or, as we may more properly say, the " culture " of southern Asia, or even of Africa, and that of America ; but here again one can speak with no certainty. It seems, on the other hand, quite within reason that the semicivilization of Mexico and Peru might have grown up without influence from other continents. When the New World became known to Europeans the natives of some portions of it were quite far advanced to- ward civilization. This was especially true, as Peru and } ias already been intimated, of Peru and Mexico. The people of those regions were far from sav- agery. The people of Peru had fine buildings and magnifi- cent roads; they worked skillfully in metals, fashioning beautiful vases, or forging arms for war and tools for the husbandman. Gold, silver, lead, and copper were known and used by them. They raised great crops of corn and potatoes, and kept vast flocks of llamas and alpacas. Their language was rich and copious, and capable of expressing fine shades of thought and noble ideas. Though they had no system of writing,* they seem to have composed and re- membered dramas, poems, and histories. The, Mexicans were not far behind the Peruvians in advancement. * A curious method of keeping accounts and perhaps recording events is described in Winsor, Narrative and Critical History, vol. i, p. 243. The " quipus " used for this purpose was a set of ropes in which knots could be tied at different places. Mr. Markham suggests that the system of accounting was better than the exchequer tallies used in England even down to the nineteenth century. See " Tally " in the dictionary. 110 Longitude 105 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 3 Many persons have supposed that there existed in North America a race of " mound builders," who had reached a high plane of culture, before the The mound advent of the red Indian. To this race builders. have been attributed the artificial mounds and earthworks that are found in considerable numbers especially throughout the eastern portion of the Missis- sippi Valley. The evidence seems conclusive, however, that the mound builders were really Indians ; but it is not impossible that at an earlier day they were some- what more advanced than when they became known to Europeans. Of the Indians of North America with whom the Euro- pean people came into contact we may mention especially three groups or families : * 1. The Algonquin The Indians. - -i i i iamily, a numerous people occupying a large extent of country. Their dwelling place and hunting grounds reached from Hudson Bay on the north to the Carolinas on the south, and westward even beyond the Great Lakes. 2. The Muskhogees, living south of the Al- gonquins and north of the Gulf of Mexico. To this family belonged the Seminoles, Choctaws, and other tribes. 3. The Huron-Iroquois, who held the region south of Lakes Erie and Ontario and the peninsula east of Lake Huron. f " They formed, as it were, an island in the vast expanse of Algonquin population." One detached tribe of this family, the Tuscaroras, lived in the Carolinas ; but at a later time, * The teacher or student desirous of getting an idea of the extent ' and location of the Indian tribes will find interesting accounts in Park- man, The Conspiracy of Pontiac, vol. i, chap, i ; Fiske, The Dis- covery of America, vol. i, chap, i ; Thwaites, The Colonies, chap, i ; Shaler, The United States of America, vol. i, chap. iv. The rela- tions of the French and English with the Indians is given in Winsor, Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. i, chap. v. f Generally when the Iroquois are spoken of the tribes of central New York are meant. 4 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. after a disastrous war with the English settlers, they joined their kinsmen at the North. Of these groups of Indians the Iroquois were the most warlike. They waged almost ceaseless war on neighboring tribes and subdued and conquered many of nation™ them. They were bold, crafty, and cruel, gift- ed with great energy and considerable intelli- gence.* The confederacy of " five nations," who occupied the central part of what is now New York, was well or- ganized for war and conquest, and held a position of great military advantage at the sources of rivers that flowed northward to the St. Lawrence, eastward to the Hudson and the Atlantic, or found their way even southward to the Gulf.f The first connection between Europe and America of" which anything is known was made by adventurous Nortli- men from Iceland. In the latter part of the tenth century they founded settlements in Greenland. Possibly we may believe that Bjarni Herjulf- son, driven from his course on a voyage to these settlements, first saw the mainland of America, which proved to be not the shore of mountains and icy fiords, but " a land flat and covered with trees," several days' sail southwest from Green- land. Whether this tale be true or not, there is little doubt that about the year 1000 Leif Ericson, the son of that Eric the Red who had begun the settlement of Greenland, actu- ally found the continent and that he with a number of companions spent the winter somewhere upon its shores. * Parkman, The Jesuits in America, gives a highly entertaining story of the power and horrible cruelty of the Iroquois. See also Hart, American History told by Contemporaries, vol. i, p. 129. f An examination of the map will show what a center the middle of New York is. While the Mohawk flows eastward to the Hudson, the Susquehanna flows southeast, the group of lakes is connected with the St. Lawrence system, and Lake Chautauqua belongs to the Mississippi Valley. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. They found grapes in the new country, and " Leif , giving the country a name from its products, called it Vinland." In the course of a few years other Northmen came to these strange coasts where there were tall trees and vines. A settlement was made, but the settlers were attacked by the natives, who proved fierce and unfriendly, so that the colony was abandoned. The sagas. A Norse Ship of the Tenth Century. A restoration of the remains of an old ship found in 1880. The accounts of these Norse discoveries are recorded in Icelandic chronicles called " sagas." Many historians have doubted their trustworthiness, and have looked upon the voyages of Bjarni and Leif as mere mythical tales. Others have taken them too literally, have believed all their details, and striven to find out from their vague descriptions the exact place where the Northmen settled. The truth seems to be that there is good reason for believing the main outline of the story, and for think- ing that the hardy Vikings of the north were the first Europeans to catch a glimpse of the New World. They were of the same blood as the bold Northmen who overran Eng- land in successive invasions and finally established them- 6 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. selves there as rulers of the land, near the time when Leif made his famous voyage to Vinland.* Interesting as these discoveries may be, they are of little historic importance, inasmuch as the people of Europe Norse dis- were no ^ reac ty either to receive the idea of a coveries new world or to act upon it. The discovery unimportant. by Columbus five hundred years later came upon the full flood-tide of events, in response to industrial needs ; it found the people eager for new tidings, and in a condition to appreciate in part the meaning of what was done and to reap advantage from the opening of new con- tinents. The movement that resulted in the discovery of Amer- ica was due to the spirit of enterprise and enthusiasm at the end of the Middle Ages. For some cen- T e Renais- turies the condition and character of life in sance. Europe had been undergoing change. Men were stirring to take a broader and more intelligent interest in themselves and their surroundings. The period from the beginning of the fourteenth to the middle of the six- teenth century is called the " Renaissance," or the new birth, although sometimes the word is applied to a some- what shorter period, and used to indicate the development of new interest in literature and art.f The crusades for * Fiske, The Discovery of America, vol. i, pp. 148-221 ; Bryant and Gay, Popular History of the United States, vol. i, pp. 35-63, are the most readable of the accounts of the Norse discoveries. See especially Old South Leaflets, No. 31, containing the Voyage to Vinland ; American History Leaflets, No. 3, containing Extracts from the Sagas ; Hart, American History told by Contemporaries, pp. 28-35. f " The term Renaissance is frequently applied at present not only to the new birth of art and letters, but to all the characteristics, taken together, of the period of transition from the Middle Ages to modern life. The transformation in the structure and policy of states, the pas- sion for discovery, the dawn of a more scientific method of observing man and Nature, the movement toward more freedom of intellect and of conscience, are part and parcel of one comprehensive change — a DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 7 the conquest of the Holy City had aroused men to new speculation and thought, and had helped to bring about a more reasonable political situation, because they tended to break down the feudal system and to do away with some of its evils. Each European state became more strongly knitted together and more competent for action as the feudal baron lost his power. Moreover, the revival in the knowledge of the ancient classics encouraged freer and higher thinking. About 1450 the art of printing was in- vented, and this gave a channel for communicating new thoughts and ideas and announcing new discoveries and inventions. The times were marked by an outburst of com- mercial enterprise, by a zeal for a wider trade, and by a fresh interest in travel and discovery. For many centuries the people of Europe and Asia had carried on trade with one another, and the general effect of the crusades was to increase this traffic. Genoa £»BiSr Wtth a ^ d Venice became great seats of commerce and grew rich in their traffic with the far East. Europe used more and more of the silks and spices of the Orient, and these commodities became necessities to the people. There were three routes of travel : one by way of the Black Sea and the Caspian ; another through Syria and the Persian Gulf; the third by the way of the Ked Sea. But toward the end of the Middle Ages the Ottoman Turks began to press forward in Asia Minor and to block the routes of travel, checking or making dangerous the way to the East. In 1453 Constantinople fell into their hands, and commerce in that direction was ended. Turkish corsairs frequented the waters of the eastern Mediterranean, and Europe saw herself in danger of being cut off entirely from the longed-for wealth of u India and Cathay." * change which even now has not reached its goal." (Fisher, Outlines of Universal History, p. 387.) * Cathay was the name by which China was known in Europe. India was a very indefinite term. 2 8 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Although this commerce with the Orient was not small and had lasted for many years, yet in the fifteenth century the people of Europe knew little of India or E^st, 8 on * e China, since the traffic was in general carried on through middlemen. Accounts of the far East had been written by travelers, and some of them seem to have had influence in arousing interest in those regions. Chief among these narratives was the work of Marco Polo, an Italian traveler, who spent many years in China, and, returning to Europe, recounted strange stories of the wealth and glories of the Great Khan. He described not only China, but India, and made mention of Japan * and Java. This famous book was one of the greatest single contribu- tions ever made to geographical knowledge. Its descrip- tions have been found to be, on the whole, remarkably correct. In the next century after Marco Polo wrote his book, appeared the "Voyage and Travels of Sir John Mandeville." Such a man-as the famous Sir John probably never existed in the flesh, any more than did Robinson Crusoe. The stories of which he was the hero were taken bodily from other writers ; but the doughty knight, real or fictitious, was a perfect prince among story- tellers and was a very actual person to the men of that day, who read with eagerness the fascinating tales of the mar- velous East. He told of pillars of gold and precious stones half a foot in length, of golden birds that clapped their wings by magic, of golden vines laden with costly jewels, of the fountain of youth whose waters, if one drink them thrice, would make one ever young. f * Japan had the name Chipangu or Cipango in Marco Polo's book. As we shall see, Columbus thought that he had reached it, and at one time thought that Hayti was the famous land, where the lord of the island had 'a great palace which is entirely roofed with fine gold. . . . Moreover, all the pavement of the palace, and the floors of its chambers, are entirely of gold in plates like slabs of stone, a good two fingers thick." f " 1, John Mandeville," says the old impostor, " saw this well and DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 9 Eager to know a way to the East that would be free from the dangers of the robber Turk, men had been turn- ing their thoughts to new routes. Much was TxpEions. done b y Prince Henry of Portugal who won for himself the title of " Henry the Navigator." An earnest and enthusiastic student of geography and as- tronomy, he devoted his life to directing voyages of discov- ery and exploration along the western coast of Africa. Building a Ship of the Fifteenth Century. Year after year daring Portuguese sailors in their little ships crept farther and farther southward, and returned to announce to the great navigator the results of their expedi- tions. Henry died in 1460 ; but Portugal continued to be the home of bold and progressive mariners, and the air was drank thereof thrice, and all my fellows, and evermore since that time I feel that I am better and haler." Marco Polo's Travels were written in 1299 in the prison at Genoa. Read Marco Polo's Account of Japan and Java, in Old South Leaflets, No. 32. It is noteworthy that Mandeville declares that " men may well per- ceive that the land and sea are of round shape and form," and that he tells of a man who wandered quite around the earth and returned to his own home again. 10 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. filled with stories of discovery and plans for further achieve- ment. At the very end of the century (1497) Vasco da Gama rounded the Cape of Good Hope, made his way to the harbor of Calicut,* and returned with a cargo of the coveted spices and jewels of India. From the dawn of history the nations of Europe had stood with their backs to the Atlantic. The Mediterranean was to them the center of the earth. The voy- ages and discoveries of the Portuguese navi- gators brought new knowledge of strange coasts and helped to drive away from men's minds the great fear of the Sea of Darkness, which was supposed to contain all kinds of dreadful monsters and threaten all sorts of fearful dangers. Europe began to face about and to look out upon the great western ocean, whose coast had for so many centuries been the limit of the civilized world. Thus the mariners of Portugal found a new way to the Indies ; but before they were successful in finding this southern route, Columbus made his great effort to reach the East by way of the West, finding not the land he sought, but discovering a new world whose treasures in the course of years filled the coffers of Spain to overflowing. Both the time and place of Columbus's birth are uncertain. The probability is that Genoa was his birth- place. Certainly he spent his early years there, when ho was not upon the sea. We may select the year 144G as most likely to be the correct date of his birth, f * Not Calcutta. f The keenest investigators place the date between the 25th of March, 1446, and the 20th of March, 1447. An interesting sketch of Columbus will be found in Adams's Christopher Columbus. The account in Fiske's The Discovery of America, chap, v, is enter- taining. Many fascinating pages will be found in Irving's Life of Columbus. The great critical authority is Justin Winsor's Christo- pher Columbus. See also Life of Christopher Columbus, by Clements R. Markham. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. H His early education was not entirely neglected, but it was neither broad nor thorough. He acquired a reading The Earliest Engraved Likeness of Christopher Columbus. knowledge of Latin and became a good penman. He was early interested in the study of geography, and Education. J , , . , , , J B , 8 / f' somewhat later seems to have gained skill as a maker of maps and charts, for he himself says : "God hath given me a genius and hands apt to draw his globe, 12 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. and on it the cities, rivers, islands, and ports — all in their proper places." Even before reaching manhood he entered upon a seafaring career, and seems to have taken part in ventures of a turbulent if not piratical nature.* He be- came a bold seaman and navigator, and there is some evi- dence that in one voyage he sailed even as far as Iceland, a fact which has made some persons believe that he gained from these Northmen a knowledge of lands in the western ocean. He went to live in Portugal about 1473, and there began to take consuming interest in the new discoveries and in the search for a new route to the Indies. For some years he was engaged in various commercial enterprises ; but he also read and studied, and became con- . . vinced that great discoveries were to be made out upon the Sea of Darkness, the great Atlan- tic, whose terrors still, in spite of the daring achievements of the Portuguese, held men in dread and awe. Columbus came to the belief that the shortest and best way to reach the East was to sail west, and he gave himself up to the accomplishment of this great purpose. At that time people generally believed the earth to be a great plane, a vast flat surface. With the exception of the information given to the world by Marco Polo, onVe P 5 ty few important additions had been made to geographical knowledge for a thousand years. The famous map of Claudius Ptolemy, made about the mid- dle of the second century, fairly represented the general idea concerning the earth at the beginning of the fifteenth century. We must not think, however, that the belief in the earth's roundness, or the idea that India lay to the west of Spain, was original with Columbus. He carried the thought into action ; he had the needed courage and per- sistency; he had the steadfast and enduring faith. But * " There was a spice of piracy even in the soberest ventures of com- merce " (Winsor's Columbus, p. 81). DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 13 the belief that the earth was a sphere was a very old one. Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher, who lived in the fourth century before Christ, spoke of this idea as if it were not new, and gave, himself, substantial grounds for holding it.* Other ancient writers mentioned the thought, and it did not die out among learned men even in the Middle Sketch of the Ptolemy Map.| Ages. With the revival of learning it once more appeared in published writings, and Columbus seems to have eagerly scanned and pondered these pages. Shortly after going to Portugal, when Columbus was hardly thirty years of age, he obtained a letter from a famous Florentine astronomer named Toscanelli. It letter 116 * was * n l ar g e P ar t a C0 P V °^ a letter sent by Toscanelli to a man at the Portuguese court, who had written at the request of the king to obtain the opin- ion of the great astronomer on the subject of the shortest * " Wherefore," says Aristotle, " we may judge that those persons who connect the region in the neighborhood of the Pillars of Hercules with that toward India, and who assert that in this way the sea is one, do not assert things very improbable." f This is only a simplified sketch of the Ptolemy map. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 15 route to the Indies. This was one of the most important letters ever written, for it contained quite positive assurances that the earth was round, and that the way to India was west- ward across the Atlantic. " And do not wonder," said the letter, " at my calling west the parts where the spices are, whereas they are commonly called east, because to persons sailing persistently westward those parts will be found by courses on the under side of the earth." Tosca- nelli sent a chart also, and Columbus used this as a guide in his great undertaking. Now, fortunately, this chart was far wrong in one particular. Although the size of the earth was given not far from right, Asia was so ex- tended that the coast of China, or Cathay, was put about where the Gulf of California really is, and Cipangu, or Japan, east of Mexico. To reach Asia, therefore, seemed not such an insurmountable task as would have been the case had the coast of China occupied on the map its real position. Moreover, Toscanelli placed on the chart certain mythical islands * which he thought existed. " So," said he, " through the unknown parts of the route the stretches of sea to be traversed are not great." Columbus was now wholly given up to the idea of find- ing India across the Atlantic. He tried for years to obtain assistance and authority for the task. He ap- seekraid plied for aid to the monarchs of Portugal and Spain, and seems to have sent his brother to London to seek aid at the court of England. Success finally came to reward his patience and persistence. Ar- rangements were made for the expedition with the help and encouragement of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. On the 3d of August, 1492, three vessels started on a momentous voyage in search of the spices and gold of the East by way of the West. The largest vessel, the Santa Maria, " a dull vessel," we are told, " and unfit for discov- * See on the map St. Brandan's Jnsel and Antilia 16 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ery," was Columbus's flag-ship. According to modern esti- mates, made from descriptions of her size, she was not much over sixty-three feet in length and twenty in His first width. The Pinta, commanded by Martin Pin- voyage. ' * zon, and the Xina, commanded by Vincente Pinzon, were still smaller, and without decks amidships. The little fleet set sail to the Canaries, remained there for a time, and early in September stood boldly forth on the waste of unknown waters. As the weeks went by the sea- men lost patience, but the courage of Columbus did not wane. " The people could endure no longer ; they com- plained of the length of the voyage. But the admiral cheered them . . . the best way he could, giving them good hopes of the advantages they might gain from it. He added that, however much they might complain, he had to go to the Indies, and that he would go on until he found them, with the help of our Lord." * Land was discovered early in the morning of the 12th of October. Columbus disembarked and " took possession of the island for the king and queen." f He had not discovered India or China, as we well know, but had come upon an outlying island of a new con- tinent, a world inhabited by barbarous and savage men, without the marble palaces and the golden wonders de- scribed by Marco Polo and Mandeville. Columbus, how- ever, believed that he had reached the Indies. Before * This quotation is from the journal of Columbus, which has not been preserved in its original form, but was abridged by Las Casas, who wrote a great book on the History of the Indies in the sixteenth century, and was himself one of the noblest characters of the day. The student will be interested in With the Admiral of the Ocean Sea, by Mackie. P. L. Ford, Writings of Columbus, can be read with profit. The journal is printed in the Hakluyt Society Publications, and is edited by C. R. Markham. f Upon which one of the Bahamas Columbus first landed is not known. The weight of authority is now in favor of Watling's Island. See Adams's Columbus, p. 88, where the evidence is summarized. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 17 returning, the voyagers visited other islands, discovering Hayti and Cuba. Early in 1493 Columbus set sail for 2©cearoca| From the Letter to Sanxis, 1493. The pictures contained in the published letter are supposed to have been made after drawings by Columbus. home, and after various adventures reached Spain in Bafety, where he was received with triumphal honors 18 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. as the discoverer of a new route to the riches of the far East.* The bold explorer made three other voyages, always hoping to find the wealth and glories of Cathay. On his second voyage he established a colony in Slcoveries, Ha y tL t 0n his third ( 1498 ) he discovered the mainland of South America, but he still sup- posed the land to be part of Asia, or in the near neighbor- hood of the wished-for places. Shortly after returning from his fourth expedition he died (1506) in Spain, neglected, poor, and broken-hearted ; for he found little favor with the people when it was seen that he had not brought them the gold and jewels and precious fabrics of the Orient, but had " discovered the lands of de- ceit and disappointment — a place of sepulchres and wretch- edness to Spanish hidalgos." It is important to remember that the desire of Europe was not to discover a new continent, but to reach Asia. Men believed that the new discoveries lay Desire to along the coast of China, and the idea only reach Asia. ° ' J gradually took hold of them that the lands out in the western ocean were parts of a new continent. South America, which became known in rough outline be- fore the northern continent was well known, was supposed to be a new island or a projection from Asia ; and after the coast line quite well to the north was put down on maps and charts, the hope of many voyagers was to get around these troublesome barriers or through them, and to find their way to the coveted riches of India. Even after Euro- pean settlements were made in the new land there were many patient explorations of bays and rivers in hopes of * Columbus's own account of his discovery will be found in his letter to Santangel. It is published in American History Leaflets, No. 1. f Columbus left some men on the island on his first voyage, but found only ruins of their houses and fort when he returned. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 19 finding a thoroughfare. Slowly, through the process of decades, the Western World was uncovered and opened up to be a part and parcel of the known geography of the earth. Before Columbus completed his four voyages other im- portant discoveries had been made. In 1497 the mainland of North America was discovered by an expedi- tion sailing from Bristol, England. The leader of this expedition was John Cabot. His son Sebastian may have accompanied him. The land first seen by them was Cape Breton, or Labrador.* An entry in the privy purse of shrewd Henry VII notes that £10 were given " hym that founde the new isle " — not a magnificent gift in light of the fact that upon this voyage of the Cabots England later based her claim to the whole continent of North America. Cabot also received a small pension, charged upon the revenues of the port of Bristol. The following year he seems to have started upon another voyage, but nothing more is known of him.f There is some reason for believing that the mainland of South America was first visited by an expedition that set * The date generally given for this first sight of the main coast of North America is the 24th of June. Possibly, as recent investiga- tions seem to show, the discovery was even earlier than this. There is some difference of opinion, too, as to whether the landfall was Cape Breton, or Labrador. Some of the uncertainties are well put in Mr. Winsor's words : " If we believe Sebastian's own words as reported, he accompanied his father on his first and second voyages. If we believe contemporary witnesses, and some are bitterly reproachful in their negatives, Sebastian was never on the coast of North America at all " ( Winsor, in a paper read before the New York Historical Society, November 18, 1896). See for the Cabots, Winsor, Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. iii, pp. 1-7; Fiske, The Discovery of America, vol. ii, pp. 1-16. f Contemporary accounts of the Cabot voyage in Hart, American History told by Contemporaries, vol. i, pp. 69-71. There is some evi- dence that Cabot returned from the second voyage. 20 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. sail from Cadiz, May 10, 1497. Americus Vespucius,* a Florentine merchant and traveler, speaks of this voyage, in which he claims to have taken part, and Vespucins. sa ^ s ^ na ^ " a ^ ^ ne en( ^ °^ twenty-seven days " they came " upon a coast which we thought to be that of a continent." If such a voyage and such discov- eries were made, then these navigators, and not the Cabots or Columbus, were the first since the Northmen to see the mainland of the new world. Concerning these matters students disagree, but many of the most learned believe that Vespucius never made this voyage, and is chargeable with willful deceit. That he did make later important dis- coveries, however, is beyond question. In 1501 he sailed along the eastern coast of South America, and new world" & then, driven by violent gales, went far into the southern seas, probably even to the Island of Georgia, a land not rediscovered until nearly three cen- turies afterward. Within a short time he made still another voyage to the southern continent. Even if he did make the voyage of 1497, it was these later explorations, and not the early one, that gave him fame, for he wrote a short description of what he had seen, and his accounts of far- off lands that were new and strange were eagerly read by those who looked upon Columbus as the unfortunate dis- coverer of an insalubrious archipelago upon the coast of Asia. His story, written in a private letter, was printed f and widely circulated. In 1507 a young German professor, living at St. Die, in the Vosges Mountains, published a little volume on geography, and with it some letters of Vespucius, and suggested that, inasmuch as a fourth part * This is the Latin form of the name. In Italian it is Americo or Amerigo Vespucci. , f In his letter Vespucius spoke in wonder of what he saw on the Brazilian coast, and said, "Novum mundum appellare licet" — one might call it a new world. This letter, when published, bore the title Novus Mundus. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 21 of the earth had been discovered by Americus, it be called America.* This name came into general use only slowly, Nuc tfo Sc Jig partes funt latius lu(lrat^/&: alia quartapars per Americu Vefputiu(vt in fequenri bus audietur )inuenta eft/qua non video cur quis iure vetet ab Americo inuentore fagacis ingenr) vi AmeriV ro Amerigen quafi Americi terra / fiue Americam ca dicendatcu Sc Europa Sc Afia a mulieribus fua for tita fintnomina.Eius fitu Sc gentis mores ex bis bi nis Americi nauigationibus quae fequuntliquide intelligidatur. Facsimile of the Sentence in which America was first named, from the Cosmography Introductio, 1507. being applied first to the unknown lands, " the New World " on the south, and then given to both continents.! In 1519 Ferdinand Magellan started upon a great and eventful voyage. He discovered the straits that bear his name, and, passing boldly through, crossed the SjSjJ broad Pacific and reached the East Indies, thus actually doing what Columbus had failed to do. Magellan himself was killed in the Philippine Islands ; but one of his vessels, with a remnant of her crew, sailed to Spain, completing the first circumnavigation of the globe. Judged by its results, this voyage was not so important as many others, but it was one of the greatest feats of bold * In another place is the same suggestion: "But now these parts have been more extensively explored, and . . . another fourth part has been discovered. . . . Wherefore I do not see what is rightly to hinder us from calling it after its discoverer, Americus, a man of sagacious mind, Amerige — i. e., the land of Americus, or America, since both Europe and Asia have got their names from women." f For Vespucius, see Winsor, Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. ii, chap. ii. Fiske, Discovery of America, vol. ii, pp. 25- 175, especially pp. 97-105. On the naming of America, Winsor, ibid., pp. 164-169: Fiske, ibid., pp. 107-117, 125-140. T 22 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. navigation in history. It shows how much had been clone in this wonderful era in the course of a few years ; for, fifty Western Half of Lenox Globe.* years before, the Portuguese seamen had sailed hardly more than halfway down the western coast of Africa. * This map follows a sketch given in Winsor, Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. ii, p. 170 (by permission of the publishers, Houghton, Mifflin & Co.). It is the part of a globe made about 1510 or 1511, now in the Lenox Library, New York. It shows the Mundus DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 23 While for nearly a century after the discovery of America other nations did little to get possession of dominions in the New World, Spain entered eagerly into the Spanish task. Settlements were made in the West Indies, and bold adventurers made long journeys into the interior of the continents looking for the fabulous riches of Cathay. Ponce de Leon, seeking the fountain of perpotual youth, explored Florida, " the land of Easter." * Balboa, from a peak in Darien, looked out upon the waters of the great Pacific. Somewhat later Pineda entered the mouth of the Mississippi, and called it the Rio de Santo Espiritu, the River of the Holy Spirit. In 1539-'42 De Soto made his famous march through the southern part of what is now the United States. About the same time Coronado, start- ing in search of the fabulous " seven cities of Cibola," wandered over the dreary plains and through the mountain defiles of the southwest. These explorations ac- complished little, but in Central and South America the Spanish soldiers won a great and wealthy empire; Her- nando Cortes conquered Mexico (1519-'21) ; jj nd . . the Pizarros conquered Peru (1531-'34). In 15G5 a settlement was made at St. Augustine, the first European settlement within the future limits of the United States. It will thus be seen that Spain occupied the islands of the West Indies and the semicivilized countries of the two continents. The Indians of the islands were Character of timid, and incapable of resisting the cruel Spanish soldiers ; the people of Mexico and Peru were not able to unite effectively against the invaders ; and so the power of Spain was established with little diffi- Novus of Vespucius as an island southeast of Zipangri (Japan). Other interesting maps will be found in Winsor, vol. ii. * Ponce de Leon saw Florida on Easter Day. In Spanish this day is Pascua Florida, the flowery passover. 3 24 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. culty, and she became possessed of a great subject empire in the New World from which came gold and silver in abundance.* To govern such an empire her character and her condition fitted her. But the Spaniard showed no skill in making permanent, self-reliant settlements, that had within them the power of natural development and growth. In this, as we shall see, the Spanish differed from the English, who simply made in America new homes for Englishmen, where their old ideas and customs might de- velop freely — where, in fact, in many ways a new England might grow up. After the discovery of America by Columbus, the Pope, Alexander VI, issued two bulls, dividing the heathen lands Th h 11 f °^ ^ ne wor ^ between Portugal and Spain, demarcation, These gave to Spain all she might discover 1493. wes £ f a jj ne d rawn one hundred leagues west of the Azores and the Cape Verde Islands. The next year the two powers entered into an agreement, in accord- * The Spaniards were moved by three great purposes : the gathering of gold and jewels, the establishment of dominion, and the winning of souls to the Church. The first two of these objects were accom- plished, but the Spanish soldiers, in their greed for gold, seemed to forget the mission of the cross. See Winsor, Narrative and Critical His- tory of America, vol. ii, chap, v ; Fiske, The Discovery of America, vol. ii, pp. 444-481. The Mercator Map of 1541. This map shows the word America applied to both the northern and southern continents. It was long supposed to be the very first, but quite recently another map (also by Mercator) has been discovered that was made three years earlier. Mercator was the wisest geographer of the time, and showed a truly wonderful power of interpreting the re- ports of travelers and explorers and of divining the truth. The map as here given follows a sketch made by Mr. Winsor himself, and repro- duced in his Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. ii, p. 177 (by permission of the publishers, Houghton, Mifflin & Co.). The original map is on gores. For an example of this method of making maps, see Winsor, Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. ii, p. 120. The Mercator Map of 1541. 2G HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Bnce with which the dividing line should be three hundred and seventy leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. Upon ehmmoo^ebaoefaibicrto feffcUgcna; 6i30lal> ape que t>i3icron los catho\\coe> tfeye&xxetyaiwi The Western Half of the Eibero Map, 1529, showing the Routes of Columbus and the Line of Demarcation. this agreement, duly ratified by the Pope, Spain based her claim to the New World. DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 27 References. Thwaites, The Colonies, Chapters I and II ; Fisher, The Colonial Era, pp. 1-20; Fiske, The Discovery of America, Volume I, espe- cially Chapters I, II, III, V, VIII, IX, and X; Iligginson, The Larger History of the United States, Volume I, Chapters I, II, and III. Longer accounts : Markham, Christopher Columbus ; Adams, Chris- topher Columbus. v* * % p » ^ Uill The House at Valladolid where Columbus died. CHAPTER II The Southern Colonies— 1607-1700. VIRGINIA. England was not ready in the first half of the sixteenth century to enter into competition for the New World ; she t, , :■ . ,,. was not ready for that outburst of energy which England in the J . -r. ^ sixteenth made her the successful rival of France and centnry. Spain and the greatest colonizing nation of the world. The Tudors, then on the throne, governed England sternly but well ; order was brought out of the confusion that came as the old feudal system disappeared ; the mid- dle classes of society were given opportunity for growth and betterment ; and the foundations were laid for the trade and commerce of the years to come. But not until toward the end of the century did the English people take part in the contest for empire in America. They were not yet, in the days of Henry VIII, prepared to reach out for new do- minions. The French accomplished little or nothing in the way of colonization in the sixteenth century. Until the accession of Henry IV (1589) the country was not in good sixteenth condition for colonial enterprise. The vitality century. f the nation was weakened either by foreign wars or by internal strife. The fierce contests between Huguenots and Catholics did much to exhaust its energy. Nevertheless French seamen did something in discovery, and a few unsuccessful efforts were made to found settle- ments in America. Hardly was the New World known to the Old when the hardy fishermen of Brittany began to visit 28 THE SOUTHERN COLONIES— 1607-1700. 29 the fisheries of Newfoundland. Verrazano,* in 1524, sailed along the North American coast from North Carolina to Maine. Ten years later Jacques Cartier, a jovial and roist- ering fellow, explored the lower part of the St. Lawrence, and the next year visited the present site of Montreal. A few years after this (1542-'43) an attempt was made to plant a colony in the new-found region, but without success. The Huguenots sought to settle in Brazil, but the effort ended in miserable failure. A colony formed in Florida was destroyed by the Spaniards and its people murdered in the cold-blooded fashion of which the Spanish soldier of the day was master, f Thus Spain, unsuccessful herself in obtaining a hold on the Atlantic coast north of the Gulf of Mexico, save in the Eff F . weak outpost at St. Augustine, which hardly de- and Spanish served the name of a colony, did succeed in pre- rivalry. venting the French from settling in the south, while the cold winters of the north brought disaster to French colonists on the St. Lawrence. As a consequence, the middle Atlantic coast remained to the end of the cen- tury free from settlements, and England was given the chance to occupy it with her colonies. Not till the beginning of the next century, when France was inwardly at peace under the sagacious rule of Henry IV, D did the French succeed in making a permanent Permanent ° * French settlement in America. In 1G05 Port Eoyal, colonies. j n Acadia, was founded, and three years later Champlain founded Quebec. How the French power devel- oped in Canada, and how the French endeavored to extend * Verrazano, like Columbus, Cabot, Vespucius, was an Italian by birth. f Graphic accounts of these early French enterprises will be found in Parkman, Pioneers of France in the New World, pp. 9-183. Shorter accounts will be found in Doyle, The English in America, vol. i (Tho Southern Colonies). Fiske, The Discovery of America, vol. ii, pp. 512- 522. 30 IIISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. their sway over the whole interior of the continent, will be told in a later chapter. It is sufficient to say here that Eng- land and France came to vie with each other for dominion in North America ; and while in the course of a hundred and fifty years the English colonics along the middle Atlantic coast were growing strong and vigorous, the French, as an ever-watchful, zealous enemy, sought to check the progress of their rivals. It is highly important that the main features of the geo- graphical situation should be kept in mind. The Spanish were at the south; the French, after lG05,were nation* for the established at the north; the middle portion, possession of from Maine to Florida, was unsettled at the be- ginning of the seventeenth century. Into this middle portion came the people of England, and the Dutch and Swedes also. In the course of a few years it fell into the hands of the English, Holland and Sweden being too weak to retain their hold upon it. Then began a contest between France and England, a contest for wider dominion, and in this contest England was successful. Thus by the end of what we call the colonial period the whole of North America* was possessed by two nations, England and Spain. England advanced very rapidly in wealth and prosper- ity under the strong, kind hand of Elizabeth, and became a commercial nation of no mean power. During England and this time English hostility to Spain was con- stantly growing more keen, for England was now firmly Protestant in belief, and the people detested 1'hilip II, who stood forth as the champion of Eoman Ca- tholicism. They looked upon Spain as the natural enemy of their country, and the brave English mariners considered all Spanish commerce fair spoil. These bold sea dogs, scorn- * Possibly an exception should be made. Russia had already done something to establish a claim to Alaska. THE SOUTHERN COLONIES— 1607-1700. 31 ing the threats of Philip against any Protestant who should visit the seas of the West Indies, lay in wait for galleons freighted with the treasures of Mexico and Peru and robbed them ruthlessly. The very names of these daring and in- comparable seamen were dreaded in the settlements of the New World.* Chief among these seamen was Francis Drake. He first carried the English flag into the Pacific. Sailing through the Straits of Magellan, he loaded his bark with Sir Francis g \^ anc [ s ii V er and precious jewels from Span- ish ships, taking from one alone the sum of three million dollars. f Passing to the north, he reached the coast of California or southern Oregon and took formal possession of the region, naming it New Albion. He then crossed the Pacific and completed the second navigation of the globe (1577-'80). Frobisher and Davis made voyages into the northwestern Atlantic, and other brave mariners J in various expeditions gave evidence of the new-found ener- gy and enterprise of England. The expeditions of men like Drake were at least half piratical, but they were perhaps the necessary forerunners of English colonization, for they gave courage to English seamen and helped to break down all fear of the power of Spain. * An interesting account is to be found in Green, History of the English People, chap. vii. f Fletcher, Drake's chaplain, who wrote an account of the voyage, speaks of taking thirteen chests of silver reals, eighty pounds weight of gold, twenty-six tons of uncoined silver, two very fair gilt silver drink- ing bowls, " and the like trifles." X Famous among these men was John Hawkins, a valiant seaman, knighted by Queen Elizabeth for his success in the slave trade. He who made himself famous in this horrible traffic seems not to have realized its horror or its wickedness. For he was a pious, religious spirit, and carried slaves or fought the Spanish with as clear a conscience as if en- gaged in holy errand. His sailing orders to his ships close with the words : " Serve God daily ; love one another ; preserve your victuals ; beware of fire ; and keep good company ! " 32 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The first English settlements in America were not made under the guidance and direction of the monarch, nor to carry out any policy of state ; they were the re- sult of private enterprise. And yet those who were chiefly interested in colonization were influenced by other motives than the mere hope of personal gain ; they de- sired the extension of English power, and they longed in some measure to check the might of Spain. They hoped to get a share of the gold and silver with which the New World was supposed to abound, and which was thought to be the source of Spanish strength. Mere hatred of the Spaniard and religious rivalry seem to have had no small share in the real motives for colonizing effort.* The man who first seriously entertained plans for settle- ment in North America and had the zeal and courage to make decided effort was Sir Humphrey Gilbert, a gentle and noble character, one of those persons whose life and conduct serve to brighten the page of history. In 1579, assisted by his half-brother, Walter Raleigh, he endeavored Gilbert and ^ ma k e a settlement in Newfoundland. This Raleighi effort, as well as one a few years later (1583), was unsuccessful. Raleigh now took up the plan, and for years persisted in trying to establish a permanent English colony. He more wisely chose a location farther to the south. In 1584 he sent out two vessels on a voyage of ex- ploration. Their commanders f sailed along the coast south of Chesapeake Bay. The name Virginia was given to the whole country in honor of the maiden queen, Elizabeth. The next year Raleigh sent out a company who settled on Ro- anoke Island. This colony was a failure, and another effort * Hakluyt's famous Westerne Planting contains these words among others : " That this voyage will be a great bridle to the Indies of the King of Spain." f Amadas and Barlowe. Raleigh was knighted as a reward for these voyages. THE SOUTHERN COLONIES— 1607-1700. 33 met with like result.* Although Ealeigh was not entirely discouraged, no other serious steps were taken until the be- ginning of the next century. These efforts were a preparation in more ways than one for successful colonization in America. They pointed to the difficulties and did something toward marking out the way of success, f Moreover, a number of the men who were actively interested with Ealeigh were subscribers to the com- pany which made a permanent settlement at Jamestown, the planting of which is soon to be told. And yet there is a marked difference between the efforts of the sixteenth and those of the seventeenth century. With the age of Eliza- _ . . . , beth there seemed to pass away the flavor of Colonization oj ■> the middle romance and adventure ; the settlements under class. prosaic James I were the offspring of the eco- nomic needs of England. " We pass . . . into the sober at- mosphere of commercial and political records, amid which we faintly spell out the first germs of the constitutional life of British America." The Englishman who succeeded in colonizing America was not the gay courtier or the daring buccaneer or the bold freebooter or the gallant soldier of the reign of Elizabeth, but the steady representative of the in- dustrious, plodding men of the middle classes, whose wants and thoughts henceforth were the directive forces of Eng- lish history. J The first settlements of the seventeenth cen- * In 1587 over a hundred men, women, and children were left on the coast of North Carolina, and when some three years later assistance was sent to them, they were not to be found. This was Raleigh's " lost colony." f Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. iii, has an interesting chapter on Hawkins and Drake, also one on Sir Walter Raleigh. For further facts, see Fisher, The Colonial Era, pp. 23 fol. ; Thwaites, The Colonies, p. 38 fol. ; Bancroft, History, vol. i, chap, v, p. 60 ; Doyle, The English in America (The Southern Colonies), p. 57 fol. % For a picture of the England of Drake and Raleigh, of Gilbert and Sir Philip Sydney, read Charles Kingsley's Westward Ho ! or Scott's Ken il worth. 34 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. tury contained some of the elements of romantic England ; but only when these were cast aside did the colonies prosper.* Other motives than a desire for wealth or a longing to curb the power of Spain seem to have had their influence with those who undertook at the beginning of Motives for the seventeenth century to found a permanent settlement in America. The industrial condition of England naturally turned men's thoughts to plans of col- onization. The people were restless and uneasy ; soldiers that had fought for Elizabeth found their occupation gone and wished for further excitement ; many men were out of work, for the conversion of plow land into sheep farms de- prived laborers of employment. There was a complaint that England was overcrowded — a strange complaint, one might think, inasmuch as the population of Great Britain has in- creased tenfold since that day. But in those days, before the invention of modern machinery, men could not easily find employment save as tillers of the soil. The country therefore was overcrowded with those who had no work ; lawlessness prevailed and crimes were frequent, f Under these circumstances men turned their thoughts to America as a fit place to which to move the unemployed. Partly, then, as a business enterprise, partly in consideration of England's industrial condition, partly from motives of pa- triotism in order that England, as well as her hated rival, * John Smith was, as we shall see, the exception which proved the rule. He was a rollicking soldier of fortune, but he was more. When lie declared that " he who will not work shall not eat," he announced the gospel of a new dispensation — the principle of a coming de- mocracy. f The Spanish minister in London wrote to his king that the chief reason for the English effort to colonize Virginia was that a colony " would give an outlet to so many idle and wretched people as they have in England." See Hart, American History told by Contempo- raries, vol. i, pp. 154, 155. THE SOUTHERN COLONIES— 1607-1700. 35 TERRITORY Granted, by the Charter of lOOO GRANT EXTENDED 100 MILES INLAND AND INCLUDED ALSO ALL ISLANDS 100 MILES FROM THE COAST. Spain, might have possessions across the sea, colonization was undertaken. The experience of Ealeigh seemed to prove that no single person could successfully establish a settlement in America. The task required greater wealth and greater in- fluence than one man could possess. For the prosecution of the enterprise, therefore, a number of men sought and re- 36 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ceived a charter from King James. The charter was complex and intricate, providing for two companies of like character. Th L a d ^ ne was com P ose< l °^ London merchants, and Plymouth had authority to establish a settlement be- Companies. tween the thirty-fourth and forty-first degrees of latitude ; in other words, somewhere between Cape Fear and the mouth of the Hudson. The other, the Plymouth Company, was made up of "sundry knights, gentlemen, merchants, and other adventurers of Bristol and Exeter, and of our town of Plimouth," and it could found a colony between the thirty-eighth and the forty-fifth degrees, or between the southern point of Maryland and the Bay of Fundy. Thus it will be seen that the grant to one of the companies overlapped the other by three degrees, but it was provided that one was not to make a settlement within a hundred miles of the other. The strip of three degrees was to belong to the company first colonizing it. It was also provided by the charter that each of these companies should have a council of thirteen, resident in America ; and there was to be one general su- How they were p er i or council in England. The aif airs of the company were in the hands of the council, but it must govern " according to such laws, ordinances, and in- structions as shall be in that behalf given and signed with our hand or sign manual " — that is to say, according to the orders of the king. The colonists and their children were to have " all liberties, franchises, and immunities " of native- born subjects of the king. A paper of instructions was issued by the king, and this contained certain directions to the company or limitation upon its power. Trial by jury was provided for jj*J when a person in the colony was accused of a capital offense. The president and council in Virginia were empowered to make laws which would have force for the time being, but must be finally ratified in England. THE SOUTHERN COLONIES— 1607-1700. 37 There were some liberal provisions in the charter and instructions, but the king in reality retained almost com- , . plete power in his hands. He could manage The colonists f 7T^ without self- the company almost at will, lne colonists, on government. the other hand, were in the power of a com- mercial company, made up of men who desired indeed to found a colony, but wished also to reap their reward in wealth. The settlers had no share in the government ; all local authority was placed in the resident council. A company of colonists sailed for America in December, 1606.* Among them were all sorts and conditions of men — white-handed gentlemen, hoping to find imme- e se ers. di a te riches ; broken gallants and ruined trades- men ; and a few " carpenters " and " laborers." The gentle- men made up more than half the company. A gentleman, we must remember, was a man who knew not work. There were also on board a tailor, a barber, and a drummer, f These men expected to gather with ease the precious stones and gold and silver with which the country was supposed to abound. \ Thus it is plain that the company was strik- ingly ill fitted to build homes in a wilderness, to fell the forest, to plant corn, to toil and struggle in patience — " more fit to spoil a commonwealth than either begin one or but help to maintain one." # Early in the spring of 1607 the expedition entered Chesapeake Bay, and in May decided to build a town on a * The whole story of the settlement is vividly told in Cooke's Vir- ginia, Part I, and in Eggleston, Beginners of a Nation, pp. 1-72. f " They were going to a wilderness in which, as yet, not a house was standing, and there were forty-eight gentlemen to four carpenters." Bancroft, History, vol. i, p. 88. \ " For rubies and diamonds, they go forth on Holydays and gather them by the seashore, to hang on their children's coats and stick in their caps." These words are from Eastward Ho ! a popular play in England at this time. * Captain John Smith's The Generall Hjstorie of Virginia. 38 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. low peninsula jutting out into one of the rivers that flows through the fertile and attractive country south of the great bay. In honor of their monarch they named the river the James, and their town Jamestown. Dissensions and quarrels threatened at the very outset to bring failure to the colony. Even while on the voyage the leaders had fallen into dispute ; and when they landed, Captain John Smith, who had been named as one of the council, was for a time prevented from taking the office, because he had been " suspected of a supposed mutiny." Wingfield was chosen president, but was grossly unfit for the task of governing this band of eager gold hunters and adventurers. He was finally deposed, but his successor was alike incompetent. The first dismal summer was full of dread and trouble. The Indians made an attack, but were beaten off. The food was scanty and the water bad ; the rank marshes exhaled malaria. Disease broke out, and nearly the whole colony was prostrated with fever. " Burning fevers destroyed them," says Percy, one of the company ; " some departed suddenly, but for the most part they died of mere famine." Before autumn came, fifty were dead, and the living were in a pitiable plight. The one man fit to rule was John Smith. He had al- ready had a remarkable career of war and adventure. He was a sort of soldier of fortune, brave, self- reliant, capable — one of those enterprising men left over from the sixteenth century, when adventurous knight errantry was in season.* He worked without ceas- * "He was perhaps the last professional knight errant that the world saw — a free lance who could not hear of a fight going on anywhere in the world without hastening to take a hand in it." See Tyler, History of American Literature, vol. i, p. 18. Tyler's description of Smith and his writings is full of charm and interest. The portrait on the opposite page is from Smith's The Generall Historic of Virginia, and is a part of the map of New England. For a part of this map, see the chapter on New England. C^Cheft arc theLitteS ihatjhcw tky~Facc\tntt thofc nhatfhew thy Grace and ^toVV, brighter bee : <~&iy Taire-di/coueries and JFoYVtC- Overthrowes Of SalvagCS,mach CiviilizA hy tke^j<^ "Beftjfow ~thy Spirit/and to it Glory (Wyt Sojhou artBra&C without, hut Qol(U~Within, , 40 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ing to save the colony, and to him its final success was due. Help came from England, and new settlers were brought over. Smith now became president of the council, and he wielded his power with vigor. " You must obey this now for a law," he declared, " that he who will not work shall [Smith Vindtth afalutuje tohts armc~. ~gg^- all hiscompany, anJJlen> J of ' ttarc) rTkn&> %* art Vtrtua. Southampton. k> \ SxmonT^AP^iis Jcu t Stebert CUrkt eXn't'd Motives of settlement. Part of John Smith's Map of New England. Smith ventured the prophecy that nothing but hope of riches would ever people that region or "draw company from their ease and humours at home." But there was a nobler and stronger motive than the love of ease and wealth, and this proved powerful enough to fortify men against the unspeakable trials and hardships of New England winters, and gave them the heart to build homes on the bleak coast which at first seemed so forbidding. The first successful colo- nies at the north were made under the inspiration and enthusiasm of religion by men whose lives were devoted to THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 69 holy purposes, to whom wealth was of little moment if they were allowed to worship as they chose and to live their simple lives in a state of their own building. To under- stand aright how these permanent settlements came to be made, we must get some idea of the religious strivings and dissensions of that day in England. Students of English history will remember that, in the reign of Henry VIII, the Church in England was separated from the Koman Church and dependence on bE?gZr tS the P °P e renounced. In the time of Eliza- beth, however, not all the people were Protest- ants, nor was there agreement as to forms of worship or methods of church government. The queen insisted upon conformity to the regulations of the Established Church, of which she was the head, and during her reign perhaps the majority of the people acquiesced in the conservative posi- tion she adopted. Many, on the other hand, were dissatis- fied, and some were ready to suffer persecution rather than conform to the existing order. The land still contained Roman Catholics who believed that the Pope was the true head of the Church. Others, on the contrary, were desir- ous of freeing the Church from forms and symbolism, which they considered relics of Romanism and superstition. They wished to " purify " the Church by adopting simpler modes of worship. They objected to the sign of the cross in bap- tism, to the use of the surplice, and to other practices of this kind. Still another class believed that the form of church government should be altered, that the creed and ritual should be prescribed not by the queen but by assem- blies. These persons were known as Presbyterians, because they believed in the appointment of church dignitaries called presbyters. All of these classes, so far named, be- lieved in a state church, but disagreed as to its government or as to forms of worship. There was, in addition, another sect of extreme Puritans, who believed that a church was a local body of believers, and that each such body had the fO HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. right to elect its own ministers and determine its own methods. These men were called " Independents " or " Sepa- ratists," because they believed in separation from the Estab- lished Church. Even during the reign of Elizabeth members of dissent- ing sects * were severely punished for nonconformity. The queen loved symmetry and order, and hated the Dissenters semblance of disagreement in church manasre- persectrtedi ment. The Separatists were dealt with sharply. Some of their members were hanged for nonconformity. Upon the accession of James there was no improvement. He was a stickler for prerogative, and in his narrow, dogged way was determined to reign with a high hand in church and state. But the Puritans grew apace. The stately Elizabeth had been enabled to hold her people ; her pre- tensions as the head of the Church seemed not gross blas- phemy. They loved her well, for she was devoted to Eng- land, had repelled the infamous Spaniard, and protected with rare shrewdness her people and her throne. But James was personally a sloven, mentally a pedant, morally selfish, bigoted, and mean. Demand for civil and religious liberty was sure to grow as a revolt against the assumption of such a monarch, who believed in his divine right to rule. We are especially interested in a congregation of ear- nest, conscientious folk who came together for worship in the little hamlet of Scrooby, in Nottinghamshire. They * The sects may be thus designated : 1. Roman Catholics. 2. Episcopalians : a. High Church, b. Low Church . . . Puritans. 3. Presbyterians. 4. Separatists. The Low Church, Presbyterians, and Separatists ought all to be called Puritans, inasmuch as all desired " purification " to some degree. Adherents of any of these sects might outwardly " conform " and thus be "conformists," or refuse to attend church and receive the sacra- ment of the Established Church, and thus be "nonconformists." The Separatists were likely to be nonconformists. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 71 were Separatists, and were therefore set upon and tor- mented. They could not long continue " in any peaceable condition ; but were hunted and persecuted on The Scrooby every side, so as their former afflictions were congregation. " ' . , but as nea-bitmgs m comparison of these which now came upon them. For some were taken, & clapt up in prison, others had their homes besett & watcht night and day, & hardly escaped their hands ; and y e most were faine to flie & leave their howses and habitations, and the means of their livelehood." * Thus molested and beset, " by a joynte consente they resolved to goe into y e Low-Countries, where they heard was freedome of Religion for all men." Betaking themselves to Amsterdam (1608), they went thence to Leyden. But they still loved the They become d ear England which had treated them so pilgrims. harshly. They had much to struggle against in Holland, although the church prospered. " That which was ... of all sorrowes most heavie to be borne ; was that many of their children . . . were drawne away . . . into extravagante, dangerous courses." So they determined to go to America and build for themselves new homes far from the vices of Europe and beyond the reach of the long arm of persecution. " The place they had thoughts on was some of those vast and unpeopled countries of America, which are fruttful, & fitt for habitation, being devoyd of all civill in- Theycometo habitants, wher ther are only salvage & brut- America. . J ° ish men which range up and downe little oth- erwise than y e wild beasts of the same." They obtained money from merchant "adventurers" in England, and a * This and the following quotations are from History of Plymouth Plantation, by William Bradford, second governor of the colony. Bradford has justly been called the father of American history. His book was left in manuscript, and was not published till about the mid- dle of the present century. It is beautifully written... " The daily food of his spirit was noble." 6 72 HISTORY OF TIIE AMERICAN NATION. grant from the London Company. They probably wished to settle somewhere in the northern part of the London Com- pany's grant, yet south of stern New England, whose cold winters were known to them. It did not seem wise for the whole Leyden congregation to go, but an advance guard of one hundred and two brave souls sailed from Plymouth, Eng- land, in the good ship Mayflower, September, 1620. The weather was rough and tempestuous. The captain lost his reckoning, and when they first saw land it was not the New Jersey shore, but the bleak wintry coast of New England, in the neighborhood of Cape Cod. There they finally deter- mined to stay and to build their homes on the west side of the broad bay, at a point to which Smith had already given the name of Plymouth. Before leaving their Impac a t yfl0Wer slli P the y came to g etner in the little cabin and drew up the famous Mayflower Compact, whereby they solemnly covenanted and combined them- selves into a " civill body politick " for their " better order- ing and preservation." They acknowledged their dread sovereign King James, but they declared as well their intention to make and obey the laws. This was not an announcement of independence, but it meant self- government.* It was the 21st of December before they disembarked. The land offered but a dreary prospect. "For summer being done, all things stand upon them with a Hardship met we ther-beaten face ; and y e whole countrie, full with courage. ' J _ ' of woods and thickets, represented a wild and savage heiw." The first winter was full of terrible distress. In two or three months' time half their company were laid away in graves under the snow. In the time of most dis- * It is an interesting fact that the government thus drawn up was the same in form as they were authorized by the Virginia Company to institute until something more permanent could be done. See especially Eggleston, Beginners, etc., p. 173. 1*^*31 *8**?I 74 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. tress there were but six or seven persons well enough to care for the sick or bury the dead. And yet in the midst of all the wretchedness the survivors did not lose courage. " It is not with us," said the brave Brewster, " as with men whom small things can discourage." When warm weather set in, the Mayflower sailed back to England, but not one of the settlers went back. They planted corn, they built homes, they met together in town meeting, they worshiped God in their own simple fashion. The Puritan state and the Puritan church in America were begun. The leaders of the company were Brewster and Brad- ford and the hardy soldier Miles Standish ; yet all had the „ __ heroism of steadfastness and faith. When the Steadfastness and courage crops of this first summer were gathered a day bring success. f thanksgiving was appointed. Ke-enforce- ments came from Europe, but some years passed away be- fore the success of the undertaking was assured. They were not molested by the Indians, because the numbers of the red men had been greatly reduced by a pestilence, and this was attributed to the fact that shortly before this some white men had been killed. The Indians stood, in conse- quence, in superstitious awe of the colonists. Moreover, Massasoit, a powerful chief, became their friend, and he directed them " how to set their corne, wher to take fish, . . . and never left them till he dyed." Where there was so much energy and devotion success was sure to follow. The settlers first secured a grant from the Plymouth Company, on whose land they beginnings had settled. Then they paid off all dues to the great things London adventurers, and in 1G33 were free arepr from debt and owners of their tract of land. The colony never became a large one, but it was prosper- ous, wholesome, and sound. It showed the way to others, and prepared for the greater migration of which we shall now read. " Out of small beginnings," said Bradford, " great things have been produced ; and, as one small can- THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. ^5 die may light a thousand, so the light here kindled hath shone to many, yea, in some sort to our whole nation." * MASSACHUSETTS BAY AND HER NEIGHBORS. We have already seen that during the reign of James I there were growing discontents in England. When his son Charles came to the throne (1625) new trou- Charles I and ^les ^ j n< jj e was even more obstinate than Parliament. his father, and had high ideas of his own author- ity, and contempt for such principles of the constitution as were meant to restrain the arbitrary conduct of the king. " The king is in his own nature very stiff," said Sir Ferdi- nand Fairfax, and this well describes the character of the young monarch who now set himself the task of ruling without regard to the wishes of the nation. He began al- most at once to quarrel with the House of Commons, de- manding money from it without deigning to listen to com- plaints or consenting to consider grievances.! But the House could not be browbeaten. They wrested from him his consent to the famous Petition of Right. His word did not bind him, however ; he disregarded his promises and went on as before. In 1629 he dissolved Parliament, and for eleven years he ruled without one, extorting money from his subjects with high-handed indifference to their rights. These were fateful years for England. Archbishop Laud and the Earl of Strafford laid their heavy hands upon the people. They sought to crush out all opposition, and to cow the people into complete submission to the king. * For a picturesque description of life in Plymouth in early days, read Hart, American History, etc., vol. i, p. 35G, where Governor Edward Winslow is quoted. f " I would you would hasten for my supply," he exclaimed in an- ger when the House sent in a list of grievances, " or else it will be the worse for yourselves, for if any ill happen I think I shall be the last to feel it." 76 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Because of these conditions in England a great migra- tion to America set in. In these years, when King Charles was ruling without a parliament and exacting The great illegal taxes from the people, over twenty thou- migration. ° r r ? j sand persons left their homes and sailed for New England.* If one is to appreciate the meaning of this great movement one should understand its causes and his- torical circumstances. The men who came to America in those years cherished the principles of the English Consti- tution, and were from the same class as those who, later in the great rebellion (1642-'49), fought to maintain the liber- ties of England They believed that a monarch had no right to take money from the people without the consent of Parliament. They believed that the people had rights and privileges, and many of them realized, in part at least, the force of the maxim that be- came fundamental in the New World — that government obtains its just powers from the consent of the governed. We may consider, therefore, that the principles for which our Eevolution was afterward fought were brought by these men to America from amid the trials of troubled England in the days of Charles I. No doubt these principles grew more sturdy in the air of a New World, but the principles of 1770 were not new ideas or the sudden offspring of the tyranny of George III. They were English principles, for which the people of England fought in their rebellion and which they made good in the revolution of 1G88; and in the Eevolution of 1776 the American people, more true to these principles than England herself, struggled to main- tain them and make them effective. To appreciate this movement it is also necessary to un- derstand the character and purposes of these emigrants. * It has been estimated, I know not with what accuracy, that about thirteen million of the present inhabitants of the United States are de- scended from these twenty thousand persons. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 7? They were Puritans — not Separatists, but believers in the state Church. They believed, however, that the Estab- lished Church needed purification. They came fewttknf to America that they might worship as they chose, free from the persecution of Laud. They did not come to establish toleration, but to carry out their own ideas in religion. They were, moreover, men of ideals and men of character. They were not of common origin or of common ability. Many of them were men of education and of wide experience. Among them were scholars and statesmen and learned ministers. They had strong convictions and great earnestness of purpose. The characteristic organ of their communities was " not the hand, nor the heart, nor the pocket, but the brain." * Having seen the meaning of this great movement, let us now see how the settlements were made and how they prospered. There was at this time a little E ^l y settlement at Salem, then called Naumkeag. settlements. ' & A few persons had been brought there after an unsuccessful effort to establish a colony at Cape Ann. Salem now formed a center or gathering point for a new immigration. John White, a Puritan rector of Dorchester, England, entertained the hope of raising in America " a bulwark against the kingdom of Antichrist." In a pamphlet which is attributed to his pen the Puritans were urged " to avoid the plague while it is fore- seen," and not to tarry till it overtake them.f White en- a * Tyler's History of American Literature, vol. i, p. 98. The student will find Chapter V interesting and profitable reading. The men who founded Massachusetts are said to have come from that class of men " in whom at that time centered for the English-speaking race the pos- sibility for any further progress in human society." See also Fiske, The Beginnings of New England, chap. iii. f " Well might Englishmen long for a refuge where they might pre- serve these constitutional forms whose day seemed in England to have 78 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. couraged the few settlers still at Salem to remain there, and took steps to secure a legal basis for the colony. The old Plymouth Company, which had been coupled with the London Company in the original charter The land grant. granted by James - m 1606? * had reC eived a sepa- rate charter, and was now known as the Council for New England. From it a tract of land was obtained ; the north- ern boundary was three miles north of the Merrimac Eiver, and its southern was three miles south of the Charles. It extended westward to the Pacific. In 1628 a little com- pany of sixty persons set sail for Salem under the leader- ship of John Endicott, Gentleman, " a man well known to divers persons of good note." f The next spring a royal charter was granted by the king creating a corporation with the title of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in 1628^29!*' ~^ ew En g land - It is one of tne curious con- trasts of history that in the same year and the same week that the headstrong monarch entered upon the task of ruling without a parliament he granted a charter to this company, whose work was fated to result in the erection across the water of a great free republic, which was destined to cherish and develop the principles he was seeking to crush. This charter will bear examination, for out of it grew important forms of colonial government. passed away, and that political freedom which at home, if saved at all, c'ould be saved only by the sword." See Doyle, The P]nglish in America (The Puritan Colonies), vol. i, p. 116. * See ante, page 36. f " A fit instrument to begin this wilderness work, of courage bold, undaunted, yet sociable and of a cheerful spirit, loving and austere, applying himself to either as occasion served " (From the Wonder- working Providence). Endicott came over to New England in 1628, and was governor at Salem till the transfer of the charter. He was deputy governor from 1641 to 1644, and also in 1650, and was governor at various times — 1644, 1649, 1651-1665, except 1654. He was a severe disciplinarian, rigid in religion, and a stern ruler. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. fc) The affairs of the company were intrusted to a governor, deputy governor, and eighteen assistants, who were elected annually by the freemen or members of the corporation. These officers were to meet once a month or oftener to transact business, and four times a year they were to meet with all the freemen in " one great, general, and solemn as- sembly." The freemen in these " great and general " courts had the power to make laws and ordinances for the welfare of the company and for the government of the plantation, " so as such laws and ordinances be not contrary and re- pugnant to the laws and statutes of the realm of England." Soon after the granting of the charter about four hundred persons embarked for New England. The company in England now decided upon the impor- tant step of transferring its seat of government and taking its charter to America. This change was of The transfer of g rea t moment. The company thus fully resi- dent in the New World was more than a trad- ing company, such as it might appear to be on the face of the charter. Legally it was still a corporation under the control of the King of England ; actually it developed into a self-governing commonwealth, a body politic, in nearly all respects independent and self-sufficient.* This transference of the charter took place in 1630, and in the same year nearly one thousand persons went over to Massachusetts. This was the greatest effort at colonization * " Under the disguise of a trading company and a commercial charter, they went forth to found a State and erect an independent gov- ernment " (Lodge, A Short History of the English Colonies in Amer- ica, p. 344). The company records say : " And lastly, the Governor read certain propositions conceived by himself, viz. : That for the ad- vancement of the Plantation, the inducing and encouraging persons of worth and quality to transplant themselves and families thither, and for other weighty reasons therein contained, to transfer the govern- ment of the Plantation to those that shall inhabit there, and not to continue the same in subordination to the Company here, as now it is." 80 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. as yet made by Englishmen. John Winthrop,* a man of noble and lofty spirit, a magnanimous and gentle soul, one of the best products of his age, a high type of the Puritan statesman and scholar, came out as governor of the colony. Other settlements were rapidly founded. Charlestown had already been begun, and here Winthrop at first made his home ; but he later moved to the peninsula Various ^hat ] av ^ the sou th and west of Charlestown, RfittlfTnflTl1"H where three bare hills raised their heads, a place " very uneven, abounding in small hollows and swamps, cov- ered with blueberries and other bushes." With Winthrop went a number of other people, and they " began to build their homes against winter ; and this place was called Bos- ton." Other towns sprang up. Within a year of Winthrop's arrival there were eight separate settlements extending from Salem on the north to Dorchester on the south. We may well notice the various changes that were made in the government of this colony. The charter of a trading company in reality furnished the basis of the Changes in government of the people. Self-government government. ° l r n was not here, as in Virginia, a gift from the company to the settler ; the settlers were the company, and as members of the corporation they governed themselves. f As the people were now separated into various towns and * This picture of Winthrop is engraved in many places, notably in Winthrop's History, in Winsor's Memorial History of Boston, etc. It is a copy of a painting supposed to be by the great artist Vandyke. It hangs in the Senate Chamber of Massachusetts. He was governor of Massachusetts Bay from his arrival in 1630 to 1634, and at several other times. f Of course there were in Massachusetts many settlers who were not members of the company, but the substantial truth is stated in the text. It might be more exact to say that the members of the company were settlers. The student should notice how the government of a corpora- tion grew into the government of a political body. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 81 could not readily come together, the assistants were at first possessed of almost all power, and, it seems, assumed the John Winthrop. The original is in the Statehouse, Boston. right to hold office until the freemen removed them. This plan made the government in fact an oligarchy, and not a democracy ; but it did not last. When Watertown was called 82 HISTORY OF THU AMERICAN NATION. upon to pay a tax, " the pastor, elder, etc., assembled the people and delivered the opinion that it was not safe to pay moneys after that sort, for fear of bringing themselves and posterity into bondage." This was the true American doc- trine, " No taxation without representation." Soon after this (May, 1632) the General Court agreed " that the gov- ernor and assistants should all be new chosen every year by the General Court." " Every town chose two men to be at the next court, to advise with the governor and assistants about the raising of a public stock, so as what they should agree upon should bind all." * Somewhat later it was or- dered " that every town should send their deputies, who should assist in making laws, disposing lands, etc." For some time these representatives or deputies sat with the governor and assistants as one body, but in 1G44 another change was made. A controversy had arisen business on between a rich man and a poor woman over the small occasion, ownership of a stray pig. The people became interested in the dispute, and it was at length brought be- fore the assistants and the deputies for settlement. The majority of the assistants voted against the poor woman, the majority of the deputies in her favor. Then " there fell out a great business upon a very small occasion," as Winthrop said. The assistants and deputies were now separated into two houses. Thus it came about that the legislature had two branches instead of one. It was early declared by the law of the colony that no men should " be admitted to the freedom of The church this body politic but such as are members of and the state. » -T . . • some oi the churches within the limits of the same." In other words, in order to have a share in the government a man must be a church member. Thus it was * These quotations are from The History of New England from 1630 to 1649, by John Winthrop. Governor Winthrop in this book, which is in the form of a diary, has left for us his own account of the building of Massachusetts. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 83 that in many ways the church and the state were one.* This limitation of the suffrage was altered and a more liberal rule was adopted in 1664, but this modification probably had little practical effect. It is important to notice that the people of each little settlement within the colony began early in its history to regulate its own concerns. Each little band of settlers was bound together by ties of com- mon interest. The center of their life was usually the church . Matters that concerned the well-being of the community were passed upon in the meeting of the freemen of the town. Thus the colony became a group of little self-governing towns which were subject legally to the laws of the Gen- eral Court, but which in fact regulated in large part their own affairs. The members of the town carefully managed matters of communal interest, watched over communal property, and guarded against any intrusion from without. The town therefore was not merely a place of abode or a number of houses, nor was it simply a number of people through whom the laws of the colony were enforced ; it was a body of people with many common business interests, with kindred purposes and hopes. AVithin four years from the settlement of Boston there were four thousand people in the colony. They were in- dustrious and thrifty ; they built houses, laid rospen y. ^ roa( ^ an( j tilled the soil. Not content with mere bodily well-being, they decided that learning should not " be buried in the graves " of their fathers. They knew that it was " one chief project " of " that old deluder Satan " " to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures" by persuading them "from the use of tongues." f In 1636 the General Court appropriated money * At the beginning it was really an extension of the suffrage. \ These words are part of an ordinance passed in 1647, at which time the law for the establishment of a school in each township was passed. Legislation on the subject had been passed even earlier. 84 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. for a college, and two years later John Harvard, " a godly Gentleman and a lover of learning," gave the " one halfe of his Estate (it being in all about 1700 I.) . . . and all his library " for this purpose. A law was soon passed requiring every township of fifty householders to maintain a school for reading and writing, and every town of a hundred house- holders a grammar school to fit youths for the university. As soon as the colony was fairly established it was con- fronted with dangers. Its success attracted the attention of the king and of the ever-watchful Laud, En n fa e nd fr0m wh ° m Charles had J ust made the Archbishop of Canterbury. To Laud a Puritan common- wealth across the sea was a hateful thing. Steps were taken to annul the charter in the courts (1635) ; but Massachu- setts was not willing to be ruled by Laud. It proposed to fight, if need be. The governor and assistants held counsel with the ministers, and they decided : "If a General Gov- ernor were sent, we ought not to accept him, but defend our lawful possessions (if we were able) ; otherwise to avoid or protract." The General Court ordered the building of fortifications, captains were authorized " to train unskilled men," and bullets were made legal tender for the payment of debts.* Very good examples these of the fact that in the history of states the child is the father of the man. Fortunately, the trouble blew over. The storm was brew- ing in England that brought both Laud and Charles to the scaffold. While this danger from its foes in England was disturb- ing the colony there was also trouble within. A young Welshman named Roger Williams brought dis- oger iams. cor ^ amon g the people. He was a man of ability, of sound morals, and of pure purpose ; but he was impulsive, and fond of argument. He was gentle and re- * "At this court brass farthings were forbidden, and musket balls made to pass for farthings" (Winthrop, History, vol. i, p. 186). See also Palfrey, History of New England, vol. i, p. 394. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1G07-1700. 85 fined, and yet he reveled in dispute and controversy. He now declared that the lands of the colony belonged to the red man ; that the King of England could not give away what he did not own. He said, too, that the power of the civil magistrates extended only to the bodies and goods and " outward state of men," or, in other words, that there should be freedom of worship and entire separation of church and state. He made many other assertions that angered the good Puritan fathers, who were then in trouble enough because of the enmity of Charles and Laud, and did not wish dispute and bickering within the colony, but longed for unity of aim and a common front against a com- mon enemy. They had no desire to listen to " divers new and dangerous opinions." The General Court ordered Williams away, but when preparations were made to send him to England he fled into the woods (January, 1636).* He passed the winter in the wilderness among the Indians, " sorely tossed," as he afterward said, " for fourteen weeks in a bitter winter season, not knowing what bread or bed did mean." The next summer he made his way to Narra- gansett Bay, and together with a few friends Providence. from the settlements founded Providence. The first government of this little colony, which de- veloped into Rhode Island, was a simple democracy built on the principle of majority rule. Its power was not to extend to matters of conscience, but only to "civil things." f * For this controversy and the character of Williams, see Doyle, The English in America (Puritan Cols.), vol. i, p. 153 ; Fiske, The Begin- nings of New England, p. 114. t " We whose names are hereunder, desirous to inhabit the town of Providence, do promise to subject ourselves in active and passive obe- dience to all such orders or agreements as shall be made for public good of the body in an orderly way by the major assent of the present inhabitants, masters of families incorporated together into a town fel- lowship, and such others whom they shall admit unto them, only in civil things." 86 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Mrs. Hutchinson. Hardly had Williams disappeared from Massachusetts Bay when even more serious difficulties arose. Anne Hutchinson, a brilliant woman "of a nimble wit and active spirit," began preaching doc- trines that filled the little town of Boston with excitement. We need not discuss the meaning of her teachings ; to the modern reader not versed in theological lore her propositions seem vague and almost unintelligible. But the early Bostonians were fond of religious discussion, and Mistress Hutchinson carried forward her work with so much skill and with such feminine tact that the little commonwealth throbbed with interest. She came to have a large following, and the church was di- vided into two bitterly hostile factions. But her enemies prevailed against her, and Mrs. Hutchinson was banished. Thereupon peace obtained in Massa- chusetts Bay. " Not any unsound, unsavorie and giddie fancy have dared," said a contemporary writer, " to lift up his head or abide the light among us." Thus we see that the Puritan of those days was not bent upon establishing toleration. He had, in fact, no patience with " giddie fancies." He had not yet reached the good sense and the charity that lay at the bottom of Koger Williams's theories. But, on the other hand, these men can not be justly charged with inconsist- ency. They came to found a settlement where they could carry out their own ideas; and when they found their project imperiled or their peace disturbed by those who }rovidence^£ ^s^ & PROVIDENCE PLANTATIONS Intolerance. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 87 Connecticut. disagreed with them, they bade these disturbing elements begone. With some of her followers Mrs. Hutchinson went, as Williams had done, to Narragansett Bay, and bought from the Indians the island of Aquedneck for " forty fathoms of white beads." This was later called the " Isle of Rhodes, or Rhode Island." Dissensions arose among the settlers. So some of them went away and founded Newport. These various settlements were later united into one colony, known as the Providence Planta- tions (1644), under a very liberal charter, which declared that the people should rule themselves " by such form of civil government as by the voluntary consent of all or the greatest part of them shall be found most serviceable to their estate and condition." We must now turn our attention to the founding of Connecticut, a colony which was in part an off- spring of Massachusetts. In 1635, John Winthrop, son of the Massachusetts gov- ernor, acting for Lord Say and Sele and Lord Brooke, Saybrookand who had obtained a Hew Haven. patent for the land, established a colony near the mouth of the Connecticut River and named it Saybrook. A few years later New Haven was founded. We are chiefly interested, how- ever, in the settlements farther to the north made by emigrants from the older towns of Massa- Jfl^JpJnJ^fa^ chusetts Bay. It may be that this LJ «-iZ migration was but a natural swarming of the people, but there is some evidence that it was brought about by dis- A migration from Massachusetts 88 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. satisfaction, and that the people moved because they were out of sympathy with the hard rule of the united church and state of Massachusetts. The great leader was Thomas Hooker, a learned and eloquent preacher and a man of great personal force.* Some settlers went out in 1634 and 1635. In the next year a great migration set in. " Hereing of y e fame of Conightecute Eiver, they had a hankering The valley mind after it." Hooker and a congregation tOWHSi ■ m of one hundred or more made their way to the Connecticut Valley and began the building of Hartford. f Within a year the new colony had eight hundred people gathered in the three towns of Windsor, Hartford, and Wethersfield. The people of these three towns were at first nominally under the control of Massachusetts ; but in 1639 they formed a government and constitution for themselves. tionotS" Jt ma yJ ustl y be called th e first written con- stitution springing from the people and creat- ing a government. It contained no reference to dread sovereign or beloved king; its quiet assumption was that the people had a right to rule. Each town could choose four deputies in the legislative assembly, called the General Court, while the governor and six magistrates or assistants, also forming part of the General Court, were elected by the whole body of the people. It will thus be noticed that this original Constitution of Connecticut had certain similarities to the present Constitution of the United States, inasmuch * " In matters .... which concern the common good," said Hooker, " a general council chosen by all to transact business which concern all, I conceive .... most suitable to rule and most safe for relief of the whole." This sentiment was different from that of Winthrop, who had declared that " the best part is always the least, and of that best part the wiser part is always the lesser." This difference between the ideas of Hooker and Winthrop may perhaps illustrate the reasons for the movement to the Connecticut Valley. f See Hart, American History, etc., vol. i, pp. 412, 413, THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 89 as the individuality of the town was recognized on the one hand, arid the main body of the people on the other, as in our national system both the States and the whole people are represented.* For some years the New England settlers were not troubled by the Indians. But in 1636 war broke out with the Pequots, a fierce and warlike tribe. In the Pequot War. winter rf 1636 _> 37 they kept the little Connec- ticut towns in continual fear. The next summer a small band of white men, some seventy-seven in number, attacked the Indians in their palisaded town. One of the leaders of this party thus briefly tells the story : " It is reported by themselves that there were about four hundred souls in this fort, and not five of them escaped out of our hands." Thus the Pequots were exterminated. It was a sharp lesson to the Indians of the surrounding country. Not till forty years later, when the fate of the Pequots was in part forgotten, did the savages dare again to begin war upon the whites. A settlement was made within the present limits of New Hampshire soon after the founding of Plymouth. Possibly this continued to exist. However this may be, amps ). a Y[^\ e i a ter a permanent settlement was made at Dover (before 1628). Other settlements followed. In a short time these towns were made part of Massachusetts (1641-'43). Thus the history of New Hampshire is part of that of the older colony until 1679. Mason and Gorges, two Englishmen who were for many years interested in colonization, obtained at an early day a grant to all the land between the Merrimac and the Kennebec. This property was later divided, and Mason became possessed of the territory between the Merrimac and the Piscataqua. Gorges received the remain- * It is an interesting fact that in the Federal Convention (1787) the compromise in accordance with which our national arrangement was agreed upon was called the " Connecticut compromise." Students will find this treated of in Johnston's Connecticut, p. 219, etc. 90 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. der. Mason's share was, roughly speaking, New Hampshire, and this part, as we have seen, was after a time annexed to Massachusetts. On Gorges's portion of this grant there were a number of little settlements, some of them made quite early in the history of New England.* But they grew very slowly, and a trav- eler who sailed along the coast in 1638 described the region as " no other than a mere wilder- ness, with here and there by the sea- side a few scattered plantations with a few houses." \ The province was absorbed by Massachu- setts (1652-'58). Thus we see that Massachusetts became possessed of all the New England coast north of Plymouth. Almost immediately after the founding of Connecticut there was some discussion as to the advisability of forming a league among the various New England colo- nies. The purpose of combining was to secure mutual protection. The Pequot War had shown the danger of an Indian outbreak. Moreover, the Dutch on the Hud- son were troublesome and ambitious neighbors, while the * In 1639 Gorges was made Lord Proprietor of Maine. f " In this province," said an English commission in 1665, " there are but few Townes, and those much scattered as generally they are throughout New England. They are rather farmes than Townes." TLA N T I C OCEAN Need of union. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 91 French at the north, though seemingly afar off, had already shown that they were near enough to cause uneasiness if not danger. A union was therefore formed. With Massachusetts, the strongest of all, were joined Connecticut, Plymouth, New England an( ^ -^ ew Haven. A written constitution was confederation, adopted, whereby was formed " The United 1643--84, Colonies of New England." The association was declared to be a " firm and perpetual league of friend- ship." Its affairs were placed in the hands of eight com- missioners, whose right it was to determine upon all mat- ters of common interest to the members of the league, "which were the proper concomitants or consequents of such a confederation of amity, offence, and defence." The confederation lasted some years, in fact not entirely disap- pearing until 1684. It must have had an important effect on the later history of America. Eighty years passed by before the popular representatives from all the colonies came together to protest against the novel laws of England, and to body forth the real unity of interest of the settle- ments scattered along the Atlantic coast; but a remem- brance of the New England confederation could not have died out during these eighty years, and it doubtless aided in the work of forming a perpetual union.* In these years the people of Massachusetts had trouble with the Quakers. Members of this sect were, as a rule, men and women of great purity and sweetness of the Quakers. °^ character, but their doctrines were pecul- iarly obnoxious to the Puritans; and when some of them came to New England and dared to call the people of Boston to repentance, they were met with perse- cution. At first the unwelcome intruders were banished ; but they boldly returned, and were hanged on Boston Com- * " In the federation of the New England colonies we see the germ and the foreshadowing of the united republics." (Doyle, English in America [Puritan Cols.], vol. i, p. i.) 92 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. mon. Four were thus punished. The public sentiment of Massachusetts, however, revolted at the cruelty, and the law imposing the death penalty was modified. For some years after this the Quakers were imprisoned, or whipped out of the colonies at the cart's tail ; but before long these punishments also ceased.* A freer and nobler sentiment slowly grew up in New England. Men came to see at length the folly and the sinfulness of coercion and persecution in matters of religion. From the outbreak of the civil war in England (1642) until the restoration of the Stuarts (1660) New England was allowed to govern itself; but Charles II charters was nar dly seated on his throne before he turned his attention to America. New Haven had received and sheltered two of the fugitive judges of the court that had condemned his royal father to death. Spite of its protestations, it was now annexed to Connecti- cut. The latter colony was given a liberal charter, which became very dear to the people. Ehode Island, too, re- ceived a new charter. It is an interesting fact that Charles II, who in England gave no sign of loving free government, should have granted these two charters, so liberal and good that the people cherished them and kept them as their fun- damental constitutions well down into the nineteenth cen- tury, f The charter and the independence of Massachusetts were threatened at the time, for the king looked upon the colony with suspicion ; but this danger was for the time being avoided. Since the time of the Pequot outbreak there had been * See Fiske, Beginnings of New England, pp. 180, 181. In Hart, American History, etc., vol. i, p. 479, will be found The Justification of Mary Dyer, one of the Quakers that was hanged ; also the trial of Win- lock Christison, p. 481. Christison was condemned to death, but public sentiment prevented the execution. f The charter of Rhode Island (1663) continued to be the Constitu- tion of the State until 1843. Connecticut preserved hers until 1818. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 93 New England, 1650. no serious trouble with the Indians. There came to be a sense of security even in the frontier towns. But this feel- ing was dispelled by the outbreak of war in the Wa? 1675 P -'76. summer of 1675 ' The red men ' led ^ P hil ip> an able chieftain, attacked the outlying set- tlements and inflicted much loss and suffering upon the settlers. The next summer Philip was killed, and the war soon ended. And yet from this time on the frontier settle- ments were at no time quite secure. For fifty years and more the Indians, now in alliance with the French at the north, continued to be a constant menace. Years might go by without an outbreak, but at some unexpected moment an outlying settlement would be suddenly attacked, men would be shot at their work, women and children murdered. 94 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The hardy New Englanders pushed the frontier back from the sea in the face of this ever-present danger. New dangers now threatened the people of the northern colonies. Charles II was not so headstrong and obstinate as his father, but he was no friend of free gov- CharactM of ernment, and he detested a Puritan. Without Charles II, ' virtue himself, given over to corruption and vice, he looked upon goodness as merely the trick of a hypocrite, by which only a fool could be cheated. He was too wise to set himself deliberately against his Parliament or to endanger his own head, and he was determined, as he said, " not to go on his travels again " ; but he did " not think he was a king so long as a company of fellows were looking into his actions and examining his ministers as well as his accounts." He was quite ready, to take a hand in demolishing free government in Massachusetts, where he could act more tyrannically than he dared at home. But he was playing a dangerous game. The spirit of liberty was not dead among Englishmen on either side of the ocean. Many persons in England, as Pepys said, had begun before this time to " reflect upon Oliver and commend him, what brave things he did, and make all the neighbor princes fear him." * One of the first steps against Massachusetts was to take New Hampshire from her and make it a royal province, the first in New England. Moreover, the old char- ftucked? 8ettS ter of Massachusetts was annulled, the charter under which this great Puritan commonwealth had grown and prospered and become the mother of colo- nies. Before Charles could carry out his plans to the full he died, and was succeeded by his brother James. It is said of Charles that he never spoke a foolish word or did a wise thing ; but James, utterly lacking in tact and brightness, was incapable alike of wise speech or sensible action. He * Read Green, Short History of England, chap, ix, sec. iii. THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES— 1607-1700. 95 sent to New England Sir Edmund Andros, a rough, coarse soldier who, though not personally dissolute or addicted to political corruption, was a fit instrument of tyranny. He was empowered to bring the various New England colonies under his rule. All political power was taken from the people and vested in the hands of this arrogant governor and a council. He could make laws and levy taxes, and had, indeed, full right to disregard in every respect those fundamental principles and practices of freedom and self- government which had become dear to the people and part of their very life. " All those devices of tyranny which Eng- lishmen had resisted, even where they were rare and excep- tional, were now adopted as part of the regular machinery of government." * He carried out his instructions with soldierly thoroughness. The General Court was abolished. The town meetings were limited to one a year. Place hunters and greedy officials came to prey upon the people. Andros next brought Rhode Island and Connecticut under his sway, and then New York and New Jersey. But his power did not last long. The people of England might put up with the smiling, pleas- ure-loving tyrant Charles, but they soon grew weary of his tactless, stubborn brother James. In 1688 they deposed him, and William and Mary took the throne. Early in the next year news of this glorious fact reached New England. The people rejoiced ; militia poured into Boston from the surrounding country; Andros and his agents overthrown °^ ty rannv were seized and thrown into prison, f Liberty and self-government were not yet gone from New England. William III was no tyrant, and he had a plentiful fund of common sense. He did not believe, however, in letting the colonies go their own way without guidance or control. * Doyle, The English in America (The Puritan Colonies), vol. ii, p. 305. fRead the account in Hart, American History, etc., vol. i, p. 463. 