I THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN; CONTAINING THE . DECLARATION OF INDEPENBEN-Cte/ .* / : THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, THE INAUGURAL AND FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESSES AND MESSAGES OF ALL THE PRESIDENTS, AND OTHER IMPORTANT STATE PAPERS; TOGETHER WITH A SELECTION OF INTERESTING STATISTICAL TABLES, AND BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, THE SEVERAL PRESIDENTS, AND MANY OTHER DISTINGUISHED CHARACTERS. BY M. S.EARS. Embellished with the Portraits of the Presidents, FROM WASHINGTON TO TYLER. SIXTH EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS. BOSTON: BELA MARSH. 1844. 301 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1841, BY E. LELAND AND W. J. WHITING, In the Clerk s Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. GIFT OF Jiattcroit JJBRARY PREFACE. WE could not find it in our hearts to leave to an uncertain, and, perhaps, unwelcome reception, the compilation which we here offer to the reader. A preface is a letter of introduction, designed to secure for a work a favorable reception, and too often makes a display of qualities not found in its subject We shall, therefore, not attempt to accumulate a mass of high sounding epithets, to usher in the approach of our book, nor assert, in the usual style of a preface, that no knowledge is so important to man, as that which we intend to convey. But we would admonish the young American of the necessity of knowing something more of the subject on which he the most frequently reads and converses. It is not sufficient to know that our government has been alternately administered by federalists and republicans, but it is necessary to learn their difference, from the prominent measures of each administration ; and this can be learned only from public documents. It is true that the press teems with political publications, from which it might be supposed that the people could obtain the requisite information. But it is to be remembered, that most of these exhibitions of political faith are made by men who have formed their creed, not from the light emitted by the " fathers of our constitution," but from the peculiar circumstances connected with their education and early associations ; and how honest soever may be the advocates of different views, it cannot be denied that a more accurate knowledge of the basis of our government can be obtained from the doctrines of those who labored to confirm and strengthen it. All political wisdom was not revealed to the early apostles of American independ- O^ -- 4~*r*"l f 0613^75 4 PREFACE. ence, but an accurate estimate of the comparative value of different political truths can be best obtained from a knowl edge of the circumstances in which they originated, and of their progress to the present time. The statistical information in this work has been carefully collected from the most approved authorities, and the necessary corrections in them have been made, wherever typographical errors appeared. In the lives of the men who were chiefly instrumental in conducting our country through the storm of the revolution, we have endeavored to delineate the peculiar features of their political characters, by a relation of the prominent incidents in their lives, rather than by identifying them with any political party. In this portipn of our book, we have exceeded the limits which we prescribed to ourselves in our prospectus, that we might not mar the symmetry of the structure, by omitting any of its parts. We would, in conclusion, express our gratitude to our friends, for the activity and zeal which they have manifested in extending to us their valuable aid and encouragement CONTENTS. Page. Declaration of Independence, 7 Constitution of the United States, 12 Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, 25 Washington s Inaugural Address, 27 First Annual Address, 31 Farewell Address, 35 J. Adams s Inaugural Address, 51 First Annual Address, 58 Jefferson s Inaugural Address, " 64 First Annual Message, 69 Madison s Inaugural Address, 77 First Annual Message, 81 Monroe s Inaugural Address, 86 First Annual Message, 95 J. Q. Adams s Inaugural Address, 107 First Annual Message, 115 Jackson s Inaugural Address, 139 First Annual Message, 143 Farewell Address, 171 Van Buren s Inaugural Address, 192 First Annual Message, . , 203 Harrison s Inaugural Address, 234 Tyler s Address to the People, 257 Extra Session Message, 261 Jackson s Maysville Road Veto, 277 Bank Veto, 292 Tyler s First Bank Veto, 313 Second Bank Veto, 320 Statistical Tables Extra Sessions of Congress, 326 Governors of the several States and Territories, 327 Revenue of United States, and Losses by Defalcations, .... 328 Disbursements of Revenue, and Amount of Defalcations,. .330 Amount of Debts due on Custom-House Bonds, &c., 331 Seats of Government, and Times of holding Elections, 331 Dates of the first Settlement of the several Colonies, 332 Adoption of the first State Constitutions, 332 Expenditure upon Works of Internal Improvement, 332 Navy- Yards in the United States, 332 Officers of United States Mint, and their Salaries, 333 I* 6 CONTENTS. Page. Post-Offices Privilege of Franking, 333 United States Executive Officers, and their Salaries, 334 Salaries of Officers of the Senate, 334 of Officers of the House of Representatives, 334 in different Departments of the Government, 335 of Officers of the Supreme Court, 336 Congress, 336 Votes for President and Vice-President, 337 Population, Square Miles, &c., of the United States, 338 Imports and Exports of the United States, 339 Cities of the United States, 339 Apportionment of Representation for Congress in each State, 339 United States Supreme Court, 340 Circuit Courts, 340 District Courts, 341 Presidents of Congress, from 1774 to 1788, 341 Signers of the Declaration of Independence, 342 Events connected with the History of the United States,. ..346 Relative Value of Bank Notes in 1816 and in 1829, 350 Biographical Sketches of the Signers of the Declaration of In dependence, 352 Select Lives of Persons distinguished in American History, ... .452 Lives of the Presidents of the United States George Washington, 507 John Adams, 511 Thomas Jefferson, 515 James Madison, 525 James Monroe, 528 John Quincy Adams, 531 Andrew Jackson, 535 Martin Van Buren, 544 William Henry Harrison, 546 APPENDIX. Date of the Formation of the State Constitutions, &c., 553 Qualifications of Voters, or Right of Suffrage, in each State,. . . .554 for Governors, Senators, and Representatives in the different States, 557 Description of the Capitol of the United States, 561 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. WHEN, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident : that all men are created equal ; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights ; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed ; and that, whenever any form of government becomes destruc tive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundations on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments, long established, should not be changed for light and transient causes ; and, accordingly, all expe rience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursu ing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce 8 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. them under absoluedespotism, it is their right, it is their duty; fq^throw.tJff^su ch government, and to provide new guards foV their future security. Such has been the pa tient sufferance of the colonies, and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present king of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world. He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of imme diate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operations till his assent should be obtained ; and, when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them. He has refused to pass other laws for the accommoda tion of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature a right inestimable to them, and formidable to tyrants only. He has called together legislative bodies at places unu sual, uncomfortable, and distant from the repository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures. He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people. He has refused, for a long time after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected ; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise ; the state remaining, in the mean time, exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without and convulsions within. He has endeavored to prevent the population of these states ; for that purpose obstructing the laws of naturali zation of foreigners, refusing to pass others to encourage their migration thither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands. He has obstructed the administration of justice, by re fusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 9 He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries. He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance. He has kept among us, in time of peace, standing ar mies, without the consent of our legislatures. He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior to, the civil power. He has combined with others to subject us to a juris diction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws ; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legislation, For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us ; For protecting them, by a mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhab itants of these states ; For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world ; For imposing taxes on us without our consent ; For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefit of trial by jury; For transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pre tended offences; For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these colonies ; For taking away our charters, abolishing our most val uable laws, and altering, fundamentally, the forms of our governments ; For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever. He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection, arid waging war against us. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people. He is, at this time, transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation, 10 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and tyranny, already begun, with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation. He has constrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on the high seas, to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands. He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of war fare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions. In every stage of these oppressions, we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms. Our repeated peti tions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. Nor have we been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them, from time to time, of the attempts, by their legislature, to extend an unwarranta ble jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them, by the ties of our common kin dred, to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They, too, have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity which de nounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace, friends. We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and de clare that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states ; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved ; and that, as DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 11 free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish com merce, and to do all other acts and things which independ ent states may of right do. And, for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Di vine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor. The foregoing declaration was, by order of Congress, engrossed, and signed by the following members : JOHN HANCOCK. New Hampshire. JOSIAH BARTLETT, WILLIAM WHIFFLE, MATTHEW THORNTON. Massachusetts Bay. SAMUEL ADAMS, JOHN ADAMS, ROBERT TREAT PAINE, ELBRIDGE GERRY. Rhode Island. STEPHEN HOPKINS, WILLIAM ELLERY. Connecticut. ROGER SHERMAN, SAMUEL HUNTINGTON, WILLIAM WILLIAMS, OLIVER WOLCOTT. New York. WILLIAM FLOYD, PHILIP LIVINGSTON, FRANCIS LEWIS, LEWIS MORRIS. New Jersey. RICHARD STOCKTON, JOHN WITHERSPOON, FRANCIS HOPKINSON, JOHN HART, ABRAHAM CLARK. Pennsylvania. ROBERT MORRIS, BENJAMIN RUSH, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, JOHN MORTON, GEORGE CLYMER, JAMES SMITH, GEORGE TAYLOR, JAMES WILSON, GEORGE ROSS. Delaware. CMSAR RODNEY, GEORGE READ, THOMAS M KEAN. Maryland. SAMUEL CHASE, WILLIAM PACA, THOMAS STONE, CHARLES CARROLL, of Car rol] ton. Virginia. GEORGE WYTHE, RICHARD HENRY LEE, THOMAS JEFFERSON, BENJAMIN HARRISON, THOMAS NELSON, JR. FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE, CARTER BRAXTON. North Carolina. WILLIAM HOOPER, JOSEPH HEWES, JOHN PENN. South Carolina. EDWARD RUTLEDGE, THOMAS HEYWARD, JR THOMAS LYNCH, JR. ARTHUR M1DDLETON. Georgia. BUTTON GWINNETT, LYMAN HALL, GEORGE WALTON 12 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. We, the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide 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. I. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. SECT. II. 1. 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. 2. No person shall be a representative who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of the state in which he shall be chosen. 3. 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 service 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 manner 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 Plantations, one; Connecticut, five; New CONSTITUTION. 13 York, six ; New Jersey, four ; Pennsylvania, eight ; Drl- aware, one ; Maryland, six ; Virginia, ten ; North Car olina, five ; South Carolina, five ; Georgia, three. 4. When vacancies happen in the representation from any state, the executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. 5. The House of Representatives shall choose their speaker and other officers, and shall have the sole power of impeachment. SECT. Ill 1. 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. 2. Immediately after they shall be assembled in conse quence 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 expiration of the fourth year, and 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 appoint ments until the next meeting of the legislature, which phall then fill such vacancies. 3. No person shall be a senator who shall not have *ttained the age of thirty years, and been nine years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when -Jected, be an inhabitant of that state for which he shall je chosen. 4. The Vice-President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided. 5. 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 Presi dent of the United States. 6. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all im peachments. When sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the President of the Uni ted States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside ; and no 2 14 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two thirds of the members present. 7. 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, never theless, be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to law. SECT. IV. 1. The times, places, and manner of hold ing elections for senators and representatives shall be pre scribed 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. 2. 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 differ ent day. SECT. V. 1. Each house shall be judge of the elec tions, returns, and qualifications of its own members ; and a majority of each shall constitute a quorum to do busi ness ; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penalties, as each house may provide. 2. Each house may determine the rules of its pro ceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two thirds, expel a member. 3. 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. 4. 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. VI. 1. The senators and representatives shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the treasury of the United States. They shall, in all cases, except treason, felony, and breach CONSTITUTION. 15 of the peace, be privileged from arrest, during their at tendance at the session of their respective houses, and in going to or returning from the same ; and for any speech or debate in either house, they shall not be questioned in any other place. 2. No senator or representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments 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. VII. 1. All bills for raising revenue shall ori ginate in the House of Representatives ; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments, as on other bills. 2. 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 re consideration, two thirds of that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other house, 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 entered on the journals 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 Congress, by their adjournment, prevent its return ; in which case it shall not be a law. 3. Every order, resolution, or vote, to which the con currence 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 16 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill. SECT. VIII. The Congress shall have power 1. To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and ex cises ; to pay the debts and provide for the common de fence and general welfare of the United States ; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States : 2. To borrow money on the credit of the United States : 3. To regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes : 4. To establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies, throughout the United States : 5. To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and meas ures : 6. To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States : 7. To establish post-offices and post-roads : 8. 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 dis coveries : 9. To constitute tribunals inferior to the supreme court : 10. To define and punish piracies and felonies com mitted on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations : 11. To declare war, grant letters of marque and repri sal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water : 12. To raise and support armies ; but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years : 13. To provide and maintain a navy : 14. To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces : CONSTITUTION. 17 15. To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions : 16. 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 : 17. To exercise exclusive legislation, in all cases what soever, over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the accept ance of Congress, become the seat of government of the United States, and to exercise like authority 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 build ings : And, 18. 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. IX. I. The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states, now existing, shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight ; but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person. 2. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when, in cases of rebellion or inva sion, the public safety may require it. 3. No bill of attainder, or ex post facto law, shall be passed. 4. No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in proportion to the census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken. 5. 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 2* 18 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. from one state be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another. 6. No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law ; and a regu lar statement and account of the receipts and expendi tures of all public money shall be published from time to time. 7. 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, emolument, office, or title of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state. SECT. X. 1. No state shall enter into any treaty, alli ance, or confederation ; grant letters of marque and repri sal ; 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 im pairing the obligation of contracts ; or grant any title of nobility. 2. No state shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any imposts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its in spection laws ; and the net produce of all duties and im posts 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 on tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement or com pact with another state or with a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded, OT in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay. ARTICLE II. SECT. I. 