96 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Rhode Island and Connecticut were allowed to go on under their old charters, but Massachusetts was given a new one (1691). It provided for the appointment of a A new onarter. , . * , , governor, lieutenant governor, and secretary by the crown ; the assistants, or councilors, and the representa- tives constituted with the governor the General Court. The representatives were to be elected by the towns ; but the assistants and representatives together chose each year the assistants for the ensuing term. The religious qualifica- tion for voting was abolished. Plymouth was added to Massachusetts. Maine and Acadia also belonged to her. Thus the colony held the coast, with the exception of the territory of New Hampshire, from Martha's Vineyard to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The tyranny of Andros doubtless taught its lesson to the New Englanders. Seventy-five years later men re- membered this attack upon their liberties. r e ann SSOnSOf Had the P lans of James worked smoothly at home, the boasted freedom of England would have disappeared. Had his plans been carried out in Amer- ica, free colonial life would have been crushed out. But the revolution of 1688 saved the liberties of England and America, and in the next century the colonies strengthened their hold upon principles of self-government. When, under another king, George III, the Parliament seemed to have forgotten the fundamental teachings of the seven- teenth century and their own revolution, the American people, true to the established doctrines of English liberty, resisted encroachments on their rights. References. Short accounts: Thwaites, The Colonies, pp. 112-177; Fisher, The Colonial Era, pp. 82-176 ; Eggleston, The Beginners of a Nation, pp. 98-220, 266-346. Longer accounts: Fiske, Beginnings of New England; Bancroft, History, Volume I, pp. 177-407, 584-589, also Volume II, pp. 47-69 ; Doyle, The English in America, The Puritan Colonies. CHAPTER IV. The Middle Colonies— 1609-1700. NEW YORK. 1^ the seventeenth century Holland was one of the most prosperous and progressive countries of Europe. While Elizabeth was on the throne of England this sturdy little Netherland nation was en- gaged in a long fierce fight against the tyranny of Spain — a fight full of deeds of daring and of bravery beyond com- pare. It came out of this conflict a self-reliant people — stronger, more vigorous than ever before — while the power of Spain, the mighty oppressor, was checked. Now, just as England was getting ready to colonize and to build up her great states in the New World, brave little Holland was a serious rival. The Dutch were the carriers of Europe. In the middle of the seventeenth century they are said to have had half the carrying trade of the Continent. Amsterdam was a great mart of trade. It was to be expected that when the sails of Holland were on every sea there would be some attempt to secure a hold upon America. The Dutch merchants were interested in commerce with the East Indies, and Henry Hudson, an English mariner in the employ of a Dutch company, sought to solve the old problem of finding a snorter route to the silks and spices of the East. Baffled in an effort to discover a passage to the northeast — north of Europe — he turned westward to seek a way through or north of America. He was moved to this, it is said, " by some letters and maps 97 98 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. which his friend Captain Smith had sent him from Vir- ginia." In August, 1609, he, with his ship, the Half Moon, sailed into Delaware Bay, and a month later entered the noble river that was to bear his name. He sailed north as far, perhaps, as the present site of Albany. He found no route to India, but was deeply impressed with the beauties of the country, and returned to Holland to recount his travels and to report that from the natives, who inhabited the new-found land, furs could be had almost for the ask- ing — for baubles and trinkets and gewgaws. Thus Hudson opened up to the Dutch a new trade, and the merchants of Amsterdam were not slow in taking ad- vantage of it. Traders soon found their way The West India t the bankg Q f the new river to traffic with Company i the natives. Trading stations were founded. Finally a company was organized and granted immense power (1621). It was given supreme dominion on the whole coast of America, the right to employ soldiers in the name of the States-General of Holland, to make treaties, and to maintain courts. To this West India Company Hol- land transferred her prospects in the New World. A thor- oughly successful colony could not arise under the direc- tion of a company whose only end was gain. The first colony under the new company was sent over in 1623. The most important settlement was at Fort Orange, where Albany now stands. The set- New Nether- ^ erg were distributed here and there about the lands^ country, some going to Delaware River, others to the Connecticut, while some settled on Manhattan and on Long Island. The Dutch claimed all the territory as " New Netherlands " from the Delaware to the Connecticut, including the navigation of these rivers. Had they con- centrated their forces and sought to secure the mouth of the Hudson and the immediate neighborhood, they might have been more successful. The company next took steps to establish a semi-feudal Van deb Donck's Map of New Netherlands, 1656. 100 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. class in the new land. Men of wealth were induced to take up landed estates. Each person establishing a colony of fifty persons over fifteen years of age was epa ' entitled to become the owner and ruler of a strip of country on the banks of some river sixteen miles in width, or eight miles where both banks were occu- pied, and stretching back from the river indefinitely. This was a principality of no mean dimensions, and several men at once took advantage of this opportunity to become petty monarchs. They were known as " patroons," or pa- trons. Although this plan had the immediate effect of bringing in new settlers, it was, on the whole, not well adapted to promote the healthful growth of a free com- monwealth. The patroons could not be expected to be zealous for the growth of political equality or for the gen- eral development of the colony. There is little to interest us in the history of this Dutch province after it was fairly settled. There were some seri- ous troubles with the Algonquin Indians, but detent? 4 the friendshi P of the Iroquois was secured by careful and considerate treatment. With them the Dutch carried on considerable traffic, but the progress of the colony was slow. The company, anxious to make an immediate profit from its possessions, took little interest in building up a commonwealth. There is doubt- less much truth in the complaints of those in the colony who were struggling for more self-government and a more liberal administration. " It seems," they said, " as if from the first the company had sought to stock this land with their own employes, which was a great mistake, for when their time was out they returned home, taking nothing with them, except a little in their purses and a bad name for the country. . . . The directors here, though far from their masters, were close by their profit. . . . They have also conducted themselves just as if they were the sov- ereigns of the country. In our opinion, this country will THE MIDDLE COLONIES— 16Q9-KOC. 1:0-1 EUROPEAN POSSESSIONS 1650 BASED ON EXPLORATIONS AND SETTLEMENT. |~~| ENGLISH POSSESSIONS tZU DUTCH POSSESSIONS | 1 FRENCH " CD SWEDISH " CD SPANISH " never flourish under the government of the Honorable Company." Gustavus Adolphus, the great King of Sweden, one of the great generals of history, was interested in founding a colony in America. He took part in forming a company, but his death prevented his plan from being carried out for some years. Queen Christina and Oxenstiern, the famous minister of Adolphus, entered New Sweden. 10>2 HL*T0JIY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. anew upon the enterprise. An expedition was sent out in 1638, and a fort, called Fort Christina, was established on the Delaware Eiver where Wilmington now stands.* The country was called New Sweden. This ground was claimed by the Dutch, and of course dissensions ensued. In 1655, after some years of wrangling, Fort Christina passed into the hands of the Dutch, and New Sweden disappeared. In the seventeenth century Holland and England were strong commercial rivals. The New Englanders had already NewNetherland en g a g ed in sundry controversies with their becomes neighbor over the control of the Connecticut. New York, Soon after the accession of Charles II it was determined to seize the Dutch possessions, and in 1664 an English fleet appeared before Fort Amsterdam. The place was in no condition for defense. Stuyvesant, the Director General, fumed and strutted, and swore he would rather be carried to his grave than surrender; but the frightened townspeople besought him to yield, and the white flag was soon run up. Dutch rule in America was over. The Eng- lish now held possession of the whole Atlantic coast north of the Spanish Floridas and south of the French claims in Acadia. Ten years later (1673-74) Holland secured pos- session of her old colony for a time, but at the end of the war between the two countries England gained it again. Charles II gave the newly acquired territory to his brother James, the Duke of York, and it was rechristened New York. When James became king, in 1685, the colony be- came a royal colony. Although Dutch customs and habits were not rudely overturned by the conquerors of the new province, the English accession brought better government. Local Forms of local government were introduced at government. ° once ; the so-called " Duke's laws " were issued providing for town meetings for the election of town offi- * The Dutch head, as early as 1623, founded Fort Nassau, just below the site of Philadelphia. THE MIDDLE COLONIES— 1609-1700. 103 The revolution. ^>v£~- cers. In the course of the next few years the system devel- oped. The towns were represented in a board of county supervisors, whose chief duty it was to apportion taxes and to look after the general financial needs of the county. Not till 1683 did New York have an assembly like the other colonies. King James cherished the hope of bringing all the northern colonies un- der one royal governor. Andros, it will be remem- bered, had come to New England to be general gov- ernor, and in 1688 he was put in charge of New York and New Jersey as well. He had his seat of government in Boston, but was represented in New York by a deputy. The revolution in England made an end of James's tyranny there, and as soon as the people of New York heard of this event they rose, drove out their royal deputy, and proclaimed William as their new sover- eign. This revolt was headed by an impetuous German by the name of Jacob Leisler, who, once in the lead, wished to remain there, and assumed the powers of government, which he wielded in arbitrary and reckless fashion. When the new governor appointed by the king came to take possession, Leisler hesitated to surrender the colony. This he was soon forced to do, however, and a short time after he was hanged for treason, the order for his execution, it is said, being signed by the governor while under the influence of drink. It is a curious fact that Leisler was instrumental in summoning the first general 8 C ffixf Leisler. 104 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. colonial Congress, which met in Albany in 1690. Its pur- pose was to consider means of mutual protection against the French and Indians. At the end of the seventeenth century New York was a strong and successful colony, although her population was as yet not large — perhaps twenty-five thousand t?*o5aro ° f inhabitants, including negro slaves. Trade and agriculture both flourished. The Dutch were the largest landowners, and they still retained their own dress and followed their own customs without much refer- ence to the invading Englishman. The steady conservative spirit of the Hollander doubtless continued to influence the life of New York for many decades ; but even at this early day men of many nations had come hither. It had become " a community of many tongues, of many customs, of many faiths." Partly because of this diversity of population the colony did not have so marked an influence in our colonial history or play so conspicuous a part in the development of our political ideals as did the more homogeneous colonies of the south or of New England. References. Short accounts: Thwaites, The Colonies, pp. 196-210; Fisher, The Colonial Era, Chapter IX; Lodge, Short History, pp. 285-302. Longer accounts : Bancroft, History, Volume I, pp. 475-527, 577-582 ; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume I, pp. 339-369, 429-449 ; Tuckerman, Peter Stuyvesant ; Roberts, New York, pp. 1-185; Roose- velt, New York; M. W. Goodman, A. C. Royce, R. Putnam, Historic New York, pp. 1-191 ; Fiske, Dutch and Quaker Cols., Volume I. NEW JERSEY— 1664-1700. What is now the State of New Jersey was part of the territory claimed by the Dutch under the name of New Netherlands. Before the English seized the country some- thing had been done to settle this part, although it had not developed, as might have been expected, in the fifty years of Dutch occupancy. The Duke of York, as proprietor of THE MIDDLE COLONIES— 1609-1700. 105 the territory newly acquired, ceded (1664) this southern portion, lying between the Delaware River and the sea, to Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. The first rj^g new p rov j nce was named New Csesaria or settlement. r New Jersey, in honor of Carteret, who as gov- ernor of the island of Jersey had heroically defended it against the Parliamentarians during the great rebellion. The proprietors at once issued a document known as " the Concessions," which outlined a form of government and laid down various rules for the administration of the colony. This formed practically the first Constitution of New Jersey, and as it was broad and liberal in its terms it was cherished by the people as a charter of liberties. There were some settlers already in the province who had come in under the Dutch rule. In 1665 Philip Carteret, a nephew of the pro- prietor, came out as governor, bringing with him a small body of Englishmen. The settlement thus founded was given the name of Elizabeth, in honor of Lady Carteret. Other settlements were made soon after this, emigrants from the other colonies, especially from New England, coming in to take advantage of the privileges offered by the new proprietors. No provision was made at first for a legislative body, inasmuch as the " Conces- ssem y. g ' ons w p rovec [ sufficient f or the simple needs of the young colony. But in 1668 an assembly was summoned, and the legislative history of New Jersey was begun. Berkeley finally became weary of the bickerings and dis- putes and sold his share to some Quakers, and this interest finally passed into the hands of William Penn divided 0117 an( ^ a ^ ew °^ ^ s asso °i a tes. About this time (1674) the colony was divided into two parts, Carteret obtaining East Jersey. The Quakers, to whom fell the western portion, now entered upon the task of legisla- tion and control. Outcasts and outlaws in other organized states, how would they legislate when the power and responsibility came into their hands ? Their first acts were 106 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. East New Jersey. marked by a generous and kindly spirit, and breathed a true democracy. " We lay," they said, " a foundation for Th k r a ^ er a £ es to un derstand their liberty as Chris- in West New tians and as men, that they may not be brought Jersey. m ^ bondage but by their own consent ; for we put the power in the people." Many Quakers, glad to find a refuge from oppression, now made their way to the new colony. Shortly after this George Carteret died, and his rights in East Jersey were sold to Penn and twenty-three asso- ciates. These associates were not all Quakers ; there were among them Presbyterians from Scotland, dissenters, and Catholics. Within a few years many Scotch came over, and thus began the strong Scotch and Presbyterian element of New Jersey. In the meantime there had been great trouble with An- dros, the duke's governor in New York, who set up certain claims of right in East Jersey, and could not refrain from annoy- ing interference in the colony. After a time the rights of the proprie- tors were acquired by the crown (1702), and the two Jerseys united into one became a royal colony. The history of New Jersey in these early days can scarcely be called interesting. There is a certain lack of unity and purpose in the col- ony ; it was not a great THE MIDDLE COLONIES— 1609-1700. 107 experiment in religion and politics like ~New England, nor had it the picturesque qualities of the southern colonies. Despite legislative wranglings and proprietary Character of disputes, the colony prospered steadily and the colony. * ' . . ^ r ^ . J soberly, growing into a substantial common- wealth. Farming was almost the sole occupation. There was no effort to build up diversified interests, and all through the next century the colony was commercially dependent on New York or on the more prosperous and vigorous colony which grew up on its western border. References. Short account : Thwaites, The Colonies, pp. 210-215 ; Fisher, The Colonial Era, Chapter X ; Lodge, Short History, pp. 263-267 ; Bancroft, History, Volume I, pp. 520-523 and 546-551, also Volume II, pp. 31-33 ; Hildreth, History, Volume II, pp. 51-61 and 216-218 ; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume II, pp. 472-480. PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE— 1681-1700. We have already mentioned the Friends, or Quakers, some of whom early came into various colonies, and were there treated with great harshness. This sect Quakers m wag an j m p 0r tant element in English coloniza- tion. Three of the colonies, New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, and Delaware, were built up largely under their guidance and influence. It thus happened that the very central portion of the English domain in America felt the impress of the beliefs and ideals of these people. It is worth while, therefore, to examine the beginnings of the sect and to notice the characteristics of its faith ; for, as these people controlled for many years so much territory, and were not few in numbers, it is probable that their be- liefs and modes of thought have been wrought in part into the national character. These three Quaker colonies were directly influenced by the ideals of the sect. The religion of the Society of Friends had its beginnings 108 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. in the mind of George Fox, the son of an English weaver. He had been placed as apprentice with a shoemaker, but his master was also engaged in keeping sheep, and George, during part of his apprenticeship, was given the task of watching the flocks, a business well suited to his quiet spirit. He became deeply distressed for the safety of his soul. These were the tumultuous years of the great rebellion, and the country was filled with clam- oring sects, each claiming to have the true light and to be the only way. But from none of the priests or preachers could he find help. Some ridiculed, some abused him ; none were able to bring light to the darkened soul of the poor shoemaker's apprentice. He seems to have been woefully cast down, in a sort of ecstasy of misery, when the truth began to dawn upon him that the blind could not lead the blind, that " being bred at Oxford or Cambridge was not enough to qualify men to be ministers of Christ," that all the learning of the universities could not lead a man to heaven. " Thus he grew to a knowledge of divine things, without the help of any man, book, or writing," and there shone as into his very inmost soul the strong truth that there is a living God. He came to believe that each person is given light from on high, that every one is called upon to follow the guidance of that "inner light." These words contain the Quaker's creed. " The Quaker," says Bancroft, " has but one word, the in^er light, the voice of God in the soul. That light is a reality, and therefore in its free- dom the highest revelation of truth ; ... it shines in every man's breast, and therefore joins the whole human race in the unity of equal rights." * Fox was moved to preach, and soon made many con- verts. Those who embraced his doctrines became in turn imbued with the desire to win men to repentance. Messen- gers of the new faith wandered over Europe, calling upon * Bancroft, History, vol. i, p. 535. THE MIDDLE COLONIES— 1609-1700. 109 all to be guided by the light in their own souls. Fox was ridiculed, beaten, thrust into prison, but his courage waxed ever stronger, and his followers rapidly in- ?*jPJ* of creased. Everywhere the Quakers were perse- cuted, but they persisted in the faith. The courage and devotion of the sect is well illustrated by the story that, when Fox was in Lanceston jail, one of his people called upon Cromwell and asked to be imprisoned in his stead. " Which of you," said Cromwell, turning to his council, " would do as much for me if I were in the same condition?" Quakerism cherished the essence of democracy, because one of its necessary beliefs was that each man was the equal of every other. Certain manners and habits They teach the emphasized this kernel of their creed. They equality of men. r J believed there should be no distinctions m dress, no difference in title, no unnecessary elaboration in speech. The hat was to be kept on the head before the most august tribunal, because to stand uncovered savored of the homage due to God alone. Simple language with " thee and thou " was addressed to all alike, and the unadorned coat gave no chance for superiority in apparel. " My Lord Peter and My Lord Paul are not to be found in the Bible ; My Lord Solon or Lord Scipio is not to be read in Greek or Latin stories." Among the followers of Fox was one man who was a far greater soul than the founder of his faith. William Penn __ may justly be called one of the great men of William Penn. V. , J „. . ., u 8 . . • our history. His father was Admiral Penn, a man of prominence and position in England who had won distinction by the capture of Jamaica and stood in special favor at court because he had helped to reinstate the Stuarts. The son, while a student at Oxford, was much af- fected by the teachings of the Quakers. Refusing to attend the religious services of the university, he was expelled and sent home in disgrace. He now spent some time on the 110 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Continent, especially in Paris, and the gayeties of life seem for a time to have banished all serious inclination to re- ligion from his mind. He returned to England in 1664, and thence went to Ireland, where he came under the in- fluence again of the Quaker preacher who had won such a hold upon him in his stu- dent days. He was then fully converted to the new faith. This was a great event for Quakerism, because converts among the wealthy and influential had been very few, and because Penn was in himself a man of rare vigor, sweetness, and ability. In spite of his social posi- tion and the sweetness of his character, he was many times in prison ; and these rough experiences had doubtless their effect in broadening his sympathies with the poor and the oppressed.* Rude schools as they were, the Old Bailey and the Tower may have given him broader views of life and led him to see with greater clearness the needs of men and the crime and follies of the state. In 1670 his father died, leaving him wealthy. He acquires He inhered claims on the Government to a Pennsylvania. large amount. The frivolous Charles II had no zeal for paying debts in cash, and so in 1681 Penn re- ceived in satisfaction of his claim a vast estate stretching * " In such rough schools of statesmanship as the Old Bailey, New- gate, and the Tower he imbibed broad and liberal views of what was necessary for the welfare of mankind." (Winsor, Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. iii, p. 475.) The middle colonies— 1609-1 700. m westward from the Delaware River through five degrees of longitude.* The king gave the name Pennsylvania to the province in honor of Penn's father. Here Penn intended to establish a free commonwealth. " And because," he said, " I have been somewhat exercised at times about the nature and end of govern- is purpose, men t among men, it is reasonable to expect that I should endeavor to establish a just and righteous one in this province. . . . For the nations want a precedent." And again, he wrote to a friend : " For the matter of lib- erty and privilege, I propose that which is extraordinary, and to leave myself and successors no power of doing mis- chief — that the will of one man may not hinder the good of an whole country." The same broad generosity is shown in the letter which he now issued to the people who were already within the limits of his grant. " You shall be gov- erned," he promised, " by laws of your own making, and live a free and, if you will, a sober and industrious people." Emigrants made their way at once to Pennsylvania, and in 1682 Penn himself set out for his new province. A city was marked out on the Schuylkill and named fhfcoion^ ° f Philadel P nia > the cit y of brotherly love. Penn had already drawn up a " Frame of Govern- ment " for his colony — a liberal instrument full of the true spirit of democracy and worthy of its author. This was afterward altered in parts, but its main princi- p . e if' ! . pies remained. He believed in free govern- philosophy, r . °, ment, but not in the power of form or in the might of maxim. " Any government," he asserted, " is free to the people under it (whatever be its frame) where the * The boundaries of Pennsylvania, as of most of the colonies, were later subject to dispute. The northern line had to be agreed upon with New York. Connecticut also claimed the northern portion, and this gave rise to serious disputes in later years. See Fiske, The Critical Pe- riod of American History, pp. 148-150 ; McMaster, History of the People of the United States, vol. i, pp. 210-216. The FRAME of the GOVERNMENT OF THE l^cfofote of ^mnftnwmfo AM ERICA-- Together with certain LAWS Agreed upon in England BY THE GOVERNOUR AND Divers F R E E - M E N of the aforefaid PROVINCE To he furth-r Explained and Confirmed there by the firll Troiinciai Count i7 and Q eneral Ajfemhly that (hall be held, if they fee meet. Printed in die Year MDCLXXXII.* * Title-page of the Frame of Government. It provided for a council and an assembly, to be elected by the freemen, and one third of the members of the council to retire annually. Committees were also pro- vided for. It was soon changed in part ; but these provisions are note- worthy. THE MIDDLE COLONlES-1 609-1 700. 113 laws rule and the people are a party to those laws ; and more than this is tyranny, oligarchy, or confusion. . . . Liberty without obedience is confusion, and obedience with- out liberty is slavery." Never has the philosophy of gov- ernment been more exactly stated. Pennsylvania, like Maryland, and like other colonies founded after 1660, was a proprietary colony. Penn was the owner of the soil ; from him the settlers obtained the right to occupy the land and build their houses ; to him they paid their rent. He appointed the governor to act as his representative in his absence, and provided for a legisla- tive assembly. Penn was not granted such full and absolute powers as were bestowed upon Lord Baltimore. Doubtless he did not wish them. The inhabitants of his province could appeal to the king and the acts of the General Assem- bly must be presented to him in council for ratification or rejection. In 1682 Penn became possessed of New Castle and the territory lying to the south of it. This land he acquired from the Duke of York. It came to be called the " Territories," while Pennsylvania was known as the " Province." For some time these two com- munities were enrolled under one government, but for some reason each was jealous and suspicious of the other; disputes arose, and peace was finally secured by making the Territories into the separate colony of Delaware (1703). Pennsylvania grew rapidly into a flourishing and well- peopled colony. Before the end of the century there were not less than twenty thousand persons within 2bT? er0fthe fche limits of Penn ' s grant, and Philadelphia was already a busy and prosperous town. The settlers were by no means all Quakers ; there were Swedes and Dutchmen and Germans as well. At a later day many Scotch Irish made their way thither. The Quaker faith, however, shaped the character of the colony ; toleration 114 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. was freely accorded to all religions and modes of worship, for toleration was a logical result of the faith of the Friend. Moreover, the Quakers believed that each man was enlight- ened and guided from on high ; they believed in the equal- ity of men ; and under such influences Pennsylvania be- came in some ways the truest example of a thoroughly democratic commonwealth. One might expect that, when Penn had freely given the colony so much, there would be little trouble in govern- ing it and no political unrest. But such was not Political ^ e caga rp^g p e0 p] e h a( j their longings and am- aisputeSi r r o © bitions, and entered erelong lustily into political controversy. These difficulties were at times a great source of annoyance to Penn. " For the love of God, me, and the poor country," he wrote at one time, " be not so government- ish, so noisy and open in your dissatisfactions." These dis- satisfactions were bound to come, and it was as well they did, perhaps, since men are versed in the art of politics and self-government not by quiet contentment, but by zealous strivings.* A part of Penn's wisdom and brotherly love was shown in his treatment of the Indians. To his first commissioners in this new province he wrote : " Be tender of ^ n ^ th the offending the Indians. . . . Make a friendship and league with them. Be grave ; they love not to be smiled upon." He himself, after his arrival in Amer- ica, purchased land of the Indians and entered into " great promises of friendship." At a later day he wrote : " We leave not the least indignity to them unrebukt nor wrong unsatisfied. Justice gains and awes them." So Pennsyl- vania was long free from Indian dangers. Not till the later troubles with France began, was the progress of the colony seriously threatened. * Penn was for a time (1692-94) deprived of his province by the authorities in England, but it was returned to him again. THE MIDDLE COLONIES— 1609-1700. 115 A book printed in England at the end of the seventeenth century says that Philadelphia contained many stately houses of brick and " several fine squares and courts." rospen y. Between the principal towns the " watermen constantly ply their wherries." " There are no beggars to be seen, nor, indeed, have any the least temptation to take up that scandalous life." References. Thwaites, The Colonies, pp. 207-217; Fisher, The Colonial Era, pp. 199-206 ; Lodge, Short History, pp. 205-226 ; Winsor, Narrative and Critical History, Volume III, Chapter XII; Bancroft, History, Volume I, pp. 528-573, Volume II, pp. 62-75 ; Bryant and Gay, Pop- ular History, Volume II, pp. 165-178, 481^98; Stoughton, William Penn, The Founder of Pennsylvania ; Fiske, Dutch and Quaker Colo- nies, Volume II, Chapters XII, XVI, XVII. House in Philadelphia in which Penn lived— 1699-1701. CHAPTER V. History of the Colonies in the Eighteenth Century. It will be remembered that by the decree of the Pope and by an agreement between Spain and Portugal these two countries claimed title to the heathen Right of world. Spain asserted that she owned the discovery! x whole of Xorth America and all of South America lying west of the line agreed upon. Before the beginning of the eighteenth century, however, she had been forced to give up her excessive demands and to yield to other countries some title and dominion. By this time there had developed a doctrine known as the right of dis- covery. That doctrine included the following proposi- tions : 1. The Christian nation that discovers a heathen land owns it to the exclusion of all other Christian nations. 2. This nation must complete its title within a reasonable time by occupying and using this land. 3. The native in- habitants are the occupants of the land only.* At the beginning of the eighteenth century the English dominion stretched from east of the Kennebec to the Sa- vannah ; its western border was the Allegheny Claims of range. As yet no adventurous pioneer had dared to make a settlement in the great valley beyond the mountains. On the northeast the claims of England extended into the territory which France asserted * See Hinsdale, How to Study and Teach History, pp. 204, 205. The propositions here given are in the words of Professor Hinsdale. 116 THE COLONIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 117 was hers, and on the south Spain claimed title to all the territory at least as far north as the Savannah, while the English claimed southward to the St. John's. We shall see how the English established a colony in the region south of the Savannah (1733), and how through the efforts of Oglethorpe the land was held for England. By the middle of the century Spain's possessions in the eastern part of North America were confined to Florida alone. With France, however, England had still to wage a mighty struggle. Until near the beginning of the eight- eenth century there had been no good reason En ai jand nd for conflict between the two nations, for the continent was large enough for the settlements of both countries, and the colonists of the one did not come into contact with those of the other. But, as the years went by, the rivalry grew more and more intensely bitter, and all questions of colonial policy and growth were more or less influenced by this international jealousy and hatred. War succeeded war, and in the intervals of peace each na- tion narrowly watched the other. These wars were partly caused by religious differences and by the political problems of Europe ; but they were caused also by the fact that both the nations were seeking to secure great possessions in America. France and England were natural rivals because of their colonial ambitions. From whatever point of view one studies the colonial history of the eighteenth century it must needs have these intercolonial wars and this intercolonial rivalry intercolonial ag a background. We must remember that wars. ° New England grew and prospered and reached out for more territory to be filled with thriving towns, while the French and their Indian allies were lurking on her bor- ders and watching her progress with malice in their hearts. We must remember that in some of the colonies disputes arose between the governor and the popular assembly over the question of supply or preparation for war, and that 118 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. each dispute gave to the colonists practice in declaring their rights and privileges. We must remember, too, that the colonies felt their dependence on England, because of the presence of an enemy on their frontier. During the first half of the century the political history of each colony is very similar to that of every other. It is p rti ai a s ^ or y °^ P e ttv quarrels between the assembly character of and the governor, of incessant disputes over these years. some matter apparently trivial, but yet involv- ing, as the colonists thought, some question of principle or some real substantial right. The hapless governor was often between two fires. On the one side were the stubborn colo- nists absolutely refusing concession and demanding new privileges ; on the other side he had clear instructions from the proprietors or royal authority directing him not to grant what the colonists wished. But these quarrels and disputes were evidences of a persistent spirit of self-govern- ment. The people were thus trained in political methods and taught to understand and appreciate constitutional and legal principles. For these contests did not consist of vio- lent uprisings ; they were mere wordy disputes carried on with the formalities of legal language and with the studied decorum of debate. It is important to notice that the development of the American colonists through this period followed the lines already marked out by the progress of the mother country. The assembly or lower house of the colonial legislature strove to obtain full control over the purse. When this hold was secured, or nearly so, it demanded redress of grievances and new privileges on pain of a refusal of supply. It said to the governor, " Cease this or that practice, or else we will cease to pay your salary." Thus the right of self-taxation became the basis of many other rights, and was looked upon by the colonists as the most fundamental of them all. Edmund Burke, the great English orator and statesman, in his Speech on Concilia- THE COLONIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 119 tion with America, one of the most remarkable speeches ever delivered, thus speaks of this love of the colonists for the principle of self-taxation, a principle which the experi- ences of the whole eighteenth century strongly confirmed : " The people of the colonies are descendants of English- men. . . . The colonies draw from you, as with their life blood, these ideas and principles. Their love of liberty, as with you, fixed and attached on this specific point of tax- ing. Liberty might be safe or might be endangered in twenty other particulars without their being much pleased or alarmed. Here they felt its pulse ; and as they found that beat, they thought themselves sick or sound." So this first half of the eighteenth century passed away, uneventfully on the whole. On the north and west the bor- ders were time and again beset by wandering A period of parties of French and Indians. The outbreak progress. * of actual war caused some excitement, and brought almost surely a dispute with some ambitious gov- ernor over increased supply or new authority. But the signs of the times are a steady development in the arts and practices of self-government, a slow but sure advancement in industrial prosperity, a quiet and sober progress toward a self-sufficient and independent life. We can not enter at length into the history of New England during these years. We must content ourselves with noticing one or two instances of political Msto England controversy that illustrate the spirit of the people. One of the governors of Massachusetts on returning to England complained bitterly of the temper of " Boston, a town of eighteen thousand inhabitants." He declared that it was full of a "leveling spirit," and that the citizens were bent upon making " continual encroachments on the few prerogatives left to the Crown." * These angry words were doubtless not far from true. The people of Massachusetts had no thought of treason or insurrection ; but they were determined to 9 120 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. govern themselves just as far as they possibly could, and to cling persistently to their own purse strings and open their purse at their own discretion. At times they managed to get on very well with the royal governor ; but often they were engaged in some dispute with him. A good illustra- tion of these differences is a controversy between the Assem- bly and the governor over the question of permanent salary. Successive governors demanded that the legislature should grant a permanent sum. The house preferred to make its grant annually. Especially during the administration of Burnett (1728-'29) the controversy was hotly waged. The governor threatened and scolded the legislators, dissolved the General Court, and declared they should not longer sit at Boston, but at Cambridge or Salem, " where prejudices had not taken root," but all to no avail. His successor brought with him rigid instructions to obtain a permanent salary, but he did not succeed. He finally gave way and accepted, with due thankfulness no doubt, the pay the house was willing to give each year. Thus the people won by obstinate striving the power of keeping the governor in order by controlling his pay. The history of Connecticut and Rhode Island differed in one way essentially from that of Massachusetts, because in these colonies there was no royal governor Ehode C Sd and to cause annoyance. Several times they were threatened with the loss of their free charters ; but they contrived by argument and clever management to save these precious documents. Although not engaged in quarrels with royal governors, the people were interested in political questions and governed themselves quietly and well. Turning to New York, we find that its political history was in many ways not essentially different from that of Massachusetts. Probably New York was un- usually unfortunate in the royal governors that were sent to rule over her. Some of them were not very bad, but others either were greedy and bent upon filling THE COLONIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 121 their purses or were very quarrelsome and domineering. The Assembly struggled doggedly against successive gov- ernors, winning little by little a stronger hold upon the Government. One who knew the people well told the au- thorities in England (1729) that " most of the previous and open steps which a dependent state can take to render them- selves independent at their pleasure are taken by the As- sembly of New York." Prominent among the royal governors of New York was one Cosby (1732-36), a money getter, a boisterous, irrita- ble fellow, tactless and devoid of both decorum The right of an( j virtue. A man named Zenger published ee speec . .^ ^ p a p er some criticisms of the governor, de- claring that the people of New York " think that slavery is likely to be entailed on them and their posterity if some things be not amended." Thereupon the paper was ordered burned and Zenger was cast into prison and brought to trial for criminal libel. The lawyer who defended him admitted that the articles in question had been published, but asserted that they were true and not false or scandalous. " A free people," said the bold lawyer, Andrew Hamilton, " are not obliged by any law to support a governor who goes about to destroy a province." He pointed to the abuses of the ex- ecutive power and warned the jury that it was " not the cause of a poor printer alone, nor of New York alone. No ! it may in its consequences affect every freeman that lives under a British government on the main of America." He called upon them to protect the liberty " to which Nature and the laws of our country have given us a right, the lib- erty both of exposing and opposing arbitrary power, in these parts of the world at least, by speaking and writing the truth." Zenger was acquitted, and Hamilton, who was a Pennsylvanian, was given the freedom of the city in a gold snuff box. These were pretty evident straws to show which way the wind was blowing in New York. We might expect that in Pennsylvania, founded by a 122 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. generous proprietor and inhabited by a peace-loving people, there would be no contentions or disputes. But it had its full share. In 1718 Penn died and the province became the property of his heirs. The colony prospered exceedingly and grew in wealth and population, and as it grew the people became somewhat masterful and assertive, quite as insistent upon their full rights as were the people of any colony. Various disputes between governor and Assembly arose, and in them all the Assembly was ob- stinate and tenacious of its rights. When the troubles with France grew serious in the middle of the century and the frontier settlements were attacked by the Indians, the Gov- ernment, refusing to do as the Assembly wished, had diffi- culty in getting money to repel the invaders. One can not entirely sympathize with the people in their inflexible re- fusal to grant supplies at a time when the borders of the colony were laid waste by Indian forays. But the refusal shows well that the legislators knew their rights and were determined to act on them. When the governor pleaded for money they would not yield, quietly remarking that " they had rather the French should conquer them than give up their privileges." " Truly," remarked Governor Dinwiddie, of Virginia, " I think they have given their senses a long holiday." Among the most notable governors of the eighteenth century was Alexander Spotswood, who for twelve years was at the head of the government in Virginia (1710-'22). Like many another ruler, he thought that the duty of the people lay in obedience alone, and he was wont to lecture the burgesses as if they were so many schoolboys, declaring that they had not the "ordi- nary qualifications for legislators." * But withal he was an * Chalmers, in his Introduction to the Revolt of the American Colo- nies, says : " Had Spotswood even invaded the privileges, while he only mortified the pride of the Virginians, they ought to have erected a statue to the memory of the ruler who gave them the manufacture of THE COLONIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 123 able and energetic man, sincerely devoted to the interests of the colony and full of zeal for its improvement. On the whole, therefore, his administration was peace- Governor f u i an( j p roS p erous# « This government," he said, " is in perfect peace and tranquillity, un- der a due obedience to the royal authority and a gentle- manly conformity to the Church of England." He brought about peace with the Indians, who were apt to be trouble- some on the border.* Under his leadership an expedition was made over the Blue Eidge and into the Shenandoah Valley. Such a journey was only a pleasant excursion in comparison with the long exploring trips of the French far into the unknown west ; but it made much noise in the col- ony, for governors were not accustomed to interest them- selves in exploration or in extending the bounds of their provinces. In the second quarter of the century Virginia began to reach out toward the mountains and to long for the smiling valleys beyond. Soon a tide of immigration Virginia ge ^. | n an( j swe p^ [ n i the fertile fields along the Shenandoah. About the middle of the century, then, we see in Virginia two strongly contrasted societies. On the tide-water rivers a race of planters " dress- ing richly, living on large estates, riding in coaches, and attending the Church of England " ; past the mountains hardy settlers, "clearing the land, building houses and churches, and making a new Virginia in the wilderness; and still farther toward the Alleghanies, hardy frontiers- men who have set their feet on the very outposts of civil- ization." There is little resemblance in life and habits. The planter is waited upon by slaves; the frontiersman must defend himself and earn his own hard livelihood. iron, and showed them by his active example that it is diligence and attention which can alone make a people great." * A very interesting account of Governor Spotswood is given in Cooke's Virginia, p. 311. 124 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Yet both are Virginians, and both are devoted to liberty. The planter, accustomed to rule others as well as himself, would not brook restraint. The pioneer breathed in free- dom with every draught of mountain air.* The Carolinas entered the eighteenth century somewhat restless under the senseless proprietary rule, but, on the whole, they were prosperous and progressive. South Carolina had grown quickly into a staid community. Charlestown was already a thriving little place, trie home of the planters, who left their plantations in the interior to be cultivated by slaves, while they enjoyed the pleasures of town life. They were men of force and ability, many of them educated gentlemen, and they felt quite competent to manage their own affairs without great deference to the proprietors, who seemed to have no knowl- edge of the real needs of the colony, and to care little for the interests and wishes of the colonists. Such a condition of affairs could bring but one result. The people formed "an association to stand by their rights and privileges," and the popular assembly took the reins into its own hands and refused to be ruled longer by a set of non- B «S»loSoia resident proprietors, who were greedy only for their own gain. This practical revolution (1719) was not made a legal fact until ten years after the first re- volt. Then the proprietors gave up their charter, and South Carolina became a royal colony. North Carolina did not throw off the proprietary yoke when her southern neighbor rebelled, but she too became a royal colony in 1729. Her population grew Carolina. rapidly, but the people were not so progressive as those of either Virginia or South Carolina. Without convenient harbors, the people had little or no communication with the outside world, even the tobacco crop being carried to Virginia for transportation abroad. * Read Cooke's Virginia, p. 322 et seq. THE COLONIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 125 For this and other reasons life was simple and primitive. Many of the colonists were ignorant, and showed no desire for learning ; printing was not introduced until about the middle of the century, and schools were almost unknown. Among such a people we ought not to expect a great knowl- edge of the art of politics ; yet here, too, the colonists showed some capacity for managing their own affairs, and were growing steadily into an appreciation of the problems and principles of self-government. GEORGIA— 1732-1765. By the beginning of the eighteenth century, as we have seen, England had planted colonies along the Atlantic coast from the Kennebec Eiver at the north to the EnTand d Savannah at the south. Spain, on the other hand, had made no progress toward the north since the founding of St. Augustine. This settlement served as an outpost to guard her West Indian colonies, but it served no other purpose. Though Spain did nothing herself, she watched England's advance with jealous eye, and continued to claim the land as her own far north of her actual possessions. At the beginning she might have broken up the colony at Jamestown and prevented the Englishmen from gaining a foothold on the coast ; but it was too late now, and all she could do was to hold what she had and protest against the aggressions of England along the coast and of France in the Mississippi Valley. In 1670 England and Spain entered into an agreement known as the American treaty, but this did not determine the bound- ary between Florida and Carolina. Sixty years after the founding of South Carolina there was no settlement south of the Savannah.* * England had established weak military outposts there, but there was no settlement. 12G HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. A colony was finally planted in this region through the efforts of James Oglethorpe, a member of the English Par- liament, "a gentleman of unblemished char- orpe " acter, brave, generous, and humane." He saw the desirability of founding a settlement in the country south of the Carolinas. At this time in England persons were imprisoned for debt and hanged for a petty theft. Each year, we are told, at least four thousand unhappy men were shut up in prison because of the misfortune of poverty. The jails were wretched, woe-begone places, scenes of misery and often of horror. Oglethorpe pro- posed to carry away these luckless captives to Ameri- ca, and there to found a colony where they might have a chance to get ahead in the world. Oglethorpe and several other persons were constituted "trustees for the establishing the colony of Georgia in America." The king granted His purposes. them a charter and vested them with com- plete power. Oglethorpe was chosen to lead the expedition, and set sail for America with a number of colonists in the latter part of 1732. In February of the next year he The colony f oun ded Savannah. Other settlers soon fol- founded. lowed, among them a number of German Prot- estants, who had been persecuted at home for their religion. These people were thrifty and industrious, and did much for the colony. But the shiftless debtors that were brought over do not seem to have learned how to work. A few years THE COLONIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 127 later still other emigrants arrived, among them Moravians and Lutherans from Germany. Oglethorpe was well fitted for the task of protecting his frontier colony against the attacks of Spain. When war broke out between England and Spain in 1739 War with Georgia was in an exposed position. Ogle- thorpe conducted an expedition against the Spanish colony, but was obliged to give up the siege which he had begun. The enemy in turn made a fierce attack upon the town of Frederica. It was repelled through the courage and clever strategy of Oglethorpe. Thereafter the colony was safe from Spanish attack. A new domain had been securely added to the English Crown. Georgia developed slowly. The rule of Oglethorpe was just, but as the time went on the regulations of the trustees became very obnoxious to the settlers. In 1752 SthTcobn ^ ne trustees g ave U P their charter to the Crown, and Georgia became a royal colony. A legisla- ture was established, and in administration and political form Georgia became similar to the other colonies. From this time on the colony grew more rapidly, and acquired stability and strength ; but when the troubles with England began, and America was drawn into war against the mother country, Georgia was still a backward province ; its people had had little practice in self-government, and, as we might expect, played no very conspicuous part in the struggle for political and civil liberty. Everywhere throughout America in the eighteenth cen- tury there developed the spirit of liberty and capacity for Material self-government. But quite as important in prosperity its influence on our later history is the mate- and democracy. r j a j development of these years. The colonies waxed powerful and rich, losing all the appearance of strug- gling frontier settlements. And with this growth there came a strong sense of popular rights, the feeling of man- 128 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ly independence, which was the firm foundation of the coming democracy. References. Short accounts: Thwaites, The Colonies, Chapter XIV; Fisher, The Colonial Era, Part II. Longer accounts : Bryant and Gay, Pop- ular History, Volume III, pp. 151-170, 222-254; Bancroft, History, Volume II, pp. 3-85, 238-280 ; Lodge, Short History, passim. For Georgia.— Short accounts: Thwaites, The Colonies, pp. 258-263; Fisher, The Colonial Era, pp. 303-313. An interesting ac- count of Oglethorpe is to be found in Bruce, James Edward Ogle- thorpe (notice especially Chapters III, IV, and VII). Bancroft, His- tory, Volume II, pp. 280-299; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume III, pp. 140-169. View of Christ Church, Boston, On the spire of which Paul Revere hung lanterns to announce the arrival of the British troops. CHAPTER VI. France and England— 1608-1763. Soon after the accession of William III to the throne of England war was begun with France. This was in 1689, and for the next one hundred and twenty-five years Second hundred ^ e ^ w0 countries were in continual enmity, often in open war. This long struggle has been named not inaptly the " second hundred years' war." * The nations were natural rivals. They differed in religion and they differed in their ambitions in European politics. Most important of all, each had hopes of wide dominion in America, and their claims conflicted. From our point of view these contests mean but this : they were to decide which nation was the more vigorous, virile, and sound, which nation was so made up in its moral and physical fiber and in its political talent, that it would succeed in securing America to itself. The prize was, above all, that great cen- tral valley of our country — a noble prize indeed, as fertile a space for its size as the globe shows, capable of sustain- ing two hundred million inhabitants, traversed by mighty rivers, free from impassable mountain chains, a place which Nature seems to have fashioned as the home of a single peo- ple. And so in the history of the world these wars mean much; they were not petty squabbles between kings and princes, but the struggles of nations for empire. Before the * Seeley, Expansion of England, Lecture II. Seeley's positions are somewhat extreme, but the book is profoundly interesting and sug- gestive. 129 130 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. hundred years were gone a great portion of the prize had fallen to England and a part again had been wrested from her by her rebellious colonies ; and yet from the accession of William III to the downfall of Napoleon the enmity of the two great nations may be said to have sprung from their colonial ambitions. Let us trace out, not in detail but roughly, the early ex- pansion of French power in America. We have seen that early in the sixteenth century explorers from France ready France sailed alonsr the coast and that efforts for colonization, f; ,_ were made to settle on the banks 01 the St. Lawrence. But the efforts of these years only prepared the way for the successes of the next century. France had been torn by civil war, distracted by religious hatred, but the end of the sixteenth century found her at peace. Henry IV, a rugged soldier, had won the throne and issued the fa- mous Edict of Nantes, proclaiming liberty of worship to Huguenots. France sank into repose, while art, industry, and commerce sprang into renewed life. Adventurous men, losing their trade of war, were ready to seek new employ- ment for their restless energies. One such was Samuel de Champlain, a bold, resolute man of dauntless courage. Wearying of France in " piping times of peace," he sought new adventures beyond the amp am. ocean. He explored the coast of New England, and finally (1608) founded Quebec. Thus the French ac- quired a permanent abiding place at the north in a posi- tion of great military strength, on the river that afforded a highway to the Great Lakes and to the great valley beyond. Champlain continued his discoveries to the south and west. He discovered the lake which bears his name in 1G09, and later made his way westward as far as Lake Huron. Until his death, in 1635, he labored ceaselessly in exploration and was the moving spirit in colonial enterprise. But Champlain made one grievous blunder, that in time brought woe to French colonists. In 1609, in company FRANCE AND ENGLAND— 1608-1763. 131 with a war party of Algonquin Indians, he made his way southward from Quebec, and on the banks of the lake that ,. x . now bears his name attacked and routed a His expedition against the band of Iroquois. A similar expedition a few iroqnois. years later was not so successful, and the only result of espousing the cause of the Algonquins against their ancient foe was to make the warriors of the Five Na- tions the inveterate enemies of the French. Ml The five nations. Defeat of the Iroquois. From Champlain's Voyages, 1613. The Iroquois were a powerful and capable race. All the tribes of the North and East stood in dread of them. As far west as the Mississippi, as far east as Maine, as far south as the Carolinas, they were known and feared. They are said to have called Lake Champlain the gateway of the country. Such it may be said to be to-day. It forms with the Hudson a line of com- munication with the Atlantic ; it is the road to Canada from the south. Hence in all wars between the nation that pos- sesses Canada and that which holds the Atlantic coast this valley must be a place of great strategic importance. The Iroquois seem to have felt the strength of their position. 132 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. These people were now made by Champlain's action the enduring enemies of the French. " For over a century the Iroquois found no pastime equal to rendering life in Canada miserable." The Dutch of Kew York, more fortunate, made friends with these tribes, and when the Dutch were supplanted by the English they too for some years held the Iroquois as allies. Thus Results of Iroquois enmity t 1 -a | t ) •* 1 vi FRANCE AND ENGLAND— 1608-1763. 133 the settlements of the middle Atlantic coast were in their early years protected from French attack by this living bar- rier, the Iroquois — a barrier impassable by French war par- ties. Moreover, partly because of the Iroquois, the French made their explorations into the west and northwest rather than to the south and southwest. Lake Superior was known before Lake Erie, and the Mississippi had been traversed before the waters of the Ohio were known. In conse- quence, for a long time the French and English settle- ments diverged, the French occupying positions on the Great Lakes and the rivers of the far West long before they dared to come near the English by occupying places imme- diately beyond the mountains. The great struggle between France and England did not come till, under different con- ditions, the authorities of Canada tried to take and hold strategic points in the eastern portion of the Ohio Valley. The seventeenth century is a picturesque period in the history of Canada. Bold adventurers and soldiers, brave and patient priests, hardy fur traders and rest- Early Trench j egg rovers a \\ &{& their part in exploring the explorersi x great West, carrying the lilies of France, the cross of the church, or the brandy and gewgaws of the mer- chant into the remote solitudes of the interior. As early as 1634 Jean Nicollet was in Wisconsin and Illinois. A few years later Jesuit priests preached their faith before two thousand naked savages at the falls of Ste. Marie. Soon after this Allouez began a mission in this same region, and for thirty years he passed from tribe to tribe in that far-off wilderness, preaching and exhorting and striving to implant his faith. Marquette gathered the Indians about him at Sault Ste. Marie, and passed even to the farther end of Lake Superior, seeking to win souls for the Church. St. Lusson (1671), at the Sault, with solemn ceremony before a motley concourse of braves, proclaimed the sovereign title of the great monarch of France to all the surrounding lands, " in all their length and breadth, bounded on the one the English colonies were in danger because they did not act together. It was sug- gested that a congress for conference be held, made up of commissioners from the various assemblies. The chief ob- ject was a joint treaty with the Iroquois. Such a congress met at Albany. Eepresentatives were present from seven colonies. It had no immediate result, though the example was beyond question of importance in succeeding years. Benjamin Franklin, a member of the congress, drew up and presented a plan of union which provided for the formation of a grand council of forty-eight members selected from the colonies and a president general appointed by the Crown. This plan of union was not acceptable to the plan, US colonial assemblies, nor did it meet with fa- vor in England. The lords of trade had al- ready prepared a plan of their own; but anything like a free union of the colonies seems to have been looked 140 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. upon with suspicion in the mother country, possibly with dread.* The treaty which ended the War of the Austrian Succes- sion was in reality but a truce. The treaty of Utrecht (1713) had declared that the Iroquois were sub- EnTVdaims but her P olitical system had not de- veloped to keep pace with the growth of her people. The great underlying principles of her Constitu- tion were good, and on them a free popular government could be reared. Now, however, her government was in reality aristocratic, not popular. The whole system of representation had become utterly wrong and foolish. She still clung to the doctrine that money must be voted by the people's representatives — the House of Commons. But the house did not rest on the votes of the whole people, or even, indeed, on a large part of them. Large and thriving 169 170 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. cities were without the right to send members to Parlia- ment, while little boroughs of a few houses had such right, simply because they had long ago acquired it. These little places were often willing to sell their votes, or to cast them as directed by some nobleman who had control of the people. Eng- land needed to popularize Parlia- ment and bring her government into closer relations with the people before she could wisely govern free Englishmen in the colonies, who were accustomed to think and act for themselves. It is probably true that, in spite of these absurdities and faults in the representative system, the will of the people of Great Britain was not ill set forth in the House of Com- mons ; yet it is clear that representation in American idea of . . ,, . ,.— , - M i , America meant something different from what it meant in England, and that the American system was more reasonable and right. In each of the colonies there was an assembly made up of men taken from the body of the people. The people of each representative district felt that they had thus a part in making the body that made the laws. In England, on the other hand, men were supposed to be represented in the House of Commons, even though great and populous sec- tions had no participation in the election. For this and representation compared with English idea. * Henry played a great part in the events that led to separation from Great Britain. He was one of the greatest orators America has produced. George Mason, himself a man of ability, said : "He is by far the most powerful speaker I ever heard. But his eloquence is the smallest part of his merit. He is, in my opinion, the first man upon this continent as well in abilities as public virtues." CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 171 other reasons England could not fully appreciate American sentiment. Englishmen held that America was represented in the English Parliament, because it was the Parliament of the empire. An American colonist could not understand that sort of representation. In other ways the colonists gov- erned themselves more fully than the people of England governed themselves. A revolution set in and the two peoples were torn apart, largely because England had now fallen behind the colonists in her appreciation of doctrines of political liberty and her application of them. Moreover, George III had just come to the throne with strong ideas of the kingly prerogative. He aimed to con- trol Parliament more fully than had been done MsM^* 1 since the S reat re ^olution (1688). He had built up a faction of personal supporters, known as the " king's friends." He sought to manage the ministry to suit his own desires. If this coalition between an aristocratic Parliament, a ministry founded on bribery, and a designing king were once fully formed, the liberties of England were in danger, perhaps were already a thing of the past. And so America was to fight for English as well as American liberty. " America," exclaimed the great Pitt, the true founder of this new British empire, " Amer- ica, if she fell, would fall like the strong man with his arms around the pillars of the Constitution." An idea prevailed in England that the colonies were the property of the mother country, that they existed for her. Men did not think of the colonists as English- The lde * of men, separated indeed from the old country by ownership. ' r ^ J three thousand miles of water, but Englishmen still. They did not conceive of America simply as an ex- pansion of England. They thought of England's owning the colonies, and too often seemed to think that she owned the colonists. Thus the whole basis of relationship was wrong. This is not to be wondered at. Such notions had prevailed in Europe since Spain had obtained her colonial 172 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. "possessions." Natural as this feeling was, it prevented the English people from treating the restive Americans with fairness and with the consideration that was their due. " Every man in England," said Franklin, " seems to jostle himself into the throne with the king and talks about our subjects in America." Up to this time (1760) the mother country had not tried to tax the colonies directly, or to interfere with their local concerns. External trade had been regulated A sensible somewhat, and was generally conceded to be a compromise i matter for the English Government. But in internal affairs the colonies largely managed their own con- cerns. The colonies had, as we have often said, flourished in neglect.* When it was suggested to wise old Robert Walpole that he tax the colonies, he exclaimed, " What ! I have old England set against me, and do you think I will have new England likewise ? " England should have rested content with this practical and sensible compromise. It might be asserted that it was illogical, and that the British Parliament was supreme over the colonies, and had as good right to pass laws for the internal management of the colonies as to make regulations for external trade. But it was not a question of logic ; it was a question of common sense. As early as 1651, in the time of Cromwell, England legis- lated in behalf of English commerce to cut off any profit there might be to foreign countries in trading i T aws naVigati0n with her colonies - After this time la ^s multi- plied, all directed toward the same end, namely, the holding of the entire colonial commerce in her own hands. Only English or colonial ships could carry on colonial trade ; the most important products of the colonies * " The colonies," said Burke, "in general owe little or nothing to any care of ours, . . . but through a wise and salutary neglect a gen- erous nature has been suffered to take her own way to perfection." Causes of the revolution. 173 could be carried only to England, and — perhaps most im- portant of all — foreign goods could not be brought to the colonies except under heavy duty, unless first shipped from an English port. In other words, the colonies were re- stricted to the English market and to English carriers, save where they had their own vessels; and they were not allowed to import foreign goods save by using the English merchants as their factors. Moreover, trade between the colonies was restricted. In addition to all this, acts had been passed to stamp out the beginnings of American manufactures in order that the colonies might be dependent on England for supplies. It must be said that other countries with colonial possessions treated their colonists with less consideration than England did. In some respects English legislation favored colonial enterprise, and up to the time of the last French war the laws do not seem to have injured the colonies materially. An attempt to enforce them, however, and to secure not simply a monopoly of American trade but to obtain revenue, irritated the colonies and helped to bring on disaster. The navigation laws had not been rigidly enforced. They were constantly broken. But now, before the end of the French war, the ministry became infatuated Writs of ^fa t^e idea of stopping this lawlessness and assistance. enforcing the acts. One of the means em- ployed was the issuing of general warrants to search for smuggled goods. These warrants were called " writs of assistance." Such a writ gave general and not particular instruction to the revenue officers. It was good for an in- definite time, and might serve as authority for search in any suspected place. Such a power in the hands of an officer is dangerous to liberty.* In 1761 a great case arose. James Otis, a young and brilliant lawyer, argued before the * Notice the Constitution of the United States, Amendments, Article IV, where general warrants are made illegal. m HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Superior Court of Massachusetts against the validity of these writs. He declared that to use them was an act of tyranny such as had " cost one king of England his head, and another his throne." He declaimed against the acts of trade which imposed " intolerable taxes," and inveighed against "the tyranny of taxation without representation." "Then and there," said John Adams, "was the first scene of the first act of opposition to the arbitrary claims of Great Britain. Then and there the child of Independence was born." Shortly after this Patrick Henry made a great speech in A statute had been passed by the Virginia Legislature that materially lessened the income of the clergymen, which was payable in tobacco. This The parson's ac f. wag d ec i are cl void by royal authority in causei y * •» England. A clergyman now brought suit to obtain his dues under the law as it existed before this statute was passed. Henry was retained for the defense, and poured out his torrents of new-found eloquence in defense of the right of the colonial legislature to pass such laws as it chose, without reference to the gracious per- mission of the English king. He declared " that a king, by disallowing acts of this salutary nature, from being the father of his people degenerates into a tyrant, and forfeits all right to his subjects' obedience." The jury brought in a verdict of one penny damage for the poor parson. Thus it appears that in Massachusetts and in Virginia popular young orators were ready to preach a doctrine that savored of rebellion. The Americans were then faithful subjects of King George, but Henry struck the keynote of colonial Virginia. CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 175 politics when he asserted that the test of a law's validity- was not the kingly sanction, but the people's desire.* George Grenville f is said to have brought on the Amer- ican war because he read the colonial dispatches. Other ministers had been content to let the colonies determines to go their own way, and to wink at breaches of enforce the laws. ^ e navigation laws. Grenville began to ex- amine into their affairs and to study their condition. He resolved to enforce the revenue acts,J using, if need be, the royal navy for the purpose. This was sure to bring on dis- turbance, for an enforcement of the Sugar Act alone would be a great hardship to New England, because it would damage a lucrative commerce with the West Indies. Grenville also saw that the colonies were prosperous and rich. The English Government had expended vast sums of money in the late war, and it seemed to him only just that, inasmuch as the colonies had profited by the destruc- tion of the French power, they should now pay for their own protection. In accordance with his recommendation Parliament passed a Stamp Act. It provided that bills, notes, marriage certificates, legal documents, etc., should be written only on stamped paper. The rev- The Stamp Act, enue stained from the sale of stamps was to be used for colonial defense. The plan was not devised for enriching the mother country at the ex- pense of the colonies ; for it was fully expected that the tax would yield not more than £100,000 — less than one third * Tyler's Patrick Henry, chap, iv, gives a picturesque account of this famous case. f First Lord of the Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer, 1763-'65. % " The customhouses were to be something more than cosy nooks on the wharves where holders of sinecures might doze comfortably ; the ships of war everywhere were to be instructed to enforce the revenue laws." (Hosmer, Life of Thomas Hutchinson, p. 52.) CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. m the amount England must expend to protect America efficiently from foreign invasion or Indian uprising. It can not be said, therefore, that the law was an act of greed, or of tyranny. But the colonists resented it; it ran counter to all their practices and principles. Their love of liberty was "fixed and attached on this specific point of taxing." * The Stamp Act alarmed America. The Virginia As- sembly adopted resolutions, offered and eloquently sup- ported by Patrick Henry, declaring that " tax- The Stamp Act ation of pe0 pi e by themselves or by persons Congress. r r j j r chosen by themselves to represent them . . . is the distinguishing characteristic of British freedom, and without which the ancient constitution can not subsist." The Massachusetts rep- rf ^ H E LlEUTENANT Governor declares he will do nothing in *"" Relation to the STAMPS, but leave it to Sir Henry Moore, to do as he pleafes, on his Arrival. Council Chamber, New-York, Nov. 2 ? 1765. By Order of his Honour, Gw. Banyar, D. CI. Con. The Governor acquainted Judge Li* virigfton,ihe Mayor, Mr. Beverly Robin- Indians, and all else had >.' an ^;>^ S T7<^ h *^S?i being Monday the 4th of November, that he would not iffue, nor fuffer to be if- fued, any of the STAMPS now in Fort- George. Robert R. Lruingftcm. John Cruger, Beverly RoiinJbn 9 John Stevens. The Freemen, Freeholders, and In- habitants of this City, being fatisfiedthat the STAMPS are not to be iffued, are determined to keep the Peace of the Ci- ty, at all Events, except they fliould have other Caufe of Complaint. Handbill issued in New York to Allay Excitement and Check Riotous Opposition to the Stamp Act. resentatives called for a general congress of the colonies. In October (17G5) delegates from nine colonies assembled in New York. Fear of the French, dread of the hitherto not brought about union. Now in a moment, when their chosen liberties were threatened, they came together. The congress drew up memorials ad- dressed to the Eng- lish Government, and a "Declaration of Rights and Grievances of the Colonists in America." Burke's Speech on Conciliation with America. 178 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. But resistance to the Stamp Act was not all by remon- strance. In Boston during the summer there was disorder. The stamp collector was hanged in effigy ; the Disorder and ncm se of Chief -Justice Hutchinson was sacked. riots. Other acts of violence occurred. Though the town meeting of Boston expressed its " abhorrence " of such conduct, it was clear that there were some who did not distinguish between orderly and disorderly resistance. New York was the headquarters of the English army in America ; but here, too, there were mobs. There was strong evidence everywhere that the act could be enforced only at the point of the bayonet, if at all. Societies were organized, called "Sons of Liberty," pledged to resist the obnoxious law. Many entered into agreements not to use British goods. Meanwhile, there was amazement and discomfiture in England. The merchants began to feel a loss of trade. Grenville had resigned before he could see the repealed * consequence of his own well-meaning folly. A new ministry was confronted with serious diffi- culties. America seemed actually on the verge of open violence and resistance. A great debate took place in Parliament. William Pitt, who for some time had been kept by illness from his place in the House, now appeared to support the colonial cause. He declared that there was a plain distinction between " taxes levied for the purpose of raising revenue and duties imposed for the regulation of trade." He insisted that internal taxation without repre- sentation was tyranny, and, if the Americans yielded, it would be an evil omen for English liberty. " The gentle- men tell us," he exclaimed, " America is obstinate ; America is in open rebellion. I rejoice that America has resisted." The act was repealed. There was great rejoicing on both sides of the ocean. Had England been content with this comfortable re- treat all would have been well. But new acts were soon passed quite as obnoxious as the old. The opponents of Glorious News. BOSTON, Friday n o'clock, 1 6th May 1766. THIS Inftant arrived here the Brig Harrifon, belonging to John Hancock, Efq; Captain Sbisbael Coffin, in 6 Weeks and 2 Days from London', with important News, as follows. From the London Gazrttb. Weftminjler, March »8*h, 1766. THIS Jay his M.ijcfly came to tKe FToufe of Peers. arvJ being in his royaj robes ieatcd on the tluonc with the. ufu?l folemmty, Sir Francis Moli. neux. Gendcmaji UQier of the Black Rod, was Inn with a Mcflugo from hrt Majelly to tlic Houle or Commons, commanding their atten- dance in the Houfeof Peers. The Commons being come thither accordingly, lus Majefly wa* plcafcd to give his roynl a(fcnr to An ACT «b REPEAL an Aft made in the bff S( (hon of Parliament, in* tirulcd. an Aft for granting and applying certain Stamp- D.mcs and other Ditties in (he Brkifh Colonics and Plantations in America, toward* further defraying the evinces of defending, protecting and fecunag the fame, and for amending fuc'n parts of the fcvcral Afts of Parliament reJanng to the trade and revenues of the hid Colonics and Plantanons. as direft the manner of determining and! rccovcimg the penalties and forfeitures therein mentioned. AJfo ren public bills, and fcrentcen pnvateoncs. When the KING went to the Houfc of Peers to give the Royal AfTcnt. there was fuch a vafl Concourleof People ruiz/aing, clapping Hands, &c. tlut it was fevcral Huuu befptc His Maftlty reached the Houfc. Immcdiatelyon His Majclfv's Signing the Royal Ailcnt to the Repeal of the Stamp-Aft. the Merchants trading to America. difpatched a VcfTel which had been in waiting, to pot into the firft Port on the Continent with the Account. , There were thcgrcuell Kqoicmgs poflible in thcCicy of London, by all Ranks of People, on the TOTAL Repeal of the S:amp-A/r.— the Ships in the River dif played all thcrr Ct^uuts, UJ-i..:u(tnns 2nd.B°nfire« m manv Parts. — In (hurt, the Rejoicings were as great as wis ever known on any Occafion. It is faid the Afts of Trade relating to America would be taken under Con- fidcration. and all Grievances* removed. The Friends 10 America arc very pow- erful, and difpofed ro aflifl us to rhe utraoft of their Abdity. Capt. Blake failed the fame Day with Capt. Coffin, and Capt. Shand a Fort- night before him, both bound to this Port. // is impoffblc to cxprefs the y>;y the Town it now in, en receiving the ab'j'je, great, glorious and important N EtVS—The Belli n -tl the Churches ■wen immediately fet a Ringing, and we beet the "Day for a general Rejoicing ■will be the beginning of next fVeek. ■ vyw.o'wj — 1 — 1 — — -, Printed for the Benefit of the PUBLIC, by Drapers, Ede\ & GiU> Green Sc Ruffell, and Fleets, The CufAouiers 10 the BoftonPapers may have the above gratis at thcr efpeftive Handbill announcing Repeal of the Stamp Act. 180 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the Stamp Act had declared that England could not im- pose a direct tax, but could regulate the external trade of the colonies. Charles Townshend, a brilliant, 2jJ ^^ hend flippant man, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, proposed to levy duties on goods imported into the colonies, as a fair example of external regulation. The act was passed laying an import duty on tea, paints, paper, glass, and red and white lead. The writs of assistance were declared legal. The rev- enue was to be used to pay the salaries of the judges and roy- al governors in America. From what we have seen of the strug- gles of the colonial assemblies in the eighteenth century, we may be sure that the object of the duty rendered it doubly dis- agreeable ; if money were thus expended, the governors and judges would be entirely re- moved from popular control. Added to this grievance was the fact that about this time Parliament suspended the legis- lative functions of the New York Assembly, because it had not made suitable provision for quartering the British troops. The colonists protested against the Townshend acts. There was a clear practical distinction between "regula- tion " and duties for revenue. Samuel Adams, protests. " ^* e man °^ tne town meeting," was now clerk of the Massachusetts Assembly. In this posi- tion he was active in keeping resentment at the proper pitch. He wrote a series of addresses that were issued by the Assembly. The most important document of all was a STU^Zt, CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 181 circular letter sent to the other colonies asking co-operation and consultation. John Dickinson, of Pennsylvania, wrote at this time the famous "Farmer's Letters," full of good sense and shrewd reasoning. " English history," he hinted, "affords examples of resistance." Non-importation and non-consumption agreements were entered into. Some revenue was obtained under the act, but the net returns were a mere trifle. Troops were sent to Boston in the autumn of 1768. From this time on Boston was the center of attention. Shortly after the passage of the Townshend acts Parlia- ment petitioned the king that persons in the colonies charged with treason should be carried to A dangerous England for trial. This seems to have been a mere threat, but if Parliament was not in earnest it was playing with a sacred right, the right of an Englishman to be tried by a jury of the vicinage or the neighborhood. To withhold this privilege was tyranny.* On hearing of this action by Parliament, the The Virginia Virginia House passed a series of resolves. They assured the king of the loyalty of his subjects, but asserted in unmistakable language the right of petition and the privilege of self-taxation, and declared that sending persons " beyond the sea to be tried is highly derogatory of the rights of British subjects." In 1770 the Townshend acts were modified. The duty was taken off all the articles save tea, but the act so altered was as obnoxious as before. The discussion in Parliament * It is nowhere more strikingly denounced than in Burke's Letter to the Sheriffs of Bristol. " A person is brought hither in the dungeon of a ship's hold ; thence he is vomitted into a dungeon on land, loaded with irons, unfurnished with money, unsupported by friends, three thousand miles from all means of calling upon or confronting evidence, where no one local circumstance that tends to detect perjury can pos- sibly be judged of : — such a person may be executed according to form, but he can never be tried according to justice." 182 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. disclosed the utter failure of many to appreciate the prin- ciples which the colonists cherished. It was not a paltry £40,000 a year that was at stake ; the princi- ftake? Ciple at P le of self-taxation and the rights of the popu- lar assemblies were in danger. This is what Webster meant when he said at a later day, " They went to war against a preamble. They fought seven years against a declaration." Meanwhile the British troops in Boston were a constant irritant. The House of Eepresentatives refused to legislate or pass bills of supply. They denounced a standing army as a menace to their liberties. They absolutely refused to pay for quartering the troops (1769). "We never will make provision for the purposes in your several messages above mentioned," they quietly and firmly asserted. The Boston Massacre. AMERICAN SI «EAa IN RfMSMJUtAHCe The HORRID MASSACREI Perforated in Kingtftrcet. Boston. New-Engfand. On the Evening of March the Fifth, 1770 When five of your fellow countrymen, Cray. Mamrick, Caldwrll.Attucks and Cars, Lay fallowing in their Core I Being ba/efy, and mod inbamantj MURDERED! And SIX others badly wounded ! By a Party of the XXIXtn Regiment. Under thfcommand of Capt. Tho. Prefton ICMIMItHl ThatTwo of the Murdireri Were convifted of MANSLAUGHTER By a Jury, of whom I fhall fay NOTHING. Branded in the hand I And difmijftd, The others were Acquitted, And their Captain .PENSIONED! Portion of a Handbill recall- ing: the Boston Massacre. The soldiers on the streets were a source of annoyance and were often insulted and provoked by crowds of men and boys, who delighted in teasing them. On the night of March 5, 1770, occurred the " Boston Massacre." A small guard of soldiers, irri- tated beyond endurance, fired into a crowd and in- stantly killed three persons and wounded several others, two mortally. Only the im- mediate arrest of the offend- ing soldiers prevented a serious riot. The town meeting next day, under the lead of Samuel Adams, demanded the immediate withdrawal of the troops from the town. To this demand the authorities finally acceded, and stationed the soldiers on an island in the harbor. The massacre CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 183 caused great excitement throughout the colonies. When the soldiers were tried on the charge of murder, they were defended hy John Adams and Josiah Quincy, two bright young lawyers, whose devotion to the popular cause had not stifled their sense of justice. Two soldiers were found guilty of manslaughter and slightly punished. For some time there was quiet ; but all danger was not removed. By this time Samuel Adams had made up his Local mind that the colonies ought to be independ- committees of ent. He worked without ceasing. In 1772 correspondence. he moved in the Boston town mee ting the ap- pointment of a committee " to state the rights of the Colo- nists and of this province in particular as men, as Christians and as subjects ; . . . also requesting of each Town a free communication of their sentiments on this subject." Thus was shown the worth of the town meeting as a weapon against oppression. The Assembly might, mayhap, be dis- solved, browbeaten, even outwitted ; the town meetings, everywhere alert, could not be crushed. In this year (1772) an English ship, the Gaspee, whose commander seems to have been very arbitrary and arrogant in his efforts to enforce the revenue laws, was attacked and burned by a party of Rhode Islanders.* We need not excuse the act ; it was a piece of violence that deserved condemnation ; but the English Government unduly magnified the offense and appointed a commission for investigation, which threatened to take the culprits to England for trial. The offenders could not be discovered, however, while the high-handed methods of the commission aggravated the discontent in the colonies. The Virginia Assembly appointed a Committee of Correspondence to keep in communication with the other colonies. Thus a * There were many acts of violence during these years ; and we need neither excuse nor commend them. But we must remember that a great revolution was in progress, and that in such times violent men and wicked characters find an opportunity for disorder. 13 184 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. means was provided for getting the colonies to act in con- cert. " In this manner," says Bancroft, " Virginia laid the foundation of our Union." An act of violence now occurred in Boston, and affairs hurried to a climax. As a clever device to coax or bribe the colonies into paying the tea tax, the duty The Boston na( j b een reduced so much that the price of tea was actually less than in England. This was said to be the " king's plan." " The king meant to try the question with America." Cargoes of tea were sent to America, and three ships entered Boston harbor (1773). A mass meeting was held. Too large for Faneuil Hall, it ad- journed to the Old South Meeting House, and there it was solemnly resolved that the tea must be sent back to Eng- land. But the authorities refused to give the sailing papers. On the evening of December 16th a body of men disguised as Indians boarded the ships, and, breaking open the chests, emptied their contents into the sea. Boston had thrown down the gauntlet. The English people were outraged by this action. Fiery speeches were made in Parliament. " The town of Boston," The five ^ one « 0U orht to be knocked about their ears and destroyed." Another described their acts as " the proceedings of a tumultous and riotous rabble, who ought ... to follow their mercantile employments and not trouble themselves with politics and government, which they do not understand." In this spirit five acts were passed, some of them at least in violation of the prin- ciples of the English Constitution. The first act was the Boston Port Bill, closing the port of Boston until the tea was paid for and the town became compliant and obedient ; Salem was made the seat of government. The second changed the charter of Massachusetts in many important particulars, chiefly by extending the power of the Crown ; town meetings, except for electing officers, could be held only by the governor's permission. The third act provided CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 185 that if any person were accused of " murther or other capital crime," and it were made to appear that " the fact was com- mitted in the execution of his duty as a magistrate, for the suppression of riots " or in support of the laws, the accused should be taken for trial to some place outside the colony. This seemed to the Americans to encourage officers in shooting down the people. A fourth bill provided for quartering troops in America. A fifth, called the Quebec Act, established the old French law in Canada, sanctioned the Catholic religion there, and extended the boundaries of the province westward and southward to the Mississippi and Ohio. The establishment of the despotic law of France, even in the old French colony, was thought by the Amer- icans to be a menace to free institutions in all the colonies. The recognition of Eoman Catholicism, although in fact it was a reasonable act of toleration, offended the New Eng- enders and seemed to threaten their chosen faith. More- over, Massachusetts and other colonies claimed, under their charters, title to portions of this western land thus made part of Canada. Such were the five "Intolerable Acts." These acts were passed early in 1774, and almost at once General Gage, commissioned as governor, came to Boston with additional troops to see that the laws were obeyed. Boston harbor was closed. Again all the colonies were alarmed. Their political theories were alike ; the political practices of all had made The First ^ or self-government. Now, spite of differences Continental in social and industrial condition, under the Congress. stress of a common danger and a common fear, a new people was born. September 5, 1774, a Congress met at Philadelphia. Delegates were present from all the col- onies save Georgia,* and the people of Georgia were known * It must not be supposed from what is here said that the people of Georgia were all in favor of opposition to Great Britain. Quite the contrary. There were many " Tories " there who continued to favor the 186 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. to be in sympathy with the purposes of the Congress. It issued a " Declaration of Rights." This declared that the people of the colonies were " entitled to life, liberty, and property," and that they had " never ceded to any sovereign power whatever a right to dispose of either without their consent." It further asserted that the colonists were en- titled to the rights of Englishmen, and that tfon S deClara " the " f oundation of English liberty, and of all free government, is a right in the people to participate in their legislative council ; and as the English colonists are not represented, and from their local and other circumstances can not be properly represented in the British Parliament, they are entitled to a free and exclusive power of legislation in their several provincial legislatures." They consented, out of regard to mutual interest, " to the operation of such acts of the British Parliament as are bona fide restrained to the regulation of our external commerce." This was a reasonable compromise. The colonies had now come to the point where they utterly denied the authority of the British Parliament over them ; they had their own parliaments; but for mutual interest they promised to recognize laws passed by the British Parliament that were really external in their operation, and were acts of real regulation and not of taxation. The Congress also framed Articles of Association, where- in the delegates for themselves " and the inhabitants of the several colonies " agreed and associated " under the sacred ties of Virtue, Honor, and Love of our Country," not to import into America any goods from Great Britain, products from the British West Indies, tea or wines. The importation of slaves was to cease Decem- ber 1st. Addresses to the king, to the people of the colonies, to the people of Quebec, and to the people of mother country. The same is true of the other colonies. In America, as to some extent in England, this was a party question. CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 187 Great Britain were adopted. But more important and fateful than all these addresses was the following resolu- tion : " That this Congress approve the oppo- e a esses. g ^ on f the inhabitants of the Massachusetts Bay to the execution of the late Acts of Parliament ; and if the same shall be attempted to be carried into execution by force, in such case' all America ought to Congress support them in their opposition." This could supports Boston, rr . . mean but one thing — war with the mother country if she persisted. Trivial offenses on the part of government can not justify revolution. Only oppression or serious danger can w , justify war. It can not be said that the people Revolution of the colonies had actually suffered much, justifiable? j^. might even seem that the mother country was not at all tyrannical in taxing the colonies to pay for defending them. How, then, can the war that followed be justified? The Kevolution was justifiable because the colonists stood for certain fundamental principles that were woven into the very fabric of their lives. They were determined that no one should take money from them without their consent, and that their own local governments should be indeed their own and do their will. They carried to a legitimate conclusion the true political principles for which the English people had fought in the great rebellion of the seventeenth century. They had a keener apprecia- tion of liberty than any other people in the world. In England a designing monarch was intent upon making himself king in fact as well as in name, and the people seemed lethargic and forgetful of the fundamental princi- ples of English liberty. The colonists, on the other hand, cherishing the rights of Englishmen, demanded the sub- stance and not merely the forms of self-government. Had these self-reliant people on this side of the ocean been pliant and obedient to laws they considered wrong and tyrannical, it would have been an evil day for popular gov- 188 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ernment. It is sometimes said that the American Revolu- tion was conservative or preservative. Such it surely was ; but it did more than save the principles of English liberty : it built them up and gave them a logical expression in the institutions of a free people made by themselves and changeable at their own discretion, and in the growth of free government resting on the people not only in America but in England. References. Short accounts : Charming, United States of America, Chapter II ; Hart, The Formation of the Union, Chapter III; Hinsdale, The American Government, pp. 52-63. Longer accounts : Fiske, The American Revolution, Volume I, pp. 1-120 ; Sloane, The French War and the Revolution, Chapters X to XIV; Hosmer, Samuel Adams, pp. 33-313; Tyler, Patrick Henry, pp. 32-135; Morse, Ben- jamin Franklin, pp. 99-202; Hosmer, The Life of Thomas Hutch- inson ; Lecky, The American Revolution, 17G3-1783. The Boston Massacre. From an etching by Paul Revere. CHAPTER IX. The Revolution— 1775-1783. During the winter and early spring of 1775, although there was no open violence, the feeling was intense. There B . . . was a sympathetic communication from colony the beginning to colony. Each felt the danger of the other, of 1775. "We must fight!" exclaimed Henry in Vir- ginia; "an appeal to the God of hosts is all that is left us." Upon the anniversary of the " Massacre " Joseph Warren delivered a stirring address in the Old South Church in Boston. But there was still no outburst of uncontrol- lable excitement. There seemed to be a determination that the first blow must be struck by the British ; for the war was to be conservative or preservative rather than destruc- tive. Boston was almost in a state of siege ; its business was thrown into much disorder ; there were cases of suffer- ing among the poor and the unemployed. The sullen per- sistence with which the people neither fought nor relented suggested that when war was once begun only success would end it. The New Englanders, under the lead of Massachusetts, were taking steps to bring about united armed resistance, T . , . when the war was actually precipitated bv the Lexington and «r * * J Concord, action of the English commander. General April 19, 1775. G a ge sent a detachment to destroy stores which the Americans had gathered at Concord, a little village some twenty miles from Boston. The movement was dis- covered, the country was aroused, and when the advanced division of the British force reached Lexington in the pale 189 190 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. gray of the early morning they found a squad of sturdy yeomen drawn up defiantly on the village green. Called upon to disperse, they refused ; and the regulars fired into tffj?S A&mar^K ~4< 0~i*4 tAj*- From an etching by Doolittle, copied from a drawing made by Earle after the battle. the little company, killing seven and wounding several others. The English then proceeded to Concord and de- stroyed the stores. Meanwhile the provincials were pour- ing in from the surrounding country, and the British force began to retire. The retreat became little better than a headlong flight. Franklin, in his humorous fashion, wrote to a friend that the British " troops made a most vigorous retreat, twenty miles in three hours — scarce to be paralleled in history — and the feeble Americans, who pelted them all the way, could scarce keep up with them." The news of this engagement spread like wildfire. Men grasped what- ever weapons they had and hastened toward Boston. An army was soon gathered in the vicinity of the city, and the THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 191 people of the colonies realized that, after ten years of excite- ment and vexation, war was at last begun. Early in May Ticonderoga was taken by the Americans. Crown Point fell a day or two later. The capture of these fortresses was important, because the British S^FaST* were considering the advisability of taking the line of the Hudson and cutting off from the other colonies the New Englanders, who were thought to be especially disaffected and rebellious. The second Continental Congress met May 10. It be- came the central government of the nation, and continued to be so for six years. Washington was se- Oontinental lected commander in chief of the " Continen- Congress. £ a j Army." Preparations were made for the support of the troops. Washington was then in the very prime of life — forty-three years of age, tall, stalwart, and strong. His experience in the French and Indian War-, his undoubted military talents, the unqualified respect which all felt who knew him, coupled with the fact as mgton. ffogft ^ e choice of a Southern general was the imperative demand of common sense, made his selection the only possible one. It was a fateful moment when the question was under consideration. From that time the Eevolution rested on Washington's shoulders. Had the task fallen to any other man the war would probably have been a failure ; for he was not simply a great man, he was a great general, possessed of wonderful judgment and self- control, and yet capable of bold, quick, decisive action. The campaigns of the Eevolution, which can be given here only in outline, prove that in a century which boasted of some of the greatest commanders in history, Washington won deserved renown as one of the ablest of them all. Meantime the Continental Army with dogged care had been drawing the lines around Boston. Before Washing- ton could take command another battle had been fought. Gage had decided to take an advanced position. To antici- 192 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. pate him, and to secure, if possible, a point commanding the harbor, on the evening of the 16th of June a force of twelve hundred men under the command of Colonel BunkerHm, p resco tt pushed forward from the American June 17, 1775. r . . lines and took up a position on Bunker Hill,* an eminence on the Charlestown promontory. By morn- ing, when they were discovered by the enemy, an embank- ment had been thrown up, and the continuous bombard- ment from the English men-of-war was of no avail in driving the Americans from their position. General Gage determined to assault the works. The world knows the result. Beaten back in two desperate as- saults, the British finally captured the re- doubt when the pro- vincials had run out of ammunition. It was a victory dearly bought, and though the Americans were for the moment over- come by mortification, their brave resistance to disciplined troops was of great moral effect. Congress had appointed a number of generals *nd other officers at the same time that Washington was made com- mander in chief. In addition to these warlike preparations, they sent one last petition to the king asking for a redress of grievances, and they also issued a declaration of the causes of taking up arms. The petition, of course, had no effect upon obdurate George III, who, on the contrary, issued a proclamation against the American traitors, and * Breed's Hill, where the battle was fought, was in reality an exten- sion of Bunker Hill, and connected with it by a ridge. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 193 proceeded to hire foreign troops to put down the rebellion. Some twenty thousand men were employed as mercenaries against the people in America, who were risking their lives for self-government and the rights of Englishmen. Washington took command of the Continental Army in July. His task was a difficult one. The army was undis- Boston ciplined, unorganized. The men had come evacuated, hurriedly together on the impulse of the mo- arc ,1776^ men t 5 and lacked nearly everything needful for the long task that awaited them. Slowly, as the year went by, Washington made out of the raw militia an army. The lines were drawn more closely around Boston, and at the opening of the following spring (1776) entrenchments were thrown up on Dorchester Heights overlooking the city. Bunker Hill had taught its lesson, and General Howe, who was now in command of the British forces, evacuated the city (March 17, 177G). While the main body of the army was engaged about Boston a daring attempt had been made upon Canada. 194 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Eichard Montgomery, with a force of about two thousand men, made his way north by the Lake Champlain route and Attempt to ^°°k possession of Montreal. Meanwhile Col- take Quebec, onel Benedict Arnold was endeavoring to push directly north through the woods of Maine, hoping to join Montgomery in an attack upon Quebec. The two forces, small enough at the best, were united early in December, and on the last day of the month made a daring night attack upon the walled city. Montgomery was killed, Arnold was sorely wounded, and, in spite of the fiercest courage, the assault was unsuccessful. The Amer- icans withdrew. Canada remained in the possession of England. The early part of 1776 was full of encouragement. The Virginians, fully aroused to hostility by the conduct of Situation in their royal governor, were quite ready for de- early part of cisive action. In North Carolina the Scottish royalists were badly beaten,* and the other colonies rapidly swung into line in favor of complete sepa- ration from the mother country. The sentiment of inde- pendence had developed with a slowness that seems remark- able when one considers that already war had been in progress a year or more. It only shows again that the Revolution was a cautious, well-considered, conservative matter, and not the result of hot-headed rebellion. On June 7th Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, offered in Congress the resolution " That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent £o>p^W States." The debates were vigorous. It was in connection with this debate and the repeated appeals for unanimity that Franklin perpetrated his fa- mous witticism, " Yes, we must indeed all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately." No doubt the thought thus humorously expressed had its influence for * Moore's Creek, February, 1776. 196 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. harmony. The middle colonies, as yet unmolested and not feeling full sympathy with their Northern brethren, were inclined to hold back. But the people on the whole were found to be ready for the step. July 2, 1776, the resolution was adopted, and two days later the Declaration of Inde- pendence, drawn by Thomas Jefferson,* was adopted, stat- ing the reasons and the justification of the act. This declaration deserves careful study. The language is so well chosen and so dignified, its phrases are so har- monious, that it must always stand as a great piece of liter- ature. It embodies, too, a distinct statement of grievances ; and, moreover, lays down the fundamental principle of democratic government — that all men are created equal, and that each man has the inalienable right to pursue hap- piness. The people thus announced that they constituted an in- dependent nation ; and at the same time the colonies were transformed into States, and steps were taken toward an organization suitable to the new situation. We should not lose sight of this phase of the Revolution — the transforma- tion of colonies into States, the peaceable organization of commonwealths, the drafting of constitutions, the organiza- tion of local governments. But the changes were not marked ; there was little or no destruction of the institutions that were the results of colonial growth. Two of the States, Ehode Island and Connecticut, went on under their old charters. The new constitutions were founded on the peo- ple, and recognized the ultimate political authority of the people. This is a great fact in human history: govern- ments were no longer to be the source of power, but the agents and the servants of the real governors, the people. * See Morse's Jefferson, pp. 32-40. On July 5 some copies were printed and issued. Not till August 2 was the engrossed copy signed by the delegates. See Winsor, Narrative and Critical History, vol. vi, p. 208. One member did not sign till November, 1770, and another not till 1781. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 197 Such is the American idea; that is the principle which American colonial history had brought forth. While the Congress was still hesitating over the desira- bility of independence, a sharp battle was fought in the South. Sir Henry Clinton had sailed from Fort Moultrie, Boston for the Southern colonies in the middle June, 1776. f the winter. He cruised about waiting for re-enforcements, and not till June did he feel justified in attacking Charleston. The Americans, under the direction of Colonel Moultrie, had thrown together a rude fort of palmetto logs and sand on Sullivan's Island, in the harbor. Rough and weak as these defenses seemed, they proved suf- ficient. The brisk bombardment from the British had no effect ; but the guns of the fort, aimed with precision and care, did such execution among the vessels that Clinton thought better of his purpose, and sailed away to the north to co-operate with General Howe, who was preparing to attack New York. The Carolinas were for some time left free from molestation. From both a military and a political point of view the city of New York and the line of the Hudson were of great importance. New York had a large number British prepare * _ j, to attack New of British sympathizers, and there was some Yorkl chance that through them the colony might be won for the king. The Hudson valley, if securely held, would separate the ever-active New Englanders from their less vehement brethren of the Middle States. Washington anticipated the desire of Howe to get possession of the city and the mouth of the Hudson. He moved his troops from Boston to New York in April. His army was small and very poorly equipped, while New York was a place very difficult to defend. He made the best of the situation, holding the city, and stationing a strong detachment on Brooklyn Heights, an eminence which must be held if the city were to be retained. An English fleet with troops on board arrived at Staten 198 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. NEW YORK AND VICINITY 1776 Island in July. The army was commanded by General William Howe. His brother Richard, Lord Howe, was in command of the fleet. The latter was charged Efforts at yrith. the task of making offers of conciliation and pardon. But he could accomplish noth- ing. Washington said there could be no pardon where there was no guilt; and when the proposals were made known to Congress, Governor Trumbull, of Connecticut, re- marked : " No doubt we all need pardon from Heaven ; but the American who needs the pardon of his Britannic Majesty is yet to be found." It was clearly too late to treat with the Americans as rebel- lious British subjects. As we have seen, Washington had post- ed a portion of his troops on Brooklyn Heights, hoping to hold the position. This was a difficult undertaking. The English outnum- bered the Americans, and, moreover, could strike where B ttl fL ^ e v chose, while Washington must divide his Island, August, forces to meet the enemy at various places. 1776. Howe decided to attack the troops on Long Island, and was successful in the battle. Many Ameri- cans were taken prisoners, and the remainder of the army was in a critical situation. They were hemmed in and in danger of being captured to a man. Washington now iTLANTIC OCEAN THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 199 executed one of the most brilliant maneuvers of the war. During the night the whole force was ferried silently and stealthily across the East River to New York, leaving the British in possession of empty earthworks and a barren victory. Driven from New York city, Washington skillfully re- treated with his discouraged army. Late in October the battle of White Plains was fought. The Eng- Retreat across New Jersey, lish were on the whole successful, for the autumn, 1776. Americans were obliged to retreat. Howe did not follow up his advantage, however, but turned aside to attack Fort Washington, the plans of which had been put into his hands by an American officer. The fort was taken, and Fort Lee, on the west side of the Hudson, was at once evacuated. These two defenses had been built with the hope that they could keep the English fleet from sailing up the river. Washington now withdrew into New Jersey, and the dreary, disheartening retreat began. The American army was daily dwindling, for the soldiers lost heart when they were not victorious. In the early winter the little army of three thousand men crossed the Delaware into Pennsylvania. Had Howe then made a rapid march to Philadelphia it would surely have been taken, and the moral effect would have been so great that all hopes of re- sistance might perhaps have been abandoned ; the Revolu- tion might have been a failure. But Howe, pluming him- self upon his success, left his troops under the command of General Cornwallis, so as to guard Washington completely, as he thought, and went back to New York to hear praises of his victories and enjoy the gayeties of the holiday season. But Washington was not yet beaten, nor utterly dis- couraged. A few re-enforcements came to him. He made up his mind to strike. Crossing the Delaware Christmas night, 1776, he surprised a company of Hessians at Tren- ton, and took a thousand prisoners and a thousand stands 14 200 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. of arms. He retreated into Pennsylvania, and then once more crossed back into New Jersey, where by a series of brilliant movements he completely outgener- Pri^ton^e- aled Cornwallis, who was perhaps the most cember, 1776, competent commander on the English side dur- January, 1777. ing ^ w> ^ ^ ^^ Qf p rinceton Wash . ington defeated the enemy, and then, though not daring with his small force to push ahead and capture their stores, he practically held New Jersey by taking the heights at Morristown. Thus in midwinter was fought an important campaign. The losses of the summer were in part re- trieved. The American general showed a combination of caution with boldness and skill in strategy that marked him a general of the first rank. Frederick the Great, him- self a master in the art of war, is said to have declared that this was the most brilliant campaign of the century. The experiences of this year of active warfare taught their evident lessons. It was plain that the struggle was not to be finished in a moment, that it was likely to be long and desperate, and that something must be Renewed done f- provide a suitable army, one with some prepan degree of permanence, and not made up of militia that would melt away in the day of trial and dis- couragement. Washington was clothed with almost dicta- torial authority, but of course used his power with con- sideration.* To get together a considerable body of men well equipped and bound to serve for the war proved an enormous task. Throughout the winter Washington labored faithfully ; but by the opening of spring his force * In speaking of Washington's success at Trenton and Princeton, one ought not to forget Robert Morris, whose generosity and exertions to raise money made these victories possible. His executive ability was of great service to his country. He raised money on his own credit to aid Washington. " During December and January he may be said to have carried on all the work of the continent." (Sumner's Robert Morris, p. 17.) THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 201 W>Sfc/ was still small, and only by the most careful strategy and waiting could he hope to accomplish anything against his powerful opponent. The enemy were at New York and in eastern New Jersey. The The military American line situation. ., ran from the Hudson southwestward to Morristown, and on to Princeton. Thus the open- ing of the campaign of 1777 saw the Americans still steadfast and hopeful, for, spite of the victories of the summer before, Howe was hardly further ahead than he was just after the battle of Long Island. The English Government now prepared to take a firm hold upon the country. They determined to get control of the Hudson Eiver, and thus cut off New Eng- Attack upon the i an a f rom fa e Middle States. General Bur- center, 1777. goyne was to march down from Canada, and Howe was to go north and meet him. Another force under St. Leger was to go up Lake Ontario to Oswego, take Fort Stanwix, and come down the Mohawk Valley. By some ac- cident Howe seems not to have been ordered by the home Government to proceed with his troops up the Hudson ; but he ought to have known enough to go without explicit orders. Burgoyne began his southward march in June. We can not trace his course in detail nor see all the difn- Burffoyne culties that beset him. At first he was suc- marches south cessf ul. Ticonderoga was taken, and the news from Canada, of hig victory filled England with glee and Burgoyne with undue vainglory. But soon the danger of marching into an enemy's country began to be made more THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE STATES -Q o * THE REVOLUTION-1775-1783. 203 clear to him. An American army was in front, and the militia were gathering behind him. He sent a detachment to Bennington, in what is now Vermont, to seize supplies ; but the militia, under the command of doughty John Stark, simply annihilated the whole force. Aroused by this suc- cess, the country rose to check the invader, and it was soon apparent to Burgoyne that he was in a tight place. His army was growing weaker. He was compelled to fight or starve. But he was defeated in the engagements which he risked. His supplies were cut off, and while the Amer- ican army grew stronger, his own grew constantly weaker. , He retreated to Saratoga, and there, surround- and surrenders -i • at Saratoga, ed, baffled, beset, he surrendered at discretion. October, 1777. Burgoyne's defeat was inevitable, inasmuch as Howe had not gone north to co-operate with him. Gates, the American commander, was devoid of genius, talent, or character. His conduct of the campaign was free from all merit, save that his very failure to act gave an oppor- tunity for the enemy to be slowly weakened and over- come. Meanwhile St. Leger had met with discomfiture. In a fierce battle at Oriskany, the bloodiest contest of the war, a detachment of Tories aided by Indians was defeateiTat S ° defeated by a band of Americans under the Oriskany, brave old General Herkimer. Fort Stanwix ngus ' ' could not be taken, and finally, upon the ad- vance of an army under Arnold, the British fled precipi- tately. Let us now turn southward and see what became of Howe. Washington expected to see him move northward ; „ , but he did not. He seemed to be infatuated no we s expedition to with the idea of taking Philadelphia. He pre- Philadeiphia. pared to march across New Jersey ; but Wash- ington, perceiving his purpose, blocked him and worried him by superior strategy. Then Howe determined to sail for the " rebel capital." In August he appeared in Chesa- 204 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. peake Bay, and began to advance upon Philadelphia.* A battle was fought at Brandywine Creek, and the Americans, B tti of sorely outnumbered, were beaten. Washington Brandywine, brought his troops off in clever fashion, and Sept., 1777. ^ e ^ a y a ft er the battle he had his army organized and ready to fight again. The British entered Philadelphia. Even now the heart of the American com- mander did not fail him. He determined to surprise the enemy at Germantown, and he mapped out a Germantown, pj an f p era tions which, if successful, would have overwhelmed them. An attack was made in the early morning and was almost a success ; but two advancing divisions lost their way in a dense fog, and one fired upon the other thinking it was the enemy. So the surprise was a failure. And yet it was not a failure. It disclosed to the think- ing men of America and to the onlookers in Europe the Effect of daring generalship of the man who thus in the campaign face of defeat ventured to plan a bold assault on Europe. ^[th i n t en t no t simply to annoy but to crush the army that had beaten him. European statesmen and monarchs, who were watching the "rebellion" with utmost care, saw that the colonists could fight with great courage in the midst of defeat, and that the capture of the capital by no means meant that the war was over. For some time Benjamin Franklin had been at Paris as a commissioner from the United States, and had been working in his quiet, shrewd way to bring j^ e J^ e ench France to recognize the independence of the United States and take part in the war. This France was not loath to do. She was still smarting under her defeat in the Seven Years' War, and was longing for revenge for the loss of Canada. After the defeat of Bur- goyne it was apparent that the Kevolution had good * He landed his troops at Elkton. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 205 chances of success. France then made a treaty of alliance with the United States (February, 1778).* In a short time Spain and Holland too were drawn, for their own reasons, into the war against Great Britain. Even before the French treaty a number of Frenchmen came over to help in what they considered a struggle for liberty. Chief among them was Marquis de Lafayette. Other foreigners came also, and one, Baron Steuben, a German, was of great service in organizing and drilling the American troops. This winter, that brought the happy news of foreign aid, was a winter of suffering for the American army. It passed the dreary months at Valley Forge in destitu- Jjjjy^ 6 ' tion. Washington did not leave his men and go home to live in luxury, but stayed to endure privation with them. Only he who reads his letters written during these trying times can appreciate his troubles and anxieties. The worst of it all was, that the nation was not poverty stricken. The war had brought some hardships to the people, but the country had plenty of clothing and shoes and beef and flour. Why did the army not have them ? In the first place, because the General Government was inefficient. Congress had no power to &££££. ley y taxes - Tt could ask for mone y' but not demand it. It was not well organized to act as a government, being in essence a convention of dele- gates. There was no proper executive authority and no judiciary, and a large body of men gathered together from * The end of the alliance was asserted to be to maintain the liberty, sovereignty, and independence of the United States, " as well in matters of government as of commerce." The United States guaranteed to France its " present possessions " in America, and all that it might ac- quire by the war ; France, in its turn, guaranteed the liberty and inde- pendence of the United States, and all their possessions, "and the addition or conquests that their confederation may obtain during the war." At the same time a treaty of amity and commerce was agreed upon. 206 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. different parts of the country was, of course, singularly in- capable of conducting a war with wisdom and economy. The executive work was first done by committees, and afterward these committees became executive boards. Be- fore the end of the war experience proved the desirability of having a single man in charge of each distinct depart- ment of executive work. But it was 1781 before the step was taken; then a Superintendent of Finance was ap- pointed, and a Secretary for Foreign Affairs. In addition to the fact that the Government was not properly organized, there were other reasons for folly and inefficiency. Some of the members of Congress seem to have loved the intrigues of politics more than the work of providing for the army and holding up the hands of its great leader. Moreover, there were jealousies and rivalries between the different States. The course of colonial his- tory had taught the people to cherish their local govern- ments and to repel any sort of dictation from without. Now the people were a nation, and all the States had a common interest ; but real national patriotism and fervid devotion to a central government could come only as the growth of years. In November, 1777, Congress proposed to the States for adoption Articles of Confederation. These were not adopted by all the States for some time, and did not go into effect until 1781. In the summer (1778) English commissioners arrived in Philadelphia offering terms of conciliation. All proposals Beginning of were rejected. Sir Henry Clinton succeeded campaign of Howe, and Philadelphia was evacuated. The 1778, English army began its march across New Jersey to New York. Washington followed. He attacked the enemy at Monmouth, and, had it not been for the dastardly conduct of General Charles Lee, who disobeyed orders and beat a shameful retreat, a complete victory for the Americans would probably have resulted. As it was, the British, much discomfited, withdrew in the night. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 207 The rest of this campaign of 1778 contains no startling successes or reverses. A French fleet appeared, but ac- complished nothing. In Pennsylvania there other events occurred the dreadful massacre of Wyoming. The Indians, who had been won to the British side of the controversy, attacked the exposed settlements of the Wyoming Valley in northern Pennsylvania and Cherry Valley in New York. Houses were pillaged and burned; men, women, and children were ruthlessly slain. An American army under General Sullivan was sent to punish the savages, and it accomplished the welcome task with thoroughness. Many of the red men were killed in battle, villages were razed to the ground, and the wide- spreading cornfields of the Iroquois were devastated. In the meantime events of more than trivial importance were happening in the far West. George Rogers Clark, a War in the voun g Virginian, marched into the country West, north of the Ohio and took possession of it 1778-79. (1778). The British commander in the West was captured (February, 1779), and Detroit was the only important position which did not pass into our hands. In the summer of this year (1779) Washington was ex- ceedingly desirous of retaking Stony Point, on the Hudson, Captnreof a ver y im P or tant position, which the British Stony Point, had forced the Americans to evacuate early in Jnly 16, 1779. June> The attack was j n t rus ted to General Wayne, and under his direction the Americans surprised the garrison and captured the defenses, taking over five hundred prisoners. Cheering news came from an unexpected quarter. John Paul Jones, a hardy Scotcli sailor, who had lived for some years in Virginia, had been harrying the coast Jones. a of England for some time. In the summer of 1779 he had charge of a small fleet which, with the utmost audacity, hung off the eastern coast of England and Scotland, threatening destruction to exposed places. 208 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. In the autumn occurred the great duel between the English frigate Serapis and Jones's flagship the Bon Homme Rich- ard. It was one of the bloodiest naval fights Septemher, in history. The American vessel was victo- rious. Jones was the hero of Europe. " His exploit was told and told again in the gazettes and at the drinking tables on the street corners." The winter of 1779-'80 was a gloomy one in America. The Northern army wintered at Morristown, where the suffering was very great. Washington wrote MoirisSwn, (January 8, 1780) : " The present situation of i779-'80. ^he armv , with respect to provisions, is the most distressing of any we have experienced since the beginning of the war. For a fortnight past the troops, both officers and men, have been perishing for want. They have been alternately without bread or meat the whole time ; . . . fre- quently destitute of both." * In the latter part of the year (1778) the British turned their attention to the Southern States. Savannah was taken. Through the summer of 1779 little happened there to give the patriots heart. In the spring Lincoln was obliged to surrender Charleston to Clinton. Cornwallis took command ^ . of the British forces in the South and entered War in the South, on a vigorous campaign. Washington remained i779-'80. j n tj ie North to watch the central post of dan- ger — New York and the Hudson. Gates, who was sent to confront Cornwallis, began a career of incompetence, if not stupidity. The patriots of the Carolinas had Camden, arisen under such able leaders as Marion and August, 1780. Sumter, and were fighting valiantly against the invader. On the 16th of August Gates was disastrously defeated in the battle of Camden. He did not wait to * See Ford's Writings of George Washington, vol. iii, pp. 155-161, etc. Those who have access to Washington's writings will find them full of interest. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 209 make an orderly retreat, but, leaving his army behind him, fled two hundred miles in three and a half days. Thus was put to the test the valor and skill of the man who had been plotting to succeed Washington, and whose talent ■#':-*fC AXRiOU !>r;ui_v v '..-;'•;.■ \tf' Uranireburir ^ + Xi^,. 14 ^neaufort _jj Port Jioyal . THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH King's Mountain, October, 1780, was highly valued by many of the malcontents in Congress and the country. Some light now comes in the midst of this gloom and despondency. In October, a body of English and Tories was beaten by a force of mountaineers and backwoodsmen in the battle of King's Mountain. This was one of the famous victories of the war. The British force was utterly defeated by an undisciplined force of " embattled farmers " who showed the energy, zeal, and bravery of the frontier.* While these events were happening at the South the Americans narrowly escaped a severe disaster at the North. * Read Roosevelt, The Winning of the West, vol. ii, pp. 241-295. A very interesting book. 210 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Benedict Arnold, one of the best fighters on the American side, disgusted and disheartened at his treatment by the American Congress, in a fit of envy and spite, f"^ 1 '.... entered into a plot to surrender West Point treason, 1780. x to the enemy. But the British messenger, Major Andre, returning from an interview with Arnold, was captured and the plot discovered. Andre was hanged as a spy. Arnold escaped to the enemy's lines, to reap his rewards of office and money from the English Government. At the beginning of 1781 no one would have dared to presage great victory for the American cause, or to expect the speedy close of the war. The English still Beginning of held New Yo rk ; in the South, where Cornwal- 1/O.Li . lis was m command, there seemed little hope of anything like immediate success for the patriot army. Washington, with praiseworthy self-control, remained in the North to guard against attack, and Greene took command of the troops in the South. Greene soon showed the quali- ties of a first-rate general, and proved that among the Amer- ican officers he was second to Washington alone. Corn- wallis was brilliant and daring, but was at first overconfi- dent and then desperate. He pressed vigorously northward. A detachment was overwhelmed by the Amer- JaX n y,' 1781. icans at the battle of the c °wpens. The Brit- ish still pushed on to the North. Greene fell steadily back, hoping to lead Cornwallis into a place whence he could not escape. In March was fought the battle of Guilford Court Gmlfo r cl Court House. The English were on House, March, the whole victorious, but too much weakened !78l. to go farther. Cornwallis retreated to Wil- mington, and seemed for the time to have abandoned his northward movement. Greene at first pursued the enemy; then, turning abruptly, marched south into South Carolina. By the autumn the British forces in that State were shut up in Charleston, and the rest of the State was in the hands of the Americans. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 211 situation 111 1781. Cornwallis was puzzled by Greene's action. He decided, however, not to pursue him, but to go on to the North. He The general marched into Virginia. There he was baffled by Lafayette. " The boy can not escape me," he said ; but the young Frenchman, then only twenty-three years of age, was wary and cautious, and Corn- wallis could not trap him. The situation, then, in the summer of 1781 was this : Washington was at the North, planning an at- tack upon New York city, which had been held since August of 1776 by the British; but he was fur- tively watching Virginia. Greene was in South Car- olina. Lafayette was lead- ing Cornwallis a chase through Virginia. Now, tired of his unsuccessful pursuit and strategy, Corn- wallis returned to the coast and occupied a strong po- sition at Yorktown. Washington saw his chance. He found that he could have the assistance of a French fleet that was expected in the Chesapeake. He abandoned his plan of "Rri ti all surrender at operations against New York and marched Yorktown, quickly to the South. Almost before Corn- ' ' wallis could realize his danger he found him- self shut up in Yorktown. Early in October the bombard- ment of the works began, and on the 19th the besieged army surrendered, and filed out of its trenches as the band played an old English tune, " The world turned upside down." Upside down the world surely seemed. England had 212 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. come out of the French and Indian War a great colonial power, glorying in her achievements, astonished at her own success. The surrender at Yorktown meant the The end of the i oss f ner mos t promising and fruitful colo- nies. Everywhere she was beset and humbled. The obstinacy of George III and his ministers had found its reward. They had failed to understand the rudiments of English liberty. With the failure of the American war fell kingly presumption. Constitutional government was saved at home, saved by an insurrection in the colonies, saved by the loss of America. The King had set out at the beginning of his reign with a determination to be King indeed, and not the mere agent of Parliament. The Ameri- can war was in large part the result of his obstinacy and perseverance ; he had succeeded in keeping in office men that were out of sympathy with the nation, and were at times not in harmony with Parliament. In attacking the American principle, he had been attacking the fundamental principle of English liberty ; and had he been successful on this side of the water, his success might have well proved fatal to the liberties of England itself.* Upon the surren- der of Cornwallis, Lord North, the Prime Minister, was compelled to resign, and a Whig ministry succeeded to power. From that day parliamentary government was safe in England, f The war was now unpopular in England, and a treaty of peace was only a matter of time. John Jay, Benjamin * This is what Horace Walpole meant when he exclaimed, " If England prevails, English and American liberty is at an end." f " The American Revolution was a step in that grand march of civilized man toward larger freedom and better political institutions which began in Europe in the fifteenth century, and has continued to the present day. This movement was felt in England before the American plantations were made. . . . The American Revolution was the proper continuation of the English Revolution of 1642 and 1688." (Hinsdale, The American Government, p. 54.) THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 213 Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Henry Lau- rens were appointed commissioners to agree upon terms of peace. Jefferson did not leave America, and v7Rq ty ° fpeaCe ' Laurens took no important part. An agree- ment was reached only after considerable diffi- culty and discussion. All differences were finally adjusted, and a treaty was signed, at Paris, September 3, 1783. The northern boundary ran from the St. Croix River to the highlands that divide the rivers that empty into the St. Lawrence from those that empty into the Atlantic, thence by the Connecticut Eiver, the forty-fifth parallel, the main channel of the St. Lawrence, and the middle of the Lakes to the Lake of the Woods. The boundary line then ran down the Mississippi to the thirty-first parallel, thence east- ward to the Appalachicola, and 1 on to the Atlantic by the line that now forms the northern limit of Florida. These boundaries seem definite and the descriptions sufficiently accurate ; but as a matter of fact these were drawn at a time when men were very ignorant ^definite! 8 °* * ne g eo & ra P n y °f the North an d West. Many disputes arose in after years, and nearly sixty years elapsed before our northern and northeastern boundary was finally established. At this same time England ceded the Floridas to Spain, meaning to convey the territory south of the boundary agreed upon with the United States * — at leant such was our interpretation of the cession. Thus the Revolution ended with the American people in possession of a vast domain stretching from the ocean to the Mississippi, a territory several times as large as France, or much greater than that of any European power save Russia. Already there were visions of manifest destiny. * Inasmuch as England had some years before established a prov- ince of West Florida, the northern limit of which was 32° 30', Spain maintained for some years that her possessions between the Appalachi- cola and the Mississippi extended up to this old boundary of West Flor- ida. This matter was not arranged until 1795. See map, p. 219. •?^^v S7VS; fj7\ f<*9- <2^3/&-/7ro, r, z,<*-d *gcnZ-™ cxZz^dL "Z s [*r V77 I 3 m*r 7/s ^y^zfe /J^op^ *64$z> ate j^rfl^Z /^- ^ 7ZL*3~ &7U tyi*3i>Z£3 a. r^Jo^v- - *3/$,S <£/&// ># A Page of Washington's Accounts. THE REVOLUTION— 1775-1783. 215 The nation could not long remain a mere group of States scattered along the Atlantic coast. A great political and industrial future lay before it ; but it must first find a proper method of national organization, must establish a suitable national government, must recog- nize in very fact the existence of a national life. Before these great things could be accomplished there were, as we shall see, years of confusion and times that tried men's souls. " The newborn republic narrowly missed dying in its cradle." References. Hart, The Formation of the Union, Chapter IV; Sloane, The French War and the Revolution, pp. 179-388; Lodge, Short His- tory, pp. 501-517 ; Channing, The United States of America, pp. 72-107 ; Higginson, Larger History, pp. 241-293 ; Lodge, George Washington ; Ludlow, The War of American Independence ; Fiske, The American Revolution; Lodge, The Story of the Revolution; Brooks, The Century Book of the American Revolution. Younger students will be especially interested in Fiske, War of Independence ; Fiske, Washington and his Country, which is a simplified edition of Irving's Life of Washington ; also Coffin, The Boys of '76. Independence Hall, as it was duking the Eevolution. From contemporary drawing. 15 CHAPTER X. The Confederation and the Constitution— 1781-1789. During nearly the whole course of the war the Central Government was the Second Continental Congress. There was no written instrument denning the power of this body. It used such powers as it needed to use or was permitted to use by the people. During those years political institutions were forming. Men were learning valuable political lessons from experience. The powers that were exercised by the Continental Congress were in nearly every particular those that were confided to the central authority when the writ- ten Articles of Confederation were agreed upon. In 1777 Articles of Confederation were proposed by Con- gress to the States, but they were not ratified by all until 1781. By these Articles was formed what pur- Mtoritof P° rted t0 be a " firm lea S ue of friendship " be- tween the States. The Central Government, if government it may be called, was a Congress composed of delegates annually appointed by the States, and to this body was given considerable authority. It alone had the right and power of declaring war or making peace, of send- ing or receiving ambassadors, of appointing courts for the trial of piracies or felonies on the high seas, of regulating the alloy and value of coin, of fixing the standard of weights and measures, of " establishing and regulating post offices from one State to another." It also could build and equip a navy and raise and support an army, and make requisi- tion for troops upon the States. The Congress was author- 216 CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 217 ized to appoint a committee to sit in the recess of Congress, to be known as a " Committee of the States." In this Con- gress each State had one vote ; Delaware had quite as much voice as had Pennsylvania or Virginia. No step could be taken without the consent of a majority of the States, and for many important measures the consent of nine of them was necessary. All the States must agree to an amendment or alteration in the Articles'. This Congress stood forth as the representative of the American people, and it had many duties and responsibili- ties : but there was no effectual means given Their defectSi . of executing its laws or of raising the money which was so needful. No power was given it to collect taxes directly from individuals, or to levy duties on imports. The only way to get funds was to ask the States for them. Moreover, Congress could not execute its laws directly upon the citizens of the States, or compel obedience to treaties with foreign nations. It could recommend and advise, but it could, not execute ; it was soon, therefore, in a condition where it could promise but could not perform. Without power over persons, it had no efficiency as a government.* Each State was now jealous in the extreme of any au- thority beyond its own borders. This narrow, selfish, short- sighted policy was due in part to the demoral- Growth of State — influences of the war, in part to the fact selfishness. ° ' r that the war had been carried on against an external foe, and now in the eyes of many " King Cong " had taken the place of King George. For some time after the peace local prejudices grew rankly. As a consequence, the requisitions and recommendations of Congress had little influence. The demands for money met with niggardly re- sponses. Each State seemed anxious to exalt itself at the expense of the nation. * The Articles of Confederation asserted that each State retained its sovereignty. Strictly, a confederation is a union of sovereign States. 218 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Under such circumstances great difficulties beset the impotent Confederation. Foreign nations looked askance at the new combination of republics, and for- Disorderni e jg n p r i nces were i n no hurry to be gracious to the dangerous democracy which had arisen from rebellion against authority. Congress had trouble in raising money in Europe even at enormous rates of interest ; for who would trust a government without visible means of support ? The treaty of 1783 was no sooner ratified than broken, both by England and America ; for the States re- fused to obey the provisions of the treaty which provided that British creditors should find no lawful hindrance in the collection of their debts, and England, anxious to secure the fur trade and the Indian alliance, retained possession of the forts in the northern and western part of our terri- tory. " We are one to-day," said Washington, " and thirteen to-morrow." No foreign government could respect a na- tion so organized. Washington, indeed, had early predicted " the worst consequences from a half-starved, limping gov- ernment, always moving upon crutches and tottering at every step." But even more dangerous conditions appeared within the Union than without. The States were envious of one D'ffi nit' another. Each passed laws to increase its own among the commerce at the expense of its neighbors. The States. States, with " no convenient ports for foreign commerce, were subject to be taxed by their neighbors through whose ports their commerce was carried on. New Jersey, placed between Philadelphia and New York, was likened to a cask tapped at both ends ; and North Carolina, between Virginia and South Carolina, to a patient bleeding at both arms." * Difficulties arose between New York and * The quotation is from James Madison, in the paper placed as an introduction to his notes on the Philadelphia Convention. See Elliot's Debates, vol. v, p. 109. A very valuable paper. CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 219 New Jersey, between Connecticut and Pennsylvania, be- tween Connecticut and New York, and between other States as well. " In sundry instances . . . the navigation THE UNITED STATES & AT THE END OF THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. O SHOWING WESTERN LAND CLAIMS OF THE STATES 1783 laws treated the citizens of other States as aliens." There was actual danger of civil war among people who had just emerged from an eight years struggle against a for- eign foe. 220 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Within the respective States there was disorder and dis- tress. The paper-money craze wrought havoc in some. A new race of speculators arose to make the most of No domestic t ne situation. People who had been rich found themselves poor; their farms were mortgaged or their trade was stopped, while perchance they had paper money by the bagful stored away in the attic. Business was so depressed that there were want and suffering. Riots and mobs ensued. In Massachusetts a dangerous insurrec- tion broke out. Here, as everywhere, a good many men were out of work or could find no money to pay their debts, and, as is customarily the case in times of distress, the idle and the vicious saw an opportunity to right their fancied wrongs. Several hundred men came together under the leadership of one Daniel Shays, an old Continental captain, who seems to have been a weak and inefficient creature, un- fit to command or hold in check the rabble that followed his standard. Conflicts between the insurgents and the State troops ensued. The malcontents were especially bit- ter in their hatred of courts and lawyers, and they pre- vented the Supreme Court from holding its regular session at Springfield. By the energetic action of the State gov- ernment the uprising was finally quelled, but the people of the whole land feared and wondered. They began to long for a national government with power, a government that could restore harmony between jealous States, able to win respect abroad, establish justice, and insure domestic tran- quillity.* Before studying the steps that were taken to organize a new government and establish a permanent union, we must turn aside to notice the settlement of conflicting claims of the States to Western lands. Even before the independ- * " It is indeed difficult to overcharge any picture of the gloom and apprehension which then pervaded the public councils as well as the private meditations of the ablest men of the country." (Story, Com- mentaries on the Constitution, vol. i, § 271.) CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 221 ence of the United States had been acknowledged by Great Britain there had arisen much discussion over the owner- ship of the territory west of the mountains. Western land Six of the States — New Hampshire, Rhode \ claims. r ' Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland — could set up no claim to this territory. Their boundaries were defined. The other States claimed lands stretching west to the Mississippi Eiver. South of the Ohio there was no good ground for much dispute. Each State might take possession of the lands lying directly to the west ; but to the lands north of the Ohio there were conflicting claims. Massachusetts and Connecticut based their titles on their old charters. Each claimed a strip of land extending through the Northwest. The land claimed by Massachusetts formed a large portion of what is now Wisconsin and the lower peninsula of Michigan. The Connecticut strip was chiefly in what is now northern Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. New York set up a title to a vast territory in the West on the ground that she had received under her protection the Iroquois Indians and was lord of their domains. As scalping parties of these fierce warriors had wandered as far as the Mississippi and extorted tribute or homage, New York thus asserted ownership to nearly the whole of the Northwest. The claims of Virginia were very strong. She based her title, first, on her early charter,^ which described her dominion as running up into the land "west and northwest"; second, on the fact that George Rogers Clark had won and held this territory, and that it was the pluck and enterprise of Virginia that had secured it. Some of the States, hemmed in by definite boundaries, had hesitated to agree to the Articles of Confederation be- cause they feared the overweening influence of Western claims t j ie ^ eYS wno thus laid claim to a great do- given np. f 3 minion in the West. Maryland was long per- sistent in her refusal to sign under such circumstances, and in fact did not do so until New York had yielded, and there / 222 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. was good reason to believe that all the other States would likewise relinquish their claims. Within a few years after the establishment of the Articles all the land northwest of the Ohio was ceded to the United States by the claimant States.* Connecticut reserved for her own use a strip of land one hundred and twenty miles long south of Lake Erie. This was later sold by the State, but is still often called the " Western Eeserve." Part of the territory south of the Ohio was ceded to the United States. At a later day Kentucky was organized as a State, without previous cession by Virginia. \ These cessions of the West were of the utmost impor- tance. Thus it happened that these various commonwealths forming the Confederation had a common in- Restdtsof terest in common property, and this interest cessions. x formed a strong bond of union when such ties were sorely needed ; and thus it happened that almost from the beginning of our national history we have had a wide public domain. Moreover, it was understood that the people of this new West were not to be held in subjection, but when the population was large enough, new States were to be admitted to the Confederation on an equality with the old. \ Thus arose the idea of our wise system with re- gard to the Territories. I * Connecticut had claimed a large portion of the northern part of Pennsylvania. This, however, was decided to belong to Pennsylvania. The little triangular piece in northwestern Pennsylvania was later ceded to that State by the National Government. Massachusetts also laid claim to a portion of what is now New York. The two States came to an agreement about it, the jurisdiction passing to New York. f North Carolina ceded Tennessee in 1790. % Congress declared that these lands should be settled and " formed into distinct republican States which shall become members of the Federal Union." " From this line of policy," says Johnston, " Congress has never swerved, and it has been more successful than stamp acts or Boston port bills in building up an empire." (Lalor's Cyclopaedia, vol. iii, p. 916.) CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 223 Soon after the cession of the Northwest, plans for its government were discussed. In 1784 Jefferson submitted a plan for the government of all the Western °f r i784 0es country from its southern boundary to the Lakes. He proposed that slavery should not exist there after 1800 ; but this part of his plan was not car- ried, though a majority of the State delegations present in Congress at the time the vote was taken were in favor of it. The rest of the plan was adopted, but it was not put into operation. In 1787 was enacted the famous ordinance for the government of the territory northwest of the Ohio. This provided for the organization of government. The first officials were to be a governor, secretary, and three judges appointed by Congress; but as the population in- creased, the people were to be allowed a representation in the Government. Not less than three nor more than five States might be formed from the Territory and admitted to " a share in the Federal councils." Sound doctrines of civil liberty were announced. No per- son was to be molested on account of his mode of worship or religious sentiments. Each citizen was entitled to the writ of habeas corpus and trial by jury. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for crime, was permitted ; and the Territory and the States which might be formed from it were to remain forever " a part of this Confederacy of the United States of America." It announced in telling phrase that " religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged." This is one of the wisest documents ever issued by a deliberative assembly. It had great weight in shaping later territorial organization. It kept the dark tide of slavery from inundating the North- west. The ordinance of 1787 was passed by the dying Congress of the Confederation. Its trials and its failures had been many, but the honor of this act rests with it. 224 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. " I doubt," said Webster, " whether one single law of any lawgiver, ancient or modern, has produced effects of more distinct, marked, and lasting character than the ordinance of 1787." The discord among the States, the distress and disorder everywhere, taught their evident lesson. Strong government was needful. Shays's rebellion gave the last The work for sa l u tarv shock. Men realized that something union. * must be done. The country presented an " awful spectacle " ; there was a " nation without a national government." Some men were ready to do more than pon- der and lament. Washington's influence was always for nation- ality and against State selfish- ness. He belonged to Amer- ica. Without him, lasting union would have been almost impos- sible. Others, too, were alert and active. Alexander Hamil- ton and James Madison deserve chief mention. In 1786 delegates from the States were asked by Virginia to meet at Annapolis to consider the commercial rela- tions of the country. Only five States were represented, but the convention asked for a new convention at Philadelphia the ensuing spring, to take measures for rendering " the Fed- eral Constitution adequate to the exigencies of the Union." In May (1787) this convention met. Some of the dele- gates came late, but finally all of the States were represented save Rhode Island. The best and wisest men in the country were present. Washington was chosen President. Among the ablest of the members were Madison of Virginia, James Wilson, Gouverneur Morris, and Benjamin Franklin of Pennsyl- ^^X The Philadelphia convention. CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 225 vania, Alexander Hamilton of New York, Oliver Ellsworth of Connecticut, Rufus King of Massachusetts, and Charles C. Pinckney of South Carolina. The convention lasted four months, its members often de- spairing of success. So many differences arose that it seemed at times impossible to reach a rea- sonable conclusion. The great influence of Washington and Franklin contributed to har- mony. It was determined at once to establish a government with supreme executive, legisla- tive, and judicial departments. The adoption of this resolution meant that the convention did not intend to patch up the Articles of Confederation, but to found a real national government with power to act — to form a Con- stitution, in order that there might be no longer merely a Congress whose efficiency depended on the whim or caprice of the States. The first difficulty arose over the question of represen- tation in the Legislature of the new Government. Many of the delegates from the small States in this convention seemed merely solicitous for the dignity of their respective States, and anxious to preserve them from attack by securing to them the same weight in national councils as had the larger States ; but many of them wished even more than this, and demanded that the principle of the Confederation be perpetuated so that the Central Government should continue the creature of the States, which would thus form the basis of the new order as they had of the old. This, the Small State, party demanded that each State should have as many representa- tives as every other. Its purposes. Small State party. 226 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. On the other hand, the so-called Large State party, led by Madison, Wilson, Gouverneur Morris, and King, insisted that the basis of the new Government was not L a a rT Stat6 to be the States > but tne people, and that the States therefore should send representatives to the Congress of the new Government in proportion to their population. It was wrong and illogical to give Delaware as many representatives as Pennsyl- vania or Virginia. Thus we see that a real fundamental question of principle was involved. The extremists of the Small State party desired, in reality, a con- federation of equal States ; the Large State Party struggled for a government based upon the people. Therefore we might be justified in calling one party the State party, the other the Nation- al party.* The contest between these two factions was long and severe. At times it seemed as if there could be no agreement. " Gentlemen," exclaimed Bedford, of Delaware, " I do not trust you. . . . Sooner than be ruined, there are foreign powers who will take us by the hand." By a vote of six to five the convention decided in favor of proportional representation in the more numerous branch of the Legislature. But it was impossible for the Large * The States that voted for proportional representation (the Large State party) were Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Caro- lina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Of these the first three were really large States. Five States voted against proportional representation; they were Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Mary- land. The New Hampshire delegation came too late to take part in the first critical vote. Rhode Island sent no delegation at all. CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 227 State party to secure that basis for representation in the other branch. A compromise was at length agreed upon, whereby each State was to have two senators, Struggle and w hile the House was to have the right to ° mpr01 originate all bills for raising revenue. Thus was formed the first compromise of the Constitution. The student should see clearly the real controversy, the real difference between the Large State men and the Small State men. The former were for a government based on the people, receiving its power directly from the people, and touching the States as little as possible. The Small State men were in part divided: they all wanted equal representation of the States ; but some of them were not opposed to a national government, while others desired to preserve the principle of the Confederation — to maintain the equal sovereignty of the States. But after this first and important agreement on the sub- ject of representation and the character of the new Govern- ment had been reached, there remained many Slavery causes other difficulties to be overcome. These arose largely from the fact that the industrial inter- ests of the Southern States were essentially different from the Northern, the former being built upon slave labor, the latter upon free. It stands to the everlasting credit of Madison, Mason, and others from Virginia that they de- nounced slavery and the slave traffic ; but the delegates from the States of the far South were anxious for more slaves and for the protection of the system. Still another question arose : Were slaves to be counted in determining the basis of representation of the States, or should they, since they were held as property, be no more taken into account than the sheep and oxen of the Northern farmer ? Again, the Southern States generally were, to use Mason's words, " staple States " — that is, they raised raw material and ex- ported a large part of it. They feared that, if Congress were given authority to regulate commerce, the power 228 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. would be used to tax exports and destroy Southern trade. These differences were finally settled by various bargains or compromises. In determining the basis of representation and of direct taxation, it was decided that five slaves should count as three freemen.* "Slaves were to be admitted Compromises. ^^ ^ ^ Qf J anuar y j 1808? \> ut j n t h e meantime Congress should have power to levy a duty of ten dollars on each person so imported, f Congress was given full authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, but was prohibited from levying an export duty. J The Constitution was signed by delegates from all the States represented in the convention on the 17th of Sep- tember, but not by all the delegates. Three Constitution ^q were p resen t refused to sign ; thirteen had left during the course of the convention. Only thirty-nine, therefore, out of the fifty-five members gave their final consent. When such evidences of differing opin- ions appeared in this assembly of wise men, what hope could there be of the success of the Constitution when dis- cussed before the people ? It was laid before the Congress of the Confederation, and was then submitted by this Con- gress "-to a convention of delegates chosen in each State by the people thereof." The new Constitution was essentially different from the Articles. The new Government was not to be the agent of the States and dependent on State generosity for funds, * See the Constitution, art. i, sec. 2. f Constitution, art. i, sec. 9, § 1. % Constitution, art. i, sec. 9, § 5. It may be noticed that the impor- tation of slaves till 1808 was sufficient to fasten the slavery system per- manently on the Southern States, just as many of the members of the convention said it would. Doubtless even without this right of impor- tation it would have been difficult to root out the system. As to the effect of the three-fifths compromise as it appears to a strong oppo- nent of slavery, see Gay's Madison, pp. 99, 100. CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 229 Its essential character. or on State humor for obedience. It was to spring from the people and to have power over the people. The pre- amble of the Constitution states that "we, the people, ... do ordain and establish this Consti- tution." The laws of the Government were to be direct commands to persons. It could raise money with its own machinery and compel obedience with its own offi- cers. Great political powers were given to the new Govern- Etghth Federal PILLAR reared? From the Independent Chronicle and Universal Advertiser, Boston, Thursday, June 18, 1788. ment, powers general in their nature, such as the right to make peace or war, conduct negotiations with foreign gov- ernments, raise armies and equip navies, establish post offices and post roads, regulate commerce among the States or with foreign nations. All power was not bestowed on the National Government, but only certain enumerated The Ninth PILLAR erected / " The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, (hall be fuffitient forthe eftahlifti- ment of this Conftitution, between the States lo ratifying the fame." Art. vii. INCIPIENT MAGNI PROCEDERE MENSES. The Attraction rouft be irrefiftibl© From the Independent Chronicle and Universal Advertiser, Boston, Thursday, June 26, 1788. powers ; the rest belonged to the States or to the people, unless the Constitution forbade their use by any govern- mental authority. There were thus created immediately over every citizen two governments, occupying each a dif- 230 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ferent sphere of political action, and each having power to order and compel obedience. The distinguishing feature of this new republic was this distribution of political author- ity between the Central Government on the one hand and the commonwealths that composed the Union on the other. Moreover, the form of the new Government was differ- ent from that of the old. Power was divided between sep- arate departments, and each department was to be in large measure independent of the other. A single person, the President of the United States, was given executive authority. The experiences of the confederation had taught that one man can execute the laws more vigorously and sensibly than many. The legis- lative power was intrusted to two bodies of nearly equal power, that one might act as a check and a balance to the other. An independent judiciary was provided for, the judges to be appointed by the Executive with the advice and consent of the Senate, to hold office during good be- havior. Thus the separation of the powers of government, which was thought to be essential for the preservation of liberty, formed an important part of the new plan.* Conventions were summoned in all the States save obsti- nate little Ehode Island, to pass upon the new Constitution. The people of eleven States ratified the instru- yJgSjJJ ment before the end of 1788 - This decision, however, was reached only after prolonged dis- cussion and debate. In some of the States the outcome was doubtful almost to the end. Virginia, Massachusetts, and Xew York were the most doubtful States. Here the Con- * Students of history and of politics believed that the powers of government should be classified according to their nature, and that the same body should not be possessed of two essentially different kinds of power. " If it be," said Madison, " a fundamental principle of free government that the legislative, executive, and judiciary powers should be separately exercised, it is equally so that they be independently ex- ercised." (Madison's Journal of the Convention, July 19th.) CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION— 1781-1789. 231 stitution had formidable opponents and no less able defend- ers. The ratification in the New York convention was due, in large part, to the eloquence and able statesmanship of Hamilton. During the progress of the discussion in New York, Hamilton, Madison, and John Jay wrote a series of arti- cles for the press, commenting on the character of the Con- stitution. These papers, gathered into a volume called the Federalist, constitute a great work on the science of govern- ment, one of the most famous books ever written in America. Map showing Distribution of Population in 1790. Some of the State conventions would have rejected the Constitution had its supporters not agreed that after the organization of the new Government amendments should be added in the nature of a bill of rights to guard against tyrannical action on the part of the central authority. The first ten amendments to the Constitution were afterward agreed to in accordance with this understanding.* North * The first ten amendments were adopted in Washington's adminis- tration. They were declared in force December 15, 1791. It is to be noticed that they are restrictions on the power of the National Govern- ment, and do not bind the States. 16 232 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Carolina did not become a member of the new Union till November, 1789. Ehode Island gave up her pretensions to independence in 1790. The Constitution thus established was in one sense not a new creation. It was more than the outcome of a con- ference of wise men. It was the result of ex- The product perience, and was in itself a growth. Its main characteristics were the products of the time. The very failures of the Confederation had shown the proper basis. In the details of the machinery of govern- ment there was little that was absolutely new. The fram- ers drew from the history of other nations, from their knowledge of the English law and institutions, but most of all from their own political experience. They were at once scholars and men of affairs, students of history and of prac- tical politics. The goodness of their handiwork resulted from their wise appreciation of the teaching of the past, and the clever joining together of the best and safest mate- rial that the tide of history brought to their feet.* References. The best short references are Hart, The Formation of the Union, pp. 102-135; Walker, The Making of the Nation, pp. 1-73; Morse, Alexander Hamilton, Chapters III and IV; Lodge, George Wash- ington, Volume II, Chapter I; Pellew, John Jay, Chapter IX; Tyler, Patrick Henry, Chapters XVII-XIX ; Schouler, History, Volume I, pp. 1-74. A very interesting account of the period is given in Fiske, The Critical Period of American History; and a much longer and fuller statement in McMaster, History of the People of the United States, Volume I, especially Chapters I-V. * " The American Constitution is no exception to the rule, that everything which has power to win the obedience and respect of men must have its roots deep in the past; and that the more slowly every institution has grown, so much the more enduring is it likely to prove. There is little in the Constitution that is absolutely new. There is much that is as old as Magna Charta." (Bryce, The American Com- monwealth, vol. i, p. 29.) CHATTER XL Federal Supremacy — Organization of the Government— 1789-1801. THE ADMINISTRATION OF GEORGE WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. The Congress of the confederation made the necessary arrangements for ushering in the new Government and then _ . ... , expired.* The election of President was ap- EstaDlisament r r of the pointed for the first Wednesday in January, Government. 1789? the mee tiiig of the electors for the first Wednesday in February, and the inauguration of the Gov- ernment and the real beginning of the new order for the first Wednesday in March. It happened that the first AVednesday in March fell on the 4th of that month, and thus it came about that March 4th is the day when a new President and a new Congress assume the duties of office. As a matter of fact, however, Congress did not assemble at the appointed time. Its members leisurely came together in New York, where the Government was to be organized, and there was not a quorum of the House of Kepresenta- tives till the 1st of April, or of the Senate till some days later. When the votes for President were counted in the pres- ence of the two houses, it was found that Washington had * The confederate Congress continued in formal existence till March 2, 1789. " It then nickered and went out without any public notice." One of the men at the time said it was hard to say whether the old government was dead or the new one alive. 233 234 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. been unanimously elected President, and that John Adams, having received the next greatest number of ballots, was m _. elected Vice-President.* Washington's iour- Washington . . 8 J elected and ney iroiii Virginia to JNew lork was a long inaugurated. triumphal progress. The people gathered everywhere to pay a reverent respect to the man whose greatness was deeply felt and honored. Not till the 30th of April did he take the oath of office. The place was the Senate balcony of Federal Hall. The scene was an im- pressive one. One of the greatest of the world's great men consecrated himself anew to the service of his country, and entered upon the duty of giving life and vigor to the new Government of the young nation. After the oath had been taken Washington read to Con- gress, assembled in the Senate chamber, his inaugural ad- dress. "It was very touch- ing," we are told by a spec- yy^i^t y- tator, "and quite of the solemn kind. His aspect grave almost (<> sadness; his modesty, actually shaking ; his voice deep, a little tremulous, and so low as to call for close attention ; added to the series of objects presented to the mind and overwhelming it, produced emotions of the most affecting kind upon the members." Even before the inauguration the House had entered earnestly upon the work of legislation. The great need of * By the Constitution as it then was, each elector east two votes without designating which was for President and which for Vice- Prosident. Constitution, art. ii, sec. 1, § '3. ADMINISTRATION OF WASI 1 1 NOToN— 1780-1797. 235 the new Government was money, and bo the House began at once the consideration of ;i tarifE bill. One was passed n early in the summer, and ;i national income Congress J begins was thus secured. It proved m a short time legislation. | | )( . inadequate, and the duties wore increased. This and other means of obtaining money soon gave the Government dignity and won it respect. But much besides the raising of funds was necessary to put the lutw Government into running order. The Consti- tution, general in its provisions, did not outline Executive m fofafi the forms and methods that must be departments. followed in giving it effect. Many new offices must be established and their duties declared. The expe- riences of the war and the Confederation had shown the value of single administrative officers, and the Constitution provided that the President could "require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive de- partments, upon any subject relating to the duties of then- respective offices."* Congress now passed bills to form three such departments — State (at first called Foreign Af- fairs), Treasury, and War. The Post Office was continued on its old footing, and the office of Attorney-General was established. This officer soon became an important person in the administration because of his duty to give the Presi- dent Legal advice, but he was not at first at the head of what was strictly an executive department. To the offices thus established Washington appointed able men. Thomas Jefferson, then absent in France, was upon his return made Secretary of State, as- Washington's Bumm g the duties of the office in 1790. The appointments. ° Treasury portfolio was given to Alexander Hamilton, then a young man hardly more than thirty-two years of age, possessed of wonderful executive ability, with a strong grasp of details and a firm comprehension of prin- * Constitution, art. ii, sec. 2, § 1. ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 237 ciples. He had long been interested in the disordered finances of the Confederation, and Washington thought him the man to bring order out of the confusion that every- where prevailed. For this task he was specially qualified. All matters seemed to take form and arrange themselves in passing through his mind. His task was a difficult one. " Finance ! " said Gouverneur Morris to Jay at one time ; " Ah, my friend, all that remains of the American Revolu- tion grounds there." The fate of the Constitution seemed to depend upon the success with which order was brought out of the disorder that had been inherited from the war and the critical period. Henry Knox, an excellent officer and an able man, head of the War Department under the Confederation, was made Secretary of War. Edmund Ran- dolph was appointed Attorney-General. We must remember that the Constitution does not pro- vide for a Cabinet, but simply speaks of executive depart- Th Am I nients. In fact, even the English Cabinet was Cabinet a not so clearly defined then as now ; its func- growth. tions were not so evident and well understood. So that we ought not to expect that, inasmuch as the Ameri- cans had had no experience with a Cabinet, the heads of the executive departments would be formed at once into a single body, bent on carrying out a well-recognized policy. At the present time the members of the President's Cabinet meet together at intervals ; in these meetings great ques- tions of state are discussed, and it is thought desirable that there should be, in a very general way, harmony and co-opera- tion, at times even a definite Cabinet policy. This state of things is, however, the result of growth. No such con- dition existed in 1789 — indeed was hardly possible — for as yet there were no political parties with a distinct programme of action. Washington sometimes called the heads of de- partments together for consultation, sometimes asked for their individual opinions in writing, or for the advice of one alone. 238 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. As it turned out, Washington's first Cabinet contained men who by training and temperament were quite diverse. Two opposite tendencies in political life were elements in the represented in it. On many questions pre- Cabinet. sented for discussion, Hamilton and Jefferson took different positions. With the former, Knox was apt to agree, while Jefferson and Randolph were often opposed to the other two. Jefferson was a man of great ability, and was a statesman of wide powers. He was strongly democratic in his sympa- thies, believing that the peo- ple at large were the purest and safest source of politi- cal power and opinion. He was given to sentiment, if not to sentimentality, and he was not always strong as an administrator. During his political career in Vir- ginia he had attacked the aristocratic institutions of the colony and State, and he now had no sympathy with governments or organizations whose tendency was to check free growth and free thinking. He played no such part as Hamilton and Washington in bringing about order and sys- tem and establishing the new Government. His greatness lay in the fact that he appreciated the sentiment or spirit of popular government, a spirit that was destined to be the ruling force in the great republic, which was then organ- izing itself for effective work. In this sympathy he was opposed to many men of that time who believed with John Adams that " the rich, well-born and the able " were quali- fied to rule. While Hamilton was not entirely out of sym- pathy with popular government, he represented the con- <72i9X ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 239 servative elements of the nation. His power was in admin- istration, in bringing order out of disorder. He had no fear of an energetic and efficient government, and felt keenly the necessity of such government after experience with the discord and turbulence of the critical period. At this first session of the First Congress, Federal courts were established. Besides the Supreme Court, Circuit and District Courts were provided for. All cases ^hrh^ ^ fta ^ un( ^ er the Constitution might come under Federal jurisdiction were not confided to these courts alone, but the State courts were allowed concurrent jurisdiction in many cases. To avoid obscurity and con- fusion by differing interpretations of national laws, and to avoid the possibility that the effect and nature of Federal statutes should be permanently decided by the State courts in such a way as to detract from the power and efficiency of the National Government, provision was made for an appeal from the Supreme Court of a State to the Supreme Court of the United States of cases (1) where a decision had been rendered in the State court denying the validity of some Federal statute or treaty ; or (2) refusing to recog- nize a privilege claimed under the Federal Constitution, laws, or treaties ; or (3) where the validity of a State law under the Constitution of the United States had been called in question and the State court had held such law valid.* By this method the supremacy of national law was to be secured without trouble or vexation to the States. f The Federal courts are to-day arranged on the same general plan as that outlined in this famous statute, which was largely the work of Oliver Ellsworth, of Connecticut. The first chief justice appointed was John Jay, a man of rare purity and sweetness of character, with good legal knowledge and a * The Constitution provides for one Supreme Court and other courts that Congress may establish (see Constitution, art. iii). Congress, how- ever, needed to provide for the Supreme Court also. f See the Constitution, art. vi, § 2. 240 HISTORY OF TIIE AMERICAN NATION. wide experience in affairs of State. The peculiar duties of our first justices demanded the wisdom of the statesman even more than the learning of the lawyer. Hamilton set about the task of bringing order into the deranged finances of the country. Upon request, he pre- pared a report and submitted it to Congress at its second session. He showed that the debt of the United States was about fifty-four million dollars, including arrears of inter- est — a vast sum for that day. He proposed to The public debt. iggue new C e rt ifi cates f indebtedness, and to receive in payment the old evidences of indebtedness. The new certificates were to be issued on more favorable terms to the Government than the old. It was resolved by Con- gress to pay in full the debt which we owed abroad; but many objected to paying the home debt in full, because the paper had been so depreciated that a payment at face value would simply pour loads of dollars into the hands of specu- lators who had bought up the old paper. Hamilton, however, argued for straight downright honesty, without distinction of persons. He believed that the Government promises to pay must be redeemed in full. A bill was finally passed by Con- gress providing tor the payment of the domestic as well as the foreign debt in substantial accord with Hamilton's suggestions. Hamilton proposed at the same time that the State debts should be assumed and paid by the National Govern- ment, on the ground that they were actually incurred in ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 241 behalf of the common weal. This proposal met with vigor- ous objection, and a bill for the purpose was defeated at this session. About the same time, however, there aeTitaL ^ was S reat discussion over the location of the permanent capital. This seems a trivial mat- ter, but men became very much excited about it, as if the fate of the nation were at stake in the decision. Finally a bargain was struck. Hamilton secured Northern votes for a Southern capital, and Jefferson was instrumental in se- curing Southern votes for assumption of the State debts, a measure more favored by the Northern and Eastern than the Southern States. The site on the Potomac was soon af- terward selected. Among other plans of Hamilton were the laying of an excise and the establishment of a national bank. At the final session of the First Congress (winter of 1790-'91) such measures were proposed. There was bitter opposition to the excise, for it seemed to many that the secretary, in order to magnify his office and to ex- alt national power unduly, was striving to obtain all sources of taxation for the Federal Government. The bill was finally passed after a sharp debate. It provided for a tax on liquors, and it was humorously suggested tnat it would be like " drinking down the national debt." Hamilton advocated a bank, on the ground that it would be of assistance to the Government in borrowing money and carrying on its financial business, and that it would be of service in furnishing a circulating medium. The plan caused great discussion in the House. Hamilton's financial measures had already won him a de- voted following, but a strenuous and vigorous opposition was now forming. Madison was its leader. He had favored the excise, but he now argued strongly against the bank bill. The main argument of its opponents was that it was un- constitutional, that the Federal Government had not been given the authority to establish a corporation. A bill in 242 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. practical agreement with Hamilton's proposals was at length carried through both houses. It provided for a bank with a capital of ten million dollars. The Government was to be a stockholder, and subscriptions to a large portion of the stock were to be made in United States bonds. The effect of this would be to make a demand for the bonds, and thus help the credit of the Government. All interested in the bank would be sure to be interested in the stability of the Government. Before signing the bill Washington asked from the members of his Cabinet their written opinions. The re- plies of Hamilton and Jefferson are great State JSJSSlir 4 Papers. They clearly mark out doctrines of two distinct schools of political thought and two distinct methods of interpreting the Constitution. Jef- ferson, anxious to keep the central authority within narrow limits, argued that the Government did not have the right to establish a bank, because no such power had been ex- pressly granted in the Constitution, and because it was not necessary for carrying out any of the powers that were granted. He thus advocated what is known as " strict con- struction" of the Constitution. Hamilton, on the other hand, argued that the Government had the right to choose all means that seemed suitable and proper for carrying out effectually the powers intrusted to it by the Constitution.* He thus laid down the doctrine of " implied powers," and advocated a " broad " construction of the Constitution. Here, then, were stated by these two secretaries fundamen- tal ideas that were to form the basic principles of contend- ing parties. Before the end of Washington's first term political par- ties were organized. They were largely formed in conse- * See the Constitution, art. i, sec. 8, § 18. The right of Congress to choose means for carrying out its power does not rest simply on this clause of the Constitution, but is a reasonable inference from the whole. ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 243 quence of sympathy with or antagonism to Hamilton's plans, which plainly enough tended not simply to establish sound financial conditions, but to give power and efficiency to the central authority. It was believed by many that the wily secretary was making use of his position by various vicious methods to bring and hold together a monarchical party, and that repub- partv. ePU CaU ^ can institutions were endangered by the schemes and machinations of what Jefferson called the "corrupt squadron." These persons, so opposed to Hamilton's measures and suspicious of his devices, were now crystallizing into a party. Its leaders were Jefferson and Madison. It soon called itself the Eepublican party, but was often stigmatized by its opponents as democratic, a word not then in good odor because of the excesses of the French Eevolution committed in the name of liberty and fraternity. It believed that the rights of the States should be defended against encroachments on the part of the Na- tional Government. Distrust of government and faith in the people were its dearest principles. Although Jeffer- son's suspicions of Hamilton's monarchic designs were quite unfounded, and much of this early opposition to Federal measures was unwise, it was well that a party was formed with democracy for its substantial faith, a party whose aim was — to use Jefferson's quaint words — " the cherishment of the people." The defenders of the Hamiltonian policy still called themselves Federalists, the word assumed by the supporters of the Constitution when it was before the people for ratification. Their opponents were often called Anti-Federalists, although, as suggested above, when parties were really formed (1792-'93) the Jef- f ersonian party was more properly designated as Republican or Democratic. The Federalists were broad construction- ists, believers in a strong central government. They came in good part from the commercial States. The Repub- licans were strict constructionists, and on the whole were 244 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. from the agricultural States. Industrial conditions of the different sections of the country did much to determine party beliefs and tendencies. Commerce is essentially gen- eral, not local, and thus its followers favored a strong gen- eral government — a government that could insure free com- mercial intercourse and protect trade. By the end of Washington's first term it was plain enough that the new Government had elements of success & tion l an( ^ P ermanence - There was evidence of pros- prosperity perity everywhere, of renewed hope, and of and union. business energy. National parties had sprung into existence, and, though one of them was opposed on principle to the development of the power of the Federal Government, the co-operation among advocates of party doctrine, from one end of the country to the other, was a bond of real union, bringing the people into a closer and more sympathetic relation than had existed before in the era of the Confederation, when sympathies were often cut short by State boundaries. The new nation had evidently won attention if not respect abroad, but its international trials are best considered as a whole in connection with Washington's second term. Washington desired to retire at the end of his first term, but was persuaded to accept another election. The discord p , in his Cabinet, which had by this time become personal serious, troubled him very much. Hamilton enmities. an( j j e ff ers0 ii, to use the hitter's own expres- sion, "were pitted against each other like two fighting cocks." Jefferson thought the Secretary of the Treasury a corrupt and scheming enemy of republicanism, an in- triguing monarchist. Hamilton thought that the Secretary of State was a demagogue, who cloaked a rankling ambition under professions of fear for popular well-being. Washing- ton's efforts to restore peace were fruitless. He had not known hitherto the depth and rancor of party feeling. Co- lonial history had given no indication of such party organi- ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 245 zations, and hence he and others were astounded at what seemed to be unaccountable ill feeling. But, as we have seen, the differences, though needlessly bitter and personal, were natural ones,* and these two men were but representa- tives of different thoughts and feelings in the country at large. Spite of all these party clashings and personal en- mities Washington was again unanimously elected. The opposition was directed against Adams, who was, however, chosen Vice-President by a good majority. Without attempting to follow out in chronological order the events of Washington's second administration, let us see what the chief troubles and achievements The Whisky W ere. One of the difficulties to be overcome Eebellion, . was the resistance to the excise law. This re- sistance was especially strong in western Pennsylvania. The opposition was formidable. Mobs intimidated the tax collectors, and even used tar and feathers to emphasize their disapproval ; public meetings denounced the atrocious interference of the Federal Government in the " natural rights of man." f In 1794 opposition became rebellion. It was high time for the authorities to take decisive action. Fifteen thousand militia were called out, and, accompanied by Hamilton himself, they marched to the scene of disorder. Eesistance was hopeless, and it ceased. Even the distant frontier was thus made aware that a National Government was in existence, and that it could enforce its laws. It is a striking proof, however, of the dangers and trials that beset * It was inevitable that men should differ regarding the power and scope of the new Government ; inevitable, too, that they should differ regarding the trust and confidence to be bestowed on the whole people ; inevitable that, under the circumstances, some men should dread the establishment of monarchy and see visions of tyranny where danger did not exist. f Whisky actually took the place of money in the Western country. A gallon of whisky was worth a shilling, and therefore a tax of seven cents a gallon seemed very severe. 246 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the establishment of the Government, that three years had passed by before these steps were taken to crush lawlessness in a few counties of the frontier. Most of the difficulties of these years were connected with foreign affairs. Politically independent of any Euro- pean powers, our country was still industrially Troubles with dependent. Moreover, the nation was weak, and its power was not respected by foreign governments. England had long refused to treat us as an equal. Not till 1791 did she send a minister to this coun- try. The treaty of 1783 had not been fulfilled by either party. England retained possession of the military posts on our Northern and Western frontier within the limits of the United States. She gave as her excuse that, contrary to the treaty, the loyalists had been persecuted, and the British creditors prevented from collecting sums due them by American citizens. Her charges — at least during the time of the Confederation — had too much truth in them ; but her main reason for retaining the Western posts was her desire to control the fur trade and to maintain her in- fluence over the Indians. In 1793 war broke out between France and England. This put the United States into an embarrassing position. War between ^ e were ^ound by the treaty of 1778 to allow England and France certain privileges in our ports not France. granted other nations, and common gratitude might seem to force us to her side as an active ally. True, the French had not entered the Revolutionary War so much for the purpose of helping America as of injuring England, but they seemed to the men of that time generous bene- factors. If by assisting France we should be drawn into war with England, it might bring complete disaster. The country was just beginning to hold up its head, and to look prosperous and hopeful after the trials of the Confederation. Washington concluded that we were at least morally justified in disregarding the French treaty, and he issued ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 247 a proclamation of neutrality. Just as he did so a minister from the new French republic landed at Charleston. He began at once to fit out privateers to prey upon British commerce, and proceeded to vio- late the neutrality of the United States and to act in gen- eral as if he were justified in doing what he pleased. He demanded, in a lofty tone, various favors from the Govern- ment, and finally was so impertinent and so outrageous in his conduct that Washington asked for his recall. The most discouraging thing about the whole affair was that this fellow, Genet, was hailed as a hero as soon as he landed on American soil. Men that were in shivering dread lest Washington or Hamilton should make himself a king, were ready to pay kingly honors to this man whose conduct was directed to bringing on another war with England, all in the name of liberty, equality, and the rights of man. Wash- ington was actually attacked in venomous newspaper arti- cles, and held up as the enemy of freedom and the friend of. monarchy and corruption. Fortunately, the insulting mis- conduct of Genet * and the intemperate clamors of the French partisans ended in winning to the side of the Gov- ernment the sober-minded citizens who had sense enough to see the real situation. But affairs were long in a critical condition. So ex- travagant in their actions and conduct were many of the people that insurrection within or war with- ! ng J! L - out seemed at times almost inevitable. Eng- aggressions. ° land meantime, instead of wisely seeking to conciliate and win us, was exasperating in the extreme. American merchantmen on the high seas were plundered, on the ground that they were bound with provisions to French ports and that provisions were " contraband of war " ; * Under authority from the French Government, Genet planned not only to cement a close allianco with America, but, with the assistance of the frontiersmen of the Mississippi Valley, to attack Spain's possessions in Louisiana and Florida, and to win Canada for " liberty and equality." 17 248 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. seamen were taken from American vessels and forced to do service on English frigates ; and in other ways the com- merce of the country was attacked or outrageously inter- fered with. All this was done under pretense of right, but the Americans felt that it was the right of the highway robber. Closely connected with these foreign complications were the Indian troubles in the West. Not since the end of the Eevolution had there been a good assurance of continued peace. The frontier was kept in constant dread of attack, and the only wonder is that men and women had the hardihood to move across the mountains into the Northwestern wilderness to suffer Indian hostilities View of the Campus Maktius, Marietta, Ohio, 1798. hardships and privations and to imperil their lives. In 1788 a settlement was made at Marietta by people from New England, the first settlement of importance north of the Ohio. The frontier, however, in the next few years ex- tended but little. Detroit and Mackinaw were held by the British. It was popularly believed that the Indians were incited to hostilities by the British officers. Though it is not true that the English Government was guilty of such ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 249 dastardly conduct, the red men took courage from the fact that the frontier forts were in the hands of their former allies, and they were continually led to look upon England as their steadfast friend. In 1790 an expedition sent out under General Harmar to punish the Indians of Ohio was utterly routed. The next year an army under General St. Clair met Wayne's similar fate. In 1794 Washington intrusted victory. ° the command of an army to General Anthony Wayne, one of the men of the Revolution upon whom the President knew he could rely. " Mad Anthony," as he was sometimes called, gave no signs of harebrained rashness. He completely defeated the Indians in a battle on the Mau- mee, not very far from where the city of Toledo now stands. In the winter (1795) he formed the treaty of Greenville with the chiefs. This victory and the treaty opened up a large section of the Northwest for settlement ; and emi- grants from the seacoast States were soon pouring over the mountains to build new homes in the new West. In seven years from the treaty of Greenville Ohio was knocking for admission into the Union — one of the most striking facts in our history. It will thus be seen that the year 1794 was a dreadful one. The Government was for a time openly disobeyed by the anti-excise men of Pennsylvania. The 0*1794 yeai coun ^ r y was inwardly torn by faction, some persons upholding England, and others ready to accept the fraternal embrace of the French republic. Our flag was insulted on the seas and our seamen impressed. In the West the Indians were hostile, and were believed to be encouraged by the English, who still held possession of our frontier forts. We have seen how Washington overcame some of these troubles. To come to an understanding with England, he now sent John Jay as a special envoy to that country. The mission was a delicate one. Failure presumably meant 250 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. war ; and yet we were in no condition to fight. Jay suc- ceeded in making a good treaty, the best that could be obtained under the circumstances. It was not fair or equitable ; England did not give us any- thing like fair commercial privileges, nor did she promise to give up impressment ; but she did give up the frontier posts, and agreed to pay for the provisions she had seized. The United States promised to pay debts due British cred- itors, the collection of which had been hindered in the States. The treaty met with violent opposition when its terms were known in America. Washington was vehe- mently abused. Jay was hanged in effigy and denounced as a traitor. Hamilton was stoned when endeavoring to speak in behalf of the treaty. But, with the exception of a sin- gle clause, it was finally ratified by the Senate. When the House was called upon to pass the necessary appropriation bills for carrying out the treaty, it called upon Washington for the papers relating to the matter. Washington refused to give them, on the ground that the House had no share in the treaty-making power. A great debate ensued, and at length the necessary appropriations were made. In the course of Washington's second term both Jeffer- son and Hamilton gave up their offices, and other changes took place in the Cabinet. At the end the Cabinet Cabinet was decidedly Federal, containing no longer members of different parties or repre- sentatives of different political tendencies. Three new States had by this time been admitted to the Union — Vermont, whose territory had been claimed by both New York and New Hampshire (1791) ; Ken- Important tucky, formed from what was the western part of Virginia (1792) ; and Tennessee (1796). A new amendment to the Constitution, the eleventh, was pro- posed in 1794, but it was not adopted till four years later. It resulted from the fact that the Supreme Court had de- clared that a private individual could sue a State. ADMINISTRATION OF WASHINGTON— 1789-1797. 251 The Government The end of Washington's administration saw the coun- try free from many perils and on the high road to pros- perity. The new Government had weathered severe storms and had proved itself efficient. Much of its success was due to the President's good judgment, sound sense, and firmness.* His chief as- sistants also, especially Hamilton, deserve great credit. Spite of some uneasiness and waywardness among the people, they had shown to the world the great example of a nation or- ganizing a government in peace and giving it obedience. Washington refused to consider an election for a third term, and in September, 1796, issued a farewell address. This is a noble public document. It deserves The farewell careful reading to-day, and in many ways fits our times as it did the days of a hundred years ago. He pleaded earnestly for a true national spirit and for devotion to country. " Do not encourage party spirit, but use every effort to miti- gate it and assuage it. . . . Observe justice and faith to- ward all nations ; have neither passionate hatreds nor pas- sionate attachments to any ; and be independent practi- cally of all. In one word, be a nation, be American, and be true to yourselves." In the election that en- ELECTION OF 179G Federalist tZU Republican 1 I Divided I I * One can hardly overestimate the importance of Washington's per- sonal character upon the life of his country. His wisdom and courage, his simple integrity, his tact and forbearance, his dignity and manli- ness, his purity and magnanimity of soul, exalted the nation. Without him it is difficult to see how the Revolution could have succeeded or the new Government been established. 252 niSTOKY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Bued the Federalists supported John Adams and Thomas Pinckney, and the Republicans Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. At that time the Constitution provided that each elector should vote for two persons. The one having the greatest number of votes should be President, " if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors," and the person having the next number Vice-President. Adams and Jefferson were well- known men, and each of them received more votes than either of the other two candidates. Adams was elected President and Jefferson Vice-President. And thus these two important positions in the Government were filled by persons of differing political beliefs ; they were, as Adams said, " in opposite boxes." The consequence was that Jefferson was bitterly opposed to most of the work of an administration in which he held the second position. References. Short accounts : Walker, The Making of the Nation, Chapters V and VI; Hart, The Formation of the Union, pp. 136-164. Longer accounts: Lodge, George Washington, Volume II, pp. 47-216 ; Lodge, Alexander Hamilton, pp. 84-197; Morse, Thomas Jefferson, pp. 96- 173; McMaster, History of the People of the United States, Volume I, pp. 525 604, Volume II, pp. 1-308. ADMINISTRATION OP JOHN ADAMS— 1797-1801. Adams was a strong Federalist, given, at this time, to ideas somewhat lofty and aristocratic. He had wide experi- ence in affairs of state and had acquired merited distinction. He was not always tactful or wise- ly forbearant with those who did not agree with him, and was at times headstrong, always proud and sensitive ; but he was withal a sturdy patriot and an honest, able man. Jay's treaty did not put an end to foreign troubles. England, indeed, treated us with more consideration than ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS— 1797-1801. 253 before ; but France seemed utterly regardless of how she abused a young nation whom she did not fear, and she was now wroth with the United States because the wiSance. Government had come to terms with England without her august sanction. Monroe, whom Washington had sent as a minister to Paris, was recalled in 179G, because he was too ready to receive French compli- ments and too lax about pressing upon the Government our demands for damages. The United States had long been suffering from the depreda- tions of the French upon our commerce. French war ships ruthlessly plundered Ameri- can merchantmen. They had not, on the whole, done so much damage as the English men-of-war, but that was not because the French naval offi- cers lacked the will and the desire, but was due to the fact that France was less powerful on the sea than England, and was less capable of injuring neutral commerce.* Charles C. Pinckney was sent to Paris as our minister to succeed Monroe ; but, instead of being courteously received, he was shamefully treated by the French Government. Our Government was given to understand that a minister would not be received until grievances were redressed, as if, for- sooth, America, not France, had been the aggressor. With the hope of bringing France to her senses, Adams appointed a commission of three persons, John Marshall, Elbridge Jffm^/dwui * For some years after the treaty of 1794 England did not injure our commerce much. 254 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Gerry, and Charles C. Pinckney. These men, instead of being treated with official courtesy, were waited on in Paris by secret messengers sent by Talleyrand, the French minis- ter, who made most extraordinary and insulting demands. One of their requests was for a bribe for the members of the French Directory. They said they wanted " money, a great deal of money." * The commissioners found their situation humiliating and unbearable. Marshall and Pinckney left Paris ; Gerry unwisely remained for a time, but accomplished nothing. The President sent to Congress the dispatches of the commission, April, 1798. The names of the French mes- sengers were not given, but the letters X, Y, Z The X Y Z supplied their places ; hence this whole diffi- correspondenc6i culty is often called the X Y Z affair. Con- gress and the country at large were amazed and angry at the treatment accorded our envoys. Adams proclaimed that he would not send " another minister to France without assurance that he would be received as the rep- resentative of a great, free, powerful, and independent nation." Preparation was made for war. An army was organized, and Washington given the command. The navy was in- creased. Battles were actually fought at sea. War with ^ general war seemed inevitable. But the French Government was readier to intimidate and browbeat than to fight. Upon this great question of national honor the American people were no longer danger- ously divided into hostile factions. The French sympathies of the Republicans were not strong enough to make them accept insults willingly. * " Said he [M. X] : ' Gentlemen, you do not speak to the point : it is money ; it is expected you will offer money.' We said we had spoken to that point very explicitly; we had given an answer. 'No,' said he, 1 you have not. What is your answer ? ' We replied : ' It is no ; no ; no ; not a sixpence.' " (Report of the commission.) ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS-1797-1801. 255 When it was evident that America was ready to fight, Talleyrand, the wily minister, whose methods and words had been so exasperating, thought it best to Prance retracts. try different tactics. He suggested in a round- about way that France would be ready to receive a minister from the United States " with the respect due to the repre- sentative of a free, independent, and powerful nation." This declaration of penitence was not so open and straight- forward as might have been desired, but Adams wisely de- cided to make the best of it, and a commission was appoint- ed to proceed to France and settle the difficulties. This was successfully accomplished, and friendly relations were thus re-established. Almost from the beginning of Washington's administra- tion, parties had differed with regard to foreign policy. . The Federalists were eager to keep on good try to crush terms with England; they were called "the opposition. British faction" by their opponents, and charged with truckling to the interest of that country. As we have seen, the Federalists were specially strong in New England, and the commercial interests of this section prompted them to wish to keep out of trouble with the country whose power on the sea seemed invincible. The Republicans, on the other hand, had fellow-feeling for France. Even the extravagances of the French Revolution did not shock some of them. England was to them the abode of despotism, France the home of liberty. This sym- pathy was not unnatural, but, carried to an extreme by the more excitable element of the people, it had caused trouble. There were in the country many men who were worthless fellows, foreigners who rejoiced in railing at the Govern- ment, ridiculing Adams, and indulging in general abuse of those in authority. These men were in the Republican party ; but that party should not be judged by the follies of its most foolish members. The X Y Z disclosures for a time put an end to faction. All reasonable men were 250 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. united in their readiness to defend America against insult. The Federalists felt that now was the time to act, that " democracy " was permanently discredited, that false and malicious criticism of Government should be made a crime. They decided to take advantage of their power to crush factious opposition. With this end in view three acts were passed (1798) : 1. The Naturalization Act IditSlaws! lengthened the time of residence required be- fore a foreigner could become a citizen. 2. The Alien Act empowered the President to exclude dan- gerous foreigners from the country. 3. The Sedition Act made it a crime to print or publish " any false, scandalous, and malicious writings against the Government of the United States, or either house of the Congress, or the Presi- dent, with intent to defame them or to bring them into disrepute." The last two laws were dangerous in their na- ture. The Sedition Act might well be so enforced as to make all criticism of governmental action a crime. These laws were vigorously denounced by the Eepub- licans in Congress as tyrannical and unconstitutional, as laws that " would have disgraced the age of Virginia and Gothic barbarity." When they had been resolutions. passed, the party leaders decided that a formal protest must be made. The mode chosen was unfortunate. The Legislatures of Virginia and Kentucky, each passed a series of resolutions condemning the laws as unconstitutional and void, and declaring the right of the States to interpose and to maintain their rights. These resolutions came from distinguished authors. Madison drew up the Virginia resolutions, and, though Jefferson's name was for a time hidden, he was the real author of those of Kentucky. As to how we are to read these instruments scholars may yet differ. Madison in later years indignantly denied that he had meant to advocate the doctrine that a single State could declare void an act of the National Government and prevent its enforcement within the limits ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS— 1797-1801. 