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 : 2. Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal CONSTITUTION. 19 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 holding an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector. 3. [Annulled. See Amendments, art. 12.] 4. The 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. 5. No person, except a natural-born citizen, or a citi zen of the United States at the time of the adoption of this constitution, shall be eligible to the office of Presi dent ; neither shall any person be eligible to that office, who shall not have attained the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident within the United States. 6. In case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of 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 in ability, both of the President arid 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. 7. 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. 8. 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 de fend the constitution of the United States." SECT. II. 1. 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 20 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 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 relating 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. 2. 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 nomi nate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Sen ate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers 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 appoint ment of such inferior officers as they think proper, in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments. 3. The President shall have power to fill up all vacan cies that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions, which shaU expire at the end of their next session. SECT. III. He shall, from time to time, give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recom mend to their consideration 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 of ficers of the United States. SECT. IV. 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 misdemeanors. ARTICLE III. SECT. I. The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in one supreme court, and in such inferior CONSTITUTION. 21 courts as the Congress may, from time to time, ordain and establish. The judges, both of the supreme and in ferior 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 con tinuance in office. SECT. II. 1. 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 authority ; to all cases affect ing ambassadors, and 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 citizens of another state ; between citizens of different states ; between citizens of the same state, claim ing lands under grants of different states, and between a state, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or subjects. 2. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public min isters, and consuls, and those in which a state shall be a party, the supreme court shall have original jurisdiction. In all other cases before mentioned, the supreme court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions, and under such regulations, as the Congress shall make. 3. The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeach ment, shall be by jury ; arid 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 a place or places as the Congress may by law have directed. SECT. III. 1. 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 per son shall be convicted of treason, unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or confessions in open court. 2. The Congress shall have power to declare the pun ishment of treason ; but no attainder of treason shall work 22 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. corruption of blood, or forfeiture, except during the life of the person attainted. ARTICLE IV. SECT. I. 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 manner in which such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof. SECT. II. 1. The citizens of each state shall be enti tled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states. 2. 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 au thority of the state from which he fled, be delivered up to be removed to the state having jurisdiction of the crime. 3. No person held to service or labor in one state, un der the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in con sequence 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. III. 1. New states may be admitted by the Con gress 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 the consent of the legislature of the states concerned, as well as of the Congress. 2. The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful 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. IV. The United States shall guaranty to every state of this Union a republican form of govern ment, and shall protect each of them against invasion, and, on application of the legislature, or of the executive, CONSTITUTION. 23 (when the legislature cannot be convened,) against do mestic 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 consti tution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several states, or by conventions in three fourths there of, 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. 1. 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. 2. This constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or which shall 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 ; any thing in the constitution or laws of any state to the contrary notwithstanding. 3. The senators and representatives before mentioned, and the members of the several state legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several states, shall be bound by oath or affirma tion 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. THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ARTICLE VII. The ratification of the conventions of nine states shall be sufficient for the establishment of this constitu tion 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 Ameri ca the twelfth. In witness whereof, we have hereunto subscribed our names. GEORGE WASHINGTON, President, and Deputy from Virginia. New Hampshire JOHN LANGDON, NICHOLAS GILMAN. Massachusetts. NATHANIEL GORHAM, RUFUS KING. Connecticut. WM. SAMUEL JOHNSON, ROGER SHERMAN. New York. ALEXANDER HAMILTON. New Jersey. WILLIAM LIVINGSTON, DAVID BREARLEY, WILLIAM PATTERSON, JONATHAN DAYTON. Pennsylvania. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, THOiMAS MIFFLIN, ROBERT MORRIS, GEORGE CLYMER, THOMAS FITZSIMONS, JARED INGERSOLL, JAMES WILSON, GOUVERNEUR MORRIS. Delaware. GEORGE READ, GUNNING BEDFORD, JR. JOHN DICKERSON, RICHARD BASSETT, JACOB BROOM. Maryland. JAMES M HENRY, DAN L. of ST. THO. JENIFER, DANIEL CARROLL. Virginia. JOHN BLAIR, JAMES MADISON, JR. North Carolina. WILLIAM BLOUNT, RICH. DOBBS SPAIGHT, HUGH WILLIAMSON. South Carolina. JOHN RUTLEDGE, CHARLES C. PINCKNEY, CHARLES PINCKNEY, PIERCE BUTLER. Georgia. WILLIAM FEW, ABRAHAM BALDWIN. Jlttest, WILLIAM JACKSON, Secretary. AMENDMENTS. 25 AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION. ART. I. Congress shall make no law respecting an es tablishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press ; or the right of the people peaceably to assem ble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. ART. 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. ART. III. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quar tered in any house without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law. ART. IV. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasona ble 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. ART. V. No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a present ment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases aris ing in the land or naval forces, or in the militia 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 witness against himself, nor be de prived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation. ART. 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 district 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 3 26 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and to have the assistance of counsel for his defence. ART. VII. In suits of 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 reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law, ART. VIII. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punish ments inflicted. ART. IX. The enumeration in the constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people. ART. X. The powers not delegated to the United States by the constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people. ART. XI. 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. ART. XII. The electors shall meet in their respec tive states, and vote by ballot for President and Vice-Pres- ident, 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 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 President, if such number be a ma jority of the whole number of electors appointed ; and if no person have such majority, then, from the persons hav ing the highest number, not exceeding three, on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representa- WASHINGTON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. ^7 lives 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, be fore 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. 2. The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such num ber be a majority of the whole number of electors ap pointed ; 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 majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. 3. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President, shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States. ART. XIII. If any citizen of the United States shall accept, claim, receive, or retain any title of nobility or honor, or shall, without the consent of Congress, accept or retain any present, pension, office, or emolument of any kind whatever, from any emperor, king, prince, or foreign power, such person shall cease to be a citizen of the United States, and shall be incapable of holding any office of trust or profit under them, or either of them. WASHINGTON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS APRIL 30, 1789. Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives : AMONG the vicissitudes incident to life, no event could have filled me with greater anxieties than that of which 28 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the notification was transmitted by your order, and re ceived on the 14th day of the present month. On the one hand, I was summoned by my country, whose voice I can never hear but with veneration and love, from a retreat which I had chosen with the fondest predilection, and, in my flattering hopes, with an immutable decision, as the asylum of my declining years, a retreat which was ren dered every day more necessary as well as more dear to me by the addition of habit to inclination, and of frequent interruptions in my health, to the gradual waste commit ted on it by time. On the other hand, the magnitude and difficulty of the trust to which the voice of my country called me, being sufficient to awaken in the wisest and most experienced of her citizens a distrustful scrutiny into his qualifications, could not but overwhelm with despond ence one who, inheriting inferior endowments from na ture, and unpractised in the duties of civil administration, ought to be peculiarly conscious of his own deficiencies. In this conflict of emotions, all that I dare aver is, that it has been my faithful study to collect my duty from a just appreciation of every circumstance by which it might be affected. All I dare hope is, that if, in executing this task, I have been too much swayed by a grateful remembrance of former instances, or by an affectionate sensibility to this transcendent proof of the confidence of my fellow-citizens, and have thence too little consulted my incapacity as well as disinclination for the weighty and untried cares before me, my error will be palliated by the motives which misled me, and its consequences be judged by my country with some share of the partiality with which they originated. Such being the impressions under which I have, in obedience to the public summons, repaired to the present station, it would be peculiarly improper to omit, in this first official act, my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose providential aids can sup ply every human defect, that his benediction may conse crate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States a government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes, and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success the WASHINGTON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 29 functions allotted to his charge. In tendering this hom age to the great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own, nor those of my fellow-citizens at large, less than either. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men, more than the people of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency ; and in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their united government, the tranquil deliberations and voluntary con sent of so many distinct communities, from which the event has resulted, cannot be compared with the means by which most governments have been established, without some re turn of pious gratitude, along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seems to presage. These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be sup pressed. You will join with me, I trust, in thinking that there are none under the influence of which the proceed ings of a new and free government can more auspiciously commence. By the article establishing the executive department, it is made the duty of the President " to recommend to your consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient." The circumstances under which I now meet you will acquit me from entering into that subject further than to refer to the great constitutional charter under which you are assembled, and which, in denning your powers, designates the objects to which your atten tion is to be given. It will be more consistent with those circumstances, and far more congenial with the feelings which actuate me, to substitute, in place of a recommenda tion of particular measures, the tribute that is due to the talents, the rectitude, and the patriotism which adorn the characters selected to devise and adopt them. In these honorable qualifications I behold the surest pledges that as, on one side, no local prejudices or attachments, no sepa rate views nor party animosities, will misdirect the com prehensive and equal eye which ought to watch over this 3* 30 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. great assemblage of communities and interests, so, on another, that the foundations of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private mo rality ; and the preeminence of free government be exem plified by all the attributes which can win the affections of its citizens, and command the respect of the world. I dwell on this prospect with every satisfaction which an ardent love for my country can inspire, since there is no truth more thoroughly established than that there exists in the economy and course of nature an indissoluble union between virtue and happiness; between duty and advan tage; between the genuine maxims of an honest and mag nanimous policy and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity ; since we ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained, and since the pres ervation of the sacred fire of liberty, and the destiny of the republican model of government, are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as finally, staked on the experiment in trusted to the hands of the American people. Besides the ordinary objects submitted to your care, it will remain with your judgment to decide how far an exercise of the occasional power delegated by the fifth article of the constitution is rendered expedient, at the present juncture, by the nature of the objections which have been urged against the system, or by the degree of inquietude which has given birth to them. Instead of undertaking particular recommendations on this subject, in which I could be guided by no lights derived from of ficial opportunities, I shall again give way to my entire confidence in your discernment and pursuit of the public good ; for I assure myself that, while you carefully avoid every alteration which might endanger the benefits of a united and effective government, or which ought to await the future lessons of experience, a reverence for the char acteristic rights of freemen, and a regard for the public harmony, will sufficiently influence your deliberations on the question how far the former can be more impregnably fortified, or the latter be safely and advantageously pro moted. WASHINGTON S FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS. 31 To the preceding observations I have one to add, which will be most properly addressed to the House of Represen tatives. It concerns myself, and will therefore be as brief as possible. When I was first honored with a call into the service of my country, then on the eve of an arduous struggle for its liberties, the light in which I contemplated my duty required that I should renounce every pecuniary compensation. From this resolution I have in no instance departed; and being still under the impressions which produced it, I must decline, as inapplicable to myself, any share in the personal emoluments which may be indispen sably included in a permanent provision for the executive department, and must accordingly pray that the pecuniary estimates for the station in which I am placed, may, during my continuance in it, be limited to such actual expendi tures as the public good may be thought to require. Having thus imparted to you my sentiments as they have been awakened by the occasion which brings us together, I shall take my present leave, but not without resorting once more to the benign Parent of the human race, in humble supplication that, since he has been pleased to favor the American people with opportunities for deliber ating in perfect tranquillity, and dispositions for deciding with unparalleled unanimity on a form of government for the security of their union and the advancement of their hap piness, so his divine blessing may be equally conspicuous in the enlarged views, the temperate consultations, and the wise measures on which the success of this government must depend. WASHINGTON S FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS. JANUARY 8, 1790. Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives : I EMBRACE with great satisfaction the opportunity which now presents itself of congratulating you on the present favorable prospects of our public affairs. The recent ac cession of the important state of North Carolina to the 32 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. constitution of the United States, (of which official infor mation has been received,) the rising credit and respecta bility of our country, the general and increasing good-will towards the government of the Union, and the concord, peace, and plenty, with which we are blessed, are circum stances auspicious, in an eminent degree, to our national prosperity. In resuming your consultations for the general good, you cannot but derive encouragement from the reflec tion that the measures of the last session have been as satisfactory to your constituents, as the novelty and diffi culty of the work allowed you to hope. Still further to realize their expectations, and to secure the blessings which a gracious Providence has placed within our reach, will, in the course of the present important session, call for the cool and deliberate exertion of your patriotism, firmness, and wisdom. Among the many interesting objects which will engage your attention, that of providing for the common defence will merit particular regard. To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace. A free people ought not only to be armed, but disci plined ; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite : and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactures as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military supplies. The proper establishment of the troops which may be deemed indispensable, will be entitled to mature considera tion. In the arrangements which may be made respecting it, it will be of importance to conciliate the comfortable support of the officers and soldiers, with a due regard to economy. There was reason to hope that the pacific measures adopted with regard to certain hostile tribes of Indians would have relieved the inhabitants of our southern and western frontiers from their depredations ; but you will perceive from the information contained in the papers which I shall direct to be laid before you, (comprehending a communication from the Commonwealth of Virginia,) that we ought to be prepared to afford protection to those parts of the Union, and, if necessary, to punish aggressors. WASHINGTON S FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS. 33 The interests of the United States require that our in tercourse with other nations should be facilitated by such provisions as will enable me to fulfil my duty in that respect, in the manner which circumstances may render most conducive to the public good, and, to this end, that the compensations to be made to the persons who may be employed should, according to the nature of their appoint ments, be defined by law ; and a competent fund designa ted for defraying the expenses incident to the conduct of our foreign affairs. Various considerations also render it expedient that the terms on which foreigners may be admitted to the rights of citizens, should be speedily ascertained by a uniform rule of naturalization. Uniformity in the currency, weights and measures of the United States, is an object of great importance, and will, I am persuaded, be duly attended to. The advancement of agriculture, commerce, and manu factures, by all proper means, will not, I trust, need recom mendation ; but I cannot forbear intimating to you the ex pediency of giving effectual encouragement, as well to the introduction of new and useful inventions from abroad, as to the exertions of skill and genius in producing them at home ; and of facilitating the intercourse between the distant parts of our country by a due attention to the post-office and post-roads. Nor am I less persuaded that you will agree with me in opinion, that there is nothing which can better deserve your patronage than the promotion of science and litera ture. Knowledge is in every country the surest basis of public happiness. In one in which the measures of gov ernment receive their impressions so immediately from the sense of the community as in ours, it is proportionably essential. To the security of a free constitution it con tributes in various ways : by convincing those who are intrusted with the public administration, that every valua ble end of government is best answered by the enlightened confidence of the people; and by teaching the people themselves to know and to value their own rights ; to dis cern and provide against invasions of them ; to distinguish between oppression and the necessary exercise of lawful 34 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. authority ; between burdens proceeding from a disregard to their convenience, and those resulting from the inevita ble exigencies of society ; to discriminate the spirit of liberty from that of licentiousness, cherishing the first, avoiding the last, and uniting a speedy but temperate vigilance against encroachments, with an inviolable re spect to the laws. Whether this desirable object will be best promoted by affording aids to seminaries of learning already established ; by the institution of a national university; or by any other expedients, will be well worthy of a place in the delibera tions of the legislature. Gentlemen of the House of Representatives : I saw with peculiar pleasure, at the close of the last session, the resolution entered into by you, expressive of your opinion that an adequate provision for the support of the public credit, is a matter of high importance to the national honor and prosperity. In this sentiment I entirely concur. And, to a perfect confidence in your best en deavors to devise such a provision as will be truly consistent with the end, I add an equal reliance on the cheerful co operation of the other branch of the legislature. It would be superfluous to specify inducements to a measure in which the character and permanent interest of the United States are so obviously and so deeply concerned, and which has received so explicit a sanction from your declaration. Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives : I have directed the proper officers to lay before you, respectively, such papers and estimates as regard the affairs particularly recommended to your consideration, and ne cessary to convey to you that information of the state of the Union which it is my duty to afford. The welfare of our country is the great object to which our cares and efforts ought to be directed. And I shall derive great satisfaction from a cooperation with you, in the pleasing, though arduous task of insuring to our fellow- citizens the blessings which they have a right to expect from a free, efficient, and equal government. THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 35 WASHINGTON S FAREWELL ADDRESS. SEPTEMBER 17, 1796. Friends and Fellow-Citizens : THE period for a new election of a citizen to adminis ter the executive government of the United States being not far distant, and the time actually arrived when your thoughts must be employed in designating the person who is to be clothed with that important trust, it appears to me proper, especially as it may conduce to a more distinct ex pression of the public voice, that I should now apprize you of the resolution I have formed, to decline being consid ered among the number of those out of whom the choice is to be made. I beg you, at the same time, to do me the justice to be assured, that this reso\ution has not been taken without a strict regard to all the considerations appertaining to the relation which binds a dutiful citizen to his country; and that, in withdrawing the tender of service, which silence in my situation might imply, I am influenced by no diminu tion of zeal for your future interest ; no deficiency of grateful respect for your past kindness ; but am supported by a full conviction that the step is compatible with both. The acceptance of, and continuance hitherto in, the office to which your suffrages have twice called me, have been a uniform sacrifice of inclination to the opinion of duty, and to a deference for what appeared to be your de sire. I constantly hoped that it would have been much earlier in my power, consistently with motives which I was not at liberty to disregard, to return to that retirement from which I had been reluctantly drawn. The strength of my inclination to do this, previous to the last election, had even led to the preparation of an address to declare it to you ; but mature reflection on the then perplexed and critical posture of affairs with foreign nations, and the unanimous advice of persons entitled to my confidence, impelled me to abandon the idea. I rejoice that the state of your concerns, external as well as internal, no longer renders the pursuit of inclination incompatible with the 36 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. sentiment of duty or propriety ; and am persuaded, what ever partiality may be retained for my services, that, in the present circumstances of our country, you will not disap prove of my determination to retire. The impressions with which I first undertook the ardu ous trust, were explained on the proper occasion. In the discharge of this trust, I will only say that I have, with good intentions, contributed towards the organization and administration of the government the best exertions of which a very fallible judgment was capable. Not uncon scious, in the outset, of the inferiority of my qualifications, experience in my own eyes, perhaps still more in the eyes of others, has strengthened the motives to diffidence of myself; and, every day, the increasing weight of years admonishes me more and more, that the shade of retire ment is as necessary to me as it will be welcome. Satisfied that if any circumstances have given peculiar value to my services, they were temporary, I have the consolation to believe, that while choice and prudence invite me to quit the political scene, patriotism does not forbid it. In looking forward to the moment which is to terminate the career of my political life, my feelings do not permit me to suspend the deep acknowledgment of that debt of gratitude which I owe to my beloved country for the many honors it has conferred upon me ; still more for the stead fast confidence with which it has supported me; and for the opportunities I have thence enjoyed of manifesting my inviolable attachment, by services faithful and persevering, though in usefulness unequal to my zeal. If benefits have resulted to our country from these services, let it always be remembered to your praise, and as an instructive ex ample in our annals, that under circumstances in which the passions, agitated in every direction, were liable to mislead amidst appearances sometimes dubious vicis situdes of fortune often discouraging in situations in which not unfrequently want of success has countenanced the spirit of criticism the constancy of your support was the essential prop of the efforts, and a guaranty of the plans, by which they were effected. Profoundly penetrated with this idea, I shall carry it with me to the grave, as a strong incitement to unceasing wishes, that Heaven may WASHINGTON S FAREWELL ADDRESS. 37 continue to you the choicest tokens of its beneficence that your union and brotherly affection may be perpetual that the free constitution which is the work of your hands may be sacredly maintained that its administra tion in every department may be stamped with wisdom and virtue that, in fine, the happiness of the people of these states, under the auspices of liberty, may be made complete, by so careful a preservation, and so prudent a use of this blessing as will acquire to them the glory of recommending it to the applause, the affection, and adop tion of every nation which is yet a stranger to it. Here, perhaps, I ought to stop. . But a solicitude for your welfare, which cannot end but with my life, and the apprehension of danger, natural to that solicitude, urge me, on an occasion like the present, to offer to your solemn contemplation, and to recommend to your frequent review, some sentiments, which are the result of much reflection, of no inconsiderable observation, and which appear to me all-important to the permanency of your felicity as a people. These will be offered to you with the more freedom, as you can only see in them the disinterested warnings of a parting friend, who can possibly have no personal motives to bias his counsel. Nor can I forget, as an encourage ment to it, your indulgent reception of my sentiments on a former and not dissimilar occasion. Interwoven as is the love of liberty with every ligament of our hearts, no recommendation of mine is necessary to fortify or confirm the attachment. The unity of government, which constitutes you one people, is also now dear to you. It is justly so ; for it is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence ; the support of your tranquillity at home ; your peace abroad ; of your safety ; of your prosperity ; of that very liberty which you so highly prize. But as it is easy to foresee, that, from different causes and from different quarters, much pains will be taken, many artifices employed, to weaken in your minds the conviction of this truth; as this is the point in your political fortress against which the batteries of internal and external enemies will be most constantly and actively (though often covertly and insidiously) directed; it is of infinite moment, that you should properly estimate 4 38 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the immense value of your national union to your collec tive and individual happiness ; that you should cherish a cordial, habitual, and immovable attachment to it; ac customing yourselves to think and to speak of it as a palladium of your political safety and prosperity ; watching for its preservation with jealous anxiety ; discountenancing whatever may suggest even a suspicion that it can in any event be abandoned ; and indignantly frowning upon the first dawning of every attempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest, or to enfeeble the sacred ties which now link together the various parts. For this you have every inducement of sympathy and interest. Citizens, by birth or choice, of a common coun try, that country has a right to concentrate your affections. The name of AMERICAN, which belongs to you in your national capacity, must always exalt the just pride of patriotism, more than any appellation derived from local discriminations. With slight shades of difference you have the same religion, manners, habits, and political principle. You have, in a common cause, fought and triumphed together; the independence and liberty you possess, are the work of joint councils and joint efforts of common dangers, sufferings, and success. But these considerations, however powerfully they ad dress themselves to your sensibility, are greatly outweighed by those which apply more immediately to your interest. Here every portion of our country finds the most com manding motives for carefully guarding and preserving the union of the whole. The north, in an unrestrained intercourse with the south, protected by the equal laws of a common govern ment, finds in the productions of the latter great addi tional resources of maritime and commercial enterprise, and precious materials of manufacturing industry. The south, in the same intercourse, benefiting by the same agency of the north, sees its agriculture grow and its commerce expand. Turning partly into its own channels the seamen of the north, it finds its particular navigation invigorated and while it contributes in different ways to nourish and increase the general mass of the national navigation, it looks forward to the protection of a mari- 39 time strength, to which itself is unequally adapted. The east, in like intercourse with the west, already finds, and in the progressive improvement of interior communications by land and water, will more and more find a valuable vent for the commodities which it brings from abroad, or man ufactures at home. The west derives from the east sup plies requisite to its growth and comfort; and what is perhaps of still greater consequence, it must of necessity owe the secure enjoyment of indispensable outlets for its own productions, to the weight, influence, and the future maritime strength of the Atlantic side of the Union, di rected by an indissoluble community of interest as one nation. Any other tenure by which the icest can hold this essential advantage, whether derived from its own separate strength, or from an apostate and unnatural connection with any foreign power, must be intrinsically precarious. While, then, every part of our country thus feels an im mediate and particular interest in union, all the parts com bined cannot fail to find in the united mass of means and efforts, greater strength, greater resource, proportionably greater security from external danger, a less frequent in terruption of their peace by foreign nations ; and, what is of inestimable value, they must derive from union an exemption from those broils and wars between themselves, which so frequently afflict neighboring countries, not tied together by the same government, which their own rival- ships alone would be sufficient to produce ; but which op posite foreign alliances, attachments, and intrigues, would stimulate and imbitter. Hence, likewise, they will avoid the necessity of those overgrown military establishments, which, under any form of government, are inauspicious to liberty, and which are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty. In this sense it is, that your union ought to be considered as a main prop of your liberty, and that the love of the one ought to endear to you the pres ervation of the other. These considerations speak a persuasive language to every reflecting and virtuous mind, and exhibit the con tinuance of the union as a primary object of patriotic desire. Is there a doubt whether a common government 40 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. can embrace so large a sphere ? Let experience solve it. To listen to mere speculation in such a case were crimi nal. We are authorized to hope that a proper organization of the whole, with the auxiliary agency of governments for the respective subdivisions, will afford a happy issue of the experiment. It is well worth a fair and full experiment. With such pow r erful and obvious motives to union, affect ing all parts of our country, while experience shall not have demonstrated its impracticability, there will always be reason to distrust the patriotism of those who in any quarter may endeavor to weaken its bands. In contemplating the causes which may disturb our union, it occurs as matter of serious concern that any ground should have been furnished for characterizing parties by geographical discriminations Northern and Southern ; Atlantic and Western ; whence designing men may endeavor to excite a belief that there is a real differ ence of local interests and views. One of the expedients of party to acquire influence within particular districts, is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other districts. You cannot shield yourselves too much against the jeal ousies and heart-burnings which spring from these misrep resentations ; they tend to render alien to each other those who ought to be bound together by fraternal affection. The inhabitants of our western country have lately had a useful lesson on this head. They have seen in the negotia tion by the executive, and in the unanimous ratification by the senate of the treaty with Spain, and in the universal satisfaction at that event throughout the United States, a decisive proof how unfounded were the suspicions propa gated among them of a policy in the general government, and in the Atlantic states, unfriendly to their interests in regard to the Mississippi. They have been witnesses to the formation of two treaties, that with Great Britain, and that with Spain, which secure to them every thing they could desire, in respect to our foreign relations, towards confirming their prosperity. Will it not be their wisdom to rely for the preservation of these advantages on the union by which they were procured ? Will they not henceforth be deaf to those advisers, if such there are, who would sever them from their brethren, and connect them with aliens ? 41 To the efficacy and permanency of your union, a gov ernment for the whole is indispensable. No alliances, however strict between the parts, can be an adequate sub stitute ; they must inevitably experience the infractions and interruptions which alliances at all times have experienced. Sensible of this momentous truth, you have improved upon your first essay, by the adoption of a constitution of gov ernment better calculated than your former for an intimate union, and for the efficacious management of your com mon concerns. This government, the offspring of your own choice, uninfluenced and unawed ; adopted upon full investigation and mature deliberation ; completely free in its principles ; in the distribution of its powers uniting se curity with energy, and containing within itself provision for its own amendment, has a just claim to your confidence and your support. Respect for its authority, compliance with its laws, acquiescence in its measures, are duties en joined by the fundamental maxims of true liberty. The ba sis of our political system is the right of the people to make and to alter their constitutions of government. But the constitution which at any time exists, until changed by an explicit and authentic act of the whole people, is sacredly obligatory upon all. The very idea of the power and the right of the people to establish government, presupposes the duty of every individual to obey the established government. All obstructions to the execution of the laws, all com binations and associations, under whatever plausible char acter, with the real design to direct, control, counteract, or awe, the regular deliberations and action of the constituted authorities, are destructive of this fundamental principle, and of fatal tendency. They serve to organize faction ; to give it an artificial and extraordinary force ; to put in the place of the delegated will of the nation, the will of party, often a small, but artful and enterprising minority of the community; and according to the alternate triumphs of different parties, to make the public administration the mirror of the ill-concerted and incongruous projects of faction, rather than the organ of consistent and wholesome plans, digested by common counsels and modified by mu tual interests. However combinations or associations of the above de- 4* 42 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN scription may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely, in the course of time and things, to become potent engines by which cunning, ambitious, and unprin cipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people, and to usurp for themselves the reins of govern ment ; destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion. Towards the preservation of your government, and the permanency of your present happy state, it is requisite not only that you steadily discountenance irregular opposition to its acknowledged authority, but also that you resist with care the spirit of innovation upon its principles, however specious the pretext. One method of assault may be to effect in the forms of the constitution alterations which will impair the energy of the system, and thus to undermine what cannot be directly overthrown. In all the changes to which you may be invited, remember that time and habit are at least as necessary to fix the true character of gov ernments, as of other human institutions ; that experience is the surest standard by which to test the real tendency of the existing constitutions of a country; that facility in changes, upon the credit of mere hypothesis and opinion, exposes to perpetual change, from the endless variety of hypothesis and opinion ; and remember especially, that for the efficient management of your common interests, in a country so extensive as ours, a government of as much vigor as is consistent with the perfect security of liberty, is indispensable. Liberty itself will find in such a govern ment, with powers properly distributed and adjusted, its surest guardian. It is, indeed, little else than a name, where the government is too feeble to withstand the enter prises of faction, to confine each member of society within the limits prescribed by the laws, and to maintain all in the secure and tranquil enjoyment of the rights of person and property. I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the state, with particular reference to the founding of them upon geographical discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you, in the most solemn manner, against the baneful effects of the spirit of party generally. 