257 of such State ; but as a matter of fact, the doctrine of "nullification " and the related doctrine of secession did in course of time draw encouragement and sustenance from these resolutions.* When the war cloud blew over, the Federalists were left in an unenviable plight. The expenses of the Govern- ment had been materially increased, a direct tax th^FderaUsta nac * Deen l ey i ec ^ an( * acts unnecessarily harsh had been placed on the statute books. More over, the party itself was divided. Many were opposed to Adams on personal grounds ; they believed that his readi- ness to treat with France was disloyalty to the party. Adams found it necessary to reorganize his Cabinet, because some of its members looked to Hamilton as their leader and guide. This factional bitterness was sure to tell against the Federalists in the election. In addition to all this was the fact that the people were really at heart demo- cratic, and the mild, hopeful principles of Jefferson were more to their liking than the sterner, repressive teachings of the party whose task it had been to put the Government in working order. f * The Virginia resolutions declared that "this Assembly . . . views the powers of the Federal Government as resulting from the compact to which the States are parties, . . . and that in case of a deliberate, palpable, and dangerous exercise of other powers, not granted by the said compact, the States . . . have the right and are in duty bound to interpose for arresting the progress of the evil and for maintaining within their limits the authorities, rights, 'and liberties appertaining to them." The first series of Kentucky resolutions de- clared that " each party has an equal right to judge for itself, as well of infractions as of the mode and measure of redress"; while the second series said " that a nullification by those sovereignties [the States], of all unauthorized acts ... is the rightful remedy." It is now well de- cided that, although the Central Government has only the authority given by the Constitution, it can judge of the extent of the authority so given. The Supreme Court is final judge. f In the autumn of 1800 Congress assembled for the first time at Washington. It was then a rude town of about five hundred people. 258 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The Republican candidates were the same as in 1796, Jefferson and Burr. The Federalists put forward Adams and Charles 0. Pinckney. The Republicans were successful. The result, however, was not what they had expected. Both of their candidates had re- ceived the same number of votes, and thus the election was thrown into the House of Representatives. The Federalists were in the majority there. To many of these men Jeffer- son seemed not only the chief enemy of their party, but a dangerous man ; they therefore voted for Burr. According to the Constitution the vote was by States. Out of sixteen States, eight voted for Jefferson, six for Burr, and two were evenly divided. The balloting continued several days, until it was feared that no election would take place, and that some extra constitutional device must be resorted to ; but, fortunately, patriotism and sense finally overcame partisan- ship, and Jefferson was elected (February 17, 1801). Burr was a man utterly without principle and wholly selfish. He was practiced in the worst arts of political management. His election as Vice-President was bad enough ; had the Federalists succeeded in making him President, it would have been the crowning shame of partisanship. In order to avoid in the future such trouble as this, Congress pro- posed the twelfth amendment to the Constitution, and it was adopted by the States (1804). It provided that the electors should cast a ballot for President, and a separate ballot for Vice-President. By the end of Adams's administration parties were formed and organized as they were to remain without much change for some years. Hamilton's financial meas- ures had attracted into the Federal party the commercial With few exceptions the houses were huts. The inhabitants were negroes, or idlers who expected to get rich at once from the sale of their lands. It was a gloomy, unpromising place. " We want nothing here," said Gouverneur Morris, " but houses, cellars, kitchens, well informed men, amiable women, and other trifles of this kind to make our city perfect." ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS— 1797-1801. 259 classes of the North. All the elements of society whose chief desire was stability and strength found their way into the party that was seeking to give force and character to the National Government. The task of the Federal party had been to establish the Government and to bring about order and system. When this was accomplished its useful- ness was in large measure over, and it gave way to the Ke- publican party. References. Short accounts: Hart, The Formation of the Union, pp. 1G4-175 ; Walker, The Making of the Nation, pp. 137-168 ; Morse, Thomas Jefferson, Chapter XII ; Schouler, Thomas Jefferson, pp. 177-198 ; Magruder, John Marshall, Chapter VII (for the French mission) ; Morse, John Adams, pp. 265-311 ; Lodge, Alexander Hamilton, pp. 194-236. Longer accounts: Schouler, History, Volume I, pp. 341- 500 ; McMaster, History, Volume II, pp. 308-533. For the presi- dential election, see Stanwood, History of the Presidency, Chapter V. Reception <>f Washington at Trenton, \. J., April 21, ON His Way TO Mis [nAUQURATION. From the Columbian Magazine of May, 1789. ITS!) CHAPTER XII. The Supremacy of the Republicans — Foreign Complications- War— 1801-1817. Jefferson's doctrines. ADMINISTRATION OF THOMAS JEFFERSON— 1801-1809. The new President was a man of strong parts, with a great faculty of winning men and of filling them with his own ideas and hopes. When positive action was necessary he was at times weak, and was given to idealizing when thje actual should have occupied his attention. But his ideals were on the whole noble and wise, for he seemed to foresee the coming life of his country. He was bitterly opposed to anything that might fasten upon this young land the burdens under which the people of Europe suffered. America was for man ; and if man were to make the most of himself, he must not be oppressed by a smothering upper crust of no- bility, by heavy taxes that con- sumed his substance, by big ar- mies and navies, by a huge and expensive government. War, too, was to be avoided. " Peace is our passion," he declared. The essence of Jeffersonism is contained in the thought that America means opportunity. ADMINISTRATION OF JEFFERSON— 1801-1809. 261 In carrying out the policy of his administration Jeffer- son was ably assisted by Madison, his Secretary of State, and by Albert Gallatin, his Secretary of the Treasury. Up to this time the Republi- can party had been opposed to an extension of the powers of the National Government. But now that they were in power the Constitution was broadly construed, and much was done to increase the strength of the nation and to bind its parts together. Since the time of the Rev- olution the Mississippi ques- tion had been of great im- portance. That great river, with its tributaries, formed highways to the sea for the people west of the The Mississippi moun tains. To float their heavy flatboats question, , J down to New Orleans was an easier task than to carry burdens by the long route overland to the cities of the Atlantic. It seems strange, but it is an important fact in Western and national history, that until the days of canals and railroads the Western people faced southward rather than eastward.* The West was growing. Already (1803) there were three States beyond the mountains, Ohio having been just ad- mitted. To the man who could imagine a tithe of the fu- ture growth of the country, the possession of the mouth of the Mississippi seemed a simple necessity. " There is one spot," said Jefferson, " the possessor of which is our natural ( yVU>&i7f~Ca' aZZ+O- * A very clear account of the Mississippi question is to be found in How to Study and Teach History, by B. A. Hinsdale, chap, xx, 262 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. and habitual enemy." That spot was New Orleans, and Jef- ferson fully realized that sooner or later we must possess it. It will be remembered that by the treaty of 1783 Spain obtained possession of the Floridas, which had been held by England for twenty years. She also owned ^ s Tana. tain8 the land west of the Mississi PP^ including the land at the mouth of that river.* The United States held nothing at that place south of the thirty-first parallel. Now in 1800, by a secret treaty, Spain ceded Louisiana to France. Just what Louisiana was is uncer- tain, but it certainly included New Orleans and a vast terri- tory to the west. Not for some time was this secret trans- fer discovered. When it was found out, it was time to act. Spain, in this point of advantage, was bad enough; but France would never do ; she was too enterprising and strong. To make matters worse, the Spanish authorities at New Orleans deprived the Americans of the right they had had of depositing their goods there. Something had to be done, or the West would not keep the peace. Jefferson took steps to purchase New Orleans and West Florida. Monroe was appointed special envoy for the pur- pose. Before he reached Paris Talleyrand had The Louisiana SU gg e gted to Livingston, the resident minister, the possibility of a great bargain, and after Monroe's arrival a treaty was signed whereby France sold Louisiana to the United States for about $15,000,000 (April, 1803). The boundaries, as we have already said, were in- * Spain insisted for many years after 1783 that she owned the terri- tory as far north as the northern boundary of the old province of West Florida, a line through the mouth of the Yazoo. In 1795 it was agreed that the thirty-first parallel should be the southern limit of the United States between the Mississippi and the Appalachicola. Spain at the same time granted to the Americans the right to deposit goods at New ( Orleans and to export them without paying duty. As the West grew in population the desire increased to hold the mouths of the streams that rose in American territory and flowed southward into the Gulf. 18 •.v,l IIISTOKY OF THE AMKKKWN NATION. definite. Napoleon remarked, with his eustomarj running, tluil if mi obsourity did not exist about the boundary 11 would bo well to make one. The purehaso eortainly in- Oluded New Orleans, and so nine!) of the territory west of the Mississippi as luv north oi the Old Spanish possessions, south of t lie English possessions, and east of the Rookj Mountains; m other words, it v>:is the western half Of the Mississippi Valley. Tho United States elaiined West Florida also, hut probably wron:-. fully. It was taken later, boweyer, under claim of title (1810 18).* There wore hoiiio doubts ill JolTorson's mind as to the constitutionality of purchasing and annexing the territory. To o\o so was eertainly contrary tO the doetrme liVUy l)t of stnet construction oi the ( onstitution whioh ft«»»«>x.vUou. JolTorson had advocated when in opposition. Tho groat majority of the Republican party, howeyer, did not think tho art illegal. The l-Vderalist s opposed it on the -round that the treaty provided tor fche admission of now States from tho territory so annexed. Both parties, therefore, agreed thai the United States as a nation eould acquire territory*! Thus t ho territory of the United States was more than doubled. Louisiana contained 0T0T 800,000 square miles. It was part of the great Mississippi Yalle\. l,H mmulln *"' Tho lu>:ir( of tho oo^tinent, bound together bj rivers into a single geograpbio wltolo, fell to t lu> now re puhlie. Nothing else eould ho done so likely to insure per- * Wo look Kranoo's litle Louisiana with tho oxtont that it "has In the bftndl Ol Spain, and that it had when l^ranoo possossod it, and rooh as it should be fiftor the treaties Bubtaquantlj intend Into b« t«.vn Spain and Othor States." On tho basis of those words we laid claim to Klorida us far oast as tho Pordido, on tho ground that Loutll ana in tht handa >>f Prano« had extended thus far. This.it must be said, was an afterthought on I iv illusion's part, ;>iwl m tho light of all tho ovidonoo must K> oonsidorod an unjust olaim. f Tho right to annex torriton was afterward uphold l>y the Supreme Court Am. Ins. i\>. r. I anter. t Peters. Ml. ADMINISTRATION OF JKFFKRSON 1801 1800. pot mil union, Geography it sol f taught tho inevitable lesson. Moreover, t ho party of striol construction had done tho not, and thus had committed itself to i broad Interpretation of the Constitution and to a liberal conception of tho nation's greatness and destiny. In tho meantime internal politics had not been quiet Just before Adams left ottioo the Federalists had passed an act creating a number of new judgeships and 180?"?^ ^tending tlu> judicial system. The new places thus provided were all tilled with Federalists. It was reported that Adams on the last da\ o\' his admims (ration was busy up to midnight tilling fat otVteos with his own party followers. The Uepuhlieans, upon getting into power, repealed the act which created the new judicial otlices, and tin 1 judges were thus deprived of their positions. it was claimed by tho Federalists that this violated tho Constitution, which provided that judges were to hold ottioo during good behavior. There was great ill fooling on both sides. Out of this same matter arose an interesting law suit. A man named Marburv had been Appointed to Marl.ury vb. ^ o|Vuv , )y A daius, b ul l, ls commission had not Mmliaon. boon delivered. Ho asked the Supremo Court for an order directing Madison, .lolTorson's Secretary of Stale, to give him t ho commission. This the Oourt refused to do on tho ground that the writ ho asked for could not be issued in a suit begun in tin* Supreme Court, booauso tho Constitution did not give the Court such power. This was a very important case, because it declared void a part oi the judicial'}' act o\' I iS',», and it was the first clear assertion by the Supreme Court that it could declare void an net of Congress. The judges of the United states irere at this time all Federalists., It irritated tho Republicans to think that their opponents, although beaten at tin* polls, bad, as it were, retired Into the judicial department, where they might, interpret the Constitution as limy chose. Judge 266 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Pickering, a district judge in New Hampshire, was im- peached and removed from office. The offense charged was drunkenness and unseemly conduct on the The judiciary bench. He seems to have been insane, and in- attacked. ... . capable of performing his duties. More serious attacks were made on the courts. Some of the men on the bench were disagreeable to the Eepublicans because of their narrow partisanship. One of these, Judge Chase, was im- peached by the House, but the Senate did not convict him (1805). No doubt some of Chase's utterances were annoy- ing and out of taste, but the Federalists rightly considered this impeachment as a dangerous interference with the independ- ence of the judiciary. After the failure of the Chase impeachment the Court was never again directly attacked by the political branches of the Government. Jefferson declared, somewhat mournfully, that im- peachment was but a " scarecrow." For many years the Supreme Court remained a Federalist stronghold. John Marshall * was the greatest judge in our history, and this was not simply because he was a great lawyer — other men * Marshall was chief justice from 1801 to 1835. Story was appoint- ed in 1811. Mr. Bryce thus speaks of Marshall: "It is scarcely an ex- aggeration to call him, as an eminent American jurist has done, a second maker of the Constitution. . . . Marshall was, of course, only one among seven judges, but his majestic intellect and the elevation of his character gave him such an ascendancy that he found himself only once in a minority on a constitutional question." (The American Commonwealth, vol. i, p. 374, first American edition.) ADMINISTRATION OF JEFFERSON— 1801-1809. 267 have equaled him in that respect — but because he was a statesman of high order, and, with marvelous ability and insight, comprehended and interpreted the Co h ^rt. Upreme fundamental law of the state in accord with its deepest needs and purposes. Under his influence and guidance the Court was raised to a position of great dignity and power. Judge Story was likewise a great jurist, and did much to establish the dignity of this branch of our Government. The respect which the people came to feel for the Court and their readiness to abide by its decisions was one of the most encouraging and whole- some features of our national life. The Barbary States of North Africa were in these days nests of pirates. The European powers were accustomed to pay them tribute in order that their mer- ar ary war. c h an t yessels might not be molested. The American Government had entered upon the same practice. Cargoes of presents were sent now and again to appease the greed of these scourges of the ocean. Their demands be- came so exorbitant that our Government at last found it better to fight than gently submit to insult and robbery. In 1801 a small fleet was sent to the Mediterranean, which in 1802 was followed by an imposing squadron. The Amer- ican navy won the honor of teaching these robber nations that they must behave themselves, and that blackmailing must cease. As the next election approached it seemed quite plain that the Eepublicans had gained a secure hold on the coun- The New ^ r y* ^e federalists, now confined almost en- England tirely to New England, were greatly disheart- conspiraoy. ened at the prospect. Many seemed to believe that the country was on the brink of destruction because of the misdeeds of the party in power. They believed that democracy would soon cause the overthrow of all respect- able government. Some of the more hot-headed among them actually discussed in secret the advisability of dissolv- 268 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ing the Union. Aaron Burr, whose foul ambition could ever be relied on, was to be used as a tool by these conspira- tors, and one of the first steps was to try to secure his elec- tion as governor of New York. Hamilton, who was bitterly opposed to the whole treasonable scheme, used all his influ- ence against it, and it was due to his opposition, in no small measure, that the intrigue was a failure and Burr was de- feated. Burr thereupon challenged Hamilton ^ Wl to a duel and killed him (1804). The treason- able conspiracy, for the time at least, died out. A few years later there seems to have been a renewal of these whispered plots among some of the more bitter Feder- alist partisans. The great majority of the New England people were never guilty of the crime or folly of planning the destruction of the Union. Hamilton's death startled and shocked the Northern people, and had its effect in doing away with the brutal practice of settling personal disputes upon Hamilton. M the fieM of honor/ , BmT was i n ai c ted for murder and fled the State, followed by the execration of the public. This awful tragedy is the most dramatic epi- sode in the early history of our Union. Hamilton had in reality offered up his life for his country. He had served her well, and perhaps this was not an inappropriate close of a great career. With a wonderful capacity for government and the tasks of civil administration, with a strong grasp of political principles and a profound knowledge of public law, gifted with financial skill of a high order, and han- dling details with as much ease as he comprehended systems, he stands forth as one of the greatest constructive states- men of his generation. Election of In the election of 1804 tne Kepublicans supported Jefferson for President and George Clinton for Vice-President, while the Federalists voted for Charles C. Pinckney and Rufus King. The result of the contest was an overwhelming victory for the Republicans. ADMINISTRATION OF JEFFERSON— 1801-1809. 269 The Federalists cast but fourteen electoral votes, carrying only Connecticut and Delaware, and getting two out of the nine votes of Maryland. Disappointed in his ambitions in the East, Burr now en- tered upon a desperate undertaking in the West (1805-'6). Exactly what his plans were is somewhat un- The Burr certain. Perhaps he hardly knew himself what conspiracy! x he hoped to do. Indeed, at different times and to different persons his plans assumed different aspects. If he was intent upon attacking the Spaniards in Mexico, he also hoped for power and grandeur as the head of a Western empire. Possibly the story is not ill told in a le 'ter written at the time by one who was in the secret : " Kentucky, Ten- nessee, the State of Ohio, the four Territories on the Missis- sippi and Ohio, with part of Georgia and Carolina, are to be bribed with the plunder of the Spanish countries west of us to separate from the Union." It was a wild and foolish plan, such as could be begotten only in the brain of a man who was so devoid of principle and patriotism himself that he could not appreciate such qualities in others. He inter- ested many persons in his conspiracy, chief among whom was General Wilkinson, Governor of the Louisiana Terri- tory. Burr was at length arrested and tried for treason (1807) ; but he was not convicted, because it could not be proved * that he had actually levied war upon the United States. The great West, which had been purchased in 1803, was an unknown wilderness. Some French explorers years before had crossed the plains, but little or oTPike^ 0118 nothing was now known about the country. In the summer of 1805 Lieutenant Pike made a journey of exploration up the Mississippi Eiver. He went as far north as Leech Lake, and notified British and Indian * The Constitution declares that " treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort." (Constitution, art. iii, sec. 3.) 270 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. occupants of the territory that they were under American rule. The next year he went from St. Louis to the West. He penetrated even into the mountains of Colorado and New Mexico, and gave his name to Pike's Peak as a per- manent monument of his expedition. In 1803 Jefferson, eager to ascertain the character of the great dominion he had purchased, sent out Meriwether Lewis and OkA™ ^ william Clark to make explorations in the far West.* They made their way to the head waters of the Missouri, crossed the great divide, and reached the mouth of the Columbia River, and there they saw " the ROUTE OF j Q LEWIS AND CLAKK waves like small mountains rolling out in the ocean." They had reached the goal of American ambition. The journey to the coast and return required more than two years. These Western expeditions were evidences of American enterprise, but they could bring very little immediate result. American skill and independent thought were beginning, however, to show themselves in other fields than exploration. On August 17, 1807, Robert Fulton put his steamboat, the Clermont, to the test. Before The steamboat. * Even before the acquisition of Louisiana Jefferson had taken a practical interest in the exploration of the West. ADMINISTRATION OF JEFFERSON— 1801-1809. 271 a crowd of onlookers the little craft slowly made its way at the rate of four miles an hour against the current of the Hudson Kiver. This is an important date in* our history. In a few years steamboats plied up and down the Western rivers. It was no longer necessary to float down to New Orleans and plod wearily back by land, or to pole the heavy flatboat back hundreds of miles against a stubborn current. The whole West with its network of rivers could now be traversed. Emigrants from the East thus found their way to new homes ; the great resources of the continent were opened. In 1811 a steamboat was built at Pittsburg, and descended to New Orleans. In 1818 the Walk-in-the- Water made a voyage from Buffalo to Detroit.* For the first time the American people were given means to conquer the continent. During Jefferson's second administration the United States was beset with many troubles in its relations with England and France. These two nations, it England and w {\\ k e remembered, had begun to fight in ± ranee at war. ° ° 1793, and the contest was still waging. There had been a troubled peace for about a year after the treaty of Amiens (1802), but now the war was being carried on with renewed vehemence. The English felt that their safety and independence as a nation were at stake. They were desperately in earnest. Napoleon's victorious career on the Continent had given rise to fears that he would es- tablish a European empire and crush all that were not sub- missive to his will. He hated with a profound hatred the little island that stood doggedly in the way of his lawless ambitions. Neither nation was in a mood to consider the rights of a neutral state. Each sought to make the most out of America, the young republic, whose power was not * An interesting account of the steamboat will be found in McMas- ter, History, vol. iv, pp. 397-407 ; or Adams, History, vol. iv, p. 135, and vol. ix, pp. 167-172. 2Y2 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. dreaded, and who seemed by her carrying trade to be the only nation profiting by the war. In 1805 England decided that, contrary to her previous policy, goods from the French colonies transported in American ships could be seized, even though upon American they had been landed in the United States and commerce. reshipped.* This was a serious blow to Amer- ican commerce, which had been thriving in this very trade. In the same year the battle of Trafalgar was won by Nel- son; England was henceforth mistress of the seas. She used her power arrogantly. British men-of-war were actu- ally stationed just outside New York harbor to intercept American merchant vessels, search them, and impress their seamen. The dqmineering spirit of the British command- ers increased the annoyance and mortification arising from such treatment. Hundreds of sailors were pressment. ^ ug ^ n ft s j n gj e y ear t a k en f rom American vessels and forced to fight the" battles of England. The ground of seizure was that these men were Englishmen born, and England's assertion was " Once an Englishman, always an Englishman." It must be noticed that that coun- try was not unique in holding that a man could not give up allegiance to his native land and become the citizen of an- other. Other nations held the same doctrine. But in prac- tice England enforced her claims arrogantly, seized native- born Americans as well as Englishmen, and disdainfully treated American commerce as if the flag at the masthead of a vessel offered no security from insult and annoyance. It was plain enough that, much as the Jeffersonians loved peace, the United States must soon fight in defense of its self-respect. The crowning act of insolence occurred in 1807. The American frigate Chesapeake was overtaken not far from * This subject is very clearly treated in Charming, The United States of America, pp. 174-180. ADMINISTRATION OF JEFFERSON— 1801-1809. 273 Hampton Roads by the British frigate Leopard, and the British commander demanded the surrender of several sea- men serving on the Chesapeake, whom he The Chesapeake claimed to be deserters from the British service. When this demand was not acceded to, the Leopard, at the distance of a hundred and fifty or two hun- dred feet, poured her whole broadside into the American vessel. The Chesapeake was unprepared for action. She received three broadsides without being able to answer in kind, and then struck her flag and surrendered. Three men were killed and eighteen wounded. The alleged deserters were taken aboard the Leopard. Three of them were Americans, one of the three being a negro. Perhaps the most exasperating thing about this whole affair was the presumption shown in attacking a frigate that was, if given a fighting chance, a fair match for the Leopard. But the English did not stoop to consider that an American frigate could fight. Within a few years they learned their mistake. This outrage nearly brought on war at once, and it probably would have been as well if that had been the result, for it was high time that either France or England came to see that the United States could defend herself. And yet one must strongly sympathize with Jefferson and his advisers, who loathed the barbarity of war, and believed that self- interest and common sense should win all nations to peace. Unfortunately, the times were not suited for such humane ideas. Nearly the whole civilized world was rent with strife. Through these years France injured American com- merce and lost no opportunity to gain by plunder. Eng- En li h d l an( l, indeed, made some pretense of having and French legal justification for her conduct ; but Na- decrees. poleon did not seem to need any excuse for ordering the seizure and condemnation of vessels. Jeffer- son, in a moment of exasperation, said that England had become a den of pirates and France a den of thieves. Na- 274 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. poleon and the English Government vied with each other in issuing proclamations that would prevent the free course of neutral trade (1806-'7). England issued two Orders in Council which went to the extent of declaring a blockade of nearly the whole coast of Europe. This was to a great ex- tent a mere " paper blockade " — an announcement without sufficient force to make it effective. The French Emperor issued a decree declaring that the British Islands were in a state of blockade, and later another stating that any ship which submitted to search by an English ship was a lawful prize for the cruisers of France. These were known as the Berlin and the Milan decrees. So here was the dilemma for American shipping — either to refuse to be searched and in consequence to be blown out of the water by an English frigate, or submit to the indignity of search and become lawful prize for a French man-of-war, or be seized in any Continental harbor subject to French power. The situa- tion was not agreeable. Efforts were made to bring England to terms by some means short of war. December, 1806, Monroe and William Pinkney, in London, negotiated a treaty, but The Monroe Jefferson refused to accept it as satisfactory. He ought either to have accepted it or to have prepared seriously for war. He did neither. At the end of 1807 Congress, on his recommendation, passed an em- bargo act, closing all the American harbors to e em argo. commerce# This act was in force for over a year. It solved none of the difficulties under which the country was suffering. The vessels lay idle at the wharves, men were thrown out of work, foreign trade was abruptly stopped, and home trade was checked. The products of the Southern plantations could not be trans- ported. The interests of all sections of the country were injured. Perhaps New England was hurt least of all, because the inventive Yankee now turned his attention to manufacturing, and made money, because for- ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 275 eign goods could not be imported. The Northern people were, however, bitterly incensed against the policy which seemed, under the guise of protection, to be destroying their commerce. England was doubtless somewhat in- jured, but not enough to induce her to revoke her orders. Napoleon confiscated American vessels in the ports of Europe, claiming that he was in all kindness ?° n " enforcing the embargo. Thus the plan broke intercourse. ° ° r . down. The embargo act was repealed m the spring of 1809, and the non-intercourse act passed, making all commerce with Great Britain, France, and their depend- encies illegal, but restoring trade with the rest of the world. In 1808 the Federalists once more presented Charles C. Pinckney and Rufus King as their candidates. The party was stronger than four years before, carrying this time all of New England except Vermont, and winning some votes at the South ; but the Republicans were easy victors. James Madison and George Clinton were elected by a large majority. Refekences. Short accounts: Hart, Formation of the Union, Chapter IX; Walker, The Making of the Nation, Chapters IX and X ; Channing, The United States of America, Chapter VI; Morse, Thomas Jef- ferson, pp. 209-320; Schouler, Thomas Jefferson, pp. 198-224; Stevens, Albert Gallatin, pp. 176-289; Stanwood, History of the Presidency, Chapters VI and VII. Longer accounts : Schouler, History, Volume II, Chapters V-VII; McMaster, History, Volume II, Chapter XIII, Volume III, Chapters XIV-XX; Henry Adams, History, Volumes I-IV. THE ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON— 1809-1817. When Madison became President he had already had wide political experience. He had been a member of the Congress of the Confederation and a member of the Federal convention that formed the Constitution (1787), where his 276 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. work was so great that he justly won the title of "Father of the Constitution." During Washington's administration he was a leader of the opposition party. He was Jefferson's Secretary of State through both terms. He was a man of much political wisdom and of honest, sincere devotion to his country ; but, like Jefferson, he was at times not so vigorous an ad- ministrator as seemed to be needed in these trying days. He retained some of the members of Jefferson's Cabinet, the ablest of whom was Albert Gallatin, one of the greatest Secretaries of the Treasury m our history. In 1811 James Monroe became Secretary of State. Madison's administration began brilliantly. An agree- ment was reached with the English minister, Erskine, resi- dent at Washington, that the Orders in Coun- The Erskine G n gh^i^ De withdrawn. The country was agreementi elated, but doomed to a speedy disappointment. The English Government repudiated the action of its min- ister, and Madison was even accused of having taken advan- tage of Erskine's youth and inexperience to cajole him into an unauthorized agreement. Erskine was recalled. Jack- son, his successor, was so impertinent in his insinuations of bad faith on Madison's part that he was informed that our Government would receive no communication from him ; and so the situation was worse than it had been for some years. Matters were now indeed hurrying to a catastrophe. France and England were so utterly brutal in their attacks upon American commerce that they both de- Napoleon's served a whipping ; but as it was impossible to treachery. l r ° ' r fight both, one of them should have been chosen for an ally without more delay. In 1810 (March 23) Napoleon issued what is known as his Rambouillet de- ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. <277 cree, ordering the seizure of all American vessels that, since the non-intercourse policy was adopted, had entered the ports of France or of any other country occupied by the French. As a result, scores of vessels worth many thou- sands of dollars were confiscated, and the money was poured into Napoleon's treasury. It was a shameful piece of thiev- ing, but by no means the only one of which Napoleon was guilty. However objectionable war might be, American property might better be used in defense of American rights than stolen by the Emperor of the French to help on his career of glory and carnage. Soon after the issue of this infamous decree the Ameri- can Congress passed a bill known as the Macon Bill No. 2 America gives ( Ma ^ *' 1810 )* This Prided that non-inter- Napoleon an course should be abandoned, but that if either opportunity. f the offending nations should " so revoke or modify her edicts as that they shall cease to violate the neutral commerce of the United States," then intercourse with the other nation should be prohibited. Napoleon, cunning and dishonest, was ready to take the advantage thus offered him. The French Minister of Foreign Affairs wrote to the American minister in Paris : " His Majesty loves the Americans. Their property and their commerce are within the scope of his policy." This surprising an- nouncement was coupled with the statement that after No- vember first the obnoxious decrees should not be enforced, but that, on the other hand, England must do likewise and renounce her "new principle of blockade," or that the United States should " cause their rights to be respected by the English." * So Napoleon, by taking advantage of * The important clause in the letter is as follows : " I am author- ized to declare to you that the decrees of Berlin and Milan are revoked, and that after November 1st they will cease to have effect, on the under- standing that, in consequence of this declaration, . . . the United States . . . shall cause their rights to be respected by the English." It is plain that by accepting such a revocation Madison in a way bound the 278 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the Macon Bill No. 2, by a little distortion of its language entered, as it were, into a contract with the United States. He is said to have remarked a few days later, He takes u j^ j g ev id en t that we commit ourselves to noth- advantage of it. . . mg. As a matter of fact, he continued to confiscate the American cargoes and vessels as before. Late in 1810, however, Madison accepted this statement of the French Government, and on March 2, 1811, Congress passed an act re-establishing non-intercourse with Great Britain. During 1811 the sky did not brighten much. The United States was still spitefully ill-used by the combatants and still restlessly held its peace. England The situation now g ere( i to make reparation for the Chesa- in 1811. peake outrage, and the offer was accepted ; but this did not seem to heal many wounds or bring much con- solation. About the same time a similar affair occurred between the English man-of-war Little Belt and the Ameri- can frigate President, but this time the English man-of-war was shattered and crippled. This action caused a good deal of excitement and some elation in America. England had not yet given up her claim of right to search American vessels and impress seamen for her service. Doubtless some of these men were deserters from British vessels, and Eng- land needed every man in the great death struggle with France, but the method of using her power was exasperat- ing in the extreme. For some time the Indians on the Western frontier had been in a restless and dangerous mood. Tecumthe — or Tecumseh, as he is generally called — a Shawnee chief of great ability, had entered upon the task of organizing the red men into a vast confederacy to resist the encroach- ments of the whites. The truth seems to be that, although the English did not encourage hostilities, they had made United States to compel England to cease her violations of our com- merce. ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 279 preparations to use the Indians in case of war. With Te- cumseh, in his effort to arouse the braves, was his brother the " Prophet," who, not so wise or cautious as Tippecanoe Tecumseh, brought on a war with the Ameri- November, cans in the autumn of 1811. The white troops 1811 were commanded by General William Henry Harrison, and they defeated the Indians in the battle of Tippecanoe, fought (November 7th) near where the creek of that name falls into the Wabash, in the western part of the State of Indiana. Tecumseh joined the English army the next year. At this time a new element showed itself in the Repub- lican party. Younger men from the South and West came to positions of prominence in Congress. Henry Eepublicans. Cla ^' of Kentuck y> a J omi S m an barely thirty- four years of age, a representative of the new West, was chosen Speaker of the House. He was eloquent, fervid, and full of zeal for American dignity and honor. He represented a new generation in politics, a generation which had arisen since the Revolution, and had none of the old feeling of colonialism or of inferiority to foreign powers, a generation of men that was intensely American. He represented, too, the ambitious, impetuous West, where it was customary to resent insult on the moment and to fight lustily on occasion. So Henry Clay and those who thought with him could not be expected to dally with fruitless negotiations. John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, now entered Congress for the first time. He was not yet thirty years old. He was of marked ability, and had a keen, logi- cal mind. Though not so eloquent as Clay, he was a forci- ble, effective speaker. Other men somewhat less noted, but of spirit and ability, began to take an active part in the national councils.* This young and vigorous element of * Daniel Webster entered Congress in 1813. Clay, with his usual sagacity, put Webster at once on the Foreign Affairs Committee. From 19 280 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the party prepared for war. Clay organized the committees of the House on an aggressive basis, giving to Calhoun a place on the Committee of Foreign Affairs, where his ability and vigor made him its leading member and the director of its policy. The election of Clay to the speakership is of moment for several reasons, not only, as we have said, because he represented a new, virile element in the party Clay the first an( j came f rom a new energetic section of the great Speaker. ° country, but also because he was the first Speaker to make use of his position materially to influence legislation. He was therefore the first of modern speakers ; for from that time the power of the Speaker's office devel- oped so strongly along the lines that Clay marked out that it can now be justly called at least second in importance and power in the Government. " The natural leader of that moment was Henry Clay," says a recent writer. " That the place he was given from which to lead the country was the chair of the House of Eepresentatives is a fact of great significance. . . . Henry Clay was elected more than any other Speaker as leader of the House."* Randolph summed up the situation in 1812 in a telling question : "After you have raised these 25,000 men, shall we form a committee of public safety to carry on the war, or shall we depute the power to the Speaker ? Shall we declare that, the Executive not being capable of discerning the public interest or not having spirit enough to pursue it, we have appointed a committee to take the President and Cabinet into custody ? " The question is, like many of Randolph's utterances, extravagant, but its irony discloses an interest- ing situation. For twenty years France had been treating the United this time on for forty years ho was a conspicuous figure in American life.' * Follett, The Speaker of the House of Representatives, p. 71. ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809^1817. 281 States shamefully. But no French frigate had impressed American seamen on the ground that they were French- men, while England resorted boldly to this Warmth practice and replenished her crews from the crews of our merchantmen. Moreover, Napo- leon had taken the opportunity offered by the Macon Bill No. 2, and by cunning and deceit had put the United States at disadvantage. Added to this was the fact that the Eepublicans, in control of the Government, were fa- vorable to France and opposed to England. Coming, as many of them did, from the South and West, they did not fear the ravages of the English navy, because they had no commerce to be destroyed. So the United States finally drifted into a war with England and took up arms as the ally of Napoleon. Could there be stranger com- panions in arms than Napoleon Bonaparte and James Madison ? The young, ambitious Eepublicans, who were largely responsible for the war, hoped not only to make England respect our flag, but to seize Canada and to dictate, as they said, an honorable peace at Halifax. They were filled with zeal for showing American prowess. So Madison finally yielded to the impulses of a large portion of his party— timidly and reluctantly yielded, one must believe, for to fight at last seemed like casting a slur on the years through which he and Jefferson had struggled to avoid war, and had sought to find some peaceable method of coercion. Avoidance of war seemed now impossible, and Madison yielded to the inevitable. June 1, 1812, he sent to Congress a message recounting British aggressions on our rights. On the 18th Congress declared war. On the 16th of this same month the English ministry announced in the House of Commons that the Orders in Council were to be with- drawn, and a few days later they were formally revoked. Had there been an Atlantic cable in 1812 it is quite possible that the war would have been averted. 282 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The combatants The United States at the outbreak of the war had a population of about eight millions. Great Britain and Ireland had a population of nearly twenty mil- lions, and had for a long time been expending blood and treasure lavishly in the mortal con- flict with Napoleon. The land was nerved to great effort. The United States entered the conflict divided. There was not a universal sentiment that war was The United necessary. The North and East were the sec- states divided. J tions which had suffered the most from the depredations inflicted by England on American commerce, yet many of the people of New England preferred to bear the ills they had rather than to fly to the heavier if more l.huronV honorable losses of war. If the choice must be made, they preferred a war with France, in order that Eng- land might be an ally and not an enemy, and that her fleet might not harry their coast and destroy their commerce. But if they must fight against the mistress of the seas, they desired that the navy be strengthened and given every help. Because of these different opinions the country was weaker than it should have been, and suffered disasters that might have been avoided had there been a common front against a common enemy. It was apparent at the outset that the Northwest must be protected. Some time before the formal declaration of war General William Hull was sent with a force from Ohio ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 283 to the defense of Detroit. War was declared while he was on the way. The British were posted at Maiden. Hull, after some disasters, arrived in Detroit, and British gam g0(m p asge( j over i n t Canada, pompously call- ing upon the Canadians to seek freedom from oppression under the American standard. Instead of push- ing on to Maiden, he delayed, crossed back to Detroit, and there called upon the Government for assistance. His position was soon perilous. His lines of communication with Ohio were broken, and on August 16th he surren- Detroit dered Detroit to the enemy. Mackinaw had surrendered, already fallen, and the Indians soon* destroyed August, 1812. ^ ort D ear b orilj where Chicago now stands. Michigan was in the hands of the enemy, and the whole Northwest in dan- ger. The Indians, under the leadership of Tecum- seh, a warrior of rare vig- or and ability, aided the British in these Western campaigns. The people of Michigan Territory re- mained in terror of the Indians throughout the war. Little was done in the East during this first sum- mer of the war. The strategic points were Ni- agara and the Champlain region. At the former place a battle was fought, resulting in defeat for the Americans.* The whole • campaign of 1812 was a dismal failure, as far as the land battles were concerned. War on Niagara Frontier. Battle of Queenstown, October 13th. 284 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. On the sea, however, matters had taken a different turn. Our navy was small, but some of the vessels were good, and officers and men had received excellent train- Scean 011 in S in seamansni P- The United States frigate Constitution, under command of Commodore Isaac Hull, fought and captured the English frigate Guer- riere. " In less than thirty minutes from the time we got alongside of the enemy," reported Hull, " she was left with- out a spar standing, and the hull cut to pieces in such a The Constitution. (From an old cut.) manner as to make it difficult to keep her above water." She was so badly damaged that the victors destroyed her. This was a momentous victory. "It raised the United States in one half hour to the rank of a first-class power." * Other victories followed quickly, and the people of the whole country were jubilant, especially the New England- * Henry Adams, History of the United States, vol. vi, p. 375. ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 285 ers, who had long boasted that " the wooden walls of Co- lumbia" would prove the nation's best defense. It was apparent that Great Britain had found a rival on the ocean, and this at a time when a succession of victories in the Napoleonic wars had made England the mistress of the seas. America could not equal the enemy in strength, for the English navy was very large and powerful ; but when vessels met on anything like even terms the Americans showed themselves at least the equals of the English in gunnery, and often their superiors in seamanship. During this summer the presidential election occurred. We have already noticed the fact that there was oppo- sition to the war, and to Madison, who had final- ^T8 e i2 Cti0n ty adyised **• The Democratic candidates were Madison and Elbridge Gerry, of Massachusetts. The Federalists supported De Witt Clinton, of New York, and Jared Ingersoll, of Pennsylvania. In spite of the inef- ficient way in which the war was being conducted the Ad- ministration was sustained by the popular and the electoral vote. Madison received one hundred and twenty-eight elec- toral votes, Clinton eighty-nine. The campaign of 1813 began in discouragement. In January a company of brave Kentuckians, who had volun- teered to retake Detroit and to wipe out the disgrace of Hull's surrender, were attacked and beaten at the River Raisin, in Michigan. The Americans were under General Winchester, the British under Proctor. The Indians in- flicted horrible brutalities on the wounded. In spite of this first failure to drive the British from Michigan the American army finally achieved success. General Harrison, the hero of Tippecanoe, now commanded in the West. He held his own in northern Ohio,* and was * Fort Meigs, on the Maumee, commanded by Harrison, was at- tacked by the British in May. It was bravely defended, and the enemy was forced to retreat. This defeat cost the British the confidence and support of many of the Indians. 280 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ready when opportunity offered to proceed to Detroit. To do this with safety Lake Erie should be in our control. B ttl fLk ^ ne °^ ^ e great battles of the war took place Erie, September near the western end of that lake, between an 14, 1813, American fleet under the command of Com- modore Perry and a British fleet commanded by Com- modore Barclay. The battle was picturesque. Perry had to leave his flagship, the Lawrence, during the engage- ment and row to another vessel. He finally conquered, and his announcement of the victory has become famous : " We have met ^ the enemy, and they are ours. Two ships, two brigs, N Buffaloe or V> ^'^ T ^ w Amsterdam^ War on Northern Frontier. one schooner, and one sloop." Harrison, with the aid of the fleet, passed to Detroit. Thence he followed the retreating army into Canada and defeated them at the bat- TWs! 16 tie of the Thames, October 5, 1813. Tecumseh Octobers, was killed. The Indians remained hostile in the 1813 ' Northwest, but the British army was crushed, and no more open fighting took place in that region. In the East as well as the West there were some victories for the Americans. General Dearborn decided upon an ex- pedition to York (now Toronto). A successful attack Avas made upon the place and it was taken and destroyed. ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 287 Later in the summer, Fort George, on the Niagara Eiver, passed into our hands, the result of a fierce assault led by Lieutenant-Colonel Winfield Scott, who dis- Battles in the tinguished himself for gallantry. Late in the autumn an unsuccessful expedition was set on foot against Montreal, and in December Fort George was abandoned. In other words, at the end of the second year of the war the situation on the northern boundary, except at Detroit, was much as at the beginning. The campaign had been managed with no energy and with little show of gen- eralship. On the ocean there were victories and defeats for the ambitious little navy. In February of this same year the American Hornet fought and sunk the Pea- cock, the British brig Pelican captured the Argus, and the American brig Enterprise defeated the Boxer. The most noteworthy contest was that between the American frigate Chesapeake and the Shannon. The former was commanded by Captain Lawrence, who was anxious to meet the Shannon and accept a challenge pub- licly offered by the English commander. The engagement lasted but a few minutes, ending in a complete victory for the English vessel. Captain Lawrence was killed. The event caused great sadness in America, but the rejoicing in England was substantial proof that the defeat of a Yankee frigate was no longer considered a foregone conclusion. During the summer of this year and the winter of 1814 there was some sharp fighting with the Indians in the South. General Jackson was finally victorious Southwest. over tnem in a °loody battle at the Horseshoe, a great bend in the Tallapoosa River. This campaign under Jackson's energetic leadership destroyed the power of the Indians in that section. Many of them fled into Spanish territory, and in later years caused the United States much trouble. The year 1814 was hardly more cheering than the pre- 288 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. vious one. General Wilkinson, in the Champlain region, began the campaign by an example of inefficiency. The summer bade fair to be disastrous. English S2J?J5A vessels hovered along our coast, and the appar- ent defeat of Napoleon in Europe gave opportu- nity to send over to America some of the veterans of that long contest. On the Niagara frontier our troops under General Brown, an able man, fought with great gallantry. The battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane were victories for the Americans, where Scott again dis- tinguished himself. These successful en- gagements gave us a slight hold on Canada, but in the autumn the American troops were withdrawn to the New York side of the river, and the year ended with nothing accom- plished in that quar- ter. A victory on Lake Champlain gave some encourage- ment. The British with a large force were intending an invasion of New York by the old route, by the Champlain, wav °^ Lake Champlain ; but the success de- pended on the support of the accompanying fleet. All hope of assistance from this quarter was soon destroyed. An American fleet under Commodore Macdonough met and defeated the British off Plattsburg in a desperate and hard-fought contest. During the summer the eastern coast was much harried by the enemy. In August they appeared in the vicinity of Washington, finally taking that city, after some feeble efforts at resistance. They burned the Capitol as a " har- 1814. ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 289 bor of Yankee democracy." The President's house and some of the other public buildings were likewise destroyed. _ , . This was said to be in retaliation for American Washington taken, Augnst, acts in Canada. The Americans had burned 1814, the Government buildings at York ; but this had been done by some private soldiers acting without authority, and was denounced by the press of the whole country and disowned by the commanding general. The English people, too, regretted the burning of the buildings Al.'xa.iclria-iy Upper • Alexandria^ Marl bor6 Ji..Ft.W;ishi.i-to: ?%r- BALTIMORE,^,/ A* Jp. ^^North Pit 1 K *4 m h V?' hrt ^ « *%J^& h 'ICINITY OF A ^ > ^O 1 5 V \ fc> ° C\ A BALTIMORE & WASHINGTON in 1812 290 HrSTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. at Washington. One paper said : " The Cossacks spared Paris, but we spared not the Capitol of America." The naval events of this year were not so interesting as those of the preceding year. The sloop Essex, after an extended cruise in the Pacific protecting American whalers and capturing those of the enemy, was destroyed by two English ships after a fierce and stubborn contest near Valparaiso. Other battles served to keep up the reputation of the navy. But Naval events 1814. ^SANDWICH IS NUKAHIVA7\ i terra DEL FUEGO ",'CAPE HORN Cruise of the Essex. by this time the English fleet on our coast was so large that it actually blockaded the principal ports of the United States. In the latter part of this year the British prepared to make an attack upon New Orleans. They sent ten thousand veteran troops for the purpose. General Jackson was in command of the United States forces in that quarter. After some skirmishing, the enemy made a grand assault ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 291 upon the American defenses, January 8th. Our forces were well protected, and the attack was disastrous to the English. Battle of New Their loss was very great; their commander Orleans, Jan- was killed, and some two thousand of the nary, 1815. troops were either killed, wounded, or missing. The Americans lost about seventy. This battle was fought two weeks after peace had been concluded at Ghent. The treaty ending the war (December 24, 1814) settled none of the questions in dis- Qhen? ° f pute. But the war was nevertheless not with- out results. Our little navy had shown its mettle. American privateers had done immense damage to British shipping. Impressment was now a thing of the past, and it needed no clause in a treaty to make it so. America had beyond question dignified itself among the nations. And yet one can not help regretting that the war could not have been avoided. It was waged by one free nation against another free nation, and it aided Napoleon, the enemy of free institutions everywhere. It was waged by two peoples whose real interests were the same, and whose mission in history has been the development of lib- erty and civilization. During the war there had been great dissatisfaction in New England. In the latter part of 1814 a convention of delegates from these States met at Hartford. Hartford j^. wag corn monly supposed that it would plot convention. J Sjr ... r a disruption of the Union ; but it simply drew up remonstrances, and proposed amendments to the Con- stitution intended to protect a minority of the States against unwelcome Federal legislation. The doctrines laid down were similar to those of the Virginia resolution of 1798 : " In cases of deliberate, dangerous, and palpable in- fractions of the Constitution, affecting the sovereignty of the State and liberties of the people, it is not only the right but the duty of such a State to interpose its authority for their protection. . . . States which have no common 292 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. umpire must be their own judges and execute their own decisions." Peace came before anything was accomplished. The Federal party, whose stronghold was Xew England, was brought into discredit and disrepute because it had not entered heartily into the war. The war did much to nationalize the country. State selfishness and pride had in the minds of the majority of the people given place to a broader love of country. The New Englander had grumbled and indulged in perpetual fault-finding, and his opposition had given the Government great anxiety and much trouble ; but his cheek, too, flushed with pride as he thought of the victories of the Yankee ships upon the sea, and remembered how Yankee seamanship had more than once excelled the skill of the British tars. And so when the war ended there was prospect for a more firmly united nation than ever before. The monetary affairs of the country were in great con- fusion during the war, and at its close the task of bringing about order and system was a difficult one.* ba^ Wnati(mal Albert Gallatin, the great Secretary of the Treasury, who had served from the beginning, of Jefferson's administration, had gone abroad as one of the envoys to make the peace of Ghent, and had given up the secretaryship. Alexander J. Dallas now held the position, a man of good ability, especially in financial matters. * " Among the severest trials of the war was the deficiency of ade- quate funds to sustain it, and the progressive degradation of the na- tional credit. The currency soon fell into frightful disorder. Banks with fictitious capital swarmed through the land and spunged the purse of the people, often for the use of their own money with more than usurious extortion. . . . The Treasury of the Union was replenished only with countless millions of silken tatters and unavailable funds-, chartered corporations, bankrupt, . . . passed off upon the Govern, ment of their country, at par, their rags — purchasable, in open market, at depreciations of thirty and forty per cent." (John Quincy Adams The Lives of Madison and Monroe, p. 272.) ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 293 Just before entering upon the war Congress had refused (1811) to recharter the National Bank, whose charter then expired. State banks had as a consequence increased greatly in numbers, many of them without more than the merest show of capital. The value of their notes was a matter of conjecture. Most of the banks were utterly un- able to do more than put out promises to pay, for specie they did not have. In 1816 a new Bank bill was introduced into Congress and passed. The charter was for twenty years, the capital $35,000,000, of which one fifth was to be owned by the United States. One fifth of the directors were to be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Soon after the close of the war there came a demand for the protection of American manufactures. The long period of war in Europe, the embargo, and the non-intercourse policy had resulted in the en- couragement of manufacturing in this country, because the products of France and England were not brought into our ports and into competition with the home product. After the war English goods were thrown upon our market in large quantities. To protect manufacturers and to make the country independent of foreign countries, a tariff law was passed (1816). This was in essence a protective tariff, and to all practical purposes the first of that kind. It was supported by the South and West. Its strongest opponent was Daniel Webster, representing the commercial interests of New England. In the course of a few years the South became opposed to a tariff and the North in favor of it.* For thirty years and more there had been a continuous movement of population from the States of the Atlantic seaboard into the Mississippi Valley. At the close of the * The time was not far distant when many men at the South would echo the words that John Randolph, of Virginia, used in the debate upon this tariff bill : " Upon whom bears the duty on coarse woolens and blankets, on salt and the necessaries of life ? Upon poor men and slave owners." 294 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. war this movement assumed larger proportions than before ; thousands and tens of thousands made their way into the West, and yet almost nothing had been done to Internal connect the Eastern States with the new corn- improvements. monwealths that were growing up beyond the mountains. As early as 1806 money had been appropriated for what was known as the Cumberland Koad. This was to run from the Potomac over the mountains and into the West. Something over a hundred miles of road had been built by 1816, when Calhoun introduced a bill to use the proceeds which the Government received from the bank for internal improvements. This bill was vetoed by Madi- son on the ground of unconstitutionality. Some years later Monroe vetoed the so-called Cumberland Koad bill for the same reason. This looked as if a policy of strict con- struction was to be again taken up. But this was almost the only sign of a wish to return to the narrow policy the Eepublicans had favored twenty years before. Experience and the war had done much to crush out a timorous dread of governmental power. It is interesting to notice that Calhoun and some other Southern men were then strong advocates of such internal improvements and of a broad national policy. " Let it not be forgotten," said Calhoun, " let it be forever kept in mind, that the extent of our re- public exposes us to the greatest of all calamities, next to the loss of liberty, and even to that in consequence — dis- union." Because of the part the extreme Federalists had taken during the war the party was now in disfavor. Many per- sons who had themselves been very critical while the war was in progress, now found no fault with the Administra- ^ tion. It was not uncertain who would succeed presidential to the presidency. Monroe had been promi- election, 1816. nent f or vears j n various places of public trust. He had been an efficient Secretary of State during Madison's administration, and for a time, when the dangers ADMINISTRATION OF MADISON— 1809-1817. 295 and disasters had been the greatest, had been Secretary of War also. He had shown considerable capacity and vigor, and was almost the only person in high office that had come out of the war with distinction. The result of the election was the choice of Monroe for President, and Daniel D. Tomkins for Vice-President. The Federalists cast their ballots for Rufus King, but did not unite on a Vice-Presi- dent. They carried only Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Delaware. References. Short accounts: Hart, The Formation of the Union, pp. 199-226 ; Walker, The Making of the Nation, pp. 214-275 ; Gay, James Madi- son, pp. 282-321 ; Gilman, James Monroe, Chapter V ; Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume I, pp. 68-126 ; Higginson, Larger History, Chapter XV. Longer accounts : Schouler, History, Volume II, pp. 279-462 ; Hildreth, History, Volume VI, pp. 149-618 ; McMaster, History, Volume III, pp. 339-560, Volume IV, pp. 1-419 ; Adams, History, Volumes V-IX ; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume IV, pp. 180-247 ; Roosevelt, Naval War of 1812 ; Maclay, United States Navy. ■ Mil! ll fii rf P IN r " House in Ghent where the Commissioners Met to Agree uton the Treaty of Peace that Ended the War of 1812. CHAPTER XIII. Political and Industrial Reorganization— 1817-1829. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MONROE— 1817-1825. Monroe's Cabinet contained a number of strong men. John Quincy Adams was appointed Secretary of State; William II. Crawford, of Georgia, Secretary of The era of the Treasury; and J. C. Calhoun, Secretary of good feeling, J . J War. The eight years of Monroe s presidency were not devoid of interesting problems and of occurrences that mean a good deal in our history. But the old party disputes that were carried on with so much bitterness were now for a time laid aside. The country enjoyed an " era of good feeling." A journey through the Northern States which was made by Monroe soon after his inauguration did something to bring about the change. " The visit of the President," said a newspaper of the time, " seems to have allayed the storms of party. People now meet in the same room who a short while since would scarcely pass each other along the street." There were many reasons for this era of good will. The times had changed. The w;ir bad bad in reality a na- tionalizing effect. The great questions of foreign policy 296 ADMINISTRATION OF MONROE— 1817-1825. 297 which had divided the people since the coming of Genet were now no more. The changed commercial conditions bade people forget their party strivings and Seasons for enter lustily into the tasks of business life. The good ieelingi J new West, opening up with all its possibilities of wealth and empire, filled men's minds with hopes of a great material destiny for their country. Moreover, there was nothing left for the Federalists, disgraced by the name of the Hartford convention. The Eepublicans were now construing the Constitution as broadly as did the Federal- ists in the days of Hamilton.* One of the most noticeable facts of the period was the development of the West and Southwest. There had long been an intermittent stream of migration over Migration to the moun t a ins from the seacoast States. When- the West. . ever times were bad or the ocean commerce was seriously interfered with, then many turned their faces westward and sought new homes. Ohio was admitted to the Union in 1803. Louisiana, in 1812. Between 1810 and 1816 the population of Ohio increased from two hundred and thirty thousand to about four hundred thousand. In the same period the number of people in Indiana leaped from twenty-four thousand to nearly three times that num- ber. The Southern seacoast States poured their citizens into Illinois and the Territories of the Southwest. Many of the Eastern States were almost stationary in population. North Carolina complained that within twenty-five years two hundred thousand people had removed to the waters of the Ohio and Tennessee. Virginia, " the Old Dominion," might almost be said to be the mother of States as well as of Presidents. " While many other States " reported a com- mittee of her legislature, " have been advancing in wealth and numbers with a rapidity which has astonished them- *" There should be now no difference of parties," said Josiah Quincy, " for the Republicans have out-federalized Federalism." See Schouler, vol. ii, p. 462, 298 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ^|^l|Olf)#!l l |ij , J i L l l ll 'i')i Cincinnati in 1810. (From an old print.) selves, the ancient Dominion and elder sister of the Union has remained stationary. . . . The fathers of the land are gone where another outlet to the ocean turns their thoughts from the place of their nativity, and their affections from the haunts of their youth." Great as was this westward movement during the years just mentioned, after 1816 it was even greater. The tide a . .„ of migration to the new West became a mighty Significance & ° J of westward current. Steamboats plied up and down the expansion. Western rivers. Prosperous towns sprang up, and big plantations stretched along the rich river bottoms of the Southern States. In 181G Indiana came into the Union; Mississippi (1817), Illinois (1818), Alabama (1819), Missouri (1821), followed in quick succession. The United States had entered fairly upon a new stage of its existence. In 1775 there were thirteen colonies scattered along the Atlantic coast ; their traditions were colonial ; they looked eastward across three thousand miles of water to a mother country whose leading strings they were ready to cast aside. Forty years later only four States had been formed ADMINISTRATION OF MONROE— 1817-1825. 299 west of the mountains ; the people still looked toward Europe, and their polities were largely shaped by foreign conditions. In 1820 there were eight States in the Missis- sippi Valley, and everywhere a Western vigor and energy showed themselves. The center of population in 1789 was thirty miles east of Baltimore. It had now moved west- ward over one hundred and twenty miles, even beyond the Shenandoah. No longer was the United States a row of seacoast republics, but an empire stretching away to the interior, giving visions of continental dominion. In the great valley won from France in the momentous conflict seventy-five years before, the American people were now waxing strong, regardless and forgetful of old colonial de- pendence, and heedless of European politics. In considering this Western expansion three things are noticeable that acted as means or causes : (1) The steam- boat was an important factor. Without it the populating of the West must have been a slower process. (2) More- Western Extension of Population in 1820. [The western boundaries of Missouri and Arkansas are given as they were at a later date.] 300 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. over, just at this time, at the elose of the great European wars, emigration from Europe to Ameriea set vigorously in and added to the population of the coun- Eeasons for this trv# (3) More interesting, and perhaps in the long run more important, than either of these things is the fact that the fertile fields of the Southwest at- tracted thousands of slave owners from the seaboard States who desired to raise cotton from the virgin soil. To understand the meaning of this Southern movement, we must remember that cotton raising was comparatively a recent industry for the South. Some cotton SWy and the fc^ been raised i n colonial times; but it took cotton gin, 7 so long to pick the seeds from the fiber that it was not a very remunerative crop. In 1793 Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin. With this ingenious machine one slave could do as much work in cleaning the cotton as hundreds of slaves had done before. About the same time the great inventions in England for spinning and weaving by machinery gave a strong stimulus to such industry. Cotton raising now became very profitable. Negroes made good field hands, and slaves rose in value. A migration set in to the new regions of the Southwest, where the fertile lands were soon transformed into wide plantations. Thus it was, that just as the Northwest was filling with men who worked for themselves and earned their bread by the sweat of their own brows, the southern part of the Mississippi Valley was given over to slavery. When we examine the commercial and business con- dition of the nation during this period we see that it was a period of transition, a period of readjustment, fra^sitfonf For alm <>st the fourth of a century there had been war in Europe, and American trade had grown up largely on what we may call a war basis. Now there was peace ; and men, that had been accustomed to the more reckless ventures of trade in time of war, found they must learn new lessons of cool calculation and unlearn ADMINISTRATION OF MONROE— 1817-1825. 301 much thitt they had learned before. On the whole, the people showed energy mid skill in adapting themselves to the new conditions. Men entered joyously upon the pursuits of peace, and for a year or two after the war there seemed to be pros- perity. What are commonly called flush times prevailed. Men were led into speculation and were tempted to run wildly into debt. Such conduct always brings its reward in disaster. Only gradually could the losses of the war be repaired, or business be established on a fair basis and lasting prosperity secured. Every hasty step simply added to the trouble that was to come. Before an era of sound prosperity commenced, the country passed through the hardships of a commercial panic. For this there were many reasons. The and their currency in common use in many parts of the nlfiflJfulT'fl land was of fluctuating and uncertain value, or of no value at all ; much of it consisted of notes issued by banks acting under State charters without sufficient capital, often with scarcely any specie or real money of any kind. English manufacturers by sundry devices avoided the tariff laws and flooded the Eastern cities with their goods. Other causes co-operated to bring confusion and uncertainty in business. Great depression was the in- evitable result. " The years 1819 and 1820," says Benton in his Thirty Years' View, " were a period of gloom and agony. No money, either gold or silver ; no paper con- vertible into specie ; no measure or standard of value left remaining. . . . No price for property or produce. No employment for industry, no demand for labor, no sale for the product of the farm, no sound of the hammer, but that of the auctioneer knocking down property." Benton knew the West, and perhaps he did not exaggerate the conditions. This was the first of those severe commer- cial panics which have during this century swept over our country. 302 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The United States Bank was charged by many with "bringing on tho hard times, for which it seems indeed to have been in part responsible.* Some of the States The National tried to prevent it from establishing branch banks within their limits. In the case of McCulloch vs. Maryland, the Supreme Court decided that the bank was constitutional, and that a State could not tax the bank, as it was an agent of the United States. For some time, however, in the West the establishment of branch banks was resisted, and in Ohio the bank was for a while practically an outlaw. From the beginning of the century our Government had been desirous of getting possession of the Floridas. It will be remembered that West Florida had been Acquisition of c ] a i me ^ as par t f the Louisiana purchase, on Florida. r , ..*«■■.. L i . • the ground that the original Louisiana — that is to say, " Louisiana as it was in the hands of France " — had extended to the east of Mobile Bay, and even to the Per- dido. In 1810 f a considerable portion of this territory was occupied by American troops, and in the early part of 1813 Mobile was taken and a fort built at the entrance of the harbor. But for some years after this the rest of the Floridas remained in the hands of Spain. In 1818 General Andrew Jackson, engaged in fighting the Seminole Indians who were then at war, entered Florida and hanged two Englishmen, on the ground that they had given aid and comfort to the Seminoles and were but " outlaws and pirates." This showed that the province was not in reality governed by Spain, but was at our mercy. In 1819 Spain ceded Florida to the United States. In payment, the United States agreed to pay the claims of our citizens * See McMaster, History, vol. iv, p. 495. The succeeding pages of this chapter in McMaster are very readable and instructive. f A proclamation was issued by Madison in 1810 ordering the seiz- ure and possession of the land " south of the Mississippi Territory and eastward of the Mississippi, and extending to the river Perdido." ADMINISTRATION OF MONROE— 1817-1825. 303 against Spain to the amount of $5,000,000. The western boundary of Louisiana was at the same time determined ; we surrendered any claim we might have to the Texas country, and Spain gave up all claim to land north of the forty-second parallel.* The treaty was not ratified by Spain till 1821. For nearly a generation after the adoption of the Con- stitution there was no great contest on the subject of slav- ery. The exciting events that rapidly followed question in one upon another after the foundation of the politics. Government gave little opportunity for discus- sion of the slavery question. Men, in fact, did not realize that during these years the North and the South were de- veloping differently ; and in 1818 no one seemed to appre- ciate the fact that the situation had radically changed in the past thirty years, that the two sections had grown apart in the essentials of their social and industrial life, and that the opinion of the South on slavery was now quite different from the prevailing opinion of the North. When the Con- stitution was formed all the States save Massachusetts and New Hampshire had slaves, but everywhere in the North the institution was losing ground. At the North the in- dustry and life of the people were- not materially influ- enced by slave labor ; at the South society was built upon that system. But in the South as well as in the North it was considered by thinking men an evil. The ablest Vir- ginia statesmen lamented the existence of slavery and fore- told its baneful effect. In the Philadelphia convention George Mason, of Virginia, used these words: "Slavery discourages arts and manufactures. The poor despise labor * See the map. This line of 1819 is important. It ran up the west branch of Sabine River to 32° latitude and thence due north to the Red River; thence up the Red River to longitude 100° ; thence due north to the Arkansas River ; thence along the south bank of the Arkansas to its source, in latitude 42°, or by a direct line from its source to the 42d parallel ; thence due west to the Pacific. 304 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. when performed by slaves. They prevent the emigration of whites, who really enrich and strengthen a country. They produce the most pernicious effect on manners. Every master of slaves is born a petty tyrant. They bring the judgment of Heaven on a country. As nations can not be rewarded or punished in the next world, they must be in this. By an inevitable chain of causes and effects, Provi- dence punishes national sins by national calamities." It is true that the delegates from the most southern States contended in the convention for permission to intro- duce slaves, and the Constitution in conse- notrealLe the* quence declared such introduction should not growth of be prohibited before January 1, 1808.* And it is true that at a later time representatives in Congress from these same States bitterly resented attacks upon slavery. But the Northern men were for some years deluded by the hope that in the natural course of events slavery would disappear from the South, as it was every- where disappearing in the North. In 1807 a bill was passed making the importation of slaves illegal after the end of the year, and later the President was authorized to use the ships of war to stop the African slave trade. Upon neither of these matters was there great discussion or excitement, and until 1819 the North slumbered on, in large measure regardless of the fact that slavery was winding ever more firmly its coils about the Southern States, that opinion in Virginia was changed, that already the lower part of the Mississippi Valley was utterly given over to the system. The greatest reason for the extension of slavery and for its gaining a stronger hold than had seemed possible forty years before lay in the fact that cotton raising had become a widespread industry, an industry for which slave labor seemed to be well fitted. Thus the two sections had been developing differently, * Constitution, art. i, sec. 9, § 1. ADMINISTRATION OF MONROK— 1817-182. f 305 and suddenly it was seen that Northern and Southern sen timents were antagonistic. Slavery became a political ques* tion, aroused the fear of men, and stirred them but i!T k ; . to bitterness in debate. Although the North ened to the fact. ° had been gaining in population more rapidly than the South, slave States and free States had been ad- mitted into the Union alternately, and the balance between the sections had been kept in the Senate, where each State had equal weight with every other. A propo- sition to exclude slav- ery from a State seek- ing admission disclosed to the people how wide- ly they had drifted asunder. The matter came up in this wise. Missouri applied for admission to the Union. In 1819, when an act for this purpose was before the House, John Tall- madge, Jr., a represen- tative from New York, introduced an amend- ment to the act provid- ing that no more slaves The Missouri Compromise Line.* should be introduced into Missouri, and that all children born after the admission of the State should be free at the age of twenty-five years. The House adopted the amendment. The Senate The discussion lasted long. The whole coun- try was aroused to a high pitch of excitement. Now Maine, about to separate from Massachusetts, asked ad- * Arkansas was organized as a Territory in 1819, but not till 1824 were the boundaries, here marked, established. The Missouri controversy. rejected it. 306 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. mission as a State. The friends of slavery sought to make the admission of Maine dependent on the admission of Mis- souri without the Tallmadge amendment. A compromise was finally agreed npon (1820). It provided for the ad- mission of Missouri as a slave State, but with this exception there was to be no slavery in the Territory purchased from France under the name of Louisiana north of the line 36° 30'. Maine was also admitted.* A question of considerable interest was discussed in the course of the debate. Could Congress place conditions upon the admission of a State ? It was strongly Constitutional ar g ue a that it could, and as strongly that it questions. ° • -. • i could not. This can be said with some cer- tainty, that Congress can make no conditions permanently binding upon a State which would deprive it of equality with other States. Congress has power to admit new States into this Union,f and "this Union," it was cogently and rightly said, is a union of equal States. When the bills came before Monroe he hesitated to sign them. Was it within the power of Congress to banish slavery from this Western land ? He finally signed the bills, and there seemed in 1820 to be a general belief that the compromise was con- stitutional. When Missouri presented herself for final admission into the Union, it was discovered that the Constitution con- tained a clause forbidding the entrance of free The second negroes. This caused difficulty anew; but a compromise. ° ^ ' compromise was adopted, through Clay s eftort, whereby Missouri was admitted, but with the understand- ing that citizens of other States should not be deprived of * The line of 3G° 30' is the northern line of North Carolina. The northern boundary of Tennessee varies slightly from this parallel, run- ning somewhat to the north, between the mountains and the Cumber- land River. West of the river the line of 36° 30' is the northern boundary. f Constitution, art. iv, sec. 3. ADMINISTRATION OP MONROE— 1817-1825. 307 their rights under the Federal Constitution of going to Missouri.* «• Thus the cleavage between slavery and freedom was clearly marked by a geographical line. This whole bitter controversy showed the people how they differed. s T J t io ^ s stinct It rang out, said the aged Jefferson, " like a fire-bell in the night." There were now two sec- tions well defined, differing more and more as the years went by in industrial and social makeup. For each succeeding year the South was more under the influence of this one institu- tion, while the North was developing like the rest of the civilized world, free from the weight of slavery. In the midst of the excitement of the Missouri question the election of 1820 occurred. Monroe was again elected, this time with but one dissenting vote. The Jnstcf 1011 Federalists were now no more. In New Eng- land some still remained as a sort of social reminiscence, but they could not be called a party. There were grounds for differences of opinion, but parties did not form again until some years later. One of the most important problems that arose in these years grew out of our relations with the states of Central and South America. After the close of the American States Napoleonic wars, all the Spanish continental and the Holy colonies from Mexico to the far south, one by one, threw off the yoke of Spain, and finally succeeded in sustaining themselves as independent powers. At this same time the so-called " Holy Alliance " was formed in Europe, made up of the most powerful monarchs of the Continent. Its chief aim was to check the growth of de- mocracy, and to strengthen the hold of absolutism on the people. As long as the work of the Holy Alliance was con- fined to Europe we had no ground of complaint ; but there began to be signs that government by the people was not * See Constitution, art. iv, sec. 2, § 1. 308 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. safe from interference even on this continent ; that efforts would be made to overthrow the free governments set up in Central and South America, and compel the return of these states to Spanish control. In addition to this trouble, our Government was somewhat uneasy over the fact that Russia showed an inclination to creep down the western coast of North America and to claim land considerably south of what might justly be considered her right. Under these circumstances Monroe sent to Congress (December, 1823) a message which contained a statement of the foreign policy of the United States. doctrine! 10 There were two chief propositions : That any attempt on the part of the European powers " to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere " would be considered " as dangerous to our peace and safety," and that any effort to oppress the South American states or to control their destiny would be viewed as a " manifesta- tion of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States." Second — as a warning to Russia — that the American conti- nents were no longer "to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European power." The next year Russia entered into a treaty with us, agreeing not to claim territory south of 54° 40', the present southern bound- ary of Alaska.* Monroe's message undoubtedly made the Holy Alliance pause and consider. England was in sym- pathy with our action. " This crowning effort of Monroe's career contrasted well with that to which it stood opposed, * The Monroe Doctrine, as it was announced in 1823, had its roots in the past (see Gilman's Monroe, chap. vii). And it now means more than it did in 1823. " On its negative side it is a strong jealousy in respect to European interference in any and all matters that are peculiarly American, and particularly North American. In a word, it is the national resolution to assert and to maintain the leadership that the people believe both Nature and history have assigned to them on the two continents." It is a sentiment produced by historical and geo- graphical conditions; it is in no proper sense a principle of inter- national law. ADMINISTRATION OF MONROE— 1817-1825. 309 The tariff of 1824. for the main motive was to shelter honorably these tender blossoms of liberty on kindred soil from the cold Siberian blasts of despotism." * In 1824 there was a demand for another tariff act mate- rially increasing the duties on imported goods. Clay was the leader in this movement, while Webster vigorously opposed it, as he had the act of 181 G. Clay advocated what he called a "genuine American policy," the object of which was to build up home industry and give a home market for American prod- ucts. The act was passed, but the majority in both houses was very small. The vote was sectional, too — an ominous fact — for the South was vig- orously opposed to a protective tariff, on the ground that it en- riched the manufacturer at the expense of the agriculturist. The election of 1824 was rather a personal than a party contest. There were many questions of public policy about which persons might honestly differ, especially in- ternal improvements and the tariff ; but as yet men had not organized to defend their be- liefs on these matters. In those days candidates for the presidency were not pre- sented by national conventions, as they are now.f The * Schouler's History, vol. iii, p. 291. f Washington and Adams were not nominated in any proper sense of the word at all. There was a general understanding that they were to be voted for. The caucus system of nomination was not fully estab- lished until 1800. See Hinsdale, The American Government, chap. xxx. 310 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. "regular" nomination was made by a "caucus" of the members of Congress. Such a caucus, composed of only a minority of the Eepublican congressmen, nomi- Jf h i824 Cti0n nated William H - Crawford, of Georgia. Craw- ford was then Secretary of the Treasury, but for some time he had been much broken and at times physically unable to perform the duties of his office. The nomination of a man in his condition, and that, too, by a minority of the members, was so preposterous that the caucus method of presenting candidates was discredited. This was said to be the death of " King Caucus," for this was the last of such nominations. Other candidates were named for this election by State Legislatures. They were John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay, and Andrew Jackson. The result of the contest was surprising. Adams received 84 votes, Crawford 41, Henry Clay 37, while Andrew Jackson, whose candidacy had in many quarters not been taken seriously because of his lack of experience in po- litical affairs, received 99 votes. The choice of one from the three highest candidates was thus thrown upon the House of Kepresentatives. Clay, whose influence in Con- gress was great, favored Adams, and the New Englander was elected, much to the disgust of Jackson's friends, who claimed that the will of the people had been disregarded, and that Adam* and Clay had entered into a corrupt bargain. There was no difficulty about the vice-presi- dency, Calhoun having been elected without serious oppo- sition. The " era of good feeling " was at an end. There had been more or less ill feeling all the time. Political ques- tions had often been bitterly discussed, and per- End d°f fe iin° f sonal animus nad often taken tne P lace of political principle. As yet, however, parties with principles were not formed. For some years after this men spoke of "Jackson men" and "Adams men." But the elements of party organization were at hand, and out ADMINISTRATION OP JOHN Q. ADAMS— 1825-1829. 311 of the bitterness of personal contests parties with principles were sure soon to arise. References. Short accounts: Hart, Formation of the Union, pp. 231-252; Gilman, James Monroe, Chapters VI and VII; Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume I, pp. 126-258; Von Hoist, John C. Calhoun, Chapter III; Morse, John Quincy Adams, pp. 102-177; Higginson, Larger His- tory, Chapters XVI and XVII. Longer accounts: Schouler, His- tory, Volume III, pp. 1-335. The pupil will be entertained by the fascinating series of chapters in McMaster, Volume IV, which treat topically the different phases of this period of reorganization and readjustment. Read especially Chapters XXX-XXXIX, and, above all, Chapter XXXIII. ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS— 1825-1829. When John Quincy Adams came to the presidential chair he was in his fifty-eighth year. He had been for thirty years in itT 07 Public life. He had been foreign minister, senator, and, during Monroe's administrations, Sec- retary of State. His charac- ter was beyond reproach. He was scrupulously honest, his straightforwardness amount- ing to bluntness. He was ambitious, but not meanly self- seeking, and he devoted him- self untiringly and unselfishly to the duties of his office. He was not actuated by petty motive, and never consented to make use of improper means to secure power or influ- ence. Able as well as honest, he was one of the best 21 CXA*TiJ>, 312 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. officers that ever served a people. High-minded himself, he demanded purity in others, and his caustic criticism of the motives and acts of his fellows often estranged those whom he might have won as his friends. He was formal and cold in his manners, and had no great tact or talent as a political leader. Adams made Clay his Secretary of State. It was a natural choice ; for the two men thought alike on political issues, and Clay certainly merited the distinc- Charges of Hon. But the appointment gave countenance corruption. ■■ i • to those who asserted that, by making promise of the secretaryship, Adams had secured his own election. The charge was utterly unfounded ; but it was believed by many, and had no little effect on the public mind. Through- out the administration, the friends of Jackson proclaimed without ceasing that the " people's candidate " had been defrauded of his rights.* There was much personal bitterness during these four years. The people were divided into " Adams men " and " Jackson men." Yet the elements of distinct Beginnings of political parties with real principles were new parties. - 1 r r r clearly enough in existence, and Adams, both by selecting the founder of the " American system " as his Secretary of State, and by favoring in his first message a broad and liberal policy for the National Government, ac- tually announced the beginnings of a new party. The message advocated appropriations for roads and canals, and * John Randolph, a master of malicious abuse, referred to the "cor- rupt coalition between the Puritan and blackleg," and called the administration a " puritanic-diplomatic-blacklegged administration." Clay challenged him to a duel, and a meeting occurred. Neither was injured. Benton records the affair, and ends : " On Monday the parties exchanged cards and social relations were . . . restored. Tt was about the last high-toned duel thai I have witnessed, and among the highest toned that I have ever witnessed." fortunately we have outgrown that •■■mli'i ton "f societ \ . ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN Q. ADAMS— 1825-1829. 313 advised the establishment of a national university and the creation of an astronomical observatory — " a lighthouse of the skies." Such words natural- ly antagonized many who were averse to such appropriations. Adams and others did not see the situation. They did not see that the old party was torn asunder, and that two new parties were at hand ; they considered the dif- fering factions as wings of the old Republican party. Except by making a clear statement of prin- ciples, nothing was done by the President to organize an Admin- istration party. The friends of liberal construction and of the tariff formed slowly around Clay as their leader, rather than around Adams, and began before 1828 to call themselves " National Republicans." The strict-constructionists called themselves Democratic Republicans, and before many years were commonly known as Democrats. Owing to a number of causes, a good many persons joined the party opposed to the Administration, not because they objected to internal improvements or like measures, but because they disliked Adams and liked Jackson. So this party, which in- cluded the strict-constructionists, was for some time uncer- tain of its own policy. Indeed, the exact views of Jackson himself were uncertain. Through these years many persors summed up their political creed in the war-cry, " Hurrah for Jackson ! " and it proved in itself an unanswerable argument. And yet, although fit first the party of opposi bion, as Buch parties are apt to be, wag somewhat uncertain in it.-- beliefs and fundamental principles, and contained * number of incoherent elements, nevertheless the differing Their characteristics 314 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. factions of the old Republican party were, before the next election, formed into parties, each with its own character- istics and natural tendencies. The Rational Republican party was similar in some respects to the old Federalists ; but it cast away, as unsuited to American politics, the exclusive, superior tone which had characterized the fol- lowers of Hamilton. The people at large were appealed to by both parties ; but the natural enthusiasm for Jackson, " the man of the people," called into the -ranks of the opposition the masses of the people and made it a real democratic party. The times naturally called for opinion and action with regard to internal improvements. The rapid building up of the West increased rather than diminished the demand for roads and other means of corn- improvements. munication. A few years before this the State of New York had begun to make the Erie Canal, and in 1825 it was finished. De Witt Clinton, for some years governor of the State, devoted himself earnestly to the undertaking, and the success of the enterprise was due to his untiring energy. The canal was first ridiculed as " Clinton's ditch," but the results justified the faith and the unflagging zeal of its advocates. The most enthusiastic person could scarcely have foreseen the influence of this canal on building up the commerce of New York city and enriching the State.* By means of it emigrants from the East found their way westward. The States and Territories of the Northwest grew rapidly in population, and poured their products back to the cities of the coast for consumption or transportation. " At this epoch," we are told, " the history of modern New York properly begins." From this time, too, the Northwest enters upon a new phase of its life. In 1826 there were * This canal, three hundred and sixty-three miles in length, con- necting the waters of Lake Erie with those of the Hudson, is still of great commercial value. ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN Q. ADAMS— 1825-1829. 315 no less than seven steamers on Lake Erie, and four years later a daily line was running between Detroit and Buffalo. Other States, moved by the enterprise of New York, were now eager for canals. All sorts of projects were in men's minds, and some of them were under- National aid for t}lken> Therc naturally also a desire for improvements. . f the assistance of the National Government, and somewhat liberal appropriations for internal improve- ments were given during this administration. But zeal for such national expenditure was partly sectional ; the South looked somewhat jealously upon the improvements which enriched the commercial States of the North. It is worthy of notice that the plan of appropriating money for the improvement of harbors was entered upon as early as 1823. Another means of transportation than the slowly moving canal boat soon won and absorbed the attention of the people. Horse railroads had been in use for some little time, and various efforts had been made both in this country and in England to use steam as a motive force.* As early as 1814 George Stephenson, an Englishman, invented a "travelling engine," which he named "My Lord." Some years later (1825) the Stockton and Darlington Railway was opened, and Stephenson acted as engineer on a trial trip of his new locomotive. The suc- cess of this enterprise encouraged the building of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. On this line (1829) Stephenson tried the Rocket, which sped away at the astounding pace of twenty-nine miles an hour. " Canal property is ruined," wrote a correspondent from London ; * The earliest roads were built with wooden rails, and afterward these were covered with bands or strips of iron. Horses furnished the motive power. The first road of this kind seems to have been built as early M 1807, in Boston. The first steam locomotive used in this country was brought from England in 1829, and was called the * Stourbridge Lion." 316 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. " in fact they are even anticipating that it may be necessary to let the canals dry and to lay rails on them." Meantime inventors and capitalists were at work in America. Indeed, the success of the Stockton and Darling- ton Railway seems to have produced a greater impression on this side of the water than in England. Xew York was already reaping the benefit of the Erie Canal, but the cities farther smith were still without easy means of communication with the West. Both Baltimore and Philadelphia seem to have felt the loss BOSTON AND WORCESTER RAIL ROAD.] Railroads in America. THE Passenger Cars will continue lo run daily from the Drpol near Washington street, lo Newton, al 6 and 10 o'clock, A.M. and at 34 o'clock, P. 11. and Returning, leave Newion at 7 and a quarter past II, A.M. and a quarter before 5, P.M. Tickets for the passage either way may be had at the T»ckei Office, No. 017, Washington street ; price 3i£ cents each ;a»id lor the return passage, of the Master of the Car i t Newton. By order oXthe President and Directors. a 29 epistf F. A WILLIAMS, Clerk. Advertisp:ment of the First Passenger Train in Massachusetts, May, 1834. of Western trade, which was now deflected to New York. A railroad was determined upon, and in 1827 a charter was issued to the Baltimore and Ohio road. July 4, 1828, work was actually begun, the first act being done by Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the only living signer of the Declara- tion of Independence. He is said to have exclaimed : " I consider this among the most important acts of my life, second only to that of signing the Declaration of Inde- pendence, if second to that." Two years later a short section of this road was opened for traffic. In South Caro- ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN Q. ADAMS— 1825-1829. 317 lina, too, a road was built running from Charleston to Ham- burg, and in 1833 this road was one hundred and thirty-five miles in length, then the longest road in the world.* In 1840 there were two thousand eight hundred and eighteen miles of railroad in operation, and as the years went by the mileage increased. But no one in those early years could foresee the immense development of railroads, and the great changes they were to make in the life of the nation. The first lines connected neighboring cities, or furnished outlets from the coal regions to the sea; but in time the long trunk lines were constructed, stretching across the country, binding the land together into an in- dustrial unit. Wherever men are gathered together, there the railroad now goes to serve them, ready to carry the products of their toil to market and to bring back what they wish in exchange. f The political significance of the railroad was almost as great as its social and industrial significance. The East and West were made one ; the strong ties of The political commercial interest and the fellowship of significance. r social communication bound the States of the coast to their younger sisters of the Mississippi Valley. The old saying that a free government could not exist over a wide expanse of territory was bereft of # meaning, for, as the railroads were built into the West, Michigan and Illinois became the next-door neighbors of Massachusetts and Connecticut. For some years Georgia had been anxious to get posses- sion of the land of the Creek and Cherokee Indians within the limits of that State. These tribes were already civil- ized.' The Cherokees especially were well advanced. They had churches, schools, and courts of law, and had well- * Interesting data are given in Encyclopaedia Americana, vol. iv, p. 296. f An admirable short essay on the railroads and their functions in Shaler's The United States of America, vol. ii, pp. 65-131. 31$ HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. tilled fields and comfortable homes. The presence of such independent bodies within the State, not subject to its laws, was unnatural. Georgia desired the In- Georgiaand dians' lands, and was not willing to wait. She demanded the immediate removal of the tribes beyond the Mississippi. A treaty was made by the National Government providing for the sale of most of the land of the Creeks. But Georgia would not wait until the time came for carrying out the treaty. State surveyors were ordered into the territory of the Creeks. The President forbade the survey.