43 This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our na-* ture, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled, or repressed ; but in those of the popular form it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy. The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissen sion, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result, grad ually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual ; and, sooner or later, the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation on the ruins of the public liberty. Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind, (which, nevertheless, ought not to be entirely out of sight,) the common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it. It serves always to distract the public councils, and en feeble the public administration. It agitates the com munity with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosity of one part against another ; foments occa sional riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which finds a facilitated access to the government itself, through the channels of party passion. Thus the policy and will of one country are sub jected to the policy and will of another. There is an opinion that parties in free countries are useful checks upon the administration of the government, and serve to keep alive the spirit of liberty. This, within certain limits, is probably true ; and in governments of a monarchical cast, patriotism may look with indulgence, if not with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those of the popular character, in governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged. From the natural tendency, it is certain there will always be enough of that spirit for 44 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. every salutary purpose ; and there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be, by force of public opin ion, to mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume. It is important, likewise, that the habits of thinking, in a free country, should inspire caution, in those intrusted with its administration, to confine themselves within their respective constitutional spheres ; avoiding, in the exer cise of the powers of one department, to encroach upon another. The spirit of encroachment tends to consolidate the powers of all the departments in one, and thus to create, whatever the form of government, a real despotism. A just estimate of that love of power, and proneriess to abuse it, which predominates in the human heart, is suf ficient to satisfy us of the truth of this position. The necessity of reciprocal checks in the exercise of political power, by dividing and distributing it into different depos itories, and constituting each the guardian of the public weal against invasions of the other, has been evinced by experiments, ancient and modern ; some of them in our country, and under our own eyes. To preserve them must be as necessary as to institute them. If, in the opinion of the people, the distribution or modification of the constitutional powers be, in any particular, wrong, let it be corrected by an amendment in the way which the constitution designates. But let there be no change by usurpation ; for though this, in one instance, may be the instrument of good, it is the customary weapon by which free governments are destroyed. The precedent must always greatly overbalance, in permanent evil, any partial or transient benefit which the use can at any time yield. Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness . these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connection with private and public felicity. Let it simply be asked, Where is the security for 45 property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths, which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice ? And let us with cau tion indulge the supposition that morality can be main tained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principles. It is substantially true that virtue or morality is a neces sary spring of popular government. The rule, indeed, extends, with more or less force, to every species of free government. Who that is a sincere friend to it can look with indifference upon attempts to shake the foundation of the fabric 1 Promote, then, as an object of primary importance, in stitutions for the general diffusion of knowledge. In pro portion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened. As a very important source of strength and security, cherish public credit. One method of preserving it, is to, use it as sparingly as possible, avoiding occasions of ex pense by cultivating peace, but remembering, also, that timely disbursements to prepare for danger, frequently prevent much greater disbursements to repel it ; avoiding, likewise, the accumulation of debt, not only by shunning occasions of expense, but by vigorous exertions in time of peace to discharge the debts which unavoidable wars have occasioned, not ungenerously throwing upon pos terity the burdens which we ourselves ought to bear. The execution of these maxims belongs to your represen tatives ; but it is necessary that public opinion should co operate. To facilitate to them the performance of their duty, it is essential that you should practically bear in mind, that towards the payment of debts there must be revenue ; that to have revenue there must be taxes ; that no taxes can be devised which are not more or less incon venient and unpleasant ; that the intrinsic embarrassment, inseparable from the selection of the proper objects, (which is always a choice of difficulties,) ought to be a 46 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. decisive motive for a candid construction of the conduct of the government in making it, and for a spirit of acqui escence in the measures for obtaining revenue which the public exigencies may at any time dictate. Observe good faith and justice towards all nations ; cultivate peace and harmony with all ; religion and mo rality enjoin this conduct ; and can it be that good policy does not equally enjoin it ? It will be worthy of a free, enlightened, and, at no distant period, a great nation, to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benev olence. Who can doubt but that, in the course of time and things, the fruits of such a plan would richly repay any temporary advantages which might be lost by a steady adherence to it ? Can it be that Providence has connected the permanent felicity of a nation with its virtue ? The experiment, at least, is recommended by every sentiment which ennobles human nature. Alas ! it is rendered im possible by its vices ! In the execution of such a plan, nothing is more essen tial than that permanent, inveterate antipathies against particular nations, and passionate attachment for others, should be excluded; and that, in the place of them, just and amicable feelings towards all should be cultivated. The nation which indulges towards another an habitual hatred, or an habitual fondness, is, in some degree, a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affection, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest. Antipathy in one nation against another, disposes each more readily to offer insult and injury, to lay hold of slight causes of umbrage, and to be haughty and intractable when accidental or trifling occasions of dispute occur. Hence frequent collisions, obstinate, envenomed, and bloody contests. The nation, prompted by ill-will and resentment, sometimes impels to war the government, contrary to the best calculations of policy. The govern ment sometimes participates in the national propensity, and adopts, through passion, what reason would reject; at other times, it makes the animosity of the nation subser vient to the projects of hostility, instigated by pride, am- WASHINGTON S FAREWELL, ADDRESS. 47 bition, and other sinister and pernicious motives. The peace often, sometimes, perhaps, the liberty of nations has been the victim. So, likewise, a passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation, facilitating the illusion of an imaginary common interest in cases where no real common interest exists, and infusing into one the enmities of the other, betrays the former into a participation in the quarrels and the wars of the latter, without adequate inducements or justification. It leads, also, to concessions to the favor ite nation of privileges denied to others, which are apt doubly to injure the nation making the concessions, by unnecessarily parting with what ought to have been re tained, and by exciting jealousy, ill-will, and a disposition to retaliate in the parties from whom equal privileges are withheld; and it gives to ambitious, corrupt, or deluded citizens, (who devote themselves to the favorite nation,) facility to betray or sacrifice the interests of their own country without odium, sometimes even with popularity ; gilding with me appearances of a virtuous sense of obli gation to a commendable deference for public opinion, or a laudable zeal for public good, the base or foolish com pliances of ambition, corruption, or infatuation. As avenues to foreign influence, in innumerable ways, such attachments are particularly alarming to the truly enlightened and independent patriot. How many oppor tunities do they afford to tamper with domestic factions, to practise the art of seduction, to mislead public opinion, to influence or awe the public councils ! Such an attach ment of a small or weak, towards a great and powerful nation, dooms the former to be the satellite of the latter. Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence, (I con jure you to believe me, fellow-citizens,) the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government. But that jealousy, too, to be useful, must be impartial, else it be comes the instrument of the very influence to be avoided, instead of a defence against it. Excessive partiality for one foreign nation, and excessive dislike for another, 48 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. cause those whom they actuate to see danger only on one side, and serve to veil and even second the arts of influ ence on the other. Real patriots, who may resist the in trigues of the favorite, are liable to become suspected and odious ; while its tools and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people to surrender their interests. The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations, is, in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible. So far as we have already formed engagements, let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. Here let us stop. Europe has a set of primary interests, which to us have none, or a very remote relation. Hence, she must be en gaged in frequent controversies, the causes of which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, therefore, it must be unwise in us to implicate ourselves, by arti ficial ties, in the ordinary vicissitude of her politics, or the ordinary combinations and collisions of her friendships or enmities. Our detached and distant situation invijp and enables us to pursue a different course. If we remain one peo ple, under an efficient government, the period is not far off when we may defy material injury from external an noyance ; when we may take such an attitude as will cause the neutrality we may at any time resolve upon, to be scrupulously respected ; when belligerent nations, un der the impossibility of making acquisitions upon us, will not lightly hazard the giving us provocation; when we may choose peace or war, as our interest, guided by jus tice, shall counsel. Why forego the advantages of so peculiar a situation? Why quit our own to stand upon foreign ground ? Why, by interweaving our destiny with that of any part of Eu rope, entangle our peace aftd prosperity in the toils of European ambition, rivalship, interest, humor, or caprice? It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world ; so far, I mean, as we are now at liberty to do it ; for let me not be under stood as capable of patronizing infidelity to existing en gagements. I hold the maxim no less applicable to public than to private affairs, that honesty is always the best 49 policy. I repeat, therefore, let those engagements be ob served in their genuine sense. But, in my opinion, it is unnecessary, and would be unwise, to extend them. Taking care always to keep ourselves, by suitable estab lishments, on a respectable defensive posture, we may safely trust to temporary alliances for extraordinary emer gencies. Harmony, and a liberal intercourse with all nations, are recommended by policy, humanity, and interest. But even our commercial policy should hold an equal and impartial hand ; neither seeking nor granting exclusive favors or preferences; consulting the natural course of things ; diffusing and diversifying by gentle means the stream of commerce, but forcing nothing ; establishing with powers so disposed, in order to give trade a stable course, to define the rights of our merchants, and to ena ble the government to support them, conventional rules of intercourse, the best that present circumstances and natural opinion will permit, but temporary, and liable to be, from time to time, abandoned or varied, as experience and circumstances shall dictate ; constantly keeping in view that it is folly in one nation to look for disinter ested favors from another ; that it must pay with a portion of its independence for whatever it may accept under that character; that by such acceptance, it may place itself in the condition of having given equivalents for nominal favors, and yet of being reproached with ingratitude for not giving more. There can be no greater error than to expect or calculate upon real favors from nation to nation. It is an illusion which experience must cure, which a just pride ought to discard. In offering to you, my countrymen, these counsels of an old, affectionate friend, I dare not hope they will make the strong and lasting impression I could wish that they will control the usual current of the passions, or prevent our nation from running the course which has hitherto marked the destiny of nations. But if I may even flatter myself that they may be productive of some partial ben efit, some occasional good ; that they may now and then recur to moderate the fury of party spirit ; to warn against the mischiefs of foreign intrigue ; to guard against the 5 50 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. impostures of pretended patriotism ; this hope will be a full recompense for the solicitude for your welfare by which they have been dictated. How far, in the discharge of my official duties, I have been guided by the principles which have been delineated, the public records and other evidences of my conduct must witness to you and to the world. To myself, the assur ance of my own conscience is, that I have at least believed myself to be guided by them. In relation to the still subsisting war in Europe, my proclamation of the 22d of April, 1793, is the index to my plan. Sanctioned by your approving voice, and by that of your representatives in both houses of Congress, the spirit of that measure has continually governed me, uninfluenced by any attempts to deter or divert me from it. After deliberate examination, with the aids of the best lights I could obtain, I was well satisfied that our coun try, under all the circumstances of the case, had a right to take, and was bound in duty and interest to take, a neutral position. Having taken it, I determined, as far as should depend upon me, to maintain it with modera tion, perseverance, and firmness. The considerations which respect the right to hold this conduct, it is not necessary on this occasion to detail. I will only observe, that, according to my un derstanding of the matter, that right, so far from being denied by any of the belligerent powers, has been virtually admitted by all. The duty of holding a neutral conduct may be inferred, without any thing more, from the obligation which justice and humanity impose on every nation, in cases in which it is free to act, to maintain inviolate the relations of peace and amity towards other nations. The inducements of interest for observing that conduct, will best be referred to your own reflections and expe rience. With me, a predominant motive has been to endeavor to gain time to our country, to settle and mature its yet recent institutions, and to progress, without inter ruption, to that degree of strength and constancy, which is necessary to give it, humanly speaking, the command of its own fortune. 51 Though, in reviewing the incidents of my administra tion, I am unconscious of intentional error, I am, never theless, too sensible of my defects not to think it probable that I may have committed many errors. Whatever they may be, I fervently beseech the Almighty to avert or mitigate the evils to which they may tend. I shall also carry with me the hope that my country will never cease to view them with indulgence ; and that, after forty-five years of my life dedicated to its service, with an upright zeal, the faults of incompetent abilities will be consigned to oblivion, as myself must soon be to the mansions of rest. Relying on its kindness in this as in other things, and actuated by that fervent love towards it, which is so nat ural to a man who views in it the native soil of himself and his progenitors for several generations, I anticipate, with pleasing expectation, that retreat, in which I promise myself to realize, without alloy, the sweet enjoyment of partaking, in the midst of my fellow-citizens, the benign influence of good laws, under a free government the ever favorite object of my heart, and the happy reward, as I trust, of our mutual cares, labors, and dangers. J. ADAMS S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1797. WHEN it was first perceived, in early times, that no middle course for America remained, between unlimited submission to a foreign legislature, and a total independ ence of its claims, men of reflection were less apprehen sive of danger from the formidable power of fleets and armies they must determine to resist, than from those contests and dissensions which would certainly arise con cerning the forms of government to be instituted over the whole, and over the parts of this extensive country. Re lying, however, on the purity of their intentions, the justice of their cause, and the integrity and intelligence of the 52 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. people, under an overruling Providence which had so signally protected this country from the first, the repre sentatives of this nation, then consisting of little more than half its present number, not only broke to pieces the chains which were forging, and the rod of iron that was lifted up, but frankly cut asunder the ties which had bound them, and launched into an ocean of uncertainty. The zeal and ardor of the people, during the revolu tionary war, supplying the place of government, com manded a degree of order, sufficient at least for the temporary preservation of society. The confederation, which was early felt to be necessary, was prepared from the models of the Batavian and Helvetic confederacies the only examples which remain, with any detail and pre cision in history, and certainly the only ones which the people at large had ever considered. But, reflecting on the striking difference, in so many particulars, between this country and those where a courier may go from the seat of government to the frontier in a single day, it was then certainly foreseen, by some who assisted in Congress at the formation of it, that it could not be durable. Negligence of its regulations, inattention to its recom mendations, if not disobedience to its authority, not only in individuals, but in states, soon appeared with their melancholy consequences universal languor; jealousies and rivalries of states; decline of navigation and com merce ; discouragement of necessary manufactures ; uni versal fall in the value of lands and their produce ; con tempt of public and private faith ; loss of consideration and credit with foreign nations; and, at length, in dis contents, animosities, combinations, partial conventions, and insurrection, threatening some great national calamity. In this dangerous crisis, the people of America were not abandoned by their usual good sense, presence of mind, resolution, or integrity. Measures were pursued to concert a plan to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the com mon defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty. The public disquisitions, discussions, and deliberations, issued in the present happy constitution of government. 53 Employed in the service of my country abroad during the whole course of these transactions, I first saw the constitution of the United States in a foreign country. Irritated by no literary altercation, animated by no public debate, heated by no party animosity, I read it with great satisfaction, as a result of good heads, prompted by good hearts; as an experiment better adapted to the genius, character, situation, and relations of this nation and country, than any which had ever been proposed or sug gested. In its general principles arid great outlines, it was conformable to such a system of government as I had ever most esteemed, and some states, my own native state in particular, had contributed to establish. Claiming a right of suffrage, in common with my fellow-citizens, in the adoption or rejection of a constitution which was to rule me and my posterity, as well as them and theirs, I did not hesitate to express my approbation of it, on all occa sions, in public and in private. It was not then, nor has been since, any objection to it, in my mind, that the executive and senate were not more permanent. Nor have I ever entertained a thought of promoting any alter ation in it, but such as the people themselves, in the course of their experience, should see and feel to be necessary or expedient, and by their representatives in Congress and the state legislatures, according to the constitution itself, adopt and ordain. Returning to the bosom of my country, after a painful separation from it for ten years, I had the honor to be elected to a station under the new order of things, and I have repeatedly laid myself under the most serious obliga tions to support the constitution. The operation of it has equalled the most sanguine expectations of its friends ; and, from an habitual attention to it, satisfaction in its admin istration, and delight in its effects upon the peace, order, prosperity, and happiness of the nation, I have acquired an habitual attachment to it, and veneration for it. What other form of government, indeed, can so well deserve our esteem and love ? There may be little solidity in an ancient idea that con gregations of men into cities and nations are the most 5* 54 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. pleasing objects in the sight of superior intelligences; but this is very certain, that to a benevolent human mind, there can be no spectacle presented by any nation more pleasing, more noble, majestic, or august, than an assembly like that which has so often been seen in this and the other cham ber of Congress, of a government, in which the executive authority, as well as that of all the branches of the legisla ture, are exercised by citizens selected, at regular periods, by their neighbors, to make and execute laws for the general good. Can any thing essential, any thing more than mere ornament and decoration, be added to this by robes and diamonds ? Can authority be more amiable and respectable, when it descends from accidents, or institutions established in remote antiquity, than when it springs fresh from the hearts and judgments of an honest and enlightened people ? For it is the people only that are represented : it is their power and majesty that is reflected, and only for their good, in every legitimate government, under what ever form it may appear. The existence of such a gov ernment as ours, for any length of time, is a full proof of a general dissemination of knowledge and virtue throughout the whole body of the people. And what object or con sideration more pleasing than this, can be presented to the human mind ? If national pride is ever justifiable, or excusable, it is when it springs not from power or riches, grandeur or glory, but from conviction of national innocence, information, and benevolence. In the midst of these pleasing ideas, we should be un faithful to ourselves, if we should ever lose sight of the danger to our liberties, if any thing partial or extraneous should infect the purity of our free, fair, virtuous, and independent elections. If an election is to be determined by a majority of a single vote, and that can be procured by a party, through artifice or corruption, the government may be the choice of a party, for its own ends, not of the nation for the national good. If that solitary suffrage can be obtained by foreign nations by flattery or menaces, by fraud or violence, by terror, intrigue, or venality, the gov ernment may not be the choice of the American people, but of foreign nations. It may be foreign nations who 55 govern us, and not we, the people, who govern ourselves. And candid men will acknowledge, that, in such cases, choice would have little advantage to boast, of, over lot or chance. Such is the amiable and interesting system of govern ment (and such are some of the abuses to which it may be exposed) which the people of America have exhibited to the admiration and anxiety of the wise and virtuous of all nations for eight years, under the administration of a citizen who, by a long course of great actions, regulated by prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude, conduct ing a people, inspired with the same virtues, and animated with the same ardent patriotism and love of liberty, to in dependence and peace, to increasing wealth and unex ampled prosperity, has merited the gratitude of his fellow- citizens, commanded the highest praises of foreign nations, and secured immortal glory with posterity. In that retirement which is his voluntary choice, may he long live to enjoy the delicious recollection of his services, the gratitude of mankind, the happy fruits of them to himself and the world, which are daily increasing, arid that splendid prospect of the future fortunes of this country which is opening from year to year. His name may be still a rampart, and the knowledge that he lives, a bulwark against all open or secret enemies of his country s peace. This example has been recommended to the im itation of his successors by both houses of Congress, and by the voice of the legislatures and the people throughout the nation. On this subject it might become me better to be silent, or to speak with diffidence ; but as something may be expected, the occasion, I hope, will be admitted as an apology, if I venture to say, That, If a preference, upon principle, of a free republican government, formed upon long and serious reflection, after a diligent and impartial inquiry after truth ; if an attach ment to the constitution of the United States, and a con scientious determination to support it, until it shall be altered by the judgments and wishes of the people, expressed in the mode prescribed in it ; if a respectful attention to 56 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the constitutions of the individual states, and a constant caution and delicacy towards the state governments ; if an equal and impartial regard to the rights, interest, honor, and happiness of all the states in the Union, without pref erence or regard to a northern or southern, an eastern or western position, their various political opinions on unes sential points, or their personal attachments; if a love of virtuous men of all parties and denominations ; if a love of science and letters, and a wish to patronize every rational ef fort to encourage schools, colleges, universities, academies, and every institution for propagating knowledge, virtue, and religion, among all classes of the people, not only for their benign influence on the happiness of life in all its stages and classes, and of society in all its forms, but as the only means of preserving our constitution from its natural enemies, the spirit of sophistry, the spirit of party, the spirit of intrigue, the profligacy of corruption, and the pestilence of foreign influence, which is the angel of destruction to elective governments ; if a love of equal laws, of justice, and humanity in the interior administra tion ; if an inclination to improve agriculture, commerce, and manufactures, for necessity, convenience, and defence ; if a spirit of equity and humanity towards the aboriginal nations of America, and a disposition to meliorate their condition by inclining them to be more friendly to us, and our citizens to be more friendly to them ; if an inflexible determination to maintain peace and inviolable faith with all nations, and that system of neutrality and impartiality among the belligerent powers of Europe which has been adopted by this government, and so solemnly sanctioned by both houses of Congress, and applauded by the legis latures of the states and the public opinion, until it shall be otherwise ordained by Congress ; if a personal esteem for the French nation, formed in a residence of seven years, chiefly among them, and a sincere desire to preserve the friendship which has been so much for the honor and interest of both nations ; if, while the conscious honor and integrity of the people of America, and the internal senti ment of their own power and energies must be preserved, an earnest endeavor to investigate every just cause, and 57 remove every colorable pretence of complaint ; if an inten tion to pursue by amicable negotiation a reparation for the injuries that have been committed on the commerce of our fellow-citizens by whatever nation ; and if success cannot be obtained, to lay the facts before the legislature, that they may consider what further measures the honor and interest of the government and its constituents de mand ; if a resolution to do justice, as far as may depend upon me, at all times and to all nations, and maintain peace, friendship, and benevolence with all the world ; if an unshaken confidence in the honor, spirit, and resources of the American people, on which I have so often hazarded my all, and never been deceived ; if elevated ideas of the high destinies of this country, and of my own duties towards it, founded on a knowledge of the moral principles and in tellectual improvements of the people, deeply engraven on my mind in early life, and not obscured, but exalted by experience and age ; and, with humble reverence, I feel it to be my duty to add, if a veneration for the religion of a people who profess and call themselves Christians, and a fixed resolution to consider a decent respect for Christianity among the best recommendations for the public service, can enable me, in any degree, to comply with your wishes, it shall be my strenuous endeavor, that this sagacious in junction of the two houses shall not be without effect. With this great example before me, with the sense and spirit, the faith and honor, the duty and interest, of the same American people, pledged to support the constitution of the United States, I entertain no doubt of its continu ance in all its energy, and my mind is prepared, without hesitation, to lay myself under the most solemn obligations to support it to the utmost of my power. And may that Being who is supreme over all, the Patron of order, the Fountain of justice, and the Protector, in all ages of the world, of virtuous liberty, continue his blessing upon this nation and its government, and give it all possi ble success and duration consistent with the ends of his providence. 58 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. J. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS. NOVEMBER 23, 1797. Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives : I WAS for some time apprehensive that it would be necessary, on account of the contagious sickness which afflicted the city of Philadelphia, to convene the national legislature at some other place. This measure it was desirable to avoid, because it would occasion much public inconvenience, and a considerable public expense, and add to the calamities of the inhabitants of this city, whose sufferings must have excited the sympathy of all their fellow-citizens ; therefore, after taking measures to ascer tain the state and decline of the sickness, I postponed my determination, having hopes, now happily realized, that, without hazard to the lives of the members, Congress might assemble at this place, where it was by law next to meet. I submit, however, to your consideration, whether a power to postpone the meeting of Congress, without passing the time fixed by the constitution, upon such oc casions, would not be a useful amendment to the law of one thousand seven hundred and ninety-four. Although I cannot yet congratulate you on the re- establishment of peace in Europe, and the restoration of security to the persons and properties of our citizens from injustice and violence at sea, we have, nevertheless, abundant cause of gratitude to the Source of benevolence and influence, for interior tranquillity and personal secu rity, for propitious seasons, prosperous agriculture, pro ductive fisheries, and general improvements, and, above all, for a rational spirit of civil and religious liberty, and a calm but steady determination to support our sover eignty, as well as our moral and religious principles, against all open and secret attacks. Our envoys extraordinary to the French republic em barked, one in July, the other early in August, to join their colleague in Holland. I have received intelligence of the arrival of both of them in Holland, from whence 59 they all proceeded on their journey to Paris, within a few days of the 19th of September. Whatever may be the result of this mission, I trust that nothing will have been omitted, on my part, to conduct the negotiation to a suc cessful conclusion, on such equitable terms as may be compatible with the safety, honor, and interest of the United States. Nothing, in the mean time, will contrib ute so much to the preservation of peace, and the attain ment of justice, as a manifestation of that energy and unanimity, of which, on many former occasions, the people of the United States have given such memorable proofs, and the exertion of those resources for national defence which a beneficent Providence has kindly placed within their power. It may be confidently asserted that nothing has oc curred, since the adjournment of Congress, which renders inexpedient those precautionary measures recommended by me to the consideration of the two houses, at the opening of your late extraordinary session. If that system was then prudent, it is more so now, as increasing depreda tions strengthen the reasons for its adoption. Indeed, whatever may be the issue of the negotiation with France, or whether the war in Europe is, or is not, to continue, I hold it most certain, that permanent tran quillity and order will not soon be obtained. The state of society has so long been disturbed, the sense of moral and religious obligations so much weakened, public faith and national honor have been so impaired, respect to trea ties has been so diminished, and the law of nations has lost so much of its force, while pride, ambition, avarice, and violence, have been so long unrestrained, there re mains no reasonable ground on which to raise an expecta tion, that a commerce without protection or defence will not be plundered. The commerce of the United States is essential, if not to their existence, at least to their comfort, their growth, prosperity, and happiness. The genius, character, and habits of the people are highly commercial ; their cities have been formed and exist upon commerce ; our agricul ture, fisheries, arts, and manufactures, are connected with and depend upon it. In short, commerce has made this 60 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. country what it is, and it cannot be destroyed or neglected without involving the people m poverty and distress. Great numbers are directly and solely supported by navi gation ; the faith of society is pledged for the preservation of the rights of commercial and seafaring, no less than of the other citizens. Under this view of our affairs, 1 should hold myself guilty of a neglect of duty, if I forbore to recommend that we should make every exertion to protect our commerce, and to place our country in a suitable posture of defence, as the only sure means of pre serving both. I have entertained an expectation that it would have been in my power, at the opening of this session, to have communicated to you the agreeable information of the due execution of our treaty with his Catholic majesty, respecting the withdrawing of his troops from our terri tory, and the demarkation of the line of limits; but, by the latest authentic intelligence, Spanish garrisons were still continued within our country, and the running of the boundary line had not been commenced; these circum stances are the more to be regretted, as they cannot fail to affect the Indians in a manner injurious to the United States. Still, however, indulging the hope that the an swers which have been given will remove the objections offered by the Spanish officers to the immediate execution of the treaty, I have judged it proper that we should con tinue in readiness to receive the posts, and to run the line of limits. Further information on this subject will be communicated in the course of the session. In connection with this unpleasant state of things on our western frontier, it is proper for me to mention the attempts of foreign agents to alienate the affections of the Indian nations, and to excite them to actual hostilities against the United States ; great activity has been ex erted by those persons who have insinuated themselves among the Indian tribes residing within the territory of the United States, to influence them to transfer their af fections and force to a foreign nation, to form them into a confederacy, and prepare them for a war against the United States. Although measures have been taken to counteract these infractions of our rights, to prevent In- ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS. 61 dian hostilities, and to preserve entire their attachment to the United States, it is my duty to observe, that, to give a better effect to these measures, and to obviate the consequences of a repetition of such practices, a law pro viding adequate punishment for such offences may be necessary. The commissioners appointed under the fifth article of the treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation, between the United States and Great Britain, to ascertain the river which was truly intended under the name of the River St. Croix, mentioned in the treaty of peace, met at Passama- quoddy Bay, in October, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-six, and viewed the mouths of the rivers in question, and adjacent shores on the islands; and being of opinion, that actual surveys of both rivers, to their sources, were necessary, gave to the agents of the two nations instructions for that purpose, and adjourned to meet at Boston, in August. They met ; but the surveys requiring more time than had been supposed, and not being then completed, the commissioners again adjourned to meet at Providence, in the state of Rhode Island, in June next, when we may expect a final examination and decision. The commissioners appointed in pursuance of the sixth article of the treaty, met at Philadelphia, in May last, to examine the claims of British subjects for debts contracted before the peace, and still remaining due to them from citizens or inhabitants of the United States. Various causes have hitherto prevented any determinations; but the business is now resumed, and doubtless will be pros ecuted without interruption. Several decisions on the claims of the citizens of the United States for losses and