* At first the State obeyed, but finally became very impatient. The Governor announced the doctrine of State sovereignty, and asserted that the State had an equal authority with the United States " to pass upon its rights." Adams was prepared to protect the Indians in their property, and ordered the United States District Attorney and the marshal to arrest any one endeavoring to survey the Indian lands west of a certain line. The Governor prepared for resistance, and ordered the militia officers of the State to be in readiness with their forces to repel invasion. The majority in Con- gress were opposed to Adams and did not wish to support him, and he hesitated, naturally, to bring on civil war on such an issue. The Creeks were soon compelled to leave their lands. About the same time encroachments were made upon the Cherokee territory, and the final outcome was much the same as in the case of the Creeks. Georgia successfully maintained her " sovereignty." f * Indian affairs have always been under the control of the Federal Government. Congress is given power to regulate commerce with Indian tribes. See Constitution, art. i, sec. vii, §3. Moreover, the Creeks and the Federal Government had entered into treaties. f This trouble with Georgia has its political significance in the fact that the State maintained, in some measure, its authority against the Government. It is also significant as an episode in the process of transferring the Indians to reservations in the West. The plan of confining them to reservations was fully carried out in the course of the ADMINISTRATION OP JOHN Q. ADAMS— 1825-1829. 319 The tariff of 1828. The manufacturing interests of the Northern States were rapidly growing through these years ; but in some respects, especially in the making of woolen goods, Eng- lish factories seemed to have the advantage. There was a demand by the manufacturers for a higher tariff and more protection. In 1828 a bill for the purpose was introduced. All the interests of the country began at once to push and scramble for recognition. The result was what is commonly known as the " tariff of abom- inations." It was an "economic monstrosity." The rate of duty on many articles, including raw materials for manufactures, was very high. So much had the coming presidential election been kept in view, that John Ran- dolph declared in a bit- ing phrase, " The bill re- ferred to manufactures of no sort or kind ex- cept the manufacture of a President of the United States." The South had now become bitterly opposed to a tariff. It seemed to enrich the Northerner, and to make the Southerner pay an en- hanced price for all the goods which he bought. There were at the South no fac- tories, or nearly none ; the people therefore did not seek protection. Randolph said that the bill was intended "to rob and plunder one half of the Union century. During Jackson's administration the Cherokee lands were occupied, and Georgia successfully opposed the authority of the Federal court. See Schouler, History, vol. iv, pp. 233-235 ; Sumner, Andrew Jackson, pp. 180-183. South opposed to the tariff. 320 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. for the benefit of the residue." South Carolina protested against the law, asserting that it was unconstitutional, and an abuse of power incompatible with free govern- ment. " The interests of South Carolina," she said, " are agricultural, and to cut oif her foreign market and to confine her products to an inadequate home market is to reduce her to poverty." The defenders of the American system argued that the South derived a benefit from the fact that the tariff made a home market, and thus brought a market nearer to the cotton States, and therefore increased the price of cotton. But the planters did not admit the truth or force of this argument. Because of the President's advocacy of internal improve- ments, and because of the passage of the tariff bill, for which the National Kepublicans were largely 'ri828 Ctl0n responsible, a strong and united opposition was formed against Adams before the end of his administration. The South was a unit against him, and the foes of internal improvements at the North were op- posed to his policy. Moreover, Jackson was everywhere hailed as the people's friend, the man of the common people, while Adams was denounced as an aristocrat, who felt himself above the ordinary man. There was an out- burst of popular enthusiasm for the " hero of New Orleans." Now it must be noted that since the beginning of the Gov- ernment the high offices of state had been in the hands of trained statesmen, and the presidency had been given to men of learning and experience. But in 1828 the people had grown confident — overconfident — and ready to resent the insinuation that they needed educated or experienced statesmen to lead them or show them the way. The West, which was enthusiastic for Jackson, was accustomed to give its allegiance to a downright forcible character like " Old Hickory," who had succeeded in what he had undertaken, and had whipped the British and the Indians with equal thoroughness and skill. And so Adams found himself the ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN Q. ADAMS— 1825-1829. 321 candidate of the North and East, and defended by the more conservative elements of society, who dreaded what they considered a democratic upheaval, and feared the election of a new and untried man to the presidency. Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania, was the candidate of the National Republicans for Vice-President. Calhoun held second place on the Jackson ticket. Jackson received one hundred and seventy-eight electoral votes, while Adams re- ceived only eighty-three. The popular vote of the National Kepubliuans was large, however, and this showed that a strong conservative party was in existence. References. Short accounts: Hart, The Formation of the Union, pp. 245- 262 ; Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume I, Chapter XI ; Morse, J. Q. Adams, pp. 189-225 ; Burgess, Middle Period, pp. 145-166. Longer account : Schouler, History, Volume III, pp. 336-449. • : *"V2CK> Marietta, Ohio, in Early Days. The picture illustrates the manner in which ruauy of the principal cities in Ohio and the West began. From an old drawing now preserved in Columbus, Ohio. CHAPTER XIV. Democracy and Slavery — Industrial and Economic Contro- versies—The Annexation of Texas— 1829-1845. Andrew Jackson ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JACKSON— 1829-1837. Andrew Jackson" is one of the most striking figures in American history, and few persons have played a more im- portant part. He was born in South Carolina in 1767, of sturdy Scotch-Irish stock. When he was twenty-one he moved to Nashville. He studied law, and when Tennessee was admitted to the Union he became the first representative from the State in Congress. Soon afterwards he became Senator, but held the position only a short time. " When I was President of the Senate," wrote Jefferson at a later time, "be was a Senator, and he could never speak on account of the rash- ness of his feelings. I have seen him attempt it repeat- edly, and as often choke with rage." Until the outbreak of the War of 1812 Jackson was most of the time in pri- vate life, not in public office. His surroundings were those of a rough frontier community, and we read of his taking part in duels and quarrels that were typical of the crude 322 ADMINISTRATION OP JACKSON— 1829-1837. 323 life of the young and energetic Southwest of those days. For it can not be denied that, with much that was sound and wholesome, there was a good deal that was rude and boisterous in the life of these new States beyond the moun- tains. Jackson, in his downrightness and uprightness, in his promptness to resent an insult and to fight in obedience to the code of honor, was a true son of his surroundings. His early career taught him to love his friends and to hate his enemies. He was strong and willful and full of energy, but his powers were undisciplined. In the War of 1812 he fought with characteristic bravery and energy, showing many of the qualities of skillful generalship. In the Semi- nole War (1818-'19) he crushed the hostile Indians of the South and won new renown. He was a man of perfect hon- esty, and his motives were good ; he had a warm heart, a quick temper, and undoubted ability ; he had the faculty of winning men and of making them love him. The coun- selors and friends that surrounded him when he was Presi- dent never hid him from view ; he stood always clearly out before the people. His greatest weakness lay in the fact that designing men, his friends, could play upon his preju- dices, and through his iron will accomplish their own objects. Jackson was elected in 1828 because he was looked upon as a candidate of the common people, while Adams was declared to be an aristocrat without sym- KeS e . of P ath y for the masses ; ft was said > too > that Jackson had been defrauded of his just rights in 1824. His election marks an era in our politics for many reasons. He was the first man chosen from the new West. He was the first man elected President who had not already acquired wide knowledge and experience in public affairs. The election of this self-made man, who was put forward as " a man of the people," shows that in the development of American life the people had reached a stage of self-confidence and assertion ; they felt no need of trained experts in statesmanship ; they desired only some 324 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. one who would fulfill their behests. Perhaps they were overconfident, and there was certainly something wrong in their antagonism to an experienced man like Adams on the ground that he was an aristocrat, for it is not undemocratic to place in public office the best of trained servants ; but, nevertheless, in the growth of a popular state like the United States it is only reasonable to expect that the peo- ple will come to see their power and use it ; and only when they know their power can they feel the full responsibili- ties of citizenship. Up to the time of Jackson's accession to the presidency national office-holders were removed only for inefficiency or dishonesty. Adams removed only two men in Astern* 18 his whole term, and these not for political rea- sons. Although a strong party was arrayed against him, he refused to use public office to reward his friends. Now, Jackson was fully persuaded that the office- holders who had held their places under Adams were a cor- rupt lot, for by temperament he looked upon all who were not his friends as his enemies, and, moreover, he believed that the Adams administration was begotten by fraud, and that none who participated in it merited consideration. In some of the States the practice of using public office as a reward to political friends was already fully established. Influenced by men that had been used to this practice, and hearing the outcry against aristocratic office-holders, Jack- son began the removal of men who were opposed to him in politics and filled their places with his followers.* Thus was introduced into the national administration the " spoils system," f in accordance with which a person was given * There were more men removed from office in the first few months of Jackson's administration than in the forty years preceding. f Those, words seem to have been .adopted from a speech madp by W. I.. Marc; in the Senate in 1831. " It maj be, sir, thai rhp poli- n<-i;m- of Ne* York are no! so fas! idioua as -<>m gentlemen are as to disclosing th< principles on which thej act. . . . The; see nothing wrong in the rule that to the victor belong the spoils of the enemy." ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 325 employment in the public service not because he was com- petent and trained for his duties, but because he was a faithful partisan. Jackson was honest and patriotic, but he was instrumental in establishing this system, which has had a most harmful influence upon the character of our national politics. Jackson's first Cabinet was not composed of men of wide experience or of great ability. Martin Van Buren, the Secretary of State, was probably the ablest member. He had for some years been a prominent figure in the poli- tics of New York. He was shrewd and keen, and a good manager of men ; his enemies considered him underhanded and dishonest, but he was by no means devoid of states- manship. In 1831 Jackson reorganized his Cabinet. Van Buren was appointed minister to England, but the Senate refused to confirm, the nomination. This was considered a piece of spite, and helped rather than hurt his political prospects. The new Cabinet was abler than the preceding. Edward Livingston became Secretary of State ; Louis Mc- Lane, Secretary of the Treasury ; Lewis Cass, Secretary of War ; Levi Woodbury, Secretary of the Navy ; Roger B. Taney, Attorney-General. These were all men of strong character. They represented the organizing forces of the new Democratic party. Some of them were for many years prominent and influential men in the nation. Hardly had the tariff of 1828 been passed when some of the Southern States began to show their strong dislike of the protective system. South Carolina was John 0. foremost in opposition, and John C. Calhoun was her leader and guide. Calhoun had drifted wide from the position he held after the War of 1812, when he advocated a broad national policy. He now stood forth as the champion of State sovereignty, and devoted himself to h defense of sectional interests. Slavery bad made the South peculiar. WTiai wm good policy for the North with diversified industries, might be injurious to the South with 326 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. one dominating industry. Calhoun, a clear, incisive speaker and acute reasoner, claimed that the Government had no authority to pass laws that were harmful to a State or sec- tion. He drew up a careful statement of his constitu- tional theories, asserting that each State was wholly sov- ereign, and the Constitu- tion only an agreement or compact between sovereign States; he announced, like- wise, the doctrine of nulli- fication. State sovereignty meant this : that each State of the Union was not sub- ject to the Constitution as a superior law, but retained the right to govern itself wholly if it so preferred. From State sovereignty came the right of secession ; each State had the right to interpret the Constitution for itself, and, if it chose, to withdraw from the Union on the ground that the agreement or treaty (the Constitution) had been broken, or on the ground that its interests were no longer furthered. In accordance with this theory, the relations between the various States were just the same as they would be between France, England, and Spain if they should enter into a treaty establishing a central agent to which certain powers of government should be given for certain purposes ; each of the three States would retain its full sov- ereign character, and would have the right to withdraw from association with the others when it chose. Nullification meant the right of a State to declare null and void any act of the Federal Govern- ment which it considered a breach of the compact (the Con- and nullification ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 327 The great debate. stitution), and to resist the enforcement of such act within its limits.* In 1830 Senator Hayne, of South Carolina, gave utter- ance to these theories in the Senate. He was a man of strong parts, and his presentation of Calhoun's theories was forcible. Daniel Webster an- swered him in a great speech, which stands to- day unsurpassed in the annals of American oratory. Web- ster was then at the height of his intellectual vigor. His eloquence was pure and great. No orator that has ever spoken the English tongue has ex- celled him in the beauty, force, and appropriateness of lan- guage. He maintained, in re- ply to Hayne, that the Con- stitution was a law, and not a mere agreement ; that it had the force of law, and was bind- ing on each and every State ; and that each State could not at will interpret the Constitu- tion to suit its interests. He pointed out that nullification must be only interstate anar- chy. The speech made a deep impression on the people of the country, for it harmonized well with the predominat- Q 1 ^^- fay&tZ^ * Under this theory of Calhoun, a State would nullify while it re- mained in the Union, but secession would follow in case the obnoxious laws were enforced against its will. " Should the other members," wrote Calhoun, " undertake to grant the power nullified, and should the nature ... be such as to defeat the object of the . . . Union, at least so far as the member nullifying is concerned, it would then become an abuse of power on the part of the principals [the other States], and thus pre- sent a case where secession would apply." Between 1828 and 1832 Calhoun fully outlined the whole logical basis of secession. Nothing needed to be added in 1861. Read Johnston, Am. Orations, vol. iii, p. 321. 22 328 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ing sentiment at the North. This was long known as " the great debate " in the Senate. But Calhoun's doctrines were to be more forcibly de- picted than by mere oratory. In 1832 a new tariff act was passed. This was more moderate than the one Nullification in f four yearg before, but South Carolina pre- Sonth Carolina, J x pared to protest directly against it. Under the direction of Calhoun the steps for nullification were taken. A convention of the people declared the tariff law null and void, forbade its execution within the State, and threatened secession from the Union if there should be an effort to enforce it. This was November, 1832. The Ordinance of Nullification was to go into force February 1, 1833. On December 11th Jackson issued his famous proclama- tion addressed to the people of South Carolina. It was full of fire and vigor. It was at once strong, Jackson's reasonable, and gentle. " The laws of the proclamation. ' & United States must be executed, he said. " Those who told you that you might peaceably prevent their execution deceived you. . . . Their object is disunion, and disunion by armed force is treason." The people of the United States owe Jackson a deep debt of gratitude. His name — a name of power for many years to come — was joined with the idea of union and the supremacy of the Constitution. But he did more than issue a proclama- tion : he made preparation to enforce the law. Calhoun resigned the vice-presidency, and was elected Senator from his State. In the winter a tariff bill, called the Compromise Tariff of 1833, was passed. This provided for a gradual lowering of the duties. Clay was instrumental in bringing about the com- promise. At the same time an act was passed known as the " force bill." It gave the President means of enfor- cing the law. Thus were presented to South Carolina " the rod and the olive branch bound up together." South Caro- lina repealed the nullification ordinance, thus accepting ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 329 the olive branch, while she ignored the threatening rod. Danger of war or secession was, for the time being, gone. Through the summer of 1832 a contest of another sort had been in progress, a struggle between the friends and the opponents of the Bank of the United States. From the beginning of Jackson's ad- ministration the bank had been more or less under fire. Jackson himself may be supposed to have had a natural objection to it, although he does not seem to have been anxious to attack it until it was hinted to him that the institution was using its power for political purposes against the Administration. This was doubtless not true at first. But Jackson in various messages to Congress hinted at the dangers of such a moneyed organization and the unconsti- tutionality of the charter. The National Republicans, led by Clay, believed that the bank was useful and desirable, and thought that the people at large felt the same way about it. In 1832, though the charter did not expire till four years later,* a bill was passed by Congress granting a new charter. Jackson vetoed the bill on the ground of un- constitutionality, and for other reasons. " Bank or no bank " was one of the chief issues of the presidential campaign of that year. Jackson had appealed to a wide public sentiment when he objected Selection 1 ^° wna ^ ne considered a great national monop- oly, and he strengthened his case in some quar- ters by urging that the bank was a machine for making the rich richer and the poor poorer. Although it had not be- fore been active in politics, it seems that under strong temptation the bank did in this election endeavor to influ- ence public opinion. It did nothing, probably, that merits the charge of corruption, but deep hostility was engendered by its acts, and it is possible that its conduct pointed to a real and serious danger. * The bank, it will be remembered, obtained a charter in 1816, good for twenty years. 330 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. For the election of 1832 candidates were presented in a novel way. National conventions now assembled for the _ T . x , purpose of making nominations. At this time Nominating r r o Convention, there was a new organization known as the l83i-'32. Anti-Masonic party. The formation of this party was due to the existence of a strong feeling against the Masons, who were charged with the abduction and murder of one William Morgan, a member of the order who had threatened to disclose its secrets, In 1831 this party held a national convention and nominated William Wirt for the presidency. This method was followed by the other parties. The Democrats nominated Jackson and Van Buren ; the National Eepublicans nominated Clay and John Sergeant, of Pennsylvania. Clay was a natural choice of his party. To a great ex- tent it had formed under his leadership, and he represented its chief aims. He had introduced and de- J fended the American system. He had been consistently in favor of internal improvements, and in other respects stood for a very broad and liberal national policy. He was a natural leader. Men felt the spell of his eloquence. Though not so keen as Calhoun, nor so pro- found as Webster, he had the faculty of inspiring his hear- ers by his fervid appeals and filling them with his own enthusiasm. Spite of Clay's wide popularity, he was badly beaten in the election. Before the end of and the Whig another presidential term his followers took the name of Whigs. The name itself, recalling the popular one by which the patriots of the Revolution were known, implied that Jackson's methods " were high-handed and tyrannical." * Jackson now felt himself fully sustained in his attitude toward the bank. In the summer of 1833 he proceeded to make another attack upon it. The charter declared that * Jackson's administration is sometimes called the " reign of An- drew Jackson." ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 331 the public money was to be deposited in the bank " unless the Secretary of the Treasury shall at any time other- wise order and direct, in which case he shall Removal of immediately lay before Congress . . . the deposits, 1833. . , •, -, • ?. „ T n reason of such order or direction. Jackson determined to remove the deposits. In order to accom- plish this he needed to make some changes in his Cabinet. He first appointed William J. Duane Secretary of the Treas- ury, but the new secretary refused to take the necessary action ; whereupon Jackson dismissed him, and appointed Roger B. Taney, who did as desired, and issued an order that the public money should no longer be placed in the bank. This was called a removal of the deposits. In reality the Government simply ceased to deposit its money in the bank, and did not at once draw out all the money it had there. The Government funds were thereafter placed in banks acting under State charters. Those that were selected for this purpose were called "pet banks." The hope of having part of the public money for use en- couraged bankmaking, and the number of State banks rap- idly increased. Jackson was sharply attacked by the Whigs for his assault upon the bank, and a resolution of censure was „„ , spread upon the records of the Senate. Thomas The censure and * * the expunging II. Benton, of Missouri, gave notice that he resolution. would each session, until he succeeded in his efforts, introduce a resolution to erase the resolution from the record. After three years his famous " expunging reso- lution " was adopted. These years were full of business zest and enterprise. The whole country was in a state of great prosperity, but men were rapidly losing their heads in their Distrihutionof gearch of immediate riches> Qne gource of surplus revenue. speculation was the Western lands. State banks grew rapidly in number and issued their promises to pay by the handful. These notes were taken by the Government 332 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. in exchange for wild lands, and because of this and other sources of income the Treasury was well filled. The States were now eagerly engaged in building railroads, and full of zeal for all sorts of internal improvement. It was proposed to distribute among the States the surplus revenue belong- ing to the National Government. A bill for that purpose was passed in 183G. The money was to be given out in four quarterly installments, beginning January 1, 1837. Three payments were made, amounting in all to about $28,000,000. Before the fourth installment was due the Government had no more money to give away. This distribution was on the face of the law only a loan ; really it was looked upon as a gift. The money so distributed has not been repaid. It did the States little good, and probably in most instances did harm, encouraging wild plans of internal improvement, for many of which there was no real demand. Before the end of Jackson's term he caused to be issued the " specie circular," an order directing that only gold and silver and so-called land scrip should be The speoie received in payment for lands. This brought circular. r J ° the speculators and wild enthusiasts face to face with facts, and soon made clear to them that promises to pay money were not money, and that making plans of cities on the Western prairies did not materially add to the wealth of the nation. Before passing on to further consideration of the effects of the specie circular and the results of rash speculation, let us consider the industrial and social con- American dition of the United States in this decade of literature. our history. In every way the people seemed alert and full of vigor. American literature was entering upon a new and brilliant career. Washington Irving had already achieved fame by his chaste and picturesque tales and sketches. Cooper was writing his novels of the sea and wilderness, and Poe was beginning to give out his weird stories and his pure and delicate verses. Hawthorne, born ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 333 in Salem, in the very midst of Puritan tradition, was start- ing upon his career as the romancer of mystery and of Puri- tanic faith and superstition. His terse, simple, harmoni- ous style proved that clear and sweet English prose could be written outside the British Isles. Emerson was just beginning his essays on the homely practical philosophy of life, and Longfellow the finely finished poems that have placed him at the head of American poets. In oratory the Americans easily outstripped any English competitors of that generation. Webster's speeches were great and pure and simple ; Edward Everett uttered polished periods, turned and fitted with delicate care. Clay's fiery eloquence and Calhoun's cold reasoning always had something artistic about them. In the writing of history, too, American authors were showing talent. Bancroft began the pub- lication of his great work, the final revision of which did not appear until forty years later. Prescott published in 1838 his Ferdinand and Isabella, the earliest of his charming volumes on Spain and the Spaniards of the New World. The American inventive spirit, which had showed itself in the invention of the cotton gin and the steamboat, was n . , , now manifest in many new labor-saving de- Open-mmded- , . ness and vices. One was the McCormick reaper, another progress. ^ e gteam hammer. Friction matches were coming into use. In 1838 steamboats began to make trips across the Atlantic. About the same time the process of smelting iron with anthracite coal and the hot-air blast was put into successful operation, the beginning of that great industry in the United States. This country offered a welcome asylum for men of energy or of inventive power, for no device was rejected because of its novelty. This same open-mind edness and eagerness for progress showed itself in the establishment of new wide-awake newspapers. More important still, the public-school system was widened and popularized. 334: HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The Jacksonian era was a time when great characteristics of the nineteenth century seemed to burst forth into view. _ The intensity of national life seemed to show Characteristics J of the nine- itself free from restraint, and although there teenth centnry. wag doubtless a fantastic extravagance, in these very exaggerations one can see with special clearness cer- tain qualities that mark the line of growth along which the nation Avas moving. The development of the public-school system came doubtless from a feeling of public duty, from a realization of the essential unity of the people, and from a comprehension of the fact that a democratic government was safe only in the hands of an educated people. But while the century has been marked by the growth of knowl- edge and by the popularizing of education, it has been marked still more, perhaps, by the widening and deepening of human sympathy and feeling. The foundation of the great missionary societies, five of which were established between 1830 and 1840, is an important evidence of this de- velopment of generous feeling for others. And as there grew up in men's minds a fuller appreciation of their rela- tion to their fellows, they showed this appreciation in great social movements, in works of generosity and charity. One might expect that men in democratic America would mani- fest more clearly than the people of Europe this sentiment of humanity and this appreciation of the common interests of men ; and such was probably the case ; but everywhere in Europe, too, during the fourth and fifth decades of the century, there appeared these waves of social sentiment, all marking the great movement of society, and, if they were extreme or extravagant at the time, they are none the less proofs of the great motive force of the century. " We are a little wild here," wrote Emerson from Boston, " with numberless projects of social reform; not a leading man but has a draft of a new community in his waistcoat pocket." The impulse for temperance reform which swept over the country, and the abolition movement, which ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 335 we shall soon study, were manifestations of this new social conscience. " A great wave of humanity, of benevolence, of desire for improvement, poured itself among all who had the faculty of large and disinterested thinking." * The democratic spirit, which we have seen in the politi- cal life of the country, prevailed in society. The election of Jackson simply heralded the fact that the people felt their power, and that they had reached their majority. Social distinctions had now van- ished or were of little moment. Success in life, not one's ancestry or supposed position, was given deference and re- spect. Little honor was shown to assumed superiority. A feeling of self-confidence prevailed, and a spirit of boastful- ness was not lacking ; for men prided themselves on the fact that the United States, in advance of the world, was giving an example of popular government, and they de- clared their country to be the freest and best on earth. Spite of self-assertion and vainglory, there was much that was sound and good in this democratic spirit ; the people rudely made real the truth that "worth makes the man, and want of it the fellow " — the true motto of true de- mocracy. Men were hard at work, for work was no dis- grace in this new country ; they eagerly sought after money, not for its own sake, but for what it would bring. Work was the common lot of all men ; and where that is the case democratic equality has its surest foundation. f One is not mistaken in attributing this development of religious, moral, and mental freedom and strength, in part at least, to democratic institutions, to the fact that in America each man was given responsibilities, and taught by the force of circumstances, by his duties, by the very * These words are used of the situation in England in J. Morley, The Life of Richard Cobden, p. 61. See also Hinsdale, Horace Mann, p. 73. f The society in America is discussed in Schouler, History, vol. ii, chap, viii (1809), and vol. iv, chap, xiii (1831). 336 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. political theory of the commonwealth, to think for himself and to strive for personal uplift. Out of this feeling of personal responsibility and power have come Democracy and ^e successful establishment and maintenance human progress. of the Church and other religious institutions upon a perfectly free and voluntary system, without the au- thority or interference of the Government ; the building up of the great free-school system, of which we have spoken ; and the endowment of higher institutions of learning, libraries, and museums by the State as well as by private generosity. All of these result from the free and unre- strained desire of an intelligent public. We may well stop to consider these facts while we are discussing these pro- foundly interesting times, when Andrew Jackson, "the man of the people," was President, and when in countless ways energetic men, realizing in some measure the heritage of a great country and a free government, were pushing boldly and enthusiastically forward in the pursuit of wealth and moral and intellectual ideals. Until the end of Jackson's administration the country grew with astounding rapidity. The seacoast towns no longer looked like country villages, but had put on the airs of populous cities. Emigrants from Europe came in increasing numbers, many of them staying in the ports where they landed, others moving to the new West. The Western States and Territories grew at a marvel- ous rate. Arkansas and Michigan were admitted as States (183G and 1837). Ohio increased her population in the dec- ade (1830-'40) from about 900,000 to 1,500,000, or over G2 per cent. The population of Illinois increased 202 per cent ; of Michigan, 570 per cent ; of Mississippi, 175 per cent ; other States of the Mississippi Valley advanced almost as rapidly, and even the Territories were filling with sturdy settlers. Chicago in 1830 was but a rude frontier post, a mere cluster of houses ; before 1840 it was a prosperous town, with lines of steamers connecting it ADMINISTRATION OF JACKSON— 1829-1837. 33' with the East, and was already the center of the newest West. There seem to have been less than thirty miles of rail- road in the country in 1830 ; in 1840 there were not far from three thousand. It is no wonder that men were iW^ements. incl uced to build air castles, or that they ex- pected to see the Western wilderness conquered in a day. Some .of the States planned great railroad and canal systems, and, wild with schemes of internal improve- ment, plunged rashly into debt. Michigan, for example, en- Map showing Distribution of Population in 1840. tered upon the task of building three railroads across the State, voted sums for the survey of canals, and authorized the Governor to borrow five million dollars to defray the ex- penses of such undertakings. Individuals as well as States discounted the future, expecting almost immediate wealth as a result of investments. As we have already seen, the purchase of wild lands from the Government was an especially attractive form of speculation. Men seem actually to have thought that lands purchased at $1.25 an acre would in a few days or 338 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. months be worth much more on the market, although the Government had a great deal more land to sell at the old figure. Indeed, at times these speculations were Speculation in profits f or the nation was buoyed up with public lands. * ... . hope and with visions of unbounded prosperity. Sales of Government lands rose from about two and a half million dollars in 1832 to over twenty-four million dollars in 1836. Everywhere in the last years of Jackson's term appeared enthusiasm in business enterprise and a tendency to bold speculation. Much of this was healthy vigor, for the country was growing, and its growth was due to zealous work. But thrift had been displaced by greed for immedi- ate riches, and the result was sure to be disappointment, if' not disaster. Few saw, when Jackson left office in 1837, that the storm was ready to break. For the election of 1836 the Democrats nominated Martin Van Buren for President, and Kichard M. Johnson, of Ken- tucky, for Vice-President. The Whigs nomi- of I836? tl0n na ^ e ^ General William Henry Harrison, of Ohio, the hero of Tippecanoe, for the presidency, and Francis Granger, of New York, for the vice-presidency.* Other candidates were presented by State legislatures, and it was thought the result might be to throw the election into the House of Eepresentatives. The issues of the cam- paign were not very distinct, and yet the two leading candi- dates showed a clear difference of opinion on matters that were agitating the public mind. Harrison declared in favor of the distribution of the surplus revenue among the States, a like distribution of the proceeds from sale of public lands, the appropriation of money for river and harbor improve- ment, and the granting of another bank charter. Van Buren opposed all these measures. The Democrats were successful in the election. * The nomination of Harrison and Granger was not made by a formal national convention. ADMINISTRATION OF VAN BURP1N— 1837-1841. 339 References. Short accounts: Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 2-93; Roose- velt, Benton, pp. G8-156; Charming, United States of America, pp. 208-223; Moore, The American Congress, pp. 240-294; Lodge, Daniel Webster, Chapter VII; Von Hoist, John C. Calhoun, pp. 63- 183; McLaughlin, Lewis Cass, Chapter V. Longer accounts: Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume I, pp. 311-383, Volume II, pp. 1-112; Schouler, History, Volume III, pp. 451-529, Volume IV, pp. 1-273. ADMINISTRATION OF MARTIN VAN BUREN-1837-1841. Martin Van Buren had been somewhat prominent in political life for twenty years before his accession to the presidency. He had been senator from New York, and Vice-President of the United States. * He was a politician of great adroitness, and so clever in political management that he had won the title of the " Little Magician." He was a polished, polite, good-natured man, never giving way to excitement or to appearance of anger. His cool suavity was attributed by his enemies to a designing disposition, his politeness to a capacity for deceit. His life does not show, however, that he was devoid of either ability or prin- ciple. He performed his presidential duties well. His term was full of trouble and anxiety, but he showed good judg- ment and discretion in meeting the trying problems that confronted him. He entered upon the office with an inaugural address, congratulating the people on "an aggregate of human prosperity not elsewhere to be found ; on pos- His inaugural. . , ... sessmg a popular government, wanting m no element of endurance or strength." Such statements were characteristic of the times. The people were elated, and wont to praise their own lot. But now a period of distress and want was close upon them. Some slight indications had already been given that the country was on the eve of business disaster. It was awak- 340 niSTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ening with a shock from the prolonged fit of intoxication over American success and growth. In the winter before the inauguration a large gathering was held in The panic of New Yor k in response to a call headed " Bread, meat, rent, fuel ! Their prices must come down ! " The meeting was followed by a riot. Abroad, too, there was business depression. April 10, 1837, the London Times said that great distress and pressure had been produced in England in every branch of industry, and that the calamity had never been exceeded. Englishmen that had invested money in this country now began to de- mand payment on their stocks, bonds, and notes. With what were Americans to pay ? With the paper of the hun- dreds of banks scattered here and there throughout the country — banks with little or no gold and silver in their vaults, and without capital that could be turned into good money ? Of course, the Englishmen wanted good money. Jackson's specie circular, too, did much to topple over the castles in the air which the people had been building. It now became clear enough that the paper of worthless banks was not money ; and it soon appeared that nearly everything had acquired an unreal price. Speculation came sharply to a standstill. Commercial failures began in April. One business house after another failed. All sorts of goods fell in price. Workmen were thrown out of employment, and there was much suffering among the poor. Men who had thought themselves rich, found that their wealth was in Western lands for which there was no market, or in promises to pay on which they could not realize, or in shares of some gigantic project which was now no more. The great fabric, reared on credit and hope, fell, and the whole country was in consternation. Such was the dismal outcome of the extravagance and wild speculation of a decade. The lesson was pretty sharply taught, that not the planning of new cities where none were needed, or the digging of canals where the country was not ready for them, or the ADMINISTRATION OF VAN BUREN— 1837-1841. 341 speculation in lands or stocks, created real wealth or stored up help for the day of distress. Unfortunately, all the lessons of this panic were not gathered by the people. The Government was charged H l f th w *^ a l ar £ e P ar t °^ ^ ne trouble. Doubtless Government Jackson's somewhat rude handling of the na- demanded. tional bank and financial affairs had aggra- vated matters, but the root of the evil was far deeper : it sprang from reckless extravagance. There was a wide de- mand now for the Government to lift the people out of their difficulties, but the Government was itself in perplex- ing straits. Beginning in January to distribute money among the States, before the end of the year it was not only unable to pay the last of the four quarterly install- ments, but was hardly able to meet its own running ex- penses. Van Buren refused to adopt or recommend any extraordinary plans for bringing about good times. He saw that only time and industry could bring back a condi- tion of hope and faith, which were the basis of growth and prosperity. Moreover, he did not believe it was the duty of government — especially the United States Government — to take a paternal care over interests that were best left to individuals. He was in consequence denounced as hard- hearted and cruel by Whig orators and by many of the people. He recommended (special session, September, 1837) that thereafter the Government of the United States should do its own financial business ; that it should not ?re e a!n dependent kec P its funds in State banks, nor, on the other hand, establish another national bank, but that the money should be collected and kept by the Govern- ment itself. This meant simply that whatever money was collected should be put by the Government in its own " strong box." The plan — called the " Divorce Bill," be- cause it divorced the Government from the banks — was bitterly attacked, and was not indeed adopted until 1840. 342 HISTORY OK TIIK A1MKIM0AN NATION. The abolitionists In fche uext administration (1841) this bill was repealed, but in L846 a like measure was passed, and since that day lias remained in force almost unchanged. The country suffered severely from the panic during a good portion of Van Buren's term; but there were other questions that occasionally occupied public in- terest, and one of these was of even more im- portance than money and banking. Since the Missouri compromise the slavery question had not been allowed to disappear entirely from public attention. Until about 1830, however, there was little discussion, and little oc- casion for excitement. In 1829 William Lloyd Garrison and Benjamin Lundy began to print, at Baltimore, The Gen- ius of Universal Emancipation. Two years later Garrison founded The Liberator, at Bos- ton, and in 18132 the New Eng- land Antislavery Society was founded. The society advo- cated the abolition of slavery at once, on the ground that it was sinful and demoralizing. Men were called to "immediate re- pentance." Somewhat later t he American Antislavery Society was organized. It grew but slowly at first, and met with the angry opposition of many who saw that the South would not consent to immediate net ion, and that < he preaohing of such dootrine would neces- sarily bring sectional ill feeling and disturbance. During the next few years many abolitionists* were * It should be noticed that abolitionism was essentially different from other earlier movement* against shivery, inasmuch as its main tenet was the sinfulness of slavery, which tainted the slaveholder and •1r~J^ry<£- 4~~ri ADMINISTRATION OF VAN BUREN— 1837-1841. 343 attacked by Xorthern mobs, in large part made up doubt- less of the more ignorant and excitable people, but some of them containing men who ought to have They suffer known that, in a free country, persecution and violence. ' • violence are the poorest of arguments, and likely to have quite an opposite effect from that intended. In 1833 Prudence Crandall opened her school in Canterbury, Conn., to negro girls. She was cast into jail, and her school building destroyed. Like outrages occurred elsewhere. In 1837 Elijah P. Lovejoy was shot in Alton, 111. His offense was the publication of an antislavery newspaper. Even in Boston Garrison was mobbed, and led through the street with a rope about his neck. The feeling at the South against the abolitionists was intense. It was to be expected that slave owners would be Th So th incensed against an organization which de- demands their clared slaveholding to be a sin, calling for in- suppression. stant repentance. Men who had been sur- rounded by the system all their lives might see some of its bad effects, but were not willing to be denounced as crimi- nals. Some of them now declared that abolition news- papers and pamphlets should be shut out from the mails, and the Governor of Alabama went so far as to demand that Xew York should turn over to his State for punish- ment the publisher of the Emancipator, an antislavery paper, on the ground that he had disseminated seditious articles (1835).* The Southern papers called for action on the part of the Xorthern States. " Words, words, words the whole nation. It would have nothing to do with gradual emanci- pation ; its purpose was to arouse the conscience of the nation to imme- diate repentance. * The Constitution provides for the return of fugitives from justice to the State whence they have fled ; but it makes no provision for the authorities of one State to turn over to another State a person charged with a crime in such second State when he did not actually flee from it. 23 344 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. are all we are to have," said one. " Up to the mark the North must come if it would restore tranquillity and pre- serve the Union," said another. The South was moving on dangerous gr.ound. There was little sympathy with the abolitionists at the North, but the excessive demands of the South were sure to bring about a reaction, in part at least. An occasional mob might attack " a fanatic," but there was little chance that the Northern people would turn over to Alabama a Northern man for punishment because he had written or said words distasteful to the South, or that they would suppress by law free speech on the sub- ject of slavery. Thus at the beginning of Van Buren's term the slavery question had taken on a new and dangerous aspect. At the North the open abolitionists were few, but question in a seemed to be slowly increasing. At the South new phase. there was deep resentment. Sharp debates had occurred in- Congress. The South could look with no pa- tience on a movement whose promoters denounced slave- holding as a cardinal sin, and who refused to consider any plans or methods but immediate and unconditional abo- lition. Now began that controversy which ended in the civil war. Sectional feeling grew constantly more bitter. A favorite idea of some Northern opponents of slavery, even when not abolitionists, was to bring about the abo- lition of slavery in the District of Columbia. Adams and Petitions to this end came to Congress in in- creasing numbers. A rule was proposed in the House providing that such petitions should not be printed or referred to a committee, but laid upon the table (1836). John Quincy Adams was then a member of the House, and when this rule was presented, he rose and said : " I hold the resolution to be a direct violation of the Constitution of the United States, the rules of this House, and the rights of my constituents." The rule was adopted by a large majority ; but from that time on Adams devoted himself ADMINISTRATION OF VAN BUREN— 1837-1841. 345 to the presentation of antislavery petitions and to an at- tempt to bring about an abandonment of the so-called " gag policy." He was not successful, however, until after eight years of effort. This long contest of Adams for the right of petition is full of striking and dramatic scenes. The proslavery men made a serious blunder when they tried to prevent debate on this great question. Not only did they array against them the keenest debater in the House, but the effort to stifle discussion awoke the interest of the nation, and thousands of men signed petitions or were won over to antislavery sentiment who otherwise would have had nothing to do with the movement. The first eighteen months of the gag policy increased the num- ber of antislavery petitions from twenty-three to three hundred thousand. The abolitionists henceforth might be denounced, but they were safe from personal violence. Among other difficulties of these days was war with the Southern Indians. For some time the National Govern- ment had been striving to remove all the In- The second di ans to new homes beyond the Mississippi. The Seminoles of Florida were a great object of hatred to the people of Georgia, because they offered an asylum to runaway slaves and were savage and intractable neighbors. Finally, under the leadership of their famous chief, Osceola, the Indians began war. The contest lasted for seven years (1835-'42), and was full of atrocities and horrors. The troops that were sent into the wilds of Florida suffered from fevers and exposure almost as much as from the tomahawk and scalping knife. Many lives were lost and millions of money expended to secure at last this old Spanish dominion that bore the peaceful name of the Land of Easter. In the election of 1840 there were three tickets in the field. The Democrats nominated Van Buren again. They stood pretty squarely on the platform of 1836, favoring the rights of the States and opposing the assumption of power 346 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. by the National Government. They were against a national bank, and in favor of the independent treasury. Some of the States were badly in debt because of the Democratic J platform in extravagances of the last ten years ; some had 1840. repudiated their debts, and there was now a demand in some quarters that the United States assume and pay State obligations. This the Democrats opposed.* The natural Whig candidate was Clay, the real leader of the party. He had been fighting valiantly against Jack- son and his successor for years, and represented 6 g8, the meaning and motive of the Whigs better than any other man. But by means of a trick of the politi- cal managers in the convention, Clay was passed by and General Harrison put in nomination. The Whig party was in these years essentially a party of opposition ; it was therefore made up of different elements, some of which had no positive principle in agreement with the main body of the party. One of these elements was a State-rights ele- ment, that had found its way into opposition because of dislike of Jackson's personal rule and what was considered his high-handed methods. In mere attacks, such men could work side by side with the Whigs, and might con- sider themselves brothers in the same party with Clay and Webster ; but in reality almost the only point in com- mon was opposition to Jackson and his disciples. To this element belonged John Tyler, of Virginia. He was a thorough State-rights man ; he had early declared that Congress could not prohibit slavery in the Territories, and in 1833 had cast in the Senate the only vote against the bill providing for the maintenance of national law and * The Democrats at this time were often called the " Loco-focos," but the name is more strictly applicable to a faction of the party. For the origin of the name and the meaning of the " loco-foco " movement, see Von Hoist, Constitutional History, vol. ii, p. 396 ; Shepard, Martin Van Buren, p. 293 ; Lalor, Cyclopedia, vol. ii, p. 781 ; see also the dictionary under Locofoco. ADMINISTRATION OF VAN BUREN— 1837-1841. 347 supremacy. He is said to have wept when Clay was not nominated, and " Tyler's tears " were asserted to be the reason for his own nomination to the vice-presidency — a nomination due in part doubtless to a desire to hold in the party the element which he represented.* The Whigs put forth no declaration of principles. A third party was now before the people. It was called the " Liberty party," and was composed of those who were strongly opposed to slavery, but willing to take The Liberty political means of getting rid of the evil. Such means Garrison and his school of abolitionists objected to. They considered their movement a moral reform, not to be sullied by politics. Indeed, the orthodox abolitionists soon refused to cast a ballot of any kind, be- cause the Constitution itself was tainted with immorality, inasmuch as it recognized slavery, and because a union with slaveholders was wrong. The Constitution they declared to be, in the words of the Hebrew prophet, " a covenant with death and an agreement with hell." f The nominees of the Liberty party were James G. Birney and Thomas Earle. The election was one of great excitement. The people, as never before, entered with unbounded enthusiasm into the contest. There was little calm discussion of principles. In the race for popular favor the Democrats were left far in the background by the Whigs, who claimed to be the people's party and made every appeal to popular sympathy. Monster meetings, long processions, campaign songs, took the place of argument. " Every breeze says change," said Webster. " The time for discussion has passed," exclaimed Clay. " Tippecanoe and Tyler too " was the watchword of * Thurlow Weed, a prominent Whig politician, declared that Tyler was elected " because we could get nobody else to accept." f " And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand ; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it." (Isaiah xxviii, 18.) 348 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the jubilant party, which had never yet tasted success, but expected now to be triumphant. The most was made of the fact that Harrison was a simple Westerner. Throughout the campaign live coons and barrels of cider were always in evidence ; log cabins were reared as emblems in town and city, or were drawn about on carts in long processions to mass meetings, which the newspapers said contained " acres of men." Enthusiasm for Harrison, strongly aided by the hard times, for which the Democrats had to bear the blame, easily carried the day for the Whigs.* They were wild with elation and overcome with joy. Nineteen States out of twenty-six cast their electoral votes for Harrison and Tyler. References. Short accounts : Wilson, Division and Reunion, Chapters IV and V; Roosevelt, Thomas H. Benton, Chapters VIII-X; Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume II, pp. 113-198; Shepard, Martin Van Buren, pp. 242-300; Morse, John Quincy Adams, pp. 240-301. Longer ac- count : Schouler, History, Volume IV, pp. 274-359. ADMINISTRATION OF WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON AND JOHN TYLER— 1841-1845. Harrison was an honest, straightforward, simple man, of moderate ability. He was not a great statesman, nor did he show himself to be a leader of men, but William Henry throughout life he quietly and conscientiously Harrison. & , ,,.,,,■, *, ■, i • performed the duties that devolved upon him. He won some honor in the War of 1812, when the nation craved national heroes. He was Governor of Indiana Ter- * Interesting accounts of this campaign of sound and excitement will be found in Schouler, History, vol. iv, pp. 328-340, especially pp. 335-340 ; Shepard, Van Buren, pp. 327-338 ; Schurz, Henry Clay, vol. ii, pp. 170-197 ; Von Hoist, Constitutional History, vol. ii, pp. 390-405. One of the pieces of doggerel verse used in the campaign was only too de- scriptive — " National Republicans in Tippecanoe, And Democratic Republicans in Tyler, too.'" This was a strange combination of men and principles. ADMINISTRlTION OF TYLER— 1841-1845. 349 ritory for twelve years, a Representative in Congress, and also a Senator. For some years before his election he had been living in a quiet, unassuming way at his home in Ohio. The new President was inaugurated with unwonted dis- play. The Whigs were jubilant, but were soon to be disap- m , . , pointed. Harrison announced his Cabinet al- The beginning x of the most immediately. Daniel Webster was made administration. Secretary of State. Clay did not desire to enter the Cabinet, though he could have had the place given to Webster. It was better so ; Clay was in no mood to be second even to the President. The spoils system had been very objectionable to many Wliigs when out of power, but now the tide of office seekers set in, and there was a scramble for office quite as vigorous as any that had occurred before. This practice, now indorsed by both parties, fastened and confirmed the system in national politics.* Harrison was sixty-eight years of age, and was not ro- bust in body. The campaign had fatigued him, and the duties of his new position sorely tried his Death of the strength. He was beset by office seekers. Just President. ° J one month after his inauguration he died. For the first time in our history death entered the White House. The people were shocked at such an end of their hopes. Harrison was deservedly popular, and the whole nation sincerely mourned his loss. Tyler at once assumed the duties and the title of Presi- dent. The Whigs who had elected him were somewhat anxious, but for a time tried to preserve a bold pr y l7deT mes front - T y ler ' s whole career could g ive them no assurance that he would follow what they con- sidered the Whig programme. At first things went smoothly. He retained Harrison's Cabinet, and issued an address to * " We have nothing here in politics," wrote Horace Greeley, who had daring the campaign edited the Log Cabin newspaper, " but large and numerous swarms of office-hunting locusts, sweeping on to Washington daily." See Schurz, Henry Clay, vol. ii, p. 192. 350 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the people, in which he said nothing that was particularly new or that gave notice of Democratic leanings. Difficul- ties soon arose, however. Clay felt himself the leader of the party, and, by nature imperious and qualified for leader- ship, he could not brook the pretensions of the man whose position had been secured by sheer accident. Tyler, in turn, Avas headstrong and ambitious, and seems to have be- gun early to nurse hopes of a re-election. However that may be, his whole history showed that, unless he renounced his past, he could not agree with the Whigs on affirmative measures, however well he might have got along with them when both were in opposition. It is not necessary to recount here the different steps by which Tyler became estranged from the party that elected him. Twice was a bank bill passed by Con- Whigs gress and vetoed by the President. His cabi- estranged. ne -^ ^^ ^ e exception of Webster, resigned. Webster remained in office in order that he might settle difficulties that then existed between England and America. When he had brought these to a satisfactory settlement, he, too, gave up his office. A tariff law was passed (1842) and signed by the President, but this was accomplished only after a long struggle, in the course of which two different tariff measures were vetoed. Before the middle of his term Tyler was without strong support in either party, but was upheld by a few men who were sneered at as "the cor- poral's guard." We need not consider who was right in this political controversy. The Whigs were deprived of much that they considered the legitimate fruit of their victory.* The difficulties with England alluded to above were for a while quite serious. In Van Buren's administration an in- cident occurred commonly called " the Caroline affair." There was at that time an insurrection in Canada, and some * " As an instance of the President's unpopularity, an influenza which about this time broke out acquired the name of the ' Tyler grippe.' " (Schouler, iv, p. 433.) ADMINISTRATION OF TYLER— 1841-1845. 351 of the people of the United States sympathized with the rebels. A vessel, the Caroline, seems to have been used to transport men and supplies from New York The Caroline acr0 ss the Niagara River. An expedition from Canada crossed to the American side, seized the vessel, set her on fire and let her drift over the falls. An American citizen was killed in the affair. Some years after this a Canadian named McLeod was arrested in New York and charged with the murder of the American. The English Government demanded the release of this man, on the ground that the whole matter was a public affair, for which England herself, and not a private citizen, was responsible. The New York authorities refused to surrender their prisoner to the National Government, and the situation was serious and critical. Fortunately he was acquitted upon trial, and so England had on this score no further ground of complaint. Some time before these occurrences serious disputes had arisen concerning the northeastern boundary. The terms of the treaty that was signed at the close of the The northeast- R evo i u ti n were not explicit. Maine and Can- em boundary. * ada both laid claim to a large territory, and each insisted that under the treaty she was the rightful owner. There was danger of war. Maine ordered troops into the disputed territory and held it, and this armed pos- session, known as the " Aroostook war," is said to have cost the State a million dollars (1839). War was prevented, however, and negotiations fo# settlement were undertaken. In 1842 Lord Ashburton came to America authorized to treat, and he and Webster agreed on a treaty which com- promised this dispute, and set at rest all controversies con- cerning the northern boundary of the United States even as far west as the Lake of the Woods. It also provided for the extradition of certain classes of criminals, and for keep- ing armed errtisers of both nations employed in checking the slave trade. 352 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Two outbreaks of a somewhat serious nature occurred within the States of the Union during Tyler's administra- tion. One was the so-called Dorr Rebellion, in The Dorr Rhode Island. It was the result of an effort Eebellioiii to extend the suffrage and correct the faults of the existing constitutional system, which seemed to many people unsuited to the needs of the State. Rhode Island still retained as a fundamental law the old charter of Charles II, a document that had been admirably suited to a simple agricultural community, but was not so well adapted to new and changed conditions of life. Some modification had been made years before, widening the suffrage somewhat, but there was still a large property qualification. Moreover, the basis of representation was entirely out of date. Disre- garding legal forms and methods, the "suffrage party," under the lead of Thomas W. Dorr, endeavored to establish a new Constitution. Under this instrument Dorr was elected Governor. The legal authorities refused to recognize the Constitution or the new officers. Trouble ensued. Troops were collected on both sides. The State was on the verge of civil war. Dorr was arrested and imprisoned, but on the other hand a new Constitution was adopted with more lib- eral and reasonable provisions. Although the Dorrites won their point, the constitutional party preserved the principle that a constitution must be altered by legal methods, by ob- serving the forms and restrictions laid down in the Consti- tution, not by assuming a popular demand for change. The other outbreak, " the patroon war " or the " anti- rent trouble," occurred in New York. Descendants of the old Dutch patroons still held large estates, and, The patroon ag p p U i a ti n increased, their exactions from their tenants were irritating and irksome in the extreme, recalling rather the dues of the old feudal system than reasonable rents. Attempts to collect back rent and to enforce the legal rights of the landlords, especially in the great manor of Rensselaer wyck, caused disturbances which ADMINISTRATION OF TYLER— 1841-1845. 353 lasted for about ten years (from 1839 to 1849), during which time little rent was collected and the authorities of the State were often openly resisted. The matter was finally adjusted by reasonable compromise. A new invention was now presented to a wondering world. In 1837 Samuel F. B. Morse took out a patent for sending messages by electricity. Not till 1843 The electric ^ j^ succee( j j n getting from Congress an ap- propriation that enabled him to make a practi- cal and convincing test. The next year a line was run from Baltimore to Washington — forty miles. " What hath God wrought ? " was the first message sent over the wire. The invention made great changes in methods of conduct- ing all sorts of business, The newspaper could now contain the intelligence of yesterday. As the invention came into use everywhere the same news could be read on the same day everywhere in the land. Space no longer need divide men into warring factions, when they could think the same thoughts and feel the same emotions at the same time. Politically as well as socially, the telegraph, like the rail- road, was of great importance. It narrowed our big country, and brought the National Government to each man's door. For some time past the question of the annexation of Texas to the United States had been receiving a good share of the public attention. Let us look for a Texasi moment at the history of the whole matter. It will be remembered that in 1819-'21 the United States agreed with Spain that the Sabine River should be our southwestern boundary. Under the Louisiana treaty we had ground for claiming even as far as the Rio Grande, but of course gave up our claim by the later agreement. Hard- ly had the treaty with Spain been agreed to when Mexico attained her independence and came into the ownership of the Texas country. Settlers from the Southern States began to move into this territory. Before 1830 there was a considerable American population there, utterly out of 354 HISTORY Otf THE AMERICAN NATION. sympathy with Mexico and her whole political system. In 1836 the Texans declared their independence, and, led by Samuel Houston, fought and won the battle of San Jacinto. From that time on Mexican authority practically ceased. The next year Texas asked admittance to the Union. Many of the Southern people now became intent upon annexation because it would extend slave territory. Nothing of impor- tance was done in Van Buren's administration, but after Tyler came into office plans for getting Texas were seriously taken up, especially by some of the Southern enthusiasts. In 1844 Calhoun became Secretary of State. He bent all his energies toward the desired end. A treaty of annexa- tion was secretly entered into, but it was rejected by the Senate. Texas claimed that she possessed more territory than the original Mexican province of that name, and in- deed a much greater territory than she had ever acquired control of. She claimed all east and north of the Eio Grande.* Annexation of the State and adoption of her claims meant probably a war with Mexico. Such was the situation when the election of 1844 occurred. It was generally supposed that Van Buren would be the Democratic candidate in this election. But he opposed the annexation of Texas, and was defeated in the ?o4? dates in convention. James K. Polk, of Tennessee, was nominated in his stead. George M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania, secured the nomination for Vice-President. f Clay, too, objected to bringing Texas into the Union, but * " That is, as if Maine should secede, and claim that her boundaries were the Alleghanies and the Potomac. . . . That is, as if Maine should join the Dominion of Canada, and England should set up a claim to the New England and Middle States, based on the declaration of Maine aforesaid." (Sumner, Andrew Jackson, p. 357.) This illustration is in somewhat exaggerated form, but shows the Texas situation well. f The Democratic platform demanded " the reoccupation of Oregon and the reannexation of Texas at the earliest practical period." These words were shrewdly chosen to indicate that we had given up territory that was justly ours. ADMINISTRATION OF TYLER— 1841-1845. 355 the Whigs nominated him with enthusiasm, and gave the second place to Theodore Frelinghuysen, of New Jersey. The Liberty party was again in the field, with Birney and Thomas Morris for their candidates. The burning question of the campaign was the annexa- tion of Texas. In the midst of the contest, Clay, hoping to win friends of annexation without repelling its Clay and the f oes ^ wro t e his famous Alabama letters. He declared he should be glad to see the annexa- tion of Texas "without dishonor, without war, with the common consent of the Union, and on just and fair terms." He did not think " the subject of slavery ought to affect the matter." By these words he lost many Northern votes, without gaining any from the South or from the extreme annexationists, who were now shouting " Texas or dis- union ! " On the whole, the Whigs were strongly opposed to the acquisition of more slave territory, and those who were not averse to the annexation of Texas strongly dis- approved of hasty measures and the studied disregard of Mexico's protests. The Democratic party, however, by the nomination of Polk instead of Van Buren, and by the direct statements of its platform, was committed to annexation. The Democrats. ~* r ^- j_i t-v j -i t n Many JN orthern Democrats doubtless were op- posed to slavery extension, but party ties held them close, and they voted for Polk and the " reannexation " of Texas. This was a turning point in the party history, for this sympathy with a movement which seemed intended, in large part at least, only to add another slave State to the Union, alienated a number of old-time Democrats at the North and won new adherents at the South. The small farmers of the Northern States had from the beginning of the century belonged naturally in the ranks of the Demo- cratic party beside the agriculturists of the South; but now this element began to drift away from its old moor- ings, either into the AVhig party or into the party that was, 356 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. more definitely the foe of slavery and slave extension. One must speak here only of tendencies and beginnings. These changes were wrought out only gradually. But we shall find that in the course of fifteen years the Democracy lost its hold upon the Northern States, and, by a careful exam- ination, we can see that this loss took its marked begin- nings with the Texas agitation and the nomination of Polk. The election was an exciting contest. Clay had all the qualities of leadership, and aroused the enthusiasm of the people. Men were devoted to him with some- Election and thing akin to a deep affection. The extrava- results gances of 1840 were not repeated, but there was great and intense earnestness. While Texas was the absorb- ing topic, many sought to blind their own eyes or those of others to the real question. The tariff was discussed at great length, and at the North especially both parties claimed to be its defenders. Some little enthusiasm, too, was aroused by the proposition of the Democratic platform to take possession of the Oregon country, then held jointly with England. Clay was defeated. Had the Liberty party cast its vote for him, he would have been elected. Over sixty thousand votes were given for its candidates, and it held the balance of power in New York and Michigan. The Whigs were greatly cast down over the defeat. " It was," said an eyewitness, "as if the firstborn of every family had been stricken down." Tyler and his helpmates, intent upon the annexation of Texas, believed that the result of the election gave full war- rant for immediate action. Florida and Loui- Annexation s i a na had been annexed by treaty. But Texas was an independent power, and it was proposed to pass a joint resolution inviting her into the Union. If a treaty were made, it would be necessary that two thirds of the Senate should vote to confirm it, and such a vote could not be secured. A resolution required only a majority of each House, This ; then, seemed the only feasible plan for the ADMINISTRATION OF TYLER— 1841-1845. 357 annexationists. A joint resolution was passed giving the President authority either to invite Texas into the Union as a State or to negotiate formally with her concerning ad- mission. It declared that four new States besides Texas might be made out of her territory, but that in any new States so formed there should be no slavery north of 36° 30'. Tyler did not hesitate which of the alternatives to accept. He did not wish to leave the honor of annexation to Polk ; so the day before he left office he sent off a messenger in hot haste to the " Lone Star Republic " with efTexutfae proposals for immediate union (March, 1845). beginning of Texas, of course, accepted the invitation. This 1 e exxd ' was the beginning of the end ; from this time on the policy of slavery extension found thousands and tens of thousands of bitter opponents at the North. Texas 358 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. was the last slave State admitted to the Union. Texas claimed all the land north and east of the Eio Grande River from its mouth to its source, and south and west of the line of 1819-'21. By this annexation there was added to the United States 376,163 square miles of territory, an area greater than that of France and England combined. The accession of so much slave territory naturally startled the North and made men watchful and suspicious. We must not think that there was as yet anything like a united sentiment at the North against the extension of slavery, but every year and every new success on the part of the South tended to awaken and strengthen antislavery feeling. Up to this time the North had rested in some security, because slavery was hemmed in by the Missouri compromise line and the southern and western limits of the Union. In the future there was to be little security ; the annexation of Texas showed a new way of adding to the limits of slavery. References. The best short accounts are in Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 133-145; Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume II, pp. 198-268; Lodge, Daniel Webster, Chapter VIII; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume IV, pp. 356-369; Roosevelt, Thomas H. Benton, pp. 237-316; Burgess, The Middle Period, pp. 278-327. Longer ac- count : Schouler, History, Volume IV, pp. 359-494. Keproduction of the First Telegraphic Message sent by the Morse System, now Preserved at Harvard College. CHAPTER XV. Territorial Expansion— Shall Slave Territory be extended?— 1845-1861. THE ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK— 1845-1849. James K. Polk was in many ways a remarkable man. When he was nominated for the presidency he was not well known, though he had been in Congress, and even Speaker of the House. "Who is Polk ? " was a common inquiry, and the Whigs made much sport of the Democrats for placing such a competitor against their peerless Clay. But when Polk assumed office it became apparent that he was no pygmy; and as one studies his career in the light of historical evidence it is seen that he was in some sort a man of iron, with unyield- ing determination and unflinching purpose. He was a keen and unrelenting partisan, but conscientiously devoted to the interests of his country as he saw them. Altogether pure and upright in private life, in politics his feelings were not delicate, and in diplomacy it is to be feared that he believed that an honorable end justified unworthy means. His Cabinet was composed of able men. The more impor- tant were James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, Secretary of State ; Kobert J. Walker, of Mississippi, Secretary of the Treasury ; William L. Marcy, of New York, Secretary of War; George Bancroft, of Massachusetts, the historian, Secretary of the Navy. At the very beginning of his administration the Presi- dent privately announced the purpose not only of establish- ing the independent Treasury and reducing the tariff, but also of settling the northwestern boundary trouble and ac- 24 359 360 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. quiring California. He succeeded in accomplishing all these objects. The independent Treasury was re-established. A new tariff act was passed materially lowering The Presi- ^he duties and making inroads upon the pro- tective system so dear to the Whigs. How he achieved his other objects we shall see as we go on. Texas, as we have seen, accepted the invitation to enter the Union. This was in the summer of 1845. Congress installed her as a State in the Union in December of that year. Before that was done, however — before, in fact, Texas was legally part of the United States — Polk sent troops within her boundaries to defend her against possible attack, and to make sure that annexation was not inter- rupted by Mexican interference. General Zachary Taylor was ordered to Texas, and in November had about four thousand men in his command. He took a position on the left bank of the Nueces Kiver. While the plans for the acquisition of Texas were being thus carried to a successful end, hopes of new possessions in the Northwest were likewise awakened. For The reoccupa- some years the land beyond the Rocky Moun- tains and north of California, known as the Oregon country, had been jointly occupied by England and the United States. Each claimed the title, but for the time being agreed not to demand exclusive rights there. Our demands were based (1) on the Louisiana purchase, a shadowy title, (2) upon the Spanish cession of 1819-'21, (3) upon early exploration, and (4) upon settlement and occu- pation. England's claims were similar. She claimed by discovery, basing her title in the first place on the voyage of Drake in the time of Queen Elizabeth. Later explora- tion helped to substantiate her title, and settlements had been made by English subjects on Xootka Sound even at the end of the last century. Of the valley of the Columbia, however, or at least the larger portion of it, we were fairly well assured, because for some years emigrants from the ADMINISTRATION OF POLK— 1845-1849. 361 States had been making their way thither, and even now (1845-'46) the emigrant wagons were carrying many new settlers to the region. This actual occupation gave us nine clear points in law. The " reoccupation " of Oregon had been coupled in the presidential campaign with the " rean- nexation " of Texas, for we claimed both under the Louisi- ana treaty, and now, after the inauguration of Polk, there was a popular demand, especially from the Western States, for " the whole of Oregon," and the cry was raised of " Fifty- four forty or fight." * It looked for a time, indeed, as if war might ensue, because it could hardly be hoped that Eng- land would consent to having her American dominions limited by the Rocky Mountains. The difficulty was finally settled, however, by a compromise. The two countries showed their good sense by not fighting for land or sup- posed honor, when both had reasonable grounds for their claims. The forty-ninth parallel already marked the divi- sion between the British dominions and those of the United States as far west as the mountains, and the same line was now agreed upon as the boundary through to the Pacific. f War did not break out immediately upon the annexation of Texas, as might well have been the case. The claims of Texas were so extraordinary that Mexico could What was no £ a d m it them to be just, inasmuch as they included not alone the old province of Texas, but a large territory besides over which the State had not succeeded in establishing control, and to which she had title * Fifty-four forty was the southern point of Alaska, then in the pos- session of Russia, known as Russian America. f The statement in the text is substantially accurate, but it is worth remarking that the line ran to sea water, and then followed the middle of the channel dividing Vancouver's Island from the main, and then through the middle of Fuca Strait. A dispute later arose as to what was the middle or the main channel. In 1872 the German Emperor, chosen as arbitrator, gave his decision in favor of America. Thus ninety years elapsed (1782-1872) before our northern line was finally deter- mined. See map, p. 370. 362 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. only by assertion. What were the boundaries of Texas as a province of Mexico is somewhat difficult to say, and, in fact, what they were makes little difference. The Texans had certainly not made good, by war and occupation, a title to more than so much of the Mexican territory as lay north of the Nueces Eiver and east of the present eastern boundary of New Mexico. By our assumption of the claim of Texas to all the land north and east of the Rio Grande from its mouth to its source, and by any endeavor to follow up our claim by taking actual possession of the disputed portion, we were sure to bring on war, unless Mexico was submissive and ready to bow before the superior strength of the United States. But such was not the case. Poor, weak, torn by internal strife and dissension, the Mexicans still retained a modicum of their old Spanish spirit. They were not given to self-control at the best, and were now greatly irritated. Moreover, Polk wanted California and laid his plans to get it. While he was doubtless ready to buy the coveted D . region, he was also ready to surround Mexico to obtain with difficulties, and willing so to arrange mat- Caiifomia. £ erg that, if war should break out, we could pounce upon California and add another vast territory to our dominions. The methods of the administration were many and devious. The whole affair does not furnish the pleasantest reading in American history, for it can hardly be denied that our Government used power with unseemly disregard of a weaker neighbor's rights, and pressed roughly forward to the goal we wished for. It is not agreeable to remember that those in authority forgot the high duty rest- ing upon them as the representatives of a great country claiming to be the leader of the New World, not in might alone, but in intelligence, virtue, and the graces of civiliza- tion. The far West, which soon proved to be golden, be- longed, perhaps, by a manifest destiny to the Anglo-Saxon man ; but if we could have obtained it by means that re- ADMINISTRATION OP POLK— 1845-1849. 363 dounded to our honor, this would have been a brighter page in our history. Although one must acknowledge that in large measure the South was moved by a desire to attain more territory . , for slavery, and that Polk was not magnani- Geograpny and . „ , manifest mous m his treatment of Mexico, we should destiny. no ^ f or g e t that the American feeling of mani- fest destiny had a physical basis. Texas was, to all intents and purposes, part of the great central valley of the conti- nent, the greater portion of which had become part of the American possessions ; the Eio Grande seemed to be the only reasonable halting place in the forward movement of the population toward the Southwest. This energetic for- ward movement into the unsettled regions of the West had been going on since the English colonists first settled on the Atlantic coast, and with redoubled energy since the be- ginning of the nineteenth century. Aptitude for settling new areas and for subduing the wilderness, zeal for more land and wider dominion, had become national traits. This is no excuse for the methods used in wresting Texas and the far West from the nerveless hands of Mexico ; but it ex- plains the fact in part. " It would be vain to expect," said Calhoun, "that we could prevent our people from penetrat- ing into California. Even before our present difficulties with Mexico the process had begun. We alone can people [this region] with an industrious and civilized race, which can develop its resources and add a new and extensive re- gion to the domain of commerce and civilization." * Benton * These words were spoken after the war with Mexico had begun. Calhoun, it may be said, was opposed to the war, but believed that our acquisition of the West was a foregone conclusion. We must remember that from the very beginning of English colonization the settlers in America had been pitted against other nations for the possession of the continent. The acquisition of Texas and California was another step in the great contest with Spain for dominion in America — a contest that began with Sir Humphrey Gilbert and his desire to build up a colonial realm for England and to weaken the power of Spain. (See chapter ii.) 364 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. was opposed to the methods of annexation, and denounced intrigue ; but he desired the acquisition of the country by honorable means. His words show us that the movement was not merely a Southern conspiracy to extend slavery. " We want Texas," he said — " that is to say, the Texas of La Salle ; and we want it for great natural reasons obvious as day, and permanent as Nature." The land between the Nueces Eiver and the Eio Grande was claimed by the United States as a part of Texas ; but Mexico was not ready to give up her title. In egtm ' the early part of 1846 Polk, without sending word of his intention to Congress, which was then in ses- sion, ordered General Taylor to take a position on the left bank of the Eio Grande. Taylor obeyed, and, moving to the river, intrenched himself opposite the Mexican town of Matamoras, where there were Mexican troops. " The armies being thus in presence, with anger in their bosoms and arms in their hands, that took place which everybody foresaw must take place — collisions and hostilities."* A detach- ment of Mexican troops was sent across the river by Arista, the commanding general. A small body of Americans was attacked and a few were killed. When the news reached the President, he sent a message to Congress declaring that " Mexico has passed the boundary of the United States, has invaded our territory, and shed American blood upon Amer- ican soil." War existed, he declared, notwithstanding all efforts to avoid it, and existed " by the act of Mexico her- self." Congress declared, May 13, 1846, that war existed by act of Mexico. Money was appropriated, and the Presi- dent was authorized to call for fifty thousand volunteers. There was now no help for it, and the country prepared for war. It was from the first popular with many. But, on the other hand, a strong element was bitterly opposed, not knowing in their bewilderment where the land hunger * Benton, Thirty Years' View, vol. ii, p. 679. ADMINISTRATION OF POLK— 1845-1849. 365 of the nation would carry it. To the Whigs it seemed a Democratic war. Not all were opposed ; hut those who had been averse to the annexation of Texas were ready to War un o ul denounce these bloody consequences. To the with some antislavery element at the North it seemed a persons. war on b e nalf of slavery and for the exten- sion of slave territory. The feelings of these men were well voiced in the Biglow Papers, which were at this junc- ture written by James Russell Lowell and were very widely read. The keen sarcasm and homely humor of these verses — more effective than argument — made converts to the anti- slavery cause ; the war was more seriously attacked in these telling lines than by scores of pamphlets and speeches.* The first engagement of the war took place on the northern side of the Rio Grande. Taylor's defenses were attacked in his absence, but the garrison obeyed battles 8 * to tne ^ e ^ er the instructions which their gen- eral had left : " Defend the fort to the death." The attack was repulsed. Then followed the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, May 8 and 9, 1846. The Americans, under Taylor, were greatly outnumbered, but fought with gallantry. The Mexicans were defeated, and withdrew across the Rio Grande. The Americans followed, and occupied Matamoras. After waiting here for a time that re-enforcements might be obtained, they pushed on into the enemy's country, and in September reached Monterey, a strongly fortified city. Here there was heavy fighting, but battery after battery was taken by assault, and the * " I dunno but wut it's pooty, Trainin' round in bobtail coats, — But it's cur'us Christian dooty, This 'ere cuttin' folks's throats. " They jest want this Californy So's to lug new slave States in To abuse ye, an' to scorn ye, An' to plunder ye like sin." 866 HISTOUY OK T11K AMERICAN PKOPLK. plaoe tell. Taylor thou moved forward again. In Feb* ruarv (1847) occurred the battle of Buena Vista. The Mexicans had four times as many troops as the Americans, but the American army was posted in a strong position. The Mexicans fought with great courage and obstinacy, but they were beaten again. The whole of the surrounding citv or %v , v - MKXICO^V Onto Gordoj Tin: MEXICAN WAR country, by reason of this victory, fell into the hands of the Americans. We may now turn to consider the movements of the other armies of invasion. Genera] Kearny marched across the plains to Santa Ke, hoisted the American Hag there, and proclaimed New Mexico a part of the I'nited States. ADMINISTRATION OK POLK- 1845-1840, 367 He then marched on into California, and reached San Diego. Long before his arrival, however, the principal part of that region had passed into our hands. Ne . w n M . e .? C0 . For some time a squadron had been kept on the and California. * r western coast, ready to pounce upon the prize. When war was begun — in fact, even before it was known that an express declaration had been made — Monterey was seized. San Francisco and other chief harbors were also occupied. A new movement was begun in the early spring of IS IT. General Scott took Vera Cruz, and began a march to the city of Mexico. A fierce battle took place at Cerro Gor- the Mexicans, as usual, fought with bravery, and, as usual, were beaten.* Scott led his army forward again. lie met with little opposition until near the enemy's capital. Here there were strong de- fenses ; but the Americans won a series of unbroken victories. The soldiers fought bravely, while Scott and his lieutenants showed great skill and daring. In September the heights of Chapultepec were stormed and the city of Mexico was taken. Peace was soon after concluded. General Scott'8 army. do, where ./^A^ie^t Jc^lr * General Grant, who served as a second lieutenant in this war, speaks thus of the Mexican troops: "The Mexicans, u on many other occasions, stood up ms well as Mtiy troops ever did. The trouble seemed to be the laek of experience anions]: the officers, which led them after ■ certain time to quit, without being particularly whipped, but because they had (Sought enough." This remark is characteristic of Grant, who did not fight in that way himself. 368 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. This was certainly one of the most remarkable wars in history. Our troops won every pitched battle. Scott Ch t r nd marcne d for two hundred miles and more into influence of the enemy's country, and wrested stronghold the war. after stronghold from the hands of greatly su- perior forces. This war was in marked contrast with the War of 1812. Both were party wars ; but in this one the generals were fit to command, and the soldiers were thor- oughly disciplined and equipped. Many of the generals who afterward became prominent in the rebellion obtained in Mexico their first practical lessons in military art. Ulysses S. Grant and Eobert E. Lee served in subordinate positions, both with credit. This war, in more than one sense, was the precursor of the civil war. The war was not concluded — indeed, was hardly well be- gun — before the inevitable slavery question arose in Con- gress. In August, 1846, the President asked The Wilmot f 0Y monev t a i(j m bringing the war to a close. proviso. J on It was supposed that the money was to be used to buy territory. A bill was introduced into the House ap- propriating two million dollars. David Wilmot, a Demo- cratic Eepresentative from Pennsylvania, proposed that there be added to the bill a proviso that slavery should never exist within any territory acquired from Mexico. The bill with this proviso passed the House, but did not pass the Senate. The same contest between the two houses took place the next year ; but the Senate finally won, and an appropriation of three million dollars was made without the antislavery condition. The " Wilmot proviso " was for sev- eral years used as a general phrase — not with special refer- ence to the amendment of Wilmot, but to the principle which it contained. All who were opposed to the exten- sion of slavery were said to be in favor of the " Wilmot proviso." February 2, 1848, the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo was signed, ending the Mexican War. It was ratified by the ADMINISTRATION OF POLK— 1845-1849. 369 Senate the next month. By its terms the United States became possessed not only of the disputed territory, which _ . . had been claimed by Texas, but of a vast ter- The treaty of J mt Guadaloupe ritory to the west as well. The boundary line Hidalgo. agreed upon ran up the Eio Grande to the southern boundary of New Mexico, thence along the south- ern boundary to the western limit of New Mexico, up these western limits to the Gila Eiver, thence along that river to the Colorado, and from the junction of these two rivers followed the line dividing Upper and Lower California to the Pacific Ocean.* The United States paid $15,000,000 in cash, and agreed to pay in addition claims of its citizens on the Mexican Government to an amount not exceeding $3,250,000, and other claims already definitely allowed by Mexico. A glance at the map will show how much was secured by this cession as the fruit of the war. There was thus added to the United States about 875,000 square miles, including Texas and what is now the State of Cali- fornia. The result of Polk's aggressive policy, aided by Southern zeal and the native land hunger of the nation, was an aston- ishing increase of the national domain in the Territorial course of four years. March 4, 1845, the expansion. western boundary of the United States was the line of 1819, and we occupied, jointly with Great Britain, the Oregon country. In 1848 the republic stretched from sea to sea, and as far south as the Rio Grande Eiver. The Bay of San Francisco, the coveted harbor of the western coast, was in our hands. If we include Oregon in the acquisitions of this administration, over 1,000,000 square * In 1853, due to the fact that some question had arisen about this boundary, and because a proposed route for a railroad to the Pacific ran somewhat south of our line at the Gila River, another purchase was made from Mexico. This was known as the Gadsden purchase, and included 47,330 square miles. The map will show the land so acquired. The sura paid was $10,000,000. 370 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. ACQUISITION OF TERRITORY ^ IN THE WEST 1803-53 The line marked XY was undetermined and in dispute and partly on this account the GADSDEN PURCHASE was made miles were added to American territory, more than the whole area of the United States when its independence was acknowledged by Great Britain.* Square miles. Square miles. * Texas (1845) 376,163 Austrian Empire 240,942 First Mexican cession . 545,753 Germany, France, and Spain 613,093 Oregon 284,828 Sweden and Italy 285,383 1,206,744 M39,418 ADMINISTRATION OF POLK— 1845-1849. 371 The country might well be lifted up as it contemplated its greatness and exalted the courage and skill of our soldiers in Mexico. But the acquisition of this for bodh? and new territory was at once the cause of great foreboding and of deep and bitter feeling. Territorial expansion was especially in favor at the South, and now, even before the war was ended, and before the land for which the soldiers were fighting was securely wrested from Mexico, the slaveholders saw men at the North asserting that slavery should not be admitted into any part of the territory acquired. To many at the ,South this seemed like robbing them of the just spoils of conquest. The people were fully awake to the momentousness of the issue. The North was divided. Few were desirous of seeing slavery admitted to the new territory ; Shall slavery ^^ man y were no t [ n sympathy with a policy which would rigidly exclude the Southerner with his human property, because they believed that the question would settle itself, if men would only consent to let it alone. Such persons looked upon "agitation" as the great evil, because discussion of the slavery question angered the South and endangered the Union. Others, an increasing number, were now flatly opposed to further ex- tension of slavery, and they demanded the principle of the Wilmot proviso without qualification and without delay. Let us not mistake the situation. It is not true that for fifteen years before the civil war a solid North faced a solid South. The South naturally was nearly a unit on the principle of extending slavery, or at least declared the slave- holders' right to move into the new possessions of the nation — possessions obtained by the expenditure of national blood and treasure. On the other hand, Northern sentiment was divided ; only a minority were deeply enough in earnest to make opposition to slavery the first and controlling mo- tive of political conduct. As the years went by this num- 372 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ber grew larger, until something like a solid North faced a solid South. It will be our task to watch the phases of this movement toward a unity of sentiment at the North.* In 1847, General Lewis Cass, then Senator from Michi- gan and a leader in the Democratic party, wrote his famous Nicholson letter. He had been a prominent Popular candidate for the presidential nomination in sovereignty^ x 1844, and was now mentioned as the standard bearer of the party in the ensuing campaign. His letter, when published, therefore won attention. It announced a new doctrine. It declared that the National Government ought not to interfere with the domestic concerns of the Territories, and, in short, asserted that the existence of slavery was a question with which the people of the Terri- tories must deal themselves. He even denied that Congress had the constitutional authority to regulate the internal affairs of a Territory. " I do not see in the Constitution any grant of the requisite power to Congress ; and I am not disposed to extend a doubtful precedent beyond its necessity — the establishment of Territorial governments, when needed — leaving to the inhabitants all the rights compatible with the relation they bear to the Confederation." Thus was stated the doctrine later known as " popular sovereignty." By the summer of 1848 there were four propositions before the country concerning slavery in the territory ac- quired from Mexico. (1) That of Calhoun, sitions regard- wno declared that the territory so acquired ing slavery belonged to the States, and that a Southern man had as good a right to carry his slave with him into the Federal domain as a Northern man had to take his sheep or his oxen. (2) The doctrine of the Wil- * The student must not be confused by details and prevented from seeing the main drift and meaning of events. From now on to 1861 the question ever growing more important was whether or not slavery should be hemmed inside its old limits, or be allowed to expand and occupy the WesU ADMINISTRATION OF POLK— 1845-1849. 373 mot proviso, which declared it to be the moral duty of Congress to keep slavery out of the public domain. The most ardent advocates of this principle denied that Con- gress had the right to legalize slavery in national territory. (3) The doctrine of the Mcholson letter. (4) The exten- sion of the line of 36° 30' through to the Pacific as the boundary between slavery and freedom. The idea was already spread abroad among the Northern people that this new West was ill adapted to slave labor ; many therefore favored a policy of neglect, hoping thereby to soothe the South, whose peculiar institution would be driven from the region by Nature herself, whose laws were stronger than any enactments of men. Persons holding this idea were likely to support either the third or the fourth of the propositions just given. As the presidential campaign approached the Demo- cratic party found itself divided. Especially in New York there were differences. With these the slavery emocra s. q Ueg ^ on j ia( j muc } 1 to do. One faction was called the " Old Hunkers," the other the " Barnburners." * The latter faction was personally devoted to Van Buren, and expressed its " uncompromising hostility to the exten- sion of slavery into territory now free." The Hunkers were opposed to a statement of principle. The National Demo- cratic Convention nominated Cass for the presidency, and William 0. Butler, of Kentucky, for the vice-presidency. A platform was adopted full of safe sayings, but not defi- nitely committing the party on the slavery question. The Whigs, too, were not united. In the East there were " Conscience Whigs " and " Cotton Whigs." In the Northwest there was a strong antislavery ele- 6 lg8 ' ment. The leaders of the party at large, how- ever, were desirous of avoiding the dread issue, and the con- vention, when it met, firmly held its peace on the great * For the origin of these names see Shephard's Van Buren, p. 354; McLaughlin's Cass, p. 237. 374 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. question which everybody knew was in everybody's thoughts. Clay was still popular, but many feared his candidacy. Following the example of 1840, General Taylor was put in nomination. Millard Fillmore, of New York, was nom- inated for Vice-President. These nominations meant noth- ing, except that the Whigs did not dare to announce prin- ciples, but hoped for success by mere dint of shouting for " Old Eough and Eeady," as Taylor was called. The antislavery Whigs had hoped for an antislavery platform, and when they found the party ready to hide itself behind a popular name they declared The Free- ^hat they would not be bound by partv ties. soilerSi J j r j The Barnburners and other dissatisfied Demo- crats were likewise aroused and ready for independent action. In August a convention at Buffalo nominated Mar- tin Van Buren and Charles Francis Adams. This was the beginning of the Free-soil party. The Liberty party coa- lesced with it. It was devoted, without shadow of turning, to the principle of free soil. " Congress," it declared, " has no more right to make a slave than to make a king." " Thunders of applause " are said to have followed the read- ing from the platform of such sentences as this : " Eesolved, that we inscribe on our banner free soil, free speech, free labor, and free men, and under it we will fight on and fight ever, until a triumphant victory shall reward our exertions." The great revolt at the North against slavery extension was fairly begun. Thus there were three candidates in the field. Two of the parties refused to express definite opinions on the slav- ery question ; but one of them nominated a slave owner, and the other chose as its leader the man who had given out his belief that Congress could not legislate on the sub- ject of slavery in the Territories. Taylor and Fillmore were elected. The Free-soilers cast over two hundred and ninety thousand votes, and held the balance of power in some of the Northern States. Although both of the old ADMINISTRATION OP TAYLOR— 1849-1850. 375 parties blinded their eyes to the great problem, it remained to be solved, and could not be escaped. Moreover, there were tens of thousands of men at the North that were now insisting that it must be solved by a recognition of principle. References. The best short accounts are in Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 145-160; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume IV, pp. 368-387; Roosevelt, Thomas H. Benton, pp. 317-340; Schurz, Henry Clay, Volume II, pp. 268-315; Blaine, Twenty Years in Congress, Volume I, pp. 41-86; Von Hoist, John C. Calhoun, p. 260-335. Longer accounts : Schouler, History, Volume IV, pp. 495-550, Vol- ume V, pp. 1-128. ADMINISTRATION OF ZACHARY TAYLOR AND MILLARD FILLMORE— 1849-1853. General Taylor's life up to the time of his election to the presidency had been spent in large measure as a soldier in the Zachary Taylor. -, J J regular army. He owned a plantation in Louisiana and several hun- dred slaves. He was an hon- est, straightforward man, free from all pretense, with a soldierly devotion to duty, and with a very clear sense of right and justice. In political experience he was totally lacking, and his knowledge of public men and events was necessarily limited. He is said to have supposed, until a short time before his arrival at Wash- ington to assume office, that the Vice-President was ex-officio 25 ~7^c^/C^c^p/^t^ 376 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. a member of his Cabinet. Spite of his unfamiliarity with the formalities and duties of his position, his frankness and honesty did not ill fit him for the presidency in the try- ing days that were before the people. Slaveholder as he was, he could see no reason for doing aught to fasten slav- ery on regions where the inhabitants did not want it, and he could be relied upon to act with what seemed to him complete fairness. During Polk's administration the balance between South- ern and Northern States had been preserved. Florida was admitted in 1845, and Iowa in 1846. The ad- mission of Texas was offset by the entrance of Wisconsin into the Union in 1848. In the summer of that year Oregon was established as a Territory. The act of establishment forbade slavery or involuntary servitude within the territorial limits. Save as the laws of Mexico were recognized or military rule might be enforced, The great ^he Territory acquired from Mexico as the result of the war was still without legal organi- zation. It was necessary for Congress to act at once. California presented peculiar difficulties. In 1848 gold was discovered there. This discovery soon made a deep impression on the minds of the Eastern peo- S°?? f in . pie, and in 1849 a great migration to the new gold coast set in. Thousands and tens of thou- sands left their homes in the East to hunt for riches. Long trains of wagons started on the weary journey over the Western prairies. Every sort of ocean craft was pressed into service that the eager crowds might be carried " around the Horn " or landed at the Isthmus of Panama, to make their way across as best they might. Lawyers, ministers, school-teachers, mechanics, men from all walks of life, old and young, hastened away to the gold fields to make their fortunes in a day. The population of California grew with astounding rapidity. Something like eighty thousand persons arrived there in a single year. San Francisco ADMINISTRATION OF TAYLOR— 1849-1850. 