damages sustained by reason of irregular and illegal captures or condemnations of their vessels or other property, have been made by the com missioners in London, conformably to the seventh article of the treaty. The sums awarded by the commissioners have been paid by the British government ; a considerable number of other claims, where costs and damages, and not captured property, were the only objects in question, have 6 62 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. been decided by arbitration, and the sums awarded to the citizens of the United States have also been paid. The commissioners appointed agreeably to the twenty- first article of our treaty with Spain, met at Philadelphia, in the summer past, to examine and decide on the claims of our citizens for losses they have sustained in con sequence of their vessels and cargoes having been taken by the subjects of his Catholic majesty during the late war between Spain and France. Their sittings have been interrupted, but are now resumed. The United States being obligated to make compen sation for the losses and damages sustained by British subjects, upon the award of the commissioners acting under the sixth article of the treaty with Great Britain, and for the losses and damages sustained by British sub jects, by reason of the capture of their vessels and mer chandise, taken within the limits and jurisdiction of the United States, and brought into their ports, or taken by vessels originally armed in ports of the United States, upon the awards of the commissioners, acting under the seventh article of the same treaty ; it is necessary that provision be made for fulfilling these obligations. The numerous captures of American vessels by the cruisers of the French republic, and of some of those of Spain, have occasioned considerable expenses in making and supporting the claims of our citizens before their tribunals. The sums required for this purpose have, in divers instances, been disbursed by the consuls of the United States. By means of the same captures, great numbers of our seamen have been thrown ashore in foreign countries, destitute of all means of subsistence, and the sick, in particular, have been exposed to grievous sufferings. The consuls have, in these cases also, advanced money for their relief; for these advances they reasonably expect reimbursements from the United States. The consular act, relative to seamen, requires revision and amendment ; the provisions for their support in for eign countries, and for their return, are found to be inad equate and ineffectual. Another provision seems neces sary to be added to the consular act ; some foreign vessels 63 have been discovered sailing under the flag of the United States, and with forged papers; it seldom happens that the consuls can detect this deception, because they have no authority to demand an inspection of the registers and sea-letters. Gentlemen of the House of Representatives : It is my duty to recommend to your serious consider ation, those objects, which, by the constitution, are placed particularly within your sphere the national debts and taxes. Since the decay of the feudal system, by which the public defence was provided for chiefly at the expense of individuals, the system of loans has been introduced ; and as no nation can raise within the year, by taxes, suf ficient sums for the defence and military operations in time of war, the sums loaned and debts contracted have neces sarily become the subjects of what have been called funding systems. The consequences arising from the continual accumulation of public debts in other countries, ought to admonish us to be careful to prevent their growth in our own. The national defence must be provided for, as well as the support of government j but both should be accomplished as much as possible by immediate taxes, and as little as possible by loans. The estimates for the service of the ensuing year will, by my direction, be laid before you. Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives : We are met together at a most interesting period. The situations of the principal powers of Europe are singular and portentous. Connected with some by treaties, and with all by commerce, no important event there can be indifferent to us. Such circumstances call with peculiar importunity, not less for a disposition to unite in all those measures on which the honor, safety, and prosperity of our country depend, than for all the exertions of wisdom and firmness. In all such measures you may rely on my zealous and hearty concurrence. 64 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. JEFFERSON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1801 Friends and Fellow-Citizens : CALLED upon to undertake the duties of the first exec utive office of our country, I avail myself of the presence of that portion of my fellow-citizens which is here assem bled, to express my grateful thanks for the favor with which they have been pleased to look towards me, to declare a sincere consciousness that the task is above my talents, and that I approach it with those anxious and awful presentiments, which the greatness of the charge, and the weakness of my powers, so justly inspire. A rising nation, spread over a wide and fruitful land, traversing all the seas with the rich productions of their industry, engaged in commerce with nations who feel power and forget right, advancing rapidly to destinies beyond the reach of mortal eye; when I contemplate these transcendent objects, and see the honor, the happiness, and the hopes of this beloved country committed to the issue and the auspices of this day, I shrink from the contemplation, and humble myself before the magnitude of the undertaking. Utterly indeed should I despair, did not the presence of many whom I here see remind me that, in the other high authorities provided by our constitution, I shall find resources of wisdom, of virtue, and of zeal, on which to rely under all difficulties, To you, then, gentlemen, who are charged with the sovereign functions of legislation, and to those associated with you, I look with encouragement for that guidance and support which may enable us to steer with safety the vessel in which we are all embarked, amid the conflicting elements of a troubled world. During the contest of opinion through which we have passed, the animation of discussion and exertions has sometimes worn an aspect which might impose on strangers unused to think freely, and to speak and to write what they think ; but this being now decided by the voice of the nation, announced according to the rules of the constitu tion, all will of course arrange themselves under the will INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 65 of the law, and unite in common efforts for the common good. All, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will, to be rightful, must be reasonable ; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression. Let us, then, fellow-citizens, unite with one heart and one mind ; let us restore to social intercourse that harmony and affection, without which, liberty, and even life itself, are but dreary things. And let us reflect, that, having banished from our land that religious intolerance under which mankind so long bled and suffered, we have yet gained little, if we countenance a political intolerance as despotic, as wicked, and capable of as bitter and bloody persecutions. During the throes and convulsions of the ancient world, during the agonizing spasms of infuriated man, seeking through blood and slaughter his long-lost liberty, it was not wonderful that the agitation of the billows should reach even this distant and peaceful shore ; that this should be more felt and feared by some, and less by others ; that this should divide opinions as to measures of safety ; but every differ ence of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names brethren of the same principle. We are all republicans ; we are all federalists. If there be any among us who would wish to dissolve this Union, or to change its republican form, let them stand undisturbed as monuments of the safety with which error of opinion may be tolerated, where reason is left free to combat it. I know, indeed, that some honest men fear that a repub lican government cannot be strong ; that this government is not strong enough. But would the honest patriot, in the full tide of successful experiment, abandon a govern ment which has so far kept us free and firm, on the theoretic and visionary fear that this government, the world s best hope, may, by possibility, want energy to preserve itself? I trust not. I believe this, on the contrary, the strongest government on earth. I believe it the only one where every man, at the call of the laws, would fly to the standard of the law, and would meet invasions of the public order as his own personal concern. Sometimes it is said that man cannot be trusted with the government of 6* 66 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. himself. Can he, then, be trusted with the government of others? or have we found angels in the form of kings, to govern him? Let history answer this question. Let us, then, with courage and confidence, pursue our own federal and republican principles, our attachment to our union and representative government. Kindly sep arated by nature and a wide ocean from the exterminating havoc of one quarter of the globe ; too high-minded to endure the degradations of the others; possessing a chosen country, with room enough for our descendants to the thousandth and thousandth generation ; entertaining a due sense of our equal right to the use of our own faculties, to the acquisitions of our industry, to honor and confidence from our fellow-citizens, resulting not from birth, but from our actions and their sense of them ; enlightened by a benign religion, professed indeed and practised in various forms, yet all of them including honesty, truth, temperance, gratitude, and the love of man, acknowledging and adoring an overruling Providence, which, by all its dispensations, proves that it delights in the happiness of man here, and his greater happiness hereafter ; with all these blessings, what more is necessary to make us a happy and prosperous people? Still one thing more, fellow-citizens a wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government, and this is necessary to close the circle of our felicities. About to enter, fellow-citizens, on the exercise of duties which comprehend every thing dear and valuable to you, it is proper that you should understand what I deem the essential principles of our government, and consequently those which ought to shape its administration. I will compress them within the narrowest compass they will bear, stating the general principles, but not all its limita tions Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political ; peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none ; the support of the state governments in all their rights, as the most competent administration for our JEFFERSON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 67 domestic concerns, and the surest bulwarks against anti- republicari tendencies ; the preservation of the general government in its whole constitutional vigor, as the sheet- anchor of our peace at home and safety abroad ; a jealous care of the right of election by the people ; a mild and safe corrective of abuses, which are lopped by the sword of revolution, where peaceable remedies are unprovided ; absolute acquiescence in the decisions of the majority, the vital principle of republics, from which is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and immediate parent of des potism ; a well-disciplined militia, our best reliance in peace, and for the first moments of war, till regulars may relieve them ; the supremacy of the civil over the military authority ; economy in the public expense, that labor may be lightly burdened ; the honest payment of our debts, and sacred preservation of the public faith ; encouragement of agriculture, and of commerce as its handmaid ; the dif fusion of information, and arraignment of all abuses at the bar of public reason ; freedom of religion ; freedom of the press ; and freedom of person, under the protection of the habeas corpus ; and trial by juries impartially selected. These principles form the bright constellation which has gone before us, and guided our steps through an age of revolution and reformation. The wisdom of our sages and blood of our heroes have been devoted to their attain ment : they should be the creed of our political faith; the text of civil instruction ; the touchstone by which to try the services of those we trust ; and should we wander from them in moments of error or alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps, and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, and safety. I repair, then, fellow-citizens, to the post you have assigned me. With experience enough in subordinate offices to have seen the difficulties of this, the greatest of all, I have learnt to expect that it will rarely fall to the lot of imperfect man to retire from this station with the reputation and the favor which bring him into it. Without pretensions to that high confidence you reposed in our first and great revolutionary character, whose pre eminent services had entitled him to the first place in his country s love, and destined for him the fairest page in the volume of faithful history, I ask so much confidence 68 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. only as may give firmness and effect to the legal adminis tration of your affairs. 1 shall often go wrong through defect of judgment. When right, I shall often be thought wrong by those whose positions will not command a view of the whole ground. I ask your indulgence for my own errors, which will never be intentional ; and your support against the errors of others, who may condemn what they would not, if seen in all its parts. The approbation im plied by your suffrage is a consolation to me for the past ; and my future solicitude will be to retain the good opinion of those who have bestowed it in advance, to conciliate that of others by doing them all the good in my power, and to be instrumental to the happiness and freedom of all. Relying, then, on the patronage of your good-will, I advance with obedience to the work, ready to retire from it whenever you become sensible how much better choice it is in your power to make. And may that infinite Power which rules the destinies of the universe, lead our councils to what is best, and give them a favorable issue for your peace and prosperity. DECEMBER 8, 1801. SIR : The circumstances under which we find ourselves at this place rendering inconvenient the mode heretofore practised, of making by personal address the first com munication between the legislative and executive branches, I have adopted that by message, as used on all subsequent occasions through the session. In doing this, I have had principal regard to the convenience of the legislature, to the economy of their time, to their relief from the embar rassment of immediate answers on subjects not yet fully before them, and to the benefits thence resulting to the public affairs. Trusting that a procedure founded in these motives will meet their approbation, I beg leave, through you, sir, to communicate the enclosed message, with the documents accompanying it, to the honorable the Senate, and pray you to accept, for yourself and them, the homage of my high respect and consideration. THOMAS JEFFERSON. The Honorable the PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE. THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 69 JEFFERSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. DECEMBER 8, 1801. Fellow -Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives : IT is a circumstance of sincere gratification to me that, on meeting the great council of our nation, I am able to announce to them, on grounds of reasonable certainty, that the wars and troubles which have for so many years afflicted our sister nations, have at length come to an end, and that the communications of peace and commerce are once more opening among them. Whilst we devoutly return thanks to the beneficent Being who has been pleased to breathe into them the spirit of conciliation and forgiveness, we are bound, with peculiar gratitude, to be thankful to him that our own peace has been preserved through so perilous a season, and ourselves permitted quietly to cultivate the earth, and to practise and improve those arts which tend to increase our comforts. Thp assurances, indeed, of friendly disposition, received from all the powers with whom we have principal relations, had inspired a confidence jthat our peace with them would not have been disturbed. But a cessation of irregularities which had affected the commerce of neutral nations, and of the irritations and injuries produced by them, cannot but add to this confidence, and strengthens, at the same time, the hope that wrongs committed on unoffending friends, under a pressure of circumstances, will now be reviewed with candor, and will be considered as founding just claims of retribution for the past, and new assurances for the future. Among our Indian neighbors, also, a spirit of peace and friendship generally prevails ; and I am happy to inform you that the continued efforts to introduce among them the implements and the practice of husbandry and of the household arts, have not been without success ; that they are becoming more and more sensible of the superiority of this dependence for clothing and subsist ence, over the precarious resources of hunting and fish- 70 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ing ; and already we are able to announce that, instead of that constant diminution of their numbers, produced by their wars and their wants, some of them begin to expe rience an increase of population. To this state of general peace with which we have been blessed, one only exception exists. Tripoli, the least con siderable of the Barbary states, had come forward with demands unfounded either in right or in compact, and had permitted itself to denounce war, on our failure to comply before a given day. The style of the demand admitted but one answer. I sent a small squadron of frigates into the Mediterranean, with assurances to that power of our sincere desire to remain in peace : but with orders to pro tect our commerce against the threatened attack. The measure was seasonable and salutary. The Bey had already declared war. His cruisers were out. Two had arrived at Gibraltar. Our commerce in the Mediterranean was blockaded, and that of the Atlantic in peril. The ar rival of our squadron dispelled the danger. One of the Tripolitan cruisers, having fallen in with and engaged the small schooner Enterprise, commanded by Lieut. Sterret, which had gone as a tender to our larger vessels, was cap tured, after a heavy slaughter of her men, without the loss of a single one on our part. The bravery exhibited by our citizens on that element w?K, I trust, be a testimony to the world that it is not the want of that virtue which makes us seek their peace, but a conscientious desire to direct the energies of our nation to the multiplication of the human race, and not to its destruction. Unauthorized by the constitution, without the sanction of Congress, to go beyond the line of defence, the vessel, being disabled from committing further hostilities, was liberated with its crew. The legislature will doubtless consider whether, by authorizing measures of offence also, they will place our force on an equal footing with that of its adversaries. 