377 changed from a hamlet to a city in a twelvemonth. The mad race for the gold diggings brought together a motley crowd. There was no law save the rough code of the min- ing camp. The whole territory was on the very verge of anarchy ; but there was underneath it all a strong senti- ment of order. These people, thus quickly swept together into a com- munity without law, showed in the end rare talent for m „. . organization. In September, 1849, delegates California 6 x . J ' ' ® adopts a met in convention, adopted a btate Lonstitu- Constitutlon. ^ion, and prepared to seek admission into the Union. A clause prohibiting slavery was adopted without difficulty. The people ratified the Constitution, and elected State officers and members of Congress. When Congress met, therefore, in December, 1849, seri- ous problems demanded immediate solution. (1) California, with a free Constitution, claimed immediate Serious admission into the Union. Such admission was strongly opposed by the South, for it would destroy the balance between the States, because there was no slave State ready for entrance, nor was there likely to be for some time to come. (2) Some sort of Territorial govern- ment must be established in the rest of the land obtained from Mexico, and it must be decided whether slavery should be recognized there or not. (3) Moreover, there was a con- test between Texas and the people of the old Mexican prov- ince of New Mexico. Texas, it will be remembered, seceded from Mexico, claiming all land north and east of the Eio Grande Eiver. But the province of New Mexico had in reality extended considerably to the east of this river, and the Texans had never succeeded in making good their claim to this region. The people of New Mexico objected to hav- ing their province divided and the eastern portion of it embraced in the State of Texas. This contest Congress was called upon to settle. (4) In addition to all of these difficul- ties, slavery presented others. The Northerners were, year 378 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. by year, more hostile to the whole institution, and the ex- istence of slavery in the District of Columbia was especially irritating. Slaves were bought and sold within sight of the Capitol, and this seemed to Northern sentiment a disgrace no longer to be borne. (5) Many desired also the suppression of the trade in slaves between the States, as clearly within the power of the United States Government. (6) The South- erners, resenting any interference with the traffic in slaves, made serious charges against -the North ; they charged all the North with the sins of abolitionism ; they demanded a more stringent fugitive slave law, in order that they might thus recover the hundreds of slaves that yearly escaped and made their way to the North. Through the winter of 1849-'50 the feeling was intense. Southern men felt that they were now struggling for a last hope. Texas, with its wide prairies, was in- The Union ^ ee( j theirs, but it now seemed possible that in danger. ' r slavery would be shut out of the Mexican ces- sion, because even the people of New Mexico did not wish it. The Virginia Legislature passed resolutions declaring that the adoption and attempted enforcement of the Wil- mot proviso would leave to the people but two courses : one, of " abject submission to aggression and outrage " ; the other, " determined resistance at all hazards and to the last ex- tremity." All over the South these sentiments were ap- plauded. The Union seemed to be in danger, for the South was exasperated and utterly in earnest. " All now is up- roar," wrote Clay, " confusion, and menace to the existence of the Union and to the happiness and safety of the people." To the task of quieting the storm and of saving the Union, Clay now applied himself. He hoped that each sec- ~ , tion might be brought to yield a portion of its mise measures, claims and that peace could be secured by com- 1850. promise. No one was better fitted for the task than he. He was a slave owner, but he had no great love for slavery. He knew Southern life and passions, but he ADMINISTRATION OF TAYLOR— 1849-1850. 379 knew Northern life and prejudices quite as well. His popu- larity was great, for his sympathies were wide and deep, and for forty years he had stood before the people as a faithful representative of American ideas. He introduced into the Senate, in January, a series of resolutions dealing with the subjects of controversy. He proposed, among other things, (1) to admit California ; (2) to establish Territories without saying anything about slavery ; (3) to pass a fugi- tive slave law; (4) to pay Texas to give up her claim in New Mexico ; (5) to declare that it was inexpedient to abol- ish slavery in the District of Columbia, but (6) to abolish the slave trade there. These resolutions were the subjects of discussion for months. All through the summer of 1850 North and South anxiously watched the movements of Congress. Great debates. The Senate wag the chief arena of debate< Great speeches were made by Clay, Webster, Calhoun, Seward, and others. Webster greatly disappointed thousands of his w . , Northern admirers by supporting the compro- 7th of March mise, and declaring that slavery need not be speech. excluded by law from the new Western Terri- tories, because it was excluded by a law superior to legisla- tive enactment : " I mean the law of Nature, of physical geography, the law of the formation of the earth." He de- clared that antislavery agitation was useless and danger- ous, and he even censured the North for harboring runaway slaves. It was believed by many that he spoke these words in hope of securing the presidency. If he did, he was sadly mistaken, for from that time, although Northern con- fidence seemed temporarily to be given him again, his great power of leadership was gone. Calhoun was at the point of death and unable to deliver the speech he had prepared. It was therefore read for him. If one wishes to know the feeling of the South that finally led to secession and civil war, one should study this speech. To Calhoun the nation seemed clearly divided into two 380 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Calhoun's position, distinct sections; if the Northern one insisted on over- turning the balance between the two, the interests of the South would be endangered and slavery would not be safe ; the only way in which the Union could be preserved was by carefully maintaining this balance and by the complete recognition of sectional differences and interests. To the Western Territories the Southerner must be allowed to go with his slaves as freely as the Northern man with his cattle ; slavery must not be discriminated against, but protected by the power of the National Government. Seward made the greatest speech of these debates, be- cause he fully represented the best Northern sentiment concerning slavery; because he represented the sentiment that was to become the dom- inant power in the nation. He declared that slavery must go no further. He warned the South that every effort to extend slavery or to fasten its hold upon the country would only hasten the day of emancipation, because this land must be free, and the forces of economy, the forces of civilization, were fighting the battles of freedom. " The question of dissolving the Union is a complex question : it embraces the fearful issue whether the Union Seward's shall s t a nd, and slavery, under the steady, peaceful action of moral, social, and political causes, be removed by gradual voluntary effort and with compensation ; or whether the Union shall be dissolved and civil war ensue, bringing on violent but complete and im- fai e acquired by a little effort. How widely hopes of conquests in that direction were entertained at the South one can not say. Certain it is that many were intent upon extending slavery, and hoped to gain strength for slavery by the acquisition of new territory. But zeal for the annexation of Cuba was not confined to Southern politicians. There was prevalent at the time a bold belief in the doctrine of " manifest destiny," a belief that we as a nation were called upon to extend the sphere of our wholesome influence, to gather in new lands that we might do our great duty in elevating man. This sentiment is well expressed in the words of Edward Everett, who dur- ing the last few months of Fillmore's administration was Secretary of State : " Every addition to the territory of the American Union has given homes to European destitution and gardens to European want." Marcy himself seems to have been anxious for the an- nexation of Cuba. In 1854, at his suggestion, the American ministers to England, France, and Spain — manifesto. James Buchanan, John Y. Mason, Pierre Soule — met and consulted upon the prospects of ac- quiring this island. They drew up a paper which has since borne the name of the " Ostend manifesto," from the place where the first consultations were held. This is a remark- able document. It declared that the "Union can never enjoy repose nor possess reliable security as long as Cuba is not embraced within its boundaries." It suggested, in hardly mistakable language, that the United States would 388 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. be justified in seizing the coveted spot if Spain refused to sell it. " We should be recreant to our duty, be unworthy of our gallant forefathers, and commit base treason against our posterity, should we permit Cuba to be Africanized and become a second St. Domingo, with all its attendant horrors to the white race, and suffer the flames to extend to our own neighboring shores, seriously to endanger or actually to consume the fair fabric of our Union." The Government did not directly sanction this extraordinary paper. Marcy directly disapproved of it; but when it was published it startled the world. Men at the North wondered if our nation was in such a plight that three of our foreign diplo- mats dared openly proclaim that we must seize an island, lest its inhabitants become free. The Democrats, highly successful in the campaign of 1852, took office the next year with elation and confidence. They had proclaimed loudly the sanctity of the The slavery compromise, and men hoped and believed that question again. , _ \ _ . _ , . x , , . , ,. the dreadful slavery issue was a thing of the past. But hardly had the new Congress assumed its duties when the storm burst again with renewed fury. It was proposed to form a new Territory in the land west of Iowa and Missouri, part of the Louisiana purchase. From all of this country north of 36° 30' slavery was excluded by the express terms of the Missouri compromise. The minds of the Northern people had long rested in calm assurance that this portion of the national domain was destined for free- dom. It was protected by a law of over thirty years' stand- ing, and both of the great parties had avowed their faith and allegiance to it. In January, 1854, the Senate began the consideration of a measure for organizing a Territory in this region. Senator Dixon, of Kentucky, who was filling the unexpired term of Henry Clay, offered an amendment repealing so much of the Missouri compromise as restricted the extension of slavery. A few days later, Senator Stephen A. Douglas, ADMINISTRATION OF PIERCE— 1853-1857. 389 from Illinois, brought in a new bill providing for two Ter- ritories, Kansas and Nebraska, and for the repeal of the slavery restriction of the famous compromise on The Kansas-^ ^ g roun( j ^hat it was " superseded by the prin- ciples of the legislation of 1850." The policy of " non-intervention," which was said to be the basis of the act of 1850, was now to be adopted a3 a principle in the organization of the new Territories. It was declared that the intention of the act was " not to legislate slavery into any Territory or State, nor exclude it therefrom ; but to leave the people thereof perfectly free to form and regulate their domestic institutions in their own way, subject only to the Constitution of the United States." The bill was debated long and bitterly. Chase, Seward, and Sumner made great speeches, attacking slavery and charging the South with breach of faith. Douglas defended the measure with his usual skill and vigor. He was powerful in debate. His language was not elegant and his manner was coarse, but he spoke with such vehemence, with such consummate shrewdness and adroitness, that he was one of the greatest debaters that ever spoke in Congress. He declared that the compromise of 1850 contained a principle ; that the principle was wise and constitutionally sound ; that in order to quiet the slavery agitation forever this principle should be applied to all of the Territories. It is not perfectly clear that the "non-intervention" policy of 1850 was the same as the doctrine of "popular sovereignty," nor was it made absolutely evi- Sme^? 116 dent tnat under tnis Kansas-Nebraska act, pur- porting to be based on the principle of 1850, the people of the Territories themselves could, after organi- zation, either admit or exclude slavery as they chose. But Cass and Douglas, and other Northern Democrats that voted for the bill, seem to have believed that it recognized " popu- lar sovereignty " ; and if it did, then the people of the new 390 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Territories could settle the matter for themselves. The Southern people later denied that either the compromise of 1850 or the Kansas-Nebraska bill meant anything but this — that they should be allowed to go into the Territories with their slaves without " intervention " from anybody, either from the Territory or the National Government. The bill was passed by Congress in May, 1854. The people of the North were roused to intense excitement dur- ing the whole period of this discussion. As Effect of the j on g ag s i averv was m0 re or less limited by the compromise restriction and there existed a sort of balance between the sections, which men persuaded them- selves was the natural and constitutional condition, there ADMINISTRATION OF PIERCE-1853-1857. 391 was something like quiet and composure ; but now, as they saw these old restrictions cast aside and the prairies of the great West opened to slave labor on an equal footing with free, there was deep indignation in the hearts of many who had hitherto belonged to the conservative classes and had deprecated agitation and excitement. Congressmen that voted for the measure had difficulty in justifying them- selves before their constituents. Douglas was for the time being bitterly denounced. " I could then travel," he said at a later day, " from Boston to Chicago by the light of my own effigies." Some ardent foes of slavery were indeed elated ; they felt that now the real contest was begun ; they felt, too, that the bad faith of the slaveholders was so clearly shown that no further compromise of principle was possible. " This seems to me," exclaimed Seward, " auspicious of bet- ter days and better and wiser legislation. Through all the darkness and gloom of the present hour bright stars are breaking, that inspire me with hope and excite me to per- severance." The time was ripe for the formation of a party out- spoken in its opposition to the extension of slavery into the Territories. Early in the winter, when Doug- Tile Kepublican lag introduced his bill, an address signed by party. ' ° J Chase, Sumner, and other antislavery leaders, was published in the newspapers, denouncing the Kansas- Nebraska bill as " a gross violation of a sacred pledge, as a criminal betrayal of precious rights, as part and parcel of an atrocious plot to exclude from a vast region immigrants from the Old World and free laborers from our own States, and convert it into a dreary region of despotism inhabited by masters and slaves." These words expressed the senti- ment of many Northern people. The Free-soilers were still in existence, but the party had never been a popular one. All the antislavery elements were now fused into a new party. The movement was felt everywhere in the North, but the first active steps toward organization were 392 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. taken in the Northwest, where the people were not bound by commercial ties to the South, and where, less conserva- tive by nature than the men of the East, they were readier to cast aside old party bonds and take on new ones. In Michigan a State convention was called of those, " without reference to former political associations, who think the time has arrived for union at the North to protect liberty from being overthrown and downtrodden." This conven- tion nominated a full State ticket, and chris- tened the new party " Republican." Like ac- tion was taken in several other States, but the new name was not adopted in all of them. The principles of the party were unmistakable ; its chief aim was " resistance to the en- croachment of slavery." The elements that were brought into the new party were various. It absorbed all the Free-soilers, many of whom had been Democrats; it took in also a great its character numDe r of the Whigs — those who, realizing and success. ° ' ° that their party had nothing left to it but a name and a remembrance, were ready to co-operate boldly against slavery. The so-called anti-Nebraska Democrats also joined the Republicans. Thus the party was a com- posite one, but it was guided by a very definite purpose. Its tendencies were toward a broad and liberal construction of the Constitution, and opposition to the doctrine of State sovereignty. The success of the movement was surprising. In the fall election of 1854 the opponents of " Nebraska " carried every State of the old Northwest, and their success in the East was not slight. About this time still another party arose, and for a time assumed large proportions. This was the " Native-Ameri- can " or " Know-Nothing " party. It was a £ he -RT ..u secret organization, devoted primarily to the Know-Nothings. . e . ' -f J exclusion 01 ioreign-born citizens, and espe- cially Roman Catholics, from the suffrage, or at least from public office. It took its popular name from the fact that, ADMINISTRATION OF PIERCE— 1853-1857. 393 if any of its members were questioned concerning its object and methods, their answer was " I don't know." The great influx of immigrants had startled many people. They be- lieved that the presence of so many foreigners was a menace to our institutions. Some men were persuaded that the Roman Catholic Church was secretly plotting for political influence. The watchword of the new party was " America for Americans." Probably its members were honestly de- luded by the belief that it had a duty to perform ; but it can hardly be doubted that many joined the organization because they longed for another issue than the dreadful slavery question. For a year or two the new party was so strong that it ran a not uneven race with the Eepublicans. But after 1856 its power dwindled rapidly. It could have no lasting vigor. Its secret methods were out of place in a free country, where, as it was well said, " every man ought to have his principles written on his forehead." The passage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill had other con- sequences than the formation of the Eepublican party.* P ul r Popular sovereignty, reduced to its lowest sovereignty in terms, meant but this : a contest of strength practice. between North and South, between slavery and freedom. That section must win that had the greater vigor. If the North could pour more men into the Territories than the South could, their destiny was secure. Both sections now prepared for the struggle. Emigrants from the South- ern States made their way into Kansas, and the people of the neighboring State of Missouri were ready to move across * One should notice through these years some of the more striking efforts to rescue slaves taken at the North under the fugitive slave law. Read in the Atlantic Monthly, March, 1897, the thrilling account given by Mr. Iligginson of the attempt to rescue Burns. The situation was dramatic. A descendant of the first minister of Massachusetts Bay and a negro, side by side, battered with a beam the door behind which the fugitive slave was imprisoned. When such a scene could be enacted, open conflict could not be long postponed. 394 TTISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the border, if only temporarily, in order to carry an election. From the North, too, came men by the thousand, many of them to seek new homes, many of them in search of excite- ment, or bent on holding Kansas against the inrushing tide of slavery. In this great contest the free States had the advantage. Their population was now considerably larger than that of the slave States, and was yearly increased by immigrants from Europe. Moreover, the Southern slave owner could not at a moment's warning abandon his planta- tion and transport his band of retainers to the West ; and even if he wished to do so, he hesitated to move to a Terri- tory where there was a chance of losing his property in his slaves. But above all, the North was now in every way the more powerful section. Slavery had cast its blight upon the South. In this struggle for Kansas, the greater conflict between the two sections that was to arise within a few years was fairly shown forth. The South was defeated be- cause it was weak ; because its ruling institution did not endow it with actual vigor ; because it could not maintain itself against the superior wealth and power of the free States. At first the proslavery element was successful in Kansas. In the autumn of 1854 they elected a delegate to Congress, and the next spring elected a Legislature fa- The struggle vorable to slavery. The Free-State men charged that the election was carried by fraud and in- timidation ; that residents of Missouri had swarmed over the border only to vote, returning at once to their own State. The Legislature thus elected took steps to make Kansas a slave Territory, and passed a severe code of laws for the protection of slavery. This government was not recognized as legitimate by its opponents, and the Northern men pro- ceeded to ignore it. They met in convention at Topeka and formed a State Constitution, under which they sought admittance to the Union. They even elected officers under this instrument. There were thus two authorities in the ADMINISTRATION OF PIERCE— 1853-1857. 395 Territory, one a proslavery government, the other an anti- slavery government pretending to have power under a State Constitution. The National Government refused to recog- nize this Constitution or the officers acting under it, and the President ordered the Federal troops to dismiss the Free-State Legislature when it assembled. For about two years the history of Kansas was a history of violence and disorder. Civil war broke out. Men were shot ; towns were sacked. The whole Territory Bleeding wag j n a s t a te f anarchy. Robbery and deeds Kansas. , . . of brutality were constant. "Which faction surpassed the other in violence it would be hard to say." * Men from the North and men from the South seemed to lose all sense of their common humanity. It was estimated that from November 1, 1855, to December 1, 1856, about two hundred persqns were killed, and property worth not less than two million dollars destroyed in the Territory. " Bleeding Kansas " became a watchword at the North ; and indeed this awful condition was a sad commentary on the policy of " popular sovereignty." The Kansas question was of course hotly discussed in Congress. In these trying times men forgot the decorum of debate and talked with savage earnestness. 8umOT np011 In May ' 1856 ' 0harles Sumner made his great speech on the Crime against Kansas. He was a powerful and polished orator ; and now his soul was lifted up within him, for he hated slavery with a deadly hatred. His speech was a furious attack upon' the slave- holders, and was, beyond question, needlessly sharp and severe. f He spoke with special severity of Senator Butler, * This quotation is from Spring's Kansas, a very interesting book. Chapters vi-x give a vivid picture of the horrors of the time. f It is not meant that the attack on slavery was too severe, but the attack on the slaveholders was. The great Lincoln always spoke of the Southern man with compassion, while he spoke of slavery with loathing and sorrow. 396 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. of South Carolina. Preston S. Brooks, a representative from that State and a kinsman of the Senator, determined to take revenge. A day or two later, after the Senate had adjourned, Brooks entered the Senate Chamber and found Sumner busy at his desk, his head bent low over his work. He made the most of his op- portunity, striking Sumner over the head with a walking stick and so seriously injuring him that he did not fully re- cover for a number of years. The House did not expel Brooks because the needed two-thirds vote could not be secured. . Brooks, however, resigned his seat, and was re- elected at once almost unani- mously. The North was mightily stirred by this at- tack. Even those who did not sympathize with Sumner were indignant at the brutality of the assault. Perhaps nothing that occurred before the outbreak of the war did more to estrange the two sections and to fill the hearts of men with bitterness. The North felt that the South was given over to ruffianism. The South, on the other hand, believed that all Northern men were abolitionists plotting violently to overthrow slavery ; many 'seemed to believe that Sumner had received his just deserts. The campaign of 1856 was begun soon after these ex- citing events. There were three parties in the field. The Democrats nominated James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, and John C. Breckenridge, of Kentucky. Their platform approved of the Kansas-Nebraska Bill and the principle of popular sover- eignty. It disapproved of " all sectional parties . . . whose cx<^j^ yu4^_ The election of 1856. ADMINISTRATION OF PIERCE-1853-1857. 397 avowed purpose, if consummated, must end in civil war and disunion." The Republicans were organized as a national party in the winter of 1856, and in the early summer candidates were chosen. John C. Fremont, of California, was nominated for President, and William L. Dayton, of New Jersey, for Vice-President. Resolutions were passed declaring that Congress had sovereign power over the Ter- ritories and should use it to prohibit slavery there, and that Kansas should be admitted at once under the Free-State Constitution. The Know-Nothings put forward as candi- ' \ j r~"-- — ^ V err| tor L \ £ *«"o* y \ r-A—KAN. TER. i M O . v T ERR 'Tory I THE ELECTION OF 1856 I 1 Republican \ UZJ Democratic I I American Party TEXAS dates Millard Fillmore and Andrew J. Donelson, of Ten- nessee. The campaign was carried on through the summer with great earnestness and with extraordinary show of feel- ing. Buchanan was elected, but not by a large electoral majority. The popular vote of the Democrats was less than that of the Republican and American parties combined. The Republicans polled 1,341,204 votes, about five times as many as the Free-soilers had ever cast. It was evident that opposition to slavery had assumed a new and formidable shape. 398 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. References. Short accounts: Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 179-193 ; Bryant and Gay, Popular History, Volume IV, pp. 404-415 ; Julian, Political Recollections, pp. 114-157; Moore, The American Con- gress, pp. 350-370; Dawes, Charles Sumner, pp. 86-121; Merriam, Life and Times of Samuel Bowles, Volume I, pp. 110-161. Longer accounts : Schouler, History, Volume V, pp. 272-371; Rhodes, History, Volume I, pp. 384-500, Volume II, pp. 1-246; Burgess, The Middle Period, pp. 365-449. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN, 1857-1861. James Buchanan had held a number of important posi- tions before he became President. He had been a member of both houses of Congress, Secretary of State, Buchanan's life an( j m i n i s ter to England. He had performed all his public duties acceptably, but had never shown remarkable brilliancy or talent. He was decorous and gentlemanly in manner, cautious in all political con- duct, devoted to the interests of his party. He had long been a leader in the party, but was not so able as some of its more positive members. He announced privately after his election that the great object of his administration would be " to arrest, if possible, the agitation of the slavery ques- tion at the North, and to de- stroy sectional parties." Such a task was too great for human power. The chief positions in his Cabinet were given to Lewis Cass, of Michigan, Sec- retary of State ; Howell Cobb, of Georgia, Secretary of the Treasury ; John B. Floyd, of ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 1857-18G1. 399 Virginia, Secretary of War ; Jeremiah S. Black, of Pennsyl- vania, Attorney-General. Almost immediately after the inauguration the Supreme Court gave a decision in an important case. Several years before, Dred Scott, a negro slave, had been The Dred taken by his master into a free State, and also Scott case." J 1 into a part of the national domain where slav- ery was forbidden by the terms of the Missouri compromise, lie had then been taken back to Missouri, and after a time was sold. Scott brought suit against his master for assault and battery, claiming that by going into free territory he had become a free man. The suit was taken from the lower courts to the highest Federal tribunal. The Supreme Court denied that Scott had become a free man, asserted that persons of African descent could not become citizens and thus obtain the right to sue in the Federal courts, and declared that the Missouri compromise was unconstitutional, inasmuch as Congress had no authority to exclude slavery from the Territories. The decision of the court was not unanimous ; two of the nine judges strongly disagreed with it, and two others did not acquiesce in all its parts. We may notice that if Scott, being a negro, could not as a citi- zen sue in the courts, the court should have dismissed the case for want of jurisdiction, without proceeding to give a long opinion on all the merits and difficulties of the con- troversy. The judges doubtless thought that a legal decision would have some effect in bringing peace to the country. The decision seemed at first to be a great victory for slavery and to strike a heavy blow at the Eepublicans. The Th tft a f f un damental Republican principle was that the Repnhlicans Congress could and must exclude slavery from towara the case. na tional territory. If the decision of the court were to stand as good law, the Eepublicans must give up their fight for congressional action. If they ignored it, they posed before the country as advocating disobedience 400 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. to the decision of the highest court in the land. The situ- ation was a trying one. It was too late, however, for an " opinion " to settle the slavery question. The Republican party continued to work against the extension of slavery ; they attacked the decision on the ground that it was not a judicial opinion, declaring that the court had gone out of its way to issue a political manifesto. In the long run the decision helped the antislavery cause, for it brought home to men the need of resolute action. All through these years the fugitive slave law was caus- ing occasional excitement at the North. Some of the States already had " personal liberty laws," the pur- MbSt^laws P ose °^ wn i cn was to prevent free negroes from being carried into slavery on the plea that they were runaways, and to put difficulties in the way of en- forcing the fugitive slave law. Moreover, a great system known as the " underground railroad " had underground grown up. Its object was to aid escaped railroad. slaves to pass safely through the Northern States on their way to freedom in Canada. There were many routes, the majority leading across Indiana or Ohio to Lake Erie or the Detroit Eiver. The traffic was carried on secretly. The fugitives were sheltered in the homes of sympathetic persons and smuggled on from one " station " to another as opportunity offered. Many stood ready to give a helping hand to the hunted black man and to carry him a little way on his perilous journey. It is difficult to tell how many were thus enabled to make a good escape, perhaps not more than two thousand a year ; but the people of the South were angered by the fact that, in spite of stringent laws, their slaves eluded them, because Northern men winked at breaches of the law or openly sympathized with the fugitives. The whole North was held responsible for the doings and words of the abolitionists, yet it needs to be repeated here that the North was by no means united on the sub- ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 1857-1861. 401 ject of slavery. After the Dred Scott case and the trials of Kansas, Northern men leaned more and more toward advanced antislavery sentiment ; it must be re- sentiment re- membered, however, that Garrisonian abolition- garding slavery. j s t s were comparatively f ew in numbers. They believed in " no union with slaveholders," thinking a disso- lution of the Union better than a. recognition of the crime of slavery. They did not vote, or advocate political action. They believed that if emancipation were to take place it must come at once, because the nation was stained and pol- luted with sin. The Republicans, on the other hand, were opposed to the whole institution and thought it wicked and inhuman ; but they believed in acting only as far as there was constitutional right to act ; they believed in using political measures, and not simply in denouncing slavery as a crime. They made no pretense of trying to wipe out slavery within the States where it existed. They were bent on keeping it, however, closely within those limits. It must be noticed, too, that a large portion of the Northern people were not ready to go even thus far, still clinging fondly to the hope that the question would settle itself, and look- ing upon the Republican party as a sectional party whose aims were dangerous to the Union. In spite of these differ- ences the Southerners, or many of them at least, believed that all Northern opponents of slavery were at heart desir- ous of overthrowing slavery even within the Southern States. By this time the -weakness of slavery had been shown in the struggle for Kansas. Early in Buchanan's administra- tion it became evident that the Free-State men Kanst Uthl ° SeS must win in the contest in th at Territory. Their numbers were constantly increasing. "We are losing Kansas," said a Southern paper truly, " because we are lacking in population." In 1857 the Free-State men gave up the pretense that they had formed a legal State Government. They took part in the election of the Terri- 402 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. torial Legislature, defeated the proslavery element at the polls, and elected a Legislature in favor of free soil. Before this body took office the old proslavery Legislature called a convention, which met at Lecompton and formed a State Constitution recognizing slavery. This instru- ConstitS 1011 ment WaS n0t fair ty Submitted t0 the P e °pl e > but only the question as to whether or not there should be slavery as a permanent institution. The people were not allowed to vote against the Constitution, but must cast a ballot for the instrument with slavery or for it with- out slavery. Moreover, if the popular verdict should be against slavery, the Constitution guaranteed slave property already in the Territory. Under these circumstances the antislavery men refused to vote, and the ballots of the pro- slavery men gave apparent popular sanction to the Consti- tution. Shortly after, the Free-State Legislature submitted the instrument again to popular vote and it was rejected. The question of the admission of Kansas under the Lecomp- ton Constitution was now discussed in Congress. The Sen- ate passed a bill for its admittance, but the measure could not pass the House. By this time (1858) Kansas was fairly in the power of the Free-State men ; but it was impossible to get a bill through Congress admitting the Territory to Statehood with a Constitution forbidding slavery. In 1858 occurred the great debates between Lincoln and Douglas. They were rival candidates for election to the mi . T . . United States Senate from Illinois, and agreed The Lincoln- ' . . , . Douglas to hold in various parts of the State joint dis- debates. cussions upon the important issues of the cam- paign. Douglas was the strongest and keenest debater in Congress, and the recognized leader of the Democratic party at the North. Lincoln was not much known beyond the limits of his own State. The whole nation watched the contest with interest, and the Republicans were sur- prised and delighted at the shrewdness with which Lincoln exposed the fallacies of his opponent, at the quiet humor ADMINISTRATION OP BUCHANAN— 1857-1861. 403 which added a quaint flavor to his argument, and at the plentiful supply of common sense which enabled him to analyze the difficult problems of the time and to show their simplest meanings. Douglas w r as elected, but Lincoln clearly marked out the course of his party : unflinching opposition to slavery, because slavery and freedom could not abide together ; no interference with slavery in the South, but steadfast opposition to its extension, lest freedom itself be overcome ; a full appreciation that the only basis for peace was the disappearance of the whole system. Seward was soon to declare that there was an " irrepressible conflict " between slavery and freedom, and now Lincoln said : " In my opinion it [agitation] will not cease until a crisis shall have been reached and passed. A house di- aSstS d vided a g ainst itself can not stand - I believe this Government can not endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved, I do not expect the house to fall, but I do expect it will cease to be divided." In the decade between 1850 and 1860 the United States was, on the whole, prosperous and progressive. There was, however, one period of difficulty and distress, amc o . j n 1857 there was a financial crisis and a panic ; for two years and more business was greatly depressed. Men were thrown out of employment by the closing of fac- tories, furnaces, and mines ; banks suspended payment ; corporations of all kinds went into bankruptcy. Misery and suffering resulted. Yet the country was, after a time, on its way to prosperity again. There was a Signs of great increase in population in this decade. prosperity. ° r r The census of 1860 showed about thirty-one mil- lion people, a gain of about eight million in ten years. Immi- grants continued to pour into our land. Inventions multi- plied ; there were nearly four thousand patents issued in the year 1860 alone. The ocean commerce was immense, and our merchantmen carried the American flag to every sea. 404 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Americans were proud of the fact that they could now dis- pute " the navigation of the world with England," and that England could " no longer be styled mistress of the sea." Much capital was now invested in manufacturing. The iron industry of Pennsylvania had assumed large proportions, and the cotton and woolen industries of the Eastern States had grown greatly in recent years. America had evidently passed far out of the agricultural stage. In 18G0 the prod- ucts of mechanical industry in the United States were worth almost two billion dollars. Yet our great export trade was still in agricultural products. Nearly four and a half million bales of cotton were shipped from the South in a single year. The North had now passed far ahead of the South in population and in wealth. When the Constitution was ml _ x , adopted the two sections were not dissimilar in The North out- r strips the South these particulars. According to the census 01 inpopuiatiou 1790j the inhabitants of the States north of Mason and Dixon's line were 1,968,040, and of those south of the line 1,961,174. But in 1860 the free States and Ter- ritories had a population of 21,184,305, while the slave States had 10,259,016, of whom about one third were slaves. This difference, yearly growing more marked, was due in part to the fact that the European immigrant would not go and make his home in a section where labor was considered the duty only of bondmen. Thus it came about that the South could not keep pace with the North in advance- ment. The struggle that had been maintained until 1850 to keep a balance of power in the Senate, by admitting slave and free States in pairs, had to be abandoned. Minne- sota and Oregon were admitted to the Union in Buchanan's administration. But in wealth and material prosperity the free States had gained in even a greater degree. Slave labor is not fit for the factory or the workshop, where careful, conscientious mechanical skill is required. Hence factories were few in ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 1857-1861. 405 and in wealth, the Southern States. Almost everything had to be obtained from the North or Europe, in exchange for the great sta- ples, cotton and tobacco. In 1850 there were 1,260,442 persons engaged in manufacturing, in the arts, and in mining in the North ; in the South there were 326,000. The commonest necessities of life, with the ex- ception of the food that could be raised on the plantation, were imported. There was one great crop — cotton — a crop so large that the South felt that the product made it rich and gave it power. But if the market for this staple were taken away, the people would be sure to find that they were almost incapable of self-sup- port for more than a limited period. More- over, even in the field of work to which slav- ery had driven the South, in agriculture itself, methods were wasteful ; the soil was not carefully or system- atically tilled ; it was, on the contrary, SVS- ^ Ap showing Western Extension of ,. ,, i . -, Population in 1860. tematically exhausted. The results are clearly shown by the fact that Southern plantations were worth less than ten dollars an acre in 1860, while Northern farms were worth about three times that amount. Slavery was more expensive than freedom. At first it seems hardly possible that this can be true, but an examina- tion of the facts will prove the statement. Benjamin Franklin saw this a hundred years ago and more. "The labor of slaves," he says, " can never be so cheap here as the labor of the workingman in Great Britain. Any one may 406 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. compute it. Reckon, then, interest of the first purchase of a slave, the insurance or risk on his life, his clothing and diet, expenses in sickness and loss of time, loss Slavery an ex- D y ne gi e ct of business (neglect which is natural to the man who is not to be benefited by his own care or diligence), expense of a driver to keep him at work, and his pilfering from time to time (almost every slave being, from the nature of slavery, a thief), and compare the whole amount with the wages of a manufacturer of iron or wool in England ; you will see that labor is much cheaper there than it ever can be by negroes here." A careful examination of two farms, one tilled by slaves and one by hired laborers, could prove to the inquirer that slave labor was extremely expensive.* Only men with large capital could afford to have slaves in any number to carry on the work of the planta- tion, because the interest from the investment was so small. Thus it was that the slaves were passing into the hands of a few persons. Those who could not afford slaves did not use their own energies in toil, as the free men of the North were doing. Thus slavery was impoverishing the South. It had dead- ened, too, the general intellectual activity of the people and retarded their progress. The better classes, It makes the wno con \^ travel, import their books and works South poor. x of art, and keep in touch with the world, were cultured and charming ; the large planters, with their sense of power and responsibility and their wide range of acquaint- ances, were, as a rule, men of mental vigor, many of them having distinct talents in politics and statecraft. But spite of the graces and talents of the planter class, slavery hung like a millstone about the neck of the people. If we judge by the number of schools and churches and newspapers and libraries, or by roads and railroads and all means of com- munication, by the hundreds of things which help us to * See illustration in Industrial Evolution of the United States, by Carroll D. Wright, p. 151. ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 1857-1861. 407 determine the status of a community, we see that the South was now hopelessly backward. In every respect the cen- sus returns of each decade showed that freedom was leav- ing slavery behind. " It was evident that the slave States were worse fitted at the end of each successive period for a forcible struggle with the free States, and that the scepter was departing from the South." In all that makes for education the South was lament- ably poor. Outside of the houses of the rich in the larger cities or the homes of the great planters one would find neither " a book of Shakespeare, nor a pianoforte or sheet of music, nor the light of a Carcel or other good center-table or reading lamp, nor an engraving or copy of any kind of a work of art of the slightest merit." * In the North (1850) there were 62,459 schools and 2,770,381 pupils, while at the South there were only 29,041 schools attended by 583,292 pupils. But worse than all else, a fear of the introduction of noxious principles that would endan- ger slavery cast its shadow upon the whole school system, for education can not flourish in the heavy atmosphere of dread or repression. In education, as in industry, slavery was degrading ; it acted like a moral curse, poisoning the life blood of the people. The Southern people had for many years declared that the agitation ©f the slavery question was a menace to their safety. They had declared, too, that the real John Brown's intent and wigh Q f fche aD olitionists Was to raid. arouse a slave insurrection and to bring woe and devastation to the whole South. An event now hap- pened that seemed to them to prove them right in all their charges and suspicions. This was the famous raid of John Brown into Virginia. Brown was a New Englander by birth, who had taken an active part in the bloody struggle in Kansas. In fact, among " border ruffians " and fierce * Olmsted, The Cotton Kingdom, vol. ii, p. 285. Read Rhodes, vol. i, chap. iv. F 27 408 IIISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. Free-State men the old Puritan had distinguished himself for fearlessness and violence. Now that Kansas was se- cured, he hoped to strike a more effective blow for freedom. His design was to seize the arsenal at Harper's Ferry, free the blacks in the neighborhood, and retreat to some strong- hold in the mountains. Thence he would make incursions into the neighboring regions, and make his name a terror to the whole South. He hoped, indeed, to force the eman- cipation of the slaves, not perhaps by inciting a general revolt, but £jKJ§^*S&>- Jfi. kv gathering them up «^^S ^?£2Slfeifl from time to time and by making property in slaves insecure. It was the scheme of a mad- man. But Brown can IS hardly be charged with insanity; some of the ardent antislavery men to whom he confided his plan seemed to have had faith in its success. In the autumn of 1859 he seized the national arsenal at Harper's Ferry and began to free the slaves in the neighborhood. Troops were soon hurried to the spot and .the little band was overpowered. Some of the men were shot in the struggle. Brown himself, with several others, was captured. They were speedily brought to trial, convicted, and hanged. The whole country was stirred by this event. The South believed, as never before, in the wickedness of the North. The moderate people of the Northern States condemned the act ; but, wild as the plan had been, the devotion of Brown to his sense of duty, the calmness with which he met his fate, his readiness to die in the cause of freedom, won the attention even of the scoffer and gave a certain amount of dignity to abolitionism. John Brown's Foet. Its failure. ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 1857-1861. 409 For a time, however, this act injured the antislavery cause, because reasonable men could not sympathize with such methods and purposes. In the election of 1860 four candidates were nominated for the presidency. Although there had been differences between the Northern and Southern wings of J f h ® 8 e g e ction the Democratic party up to this time, they had managed to work together. This now proved impossible, the Northern element refusing to accept South- ern principles with reference to slavery in . the Territories. The Southerners had by this time lost all patience with popular sovereignty. They utterly renounced it and em- braced the principle of the Dred Scott case, which was in reality the earlier principle of Calhoun, and demanded that Congress should protect slavery in the Territories. They nominated John C. Breckenridge, of Kentucky, and Joseph Lane, of Oregon. The Northern Democrats, under the lead of Douglas, still clung to popular sovereignty, and at the same time, quite inconsistently,* declared their willingness to submit to the decision of the Supreme Court. They nominated Douglas and Herschel V. Johnson, of Georgia. The Republicans denied the " authority of Congress, of a Territorial legislature, or of any individual to give legal existence to slavery in the Territories " ; they repudiated the doctrine of popular sovereignty, and of the Dred Scott case as well. Their nominees were Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, and Hannibal Hamlin, of Maine. A fourth party nominated John Bell, of Tennessee, and Edward Everett, of Massachusetts ; it was called the Constitutional Union * The Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case declared that the National Government could not exclude slavery from the Territories. If that be so, then a Territory could not exclude slavery either, for it is created and its power bestowed upon it by the National Government. The doctrine of popular sovereignty was just as contradictory of the court's opinion as was the Republican doctrine, that it was within the power of Congress to exclude slavery. 410 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. party. It declared for the " Constitution of the country, the Union of the States, and the enforcement of the laws." These broad terms and generous phrases could have little meaning in such a crisis ; but these men still hoped that words and resolutions and good purposes might quiet the tempest and save the Union. Lincoln was elected by a good electoral majority over all other candidates ; but the Republicans were still a minority of the people, for they cast only about eighteen hundred thousand votes, while all of their opponents cast about a million more. The situation was therefore essentially different from what it would have been, had the party been sure of anything like a united North behind it. A number of times the leading men at the South had declared that the Southern States could no longer remain in the Union if the Eepublican party were leads in successful. The North had not taken these secession. threats very seriously. They were thought to be but bluster, in which the South was considered a master. " The old Mumbo-Jumbo," said James Eussell Lowell, " is occasionally paraded at the North, but however many old women may be frightened, the pulse of the stock market remains provokingly calm." But in some parts of the South men were desperately in earnest, and had no inten- tion of resting content with words. South Carolina was ready to take the lead and put once more into practice the doctrine of her favorite son, Calhoun. This time, however, she intended not to stand on her rights and nullify con- gressional action, as in 1832, but to withdraw entirely from the Union. December 20, 1860, a popular convention at Charleston passed an ordinance of secession. Its cardinal words are as follows : " We, the people of the State of South Carolina, in convention assembled, do declare and ordain . . . that the Union now subsisting between South Caro- lina and other States under the name of 4 The United States of America ' is hereby dissolved." Before the end of the CHARLESTON MERCORY EXTRA: Passed unanimously at 1.15 o clack, J». Jtt. y December 20//1, I860. Alf ORDINANCE *7b dissolve the Union between the State of South Carolina and other Slates united with her under the compact entitled *' The Constitution of the United Slate* oj America? W\ iXe People of He Slate of Souik Carolina, in Convention auenbkd, do declare and ordain, and it i$ htrtbg declared and ordained, Tntl the Ordinanoe adopted by as in Convention, on tba twenty-third day of May, In tbo year of out Lord one thousand seven 'hundred and eighty-eight, whereby the Constitution of the Unite* States of America was ratified, and also, all Acta and parts of Acta of the Qeneral Assembly of this State, ratifying amendments of the said Constitution, are horeby repealed ; and that the union sow aalelsting between South Carolina and other States, under the name of • The United Slates of America," is hereby dissolved THE UNION DISSOLVED! 412 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. winter Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas passed like ordinances. Other Southern States hesitated, and for the time being took no decisive action. When Congress met after the election, President Buch- anan sent in his message (December 3, 1860). The whole country read it with great interest, for the Buchanan's stand which the President would take toward message. secession was of the utmost importance. Already South Carolina was preparing to carry out her threats of disunion. Buchanan denied that the right of secession was constitutional, and asserted his intention to retain possession of the property of the United States in the South ; but he entered laboriously into a long argu- ment to prove that there was no legal right to " coerce a State " or compel it to remain in the Union against its will. He cast the blame for existing difficulties on the North, because of the violation of the fugitive slave law and the continual encroachments upon Southern rights. He even spoke encouragingly of getting Cuba ; this meant, of course, more slave territory. There was nothing in the message from one end to the other which would be likely to fill with hope and courage those that were longing for strength and wisdom in high places, or to make those falter and hesitate who were plotting a disruption of the Union.* * It should be noticed that the Constitution does not give a right to coerce a State, in so many words; it provides for a government that is directly and immediately over people. The citizens of South Carolina were also citizens of the United States* The Government of the United States was immediately over them, and was just as much their govern- ment as the government at Columbia was. The Federal Government could enforce its laws against the citizens of South Carolina ; and there- fore there was no need to consider the question as to whether or not it could coerce a State. In the Philadelphia Convention in 1787, James Wilson pointed out the real situation. "In explaining his reasons," said Madison in his Journal, "it was necessary to observe the twofold relations in which the people would stand, first, as citizens of the General Government, and, secondly, as citizens of their particular State. . . . ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 1857-1861. 413 Buchanan's position all through this time was a trying one. In December his Cabinet began to break up.* Cass „ , 3 resigned because he thought the President was Buchanan and ° . ° . . the Southern not acting with sufficient vigor to maintain fortB. Federal authority. Black became Secretary of State in his place. Cobb and Floyd resigned to take active parts in the movement for secession, and Thompson, the Secretary of the Interior, soon followed them. Their places were filled with Union men, and so before the middle of the winter Buchanan had a loyal Cabinet. When the Southern States passed the ordinances of secession they took possession of the Federal forts and other property within their limits. Their theory was that the land be- longed to them, but they professed willingness to pay for the improvements. With the exception of four forts on the Gulf and the forts in Charleston harbor, these posi- tions passed into the hands of the secessionists without trouble. The position at Charleston was of special interest and importance. Fort Sumter was held by a small force under Major Anderson. He determined to hold his position until ordered by the National Government to retire. Buch- anan refused to give up the place to the South Carolina authorities. Early in January an attempt was made to send relief to the little garrison, whose stronghold was now menaced by the batteries that had been thrown up to com- mand it and the approaches to it. A small steamer, the Star of the West, was dispatched with this assistance. The batteries opened fire on her, and she gave up the attempt to relieve Sumter. This happened early in January, and for three months and more Anderson and his brave little force continued to hold the fort for the Union at the very gates of the proud State that was leading the movement for secession. Both governments were derived from the people, both meant for the people ; both, therefore, ought to be regulated by the same principles." * Read Rhodes, History, vol. iii, p. 187. 414 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The session of Congress in the winter of 18G1 was a gloomy one, largely taken up with discussions of compromise and concession, for men still hoped against Efforts at h thftt the TJ n i on cou lfl fa save d without compromise. * war. The proposals of Senator Crittenden, of Kentucky, were long considered in the Senate, and many persons thought that a compromise could be reached on the basis he advocated. He proposed amendments to the Con- stitution, one of them providing that the line 30° 30' should be run through to the Pacific to separate slave territory from free. But a committee appointed by the Senate to consider these proposals could come to no agreement. The Kepub- lican members of the committee voted against the propo- sition, and without substantial agreement in the com- mittee there could be no chance for the amendments before Congress or the people. So this device failed. The House had no better success in agreeing upon a compromise than had the Senate. At the suggestion of Virginia, a " peace convention " was held at Washington in midwinter. Dele- gates were present from twenty-one States, but the assembly accomplished nothing. Some of the Northern people were now timorous and fearful, and longed for concession and settlement on almost any basis. Others seemed to see that they could not give up the fair results of the election and call their action compromise,* for the Eepublican party was pledged to oppose the spread of slavery anywhere, either north or south of 36° 30'. In February delegates from six Southern States f met at Montgomery, Ala. They organized a confederacy called * Lincoln let his opinion be known to a few of the influential men. He objected to dividing the Territories by a geographic line. " Let this be done," he said, " and immediately filibustering and extending slavery recommences." f South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, and Mis- sissippi. Texas delegates were appointed a little later than the first meeting of this convention. ADMINISTRATION OF BUCHANAN— 18.57-1861. 415 the Confederate States of America. The constitution agreed upon was in most respects similar to that of the Th c nf d r t United States. They elected Jefferson Davis states of President, and Alexander H. Stephens, of America, Georgia, Vice-President. It is not necessary to give here at length the arguments used in favor of the right of secession. John C. Calhoun, thirty years before, had clearly outlined them, and in con- sidering his statements in regard to State sovereignty and nullifi- cation we have seen briefly what might be said in favor of the right of a State to secede. It must be remembered The Southern th t th Sout]ierners argument. believed that they were acting strictly within their legal rights ; that each State had entered into a compact or agree- ment with other States, and that when that agreement was violated or the interests of a State no longer subserved by the Union, it was at liberty to withdraw. They had been for some years saturated with Calhoun's doc- trines, and the peculiar character of slavery had put them in a defensive attitude. Hence they had come to consider the State as the chief guardian of their interests, while, on the other hand, a feeling of national patriotism was grow- ing daily at the North. The North felt more surely, year by year, the fact that the American people were a nation, and that the great republic must not be torn asunder. But slavery made the Southern people feel that they were different from the North, from the rest of the world, in- deed ; that they had their own separate institutions and must defend them. The North held that secession was neither more nor less ( ^-~^ e ^^t^L .>rtfcwn \^ v Ai it iOtsi ^Dinwiddie C.n I s. «; / Hon** x >^W^ 28 The War in the East. 424 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ^.£.j£*^ous?££ ordinate generals were not well trained. For some time the men fought with quite remarkable vigor and courage ; but at length re-enforcements for the Confederates appeared on the field and began a flank attack. The National forces then began a re- treat, which " soon became a rout, and this presently degenerated in- to a panic." These are McDowell's own words describing the effect of the battle. Many are said not to have stopped fleeing until they reached Washington. But the Confederate forces were in no con- dition for pursuit. The victory was as demoralizing to them as defeat for the Federals. The battle of Bull Run depressed the North, but it brought home to the people some conception of what it meant to suppress the rebellion. Horace Gree- ?attk! 8 ° fthe le y wrote Lincoln a letter > whicn illustrates the depression at the North. It begins with the words, " This is my seventh sleepless night " ; it ends, "Yours in the depths of bitterness." It was no holiday campaign that was needed. Lovers of the Union quieted down into stern determination to fight steadily for the laws, and the effect of the defeat was good. At the South there was an undue feeling of elation, and the belief that the South could not be conquered was materially strengthened. After this battle it was evident that the soldiers needed drilling and the army needed organization before success on the field of battle was possible. General McClellan, who had won some success in western Virginia, was summoned to take com- mand of the troops in front of Washington. In November General Scott was put upon the retired list, and McClellan General McClellan ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 425 succeeded him in general charge of the armies of the United States. Under their new commander the troops, which were being daily increased with new recruits, were organized into the Grand Army of the Potomac. For months there was no action. The daily report of the Northern newspapers was : " All quiet on the Potomac." Hardly was the war begun when England issued a "proclamation of neutrality." This acknowledged the South m belligerency of the Confederacy. The theory belligerency of the United States Government was that acknowledged, there was in reality no war, but only an insur- rection. The people there- fore felt that Great Britain acted hastily in acknowledg- ing that the South was a belligerent power.* The North had hoped for the sympathy of the English in a contest manifestly in the interest of freedom; and when England so quickly issued this proclamation there was considerable re- sentment. France soon took the same step, and other states followed. The South, on the other hand, believed that the Eu- ropean states would not suffer the supply of cotton to be cut off, and that England especially would be forced to L^M^Jl^ * Such a proclamation does not acknowledge that those engaged in the rebellion have really formed a new state in the family of nations, but it declares that war exists between two parties. Now the United States Government at this time was not willing to admit that this re- bellion was a war ; they wished the " rebels " to be considered merely traitors. 426 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. recognize the Confederacy as an independent power, break up the blockade, and possibly directly join in the contest The South * n or( ^ er ^° obtain cotton for her mills, so that believes "cot- her starving operatives might have work. This ton is king." never came about, however. Had the South been fighting for home rule alone, and not for slavery, the European states would have been under stronger tempta- tion to acknowledge the Confederacy as a separate nation. w r yJEFFERSON ClTYtf Jf -*. I i o |( N D lyMSTAi columbus^? wi*feEUN FRANKFORT V Perry ville '"> Bowling Green ^ i VNASHVILLE^vVppiox-, t.riljbw/^ T E l,N t Eo s s- Murfreesboro Vjf In the West 1861. In the West, during the summer of 1861, not much was accomplished in the way of offensive warfare. In Missouri there was some sharp fighting. A large ele- ment of the people of that State sympathized with the secession movement. For some time, therefore, the State was given up to internal conflict. A convention finally voted for the Union by a large majority, and the Federal forces brought the State under their con- trol. At the end of the year Generals Halleck and Buell ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 427 were in command in the West, the latter with his head- quarters at Louisville in charge of the Department of the Ohio. Halleck had his headquarters at St. Louis, and was in charge of the Department of the Missouri. General Grant, acting under Halleck's orders, was stationed at Cairo. Movements in the West were retarded somewhat, be- cause the Federal authorities did not wish to alienate Ken- tucky by sending in troops and making that for Union ™ State the basis of °P erations against Tennessee. Kentucky endeavored at first to hold a neutral position, siding neither with the North nor the South. That condition of things could not last long, however. With infinite tact and patience Lincoln applied himself to the task of winning the State for the Union without war. The Union element was encouraged and guided, until at length it obtained full control of the State Government. The Confederate army from Tennessee alienated Kentucky by making an inroad into it, and as a consequence the latter State was safely on the Federal side by the autumn of 1861. At the end of the year 18G1, with the Union forces sta- tioned as we have indicated in preceding paragraphs, with Kentucky now committed to the Union, the tire West ° f time bad come for an onward marcn of Federal troops. Movement began in the winter, and when once the troops in the W^est began to move they kept vigorously at work, until finally the Mississippi was open its whole length. A glance at the map will show what an advantage the rivers were to the Northern forces in their invasion of the Southwestern States. Troops could be conveyed up and down these rivers easily and rapidly, or their supplies could be quickly provided. Seeing this ad- vantage, the National Government made great efforts to fit out boats that would be of service on these Western waters. This gunboat service in the West formed a very important 428 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. factor in the movement of armies and in the conquest of the country. v The Congress elected in 1860 was summoned to meet in extra session on the 4th of July, 1861. The Republicans controlled the House and Senate. The Demo- crats joined in necessary war legislation. Be- fore the gathering of Congress the President had, of his own accord, declared the suspension of the privilege of habeas corpus within the vicinity of Baltimore, and had done a great many acts made necessary by the emergency. His actions were now ratified by Congress. Congressional Thege actg were principally the first call for action. r ii militia, establishment of the blockade, the call for three-year volunteers, the increase of the regular army and navy, and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus.* The President recommended in his first message that an army of four hundred thousand men be raised. Congress passed a bill providing for enlistments of not more than five hundred thousand men, and authorized a loan of two hundred and fifty million dollars. It increased the tariff duties, and provided for a direct tax and an in- come tax. By this time Lincoln had shown his master hand as a popular leader. Whatever he said came to the people of the North as sound sense. He addressed in power. 118 simple, straightforward language "the plain people," and he soon obtained their unwavering support. In strictly executive matters, too, he was the guiding spirit of the administration, not yielding his judg- ment to the wise men who made up his Cabinet. " The President is the best of us," wrote Seward candidly. We should notice at this juncture how the Northern men were now united, irrespective of parties. The Gov- * There was little question of the legality of the first two, and all, if extra-constitutional, seemed necessary and desirable. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1805. 429 ernment was in the hands of the Republicans, but on the motion offered in the House by a Democrat that the House should pledge itself " to vote for any amount of money and any number of men which may be necessary to insure a speedy and effectual suppression of the rebellion," there were only four votes in opposition. In January of 1862, Edwin M. Stanton, who had been a lifelong Democrat, was made Secretary of War, in place of Simon Cameron. There were, it must be said, through- out the war some persons at the North, known as Copperheads, who were in secret sympathy with the South, or at the best out of sympathy with the North; but ^LaZw,^Aa.^Xo^Xo^ the great body of the people, whatever may have been their earlier political leanings, were now heartily for the Union. In the autumn of 1861 serious discord and ill feeling were brought about between England and America by an affair in itself comparatively trivial. The Con- federate Government, intent on getting full rec- ognition from foreign states, dispatched two commissioners, the one to England, the other to France. Conveyed by an English ship, the Trent, they were inter- cepted by an American man-of-war, under the command of Captain Wilkes, and were taken into custody. The English Government demanded the immediate release of the commis- sioners and a suitable apology, and began preparations for war. Our Government took time for consideration, and then gave up the men. Here doubtless England was right. Our man-of-war had no right to stop an English vessel on the high seas and take passengers from her. But the The Trent affair. 430 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION, abruptness of the demand for reparation and the haste shown in preparing for war irritated the American people, already annoyed at the attitude that England had taken toward the South. Our Government, by a courteous yield- ing, was saved a war which would have perhaps been over- whelmingly disastrous while the civil war was in progress. At the beginning of 1862 the Union army was large, and, on the whole, well disciplined and equipped. There were over six hundred thousand soldiers in the Jf h i862 ginning whole arm y- In the East McClellan faced Joseph Johnston. In Kentucky Buell and Halleck commanded against Albert Sidney Johnston, who had charge of the Confederate line of defense. Early in the year General Garfield per- formed some vigorous and brilliant work in eastern Ken- tucky, driving the Confeder- ates out of the Sandy Valley, and General George II. Thomas defeated the enemy at the bat- tle of Mill Springs. Thus eastern Kentucky was taken from the hands of the Con- federates. In February it was decided to attack Forts Henry and Donelson, the former on the Tennessee, the latter on the Cumberland River. If these were taken the Confederate line would be broken in the center. Commodore Foote, . with several gunboats, carried up the Tennessee ries, February, an army of seventeen thousand men, under 1862. command of General Grant. The efficiency of the new gunboat was to be put to the test. The army was landed, and the boats engaged the batteries of Fort Henry, ^^/^C^-x ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 431 but protracted engagement was unnecessary, inasmuch as most of the Confederate force had been withdrawn to Fort Donelson, which was only eleven miles distant. Grant 432 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. now marched his army to the Cumberland and invested this fort, with five thousand less men than the enemy had. Ke- enf orcements soon appeared to assist him, and the gunboats made their way around to help in the attack. The garri- son tried to break through the Union line and escape, but they were beaten back, and assault was made by the Union troops. Part of the works were carried and the fort sur- rendered. It was a great victory for the Union forces; over fifteen thousand prisoners were taken. The main line of the Confederate defense was broken. Kentucky was now wholly wrested from the Confederates, and Nashville was soon occupied by the Union troops. New Madrid and Island No. 10 were strongly held by the Confederates as advanced posts on the Mississippi Kiver. Early in the spring these places were attacked by Commodore Foote and General Pope. First New Madrid was taken, and then, by clever strategy, the island was captured and with it a garrison of seven thousand men. There was great rejoicing all over the North at the suc- cess of Grant and Pope. Memphis itself was in immediate danger. After Grant's victory at Donelson the Confederates had gathered in force at Corinth, in northern Mississippi. This place was now a strong position in their new fetotol£!!" line of defense > which ran alon g the Mem " phis and Charleston Kailroad, from Memphis through Corinth to Chattanooga. Grant prepared to break this new line. The main body of his army, some forty thousand men, was at Pittsburg Landing on the Tennes- see, while General Buell was marching across the country from Nashville to co-operate with him. The Confederate troops marched out from Corinth and attacked Grant in force before Buell could arrive. The battle began on Sunday morning, April 6, 1862, and was waged with furious vigor the whole day. The Confederates made a series of fierce onslaughts, which were met with ob- ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 433 stinate courage. By nightfall the Union forces had been driven back about a mile from the position occupied in the morning.* But there was no discouragement. ***** fm** During the night Buell arrived. The tables were now turned, and the Confederates were driven in confusion from f the field. Grant always strenuously maintained that even had Buell not arrived he could have won victory on the morrow. Certainly the Union forces were not beaten the first day, but re-enforcements made success a certainty. The Federal army now took Corinth. Thus the second chief line of the Confederate Battle of Shiloh. Showing positions of forces at noon on second day. Memphis taken. defense was broken. Next Memphis fell, and the Mississippi was free to the Union gunboats as far south as Vicksburg. The Western army had certainly accomplished wonders, and the loyal hearts of the North were cheered with a succession of victories. There was no great movement during the rest of the year in the West. Halleck was a leisurely general, and Ax , advantage was not taken of the great success Other engage- ° ° mentsinthe of his subordinates. The Confederates under West, 1862. Bragg made themselves secure at Chattanooga, and then rapidly marched forward even to the northern part of Kentucky, near Louisville. f Checked at Perryville, they fell back and took position in the vicinity of Murfrees- * General A. S. Johnston, one of the ablest of the Southern generals, was killed the first day of the battle — a grievous loss to the South, j- Battle of Perryville occurred October 8, 1862 — a Federal victory. 434 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. borough. Here, at the very end of the year, they were attacked by the Federals under Rosecrans. The battle, known as the battle of Murfreesborough or Stone's River, was favorable to the Union forces. Bragg withdrew his army some thirty miles and stood as a barrier against far- ther Union advance toward Chattanooga, a strategic point of great importance. Grant held Corinth in spite of deter- mined efforts * to defeat him. Later in the year he moved southward, preparing for an attack upon Vicksburg. Meanwhile a duel had taken place between two iron- clads in Hampton Roads. The Confederates had prepared „ u an ironclad of new model. The hulk of an old Monitor and Merrimac, vessel was cut down and covered with an iron March, 1862. coating, which converted it into a floating bat- tery most formidable to the Union vessels that were gath- ered in the harbor. Early in March this strange monster appeared, attacked the frigates Congress and Cumberland, at the mouth of the James River, and destroyed them without difficulty. The success of the blockade was en- dangered. There was great consternation. It was feared that the rebel ram might bombard Washington, and even sail to Philadelphia or New York. But now a new and even stranger craft appeared upon the scene. Northern ingenuity had produced an antagonist quite a match for the Merrimac. The Monitor was seemingly a mere plat- form with a movable turret pierced for two guns. A con- flict ensued between the iron vessels. The shot and shell that were poured against the Monitor's turret and deck glanced harmlessly aside. The Merrimac was not destroyed, but after a fight of several hours it withdrew to Norfolk, its victorious career at an end. The control of the whole course of the Mississippi was of great importance. In the spring of 1862 a powerful fleet was fitted out to attack New Orleans from the Gulf. * Battle of Iuka, September 19, 1862. Battle of Corinth, October 3-4, 1862. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 435 To capture the place was a difficult task, for it was de- fended by strong forts and by a number of ships of war. The command of the expedition against it was New Orleans S ivCm t0 David G " Farra g ut - In A P ril the fleet began the bombardment of the forts. Six days and nights without intermission shells were thrown from huge mortars into the defenses, but they did not succeed DIAGRAM OF THE BATTLE OF HAMPTON KOADS The dotted lines enclose the channel where the depth of water is is feet or more. in destroying the works or driving the garrison out. Far- ragut then planned to run by the forts, attack the fleet above them, proceed up the river, and take the city. This was successfully accomplished. Xew Orleans passed into the hands of the Federal forces, April, 1862. 436 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. The peninsula campaign. As already suggested, the fall and winter * of 1861- , 62 had been spent in quietness by the Army of the Potomac. In the spring McClellan decided to change his base of operations and to transfer his forces to the peninsula between the James River and the York. He moved leisurely up the peninsula, hindered somewhat by the enemy, and especially balked by a daring offensive move made by " Stone- wall " Jackson down the Shenandoah Valley. This valley was peculiarly advantageous ground for the enemy. It furnished a safe avenue for raids into Maryland or feints against Washington. If the Union forces pursued, they were led constantly away from Rich- mond. McClellan pushed on and threw his left wing across the Chickahominy at Fair Oaks. This portion of the army was attacked by Johnston, who had managed to May 31 1862. co ^ ec ^ a large force for the protection of the Confederate capital. Unsupported by the right wing, which was on the other side of the river, the National left was nearly crushed. Night ensued, and the next morn- ing the Confederate army was met and repulsed. McClellan pushed his army still nearer Richmond. By the end of * Battle of Ball's Bluff, a serious defeat for the National forces, had occurred in October, 1861. Only a small force was engaged. McClellan had brought the army to a fine state of organization and discipline. The Peninsula Campaign. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 437 June he was encamped four miles from the city, and to those who did not know the dangers and the difficulties success seemed certain. Johnston had been wounded in the battle at Fair Oaks, and he was now succeeded by General R. E. Lee. The new , commander at once began effective strategy, fight, June 26 While pretending to send forces to the Shen- to July 2, 1862. an d oan Valley to re-enforce Jackson, he actu- ally summoned Jackson back to Richmond. The attack upon the long line of the National troops, the memorable seven days' fighting, began. The Union forces were at- tacked with terrific vigor by the Confederates, but the assaults were met with cour- age. McClellan handled his army well, but did not show ability to act with swiftness or decision. In the course of the seven days he moved his troops from north of the Chickahominy to Malvern Hill on the James, where the last of the seven battles was fought. In August he was ordered to withdraw from his position. He re- treated slowly toward For- tress Monroe, bringing off his troops with skill. General Halleck, who, be- cause of the rare Pope!^^ efficiency of his subordinates,* had won vic- tories in the West, was put in general charge of the armies. About the same time an army was placed * Halleck was a scholarly general, but he lacked force and vim. He was made general-in-chief, with headquarters at Washington, not tak- ing the field in person. 438 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. under the command of Pope. Its field of operation was in northern Virginia. McClellan was ordered to move his troops from the peninsula by water to Acquia Creek on the Potomac. Pope moved southwest from Washington across of Bull Run, BuU Run and faced Lee on the Eappahannock August 29, 30, just northeast of Culpeper. The Confederate commander sent Jackson on a wide detour. Pope's supplies were destroyed and he fell back. After various maneuvers, carried on largely in ignorance of the real situation, the Union forces attacked the enemy, strong in numbers, near the old battlefield of Bull Run. The re- sult was disaster. The whole Federal army was near being overwhelmed. Pope retreated toward the Potomac, and gathered his brave but distracted army within the defenses of Wash- ington. The invasion was a failure. Pope had defeat complete been outgeneraled by Lee, who seemed at every moment to know the whole situation thorough- ly. Stonewall Jackson's splendid efficiency in carrying out Lee's plans had much to do with the victory. It has been well said that the whole campaign was one of which an American can well be proud. The North was outgeneraled, but the troops of the South and North fought gallantly and persistently. The Northern men met defeat with that in- domitable pluck and patience which was a match for South- ern dash and brilliance. Pope reported after the sore de- feat : " The troops are in good heart, and marched off the field without the least hurry or confusion. Their conduct was very fine." McClellan was again put in full command of the Army of the Potomac, including the troops that Pope had com- manded. He was under the general direction of Halleck. He prepared to meet Lee, who had determined upon an invasion of Maryland. The situation was now exactly the opposite from what it had been a few months before. In ADMINISTKATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 439 Lee invades Maryland, June the Union forces were within sound of the church bells of Richmond; in September they were maneuvering in the immediate vicinity of their own capital to guard it from a Confederate attack. Lee marched northward across the Potomac into Maryland. Jackson, under his direction, bombarded Har- per's Ferry and easily took the position with over eleven thousand men, who ought to have been either removed or Antietam properly re-enforced. Then occurred the bat- September, tie of Antietam between the two main armies, 1862, a fierce contest in which the Union forces lost twelve thousand men and more ; the Confederates nearly as many. The invasion of Maryland was a failure, and Lee retreated across the Potomac. McClellan, perhaps necessarily, allowed him to escape without pursuit. The Union army was soon led forward again to the Rappahannock. Mc- Clellan was then removed, and Burnside put in his place. Burnside, knowing how much McClellan had been criticized be- cause he did not fight with greater dash and vehemence, and push m ^ * vigorously on the enemy, determined to be The horror of ° . J1 Fredericksburg, aggressive, lie moved down the Rappahan- nock to Fredericksburg. By this time Lee had manned the strong defenses south and west of the town with a powerful army. The Union troops made a furious attack upon the Confederate position. The slaughter that ensued was horrible. Burnside retreated across the river with a loss of thirteen thousand men. This was the end of a year of dire disaster in the East. There had been a long series of defeats. In the peninsula 29 December, 1862, 440 IIISTOKV OF THE AMERICAN NATION. campaign there had been Borne clever work and everywhere desperate fighting. Antietam was counted a Union victory, and Lee had found that he dared not press campaign of farther north; but after the second battle of 1862, Hull Run, and the terrible repulse at Fredericks- burg, an invasion of Virginia and a conquest of the South Beemed to many a disheartening and impossible task. Spite of successes in the West, the winter of 1802-'C3 was a gloomy one in Northern households. The campaign of 1803 fortunately brought new hope to the nation ; it gave assurance, in fact, that the rebellion would be crushed if tho North would persevere. Be- fore examining the mili- tary events of that year we need to notice some political events that gave new character and mean- ing to the war. The North had rushed to arms when tho flag was fired upon; tho one thought prevailed, that the Union must be pre- served. But as the months went by it was felt by many that the gre*1 curse of slavery, which had estranged the South and driven the two sections apart, must be done away with as a result of the war. President Lincoln hated slavery, and was anxious to sec the day when the nation would not be cursed with the sys- tem. During the first year of tho war, how- ever, he was averse to taking any step that WOQld make the war to all appearances a crusade against BATTLE OF FHKDKKICKSIU K(. scale or MILES &/ 1 * * v Political affairs. ADMINISTRATION OP LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 441 slavery. He knew that there was a strong sentiment at the North in favor of immediate emancipation, but there was also a strong race prejudice as well. More- The Union over, for a loner time feeling in the border and slavery. ° °, States must be regarded, and this was, of course, opposed to abolition. It was clear enough to Lincoln that slavery could be abolished only by saving the Union, and that this, morally and legally, was his first duty. Were the South victorious in the war, abolition would be impossible. Were the North victorious, then there would be a chance for the final extirpation of slavery. So the President con- stantly checked the excited abolition sentiment, and im- pressed on the minds of all that the Union must be pre- served. In March, 1862, he sent a special message to Congress recommending the passage of a resolution to the effect that "the United States ought to co-operate with Compensated g t t M h d t gradua l abolish- abolishment. J J r ° ment of slavery, giving to such State pecuniary aid, to be used by such State in its discretion, to compen- sate for the inconvenience, both public and private, pro- duced by the change." Congress passed a resolution of that nature. But Lincoln could not get the slave States that still remained in the Union to listen to him. He pleaded with their representatives and senators in Congress, pointing out to them that slavery in the border States must before long "be extinguished by mere friction and abrasion — by the mere incidents of war." His pleading was of no effect. Those States refused to take advantage of the National aid thus offered or to take a single step toward emancipation. Yet the antislavery sentiment was growing, and the time was near at hand when slavery must go. The en- thusiasts brought great pressure to bear upon the Presi- dent, but he wisely and patiently bided his time. About the middle of the summer he drew up a draft of a proclama- tion for emancipation. Shortly afterward he read it to (JfrtAAof \w*M, pftw foil ^ /**^ 1864 ) directed to take Valley, August charge of affairs in the Shenandoah Valley, ^ctober, General Early, a Confederate cavalry leader of great boldness, after having been within sight of Washington, had re- tired up the valley. Now began an entertaining game of war. Sheridan had Grant's authority " to push things hard," and he did so. By the end of the summer, after a series of successful conflicts, he had the whole valley at his mercy. It was devastated with relentless thorough- ness. It could no more be a highway for those an- noying raids which had frightened the adminis- tration at Washington, and had such a demoralizing effect on the courage and hopefulness of the North. It was no longer a granary for the Confederate forces. In October n 3 n i. occurred the famous battle of Cedar Creek. Cedar Creek, ._,__.- October 19, Early surprised the Union forces and vehe- 1864. mently attacked them during Sheridan's ab- sence. They had begun to retreat, and, though reforming was going on and the day was not wholly lost, there was danger of complete defeat, when Sheridan rode upon the field, and by his magnetic presence cheered the troops to renewed effort. He rode back at full gallop, calling out to the straggling fugitives : " Face the other way, boys ! We are going back to our camps ! We are going to lick them 30 (^X^L^'c CC Cttl^* 456 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. out of their boots ! " And so they did. They made a bold counter attack and overwhelmed the enemy. Up to this time Mobile had remained in the hands of the Confederates. It was an important point. The task of blockading it effectually had proved prac- Aifust 1864. ticall y impossible. In 1864 it was the one opening through which cotton could be ex- ported or the much-needed supplies brought in to sustain the languishing Confederacy. The harbor was strongly de- fended, but Farragut determined to lead his ships by the forts, attack the fleet inside, and, with the help of a land force, capture the place and its defenses. This plan was successfully carried out. Farragut, lashed to the rigging of the flagship, where he could see all that was going on, The Confederate Ram Tennessee. From the working drawings in the Confederate Collection at Washington. directed the movement of his vessels. The Confederate fleet was beaten and the forts captured. The capture of Mobile sealed up the whole South. An occasional blockade runner might creep in, or supplies might be dragged across the plains from Mexico, but from now on the South was almost completely thrown on its own resources. In the earlier part of the war several vessels were fitted out in England for the use of the Confederate government. Our minister at London, Charles Francis Adams, called the attention of the English Government to the fact that these vessels were building, and asked that they be not allowed to leave the harbor. Attention was specially called to a ship known as-the " 290." The government, however, did not intervene, and the The Alabama. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 457 " 290 " got safely off to sea. She then assumed the name Alabama, and began, as a privateer, to prey upon American commerce. She was a fast sailer, well armed and strong, and she did immense damage, capturing and burning North- ern merchantmen. There were other vessels of the same kind, but because of her exceptional success the Alabama was especially famous. In June, 1864, a battle was fought off Cherbourg, France, between this Confederate cruiser and the United States ship Kearsarge. The Fight with the ^ wo vesse i s W ere of about equal size and arma- Kearsarge. u ment. The contest was of short duration. The Kearsarge was superbly handled, and her fire was de- liberate and destructive. At the end of an hour the Ala- bama was totally disabled and struck her colors. Before her crew could be taken from her she sank to the bottom of the English Channel. Her captain and some of her men were taken on board an English vessel and thus escaped capture. During the career of the Alabama she had destroyed as many as sixty-three merchantmen. Other vessels of the same sort, especially the Florida and the Protest of the Georgia, had likewise done much damage. Our Government filed its strenuous protest with the English Government, asserting that these vessels ought to have been kept from going to sea when it was well known for what purpose they were being fitted out. The warnings of the United States Government are summed up in the following words from Secretary Seward's dispatch to Mr. Adams : " Upon these principles of law and these assumptions of fact, the United States do insist, and must continue to insist, that the British Government is justly responsible for the damages which the peaceful, law-abiding citizens of the United States sustain by the depredations of the Alabama." During the summer of 1864 a very active campaign was fought in the West. Sherman was in command there 458 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. with a stalwart army of one hundred thousand men. The troops lay just south of Chattanooga facing the Confed- . . erates, who, under General Johnston, were at Campaign in . __ the West. Dalton, Georgia. Sherman succeeded in deft- Jnne, 1864. \y maneuvering the Confederates out of their position, and, without direct battle, forced them back. In the neighborhood of Marietta, in the latter half of June, there was a series of fierce con- tests, and the Union forces were successful. The Confederates were beaten back, but succeeded at last in repulsing a gallant charge at Kenesaw Mountain. By the mid- dle of July, Johnston reached At- lanta, having conducted his orderly retreat in a masterly manner that tested all Sherman's skill and prowess. Hood was now put in command, because the Confederate president demanded an aggressive policy. A number of minor battles took place about At- lanta. Only a part of the troops on either side were en- Atlant f 11 g a S e( l at any one time ; but the Union army September, was uniformly successful, the men fighting like 1864. toughened veterans. In September Hood aban- doned Atlanta, and the Northern troops marched in. Sherman was still in a dangerous position. He had to depend upon supplies brought a long distance. Hood, thinking to frighten Sherman out of his well-earned posi- tion, moved north to threaten his communica- The i march tions ; but the plan was not successful. Sher- to the sea. man concluded that with re - enforcements Thomas could take care of Hood, and he himself made ready for his famous march to the sea.* He cut loose from * The marches to Augusta, Andersonville, and Aiken were made by the cavalry. See the accompanying map. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 459 his base of supplies and marched across Georgia. " These troops numbered over sixty thousand rugged veterans, unhampered by sick or off-duty men, with twenty days' rations, plenty of beef on the hoof, about one field gun per thousand effectives, and an excellent canvas pontoon train." * Early in December he appeared before Savan- nah, and it was evacuated shortly after, f This great march through the very heart of the Confed- eracy was proof positive that the rebellion could last but a few months longer at the best. Sherman had disap- peared in the heart of Georgia, and when he re- appeared at Savannah a great load was taken from the anxious hearts of the North. Grant wrote him : " I never had a doubt of the result. When appre- hensions for your safety were expressed by the President, I assured him with the army you had, and you in command of it, there was no danger, but you would strike bottom on salt water some place." \ y^f2L^ * Dodge, p. 287. f December 22d, Sherman sent Lincoln the following dispatch (Sherman's Memoirs, vol. ii, p. 231) : Savannah, Ga., December 22, 186h. To His Excellency, President Lincoln, Washington, D. C. : I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the city of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty heavy guns and plenty of ammunition ; also about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton. W. T. Sherman, Major General. % Sherman, Memoirs, vol. ii, p. 223. 4 GO HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Meanwhile Thomas had been playing a skillful game with Hood, whom Sherman had boldly left in his rear. Hood, venturesome and aggressive, marched to Tnoi £ as the North against Thomas, whose main position was at Nashville. Thomas was cautious and wary. Spite of orders from Washington and demands from Grant that an advance be made, Thomas took all the time he wished to make complete preparations and December, to put his forces in full readiness for battle. 1864:1 He then turned upon Hood and crushed him.* The rebellion was practically over in the West. Political as well as military difficulties surrounded the President in the summer of 18G4. One would think that the task of carrying on this great war was enough Political without other cares or responsibilities, especially during these dreadful months, when the Union forces were indeed pushing on to victory, but at a fearful cost in blood and treasure. Though it was clear that under Grant's terrific blows the Confederacy could not last much longer, Lincoln was surrounded by unfriendly Lincoln's critics. Some of the public men of the Presi- dent's own party were opposed to him, and some were making plans to defeat him in the coming election. All through his term he had been troubled and harassed by political squabbles and quarrels, but in the spring and early summer of 18G4 there were new dangers and annoyances. Even Secretary Chase had for a time been nursing presi- dential ambitions, and his candidacy was urged by many of * Thomas was a Virginian, but refused to follow his State into re- bellion. He was one of the most successful generals of the war, shrewd, careful, thorough. He knew not defeat, and always fought with the utmost coolness, precision, and energy. He was modest and unpresura- ing, yet few were so competent to command. Dodge says : " He perhaps falls as little short of the model soldier as any man produced by this country." ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 461 Lincoln's opponents. It was soon proved that Lincoln had the people behind him. They sympathized with him and felt his worth. Chase saw, before long, that ase re81gn8, his candidacy was hopeless. He was doubtless ambitious, but he can not be charged with duplicity or underhand dealing. His relations with the President, how- ever, became so strained that he gave up his secretaryship. William Pitt Fessenden, of Maine, was put in his place, and proved a very able and efficient officer. In May a " mass convention " assembled at Cleveland. It was made up of the fault-finders who were out of all pa- tience with what they consid- ered Lincoln's lack of vigor and administrative Fremont power. The COn- nominated. * . vention nominated John C. Fremont for the presi- dency, and John Cochrane for the vice-presidency. But the movement was not taken seri- ously by the people, and Fre- mont finally withdrew, deliv- ering as a parting shot the assertion that Lincoln's ad- ministration was "politically, militarily, and financially a failure." When the Republican Convention met there was not the slightest doubt of Lincoln's nomination. The Union people of the whole North, in a great many different ways, had announced in unmistakable language that he was their only choice. He was nominated unanimously on the first ballot.* Thus the fault-finding of ambitious and quarrelsome leaders and * The Missouri delegation voted for Grant, but changed this vote so that Lincoln could be nominated unanimously. Lincoln renominated 462 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. critical newspapers was of absolutely no avail before the wish of the nation. There was some trouble in choosing the vice-president. It was felt by many that it would be the part of wisdom to nominate a war Democrat — some one who had belonged to the Democratic party before the war, but who was now working in harmony with the Republicans. Because of this feeling Hannibal Hamlin was not renomi- nated, and the choice of the convention fell upon Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee. A platform was adopted declaring in favor of the complete suppression of the rebellion, and announcing " that as slavery was the cause and now con- stitutes the strength of this rebellion, and as it must be always and everywhere hostile to the principles of republi- can government, justice and the national safety demand its utter and complete extirpation from the soil of the republic." The Democratic party nominated Gen. George B. Mc- Clellan for the presidency, and George IL Pendleton, of Ohio, for the vice-presidency. The convention McClellan demanded that "immediate efforts be made nominated. for a cessation of hostilities with a view to an ultimate convention of all the States, or other peaceable means, to the end that at the earliest practicable moment peace may be restored on the basis of the Federal union of the States." The war was declared a failure, and various acts of the President were denounced as usurpation "of extraordinary and dangerous powers not granted by the Constitution." The presidential campaign was a very earnest and serious contest. The Republicans felt that everything was at stake and put forth every endeavor, while the Democrats were more successful in holding their forces together than might have been expected — a result due in large part to the fact that McClellan partly repudiated the platform by announcing himself in favor of peace, but only on terms that would preserve the Union. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 463 While the political discussions were in progress at the North, Sherman won his great victory over Hood at Atlanta. Under such circumstances the declaration that the war was a failure lost much of its force. Sherman's telegram, " Atlanta is ours, and fairly won," gave new courage and great joy to the supporters of the Administra- tion. Lincoln was elected by a large electoral majority, receiving two hundred and twelve votes against twenty-one for his opponent. The Democrats carried only New Jersey, Delaware, and Kentucky. It will be remembered that the Emancipation Proclama- tion declared free all slaves within those parts of the Thirteenth South then in open rebellion. This was con- amendment fessedly a war measure — like any other confisca- in Congress. tion of property) an act Q f war# It did not destroy slavery in the States not in rebellion. Moreover, some persons believed that the President had exceeded his authority in issuing such a proclamation. In the early part of 1864 a vote on the question of submitting a consti- tutional amendment abolishing slavery everywhere was taken in Congress. The necessary two-thirds vote could not be secured in the House, though the Senate passed the measure by a large majority. After the election, carried by the Republicans on a distinctly anti-slavery platform, abolition assumed new strength. The President in his annual message advocated the adoption of the amendment. A great debate in the House followed. The vote was one hundred and nineteen ayes to fifty-six noes — seven more than the required two thirds. In the homely, truthful phrase of Lincoln, the " great job " was ended. It was still necessary that three fourths of the States should ratify.* But this ratification was assured. This amendment declared that " neither slavery nor involuntary * This was done in the course of the year. In December, 1865, a proclamation was issued declaring that the thirteenth amendment was added to the Constitution. 464 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States or any place subject to their Adopted in jurisdiction." Thus the principle of the ordi- nance of 1787 was, in almost the exact words of that document, made applicable to the whole Union ; the great curse that had separated the American people into two bitterly hostile sections was to be cast aside for ever. The hopes of the future were for reorganization, a re-estab- lishment of sympathy and fellow-feeling between North and South, now that the cause of enmity and division was no more. As Lincoln pointed out, the amendment meant the " maintenance " of the Union. In giving this account of political matters we have passed by the military events of the winter and spring of 1865, events which made abolition of slavery Military affairs, , , , T . a , Q , more than words. Leaving Savannah, Sher- man marched north through the Carolinas, harassed but not long retarded by the Confederates under Johnston. Grant still held Lee at Eichmond and Petersburg. The end was evidently near at hand. March saw some sharp fighting along the line ; but the Confederates were daily growing weaker, and Lee was getting anxious Lee and Grant. r.i ij. i j.