1 communicate all material information on this subject, that, in the exercise of this important function confided by the constitution to the legislature exclusively, their judgment may form itself on a knowledge and consideration of every circumstance of weight. I wish I could say that our situation with all the other 71 Barbary states was entirely satisfactory. Discovering that some delays had taken place in the performance of certain articles stipulated by us, I thought it my duty, by immedi ate measures for fulfilling them, to vindicate to ourselves the right of considering the effect of departure from stipu lation on their side. From the papers which will be laid before you, you will be enabled to judge whether our treaties are regarded by them as fixing at all the measure of their demands, or as guarding from the exercise of force our vessels within their power ; and to consider how far it will be safe and expedient to leave our affairs with them in their present posture. I lay before you the result of the census lately taken of our inhabitants, to a conformity with which we are now to reduce the ensuing ratio of representation and taxation. You will perceive that the increase of numbers, during the last ten years, proceeding in geometrical ratio, promises a duplication in little more than twenty-two years. We contemplate this rapid growth, and the prospect it holds up to us, not with a view to the injuries it may enable us to do to others in some future day, but to the settlement of the extensive country still remaining vacant within our limits, to the multiplication of men susceptible of happi ness, educated in the love of order, habituated to self- government, and valuing its blessings above all price. Other circumstances, combined with the increase of numbers, have produced an augmentation of revenue arising from consumption, in a ratio far beyond that of population alone; and, though the changes of foreign relations now taking place, so desirable for the world, may for a season affect this branch of revenue, yet, weighing all probabilities of expense, as well as of income, there is reasonable ground of confidence that we may now safely dispense with all the internal taxes comprehending ex cise, stamps, auctions, licenses, carriages, and refined sugars; to which the postage on newspapers may be added, to facilitate the progress of information ; and that the remaining sources of revenue will be sufficient to pro vide for the support of government, to pay the interest of the public debts, and to discharge the principals within shorter periods than the laws of the general expectation 72 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. had contemplated. War, indeed, and untoward events, may change this prospect of things, and call for expenses which theimposts could not meet. But sound principles will not justify our taxing the industry of our fellow- citizens to accumulate treasure for wars to happen we know not when, and which might not perhaps happen, but from the temptations offered by that treasure. These views, however, of reducing our burdens, are formed on the expectation that a sensible, and, at the same time, a salutary reduction may take place in our habitual expenditures. For this purpose, those of the civil govern ment, the army, and navy, will need revisal. When we consider that this government is charged with the external and mutual relations only of these states ; that the states themselves have principal care of our persons, our prop erty, and our reputation, constituting the great field of human concerns, we may well doubt whether our organiza tion is not too complicated, too expensive; whether offices and officers have not been multiplied unnecessarily, and sometimes injuriously to the service they were meant to promote. I will cause to be laid before you an essay to wards a statement of those who, under public employment of various kinds, draw money from the treasury, or from our citizens. Time has not permitted a perfect enumeration, the ramifications of office being too multiplied and remote to be completely traced in a first trial. Among those who are dependent on executive discretion, I have begun the reduction of what was deemed necessary. The expenses of diplomatic agency have been considerably diminished. The inspectors of internal revenue, who were found to ob struct the accountability of the institution, have been dis continued. Several agencies, created by executive author ity, on salaries fixed by that also, have been suppressed, and should suggest the expediency of regulating that power by law, so as to subject its exercises to legislative inspec tion and sanction. Other reformations of the same kind will be pursued with that caution which is requisite, in removing useless things, not to injure what is retained. But the great mass of public offices is established by law, and therefore by law alone can be abolished. Should the legislature think it expedient to pass this roll in review, JEFFERSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 73 and try all its parts by the test of public utility, they may be assured of every aid and light which executive informa tion can yield. Considering the general tendency to mul tiply offices and dependencies, and to increase expense to the ultimate term of burden which the citizen can bear, it behoves us to avail ourselves of every occasion which presents itself for taking off the surcharge; that it never may be seen here that, after leaving to labor the smallest portion of its earnings on which it can subsist, govern ment shall itself consume the whole residue of what it was instituted to guard. In our care, too, of the public contributions intrusted to our direction, it would be prudent to multiply barriers against their dissipation, by appropriating specific sums to every specific purpose susceptible of definition; by dis allowing all applications of money varying from the appro priation in object, or transcending it in amount ; by re ducing the undefined field of contingencies, and thereby circumscribing discretionary powers over money ; and by bringing back to a single department all accountabilities for money, where the examinations may be prompt, effi cacious, and uniform. An account of the receipts and expenditures of the last year, as prepared by the Secretary of the Treasury, will, as usual, be laid before you. The success which has at tended the late sales of the public lands shows that, with attention, they may be made an important source of re ceipt. Among the payments, those made in discharge of the principal and interest of the national debt, will show that the public faith has been exactly maintained. To these will be added an estimate of appropriations neces sary for the ensuing year. This last will, of course, be effected by such modifications of the system of expense as you shall think proper to adopt. A statement has been formed by the Secretary of War, on mature consideration, of all the posts and stations where garrisons will be expedient, and of the number of men requisite for each garrison. The whole amount is considerably short of the present military establishment. For the surplus, no particular use can be pointed out. For defence against invasion, their number is as nothing ; 74 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. nor is it conceived needful or safe that a standing army should be kept up in time of peace for that purpose. Un certain as we must ever be of the particular point in our circumference where an enemy may choose to invade us, the only force which can be ready at every point, and competent to oppose them, is the body of neighboring citizens, as formed into a militia. On these, collected from the parts most convenient, in numbers proportioned to the invading foe, it is best to rely, not only to meet the first attack, but, if it threatens to be permanent, to main tain the defence until regulars may be engaged to relieve them. These considerations render it important that we should, at every session, continue to amend the defects which from time to time show themselves in the laws for regulating the militia, until they are sufficiently perfect; nor should we now, or at any time, separate until we can say we have done every thing for the militia which we could do were an enemy at our door. The provision of military stores on hand will be laid be fore you, that you may judge of the additions still requisite. With respect to the extent to which our naval prepara tions should be carried, some difference of opinion may be expected to appear ; but just attention to the circum stances of every part of the Union will doubtless reconcile all. A small force will probably continue to be wanted for actual service in the Mediterranean. Whatever annual sum beyond that you may think proper to appropriate for naval preparations, would perhaps be better employed in providing those articles which may be kept without waste or consumption, and be in readiness when any exigency calls them into use. Progress has been made, as will ap pear by papers now communicated, in providing materials for seventy-four gun ships, as directed by law. How far the authority given by the legislature for pro curing and establishing sites for naval purposes has been perfectly understood and pursued in the execution, admits of some doubt. A statement of the expenses already in curred on that subject is now laid before you. I have, in certain cases, suspended or slackened these expenditures, that the legislature might determine whether so many yards are necessary as have been contemplated. The 75 works at this place are among those permitted to go on ; and five of the seven frigates directed to be laid up, have been brought and laid up here, where, besides the safety of their position, they are under the eye of the executive administration, as well as of its agents, and where your selves also will be guided by your own view in the legis lative provisions respecting them which may from time to time be necessary. They are preserved in such condition, as well the vessels as whatever belongs to them, as to be at all times ready for sea on a short warning. Two others are yet to be laid up so soon as they shall have received the repairs requisite to put them also into sound condition. As a superintending officer will be necessary at each yard, his duties and emoluments, hitherto fixed by the executive, will be a more proper subject for legis lation. A communication will also be made of our prog ress in the execution of the law respecting the vessels directed to be sold. The fortifications of our harbors, more or less advanced, present considerations of great difficulty. While some of them are on a scale sufficiently proportioned to the ad vantages of their position, to the efficacy of their protec tion, and the importance of the points within it, others are so extensive, will cost so much in their first erection, so much in their maintenance, and require such a force to garrison them, as to make it questionable what is best now to be done. A statement of those commenced or projected, of the expenses already incurred, and estimates of their future cost, so far as can be foreseen, shall be laid before you, that you may be enabled to judge whether any alteration is necessary in the laws respect ing this subject. Agriculture, manufactures, commerce, and navigation, the four pillars of our prosperity, are then most thriving when left most free to individual enterprise. Protection from casual embarrassments, however, may sometimes be seasonably interposed. If, in the course of your observa tions or inquiries, they should appear to need any aid within the limits of our constitutional powers, your sense of their importance is a sufficient assurance they will occupy your attention. We cannot, indeed, but all feel an 76 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. anxious solicitude for the difficulties under which our carrying trade will soon be placed. How far it can be relieved, otherwise than by time, is a subject of important consideration. The judiciary system of the United States, and espe cially that portion of it recently erected, will, of course, present itself to the contemplation of Congress; and that they may be able to judge of the proportion which the institution bears to the business it has to perform, I have caused to be procured from the several states, and now lay before Congress, an exact statement of all the causes decided since the first establishment of the courts, and of those which were depending when additional courts and judges were brought in to their aid. And, while on the judiciary organization, it will be worthy your consideration, whether the protection of the inestimable institution of juries has been extended to all the cases involving the security of our persons and prop erty. Their impartial selection also being essential to their value, we ought further to consider whether that is sufficiently secured in those states where they are named by a marshal depending on executive will, or designated by the court, or by officers dependent on them. I cannot omit recommending a revisal of the laws on the subject of naturalization. Considering the ordinary chances of human life, a denial of citizenship under a residence of fourteen years, is a denial to a great propor tion of those who ask it; and controls a policy pursued, from their first settlement, by many of these states, and still believed of consequence to their prosperity. And shall we refuse the unhappy fugitives from distress that hospitality which the savages of the wilderness extended to our fathers arriving in this land ? Shall oppressed humanity find no asylum on this globe? The constitu tion, indeed, has wisely provided that, for admission to certain offices of important trust, a residence shall be re quired sufficient to develop character and design. But might not the general character and capabilities of a citi zen be safely communicated to every one manifesting a bona fide purpose of embarking his life and fortunes per manently with us 1 with restrictions, perhaps, to guard 77 against fraudulent usurpations of our flag an abuse which brings so much embarrassment and loss on the genuine citizen, and so much danger to the nation of be ing involved in war, that no endeavor should be spared to detect and suppress it. These, fellow-citizens, are the matters respecting the state of the nation which I have thought of importance to be submitted to your consideration at this time. Some others, of less moment, or not yet ready for communica tion, will be the subject of separate messages. I am happy in this opportunity of committing the arduous affairs of our government to the collected wisdom of the Union. Nothing shall be wanting on my part to inform, as far as in my power, the legislative judgment, nor to carry that judgment into faithful execution. The pru dence and temperance of your discussions will promote, within your own walls, that conciliation which so much befriends rational conclusion ; and by its example will encourage among our constituents that progress of opin ion which is tending to unite them in object and will. That all should be satisfied with any one order of things is not to be expected ; but I indulge the pleasing persua sion, that the great body of our citizens will cordially concur in honest and disinterested efforts, which have for their object to preserve the general and state governments in their constitutional form and equilibrium; to maintain peace abroad, and order and obedience to the laws at home ; to establish principles and practices of adminis tration favorable to the security of liberty and property, and to reduce expenses to what is necessary for the use ful purposes of government. MADISON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1809. UNWILLING to depart from examples of the most revered authority, I avail myself of the occasion now presented, to express the profound impression made on me by the 78 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. call of my country to the station, to the duties of which I am about to pledge myself by the most solemn of sanc tions. So distinguished a mark of confidence, proceed ing from the deliberate and tranquil suffrage of a free and virtuous nation, would, under any circumstances, have commanded my gratitude and devotion, as well as filled me with an awful sense of the trust to be assumed. Un der the various circumstances which give peculiar solem nity to the existing period, I feel that both the honor and the responsibility allotted to me are inexpressibly enhanced. The present situation of the world is indeed without a parallel ; and that of our own country full of difficulties. The pressure of these, too, is the more severely felt, be cause they have fallen upon us at a moment when, the national prosperity being at a height not before attained, the contrast resulting from the change has been rendered the more striking. Under the benign influence of our republican institutions, and the maintenance of peace with all nations, whilst so many of them were engaged in bloody and wasteful wars, the fruits of a just policy were enjoyed in an unrivalled growth of our faculties and re sources. Proofs of this were seen in the improvements of agriculture ; in the successful enterprises of commerce ; in the progress of manufactures and useful arts; in the increase of the public revenue, and the use made of it in reducing the public debt; and in the valuable works and establishments every where multiplying over the face of our land. It is a precious reflection that the transition from this prosperous condition of our country, to the scene which has for some time been distressing us, is not chargeable on any unwarrantable views, nor, as I trust, on any in voluntary errors in the public councils. Indulging no passions which trespass on the rights or repose of other nations, it has been the true glory of the United States to cultivate peace by observing justice ; and to entitle them selves to the respect of the nations at war, by fulfilling their neutral obligations with the most scrupulous impar tiality. If there be candor in the world, the truth of these assertions will not be questioned ; posterity, at least, will do justice to them. 79 This unexceptionable course could not avail against the injustice and violence of the belligerent powers. In their rage against each other, or impelled by more direct motives, principles of retaliation have been introduced, equally contrary to universal reason and acknowledged law. How long their arbitrary edicts will be continued, in spite of the demonstrations that not even a pretext for them has been given by the United States, and of the fair and liberal attempt to induce a revocation of them, cannot be anticipated. Assuring myself that, under every vicis situde, the determined spirit and united councils of the nation will be safeguards to its honor and its essential interests, I repair to the post assigned me with no other discouragement than what springs from my own inade quacy to its high duties. If I do not sink under the weight of this deep conviction, it is because I find some support in a consciousness of the purposes, and a confidence in the principles, which I bring with me into this arduous service. To cherish peace and friendly intercourse with all na tions having correspondent dispositions ; to maintain sin cere neutrality towards belligerent nations ; to prefer in all cases amicable discussion and reasonable accommodation of differences to a decision of them by an appeal to arms ; to exclude foreign intrigues and foreign partialities, so degrading to all countries, and so baneful to free ones ; to foster a spirit of independence, too just to invade the rights of others, too proud to surrender our own, too liberal to indulge unworthy prejudices ourselves, and too elevated not to look down upon them in others ; to hold the union of the states as the basis of their peace and happiness ; to support the constitution, which is the cement of the Union, as well in its limitations as in its authorities ; to respect the rights and authorities reserved to the states and to the people, as equally incorporated with, and essential to the success of, the general system ; to avoid the slightest in terference with the rights of conscience, or the functions of religion, so wisely exempted from civil jurisdiction; to preserve, in their full energy, the other salutary provisions in behalf of private and personal rights, and of the free dom of the press ; to observe economy in public expend itures; to liberate the public resources by an honorable 80 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. discharge of the public debts; to keep within the requisite limits a standing military force, always remembering that an armed and trained militia is the firmest bulwark of republics that, without standing armies, their liberty can never be in danger, nor with large ones safe ; to promote, by authorized means, improvements friendly to agricul ture, to manufactures, and to external as well as internal commerce ; to favor, in like manner, the advancement of science and the diffusion of information as the best aliment to true liberty ; to carry on the benevolent plans which have been so meritoriously applied to the conversion of our aboriginal neighbors from the degradation and wretchedness of savage life, to a participation of the im provements of which the human mind and manners are susceptible in a civilized state ; as far as sentiments and intentions such as these can aid the fulfilment of my duty, they will be a resource which cannot fail me. It is my good fortune, moreover, to have the path in which I am to tread, lighted by examples of illustrious services, successfully rendered in the most trying dif ficulties, by those who have marched before me. Of those of my immediate predecessor it might least become me here to speak. I may, however, be pardoned for not sup pressing the sympathy with which my heart is full, in the rich reward he enjoys in the benedictions of a beloved country, gratefully bestowed for exalted talents, zealously devoted, through a long career, to the advancement of its highest interest and happiness. But the source to which I look for the aids which alone can supply my deficiencies, is in the well-tried intelligence and virtue of my fellow-citizens, and in the counsels