-l j j £ to break away and to push southward and form a junction with Johnston. If this were done, Sherman might perhaps be crushed before Grant could get to his support. Grant watched Lee with caution and anxiety. A few severe and bloody engagements occurred, but without bringing the end. Grant handled his immense army with great ability, and with full comprehension of his task. Lee fought with desperation and his accustomed skill. The Union army was steadily winding itself more closely about the doomed Confederate army and capital. Grant guarded Lee cautiously, lest he disappear to the South or West and leave but empty defences behind him. ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 465 At length Leo slipped away in the night (April 2, 3). Grant entered Richmond and began a hot pursuit. The ragged, starving, brave, disheartened Confed- Lee surrenders, era tes made their way westward, harassed at April 9, 1865. . . ., ' . , TJ , . , every step by the pursuing cavalry, it they were to escape at all, it must be by the narrow strip of land between the Appomattox and James rivers.* But Sheridan planted himself in the way. Lee was surrounded. On the 9th of April he surrendered. Grant gave generous and wise terms. The Confederates were released on parole, " not to take up arms against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged"; the officers and men were to return to their homes, " not to be disturbed by the United States authority so long as they observe their paroles and the laws in force where they reside." This last statement looked like an assumption of the pardoning power by Grant ; but its generosity, coming from a victori- ous general on the field of battle, merits unstinted praise, and it had doubtless influence in pointing out to the North the path of wise self-restraint in days of victory and exulta- tion. Johnston surrendered to Sherman on the 26th of April. The great civil war was at an end. The North had put forth its energy and crushed all opposition, pouring into the field an army as large as the fabulous host of ^T" Xerxes. The armies of the East and the West ended. had fought with courage and devotion. " All that it was possible for men to do in battle they have done," said Grant, and he knew whereof he spoke. The mistaken South, hugging her pet vice, slavery, as a viper to her bosom, had fought with a spirit, a heroism, and a courage that tempt us to forget the cause and prompt us only to remember that from Key West to the St. Croix all now are brethren of a common country. Grant's words in address- ing his former comrades in arms are well chosen : " Let * Read Dodge, Bird's-eye View of the Civil War, pp. 313-318. 4QQ HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. them hope for perpetual peace and harmony with that enemy whose manhood, however mistaken the cause, drew forth such herculean deeds of valor." The efforts of the South to sustain the war had been magnificent. We have seen how dependent the Southern people were on outside products. There were Sf°South few factories of any kind. The very arms with which to fight needed to be smuggled through the blockade, or, before the Mississippi was under Federal control, wearily brought across Texas from Mexico. After the capture of Mobile the country was almost completely surrounded. Occasionally a blockade runner succeeded in slipping through the barriers and bringing in supplies from Europe ; yet such accidental aid helped but little. The Confederacy was day by day, and month by month, strangled by the toils of the immense army and navy that encompassed it. The people fought with desperation, and yet we need not believe that all were anxious to enter the army ; a year before the North resorted to the draft, the Confederate congress took the same step, and before the end of the war it was determined even to enroll slaves as troops. Money was almost unattainable. When once the Confederacy was shut off from the civilized world, borrow- ing was practically impossible. Paper money was issued by the million dollars, " payable six months after the close of the war." This paper fell down, down, as the prospects of the Confederacy grew dimmer. In May, 1 864, a clerk in Richmond entered these prices in his diary : " Boots, two hundred dollars; coats, three hundred and fifty dollars; pantaloons, one hundred dollars ; . . . flour, two hundred and seventy-five dollars per barrel ; . . . bacon, nine dollars per pound ; . . . potatoes, twenty-five dollars per bushel ; . . . wood, fifty dollars per cord." Thus it was that the South was beaten — not because the people could not fight, or because they were not willing to bear privation and hardships. History, perhaps, shows ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN— 1861-1865. 467 no parallel to the brave constancy of Lee's men in the fearful campaign of 1864-05, when they must have seen that under Grant's terrific hammering they could not long defeated endure. The men who stayed at home on the the South. plantations, and, above all, the women — for they were the greatest sufferers from actual want — endured their trials with great resolution and cheerfulness. It was not lack of bravery, skill, or determination that defeated the South. It was slavery. While the lumber, iron, and coal of the North were put to service by an intelligent people, whose every industrial success prompted to new energy, the South was laboring under a destructive system which had been abandoned by every other part of the Teutonic race ; and the fearful penalty of slavery was civil war and disastrous, overwhelming defeat. The Union was preserved. The greatest civil war in history determined that the American republic must en- dure ; but the cost was enormous. Not count- The losses of m g ^e men w ^ ^{ e ^ a £ nome as a result of the war. wounds received in battle or exposure in the line of duty, over 300,000 Northern men gave up their lives for their country. The loss of the South could have been but little less. From all causes, the nation lost nearly a million of its able-bodied men. At the close of the war there were 1,000,516 men in the Northern army. The receipts of the Government by tax- ation during the four years were not far from Its awful ooBt. . J $800,000,000, but this was only a small portion of the amount which was expended. Money was spent with lavish profusion. The total debt at the end of the war was $2,844,649,626. But one can not count the August, 1865. \ V ' „ „ , , real cost of these four years of destruction, when hundreds of thousands of men were taken from remunera- tive employment, to spend their energies in bringing deso- lation and in killing their fellows. The North offered up a great sacrifice for union and for the perpetuation of the 468 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Government. But the sacrifice of the South was greater. Figures can give no idea of what it cost the South to de- fend slavery and her chosen constitutional principles. She offered up her very life. At the end of the war the whole country was desolate. Poverty was the lot of men who had been reared in luxury. For four years Virginia had been a battlefield. The more southern and western States fared but little better. The rebellion had been starved to death ; and when the soldiers left the army and sought their homes, they were confronted by want and desolation. The courage with which men took up their new lives was no less great than their bravery in war. The immense Union army of a million soldiers was dis- banded. The men went quietly back to the farm, the counting-house, or the workshop. Within a dkbaS few weeks this huge army was absorbed back into the body of the people. There was no violence, no license, no rioting. The volunteer soldier showed his sense and self-restraint by becoming an ordinary citizen once more. References. The best short accounts for political events are Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 210-238; Schurz, Abraham Lincoln; G. Smith, The United States, pp. 238-280 ; Julian, Political Recollections, pp. 181-259; Lothrop, Seward, pp. 246-396; Morse, Abraham Lincoln, Volume I, Chapters IX and XII, Volume II, Chapters I, IV, VI, IX, XII; Burgess, Civil War and the Constitution; Hart, Salmon P. Chase, 178-319; Adams, Charles Francis Adams, 117-345. Po- litical events at the South : Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 239-252. For military events : Church, U. S. Grant, Chapters V to XVIII; White, Robert E. Lee; Dodge, Bird's-eye View of the Civil War; Rossiter Johnson, Short History of the War of Secession. CHAPTER XVII. Political and Social Reconstruction — 1865-1877. ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON— 1865-1869. The war was ended. But while the people of the whole North were giving themselves up to joy and thanksgiving, there came the awful tidings that President The death of Lincoln had been assassinated. He was shot Lincoln! in his box at Ford's theater on the evening of April 14th, by John Wilkes Booth, a worthless melodramatic actor, who seems to have longed for notoriety, and to have sought this dastardly revenge for Southern wrongs and sufferings. The same evening Seward was assaulted at his home and grievously wounded. Lincoln died the next morning. There proved to be a plot, in which there were a number of conspirators, whose purpose seems to have been the assassination of several of the more prominent men to whom the country was looking for guidance. Booth was, however, the chief conspirator and the head and front of the enterprise. He was pursued and shot. Several of the conspirators were arrested and tried. Four were hanged, three imprisoned for life, and one for a term of years. The North mourned Lincoln's loss with sincere sorrow. There came to each loyal heart a sense of keen personal affliction and bitter grief. The "plain peo- A loss to the le » had come t0 know their p r e S ident, to nation. *■ , ' trust him and to love him as no other public man has been loved in our history. They felt that his death foreboded trouble, and mayhap disaster. Could Lin- 469 470 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. coin have lived, the great task of reorganizing the shattered fabric of the Union might have been accomplished without begetting strong partisan bitterness or violence ; perhaps the long period of estrangement between the North and South might have been shortened. Vice-President Andrew John- son assumed the presidency without delay, and the Gov- ernment went on with its work. There was no anarchy or confusion in the conduct of its business. Republican gov- ernment never received a severer test. The new President was a man of vigor, of strong con- victions, and of set purposes. He belonged to the poor whites of Tennessee, and had in youth no more Johnson's life training or advantages than one of his class was apt to have. He had reached manhood before learning even to read and write. His determina- tion and zeal, however, carried him forward in political life. Before his nomination to the vice-presidency he had been in the lower House of Congress, Governor of Tennessee, and United States Senator. By refusing to follow his State into secession he had won attention and renown at the North. He was strikingly unsuited to the enormous task that awaited him. Conscientious and patriotic he was, no doubt ; but he was narrow, dogmatic, and obstinate. He was a man of much native ability, but coming, as did Lincoln, from the most humble surroundings, he had not Lincoln's native culture and sweetness, nor the faculty of winning men and of feeling sympathy with them. He was unbending in all his fiber. The difficulties that confronted Johnson's administra- tion were many and arduous. The South was in a condi- tion of poverty, a condition bordering on help- onhetime 1118 lessne ss. There were no legal State govern- ments, no civil officers with legal authority to act. Millions of men born in bondage were now free, and had no knowledge of how to use their freedom, or how to earn their daily bread without direction. There was not ADMINISTRATION OF JOHNSON— 1865-1869. 471 much turbulence, for the negroes did not fully realize their new situation, and the whites were exhausted after the four terrible years of strife. How could order be brought to the weary and distracted South ? How could industry be estab- lished on a new basis ? How could the relation between the two races be determined ? Were the States themselves to be allowed to solve all their problems as each one saw fit, or was the National Government to intervene and endeavor to shape Southern institutions? Was the North to take full advantage of its victory, and insist upon raising the black man to a place by the side of his late master in social and political right, or was political power to be left solely in the hands of the men who had waged war against the nation ? These were questions of the greatest importance. Some of them only time could answer. However much might be done by way of legislation, time was needed to bring anything like a solution of the new labor problem of the South, or to establish suitable social relations between the negroes and whites. Moreover, questions arose concerning the right of the Federal Government to do anything about the internal affairs of the States, or to treat them in any jS a1 ,.- way save as members of the Union, with full difficulties. . • . . ' rights and privileges. It was argued, on the one hand, that the war had been conducted on the prin- ciple that the States could not go out of the Union, and it was maintained that, if they could not go out, they were now in, on terms of equality with the other States. But, on the other hand, the leading Republicans now declared that the States had, at least to some extent, forfeited their rights as States, and that, before they were once more re- instated in their constitutional relations, certain reforms should be brought about. These men wished to have as- surance that the war was actually over and that the negro was safe from molestation. Some of the leaders — men like Charles Sumner — looked upon the war as a great struggle 31 472 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. v for human freedom, and were unwilling to consider that the real contest was finished until the freemen were given the right to vote and were in possession of social as well as political privileges. We need not consider at length the legal arguments upon which the Republicans based their assertion that Congress had power to declare that the Southern States were not immediately entitled to repre- sentation in Congress or to their full rights as members of the Union. That men did seek to find legal justification for their every action is of interest, because it shows that the people were still regardful of legal rights and prin- ciples even at the end of the greatest civil conflict in his- tory which in many a nation would have been destructive of all rights save those of brute force. But the Korth felt that the South must be reorganized, and it is of little real moment what was the legal theory or fiction on which Con- gress based its action. Republican plans as to what steps should be taken matured somewhat slowly. By no means the whole party was ready at first to follow its extreme ! leaders in endeavoring to establish negro suffrage in the South ; but the whole party did desire that steps be taken to make the safety of the freedmen certain. The President issued (May 29, 1865) a proclamation of \ amnesty, offering to pardon all persons that had been en- gaged in the late rebellion, save certain classes of persons who were to apply specially for pardon. All who availed themselves of the offer of amnesty were to take an oath of loyalty and pledge themselves to support Federal laws, including the emancipation proclamation. At the same time Johnson began his system of recon- struction by appointing provisional governors for the J hn on'a Southern States. Each governor was author- method of ized to provide for the assembling of a conven- reoonstruotion. tion that would alter or amend t h e state Con- stitution and provide for the establishment of the State in its constitutional relations. ADMINISTRATION OP JOHNSON— 1865-1869. 473 This plan of the President seemed to give the power into the hands of the white people of the South and to . ,.,.,. make no provision for the freedmen. It was by the therefore opposed by the great majority of the Republicans. Republican party, inasmuch as they believed in keeping the Southern States under the control of the Na- tional Government until the negro was secure in his rights. The opposition to the President would not have been so bitter had it not been for two things : (1) Johnson showed himself headstrong and utterly lacking in tact ; (2) the Southern States, organized under the President's direction, began to pass laws that bore heavily upon the freedmen — laws that seemed to have the object of making the negro to all intents and purposes a slave again. It was quite evi- dent that even those acts that appeared harmless might easily be enforced so as practically to establish involuntary servitude within a State contrary to the Thirteenth Amend- ment, which, it will be remembered, was just at this time adopted and put in force.* When Congress met in December, 1865, many were an- noyed at the President's haste, and were determined that the Southern States should not be allowed SgToftfe 68 their ful1 constitutional rights until the negro Southern was fully protected from unjust legislation, problem. g u ^. w h en Congress passed an act providing for a bureau for the relief of freedmen and refugees, John- son vetoed it. Immediately upon the reception of this veto Congress passed a joint resolution declaring that no senator or representative should be admitted into either branch of Congress from any one of the States lately in rebellion p until such State was declared by Congress entitled to such representation. By this means Congress could com- pel the States to accept certain regulations that were deemed essential. An open rupture between the President and the party that elected him might have been avoided * December, 1865. 474 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. even yet, perhaps, or at least delayed, had Johnson not begun to make intemperate and unbecoming speeches, de- nouncing the Congress as " no Congress," and even charg- ing individual members with opposition to the fundamental " principles of this Government " and with " laboring to destroy them." Somewhat later in the session a Civil Eights bill was passed. The intention of the act was to establish the equality of the races in the Southern States, to !jj? e ^^ put the freedmen under the protection of Na- tional law and National officers, safe from per- secution or molestation at the will or caprice of a State. It declared, among other things, that " all persons born in the United States and not subject to any foreign power " were citizens of the United States. This act was vetoed, but was promptly passed over the veto. Congress was no longer in a submissive mood. It was next determined to put the Civil Eights bill into the form of a constitutional amendment, where its prin- ciples would be permanent and safe from vio- The Fourteenth i a ti on . The Fourteenth Amendment was Amendment. therefore agreed upon and offered to the States (June, 1866) for adoption. It declared that " all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." It declared that no State should make or enforce any law abridg- es first section. in g the u p r i v ii eges or immunities of citizens of the United States," or deprive any person of " life, liberty, or property without due process of law," or deny to any person " the equal protection of the laws." The Ee- publicans saw that by the freeing of the blacks they had actually increased the political strength of the Southern States, because the three-fifths rule * would no longer ap- * See Constitution, art. i, sec. ii, § 3. ADMINISTRATION OF JOHNSON— 1865-1869. 475 ply, but all the negroes would be counted in determining the representative population. Some were desirous of giv- ing the negroes the suffrage immediately by i Its second National act. Others hesitated. All, however, Cnp + 1 rtTI desired to prevent the Southern States from reaping this political advantage from emancipation, unless they allowed the blacks to vote. It was therefore decided that if the negroes were not given the suffrage by a State voluntarily, they should not be counted in determining the j basis of representation. For these reasons the second sec- tion of the Fourteenth Amendment was added, providing that if the right to vote were denied to any of the male inhabitants of a State, being twenty-one years of age and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, ex- cept as punishment for crime, the basis of representation should "be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State." The amendment also provided for the exclusion Its third . from Federal office of the most prominent per- section. x sons engaged in the war against the Govern- ment until such disability were removed by Congress. It was expressly stated that the validity of the Its fourth National debt should not be questioned, but the section. a debts incurred in and for the rebellion should not be assumed by the " United States or any State." Such was the Fourteenth Amendment, by far the great- est change made in the Constitution since its adoption. it makes radio l ^ nere was some difficulty, as we shall see, in changes in the securing its ratification, the Southern States Constitution. refusing to accept it ; two years passed before it was finally ratified (1868), but we may notice at this time how it modified the Constitution when once it be- came a part of the fundamental law. Before this amend- ment was passed the subject of suffrage was solely a State affair, as long as the State had a " republican form of gov- 476 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ernment." So, too, the State had complete control over its citizens and could be as tyrannical as it saw fit, provided that it did not interfere with the relations between a per- son and the National Government or violate the few ex- press prohibitions in the National Constitution. By this amendment the nation intervened to protect the citizen of the State against unjust legislation or action of a State. Thus it will be seen the situation had entirely altered from what it was in 1788-'90. Then it was thought necessary to shield the citizen from the possible tyranny of the National Government, and to this end the first ten amendments were adopted. Meantime the controversy between the President and Congress waxed hotter. Johnson vetoed the most impor- tant bills, and Congress passed them over his Congress in veto. In this way, in the course of a year, the open enmity. most essential measures were made law for the purpose of carrying out the congressional idea of " recon- structing the Southern States." In spite of the President's objections, a measure known as the Freedmen's Bureau bill, providing for the relief and assistance to the Southern ne- groes, became law. Nebraska at this time was admitted to the Union. In March, 1867, Congress passed the Civil Tenure bill. This provided that a person appointed to office by the President and approved by the Senate Tenure of should hold office till another person was ap- Omce Act. , . . x _ . * pointed to the position with approval 01 the Senate, and that members of the Cabinet should hold office for the term of the President appointing them and one month thereafter, " subject to removal by and with the advice and consent of the Senate." An officer might, how- ever, be suspended while the Senate was not in session, and the place given for the time being to some other person. During the fall and winter (1866-'67) the Southern States, perhaps encouraged by the quarrel between Johnson ADMINISTRATION OF JOHNSON— 1865-1869. 477 and his party, rejected the Fourteenth Amendment. As a consequence new reconstruction measures were deter- mined upon and duly enacted. Congress pro- Congressional ided f th d i v i s i on of the Soutn into five reconstruction. military districts, each to be in the charge of a general aided by " a sufficient military force." This officer was to keep order and to have wide powers of government. Under his guidance a State was to elect a convention, adopt a constitution granting the suffrage to blacks and whites alike, and ratify through its legislature the Four- teenth Amendment. When this was done and approved the State was to be allowed representation in Congress. In the summer of this year (1867) Johnson requested the resignation of Stanton, his Secretary of War, " because of public considerations of a high character." The President Tlie tw0 men were i ncompa tible, and Stanton impeached. , x ' had long been hostile to Johnson and his policy. He refused to resign, because of " public considera- tions of a high character." Johnson suspended him in ac- cordance with the provision of the Tenure of Office act. When the Senate met it refused to agree to this suspension. The President then removed Stanton from the office and gave the portfolio to General Lorenzo Thomas. The ill feeling was now so great that the Republicans determined to resort to impeachment to get rid of their obnoxious executive. In March, 1868, articles of impeachment were presented by the House at the bar of the Senate. The chief charge was violation of the Tenure of Office act by the removal of Stanton. The trial lasted nearly two months. Chief Justice Chase presided with dignity and impartiality. The ceremony was watched with interest and curiosity in America and Europe. The result of the trial was acquittal. The majority lacked one vote of the necessary two thirds. Seven Republican senators voted against conviction. They believed that the President should be entitled to remove his subordinates. It is now generally believed that im- L k 478 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. peachment was unwise and that conviction would have been unjust. Before the end of 1868 most of the States were fully re-established in their constitutional relations or "read- mitted to the Union." Provision had been "leconsTructed" made for the admission of Tennessee soon by congressional after the close of the war. North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, and Arkansas were admitted to representation in Congress in 1868. Seward was enabled to announce, July 28, 1868, that the Fourteenth Amendment had become part of the Constitution. The Southern States during these years and for some time afterward were in an unfortunate condition. The more influential white men were kept out of Oarpet-bag office by the congressional policy because they had taken part in the war. This left the con- trol of the convention and the legislature, when once civil government was established, to the more ignorant white people and to the negroes, who had no fitness for the diffi- cult tasks' that needed attention. Men from other States came upon the scene and became political leaders, taking advantage of the ignorant blacks to win for themselves power and influence. These men were called "carpet- baggers." The governments set up under their direction were incompetent and woefully corrupt. Doubtless some of the Northern men that went to the South at this time were neither corrupt nor influenced by unworthy motives, but so many were merely unscrupulous adventurers, quite devoid of principle, that all were called " carpet-baggers " and looked upon with suspicion. The Southern people were in their turn intolerant, and occasionally guilty of outrages against Northern men. The ill feeling between the sections, therefore, had as yet diminished little, if at all. The white people under negro and " carpet-bag " rule were bitter in their hatred of Eepublican reconstruction, while ADMINISTRATION OF JOHNSON— 1865-1869. 479 every month seemed to harden the Northern leaders in the belief that the " ex-rebels " were not to be trusted. Several difficult and interesting foreign questions arose during Johnson's administration. Soon after the begin- ning of our civil war France had sent troops >reign aars. .^ q Mexico, overthrown the republican gov- ernment there, and established an empire, with Maximilian, an archduke of Austria, as emperor. During the war Seward had cautiously protested ; but now that there was peace at home, France was given very distinctly to under- stand that the presence of her troops in Mexico was ob- noxious to the United States. Our Government has for many decades held the opinion that European countries must not extend their systems in this hemisphere against the will and wish of the American Union. Upon receiving the peremptory demand from Seward, Napoleon III withdrew his army. The luckless Maximilian, left to his fate, was captured by Mexican troops, tried by court martial, and shot. In 1867 the United States bought Alaska from Eussia for 87,200,000. This purchase added 531,409 square miles to the National domain. In the eighty years ^rchaae * na ^ ^ad lapsed since the formation of the constitution the territory of the Union had increased fourfold. In 1787 it was 819,815 square miles. After the purchase of Alaska it was 3,501,509 square miles.* No less important than other events of this stormy ad- ministration was the final laying of the Atlantic cable. In the summer of 1866 the cable was laid and The Atlantic use d. The commercial and political impor- tance of this frail connection between America and Europe can hardly be overestimated. Trade was put * These figures are somewhat differently given by different authori- ties. The United States census gives the total area, without Alaska, as 3,025,601. 480 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. on a new basis, for the condition of the European mar- kets could be read in New York each morning. The political relations between the Old and the New World were simplified. For the election of 1868 General Grant seemed the only possible candidate for the Republicans. The party con- tained many able leaders with far more political SiMa" 1 experience, but he was the center of interest and attention. The quiet, relentless deter- mination with which he had carried on the war had com- pletely captured the public imagination. He was unani- mously nominated on the first ballot in the convention, amid great demonstrations of enthusiasm. Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana, was nominated for the vice-presidency. The platform congratulated the country on the success of the reconstruction policy of Congress ; it pledged the party to maintain equal suffrage for all loyal men; it denounced Andrew Johnson and his methods, and promised the pay- ment of military bounties and pensions and full payment of the National debt. The Democrats nominated Horatio Seymour, of New York, and Francis P. Blair, Jr., of Missouri. The platform demanded immediate restoration of all the States to their rights in the Union, amnesty for all political offenses, economy and reform in office. It ar- raigned " the Radical party " for its " unparalleled op- pression and tyranny," appealed to all patriots to unite in the " great struggle for the liberties of the people," and de- clared that Johnson was " entitled to the gratitude of the whole American people." The result of the election was at no time doubtful. There was great enthusiasm for Grant at the North, while at the South the electoral vote was in nearly every State cast for the Republican candi- date, because the freedmen were all of that party, and many of the white men were not allowed to vote. Grant received two hundred and fourteen electoral votes, and Seymour eighty. ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 481 Before closing the account of this administration we should notice that something had been done to reduce the immense war debt, and that the nation was in Material many ways prosperous. The highest point that the debt ever reached was in the summer of 1865, when it amounted to the enormous total of $2,844,- 649,626, a burden of $84 on each person in the United States. In 1869 it amounted to $64.43 per capita. The nation showed remarkable powers of recuperation, after the long and destructive war. References. The best short accounts are in Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 254-272 ; Dawes, Charles Sumner, pp. 214-273 ; Lothrop, William H. Seward, Chapter XXI; Moore, American Congress, pp. 402-435; Lalor, Cyclopaedia, Volume III, pp. 540-556; Burgess, Reconstruction and the Constitution; McCulloch, Men and Meas- ures of Half a Century, pp. 368-412. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT, 1869-1877. When General Grant took the presidential chair he had had no experience in politics, no training in civil duties. He was a graduate of West Point, and Ulysses S. ^ad serve( i w ith distinction in the Mexican War. At the outbreak of the rebellion he occupied a humble position as a private citizen. His success as a general gave him world-wide reputation, and he was hailed by the enthusiastic North as the savior of his country. He was a man of strict, unswerving honesty, and of pure motives. He was direct and incisive in his methods of thought and action. It may be doubted whether his talents, that so well fitted him for conducting a great aggressive war, were equally well adapted to the no less difficult tasks of peace. Downright and upright him- self, he was not always successful in winning and holding 482 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Problems of the time. the best men of his party by giving them frank confidence ; nor did he have great insight into the weaknesses of the men about him. These characteristics account, in part, for some of the difficulties of his administration. The times were trying ones. One can hardly imagine greater or more troublesome tasks than those confronting the American Government in these years. The people were undoubtedly showing a remarkable capacity for self-government and self-restraint. They submitted quietly to the payment of enormous taxes ; they were honestly and without ostentation bent upon pay- ing the great war debt with all reasonable speed. A million soldiers who had been quiet- ly absorbed into the peaceful community seemed to have forgotten military arts or am- bition. But spite of all this the period was full of diffi- culties. There were grave international questions to be settled, and internal problems that called for wise solution. Not till about 1871 were all the Southern States in posses- sion of their full constitu- tional rights, and even when politically " reconstructed " they were of course internally still in some confusion. Many of their people still felt re- sentment toward the North. A reconstruction of sentiment between North and South could come only in the course of years, as the result of generous fair-mindedness in the one section and sensible self-control in the other. Moreover, in many ways the war had brought disorganization into the National Government ; the details of administration, which are of the utmost importance in time of peace, could not ^y^ ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 483 be carefully watched and guided in time of a great civil war. Furthermore, the war had had a demoralizing influ- ence in some respects. It is true that it called forth patriotism, prompted men to mercy, and stirred men's hearts to lofty motives. No war that is waged for country and to free millions of human beings from slavery can be, on the whole, bad in its effects on the moral make-up of the nation. But war is brutal, and its brutality is apt to leave the curse of selfishness and greed behind it. The great mass of the people were honest and moral ; but the troublesome time of war encouraged some men to believe that it was legitimate to take advantage of the Government and to get rich by stealth at the public expense. Before the end of Johnson's term the Republicans de- termined to give the negro the ballot without qualification. The Fourteenth Amendment allowed the Amentoent. state s to determine for themselves what the basis of suffrage should be. If the right to vote were denied to any of the male citizens twenty-one years old, or in any way abridged, the basis of representation in Congress might be cut down. This provision was not en- forced, and from that day to this has remained inoperative. In 1869 the Fifteenth Amendment was submitted to the States for adoption. It declared : " The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." Secretary Fish announced, March 30, 1870, that it had " become valid to all intents and purposes, as part of the Constitution of the United States." The acceptance of the Fifteenth Amendment as part of the fundamental law of the nation did not do away with the troubles and distress that grew out of the rebellion. The corruption of the carpet-bag governments, built on negro suffrage, was proof enough that slavery had been a poor schoolmaster for freedom. Some of the blacks quickly 484 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. learned the vices of politics, and showed remarkable apti- tude in the art of reaping personal advantage from office. Corruption ^ ne States that na d Deen impoverished by four in the Southern years of war were plundered ruthlessly ; enor- mous debts were rolled up by extravagant and dishonest legislation. In South Carolina, where negro rule long prevailed because of the great number of blacks, the debt increased from about $5,500,000 in 1868 to over $20,000,000 in 1873. Some other States suffered almost as much. The Southern w T hites determined that negro rule must be ended by some means, lawful or unlawful. It seemed Opposition to ^° them a matter of self-preservation. This carpet-bag feeling is well illustrated by the statement of government. ft citizen of South Carolina . « To take the State . . . away from the intelligent white men and hand it over bodily to ignorant negroes just escaped from slavery . . . was nothing less than flat burglary on the theory and practice of representative government." In some of the States the negroes were in a minority; and where that was the case the government soon passed into the hands of the white people as a simple result of united action on their part. In other places, however, deplorable methods were adopted. The poorer and more ignorant white men, who had been reared amid the degrading influences of slavery, could not appreciate that the negro had rights that they were bound to respect. The luckless blacks were harassed and harried. An oath-bound order under the name of the Ku-Klux-Klan, throwing a veil of secrecy and mystery over all its doings, appeared here and there throughout the South, terrorizing the superstitious negro and overwhelming him with awe and dread. It is difficult from any evidence that we have to determine the exact origin or extent of the Ku-Klux movement. To Northern men it seemed that the whole South was conspiring to make national law inoperative, and to rob the negro of his rights. ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 485 It was some years before the lawlessness and violence were stamped out. The intelligent people of the South finally united in efforts to put down this open violence and to es- tablish order, for they saw that there was a direct issue between law and anarchy. Because of these conditions in the South, Congress un- dertook to pass repressive measures. A series of acts were passed (1870-'72) the purposes of which were the protection of the negro in his new privi- leges and rights. The President was given authority to suppress insurrection whenever the State officers were un- able or unwilling to do so. He was also authorized, for a limited time, to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus. The courts were assigned wide jurisdiction over cases in which persons claimed they had been deprived of rights, privileges, or immunities under the Constitution of the United States. These measures were called enforce- ment bills, or "force bills." By such means, by dint of energy on the part of the National Government and the co- operation of the more sensible of the Southern people, who realized the danger of tumult and anarchy, violent methods of intimidating the negro were done away with. For some time after this it seemed to the President necessary to use the Federal troops in order to secure free and fair elections in the Southern States. From the outbreak of the rebellion and the acknowledg- ment by Great Britain of the belligerency of the Confed- eracy our relations with that country had been tewM?* - ™ 1 somewhat strained. Upon Grant's accession there were serious difficulties that demanded immediate settlement. Our Government asserted that Eng- land had not done her duty as a neutral ; that it was her duty to use diligence in an effort to prevent the arming or equip- ping of any armed vessel within her limits, and to prevent the departure of such a vessel to cruise against the commerce of a friendly nation ; that likewise a belligerent should not be 486 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. permitted to make use of neutral ports as bases of naval oper- ation or for the purpose of getting military supplies ; and that Great Britain had been remiss in its duty, inasmuch as the Alabama and other Confederate cruisers had been fitted out in English harbors to prey upon American commerce even after the ministry had been given fair warning as to the character and purpose of the vessels. We insisted, therefore, that damages should be paid for the resulting injuries. Fortunately the two countries were wise enough not to make more havoc by fighting over their differences. In 1871 a treaty between the two powers was w 6 h' 16 ^ 7 ° f s ig ne ^ a t Washington, agreeing that all mat- ters of dispute should be submitted to arbitra- tion. The Alabama claims were to be passed upon by a court of five arbitrators appointed by Great Britain, the United States, Italy, Switzerland, and Brazil. This tribunal met at Geneva, Switzerland, and made a careful examination of the whole controversy. The Amer- The Geneva * can Government contended that our losses in- award, eluded not only the actual destruction of mer- 1871-72, chantmen and cargoes, but "heavy national expenditures in the pursuit of the cruisers and in direct injury in the transfer of a large part of the American com- mercial marine to the British flag, in the enhanced pay- ments of insurance, in the prolongation of the war, and in the addition of a large sum to the cost of the war and the suppression of the rebellion." The arbitrators refused to allow compensation for the more indirect or remote dam- ages, but awarded to the United States $15,500,000 in gold as an indemnity to be paid by Great Britain in satisfaction for all claims. By the Treaty of Washington it was also agreed to leave to the Emperor of Germany as arbitrator the settlement of a dispute over the Northwestern boundary. In 1846 the line between the American and British possessions had been ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 487 defined as following along the forty-ninth parallel " to the middle of the channel which separates the continent from „ x , Vancouver's Island ; and thence southerly Northwestern 7 J boundary and through the middle of the said channel and of the fisheries. p uca ' s Straits to the Pacific Ocean." A question had arisen as to where the middle of the channel was. The German Emperor decided in favor of the claim made by the United States. The Treaty of Washington made provision for the settlement of difficulties that had arisen concerning the Northeastern fisheries. In 1877 a commission met in Halifax and awarded to England the sum of 15,500,000. It was plain by this time that to compel the Southern people to observe the new amendments to the Constitution fully was a difficult if not an impossible task. Differences in J x the Kepublican To accomplish anything by force, constant party. armed intervention was a necessity. But many felt that the Government had already gone too far ; that the only sensible course was to leave the South alone ; that as long as Federal troops were stationed there Southern resent- ment would continue in all its bitterness, and that the peo- ple could never be won back to affectionate loyalty by main force. They felt that the fundamental principle of local self-government was being dangerously disregarded. Some Republicans had become antagonistic to Grant personally. They believed that he had shown rare incapacity for civil duties, and that he was surrounded by men who were greedy if not corrupt. A division in the Republican party was likely to come sooner or later, because it was in reality a composite party, made up of men who were not apt to think alike on many questions. When once the great task of crushing the rebellion was over, the different elements in the party began to show their natural tendencies. The feeling of dissatisfaction with existing conditions showed itself in the Liberal Republican movement of 1872. The men who became interested in it were those Republicans who found themselves out of sympathy with the administra- 32 488 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. tion, out of patience with the management of Southern matters, and eager for " reform " in civil office. Many, too, wished a reduction of tariff duties and other The Liberal economic changes. A national convention held Republicans^ ° at Cincinnati nominated Horace Greeley, of New York, for President, and B. Gratz Brown, of Missouri, for Vice-President. A platform was adopted charging " the partisans of the administration assuming to be the Repub- lican party " with arbitrary and unpatriotic conduct toward the South, and with selfish and unscrupulous use of power. The new party demanded immediate reform in public office and the re-establishment of civil rule without military in- terference in the Southern States. The Democrats, having no issue to present, found them- selves fairly well in accord with the principles of the Lib- eral Republicans. The platform and candidates were therefore accepted by the Democratic Na- tional Convention. A few Democrats found it impossible to accept the nomination of Greeley, who had been for years an ardent, enthusiastic Republican, given to the use of very plain language in his condemnation of the Democracy. This faction placed' a straight Democratic ticket in the field ; but the movement was of no avail, inasmuch as the nominees refused to be candidates. The Republicans renominated Grant, and gave the sec- ond place on the ticket to Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts. Many persons were still fearful of any back- renominated ward step in the management of the Southern and elected, question. There was a strong feeling, too, that Greeley was unfit for the presidency. A high-minded, honest man, with strong purposes and noble aims, he was impractical and visionary. He was in his place when he was appealing to the nation's conscience, or discussing in racy, telling phrases the moral duties of government. But he had almost no experience in public office, and was with- out aptitude for the duties of administration. Grant and ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 489 Wilson were elected by an overwhelming majority. Greeley died before the presidential electors met to cast their bal- lots. Grant's second administration was not very eventful, nor does it differ in character materially from the first. _. n .. Some of the troubles that had arisen from the The Southern problem rebellion had passed away. Some of the great remains, problems had been solved, but much still re- mained to be done. The Southern question was still a pressing one. How far should the Southern States be al- lowed to manage elections and all internal affairs without molestation from the Central Government ? This was the difficult problem of the time. The Republican party was, on the whole, in favor of keeping such control that the amendments could be enforced throughout the South. But the country was in reality growing weary of inter- ference and longing for quiet. In a number of the Southern States, as we have seen, the Government had already passed into the hands of the Democratic party. Where that was the case Federal there was little trouble, but the amendments intervention. ' were more or less evaded. Where Republican governments held power great disturbance and unend- ing controversy prevailed. Disputes often arose over the action of the returning boards, whose duty it was to canvass the votes and report the results. The Democrats declared that the boards were illegally made up, or that they fraudulently " counted out " the Democratic candi- dates. The Republicans charged their opponents with en- deavoring by violence and intimidation to suppress the negro vote. When such quarrels broke out the President would send troops to quiet disturbances and to establish authority ; but he grew tired of the continuing disorder.* * The situation in Louisiana was especially bad. The Constitution provides (art. iv, sec. 4) that " the United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a republican form of government." This 490 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. A very noticeable feature of those years was the number of political scandals that came to light in the National Government. In 1872 it was publicly charged 1 ° * er ' tnat prominent ' Eepublican officeholders had taken bribes from a company known as the Credit Mo- bilier.* An investigation was made into all the charges, and resulted in finding clear proof of the guilt of two con- gressmen, one of whom had been the company's chief in- strument for furthering its interests by underhand and corrupt methods. The investigating committee recom- mended the expulsion of these men, but the House con- tented itself with " absolute condemnation " of their con- duct. Happily the ablest leaders to whom dishonesty had been imputed were exonerated by an examination of the facts. Other scandals than the Credit Mobilier were soon un- earthed. It was found that a great conspiracy had been formed for the purpose of cheating the Gov- ^ e T^7 S ? y ernment in the collection of the internal-reve- ring, 1875. nue tax on distilled liquors. This "whisky ring " included men high in power and influence. Through the untiring energies of Mr. Bristow, the Secretary of the Treasury, the criminals were hunted down, the ring broken up, and a number of the guilty punished. About this same time articles of impeachment were brought by the House against William W. Belknap, the clause furnished the legal justification for interference on the part of the National Government. Read Wilson, Division, etc., pp. 275-277 ; Lalor, Cyclopaedia, vol. ii, pp. 784-788. * This corporation organized under a charter from the Pennsyl- vania Legislature. It received through roundabout and corrupt meth- ods immense profits for the construction of a portion of the Union 1'ac.ific Railroad. " The Credit Mobilier was, in short, the first, greatest, and most scandalous of the ' construction companies ' which have since . . . made bankrupt so many railroad enterprises." Mcrriam, Life and Times of Samuel Bowles, vol. ii, p. 225 ; see also Hinsdale, Campaign Text-book for 1880, p. 170. ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 491 Secretary of War. He was charged with receiving bribes, and there was no doubt of his guilt. To escape conviction he hastily resigned his office, and then denied Secretary ot J War impeached, that the Senate had the right to consider 1876, charges against a person who was no longer a " civil officer of the United States." * The trial was never- theless begun, but did not result in conviction. Most of those voting in favor of acquittal said that they did so be- cause they believed that the Senate had no jurisdiction. -'--./ >ONT. T ER j \ ^^ Mt-&r JrfF^ j TE R. ! \ wis m ^wC^r^ri TER ' ) \Hf P\ A A I "-J--J ter, j r -\ (J..;..2^r';r" V<| * \ NEV - UTAH 'I "'-I NEB ' \ ^IU-»HoloHipL t ^202 *V\ TER, i COL. i \ \ ! h-^:K^ \ \ /-. / i KAN. MO. > lyf TO VA. \J \ \ Amz - I n.mex 1 1 ,nd,a ^'1 — Tj^jC -- r \ ( tfr I j L TER ' j ark. / f \ Xs.c.y \ ■ ~ n - : Ten • — _ ' . ! < v. r INDIAN I -TER. J ARK. 1 % \ ALA.\ ga. TEXAS -\ £? :LA. ; ) 2 i Map showing Western Extension of Population in 1870. Just at the close of Grant's first administration Con- gress passed an act increasing the salary of the President, members of Congress, and other officers. It provided that the President should receive fifty thousand dollars instead of half that sum, as heretofore, and that members of Congress should receive seven thousand five hundred dollars instead of five thou- sand dollars. This Congress was nearly at an end, but, regardless of that fact, the act declared that its members Salary grab 1873. * See Constitution, art. ii, sec. 4. 492 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. should receive the increased salary for the two years just closing. Great indignation was aroused in the country by this calm appropriation of the public funds. Some mem- bers paid back the money into the Treasury to appease their own consciences and to help quiet the tumult. The next Congress repealed the act, save such portions as pro- vided for increased pay to the President and justices of the Supreme Court. It must be said that previous Congresses had passed similar laws and made them retroactive. But the people now thought, without distinction of party, that the " salary grab " was an unworthy example of avarice and greed. For some years after the war the business interests of the country seemed to prosper. It was a period of great enterprise. Kailroads were built and extended I873 am ° ° ou ^ °^ a ^ proportion to the needs of the popu- lation ; all kinds of industries appeared to be thriving ; men entered boldly into new undertakings. The war seemed rather to have stimulated industry than to have checked it. But the day of reckoning was sure to come. The finances were not in a good condition, inasmuch as paper money still circulated and no law had been passed providing for payment in specie.* Commerce was there- fore built on an uncertain foundation. In 1873 a great commercial panic swept over the country. Enterprise and wild speculation were sharply brought to a standstill. Fac- tories were closed and the usual suffering ensued among the poorer people, who were thus deprived of means of livelihood. Many men seemed to believe that the need of the hour was more money, and Congress passed a bill for the increase of the currency. Grant vetoed the measure, because he thought that such action simply aggravated the * In 1869 a bill was passed known as a bill "to strengthen the pub- lic credit," wherein the United States " solemnly " pledged itself "to make provision at the earliest practicable period for the redemption of the United States notes in coin." ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 493 evil. In 1875 a law was passed providing for the redemp- tion of the " greenbacks " in coin on the 1st of January, 1879. . When that day arrived the " resump- esump ion. ^ Qn „ ^ S p ec i e payment was, as we shall see, entered upon without difficulty. The completion of a century of national existence was celebrated in 1876 by an exposition at Philadelphia, in which all the civilized nations of the world took part. The Centennial The immense development of the United States Exposition. r in the course of a hundred years was here brought to view. In the invention of useful machinery the Americans had evidently kept pace with or surpassed the people of Europe. Other countries learned much from the exhibition of American machines and implements, many of which were of unique model. Our own country gathered many important lessons, helping the people to see their own strength and their own weakness. The exposition seems to have acted as a spur to the artistic and aesthetic tastes of the people. One can not tell how much should be credited to the Centennial Exposition, but it appears to be true that from about this time there was a new appreciation of art, and a growing desire for the beauties as well as the comforts of life. The country might well pride itself in this centennial year upon its wealth and prosperity, upon its wonderful growth in a single century. In spite of the progress? 7 and & reat civil war > population had increased at a rapid rate, even in the last decade, and was still rapidly increasing. In 1870 the census returns showed over 38,000,000 inhabitants, and in 1880 there were over 50,000,000. The people had given proof of great capacity in mechanical invention ; nature had been brought to serve man in almost every field of work. The land was now knit together by railroads and telegraphs. At the beginning of the civil war a telegraph line from the East to the Pacific slope was constructed, and in 1869 the Pacific Railroad was 494 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. completed, reaching from Omaha to San Francisco. It had been begun during the war, when the people felt the neces- sity of binding East and West together by the firm ties afforded by easy and speedy communication. Persons could now cross the continent in a few days. Twenty years before the journey was a toilsome task of weary months. The Eepublicans nominated Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, for the presidency. William A. Wheeler, of New BepuMican York, was selected for the vice - presidency. Convention, The platform of the party gave no indication of any change or material advance in policy, but it spoke out frankly in favor of resumption of specie payment. The Democrats nominated Samuel J. Tilden, of New York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana. Tilden was a man of great native ability, a lawyer of wide Democratic reputation and skill. As governor of his State he had relentlessly attacked the corrupt Canal ring and the groups of thieving officials that were plunder- ing the treasury of New York. The platform of the party was largely made up of a series of demands for " reform." It denounced the " financial imbecility and immorality " of the Republicans, and demanded the repeal of the Resump- tion Act of 1875. There were two other parties in this campaign, the Greenback party and the Prohibition party. The former demanded the repeal of the Resumption Act, Other parties. ^ declared themselves in favor of a paper currency " convertible on demand into United States obli- gations." In other words, they did not want gold and silver as money, but pieces of paper stamped by the Gov- ernment and issued at its discretion. The Prohibitionists were in favor of making the liquor traffic wholly illegal. The result of the election was doubtful, so doubtful that people were in consternation and perplexity. Tilden re- ceived one hundred and eighty-four electoral votes ; only ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 495 Kesult of election in doubt, The returning boards. one more was needed to elect him. From four States — South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, and Oregon — contradic- tory electoral certificates were presented, one set announcing that Republican electors had been chosen, the other that Democratic electors had been chosen. In each of the three Southern States there was a returning board, to which the results of the election from various parts of the State were reported, and whose duty it then was to declare the result. All through reconstruction times these boards had exercised a wide discretion and wielded almost unlimited authority. They were wont at times to cast out the votes of some precincts on the ground that the election had been fraudulent ; and in this way the reconstructed govern- ments had perpetuated their power. The Republican State governments felt that only in this way could they keep the Democrats from gaining control of the State by stealth or violence and intimidation. The tempta- tion for the returning boards to use their unrestricted authority c >£^^/ ^.J^fot willfully and corruptly was very great, and it is plain enough that to leave the decision of an election with a group of men whose interests prompt them to defend their own authority is practically to make popular government a nullity. The whole situation was one of the unfortunate results of the distrust and ill feeling that naturally ensued after the war. Now in this election the Florida and Louisiana returning boards cast out the vote of certain precincts as tainted with fraud, and declared the Republican electors chosen. The Democratic electors also obtained certificates, in Florida from a Democratic member 496 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. of the returning board, in Louisiana from the Democratic candidate for governor, who claimed his own election. From South Carolina there were double returns, the Demo- crats claiming that the presence of Federal troops had interfered with the freedom of the election, and that they had been wrongfully counted out. In Oregon a post- master had been chosen elector, and the question arose as to whether he was qualified to sit, being a Federal office- holder.* The situation was grave. Up to this time Congress had neglected to make suitable provision for the settlement of such disputes and difficulties. As the Demo- The Electoral cratg nad a ma j or ity in the House and the Re- publicans in the Senate, it was clear that some unusual means of solving the question must be found. It is quite possible that the correct legal rule is that the Vice-President is given the duty of counting the votes in the presence of both houses, and can determine the validity of the votes himself, without interference or direction from Congress. But Congress had for years proceeded on a dif- ferent theory, and had assumed its own right to settle dis- putes. It was determined, therefore, that an extraordinary commission should be appointed and charged with deter- mining the validity of the votes in question. The commis- sion numbered fifteen. There were five members from each house of Congress and five justices of the Supreme Court. The hope was to secure a commission that was non-partisan. f But the chief responsibility was thrown upon Justice Brad- ley, who was chosen by the other justices as the fifteenth * See the Constitution, art. ii, sec. 1, § 2. For the whole contro- versy, see Lalor, Cyclopaedia, vol. ii, p. 50 ; Wilson, Division, etc., p. 283 ; Merriam, Samuel Bowles, vol. ii, pp. 278-30G. t The Senate appointed three Republicans and two Democrats, the House three Democrats and two Republicans. Four justices were appointed, two Republicans and two Democrats. The four justices selected the fifth. ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT— 1869-1877. 497 man. He voted with the Republicans, and the commission therefore made its decision by a vote of eight to seven in favor of the Hayes electors. The basis of the opinion of the majority was that the findings of the returning boards were final, that the duty of the commission was to decide what were the legal returns from the States in contest, and that it was not its duty to investigate the merits of contro- versies within States, which were by right left to the local authorities. Thus it was determined that Hayes was elected. Both candidates behaved with great decorum and as true DAKOTA ^1M \ M ONTAN A r «£. flDA Ho \; / Tfti TER - I n £v : v •— 7 { N c A \ i UTAH i L. I L - \ / T£ R _ J COLO. ! N. MEX, THE ELECTION OF 187G I | Republican I I Ihmocratic I I Disputed patriots through these trying days. Excited as the men of both parties were, there was not much feeling of uneasi- ness or fear in the country at large. When the decision was announced the defeated party accepted defeat. This whole affair, then, was a victory for free government ; it showed that the Americans possessed the prime requisite for self-government — self-control. " It has been reserved," said President Hayes, " for a government of the people . . . to give to the world the first example in history of a great nation, in the midst of a struggle of opposing parties for 408 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. power, hushing its party tumults to yield the issues of the contest to adjustment according to the forms of law." References. The best short accounts are in Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 273-287 ; Moore, The American Congress, pp. 435-475 ; Dawes, Charles Sumner, pp. 273-322; Julian, Political Recollections, pp. 326-374. Longer accounts: Blaine, Twenty Years in Congress, Volume II, pp. 407-594; Andrews, History of the Last Quarter Cen- tury; Church, U. S. Grant, 361-423. W ^M&MmtMi <%2>\-^ ^'^^^^pt Two of the Buildings of the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia. 1876. CHAPTER XVIII. Rutherford B. Hayes. The New Nation— 1877-1899. ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES— 1877-1881. Not much was known by the people at large of the real ability and character of Rutherford B. Hayes when he en- tered upon the duties of the presidency. He was born in Ohio and spent his life there. Having served with distinction in the civil war, he was elected, at its close, as a representative in Congress. In 1868 he was chosen governor of his State. Again, in 1875, he was elected governor, and his success in the election of that year gave him something of a national reputation. He was by nature so modest and unpreten- tious that, in spite of the fact that he had held a number of public offices and had been hon- ored by the confidence of his State, one may doubt if even the people of Ohio knew him at his full value or appreciated his strength. While it is doubtless true that he was not a man of great intellectual brilliance, he combined in a rare degree mental and moral qualities — firmness, purity of purpose, wisdom, conscientiousness — that well fitted him for the great tasks of his admin- 499 500 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. istration, at a time when the nation, leaving behind it in large measure the memories of civil conflict and sectional hatreds, was ready to move on to new duties and achieve- ments. The great need of the day was quiet bravery, not ostentatious vigor. The years were years of heal- ing ; they were fortunately uneventful. When the next election came, it was felt that the troublesome days of re- construction were gone; that, although there were jealous- ies and heartburnings still, North and South were once more growing together in national feeling and spirit. One of the President's first acts was to withdraw the troops from the support of the Eepublican government in _. , , . , the Southern States where such government Withdrawal of . te troops from still retained power. His words are so momen- the South. tous, as they indicate a different policy on the part of the Federal authority, that they deserve quoting : " In my opinion there does not now exist in that State (South Carolina) such domestic violence as is contemplated by the Constitution as the grounds upon which the military power of the National Government may be invoked for the defense of the State. There are, it is true, grave and se- rious disputes, . . . but these are to be settled ... by such orderly and peaceable methods as may be provided by the Constitution and laws of the State. I feel assured that no resort to violence is contemplated in any quarter, but that, on the contrary, the disputes in question are to be settled solely by such peaceful remedies as the Constitution and the laws of the State provide." So at length the Southern States were left to themselves. We need blame no one that the difficulties had lasted so long, but it was well that the day of interference was now gone. The uneasiness of the people on the money question had not been put at rest by the passage of the Resumption Act, nor yet by the utter defeat of the " Greenback " ticket in the late election. Some people felt that recent legisla- tion on money matters had been in favor of the bondhold- ADMINISTRATION OF HAYES— 1877-1881. 501 ers, and had disregarded the needs of the people. A law had been passed in Grant's first term pledging the Govern- ment ultimately to pay the bonds in coin. In Financial 1873 silver was demonetized — in other words, the United States mint was no longer to coin sil- ver dollars. The silver dollar was then rarely seen in circula- tion, because it was of more value than the gold dollar, and was therefore exported to Europe, where the silver was worth more as bullion than here as coin. There was so much silver in it that, at the market price of the bullion, it was worth one dollar and two cents in gold. At this same time an act was passed ordering the coinage of the so-called " trade dollar." This coin was intended not for domestic circulation, but to be used in trade with the Ori- ental nations, and it was not made a legal tender. After 1873, however, the silver mines of the country began to turn out greatly increased quantities of ore. The opening up of these mines is a matter of great moment in our industrial as well as in our financial history, for the new West was now rapidly building up, with silver as a chief product. There was a demand for the recognition of this metal in the national coinage. In 1878 the Bland- Allison Bill was passed by Congress, providing for the remonetization of silver. According to the terms of the act, the Government was to buy each month not less than two million dollars' nor more than four million dollars' worth of the white metal, and to coin this bullion into standard dollars. This dollar was made legal tender, and was to be of the same weight and fineness * as before 1873, although now silver was of much less value on the markets of the world than before its demonetization.! President Hayes vetoed the bill, but it * By fineness is meant the purity of the coin — that is to say, the amount of silver or gold in proportion to alloy. The standard silver dollar contains 900 parts pure silver and 100 parts copper alloy, and weighs 412£ grains. The gold coin is of the same fineness. f It is to be noticed that since 1870 a number of the European states had given up the use of silver as a standard money. 502 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. was passed over his veto. Thus ended the first important discussion of the silver question. A final solution of the problem was not reached. In the summer of 1877 a great strike took place among the workmen of the country, chiefly the employees of the Northern railroads, who complained because of Strikes and a reduction of wages. In many places there were disastrous riots and great destruction of property. The commencement of the difficulty was on the Baltimore and Ohio Eailroad, but the strike extended to nearly all the Northern lines east of the Mississippi. The strikers took forcible possession of the tracks at princi- pal junctions, and prevented the forwarding of goods or the dispatching of passenger trains. The whole internal commerce of the country was blocked and thrown into con- fusion. Fights between mobs and the police authorities occurred, and the militia was called out to suppress the rioting in a number of the States. Where the State troops were unable or unwilling to check the insurrection the Federal army was used for the purpose. The most serious disorder occurred in Pittsburg, where angry and excited mobs burned and pillaged and robbed ruthlessly, destroying millions of dollars' worth of railroad property and freight. After about two weeks of lawlessness and rioting traffic was resumed on most of the principal roads of the country, and soon normal conditions were re-established everywhere. In 1879 an interesting controversy arose between the President and Congress. The intention of the Democrats _ ., , , in Congress was to restrain the Federal Gov- President and ° , . Congress at eminent from interfering in the affairs of the variance. Southern States, or from making use of the Federal troops to guard elections or to protect the blacks. In February, 1879, the House passed the Army Appropria- tion Bill with a " rider " directed against the use of troops " to keep peace at the polls," and also passed other appro- priation bills with riders that repealed the essential parts ADMINISTRATION OP HAYES— 1877-1881. 503 of the general election law. The Senate refused to pass the bills and they did not become laws. A new Congress came into existence March 4. A special session was sum- moned. Both branches were now Democratic. Various appropriation bills were passed with riders,* the purpose of which was to curtail the power of the General Government in its control over elections. The Democrats declared that their purpose was simply to erase from the statute books the legislation which the war had produced, for which there was now no need, and which was an insult to the States and a menace to local government. The Republicans, in irrita- tion, asserted that the Democrats were intent upon " starv- ing the Government to death." The President vetoed the bills with the riders, saying that a rider was an attempt on the part of the House to force the other branches of the Government to agree to undesired legislation. Congress could not pass the bills over the veto. Some of the appro- priations were then made without the rider, but the bill providing for the payment of the Federal judiciary was not passed, and all the court officials went without pay until provision was made for them at the next session. This contest between the President and Congress is of much interest. Whatever one may think of the purposes of the Democrats, Hayes seems to have been quite right in main- taining that the practice of adding riders to appropriation bills is productive of much mischief, and that if continued it would throw nearly all legislative power into the hands of the House, because it alone can originate bills for raising revenue, and has assumed the sole power of originating general appropriation bills. It will be remembered that during the war the Gov- * A rider is a clause attached to an appropriation bill and referring to a different subject than the main body of the bill, the object being to force the measure on the other house or the President by annexing it, or " tacking " it, as the English say, to appropriations for needful purposes. 83 504 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. eminent issued paper money and made it legal tender. These notes fell greatly in value, and although, when the credit of the Government grew stronger in payments after years, the notes rose again they furnished resumed, 1879, a t ^ e b es t a fluctuating and uncertain cur- rency. In 1875, as we have seen, an act was passed provid- ing for a return to specie payments on the first day of January, 1879 — providing, in other words, for the redemp- tion of the " greenbacks " in coin. Preparations were made in the course of Hayes's administration to resume specie payments on the day set. Gold and silver coin and bullion were collected in the Treasury, and so complete and thor- ough was the preparation, that when the time of resump- tion arrived there were only a few straggling demands for coin ; the paper was already at par with coin. As the election of 1880 drew near the Eepublican party was in good condition and hopeful of success. The wise and conservative administration of President Republican Hayes had won popular respect. There had Convention. J \ r . f been no scandals m public life. The resump- tion of specie payments had seemingly secured prosperity. The various elements of the party were united. The con- vention chose General James A. Garfield, of Ohio, as candi- date for the presidency ; Chester A. Arthur, of New York, was nominated for the vice-presidency. The Democrats nominated General Winfield S. Han- cock, of Pennsylvania, and William H. English, of Indiana. The platform declared among other things for Democratic "home rule, honest money, . . . the strict Convention. , «" maintenance of the public iaith, . . . and a tariff for revenue only." Candidates were also placed be- fore the people by the Prohibition party and the Greenback party. The declaration of the Democrats in favor of " a tariff for revenue only " caused considerable discussion during the months that succeeded the convention, especially in ADMINISTRATION OF GARFIELD— 1881. 505 the last few weeks preceding tjie election. For the first time since the war the two parties differed radically and explicitly on the tariff issue. It is true the wad" ?/t£ d Democrats were not as yet wholly given over campaign. ^o the principle announced in the platform, but from this time on the party consistently attacked the reve- nue policy of the Kepublicans, and the latter party took a stronger hold upon the principle of protection. The South- ern question was not much discussed during the canvass ; indeed, there was less discussion of sectional issues than there had been for nearly forty years. Garfield and Arthur were elected. References. Short account: Wilson, Division and Reunion, p. 288 et seq. Longer accounts : Blaine, Twenty Years in Congress, Volume II, pp. 595-676; Cox, Three Decades, Chapter XXXVIII; Stanwood, His- tory of the Presidency, Chapter XXV. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD AND CHESTER A. ARTHUR— 1881-1885. Few men have taken the presidential chair whose train- ing for executive duties had been so wide and various as was Garfield's. Graduating from college in SjSfSa 1856, he became a professor in Hiram College, Ohio, and soon after president of the institu- tion. He served in the Union army, becoming major gen- eral. He was elected to Congress during the rebellion, and served as a member of the House from 1863 to 1880. He was a man of broad general culture, of scholarly tastes, and of unusual capacity as a debater and legislator. He was elected senator from Ohio in 1880, but was chosen to the presidency before taking his seat as senator. Although the administration of Hayes had done much to bring together the discordant elements in the Republi- 506 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. can party, there were still differences and contending fac- tions. The radical element of the party, which had been strongly in sympathy with Grant's administra- te Eepublican tion and had desired his nomination for a third party. term in 1880, were known as " Stalwarts." They objected to the conciliatory spirit of the Hayes administra- tion. Their opponents were commonly called " Half-breeds," a term of contempt bestowed upon them because of their supposed lukewarmness and their faint-hearted devotion to Republican principles. As the differences were largely per- sonal, the issues between the two factions were not very clearly defined. The leader of the " Stalwarts " was Eoscoe Conkling, senator from New York. Garfield seems to have sought to reconcile both factions, or at least not to arouse the enmity of the " Stalwarts." In this he was not entirely successful. By ap- i*eVe™ate 3y0f P ointin g to the collectorship of the port of New York a man not acceptable to Conkling he awakened the resentment of that senator. For some years it had been thought to be the right of the senators to dictate the more important appointments within their re- spective States. This principle the President had violated. To carry out and substantiate this right and prerogative Conkling and his colleague in the Senate, Thomas C. Piatt, resigned, appealing, as it were, to their State for ratification of their conduct in resisting the President. The Legisla- ture, however, refused to re-elect the two senators. Perhaps these heated controversies and the consequent excitement in political circles brought about indirectly the death of the President. A hare-brained fanatic Assassination ^y ^he name of Guiteau came to Washington as an applicant for office. As he did not meet with success, his mind seems to have been preyed upon by his failure and inflamed by the political discussions with which the air was heavy. He became imbued with a hatred of the President, and cherished the idea that his death ADMINISTRATION OF ARTHUR— 1881-1885. 507 would unite the party. On the morning of July 2d, as Garfield was entering a railway station in Washington, Guiteau shot him. For some time hopes were entertained that the wound was not mortal, but after enduring great suffering with fortitude and hopefulness the President died, September 19, 1881, at Elberon, X. J. The people of the entire country, and indeed of the civilized world, were deeply affected by this awful tragedy and crime. Vice-President Arthur took the oath as President at his home in New York, September 20, 1881. When he was elected Vice-President no one knew much of Accession of Chester A, his qualifications for office. He had taken Arthur, a prominent and active part in politics, and had been for some years collector of the port of New York. He proved during his term of office to be a man of rare ad- ministrative ability and pure pur- poses, and soon won the respect and confidence of the nation. The trouble between Garfield and the New York senators, and, above all, the assas- The civil-serv- s i nat i n of the Presi- ice commission, dent, called the at- tention of the people to the evils and follies of the spoils system. In two successive annual messages Arthur argued strongly and wisely in favor of civil-service reform, and pressed upon the attention of Congress the desirability of new legislation regarding appointments to office. In Janu- ary, 1883, Congress passed an act known as the " Pendleton Act," authorizing the President to direct that appointments should be made after competitive examinations. He was also empowered to establish a civil-service commission. The President put the act immediately into effect, and since that 508 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. time the regulations have been gradually extended by his successors, until at the present time a very large portion of the offices in the gift of the Government are bestowed not as a reward for party fealty, but after an examination made for the purpose of discovering the merit of the applicants and their respective fitness for official duties. The prosperity of the country was so great during these years, and importations from foreign countries were so large, that the public moneys derived from the The surplus and duties accumulated in the Treasury until the Government actually had more money than it knew what to do with. The immense public debt rolled up by the rebellion was rapidly being paid ; but the bond- holders, resting secure in the credit of the Government, were not willing to receive payment for their bonds until they were due. It seemed desirable to many persons that the tariff duties should be lessened, because the surplus was unnecessary,' and might be even harmful by encour- aging public extravagance, if not corruption. A new tariff law was passed that slightly reduced the duties. In 1884 still another bill was introduced into the House. It was a Democratic measure and was supported by the main body of the party, but it was defeated by the combined votes of the Eepublicans and a small number of Democrats who were opposed to the reduction of the tariff. For some years there had existed, especially in the Pacific States, a strong sentiment against the unrestricted immigration of the Chinese. The increasing Seffldnese! number of immigrants had caused consterna- tion, not to say alarm, in parts of the West, and it seemed desirable to take steps to restrict the immi- gration. In 1880 a treaty was made at Peking between the Chinese Government and a commission from the United States, providing that this country might place restrictions upon the entrance of laborers from China. Two years later a law was passed by Congress suspending the right of Chi- ADMINISTRATION OF ARTHUR— 1881-1885. 509 nese workmen to come to this country for the period of ten years, and in 1892 the period of exclusion was extended for another term of ten years, and severe and strict regulations were provided to prevent the breach of the law. The presidential canvass of 1884 was a very stirring one. The Republicans nominated James G. Blaine and John A. Logan; the Democrats, Grover Cleveland and Thomas A. Hendricks. There were two other parties that put candidates in the field. The " People's T f h iR84 Ctl0n P ar W which was really to a great extent the old Greenback party rechristened, nominated General Benjamin F. Butler, and the Prohibitionists John P. St. John. The tariff was the main issue. The Republican platform declared for a continuance of the protective sys- tem, while the Democratic platform announced that the party was " pledged to revise the tariff in a spirit of fair- ness to all interests." To a portion of his party, including a number of able and influential men, Blaine was not an acceptable candidate. These persons, calling themselves Independent Republicans, and commonly known as " Mug- wumps," advocated the election of Cleveland. The result of the election turned upon the vote of New York. Out- side of that State Blaine had 182 electoral votes and Cleve- land 183. The contest in New York was so close and the outcome so doubtful that it was not known for several days after the election which of the two candidates was elected. It was finally determined that the Democrats had carried the State by 1,047 votes. Thus Cleveland was chosen by an electoral majority of 37. No State was carried by either Butler or St. John. References. Short accounts : Wilson, Division and Reunion, pp. 2G8-293 ; Stanwood, History of the Presidency, Chapter XXVII. Longer account : Andrews, History of the Last Quarter Century. 510 HISTORY Of THE AMERICAN NATION. FIRST ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER OLEVELAND- lHH. r > I HMD. Grover Cleveland bad held do national office when he vvaH oalled upon to take up the duties of the presidency. Be first won attention by bis services as Mayor flJJJJJ d of Buffalo, where his frank, courageous per formanoe of duly and bis bold use of the veto power oheoked extravagant anu! foolish legislation. In 1882 he was eleoted Governor of New 5Tork, in which po- sition he won the confidence of the people hy (lie diicet n< of bis methods and the fearlessness with which he opposed measures that seemed to him harmful to the public interei ti , In his first annual message, in December of 1885, Cleve- land oalled the attention of Congress to the condition of the currency, lie showed that only fifty l ' |il ! i 1 J i " r million dollars, out of nearly two hundred and sixteen million silver dollars coined in a0- oordanoe with the Bland Allison act,* had gone into circu- lation, and he deolared that the oontinuanoe of silver coin- age would bring the Government to the pass when it would have only silver money, which would mean that the cur- rency woidd he let down to a lower standard of v;ilue, inas- much as the silver in a dollar was not worth a dollar in gold. Nothing was done hy Congress regarding the matter. It was believed by many that the President's fears were fanoiful. Some, on the other hand, favored the " free coin- age " of silver; in other words, they desired that the Goi ernment should do more than simply purohase a limited ftmOUnt Of the metal and coin it; they desired that if should coin into dollars, freely and without limit, all the silver bullion that might he brought to the mints. These persons declared that the reason for the fall of sil\cr in * Sec i'*t^t> r»Ol . Taper rvv\ .iflciilcM woro issiuul under this act, mid ireri baton bj fchi ptopW, Inittari of iii«- silver tlwy roprwwntod. FIRST ADMINISTRATION OK OLKVULAND— 1885-1889. 511 Presidential succession, 1886. price in comparison with gold was because the Government made discrimination in favor of the latter metal. Other persons, not going so far as to favor free coinage, saw no great danger in existing conditions, and no law was passed, nor was the time yet ripe for the money question to become a party issue. Vice-President Hendricks died in November, 1885. This called attention once more to the desirability of changing the line of succession to the presidency, in case of the death of the President and Vice-Presi- dent or their inability to act. At the next session of Congress a bill was a*^ passed providing that in such a contingency the Secretary of State should succeed, and, if the necessity should by any pos- sibility arise, the other mem- bers of the Cabinet should assume the duties of the presi- dential office in the following order: (1) Secretary of the Treasury, (2) Secretary of War, (3) Attorney-General, (4) Sec- retary of the Navy, (5) Post- master-General, (0) Secretary of the Interior. The law applies only to such persons as are constitutionally eligible.* The Electoral Count Act also became law. Its object is to prevent the recurrence of such disputes as that of 1870, by providing that the to$Ml?"* Statea themselves shall provide for the final " determination of controversies " concerning the election of presidential electors. For many years past there had been a demand for a law regulating interstate commerce. Congress has no au- * The Constitution, art. ii, sec. 1, § 6. 512 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATIOtf. thority to regulate trade or intercourse between places solely within the limits- of a State and not directly con- nected with commerce between States. But Interstate interstate commerce is subject to national Commerce Act. . J legislation.* The railroads had for some time been accustomed to discriminate in their charges in favor of some shippers and against others, and in favor of some cities and against others. The object of the interstate com- merce act was to prevent discrimination. One of its most important clauses provided that no common carrier could charge more " for a shorter than for a longer distance over the same line, in the same direction, the shorter being in- cluded within the longer distance." For the administra- tion of the law a commission of five persons was created. This is a very important measure, and, in spite of many difficulties and embarrassments in enforcing its provisions, it has doubtless done something to bring about more equi- table conditions in the railway service of the country. The labor troubles throughout these years were many and serious. There were numerous strikes in different parts of the country, and the relations between Labor troubles. , . employers and workmen seemed m many cases to be unsatisfactory and unwholesome. The labor organi- zations, such as the " Knights of Labor," had come to have a wide influence, and their membership was very large. In 1887 the American Federation of Labor was formed. The object of these organizations was the betterment of the workmen by securing higher wages and shorter hours, by obtaining better legislation affecting labor, and by prevent- ing useless or unprepared strikes. Besides the regular workmen who desired good wages and reasonable hours, and were content on the whole with patient and sensible methods of securing their ends, there were a few men who styled themselves anarchists and be- * See Constitution, art. i, sec. 8, §3. FIRST ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND— 1885-1889. 513 lievcd that a better social and industrial condition could be brought about only by a complete destruction of the existing social order. Such persons had in re- The anarchists. ,., ,,. «,i , -, ality nothing m common with earnest workmen; but they became prominent in the confusion that often ac- companies a large strike, however legitimate its ends may be. In the spring of 1886 a serious outbreak of violence occurred in Chicago. A number of policemen were killed by the explosion of a dynamite bomb while endeavoring to dis- perse a crowd listening to the harangues of anarchists. Several of the anarchists were arrested and punished. When Congress met in December, 1887, the President sent in a message dealing exclusively with the one subject of the tariff. There was little doubt among The surplus and men f either party that the surplus was too large, and many felt that it was a serious source of danger, because it was a continuing temptation to extravagance or to hasty and unwise legislation. The Presi- dent argued strenuously in favor of a reduction of duties. While advocating the imposition of lower duties on raw materials used in manufacturing, he called special attention to the tariff on wool, which he declared constituted " a tax fastened upon the clothing of every man, woman, and child in the land." This message was one of great im- portance, because, under this spur, the President's party set earnestly at work to revise the tariff and lower the duties. A bill directed to that end could not be passed through Congress at that session, but the tariff necessarily became the great question of the presidential canvass of that year. For the election of 1888 the Democrats renominated Cleveland, and gave the second place on the ticket to Allen G. Thurman, of Ohio. They declared that all " un- necessary taxation is unjust taxation," * that the policy of * This meant a high tariff, which, the Democrats asserted, took un- necessary money from the people. 514 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the party was " to enforce frugality in the public expenses," that a vast sum of money was being " drawn from the people and the channels of trade and accu- The el ® ctlon mulated as a demoralizing surplus in the national Treasury." The Eepublicans nomi- nated Benjamin Harrison, of Indiana, and Levi P. Morton, of New York. They announced that they were " uncom- promisingly in favor of the American system of protec- tion." They declared that they favored reduction of the revenue by repealing the taxes on tobacco and " spirits used in the arts," and would prefer the entire repeal of the internal taxes to a "surrender of any part of our protective system." Candidates were also put in the field by the Prohibition party, and nominations were made by a number of other parties whose existence was indicative of discontent among many of the people, especially the work- men and farmers. The Eepublicans were successful in the election, carrying all the Northern States except New Jer- sey and Connecticut. Before Harrison took office a number of important meas- ures became law. One was the establishment of a Depart- ment of Agriculture ; another was a bill pro- Important yiding for the admission of the States of North measureSi ° Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Wash- ington (1889).* Congress also passed a bill for the return to the States of the money that had been collected during the war as a direct tax, but the President vetoed the meas- ure. Refekences. Short accounts: Wilson, Division and Reunion, Chapter XIII; Moore, American Congress, pp. 482-491. * The next year Idaho and Wyoming were admitted. ADMINISTRATION OP HARRISON-1889-1893. 515 Benjamin Harrison. ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON— 1889-1893. Benjamin Harrison, grandson of William Henry Harri- son, ninth President of the United States, was educated in Ohio, graduating from Miami University. After leaving college he studied law, was ad- mitted to the bar, and began the practice of his profession in Indianapolis. Soon after the outbreak of the civil war he entered the army as a colonel, and won dis- tinction for bravery and efficiency, leaving the service as a brevet brigadier general. He was elected senator from In- diana in 1880, and showed in the Senate marked ability and capacity. In the autumn of 1889 there assembled in Washington a congress of delegates from the principal states of this hemis- phere. The conference was asked for by this Government, in the hope that cordial and friendly relations might be per- manently established between the United States and the coun- tries of Central and South America. It was hoped that an American customs union might be formed for the promotion of trade between the sev- ^ eral nations, that a uniform system of weights Pan-American and measures might be agreed upon, a common Congress. silver coin adopted to serve as legal tender in all business transactions, and that a definite plan for arbitration of disputes and difficulties might be recommended to the various governments represented. This congress was in ses- sion several months, and, while not accomplishing so much as its enthusiastic promoters desired, it undoubtedly did some- ^wf^ 516 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. thing toward bringing the nations into closer and more sympathetic relations. It is a fact of no little meaning in the world's history that the representatives of many nations holding the soil of two continents could come together in peace and harmony to discuss problems of trade and endeavor to promote good fellowship and neigh- borly feeling. In the House of Representatives there was a great dis- cussion over the rules. It had long been customary for a Eulesinthe minority to block the progress of lawmaking House, by refusing to vote. A person not voting was not counted as present, and a quorum, there- fore, could be obtained for the passage of a measure only when the majority could secure the presence of more than half of all the members of the House. Thomas B. Reed, the Speaker, interfered with the " filibustering " tactics of the Democratic minority* in the House by counting as part of the quorum all who were present, whether they voted or not. This power was afterward given him by the rules adopted by the House, f * It should be noticed that the Republicans had used like tactics when in the minority. f It will be remembered that the Speaker of the House is not, and in- deed does not pretend to be, the impartial presiding officer of an assem- bly, as does the Speaker of the House of Commons. The contrasts between the English and American systems are more striking than the similarities. The American Speaker is ostensibly and actually a party leader ; he feels the responsibility for what is done in the House, and is so completely a master of the situation that no act can pass without his sanction. By refusing to " recognize" a member offering or advo- cating a measure to which he is opposed he can keep such measures from coming before the House; he has the right to appoint the commit- tees, and can do much to determine the general character of legislation by the organization of the committees. Probably no Speaker uses this power selfishly and arbitrarily; some leadership and responsibility are absolutely necessary in such a body as the House of Representatives, and such leadership has in the course of a century come to be centered in the Speaker. ADMINISTRATION OP HARRISON— 1889-1893. 517 Congress took up the consideration of the tariff and passed the McKinley Bill. It was decidedly a protective measure, increasing the duties on many im- Bffl ?89o nley P orte(i articles with the purpose of encour- aging manufactures and protecting domestic industries. A distinguishing feature of this bill was a provision intended to promote trade, especially with the West Indies and the states of South America. It was pro- vided that the President could by proclamation impose a duty on sugar and certain other commodities coining from countries that placed import duties upon our products, if in the President's opinion such duties were " reciprocally unequal and unreasonable," under the circum- Keciprocity. stances# This was practically an offer to the countries of Central and South America and the AVest Indies to allow their goods to come in free, if they would in return admit our products free. In the middle of the summer that part of the Bland- Allison Act providing for the purchase of silver bullion was repealed, and in its place the Sherman Act was a\ 6 i r 6 ^ 11 P ass ed, which provided that the Government should purchase each month at the market price four and a half million ounces of such bullion. In payment for the silver the Secretary of the Treasury was to give out Treasury notes that were to be full legal tender. The silver so bought was not to be coined into money ex- cept as it might be needed to redeem notes presented for redemption.* By this measure, therefore, the Government practically ceased to coin silver dollars, but became the pos- sessor of a constantly increasing quantity of the metal. During this administration there were a number of seri- ous difficulties with foreign powers. In 1891 a mob in New Orleans broke into a jail and killed several Italian prisoners confined there. The provocation to such conduct * During the first year two million ounces were to be coined each month. 518 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN NATION. was great, inasmuch as it seems quite clear that these men belonged to a band of assassins who had for some time been plying their trade of murder and pillage, and lt r a Ty ble Wlth had murdered the chief of P olice of the c %- The courts had failed to convict the prisoners, because, as it was generally believed, the juries had been bribed or browbeaten. The Italian Government demanded the arrest and punishment of the lynchers and withdrew her minister from this country. Finally our Government brought back friendly relations by consenting to give, as an indication of good will, a certain sum as compensation to the widows and orphans of the dead Italians. Shortly after this there was trouble with Chili. A civil war was waging there between the President, who endeav- ored to establish himself as a permanent ruler, SmMBL and the Con g ress - Up 011 the defeat of the presidential party the American minister opened up his official residence as a place of security to the refugees. This he had a right to do, and like action was taken by other resident ministers ; but the victorious peo- ple felt, perhaps justly, that our representative had shown decided partisanship and had endeavored too zealously to assist their foes. A party of seamen from an American man-of-war was attacked by a mob in the streets of Valpa- raiso and two of them were killed. The United States de- manded an apology for the outrage, and a sharp correspond- ence followed. President Harrison sent in a full statement of the trouble to Congress, and for a time it appeared as if there might possibly be a war ; but Chili after a time sent " conciliatory and friendly " statements of regret, and the war cloud blew over. During these years there was much discussion concern- ing improved methods of conducting elections. It was customary for the political committees of the contesting parties in the various States or in the minor civil divisions of the States to furnish the ballots used at the election, ADMINISTRATION OF HARRISON— 1889-1893. 519 and no means was offered whereby a voter might prepare and cast his ballot in secret. A number of States now passed measures that were similar to or partly in imitation of the Australian laws on the sub- ject. These acts provide generally for the erection of small booths, into which the voter can go to prepare his ballot, and for the furnishing of tickets at public expense. The candidates of all parties are placed on the same piece of paper, and but one ticket is given to each elector. In this way the opportunities for bribery and fraud are lessened, since those who desire to use corrupt methods hesitate to purchase a man's vote when, because of the secrecy in which the ballot is prepared and cast, they can not be sure that the person who has been bribed has fulfilled his agreement. For the election of 1892 the Republicans renominated Harrison, making Whitelaw Reid, of New York, the candi- date for Vice-President. The Democrats for the of 1892! 10n third time nominated Cleveland, and for the vice- presidency selected Adlai E. Stevenson, of Illi- nois. Thus the contest was between old rivals, and the issues of the campaign were not essentially different from those of four years before. The Republicans reaffirmed the doctrine of protection, and asserted that reciprocity was Satfarm" 1 a success an( l would "eventually give us the control of the trade of the world " ; they de- clared that the people favored bimetallism,* and the party desired " the use of both gold and silver as standard money." The Democrats denounced " Republican protection as a fraud, a robbery of the great majority of the American peo- ple for the benefit of the few." They declared that the * Bimetallism means the use of two metals as standard money and as full legal tender, the purpose being to determine the coinage value in such a way that both will circulate on a parity. Monometallists claim that only one metal can be a standard, and that the metals can not be so coined that the market value of a gold dollar and a silver dollar will remain the same. 34 520 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Sherman Act was " a cowardly makeshift fraught with pos- sibilities of danger," but, like the Eepublicans, favored " the use of both gold and silver as the standard Democratic money of the country." A newly formed party, called the People's, or Populist, party, nomi- nated James B. Weaver, of Iowa, and James G. Field, of Virginia. Their platform demanded the free and unlimited coinage of silver and gold, at the ratio of 16 to 1, a gradu- ated income tax,* and the public ownership of telegraphs and railroads; it declared that the two old Populist parties were simply struggling for power and plunder, and that they had agreed together " to drown the outcries of a plundered people with the up- roar of a sham battle over the tariff." The Prohibitionists and the Socialistic-Labor party also made nominations. Cleveland was elected, receiving 277 out of a total of 444 electoral votes. The Democrats obtained control of both houses of Congress, and so had the Gov- Eesultofthe ernment completely in their hands. The re- suit of the election showed that the People's party had considerable strength. Weaver received 22 elec- toral votes, and a popular vote of over 1,100,000. Reference. Moore, American Congress, pp. 488-499. THE SECOND ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND —1893-1897. By a revolution in the Hawaiian Islands, in January, 1893, a new and interesting problem was introduced into the foreign affairs of the United States. The Queen, Liliu- * That is, a tax on incomes so arranged that the greater a man's in- come the greater the tax in proportion to the income. For example, a man with an income of $4,000 might have to pay $40, while a man with $8,000 income might have to pay $120. SECOND ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND— 1893-1897. 521 okalani, desiring to increase her power, contemplated the promulgation of a new constitution. The more intelligent residents of the islands, men who were Ameri- Jevoiut^n iian can ky Dirtn or of Anglo-Saxon parentage, desir- ous of being rid of a ruler whom they considered incompetent and corrupt, deposed the queen and established a government republican in form. During the progress of the revolution troops were landed from an American cruiser, the alleged purpose being the protection of American citi- zens and property. Immediately after the establishment of the new government commissioners were sent to the United States to propose annexation. A treaty was agreed upon between the two governments and was sent to the Senate for ratification. Before the Senate had passed upon the treaty President Harrison's administration came to an end. Meanwhile the American minister at Honolulu had, at the invitation of the new government, established a protectorate over the islands in the name of the United States. One of the first acts of President Cleveland's administra- tion was to withdraw the treaty from the Senate. He then ni . ,, sent a special commissioner to the islands to Cleveland's * Hawaiian make an investigation and to report upon the policy. facts regarding the condition of Hawaii and the cause of the revolution. The commissioner, upon ar- rival, announced that the protectorate was at an end and ordered the American flag hauled down. iVfter an investi- gation, which the friends of annexation declared was unfair and partial, he reported to his Government that the success of the revolution was due to the encouragement of the United States minister and to the landing of the United States troops. After receiving this report President Cleve- land and his Secretary of State, Walter Q. Gresham, en- deavored to right the wrong which they believed had been committed. Expressions of regret were sent to the Queen, and she was asked to " rely on the justice of this Govern- ment to undo the flagrant wrong." This effort on the part 522 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. of our Government was fruitless. In December the Presi- dent sent a message to Congress reviewing the matter and declaring that he would be glad "to co-operate in any legislative plan " which might solve the problem consist- ently "with American honor, integrity, and morality." Nothing was done by Congress. In the early summer of 1893 there were various evi- dences of a severe commercial panic. For some time there had been a great decline in trade, and men who ^ 8 p g a 3 mc wished to borrow money for business purposes found it difficult to do so even on the best of security. The foreign capitalists that held bonds or stocks in American enterprises sought repeatedly to dispose of them, in consequence of which there was great depression in all industry. An immense amount of gold left the coun- try ; the year ending June 30th over one hundred and eight million dollars was exported. As a result of the depression and the difficulty of obtaining money, and because the basis of all credit — namely, men's confidence in the ability of others to pay — was rudely shaken, failures of mercantile houses occurred in great numbers. There were doubtless many causes for this trouble, among which was the fact that for some time previously there had been in many places an unwholesome excitement and zeal in business ventures, resulting in what is commonly known as over- production. Towns of the Western and Central States were " boomed " in a way that recalls to mind the infatua- tion of 1835-'36. Some persons believed that the panic came because busi- ness men in this country and foreigners owning American securities feared that the United States would Sherman Act d t gilver standard, so that debts would be repealed, 1893, , r , * . paid in a dollar the bullion value of which was less than three fourths the value of a gold dollar, by which at that time all debts and commodities were measured. Presi- dent Cleveland called an extra session of Congress for Au- SECOND ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND— 1893-1897. 523 gust, declaring in his proclamation that " the present perilous condition of the country " was largely the result of unwise financial legislation. When Congress met, the President sent in a message recommending the repeal of those pro- visions of the Sherman Act which authorized the Govern- ment to purchase silver. A bill for this purpose was quickly passed by the House, but the Senate did not pass the measure till the end of October. This action seems to have had little effect in restoring confidence or bringing back better times. The depression in indus- Depression ^ continued to exist. ' Before winter set in it continues. J . . . , was estimated that eighty thousand people in New York, one hundred and twenty thousand people in Chicago, and sixty thousand people in Philadelphia were out of employment, and many of them were suffering from want. During this summer of panic and business depression a world's fair was held at Chicago to celebrate the four hun- dredth anniversary of the discovery of Amer- The World's ica> * 0f all th international exhibitions as Fair. yet attempted this was by far the greatest. The chief buildings, designed by competent architects, were beautiful examples of chaste and noble architecture, which must have left an indelible impression on the minds of all who beheld them. The grounds upon the shores of Lake Michigan were charming and attractive. The nations of the world vied with one another in sending costly and artistic exhibits. The attendance was very large, especially "during the last two months of the Exposition. That such an exhibition, with its magnificent buildings and its great display of wealth and culture, could be held in a city where but seventy years before only a little army post and a strag- gling frontier village existed, was a striking proof of the astonishing development of the great West and of American thrift and progress. * The celebration would naturally have occurred in 1892, but it was found impossible to make the necessary preparations. 524 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. For a number of years England and the United States had been at variance over the subject of the seal fisheries in Bering Sea. To protect the seals from total The seal extinction some regulations and restrictions were imperatively necessary. To settle the dispute in a friendly and sensible way, and also to deter- mine some method of preserving the seals from complete destruction, it was agreed that the whole matter should be referred to a court of arbitration. The court met in Paris in the spring of 1893. It was composed of two The Pans members from the United States and two from tribunal, Great Britain, one from France, one from Italy, and one from Sweden and Norway. Our Government made two main contentions : (1) That the United States had juris- diction and dominion in the Bering. Sea ; (2) that the seals making their homes and rearing their young on the islands of this sea were our property, even though they might tem- porarily migrate far out into the Pacific Ocean. The court gave a decision adverse to the United States, but issued regulations for the protection and reasonable preservation of the seals — regulations which, it was hoped, would be suf- ficient for the purpose. The year 1894 was marked by great and disastrous strikes, during the progress of which much property was destroyed and the traffic and commerce of a rktL*i8ft4 l ar g e portion of the country thrown into serious confusion. The worst disturbances occurred at Chicago. The difficulty had its beginning in a movement by the employees in the Pullman factories and car shops for higher wages than the company said it could give. After the strike had lasted , some weeks, it was extended, under the direction of the Railway Union, a society of rail- way workmen, to the railways that on demand had refused to cease the running of Pullman cars. President Cleveland sent Federal troops to Chicago to protect United States property, secure peaceful transmission of the mails, and SECOND ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND— 1893-1897. 525 prevent interference with interstate commerce. The dis- order was finally quelled. The President was anxious that, in conformity with Democratic pledges, his party, now in control of both houses of Congress, should pass a new tariff The Wilson Bill. , -f ' . r , .- _. . measure to take the place of the McKmley Bill. An act known as the Wilson Bill, lowering the duty on many articles, was enacted. It was expected that the revenue from duties on imports would be materially cut down by this act, and to provide the requisite revenue a tax on incomes of over four thousand dollars The income ^ prov ided for. The constitutionality of this portion of the law was later called in question before the Supreme Court. By a vote of five to four the court held that the income tax was, taken as a whole, a direct tax, and it was declared inoperative and void because not apportioned among the States as the Constitution directs.* President Cleveland's second administration was not free from embarrassing and serious problems in the conduct of foreign affairs. A rebellion in Cuba against fompifcations. the P ower of s P ain found man y sympathizers in America, so that it became necessary for the President to issue a proclamation warning all citizens against the violation of the neutrality laws. At the end of 1895 more disquieting events occurred. Venezuela and Great Britain had long been contending concerning the proper boundary between the former state and British Guiana. The United States desired to bring about a set- tlement of the dispute by arbitration. Great Britain re- fused to submit the matter to arbitration, and SuhTe e . neZUelan q uestioned tlie ri ght of the United States to interfere. Mr. Olney, the Secretary of State after the death of Mr. Gresham, insisted that this Govern- ment had a right to interpose, and that such interposition * See Constitution, art. i, sec. ii, § 3. 526 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATlOtf. was in line with the principle of the Monroe doctrine and in accordance with traditional American policy. December 17th the President sent a message to Congress, with the cor- respondence that had passed between the governments. The message declared that inasmuch as Great Britain re- fused to submit to impartial arbitration, in the absence of other means of discovering the true lines in the disputed territory the United States should investigate the matter and come to its own decision. He advised, therefore, an appro- priation for a commission to make such investigation and to report its findings. "When such report is made and ac- cepted," the President declared, " it will, in my opinion, be the duty of the United States to resist by every means in its power, as a willful aggression upon its rights and inter- ests, the appropriation by Great Britain of any lands or the exercise of governmental jurisdiction over any territory, which after investigation we have determined of right be- long to Venezuela." Congress immediately appropriated one hundred thousand dollars for a commission (December 18-80, 1895), and the President appointed its members. The country was startled by these proceedings, for no one had been aware that our relations with Great Britain were at all critical. There was considerable difference of opinion among the people as to the wisdom of Mr. Olney's dispatches and the President's message, and there was everywhere great interest and considerable, but not alarming, excitement. While the commission was engaged in investigating the claims of England and Venezuela, the English and Ameri- can governments continued to discuss the Arbitration . . . , . . , n — , agreed upon. question in dispute by correspondence. Eng- land finally consented to leave the matter to an international tribunal, two members of which should be judges of the Supreme Court of the United States. To this Venezuela agreed. Thus war was avoided, and the diffi- culty determined in accordance with the precepts of civiliza- tion and not the instincts and passions of barbarism. The SECOND ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND—1893-1897. 527 President and the English ministry also agreed upon a treaty establishing a general court of arbitration, but this treaty the Senate rejected. After the panic of 1893 the General Government found it difficult to keep a sufficient amount of gold in the Treas- ury to assure the redemption of notes and United States securities in that metal. The President and his Cabinet believed that, if the gold should get so low that silver was used for such purposes, there would at once be great financial distress, and that our credit at home and abroad would be ruined. To secure gold the Government resorted to the sale of bonds, and in this way increased the national debt by over two hundred and fifty million dollars. This sale of bonds was very much con- demned by many persons and as strongly defended by others. The Eepublican party nominated William McKinley, of Ohio, and Garret A. Hobart, of New Jersey. They declared in their platform : " We are opposed to the free coinage of silver except by international agreement with the leading commercial nations of the world, which we pledge ourselves 528 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. to promote, ana until such agreement can be obtained the existing gold standard must be observed." The Democratic party nominated William J. Bryan, of Nebraska, °Sm, e i896. and Arthur Sewall, of Maine. The platform demanded " the free and unlimited coinage of both gold and silver at the present legal ratio of sixteen to one " ; it also declared its opposition " to the issuing of interest-bearing bonds in time of peace." The People's party also chose Mr. Bryan as their candi- date for the presidency, but nominated Thomas E. Watson, of Georgia, for Vice-President. Mr. Bryan was also nomi- nated by a party calling itself the Silver party. A large number of Democrats were entirely out of sympathy with the platform adopted by their party, and held another con- vention, which nominated John M. Palmer, of Illinois, and Simon B. Buckner, of Kentucky, and declared in favor of the gold standard. The campaign was full of intense interest. No other election since the civil war has stirred the nation so deeply. Although other issues were discussed some- Eesults of what, the silver question was the chief subiect the election. . of dispute. Spite of the excitement, it was a campaign of discussion and argument, not of abuse. The Eepublicans were successful. Mr. McKinley received two hundred and seventy-one electoral votes and Mr. Bryan one hundred and seventy-six. ADMINISTRATION OF WILLIAM McKIN LEY— 1897- William McKinley was born in Ohio in 1843. Enlisting as a private soldier at the outbreak of the civil war, he served with distinction throughout the four years, leaving the army as major. From 1877 to 1891 he was a representa- tive in Congress from Ohio, and became one of the best known men in the Republican party and one of the most energetic and effective men in the House, distinguishing ADMINISTRATION OP McKlNLEY— 1897- 529 The Dingley tariff. himself especially by his advocacy of the tariff. In 1891 he was elected Governor of Ohio, and held the office for two terms. Two days after his inauguration the President sum- moned Congress to meet in extra session. In his first mes- sage he called attention to the fact that for some years past the expenditures of the Govern- ment had exceeded the receipts, and said that there was an evident necessity for the prompt passage of a tariff bill which would provide ample revenue. Congress soon passed an act known as the Dingley tariff bill, which very materially increased the duties. The insurrection in Cuba, which had caused trouble in the United States u a " and anxiety to the previous Administration, was still in progress, and was daily producing more and more rest- lessness and uneasiness among the people of America. Many persons felt, naturally, a sym- pathy with a people who were fighting for their independence from a nation whose colonial policy had consisted, from the beginning, in extorting as much as possible from the colony for the sake of the mother country, with little regard for the needs or the rights of the colonists. Moreover, the people of the United States were shocked by the methods used in the suppression of the re- bellion, which were cruel in the extreme, entailing untold misery not so much upon the soldiers in arms as on the women, children, and other non-combatants. A large por- tion of the whole island was laid waste, its commerce de- £tr^/}*^>- 530 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. stroyed, while tens of thousands of its citizens died of want and starvation. American residents in Cuba were at times ill treated, and our Government forced to call upon Spain for indemnity. We were obliged to police our shores to prevent " filibustering expeditions " carrying arms, ammuni- tion, and re-enforcements to the rebels. American com- merce with the island was in large measure broken up, and, though we had legally no right to complain of this inevita- ble result of the rebellion, the patience of our people was so sorely tried that it became evident that before long our Gov- ernment would be compelled by Spain's own cruelty to de- mand a cessation of hostilities. In Cleveland's administra- tion an effort had been made to induce Spain to grant Cuba self-government, if not independence ; but Spain would have none of it, and even redoubled her energies to crush the rebellion, continuing with greater zeal upon her appalling work of desolation and destruction. Renewed overtures from our Government, after Mr. McKinley became Presi- dent, were met with assurances that local self-government would be granted to Cuba, but it was now too late. The insurgents were not ready to accept anything less than inde- pendence, and the war continued. The situation, already full of trouble, was aggravated by an event which stirred the American people as few events in our history have done. The battle The Maine gj^p Maine, while lying in the harbor of Havana, was destroyed by an explosion and sunk, carry- ing down over two hundred and fifty sailors and officers. After a careful examination, a court of naval officers reached the conclusion that the ship was " destroyed by trqr 11117 15 ' ^he explosion of a submarine mine, which caused the explosion of two or more of her forward magazines." After the rendering of the report it was ap- parent that war was imminent. One is loath to believe that the Spanish Government was itself guilty of such an atro- cious outrage ; but some of the Spanish officers perhaps ADMINISTRATION OF McKINLEY— 1897- 531 were, and if they were not, the disaster was an impressive proof of a state of things in Cuba that was intolerable.* The Maine. Some further negotiations were carried on between the two governments, and though Spain now made conces- sions and promises, they produced little impres- eg0 la l sion upon the United States, which was weary of making remonstrances and peaceful representations and of waiting for the fulfillment of promises. The Presi- dent sent a message to Congress, April 11th, giving a history of the Cuban difficulty for the preced- ing three years, and asking Congress to em- power him " to take measures to secure a full and final termination of hostilities between the Government of Spain and the people of Cuba, and to secure in the island the establishment of a stable government capable of maintaining order and observing its international obliga- tions, insuring peace and tranquillity and the security of its citizens, as well as our own, and to use the military and naval forces of the United States as may be necessary for these purposes." President's * See President McKinley's message, April 11, 1898. 532 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. On the 19th, Congress passed a series of resolutions de- claring that the people of Cuba " are and of right ought to be free and independent," demanding that Mtion e88i0nal Spain withdraw her troops and relinquish her authority, empowering the President to use the army and navy and to call forth the militia to enforce the resolutions, and disclaiming any disposition or inten- tion to annex or exercise control over the island. Prompt steps were taken to carry these resolutions into effect. An ultimatum was drawn up announcing that V"*T*iw"i^ "»AvV J^"^ VIRGIN IDS. Jiava,,,,,,, f^.^ ^ • J§3"' CULEBRA 1. SW VIEQUES OR CRAB 1. YJUu-vz i : ^^r^^~ C.J: Mala Fascua , * A N T ' ° Agua ) ■ ' . }'Sk3fr> MONITA 1. &vH-"'~ ' - |u.'Uici _,,.. ^.MONAI. Cabo R"je. r r -•...,' <' : , • Coamo* San German - Y ,, •' tla T as /. = . • • -T y^ CAJA DE MUERTOS 1. * * ^ JT s s A PUERTO RICO SCALE OF MILES 10 20 30 40 Spain must before noon of the 23d of April give a satisfac- tory answer to our demands or the President would use force to compel acquiescence. The Spanish April 1898. minister at Washington immediately demanded his passports, and the American minister at Madrid was given his before he could present the ulti- matum. A fleet was at once sent from Key West to blockade Havana, and war was thus begun. A few days later Congress formally declared that war was in progress. The events of the war do not need now a recital in detail. The victory of Commodore Dewey over the Spanish fleet ADMINISTRATION OP McKlNLEY— 1897- 533 Dashi Channel NORTH I./ BATAN 18. J*« Balintang Channel ^B^UYAN in the Philippine Islands, the capture of Santiago by the American army, and the destruction of Admiral Cervera's ships by the American fleet are very recent events as this history closes — events which seem fraught with momentous consequences, far greater, perhaps, than any one could have foreseen when the war was begun. On the 12th of August preliminary terms of peace were agreed upon at Washington, the French minister acting in behalf of Spain. By the terms of this arrange- Aurwt 1898 men ^ Spain promised to surrender all claim to Cuba, and to cede to the United States Puerto Rico and all other Spanish islands in the West Indies, as well as an island in the Ladrones. It was also agreed that the United States should hold the city and harbor of Manila pending the conclusion of a treaty which should determine the final disposi- tion of the Philip- pine Islands. Com- missioners appoint- ed by both nations met at Paris and concluded a defin- itive treaty, in which Spain gave assent to all the express stipula- tions and promises of the prelimina- ry agreement, and also gave up to the United States all ADMINISTRATION OF McKINLEY-1897- - 535 sovereignty over the Philippine Islands. February 6, 1899, the treaty was ratified by the American Senate.* It seems strange indeed that at the end of the nine- teenth century the United States and Spain should be at war — a war growing out of Spain's colonial policy, English and caused in large measure by the method colonies. f co i on i a l administration that marked the be- ginnings and has sullied the course of her history in the New World. The defeat of the Spanish armada, says a recent writer, with truth, was the opening event in the history of the United States. The beginning of English colonization in America was made with the hope that it would check the growth of Spain and undermine her strength. Who could have foreseen the long rivalry with Spain and the ultimate success of English and American institutions? Three hundred and twenty-two years ago an unknown Englishman, supposed, however, to be the intrepid Hum- phrey Gilbert, implored the Queen of England to give him authority to attack the Spanish shipping and the colonial establishments of the West Indies. " I will do it if you allow me," he said ; " only you must resolve and not delay — the wings of man's life are plumed with the feathers of death." Time has proved that great national movements are not for a moment, and are not dependent on the resolutions or delays of a queen or a passing generation. During the progress of the war the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands was finally consummated. A joint reso- lution was passed through Congress providing the Hawaiian f or the acquisition of the islands and for their Islands, July, temporary government. A group of twelve islands, with an area of 6,677 square miles and a population of about 100,000 persons, one half of them na- tive islanders, was thus made American territory. * Twenty million dollars was given Spain for the Philippines, 35 CHAPTER XIX. Conclusion. In the preceding pages we have noticed chiefly the facts in the political and constitutional history of the United States ; but political events constitute but a small portion of the activities of a nation. Laws are perhaps the best single index of the movement of society ; but the per- son that studies history from the laws alone gets but a faint idea of a nation's progress. The people develop in thou- sands of ways, and the changes of society are but dimly seen in legislative enactments or in the platforms of politi- cal parties. We must remember that in the hundred years and more since the Constitution was adopted the nation has grown with astonishing rapidity ; that the fun- Changes of a damental law drawn up by the men of 1787 for PfinijTlTV a little group of States on the margin of a continent is now the law of forty-five States that stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific. In all that we study con- cerning the history of the country we must remember that the nation was always in movement, hourly waxing stronger, reaching out year by year for more territory, and develop- ing its industrial life and strength. We must remember that since 1787 greater changes have come over the world, in all that affects the industry of men, than up to that time had taken place since the beginning of the Christian era. The law that was framed by the fathers in the Philadelphia Convention was framed for a people who sowed their wheat, threshed it, and shipped it to market by the same tedious 530 CONCLUSION. 537 methods and with the same crude implements that the world knew in the time of Solon. In the course of the last hundred years new machinery has been invented, and with its help man has multiplied his power. Steam and elec- tricity have been harnessed to do his bidding, and the whole industrial life of the people has been altered. Society has become complex ; new and serious problems have arisen. Everywhere there has been movement and change, and political institutions have had to adapt themselves to a people that were constantly expanding. Distribution of Population in 1890. Extension of population. In 1700 the population of the United States was some- thing less than 4,000,000, including slaves ; in 1900 it was over 75,500,000. When the new Government was established the center of population was thirty miles east of Baltimore ; it is now almost as far west as Indianapolis. This is one of the astounding facts of history ; and we may remember that, if America has not as yet produced poets, or painters, or sculptors, or musicians of the first rank, the people have subdued a 538 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. continent ; and they have taken possession of it not as a nomadic horde, but have covered the plains and hillsides with cities and villages ; they have taken with them, in their work of winning the wilderness, the courthouse, the schoolhouse, and the church. Until the outbreak of the civil war the population of the United States doubled in each twenty-five years. Since that time the increase has been less rapid, and migra ion, ^^ ^ e number on the census rolls of 1900 is two and a half times that reported in 1860. This rapid increase is due in large measure, of course, to the immi- gration of persons who have come to America to better their condition. Xot until 1820 was there any exact record kept of how many persons were coming to the United States ; the number was at first very small, and did not reach one hundred thousand until 1842. Shortly before the civil war over four hundred thousand came in a single year. In 1882 the number of immigrants was over three fourths of a million. Probably at the present time not more than one half of the inhabitants of this country are descended from persons that lived in the United States one hundred years ago. When we stop to consider this fact we wonder that the nation has developed symmetrically and peaceably, and that these people of different races, with CONCLUSION. 539 social customs and ideas differing from our own, ignorant of our political and social system, have been absorbed into the nation and been so speedily transformed into American citizens in sympathy with American ideals. Doubtless this ceaseless immigration has had its dangers and still presents its difficulties ; but if all foreign elements can be assimilated into our life, the composite nation that results is not likely to be feeble or lacking in force, but an ener- getic, delicately constituted, vigorous, and forcible race. When the Constitution was adopted the people were largely engaged in agriculture, and the cities were few and small. Philadelphia had only forty-two thou- Growth of san( j inhabitants, New York thirty-three thou- sand. In 1800 there were only six cities with over eight thousand inhabitants, and the urban population was less than four per cent of the total. In 1900 there were five hundred and forty-five cities of this size, and over thirty-three per cent of all the people dwelt in them. New York is now the second city of the world, and Chicago, which in 1830 was a frontier village, contains more than a million and a half of people. The United States is no longer only an agricultural country, as it was a hundred and twenty years ago ; its industries are many and varied ; it has be- ManufactureSi » ,-, *• £ come one of the largest manufacturing states of the world. In 1900 the capital employed in manu- facturing amounted to almost $10,000,000,000, the num- ber of workmen was more than 5,700,000, and the total value of the product was $13,000,000,000. In this re- spect there has been great development in the last few decades. Between 1890 and 1900 the number of factories increased forty-four per cent, capital fifty-one per cent, wages twenty-three per cent. The output of steel alone was seven hundred and fifty times as great in 1900 as in 1865. At the close of the civil war there were a little over thirty-five thousand miles of railroad in the United CONCLUSION. 541 States. In 1900 the total mileage was over one hundred and ninety-five thousand. Nothing brings before us the great development of the country in the last few years more clearly and strikingly than the growth of the West. At the end of i* 6 fT eSS ° f ^ e Mexican War, the country west of Iowa and Missouri was almost unpeopled. A few Mexi- cans were living within the limits of New Mexico and Cali- fornia. The Oregon country had something over ten thousand inhabitants, including white people and Indian half-breeds. The Mormons had just moved (1847) into the valley of the Great Salt Lake, and were beginning their wonderful work of transforming the bleak Western wilder- ness into a land of plenty. Even as late as the discussion over the Kansas-Nebraska question, the Western prairies were thought by many to be a great desert, scarcely fit for the comfortable habitations of men. The first settle- ment in the Dakotas, Sioux Falls, was not made till 1857. In Wyoming, it is true, a fur-trading post was established as early as 1834, but there was no need of organizing a separate Territorial government for this region until 1868. By the census of 1900 the Western States and Territories, from the line of Missouri and Iowa to the Pacific, con- tained 11,187,901 people. The great American Desert has disappeared from the map. The desert has given place to vast fields of corn and wheat, and the rocky fastnesses of the mountain ranges are yielding marvelous mineral treas- ures. Colorado alone produced $29,000,000 worth of gold and $12,700,018 worth of silver in 1900 ; and the mineral production of Utah in one year is over $15,000,000. The two Dakotas raise $50,000,000 worth of staple agricul- tural products in a single season. These are certainly very startling figures, when one considers that, within the memory of men still living, these Western plains and moun- tain valleys were unpeopled and unknown. But one would have but a faint idea of this remarkable progress if he 542 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. stopped with a study of industries and population. The schools, the universities, the libraries, the churches are wit- nesses to the fact that the graces and refinements of civiliza- tion have not been neglected. As the Puritans of Massa- chusetts Bay provided for town schools and a college " while the tree stumps were as yet scarcely weather-browned in their earliest harvest fields," so in the new regions of the West the school and the university have been the foremost care of the people. The words of Webster can not be too often repeated : " On the diffusion of education among the people rest the preservation and perpetuation of our free insti- tutions." In 1870-1871 there were about seven and a half million pupils enrolled in our common schools ; in 1899-1900 there were over twice that number.* More- over, the endowments of colleges and universities have been greatly increased ; many millions have been given by the States and by private individuals for the advancement of higher education ; new universities have been founded, and the number of college students has multiplied. Nowhere else in the world is there such general interest in education. While discussing the events of Jackson's administration we stopped to consider the literature of the time, and to notice that a number of great writers had ap- Literature, , -, -. . . ,., peared whose work gave American literature a new dignity and worth. Many of these persons lived until after the civil war. Longfellow and Emerson did not die until 1882. Whittier, Lowell, and Holmes lived into the last decade of the century, the last survivors of that great coterie of New England writers whose noble work in prose * The teachers, in 1899-1900, including those working in colleges and universities, numbered 435,768, having doubled in thirty years. For the support of common public schools alone $213,274,354 were expended, three and a half times as much as in 1870-1871. In 1899- 1900, $20.29 were spent for each pupil ; in 1870-1871, $15.20. 1-1 A o c o o o a £ 8 pq B 00 N CO t- 55 CO « 1 *' o oo c o ft s a 5 w 5J to k% c o id OS 55 S& fc s 3 e 1-1 h o CS -* © 00^ CO O 00^ C» l- ■* •*_ © ^ QC rl o" « co {f rf * e> i- eo" its' of -T «i-(MOO»iHiH©-3( co io" -i of o" H i-i oj CO -* 3 g i- S3 JO M CO I- 1Q CO © •> O CM O) B -« 00 S © S CO CMCNic>»eie> ex o c> 18 jiSIS CO CO CO CO ■* m p i- 00 00 OO 00 00 3 £ OOOOCiOClCiO 544 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. and verse gave a new charm to American literature and added a new interest and value to American life. Ban- croft died in 1891, leaving his history as a great monument of forty years of toil. American authors have been especially successful in the writing of history. John Lothrop Motley by his vol- umes on the history of the Netherlands won hLtT!^ a P lace b y the side of Prescott and Bancroft; indeed, one may say that in historical grasp and appreciation, in power of analyzing character, and in the beauty, grace, and vigor of style he is clearly their equal, if not their superior. Above the three, however, stands Francis Parkman, in some respects the greatest historian America has produced. He had the accuracy and the unerring skill of the scientific historian, and he had, as well, imaginative insight, power of sympathetic interpretation, and the abil- ity to clothe his thoughts in peculiarly appropriate and charming language. Such a book as Montcalm and Wolfe is at once a great historical composition and a choice piece of fine literature. Justin Winsor's work, to which refer- ence has been made many times in the course of this book, may not give him a place among the great writers of Amer- ica, if one judges by the grace or felicity of expression, but he was one of America's most learned scholars, and his investigations into the early history of the country showed great critical ability and remarkable mastery of details. Among other writers of history whose work de- serves chief mention are Edward Eggleston, James Schou- ler, John B. McMaster, Henry Adams, and J. F. Khodes. It would be quite beyond the scope and purpose of this book to mention the names and work of all the men who in recent years have written, in prose or novefiatB 8 ' oets verse > volumes that are entitled to rank as con- tributions to literature ; but we should notice that in this respect, as in others, the American people have shown strength and development. While the nation has CONCLUSION. 545 grown and prospered, its imagination has not lain dormant or been consumed in the processes of mechanical invention or the prosecution of business enterprises. Novelists like Bret Ilarte and William D. Howell s, poets like Edmund C. Stedman and Thomas Bailey Aldrich, essayists like George William Curtis and Charles Dudley Warner, and many others who have written in recent years, have shown rare artistic skill. " In the science of language and of things, in the works of research, of history, and of biography, the new republic is closing the century with brilliancy." * In fact, the student of American life since the civil war has no reason to be discouraged. The character of the nation has not deteriorated ; its capacity to appreciate the good and the beautiful has not lessened ; its power of production in the realm of imagination is not diminished. In painting, sculpture, and architecture America has done as yet but little. In the Kevolutionary days there were a few painters of considerable skill. Peale, Trumbull, and Stuart possessed real talent, and they left many portraits of historical characters that are highly prized. But in the course of nearly a hun- dred years there seemed to be little progress ; no indication was visible of a development of artistic spirit among the people or of growth of artistic power. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, however, there came signs of an awakening ; a group of young artists appeared who pos- sessed undoubted genius ; those that had been looking for a new birth of American art felt that the day had come. There are to-day evidences of a growing power of artistic appreciation in the public at large. As the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia in 1876 quickened the artistic spirit in America, the World's Fair in Chicago in 1893 sur- prised every one by its proof of wondrous achievement. It * Charles Dudley Warner in Shaler's The United States of Amer- ica, vol. ii, p. 413. 546 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. proved that in various branches of art the people of Amer- ica were now producing works of great merit — paintings, statuary, and buildings that were worthy of any nation ; it announced to the world that the day had gone by when this nation could be sneered at as a mere race of money getters ; it gave proof that the art in this country was no longer servilely imitative, that it had passed beyond the time of pupilage. The architecture of the Fair showed that American architects were artists. The on-looker was forced to the conclusion that the American people, who in the course of a few decades had swept across a continent and turned the wide prairies into plowland, were possessed of more than mere mechanical skill and physical strength. Here was evidence of a greater capacity, a power to appre- ciate beauty, ability to minister to the aesthetic wants of men. The nation was shown instinct with a vigorous life which gave hope for the accomplishments of the future. One hundred years ago the United States was an ex- periment. Students of history who knew the fate of re- publics in the past hardly dared to hope that this one could live. The statesmen of Europe took little interest in what was done on this side of the ocean, and did not believe that a free and popular government could long survive over a numerous people and a wide area. Considering democracy as little better than anarchy, they sneered at the idea that the masses of the people were capable of self-government. So far our country has weathered the storm, and we still have hopes that democratic ideals will be reached. Politically the nation stands for the principle that the people are the safest custodians of power, that they can be trusted to do right, and that all are the best judges of what is best for all. The experience of a century has given us confidence ; the people in many crises have shown a spirit of integrity and a capacity for self-control. But if the future is to substantiate this principle, it will be be- cause men and women are intelligent, virtuous, and honest. CONCLUSION. 547 No one that looks about him can fail to see that the nation is surrounded with perils ; for as the years go by society becomes more complex, its problems become more difficult, and the tasks of government increase ; and if our country is to prove the truth of the democratic principle for the future, it will be because the essentials of virtue and patriot- ism are cherished. It rests in large measure with the boys and girls that are now at their lessons in the schools and academies of the land to determine whether or not amid the perils of the near future the principles of popular government will justify themselves. The Court of Honor at the Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893. M il i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i w ©©oiraooooooo^oira©-*inoo©e2if: .5 ^ 'p. ci §o.?g I § § © % 1 1 5 S u ■* » " o h) Ph H O > W Ch 3 1 1 i I ^ « 2 « g ? « ^ g J •< 3 3 "5 "3 tj J o ti J § o 'S j: c » o © O* O* 1-- 1; CO © ) ci ? » ii o> t- <4 n * ei h t- M h g s* a 3 sf s a r -i "4 a gf s g g s s 6 s a s a s f= 88 § IS8SB I- 06 oi on •« 5-« § S o § o 1 2 «« 4-11 o» 5s^.J.a *g illJifllllSltlltllliljIllilffllj 1 1 II 2 APPENDIX. 549 OcSD £2£ •/.

J 1*11 J3^: o^xi ,£3 73 2 d C g ©<< n O ^^^>6h°5^> . d CD <1 c3 d S wffl d A H o o E X G d d M ■A O «2 d ■& 5pd o-c o d . o.2 r o3l5 d d c3 03 d d aa en a> ps« D 3 a) 3 r^J C"3 CI, U 8 C » ^ o a .2 .22 3 S © c oj 8 a) j) S 6 es^ Sis 550 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. 6 as a3 WTt o £ .5 . o & o i*i> m vi, ^ •"" I 73 73 r-i 03 0> ■ .§ q a P sh P p ■/j Sb PT3 ^ £, o3 S £j g O WpC Ph cpq o g^; ^ ° * °£ «3 P £ Ph O C JT 72 _i G _ i +j ft o3.2 o3 0-£ jtf (M Tt< g p 5 P 73 W 03 2 P * il k o3 O K-t-ai-a p.p. SSjj 3 0; 3 D Ph-^ Ph73 o id m j) 03 -w o3 -" a OQ a 2 -P 2 3^ P <3 p S P-.TJ PhT* a) a> a> a> «Pn «Pm P O PhPh 4 4)S APPENDIX. 551 ^00 CO-tf CM a 3 53 s. CD J. C. Calhoun. Richard Rush. William Smith. Martin Van Bu John Sergeant. Henry Lee. Amos Ellmakei William Wilkii R. M. Johnson. Francis Grange John Tyler. William Smith a o S- G Sri 3£ **° a»Pn N . CO eg h;Pm Ph CD CD o b0r§ O CD £■« Millard Fillmoi William 0. But Charles F. Ada © T*« rH *> ooco ©OHO CM © CO CO t* hho © *o CO *> © 00 "<* CO t-00 I-H rH rH i~ t- CM rH rH CO © t~o co cm 1-1 cm ^^ x- T-* -r—t l—i H NHCTt- rH £> a © oo © © t>NC CO CO © rH HH CO *> CM 00 00 COCi © oc © -«# o rH O »ft ©*>C H^ CO © © -# co QOCOCJO CM © iO rH rH JO © o* © cc HlOW JO to ^ CD loo'*'* r>af i>© CO H CO~ JO00C- OOIWOOh "tf © 00 CO CO © CO i-cm CO Ci CO CO cm © © to © to t», t- r-Tr-T GOC9 CO^CM r-Tr-T -^-J^-N O 00 COCO too* lOt-HH lOONH HC5t> lO rH o o • 1— ( rH r-i 1-1 »i . hh ^ — * CO 2 *< r* *» I* o "^ PQ £1S S* ►»flr! E3 CD h-s !> CO o3 .2^> o p„ CI..;-, s = u.a co g £w 6 H "' _C ^ .2 HH -H JP. d tf'cS g • " S c3 r? C * ro ^h co o3 Mod w5> to >-> CO CO — ^- — ■ ~ -^ — •- cc „ t-T^H 5 ee ^.5 cccc c3 o3 £ c3 3333 3 3 =3 3 Q* &, Qj &i CU CO CD CD .2 3 la l si d Go < o o rs* O fee be be bp bo 2 C «33333 5.2 co c3 ^: H -r~ CD — ' C CD G r* r~ r- S r.j r^ |Z5 © CM © CM CO 00 CM © Oi H OOi-tOrtrlOJOOriOOWdS t-iomtoMHTiHiO'* ■* OOQO •<*m kU Ci niH ii c* c* 5*3 on 3 9 3 A I 1 William R. King. William A. Graham. George W. Julian. J. C. Breckinridge. William L. Dayton. Andrew J. Donelson. Hannibal Hamlin. Joseph Lane. Edward Everett. Herschel V. Johnson. Andrew Johnson. George H. Pendleton. • Offl : a ■ c B. G. Brown. George W. Julian. Alfred H. Colquitt. John M. Palmer. T. E. Bramlette. William S. Groesbeck. Willis B. Machen. Nathaniel P. Banks. William A. Wheeler. T. A. Hendricks. >> - . °3t: 50 E fa 49 a is'ti.a > o :-a ?3 • a "o02 B^ .72U< &® o£m g3 g^gi CVCOCin ■<* co os os Tf Tt o* co th t- l ~- *i -('»aX'H'*50ioa5»n ce co~ 8 S TH 30 CO_CO CO CO lO CO 5* CO ii to • O OS CO CO O.S • © © - -5 | -0f X 3s «j • a •2 • ° sc-a a o 11 4 a a ag 5 a .' ss^ssojisgs >o a .-* 5 ^ m a « s *- 0) c3< . o3 £ £ 8 • > 1-0 72 +j . 2 c3 a" o3 — a o °3 *i i#iiiiiii4i aijaaa^aa .o "3 a o ii •§ o3 Oft fte a a a? a 4) 53 tf a>QH Q e'.^ a gijj .2g§ - - .igcS 3 a S)a 3 = S &a a; o a-e o a> o> t- in a; a; s- 8 8 a z 1 /. ^ en CO CO 8 oJ 33 c2 CO W S So APPENDIX. 553 I 3 . o3 a -a . a3 . bC 3501B Mil ►4<^d a a 8 . I § -d -c *J — • c3 J " oco m 3 .— L, ,_, ,_, — 03 £■8 l- a ■•a o IIP ss- Cittt CO on 5JS SjS BS* & & C CO 00 OC CO O T^IOnCJMOnnN -TtinMrltMiSti-iOi-tSCjO CS00.-11-I tlOJiH lCnO« rH CJ O i- J- »0 CO J- tt «o o> t- a tfOPnf a.3 S -a c 5 i-S a § «S 3 "£ S a J S S'S.'S C3a2a.aa3ea«3 fcfc 554 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Summary of the States and Territories.' States and Territories. Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia. . . . Florida Georgia Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota SETTLEMENT. By whom. French. Russians. Spanish. French. Spanish. Americans. English. Swedes. Md. and Va. Spanish. English. Americans. French. French. Americans. Americans. Virginians. French. English. English. English. French. Americans. French. French. Americans. Americans. Americans. English. Swedes. Spanish. Dutch. English. Americans. Va. and N. Eng. Americans. Americans. English. English. English. Americans. DATE OF ACT CREATING. When. [Territory. I 1713 1805 1598 1670 1769 1832 1633 1627 1565* 1733 1834 1749 1730 1833 1850 1775 1699 1630 1634 1620 1668 1827 1716 1763 1841 1810 1849 1623 1627 1598 1613 1650 1860 1788 1890 1811 1682 1636 1670 1857 1817 1884 1863 1819 1861 Original Original 1791 1822 Original 1863 1809 1800 1838 1854 1805 Original Original 1805 1849 1798 1812 1864 1854 1861 Original Original 1850 Original Original 1861 1890 1848 Original Original Original 1861 * From Appletons' Universal Cyclopaedia, vol. viii, p. 368, APPENDIX. 555 Summary of the States and Territories — {Continued). States and Territories. Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington . . West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming SETTLEMENT. By whom. N. C. and Va. Spanish. Americans. English. English. Americans. English. French. Americans. When. 1765 1630 1847 1763 1607 1811 1607 1750 1834 DATE OF ACT CREATING. Territory. 1850 Original 1853 1836 1868 State. 1796 1845 1896 1791 State. 1889 1863 1848 1890 Cities of over 100,000 Inhabitants; Population in 1900. City. Population. City. Population. New York 3,437,202 1,698,575 1,293,697 575,238 560,892 508,957 381,768 352,387 342,782 325,902 287,104 285,704 285,315 278,718 246,070 206.433 204,731 202,718 175,997 Indianapolis Kansas City, Mo.. . St. Paul 169,164 163,752 Chicago Philadelphia St. Louis 163,065 162,608 133,859 131 822 Rochester Denver Boston Toledo Cleveland Allegheny Columbus Worcester, Mass., . Syracuse 129,896 Buffalo 125,560 San Francisco Cincinnati 118,421 108,374 New Orleans Detroit New Haven Paterson 108.027 105,171 Milwaukee Fall River St. Joseph Omaha 104,863 Washington Newark 102,979 102,555 Jersey City Los Angeles Memphis .... 102,479 Louisville . 102,320 .Minneapolis Providence Scranton 102,026 CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, pro- vide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. ARTICLE I. Sect. 1. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives. Sect. 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of members chosen every second year by the people of the several States, and the electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State Legislature. No person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhab- itant of that State in which he shall be chosen. • Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to serv- ice for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other persons. The actual enumeration shall be made within three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such mau- 556 APPENDIX. 55? ner as they shall by law direct. The number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each State shall have at least one representative ; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Providence Planta- tions one, Connecticut five, New York six, New Jersey four, Penn- sylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three. When vacancies happen in the representation from any State, the Executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other officers ; and shall have the sole power of impeachment. Sect. 3. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six years ; and each Senator shall have one vote. Immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence of the first election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three classes. The seats of the Senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the second year, of the second class at the ex- piration of the fourth year, and of the third class at the expiration of the sixth year, so that one third may be chosen every second year ; and if vacancies happen by resignation, or otherwise, during the recess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary appointments until the next meeting of the Legis- lature, which shall then fill such vacancies. No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen. The Vice-President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided. The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, or when he shall exercise the office of President of the United States. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments. When sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside : and no person shall be convicted without the concur- rence of two thirds of the members present. 558 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States : but the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indict- ment, trial, judgment, and punishment, according to law. Sect. 4. The times, places, and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by law appoint a different day. Sect. 5. Each House shall be the judge of the elections, returns, and qualifications of its own members, and a majority of each shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may ad- journ from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the attend- ance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penalties, as each House may provide. Each House may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two thirds, expel a member. Each House shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the members of either House on any question shall, at the desire of one fifth of those present, be entered on the journal. Neither House, during the session of Congress, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting. Sect. 6. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a com- pensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, ex- cept treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at the session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in either House they shall not be questioned in any other place. No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to anv civil office under the authority APPENDIX. 559 of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emolu- ments whereof shall have been increased, during such time ; and no person holding any office under the United States shall be a member of either House during his continuance in office. Sect. 7. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills. Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate shall, before it become a law, be presented to the President of the United States; if he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it with his objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such recon- sideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and, if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a law. But in all such cases the votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be en- tered on the journal of each House respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law. Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United States; and, before the same shall take effect, shall be approved by him, or, being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, accord- ing to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill. Sect. 8. The Congress shall have power, — To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises to pay the debts and provide for the common defence and general welfare of the United States ; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uni- form throughout the United States; To borrow money on the credit of the United States ; To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the sev- eral States, and with the Indian tribes; 560 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. To establish an uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States ; To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures ; To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States ; To establish post-offices and post-roads ; To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries; To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court ; To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations ; To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water; To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years ; To provide and maintain a navy ; To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces; To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions; To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress; To exercise exclusive legislation, in all cases whatsoever, over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States ; and to exercise like author- ity over all places purchased by the consent of the Legislature of the State in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock-yards, and other needful buildings; — and To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof. Sect. 9. The migration or importation of such persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be APPENDIX. 561 prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such im- portation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it. No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed. No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in propor- tion to the census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken. No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any State. No preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or revenue to the ports of one State over those of another ; nor shall vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another. No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law ; and a regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be pub- lished from time to time. No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States ; and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolu- ment, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state. Sect. 10. No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or con- federation: grant letters of marque and reprisal ; coin money; emit bills of credit ; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts ; pass any bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility. No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any im- posts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws ; and the net produce of all duties and imposts, laid by any State on imports or exports, shall be for the use of the treasury of the United States; and all such laws shall be subject to the revision and control of the Congress. No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty of tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement or compact with another State, or with a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent dan- ger as will not admit of delay. 562 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ARTICLE II. Sect. 1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice-President, chosen for the same term, be elected as follows : — Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a number of Electors equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or person hold- ing an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector. [The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabi- tant of the same State with themselves. And they shall make a list of all the persons voted for, and of the number of votes for each ; which list they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the Presi- dent of the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the pres- ence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the greatest number of votes shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed ; and if there be more than one who have such majority, and have an equal number of votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately choose by ballot one of them for President ; and if no person have a majority, then from the five highest on the list the said House shall in like manner choose the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from each State having one vote ; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two thirds of the States, and a majority of all the States shall be necessary to a choice. In every case, after the choice of the President, the person having the greatest number of votes of the Electors shall be the Vice-President. But if there should remain two or more who have equal votes, the Senate shall choose from them by ballot the Vice- President. — Repealed by Amendment XII.] Congress may determine the time of choosing the Electors, and the day on which they shall give their votes ; which day shall be the same throughout the United States. APPENDIX. 563 No person except a natural-born citizen, or a citizen of the United States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President ; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident within the United States. In case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said office, the same shall devolve on the Vice-President, and the Congress may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation, or inability, both of the President and Vice-President, declaring what officer shall then act as President, and such officer shall act accordingly, until the disability be removed, or a President shall be elected. The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services a compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that period any other emolument from the United States, or any of them. Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation: — " I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States." Sect. 2. The President shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several States, when called into the actual service of the United States ; he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject re- lating to the duties of their respective offices, and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment. He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur ; and he shall nominate, and, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public min- isters, and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law ; but the Congress may by law vest the appointment of such inferior 564 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments. The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions which shall expire at the end of their next session. Sect. 3. He shall from time to time give to the Congress infor- mation of the state of the Union, and recommend to their considera- tion such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in case of disagreement between them, with respect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper ; he shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers ; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States. Sect. 4. The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misde- meanors. ARTICLE III. Sect. 1. The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both of the Supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior, and shall, at stated times, receive for their services a com- pensation, which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office. Sect. 2. The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United States, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their au- thority; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls ; to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction ; to controversies to which the United States shall be a party ; to controversies between two or more States, between a State and citi- zens of another State, between citizens of different States, between citizens of the same State claiming lands under grants of different States, and between a State, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or subjects. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls, and those in which a State shall be party, the Supreme APPENDIX. 565 Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions, and under such regu- lations, as the Congress shall make. The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, shall be by jury ; and such trial shall be held in the State where the said crimes shall have been committed ; but when not committed within any State, the trial shall be at such place or places as the Congress may by law have directed. Sect. 3. Treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court. The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture, except during the life of the person attainted. ARTICLE IV. Sect. 1. Full faith and credit shall be given in each State to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general laws prescribe the man- ner in which such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof. Sect. 2. The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States. A person charged in any State with treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another State, shall, on demand of the executive authority of the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having juris- diction of the crime. No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due. Sect. 3. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no New State shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the junction of two or more States, or parts of States, without 566 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. the consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned, as well as of the Congress. The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all need- ful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of any particular State. Sect. 4. The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of them against invasion ; and on application of the Legisla- ture, or of the Executive (when the Legislature can not be con- vened), against domestic violence. ARTICLE V. The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Con- stitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress; provided that no amendment which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article ; and that no State, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate. ARTICLE VI. All debts contracted and engagements entered into, before the adoption of this Constitution shall be as valid against the United States under this Constitution as under the Confederation. This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or which shnll be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every State shall be bound thereby, anything in the constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding. The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and APPENDIX. 567 judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution ; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States. ARTICLE VII. The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be suf- ficient for the establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the same. Done in Convention, by the unanimous consent of the States present, the seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the twelfth. Xn Softness whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names. [Signed by] G° : Washington, Presidt. and Deputy from Virginia, and by thirty-nine delegates. 37 AETICLES IN ADDITION TO, AND AMENDMENT OF, THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. ARTICLE I. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of re- ligion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peace- ably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. ARTICLE II. A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. ARTICLE III. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a man- ner to be prescribed by law. ARTICLE IV. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. ARTICLE V. No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise in- famous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, 568 APPENDIX. 569 when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb ; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law ; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation. ARTICLE VI. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and dis- trict wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation ; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defence. ARTICLE VII. In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the com- mon law. ARTICLE VIII. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. ARTICLE IX. The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people. ARTICLE X. The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitu- tion, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. ARTICLE XL The judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens of another State, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign state. 570 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. ARTICLE XII. The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves ; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President ; and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate ;— the President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted ; — the person having the greatest number of votes for President shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors ap- pointed ; and if no person have such majority, then from the per- sons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from each State having one vote ; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two thirds of the States, and a majority of all the States shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a President, whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President. The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice- President shall be the Vice-President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list the Senate shall choose the Vice-President ; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a ma- jority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States. ARTICLE XIII. Sect. 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly con- APPENDIX. 571 victed, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. Sect. 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. ARTICLE XIV. Sect. 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States ; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law ; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. Sect. 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the sev- eral States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of Electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the executive and judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion or other crime, the basis of representa- tion therein shall be reduced in 1 he proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citi- zens twenty-one years of age in such State. Sect. 3. No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or Elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Con- gress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State Legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or com- fort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may, by a vote of two thirds of each House, remove such disability. Sect. 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, 572 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. shall not be questioned. But neither the United State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave ; but all such debts, obliga- tions, and claims shall be held illegal and void. Sect. 5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appro- priate legislation, the provisions of this article. ARTICLE XV. Sect. 1. The right of citizens of the United State to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State, on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Sect. 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. INDEX Abercrombie, General, 146. Abolitionists, 334, 342, 347 ; perse- cuted, 343. Adams, Charles F., 374, 456. Adams, John, quoted, 159 ; defends British soldiers, 183 ; peace commis- sioner, 213 ; Vice-President, 234 ; President, 252-259; character, 252; portrait, 253. Adams, John Q., Secretary of State, 296; elected President, 310 ; admin- istration, 311-321; portrait, 311; character, 311 ; opposed to gag rule, 344. Adams, Samuel, portrait, 152 ; in the town meeting, 183. Agriculture, Department of, 514. Alabama admitted, 298; joins Con- federacy, 420 ; readmitted, 478. Alabama claims, 457, 485. Alabama, the, 456. Alaska purchased, 478. Alexander VI, bull of, 24. Alien law, 256. Amendments, first ten, 231 ; the eleventh, 250 ; the twelfth, 258 ; the thirteenth, 468, 473 ; the fourteenth, 474, 475, 478 ; the fifteenth, 483. America, origin of man in, 1 ; discov- ery of, by Columbus, 16 ; naming of, 21. American people, condition of, in 1765, 151-168; in 1830, 333-337; in 1898, 536, 537. See also Industrial Condi- tions. Amherst, General Jeffrey, 147. Anarchist riot, 513. Anderson, Major, 413, 419. Andros, Sir Edmund, 95, 103, 105. Annapolis convention, 224. Annexation of Louisiana, 262, 268 ; of Florida, 302 ; of Texas, 356 ; of Ore- gon, 360 ; of California and the West, 368 ; Gadsden purchase, 369 ; of Alaska, 479 ; of Hawaii, 533 ; of Puerto Eico, 532. Antietam, battle of, 439. Appomattox, surrender of Lee at, 465. Arbitration (see Alabama Claims, Seal Fisheries) ; of Venezuelan dispute, 526 ; treaty, 527. Aristotle, quoted, 13. Arkansas admitted, 336 ; secedes, 420 ; readmitted, 478. Arnold, Benedict, attacks Quebec, 194 ; treason, 210. Art in America, 545. Arthur, Chester A., elected Vice- President, 504; becomes President, 507 ; character, 507. Articles of Confederation. See Con- federation. Ash burton treaty, the, 351. Asia, desire to reach, 18. Association, the, 186. Assumption of State debts, 240, 241. Atlanta, capture of, 458. Azores, the, 24. Bacon's rebellion, 52. Balboa, 23. Ballot reform, 519. 573 574 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Baltimore, Lord, 55 ; founds Mary- land, 58. Bancroft, George, 333, 359. Bank, the first, 241 ; the second, 293, 302 ; new charter vetoed, 329 ; re- moval of deposits, 331 ; National Bank Act, 449, 450. Barclay, Commodore, 286. Barnburners, the, 373, 374. Belknap, W. W., 490. Bell, John, nominated for President, 409. Belligerency of Confederacy, 425. Bennington, battle of, 203. Benton, Thomas H., quoted, 301, 364; offers expunging resolution, 331. Berkeley, Lord John, 105. Berkeley, Sir William, 51 ; quoted, 53. Birney, James G., 347, 355. Black, Jeremiah S., 399, 413. Blaine, J. G., nominated for presi- dency, 509. Blair, Francis P., Jr., nominated for vice-presidency, 480. Booth, J. W., 469. Boston, founded, 80; evacuated by British, 193 ; maps, 192, 193. Boston massacre, the, 182, 188. Boston Tea Party, the, 184. Boundary of the United States, 213, 351, 487. See also Annexation. Braddock's defeat, 142. Bradford, William, quoted, 71-75; his manuscript history, 73. Bradley, J. P., 497. Bragg, General, 433, 434, 447, 448. Brandywine, battle of, 204. Breckenridge, John C, elected Vice- President, 397 ; nominated for Presi- dent, 409. Bristow, B. H., 490. Brown, B. G., nominated for vice- presidency, 488. Brown, General J., 288. Brown, John, raid of, 407; his fort, 408. Bryan, William J., 528. Buchanan, James, Secretary of State, 359; minister to England, 387; elected President, 396, 397 ; portrait, 398 ; character, 398 ; administration, 398-416; message, 412; the South- ern forts, 413. Buckner, Simon B., 528. Buell, General, 426, 430, 432. Buena Vista, battle of, 366. Bull of demarcation, 24. Bull Eun, battle of, 423. Bunker Hill, battle of, 192. Burgoyne, General John, surrenders, 203. Burke, Edmund, quoted, 119, 158, 167, 181. Burnside, General, 439. Burr, Aaron, elected Vice-President, 258 ; duel with Hamilton, 268 ; con- spiracy, 269. Butler, William O., 373. Cabinet, the first, 235 ; nature of, 236 ; changes in, 250. Cabot, John, 19. Cabot, Sebastian, 19. Calhoun, John C, enters Congress, 279 ; Secretary of War, 296 ; princi- ples, 294, 325, 380, 415 ; portrait, 326 ; resigns vice-presidency, 328; quoted, 363 ; position on slavery, 372, 379. California, desire to obtain, 362; con- quered, 367 ; annexed, 368 ; gold discovered, 376; admitted, 377-381. Calvert, Cecilius, 55. Calvert, George (see Baltimore), 55. Camden, battle of, 208. Cameron, Simon, 418, 429. Canada. See New France. Cape Verde Islands, 24. Carolinas, the, early history, 61-66; charter, 62 ; map of grant, 62; be- ginning of North Carolina, 63; be- ginning of South Carolina, 63; Locke's "Grand Model," 63; be- come royal colonies, 124. See also North Carolina and South Carolina. INDEX. 575 Caroline affair, the, 351. Carpet-bag government, 478, 484. Carteret, Sir George, 105. Carteret, Philip, 105. Cartier, Jacques, 29. Cass, Lewis, 325 ; writes Nicholson letter, 372 ; nominated for President, 373; Secretary of State, 398; re- signs, 413. Cavaliers, immigration of, 49, 50. Cedar Creek, battle of, 455. Centennial Exposition, the, 493, 498. Cerro Gordo, battle of, 367. Champlain, Samuel de, 130. Chancellorsville, battle of, 445. Chapul tepee, battle of, 367. Charles I, 49, 61, 75. Charles II, 52, 62, 94. Charleston founded, 63; convention at, 410; map, 419. Charleston Mercury, 411. Chase, Salmon P., 386; Secretary of Treasury, 418, 419 ; resigns, 460, 461 ; portrait, 461 ; presides at im- peachment trial, 477. Chattanooga, battle of, 447, 448. Chesapeake, the affair of the, 273. Chicago, 283, 336, 589. Chickamauga, battle of, 447. Chili, trouble with, 518. Chinese, exclusion of, 508. Chippewa, battle of, 288. Christ Church, Boston, view of, 128. Cincinnati in 1810, 298. Cities, growth of, 539. See also Indus- trial Conditions. Civil Eights bill, 474. Civil-service reform, 488, 507. Civil war, causes, 409-416; progress, 419-465 ; losses, 467 ; effects, 483. Claiborne, William, 58. Clark, George Kogers, services, 207. Clay, Henry, as speaker, 279, 280 ; and the Missouri compromise, 306 ; por- trait, 309 ; candidate for President, 310; Secretary of State, 310; char- acter, 330 ; candidate for presi- dency, 330, 354, 355 ; in 1840, 346 ; offers compromise of 1850, 378 ; death, 385. Cleveland, Grover, elected President, 509 ; life and character, 510 : por- trait, 511 ; first administration, 510- 514; renominated, 513; renomi- nated and elected, 519; second administration, 520-527 ; Hawaiian policy, 521 ; Venezuelan message, 525. Clinton, De Witt, 285, 314. Clinton, George, Vice-President, 268, 275. Clinton, Sir Henry, 197, 206. Cobb, Howell, 398, 413. Cochrane, John, 461. Cold Harbor, battle of, 454. Colfax, Schuyler, elected Vice-Presi- dent, 480. Colonies. See English Colonies, En- glish Colonization, French Coloni- zation, etc. Columbus, Christopher, early life, 11 ; first voyage, 16 ; discovers America, 16 ; other discoveries, 18 ; portrait of, 11 ; house in which he died, 27. Commerce with the East, 7. Committees of Correspondence, 183. Compromise, in Constitutional Con- vention, 227, 228; Missouri, 305; of 1833, 328 ; of 1850, 378-382 ; the Crittenden, 414. Confederacy, Southern, formed, 414, 415 ; belligerency acknowledged, 425 ; difficulty in supporting war, 466. Confederation, Articles of, proposed, 206, 216; ratified, 216; character, 216 ; trouble during, 218-220, 224. Confederation, New England, 91. Congress, the Albany, 139. See also Continental Congress. Conkling, Roscoe, 506. Connecticut, 87-89 ; "Constitution of, 88 ; charter, 92 ; in confederation, 91 ; in eighteenth century, 120. 576 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Constitution framed, 224-229 ; charac- ter, 229, 232 ; ratified, 230, 231 ; broad and strict construction, 242. Constitution, the, battle of, with the Guerriere, 284 ; cut of, 284. Constitutions, first State, 196. Continental Congress, the First, 185 ; its declarations, 186 ; Articles of As- sociation, 186. Continental Congress, the Second, meets, 191 ; incompetency, 205 ; pow- ers of, 216. Convention, the Federal, meeting of, 224 : membership, 224 ; work of, 225- 228. Cornwallis, General, 199; baffled by Washington, 200 ; in the South, 208- 211 ; baffled by Lafayette, 210 ; sur- renders, 211. Coronado, 23. Cortez, Hernando, 23. Cotton, 300, 404, 426. Cotton gin, 300. Court, Federal, established, 239 ; sec- ond judiciary act, 265; judges im- peached, 265, 266. Courtesies of the Senate, 506. Crandall, Prudence, 343. Crawford, William II., 296, 310. Credit Mobilier, 490. Crown Point, attacked by English, 143 ; taken by Americans, 191. Cuba, desire to obtain, 387, 412 ; rebel- lion in, 525, 529 ; United States de- clares independence of, 531, 532. Cumberland road, 294. Currency, 292, 449, 450, 467, 492, 520, 527 ; demonetization of silver, 501 ; Bland-Allison Bill, 501 ; the silver question, 510, 517, 522, 527, 528 ; the Sherman Act, 517, 522. Dale, Sir Thomas, 42. Dallas, George M., Vice-President, 354. Davis, Jefferson, 386 ; Confederate President, 415; portrait, 415. Davis, John, 31. Dayton, William L., 397. Dearborn, General, 287. Debt, national, 240, 467, 481 ; State, as- sumption of, 240, 241. Delaware, Lord, 42. Delaware, early history, 101, 113. Democracy, 334-336, 546. Democratic party, divided, 409 ; atti- tude toward the war, 429. See also Party. De Soto, 23. Detroit, surrender of, 283. Development of the United States, 536-547. Dewey, Commodore, 532. Dickinson, John, 181; portrait of, 180. Discovery, Spanish, 23. Dixon, Archibald, 388. Donelson, Andrew J., 397. Donelson, Fort, 430, 431. Dorr rebellion, the, 352. Douglas, Stephen A., supports Kansas- Nebraska bill, 388, 391 ; debate with Lincoln, 402; nominated for Presi- dent, 409. Draft, the, 451 ; riots, 451. Drake, Sir Franeis, voyages of, 31. Dred Scott case, 399. Duquesne, Fort, 142, 147. Dutch, the, settle in America, 97 ; lose New Netherland, 102 ; character of, 97, 104. Earle, Thomas, 347. Early, General, 455. East, the, books on, 8. Education, in colonies, 54, 83, 156, 159, 161, 333; in the United States, 333, 542. Eighteenth century, character of, 118, 127; history of, 116-125. Election of 1789, 284 ; 1792, 245 ; 1796, 252; 1800, 258; 1804, 268; 1808, 275 ; 1812, 285 ; 1816, 294 ; 1820, 307 ; 1824, 310 ; 1828, 319, 320 ; 1832, 329, 330 ; 1836, 338 ; 1840, 345-348 ; 1844, 354-356; 1848, 373,374; 1852, 385; INDEX. 577 1856, 396 ; 1860, 409 ; 1864, 460-462 ; 1868, 480 ; 1872, 487, 488 ; 1876, 494- 497 ; 1880, 504, 505; 1884, 509 ; 1888, 514; 1892,519; 1896,527,528. Electoral Commission, the, 496. Ellsworth, Oliver, 225. Emancipation proclamation, facsimile of, 442 ; issued, 443 ; results, 444. Embargo, 274. Endicott, John, 78. England, in sixteenth century, 28 ; hatred of Spain, 30 ; claims in eight- eenth century, 116, 125 ; wars with France, 117, 129-150, 271 ; war with Spain, 127 ; claims the West, 140 ; condition of, 143 ; trouble with, 246-248 ; at war with France, 246 ; War of 1812, 281-291 ; treaty with, see Treaties ; acknowledges bel- ligerency of South, 425 ; and the Trent affair, 429 ; Alabama trouble, see Alabama Claims ; Venezuela question, 525. English colonies, political character, 118 ; in eighteenth century, 116-128 ; conditions, 151-168; schools, 156; local government, 163-165 ; forms of government, 166. English colonization, motives for, 32, 34 ; character of, 136, 145. English, W. II., nominated for vice- presidency, 504. Era of good feeling, 297, 310. Ericson, Leif, 4. Erie Canal, 314. Erskine treaty, 276. Essex, cruise of, 290. Everett, Edward, quoted, 387; nomi- nated for Vice-President, 409. Expunging resolution, 331. Fair Oaks, battle of, 436. Farragut, David G., 435, 436. Federalist, the, 231. Federalist party, 255 (see also Party) ; downfall, 257. Fessenden, William P., 461. Field, James G., 520. Fillmore, Millard, elected Vice-Presi- dent, 374 ; President, 382-386 ; char- acter, 382 ; nominated for President, 397. Financial questions. See Currency, Banks, Debt. Fisheries, the, 486. Five Nations, the. See Iroquois. Florida, annexed, 302 ; admitted, 376 ; joins Confederacy, 420 ; readmitted, 478 ; election of 1876 in, 495. Florida, West, Spanish claim to, 213, 264 ; seized, 264. Floyd, John B., 398, 413. . Foote, Commodore, 430, 432. Force bills, 485. Fox, George, 108, 109. France, in sixteenth century, 28 ; wars with England, 117, 129-150, 271; colonization, 130 ; claims Mississippi Valley, 140 ; in eighteenth century, 144 ; alliance with, 204, 206 ; sends Genet to America, 247 ; difficulties with, 253-255, 273, 276. See also New France. Franklin, Benjamin, his plan of Union, 139; portrait, 162; birthplace, 162; in France, 204 ; peace commissioner, 212 ; in Philadelphia convention, 224. Frederick, King, 143. Fredericksburg, battle of, 439, 440. Free-soil party. See Party. Frelinghuysen, Theodore, 355. Fremont, John C, nominated for President, 397, 461. French and Indian War, 142-150; im- portant results of, 148, 150. French colonization, failure of, in South, 29 ; success of, in North, 29; beginnings, 130; character, 136. French decrees, 273, 277. French explorers, 133. Friends. See Quakers. Frobisher, Martin, 31. 578 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Fugitive slave law, 381 ; violated, 393, 400. Gadsden purchase, the, 369. Gage, General, 192. Gallatin, Albert, Secretary of the Treasury, 261. Garfield, James A., mentioned, 430; elected President, 504; administra- tion, 505-508 ; life and character, 505 ; assassinated, 507. Garrison, William L., 342. Gaspee, the, destroyed, 183. Gates, General Horatio, 203; defeated at Camden, 208. Genet, Citizen, 247. Geneva award, the, 486. Geography, early knowledge of, 12. George, Fort, 287. George III, purposes of, 171, 184 ; hires mercenaries, 193 ; loses America, 212. Gcrmantown, battle of, 204. Gerry, Elbridge, Commissioner, 254; Vice-President, 285. Gettysburg, battle of, 445. Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, 32. Gorges, Ferdinando, 89 ; grant to, 90. Graham, William A., 385. Granger, Francis, 338. Grant, Ulysses S., quoted, 367, 459 ; in civil war, 427, 430, 432, 434, 446, 452-455, 464, 465 ; elected President, 480; administration, 481-498; life and character, 481 ; portrait, 482 ; re-elected, 488. Greeley, Horace, quoted, 424; nomi- nated for presidency, 488. Greenback party, the, 494. Greenbacks, issued, 449; specie pay- ment, 493, 504. Greene, General Nathanael, in the South, 210; portrait, 211. Greenville, George, 175. Greenville, treaty of, 249. Greaham, Walter Q., 521. Guilford, battle of, 210. Gustavus Adolphus, 101. Hale, John P., 385. " Half-breeds," the, 506. Halifax award, the, 487. Halleck, General, 426, 427, 430, 433, 437. Hamilton, Alexander, in Philadelphia convention, 225 ; in New York convention, 231 ; writes Federalist articles, 231 ; Secretary of the Treas- ury, 235-250; financial plans, 240- 242 ; portrait, 240 ; character, 268. Hamilton, Andrew, 121. Hamlin, Hannibal, elected Vice-Presi- dent, 409, 410 ; mentioned, 462. Hampton Koads, battle of, 434, 435. Hancock, General W. S., nominated for presidency, 504. Harper's Ferry, seized by Brown, 408 ; captured, 439. Harrison, Benjamin, elected President, 514 ; administration, 515-520 ; por- trait, 515; renominated, 519. Harrison, William IL, at battle of Tip- pecanoe, 279 ; at the Thames, 286; nominated for presidency, 338, 346 ; elected, 348 ; administration, 348, 349 ; death, 349. Hartford convention, 291. Harvard College founded, 84. Harvey, Sir John, expulsion of, 49. Hawaiian Islands, revolution in, 521 ; annexed, 535 ; map of, 534. Hawkins, John, 31. Hayes, R. B., nominated for presi- dency, 494 ; elected, 497 ; life and character, 499 ; portrait, 499 ; ad- ministration, 499-505 ; vetoes Bland- Allison Bill, 501 ; opposed to riders, 503. Hendricks, T. A., nominated for vice- presidency, 494. Henry, Fort, 430, 432. Henry, Patrick, portrait of, 170 ; speech in .parson's cause, 174 ; reso- lutions, 177. Herjulfsson, Bjarni, 4. Herkimer, General Nicholas, 203. Historical writing, 544. INDEX. 579 Hobart, Garret A., elected Vice-Presi- dent, 527. Holland in seventeenth century, 97. Holmes, O. W., 542. Holy Alliance, the, 307. Hood, General, 458, 460. Hooker, General, 445, 448. Houston, Samuel, 354. Howe, General, 193, 198 ; failure, 199 ; proceeds to Philadelphia, 204. Howe, Richard, offers pardon, 198. Hudson, Henry, 97. Hull, Commodore Isaac, 284. Hull, General William, 283. Hutchinson, Anne, banished, 86. Idaho admitted, 514. Illinois admitted, 298. Immigration, 299, 538. Impeachment, of judges, 266 ; of Pres- ident, 477 ; of Secretary of War, 491. Implied powers, 242. Impressment, 272, 281. Income tax, 525. Indented servants, 44, 153. Independence, Declaration of, 194; original draft, 195. Independence Hall, view of, 215. Independent Treasury, 341. Indiana, admitted, 298. Indians, the, groups of, 3 ; the five nations, 4 ; at Plymouth, 74 ; the Pe- quot War, 89; King Philip's War, 93 ; hostile, 248 ; defeated, 249 ; in War of 1812, 278, 286 ; in Georgia, 318 ; removed to reservations, 318 note; Seminole War, 345. Industrial conditions, 151-156, 158, 161, 220, 271, 274, 301, 331, 333, 336, 340, 383, 384, 403-407, 420, 448-451, 481, 492, 493, 522, 524; railroads, 315-317 ; strikes, 502, 524; labor or- ganizations, 512 : changes of a cen- tury, 536-540. See also West, The. Ingersoll, Jared, 285. Intercolonial wars, 117. Internal improvements, 294, 314, 337. Interstate Commerce Act, 512. Intolerable acts, the five, 184. Intolerance, in Massachusetts, 84, 86, 91 ; in England, 70. Inventions, 270, 333, 353, 383. Iowa admitted, 376. Iroquois, character, 4; friends of the Dutch, 100 ; foes of the French, 131 ; map of country, 132 ; defeated, 207. See also Indians. Italy, trouble with, 518. Jackson, Andrew, defeats Indians, 287 ; at New Orleans, 291 ; candi- date for President, 310 ; elected President, 320 ; portrait, 322 ; char- acter, 322 ; President, 322-339 ; proc- lamation, 328 ; vetoes Bank Bill, 329 ; withdraws deposits, 330. Jackson, British minister, 276. Jackson, Thomas J., 436, 438 ; por- trait, 439. Jacksonian era, characteristics, 334. James I, 36, 48, 75. James II, 94, 96, 102, 103. Jamestown, Va., settlement of, 38; early history, 39-41. Jay, John, peace commissioner, 212; writes in the Federalist, 231 ; por- trait, 234; chief justice, 239; envoy, 249 ; his treaty, 250. Jefferson, Thomas, quoted, 154, 261 ; drafts Declaration of Independence, 196; peace commissioner, 213 ; sub- mits ordinance of 1784, 223 ; Secre- tary of State, 235, 242, 250 ; Vice- President, 252 ; elected President, 258, 268 ; presidency, 260-275 ; char- acter and principles, 260 ; portrait, 260 ; buys Louisiana, 262-265 ; em- bargo policy, 274. Johnson, Andrew, elected Vice-Presi- dent, 462 ; President, 470 ; character, 470 ; administration, 469-481 ; im- peachment of, 477 ; plans of recon- struction, 472. Johnson, Herschel V., 409. 580 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Johnson, Richard M., elected Vice- President, 338. Johnston, General A. S., 430 ; portrait, 430 ; killed, 433. Johnston, General J. E., 423, 430, 437, 458, 464, 465 ; portrait, 424. Joliet, his map, 134 ; on the Missis- sippi, 135. Jones, John Paul, 208. Judiciary. See Courts. Judiciary act, 265. Julian, George W., 385. Kansas, struggle in, 393-395, 401. Kansas-Nebraska Bill, 389. Kearny, General, 366. Kearsarge, the, tight with the Ala- bama, 457. Kenesaw Mountain, battle of, 458. Kentucky, admitted, 250; resolutions, 256 ; does not join Confederacy, 427. King, Eufus, 224, 226, 268, 275. King, William R., elected Vice-Presi- dent, 385. King George's War, 139. King William's War, 138. King's Mountain, battle of, 209. Know-Nothing party, 392. Knox, Henry, 237 ; portrait, 238. Ku-Klux-Klan, 484. Labor. See Industrial Conditions. Labor organizations, 512. Ladrone Islands, 532. Lafayette, Marquis do, 205. La Hontan's Map, 137. Lake Champlain, battle of, 288. Lake Erie, battle of, 286. Lane, Joseph, 409. La Salle, Robert de, 135. Las Casas, mentioned, 16. Laud, William, 75, 84. Laurens, Henry, 213. Lawrence, Captain, 287. Lecompton Constitution, 402. Lee, General Charles, treachery of, 206. Lee, Richard Henry, 194. Lee, Robert E., 437, 439, 445, 452-454, 464-465 ; portrait, 437. Legal Tender Act, 449. Leisler, Jacob, 103. Lenox globe, 22. Lewis and Clark, expedition of, 270. Lexington, battle of, 190. Lincoln, Abraham, debates with Douglas, 402; elected President, 409, 410; administration, 417, 468; life and character, 417 ; portrait, 417 ; tirst acts against secession, 428 ; attitude toward emancipation, 441 ; issues proclamation, 442 ; renomi- nated and elected, 460-463 ; assassi- nation, 469. Lincoln, General Benjamin, 208. Literature, American, 332, 542-545. Livingston, Edward, 325. Livingston, Robert R., 262. Locke, John, 63. Loco-foco party, 346. Logan, John A., nominated for vice- presidency, 509. London Company, 36 ; grant under charter of 1609, 40, 41 ; map of grant, 41 ; general courts, 45 ; loss of charter, 48. Long Island, battle of, 198. Lookout Mountain, battle of, 448. Loudon, General, 146. Louisiana, purchase of, 261-264 ; State admitted, 297; State joins Confed- eracy, 420 ; readmitted, 478 ; elec- tion of 1876 in, 495. Lovejoy, Elijah P., 343. Lowell, James R., quoted, 365, 410 ; mentioned, 542. Lundy's Lane, battle of, 288. Macdonough, Commodore, 288. Macon Bill No. 2, 277. Madison, James, in Philadelphia con- vention, 224, 226 ; quoted, 218, 230 ; writes in the Federalist, 231 ; op- poses the bank bill, 241 ; writes the INDEX. 581 Virginia resolutions, 256 ; Secretary of State, 261 ; elected President, 275; administration, 275-295; char- acter, 276 ; portrait, 276. Magellan, Ferdinand, voyage of, 21. Maine founded, 89 ; part of Massachu- setts, 90, 96 ; admitted, 298. Maine, the destruction of the, 530 ; picture of the, 531. Mandeville, Sir John, Voyage and Travels of, 8. Manifest destiny, 363, 387. Manufactures, 539. See also Industrial Conditions. Marbury vs. Madison, 265. Marcy, W. L., quoted, 324 ; Secretary of War, 359. Marietta, Ga., battle near, 458. Marietta, Ohio, founded, 248 ; picture, 248, 321. Marquette, 134, 135. Marshall, John, commissioner, 253 ; chief justice, 266 ; portrait, 266. Maryland, early history, 54-61 ; charter, 55 ; map of grant, 56 ; Tolera- tion Act, 59 ; does not join the Con- federacy, 420, 421. Mason, George, 227^ 303 ; home of, 155. Mason, John, 89 ; grant to, 90. Mason, John Y., 387. Mason and Dixon's line, 56. Massachusetts Bay, Company of, 78 ; the charter of, 78. See also Massa- chusetts. Massachusetts, settlement, 76 ; charac- ter of settlers, 77 ; the land grant, 78 ; intolerance, 86, 91 ; representa- tive government in, 82; towns, 83 ; in confederation, 91 ; under Andros, 94; given new charter, 96; extent of, 96; in eighteenth century, 119. Maximilian, Archduke, 479. Mayflower compact, the, 72. McClellan,424, 436-439 ; portrait, 425 ; nominated for presidency, 462. McDowell, General, 424. McKinley, William, his tariff measure, 517 ; elected President, 527 ; life, 528 ; portrait, 529 ; message on Cuba, 531. Meade, General, 445 ; portrait, 444. Mercator, map of, 24, 25. Merrimac, the, 434. Mexico, people of, 2 ; conquest of, 23 ; trouble with Texas, 354 ; war with, 364-368 ; Maximilian in, 479. Michigan in hands of British, 283 ; ad- mitted, 336. Military situation in civil war, 421, 422, 424, 427 ; in 1862, 430, 432, 440, 445 ; in 1863, 453 ; in 1864, 452, 453, 457. Mill Spring, battle of, 430. Missionary Ridge, battle of, 448. Mississippi admitted, 298 ; joins con- federacy, 420. Missouri, admitted, 298 ; does not join Confederacy, 426. Missouri compromise, 305-S07 ; map, 305; repealed, 388, 389; declared unconstitutional, 399. Mobile, capture of, 456. Monitor, 434. Monmouth, battle of, 206. Monroe doctrine, the, 308, 479, 526. Monroe, James, minister to France, 253 ; treaty with England, 274 ; Sec- retary of State, 276 ; elected Presi- dent, 295, 307 ; administration, 296- 311 ; portrait, 296 ; message of 1823, 308. Montana, 514. Montcalm, Marquis de, 145-148. Montgomery, Richard, 194. Moore's Creek, battle of, 194. Mormons, the, 541. Morris, Gouverncur, in Philadelphia convention, 224, 226 ; portrait, 225 ; quoted, 237. Morris, Robert, services of, 200 ; por- trait, 201. Morris, Thomas, 355. Morristown, suffering at, 208. Morse, Samuel F. B., 353. 582 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Morton, Levi P., elected Vice-Presi- dent, 514. Motley, J. L., 544. Moultrie, Colonel, 197. Moultrie, Fort, 197. Mound builders in North America, 3. Murfreesborough, battle of, 434. Napoleon, 271, 275 ; issues decrees, 274 ; withdraws them, 277 ; confiscates vessels, 277 ; helps bring on war, 277, 278. Nashville, battle of, 460. National Bank. See Bank. Naturalization Act, 256. Naval battles in War of 1812, 284, 287, 288, 290. Navigation laws, the, 52, 172. New England, map of, by John Smith, 68 ; confederation, 91 ; map of, 93 ; early history, 67-97; character of settlers, 77 ; in eighteenth century, 119, 120 ; condition of life, 156-160 ; education, 159 ; towns, 157 ; indus- tries, 158 ; religion, 159 ; conspiracy, 267. New France, founded, 135 ; early his- tory, 130-150; condition, 145; fall of, 148. New Hampshire founded, 89. See also New England. New Haven, 87. New Jersey, early history, 104-107 ; map of, 106 ; founded, 105 ; the "Concessions," 105; divided, 105; character, 106, 161 ; education in, 161. New Netherlands, 98 (see New York) ; map of, 99. New Orleans, founded, 135 ; battle of, 291 ; capture of, 435. New Sweden, 101. New York, early history, 97-104; the patroons, 100; taken by the Eng- lish, 102; local government, 102, 165 ; character, 104 ; in eighteenth century, 120, 121 ; condition, 160-163 ; education in, 161 ; picture, 161 ; the British attack, 197 ; map of, 198. Niagara, 140, 143, 147. Nicollet, Jean, 133. Nominating convention, the first, 330. See also Elections. Non-intercourse, 275-278. Norse ship, picture of, 5. North Carolina, joins Confederacy, 420 ; readmitted, 478. See also Carolinas. North Dakota, admitted, 514 ; men- tioned, 541. Northeastern boundary dispute, 351. Northmen, the, 4. Nullification, 328. See Virginia and Kentucky resolutions. Oglethorpe, James, founds Georgia, 126. Ohio settled, 248, 249 ; admitted, 261, 291. Olney, Kichard, 525. Orders in Council, 273, 281. Ordinance of 1784, 223 ; of 1787, 223. Oregon, 360 ; in election of 1876, 496. Oriskany, battle of, 203. Ostend manifesto, 387. Otis, James, portrait of, 174 ; speech on writs of assistance, 174. Palmer, John M., 528. Palo Alto, battle of, 365. Pan-American Congress, 515. Panic of 1819, 301 ; of 1837, 340 ; of 1857, 403; of 1873, 492; of 1893, 522. Parkman, Francis, 544. Parties, the beginnings, 242-245. Party, the old Republican, 243 ; the Federalist, 243, 245, 257, 259 ; the National Republican, 312, 313 ; the Democratic, 312, 313 ; the Demo- cratic divided, 409; Anti-Masonic, 330 ; the Whig, 330, 373, 385 ; Loco- foco, 346 ; the Liberty, 347 ; the Free- soil, 374 ; the Republican, 391, 401 ; American or Know-Nothing, 392 ; INDEX. 583 Constitutional Union, 409 ; attitude toward slavery, 373, 401, 403, 409; Republicans and reconstruction, 471- 474,477; differences in Republican, 487, 506; The Liberal Republican, 488; the Prohibition, 494; the Greenback, 494; Mugwumps, 509. Patroons, 100. Patroon war, 352. Pemberton, General, 446. Pendleton, George H., 462. Peninsula campaign, 436. Penn, William, purchases West Jer- sey, 105 ; early life, 109 ; portrait, 110; acquires Pennsylvania, 110; founder of colony, 111 ; purposes, 111 ; obtains Delaware, 113 ; makes peace with Indians, 114 ; house, 115 ; death, 122. Pennsylvania, early history, 110-115 ; founded, 111 ; frame of government, 112; a proprietary colony, 113; in eighteenth century, 122; democ- racy in, 114, 162; education, 161; local government, 165. Pequot War, 89. Perry, Commodore, 286. Perry v ill e, battle of, 433. Personal liberty laws, 400. Peru, people of, 2 ; conquest of, 23. Petersburg, 454. Philadelphia, 161 ; the British enter, 204 ; evacuated, 206. Philadelphia convention. See Con- vention, Federal. Philip, King, war with, 93. Philippi, battle of, 422. Philippine Islands, battle in, 532, 533. Phips, Sir William, 138. Pierce, Franklin, elected President, 385 ; administration, 386-398. Pike, Zebulon M., 269. Pilgrims. See Plymouth. Pinckney, Charles C, 225 : minister to France, 253 ; candidate for Presi- dent, 268, 275. Pitt, William, 146 ; quoted, 178. Pittsburg Landing. See Shiloh. Pizarros, 23. Plymouth Colony, 70, 75 ; motives for founding, 69-71 ; map of " New England " by John Smith, 68 ; set- tlement, 72 ; the Mayflower com- pact, 72; flrst page of Bradford manuscript, 73 ; added to Massa- chusetts, 96. Plymouth Company, 36. Polk, James K., elected President, 354-358 ; administration, 360-375 ; character, 359 ; plans, 360. Polo, Marco, 8. Ponce de Leon, 23. Pope, General, 432, 438. Popham Colony, 67. Popular sovereignty, 372, 389-391, 393. Population in the colonies, 153, 154, 156, 160 ; in the United States, 282, 383, 404, 493, 537 ; distribution of, 231, 299, 337, 405, 491, 537 ; center of, 538. Port Royal, 138. Portuguese, the explorations of, 9. Prescott, W. 1L, 544. Presidential succession, 511. Princeton, battle of, 200. Providence. See Rhode Island. Prussia, 143. Ptolemy, Claudius, map of, 12. Puerto Rico annexed, 532. Puritans, the, 77. Quakers, persecuted in Massachusetts, 91 ; in West Jersey, 105 ; origin of sect, 107-109; their beliefs, 108-110. Quebec, founded, 130; attacked by English, 138; map, 148; falls, 148; attacked by Americans, 194. Queen Anne's War, 138. Queenstown, battle of, 283. Railroads, 315-317, 337, 492, 493. Raleigh, Sir Walter, colonies of, 32, 66. Randolph, Edmund, 237. ^ 584 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Randolph, John, quoted, 293, 312 note, 319 ; portrait, 313. Reconstruction, legal difficulties, 471 ; Johnson's plans, 472 ; congres- sional method, 473, 477, 478 ; condi- tion of South during, 478, 483-485, 489 ; a continuing problem, 482, 487, 489 ; elections during, 497 ; troops withdrawn, 500. Redemptioner, 153. Reed, T. B., Speaker, 516. Reid, Whitelaw, 519. Religious liberty, in Maryland, 54-59 ; in the Carolinas, 65 ; in Pennsyl- vania, 114. Renaissance, the, 6. Representation, in England and in America, 169-171. Republican party. See Party. Resaca de la Palma, battle of, 365. Resumption of specie payments, 493, 504. Revolution, the, causes of, 169-188; justice of, 187 ; beginning of, 189 ; results of, 212, 215. Rhode Island, founded, 85, 87 ; char- ter, 92 ; in eighteenth century, 120. Riboro, map of, 26. Rich Mountain, battle of, 422. Riders, 502. Right of discovery, 116. River Raisin, battle at the, 285. Rosecrans, General, 447. Sagas, Icelandic, 5. St. Leger, Colonel Barry, 201 ; defeated, 203. Salary grab, 491. Sandys, Sir Edwin, 45. Saratoga,surrender of Burgoyne at, 203. Savannah taken by the British, 208. Saybrook, 87. Schools. See Education. Scott, Winfield, portrait, 367 ; in War of 1812, 287, 288 ; in Mexican War, 867 ; nominated for President, 385 ; in civil war, 418, 424. Seal fisheries, 524. Secession, 326, 410, 415. Sedition law, 256. Seminole War, the second, 345. Separatists, the, 70. Seven days' battles, 437. Sewall, Arthur, 528. Seward, William H., portrait, 350; speech in 1850, 380 ; mentioned, 386 ; quoted, 391, 403, 457 ; Secre- tary of State, 418 ; assaulted, 469. Seymour, Horatio, nominated for presi- dency, 480. Shays's rebellion, 220. Sheridan, General, 455 ; portrait, 455. Sherman Act, 517, 523. Sherman, General, 448, 458, 464, 465 ; march to the sea, 458 ; quoted, 452, 459 ; portrait, 459. Shiloh, battle of, 433. Ship of fifteenth century, 9. Shipping, 158, 384. Silver. See Currency. Slavery, beginning of, 44 ; in Southern colonies, 153 ; prohibited in North- west, 223 ; discussion in Federal Convention, 227, 303 ; extension, 300, 305, 371, 376-378, 388, 403 ; the cotton gin, 300 ; the Missouri com- promise, 305-307, 388, 389 ; opposed by abolitionists, 343-345; the Wil- mot proviso, 308 ; popular sovereign- ty, 372 ; Calhoun's proposition, 373, 380 ; in 1850, 378-382 ; in Kansas, 395 ; Bred Scott case, 399 ; under- ground railroad, 400; personal lib- erty laws, 400 ; effects, 394, 404-407 ; John Brown's raid, 407 ; cause of the civil war, 416; abolishment of, 441 ; emancipation, 442-444 ; thir- teenth amendment, 463, 464; cause of Southern defeat, 466, 467. Slave trade, 304. Smith, Captain John, 38 ; portrait of, 39; explores New England, 67; map, 68. Southampton, Earl of, 45. INDEX. 585 South Carolina, nullification in, 328 ; secedes, 410; readmitted, 478; con- dition during reconstruction, 484 ; election of 1876 in, 496. See also Carolinas. South Dakota, 514, 541. Southern colonies, condition of, 153- 156. Soule\ Pierre, 387. Spain, dominion, 23, 116; claims in eighteenth century, 125; war with England, 127 ; treaty with, in 1819 (see Treaty) ; misrule in Cuba, 530 ; war with, 532. Spaniards, the, 23. Spanish colonization, character of, 23, 533. Speaker, Clay the first great, 280 ; power of the, 516. Spoils system, the, 324, 506, 507. Spots wood, Alexander, 122. Spottsylvania, battle of, 452. u Stalwarts," the, 506. Stamp Act, the, 175 ; the Stamp Act Congress, 177 ; repealed, 178. Stanton, E. M., Secretary of War, 429 ; portrait, 429 ; removed, 477. Stanwix, Fort, 203. Stark, John, 203. Steamboat, Fulton's, 270; influence, 271, 299. Stephens, Alexander, Confederate Vice-President, 415. Steuben, Baron, 205. Stevenson, Adlai E., elected Vice- President, 519. Stony Point captured, 207. Story, Joseph, 267. Stowe, Mrs., writes Uncle Tom's Cabin, 384. Strikes. See Industrial Conditions. Stuyvesant, Peter, portrait, 103. Sullivan, General John, 207. Sumner, Charles, 386 ; portrait, 396 ; assault upon, 396 ; opinions, 471. Sumter, Fort, 413, 419. Supreme Court. See Courts. Surplus revenue, distribution of, 331 ; reduction of, 508, 513, 514. Swedes, the, settle in America, 101. Talleyrand, Prince, 254, 255. Taney, Roger B., 325. Tariff, the first, 235 ; of 1816, 293 ; of 1824,' 309; of 1828, 319 ; of 1832, 328; of 1833, 328; of 1842, 350; of 1861, 449 ; of 1890, 517 ; of 1895, 525 ; of 1897, 529 ; a party question, 505, 508, 513, 514, 517 ; opposition of the South, 319, 325, 328. Taylor, Zachary, 360; in Mexican War, 363-365 ; nominated for Presi- dent, 374; administration, 375-382; character, 375 ; portrait, 375. Tea Party, 184. Tea tax, 184. Tecumseh, 279, 286. Telegraph, invention, 353; first mes- sage, 358 ; the Atlantic cable, 479. Tennessee admitted, 250; joins Con- federacy, 420. Tenure of Office Act, 476, 477. Texas, 140 note, 353, 354 ; annexed, 356-358 ; map, 357 ; bounds, 358, 361, 364, 370 ; joins Confederacy, 420. Thames, battle of, 286. Thomas, General Lorenzo, 477. Thomas, George H., 430, 447, 448, 460 ; portrait, 447. Thompson, Jacob, 413. Thurman, Allen G., 513. Ticonderoga, taken by English, 147 ; taken by Americans, 191 ; taken by Burgoyne, 201. Tilden, S. J., nominated for presi- dency, 494 ; portrait, 495. Tippecanoe, battle of, 279. Tobacco, cultivation of, 43. Tompkins, D. D., elected Vice-Presi- dent, 295. Toscanelli, letter of, 13 ; map of, 14. Towns in New England, 83, 157, 163. Townshend acts, the, 180; modifica- tion of, 181. 586 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION. Treaty, the American, of 1670, 125; of Utrecht, 138; of 1763, 148; of 1783, 213 ; not fulfilled, 218, 246 ; of 1794, 250; of 1806, by Monroe, 274; of 1814, 291 ; of 1842, 351 ; the Ore- gon, 361 ; the Mexican, 369; of Wash- ington, 486 ; with Spain, 302, 533. Trent affair, the, 429. Trenton, battle of, 200. Tyler, John, character, 346 ; nominated for Vice-President, 346; President, 349-358 ; and Texas, 354-357. Tlncle Tom's Cabin, 384. Underground railroad, 400. Union, plans of, 103, 104, 139 ; the New England confederation, 91. United States, boundaries of original, 213 ; development of, 536-547. See also Annexation. United States bank. See Bank. Utah mentioned, 541. Valley Forge, 205. Van Buren, Martin, Secretary of State, 325 ; Vice-President, 330 ; elected President, 338 ; administration, 339- 348 ; in 1844, 354, 355 ; nominated for President, 374. Venezuelan dispute, 525. Vermont admitted, 250. Verrazano, 29. Vespucius, Americus, voyages of, 20 ; America named from, 21. Vicksburg, capture of, 446. Vikings, the, 5. V inland, 5. Virginia, early history, 32-54 ; charter, first, 1606, 36; map of grant, 35; second, 1609, 40; map of grant, 41 ; third, 1612, 45; Great Charter, 1618, 46 ; House of Burgesses, establish- ment of, 46 ; becomes a royal colony 48 ; character, 53 ; in eighteenth cen- tury, 122-124 ; life in, 154-156 ; edu- cation, 156 ; local government, 164 ; joins Confederacy, 420. Virginia and Kentucky resolutions, 256. Walker, Eobert J., 359. Wall Street, 236. Walpole, Horace, quoted, 148. War, intercolonial, 1 27, 128-138 ; Revo- lutionary, 189-215 ; of 1812, 281-291 ; effect of, 292 ; with Mexico, 362-369 ; the civil, 418-468 ; with Spain, 531- 533. Washington admitted, 514. Washington city, the capital, 241, 257 note ; taken by British, 289. Washington, George, portrait, frontis- piece ; meets the French, 140 ; at Braddock's Field, 142; made com- mander, 191 ; character, 191, 251 ; de- fends New York, 197 ; retreats across New Jersey, 199; at Trenton and Princeton, 200 ; his skill, 200 ; given authority, 200 ; at Brandy wine, 204 ; at Germantown, 204 ; at Monmouth, 206 ; at Yorkto\vn,211 ; his accounts, 214; in Philadelphia convention, 224; President, 233-252; farewell address, 251 ; Trenton reception, 259. Watcrtown remonstrance, 81. Watson, Thomas E., 528. Wayne, General Anthony, 207 ; defeats Indians, 249. Weaver, James B., 520. Webster, Daniel, quoted, 224, 542 ; en- ters Congress, 279 ; opposed to tariff, 293; reply to Hayne, 327; portrait, 327 ; in Tyler's Cabinet, 350 ; makes treaty, 351 ; 7th of March speech, 379 ; death, 385. West, the, migration to, 297-300 ; prog- ress of, 249, 336, 541. Western land claims, 221 ; given up, 221 ; map, 219. Western reserve, 222. West India Company, 98. West Virginia admitted, 422. Wheeler, W. A., elected Vice-Presi- dent, 494, 497. INDEX. .87 Whig party (see Party) ; named, 330 ; divided on slavery question, 373. Whisky rebellion, 245. Whisky ring, the, 490. White, John, 77. White Plains, battle of, 199. Whittier, J. G., 542. Wilderness, battle of, 452. Wilkinson, General J., 269, 288. William and Mary College, view of,168. William III, 95, 138. Williams, Roger, 84, 85. Wilmot proviso, the, 3G8. Wilson, Henry, elected Vice-President, 488. Wilson, James, portrait, 224 ; in Phil- adelphia convention, 224, 226. Winsor, Justin, 544. Winthrop, John, portrait of, 81. Winthrop, John, Jr., portrait of, 87. Wisconsin admitted, 376. Wolfe, General James, 147, 148. World's Fair, the, 523, 545, 546 ; view at, 547. Writs of assistance, 173. Wyatt, Sir Francis, 47. Wyoming, massacre of, 207. Wyoming admitted, 514; mentioned, 541. X Y Z affair, 254. Yeardley, George, 46. Yorktown, surrender at, 211. Zenger, John, tried for libel, 121. (2) THE END. »v THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE THIS BOUJ % x TAMPED BELOW OVERDUE. JilL_24JS4J- SEF~5 1945 mi NOV 12 iSApiusse?- ^^51B L tAR-S-^HsSfrt® LD21-100m-7/40 (6936b) IU 2/V42 LIBRARY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED LOAN DEPT. THis o B N oo LyT s ga-ssss^gs^™ ^BPlLfff 03^ wov^Agf tC'D ■%■ i-O i9 ^a flu LD 62A-20m-9,'63 (E709slO)9412A General Library University of California Berkeley