of those representing them in the other departments associated in the care of the national interests. In these my confidence will, under every difficulty, be placed, next to that which we have all been encouraged to feel in the guardianship and guidance of that Almighty Being whose power regulates the destiny of nations, whose blessings have been so conspicuously dispensed to this rising republic, and to whom we are bound to address our devout gratitude for the past, as well as our fervent sup plications and best hopes for the future. THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 81 MADISON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. NOVEMBER 29, 1809. Felloio-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives : AT the period of our last meeting, I had the satisfaction of communicating an adjustment with one of the principal belligerent nations, highly important in itself, and still more so, as presaging a more extended accommodation. It is with deep concern I am now to inform you, that the favorable prospect has been overclouded by a refusal of the British government to abide by the act of its minister plenipotentiary, and by its ensuing policy towards the United States, as seen through the communications of the minister sent to replace him. Whatever pleas may be urged for a disavowal of en gagements formed by diplomatic functionaries, in cases where, by the terms of the engagements, a mutual ratifica tion is reserved ; or where notice at the time may have been given of a departure from instructions ; or in ex traordinary cases, essentially violating the principles of equity ; a disavowal could not have been apprehended in a case where no such notice or violation existed ; where no such ratification was reserved ; and, more especially, where, as is now in proof, an engagement, to be executed without any such ratification, was contemplated by the instructions given, and where it had, with good faith, been carried into immediate execution on the part of the United States. These considerations not having restrained the British government from disavowing the arrangement, by virtue of which its orders in council were to be revoked, and the event authorizing the renewal of commercial intercourse having thus not taken place, it necessarily became a question of equal urgency and importance, whether the act prohibiting that intercourse was not to be considered as remaining in legal force. This question being, after due deliberation, determined in the affirmative, a proclama tion to that effect was issued. It could not but happen, 82 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. however, that a return to this state of thing!?, from that which had followed an execution of the arrangement by the United States, would involve difficulties. With a view to diminish these as much as possible, the instruc tions from the Secretary of the Treasury, now laid before you, were transmitted to the collectors of the several ports. If, in permitting British vessels to depart without giving bonds not to proceed to their own ports, it should appear that the tenor of legal authority has not been strictly pur sued, it is to be ascribed to the anxious desire which was felt that no individuals should be injured by so unforeseen an occurrence ; and I rely on the regard of Congress for the equitable interests of our own citizens, to adopt whatever further provisions may be found requisite for a general remission of penalties involuntarily incurred. The recall of the disavowed minister having been fol lowed by the appointment of a successor, hopes were indulged that the new mission would contribute to alleviate the disappointment which had been produced, and to remove the causes which had so long embarrassed the good understanding of the two nations. It could not be doubted, that it would at least be charged with conciliatory ex planations of the steps which had been taken, and with proposals to be substituted for the rejected arrangement. Reasonable and universal as this expectation was, it also has not been fulfilled. From the first official disclosures of the new minister, it was found that he had received no authority to enter into explanations relative to either branch of the arrangement disavowed, nor any authority to sub stitute proposals, as to that branch which concerned the British orders in council. And finally, that his proposals with respect to the other branch, the attack on the frigate Chesapeake, were founded on a presumption, repeatedly declared to be inadmissible by the United States, that the first step towards adjustment was due from them } the proposals, at the same time, omitting even a reference to the officer answerable for the murderous aggression, and asserting a claim not less contrary to the British laws and British practice, than to the principles and obligations of the United States. The correspondence between the Department of State 83 and this minister will show how unessentially the features presented in its commencement have been varied in its progress. It will show, also, that, forgetting the respect due to all governments, he did not refrain from imputations on this, which required that no further communications should be received from him. The necessity of this step will be made known to his Britannic majesty, through the minister plenipotentiary of the United States in Lon don. And it would indicate a want of the confidence due to a government which so well understands and exacts what becomes foreign ministers near it, not to infer that the misconduct of its own representative will be viewed in the same light in which it has been regarded here. The British government will learn, at the same time, that a ready attention will be given to communications, through any channel which may be substituted. It will be happy, if the change in this respect should be accompanied by a favorable revision of the unfriendly policy which has been so long pursued towards the United States. With France, the other belligerent, whose trespasses on our commercial rights have long been the subject of our just remonstrances, the posture of our relations does not correspond with the measures taken on the part of the United States to effect a favorable change. The result of the several communications made to her government, in pursuance of the authorities vested by Congress in the executive, is contained in the correspondence of our min ister at Paris now laid before you. By some of the other belligerents, although professing just and amicable dispositions, injuries materially affecting our commerce have not been duly controlled or repressed. In these cases, the interpositions deemed proper on our part have not been omitted. But it well deserves the con sideration of the legislature, how far both the safety and honor of the American flag may be consulted, by ad equate provision against that collusive prostitution of it by individuals, unworthy of the American name, which has so much favored the real or pretended suspicions, under which the honest commerce of their fellow-citizens has suffered. In relation to the powers on the coast of Barbary, noth- 84 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ing has occurred which is not of a nature rather to inspire confidence than distrust, as to the continuance of the existing amity. With our Indian neighbors, the just and benevolent system continued towards them, has also pre served peace, and is more and more advancing habits favorable to their civilization and happiness. From a statement which will be made by the Secretary of War, it will be seen that the fortifications on our mar itime frontier are in many of the ports completed, affording the defence which was contemplated ; and that a further time will be required to render complete the works in the harbor of New York, and in some other places. By the enlargement of the works, and the employment of a greater number of hands at the public armories, the supply of small arms, of an improving quality, appears to be an nually increasing at a rate that, with those made on private contract, may be expected to go far towards provi ding for the public exigency. The act of Congress providing for the equipment of our vessels of war having been fully carried into execution, I refer to the statement of the Secretary of the Navy for the information which may be proper on that subject. To that statement is added a view of the transfers of ap propriations, authorized by the act of the session prece ding the last, and of the grounds on which the transfers were made. Whatever may be the course of your deliberations on the subject of our military establishments, I should fail in my duty in not recommending to your serious attention the importance of giving to our militia, the great bulwark of our security and resource of our power, an organization the best adapted to eventual situations, for which the United States ought to be prepared. The sums which had been previously accumulated in the treasury, together with the receipts during the year ending on the 30th of September last, (and amounting to more than nine millions of dollars,) have enabled us to fulfil all our engagements, and to defray the current ex penses of government, without recurring to any loan. But the insecurity of our commerce, and the consequent dimi nution of the public revenue, will probably produce a de- 85 ficiency in the receipts of the ensuing year, for which, and for other details, I refer to the statements which will be transmitted from the treasury. In the state which has been presented of our affairs with the great parties to a disastrous and protracted war, carried on in a mode equally injurious and unjust to the United States as a neutral nation, the wisdom of the national legislature will be again summoned to the im portant decision on the alternatives before them. That these will be met in a spirit worthy the councils of a na tion conscious both of its rectitude and of its rights, and careful as well of its honor as of its peace, I have an entire confidence. And that the result will be stamped by a unanimity becoming the occasion, and be supported by every portion of our citizens, with a patriotism en lightened and invigorated by experience, ought as little to be doubted. In the midst of the wrongs and vexations experienced from external causes, there is much room for congratula tion on the prosperity and happiness flowing from our situation at home. The blessing of health has never been more universal. The fruits of the seasons, though in particular articles and districts short of their usual redundancy, are more than sufficient for our wants and our comforts. The face of our country every where pre sents the evidence of laudable enterprise, of extensive capital, and of durable improvement. In the cultivation of the materials, and the extension of useful manufactures, more especially in the general application to household fabrics, we behold a rapid diminution of our dependence on foreign supplies. Nor is it unworthy of reflection, that this revolution in our pursuits and habits is in no slight degree a consequence of those impolitic and arbi trary edicts, by which the contending nations, in endeav oring each of them to obstruct our trade with the other, have so far abridged our means of procuring the produc tions and manufactures, of which our own are now taking the place. Recollecting always that, for every advantage which may contribute to distinguish our lot from that to which others are doomed by the unhappy spirit of the times, we 8 86 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. are indebted to that Divine Providence whose goodness has been so remarkably extended to this rising nation, it becomes us to cherish a devout gratitude, and to implore from the same Omnipotent Source a blessing on the con sultations and measures about to be undertaken for the welfare of our beloved country. MONROE S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 5, 1817. I SHOULD be destitute of feeling if I was not deeply af fected by the strong proof which my fellow-citizens have given me of their confidence, in calling me to the high office, whose functions I am about to assume. As the expression of their good opinion of my conduct in the public service, I derive from it a gratification, which those who are conscious of having done all that they could do to merit it, can alone feel. My sensibility is increased by a just estimate of the importance of the trust, and of the nature and extent of its duties ; with the proper discharge of which the highest interests of a great and free people are intimately connected. Conscious of my own de ficiency, I cannot enter on these duties without great anxi ety for the result. From a just responsibility I will never shrink ; calculating with confidence, that, in my best efforts to promote the public welfare, my motives will always be duly appreciated, and my conduct be viewed with that candor and indulgence which I have experi enced in other stations. In commencing the duties of the chief executive office, it has been the practice of the distinguished men who have gone before me, to explain the principles which would govern them in their respective administrations. In following their venerated example, my attention is naturally drawn to the great causes which have contrib uted, in a principal degree, to produce the present happy condition of the United States. They will best explain 87 the nature of our duties, and shed much light on the pol icy which ought to be pursued in future. From the commencement of our revolution to the pres ent day, almost forty years have elapsed, and from the establishment of this constitution, twenty-eight. Through this whole term, the government has been what may em phatically be called self-government : and what has been the effect ? To whatever object we turn our attention, whether it relates to our foreign or domestic concerns, we find abundant cause to felicitate ourselves in the ex cellence of our institutions. During a period fraught with difficulties, and marked by very extraordinary events, the United States have flourished beyond example. Their citizens, individually, have been happy, and the nation prosperous. Under this constitution, our commerce has been wisely regulated with foreign nations, and between the states; new states have been admitted into our Union ; our terri tory has been enlarged by fair and honorable treaty, and with great advantage to the original states; the states respectively protected by the national government, under a mild paternal system, against foreign dangers, and en joying within their separate spheres, by a wise partition of power, a just proportion of the sovereignty, have im proved their police, extended their settlements, and at tained a strength and maturity which are the best proofs of wholesome laws well administered. And if we look to the condition of individuals, what a proud spectacle does it exhibit ! On whom has oppression fallen in any quar ter of our Union ? Who has been deprived of any right of person or property ? Who restrained from offering his vows in the mode which he prefers, to the Divine Author of his being ? It is well known that all these blessings have been enjoyed in their fullest extent; and I add, with peculiar satisfaction, that there has been no example of a capital punishment being inflicted on any one for the crime of high treason. Some, who might admit the competency of our govern ment to those beneficent duties, might doubt it in trials which put to the test its strength and efficiency as a member of the great community of nations. Here, too, 88 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. experience has afforded us the most satisfactory proof in its favor. Just as this constitution was put into action, several of the principal states of Europe had become much agitated, and some of them seriously convulsed. Destructive wars ensued, which have of late only been terminated. In the course of these conflicts, the United States received great injury from several of the parties. It was their interest to stand aloof from the contest, to demand justice from the party committing the injury, and to cultivate, by a fair and honorable conduct, the friend ship of all. War became at length inevitable, and the result has shown that our government is equal to that, the greatest of trials, under the most unfavorable circum stances. Of the virtue of the people, and of the heroic exploits of the army, the navy, and the militia, I need not speak. Such, then, is the happy government under which we live ; a government adequate to every purpose for which the social compact is formed ; a government elective in all its branches, under which every citizen may, by his merit, obtain the highest trust recognized by the constitu tion ; which contains within it no cause of discord ; none to put at variance one portion of the community with an other ; a government which protects every citizen in the full enjoyment of his rights, and is able to protect the na tion against injustice from foreign powers. Other considerations of the highest importance admon ish us to cherish our union, and to cling to the government which supports it. Fortunate as we are in our political institutions, we have not been less so in other circum stances, on which our prosperity and happiness essentially depend. Situated within the temperate zone, and extend ing through many degrees of latitude along the Atlantic, the United States enjoy all the varieties of climate, and every production incident to that portion of the globe. Penetrating, internally, to the great lakes and beyond the sources of the great rivers which communicate through our whole interior, no country was ever happier with respect to its domain. Blessed, too, with a fertile soil, our produce has always been very abundant, leaving, even in years the least favorable, a surplus for the wants of our MONROE S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 89 fellow-men in other countries. Such is our peculiar felicity, that there is not a part of our Union that is not particularly interested in preserving it. The great agri cultural interest of our nation prospers under its protec tion. Local interests are not less fostered by it. Our fellow-citizens of the north, engaged in navigation, find great encouragement in being made the favored carriers of the vast productions of the other portions of the United States, while the inhabitants of these are amply recom pensed in their turn, by the nursery for seamen and naval force, thus formed and reared up for the support of our common rights. Our manufacturers find a generous en couragement by the policy which patronizes domestic industry ; and the surplus of our produce, a steady and profitable market by local wants in less favored parts at home. Such, then, being the highly-favored condition of our country, it is the interest of every citizen to maintain it. What are the dangers which menace us ? If any exist, they ought to be ascertained and guarded against. In explaining my sentiments on this subject, it may be asked, What raised us to the present happy state? How did we accomplish the revolution? How remedy the de fects of the first instrument of our Union, by infusing into the national government sufficient power for national pur poses, without impairing the just rights of the states, or affecting those of individuals ? How sustain and pass with glory through the late war ? The government has been in the hands of the people. To the people, therefore, and to the faithful and able depositaries of their trust, is the credit due. Had the people of the United States been educated in different principles, had they been less intelligent, less independent, or less virtuous, can it be believed that we should have maintained the same steady and consistent career, or been blessed with the same success ? While, then, the constituent body retains its present sound and healthful state, every thing will be safe. They will choose competent and faithful representatives for every department. It is only when the people become ignorant and corrupt, when they degenerate into a populace, that they are inca pable of exercising the sovereignty. Usurpation is then an 8* 90 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. easy attainment, and a usurper soon found. The people themselves become the willing instruments of their own debasement and ruin. Let us, then, look to the great cause, and endeavor to preserve it in full force. Let us, by all wise and constitutional measures, promote intelligence among the people, as the best means of preserving our liberties. Dangers from abroad are not less deserving of attention. Experiencing the fortune of other nations, the United States may again be involved in war, and it may in that event be the object of the adverse party to overset our gov ernment, to break our union, and demolish us as a nation. Our distance from Europe, and the just, moderate, and pacific policy of our government, may form some security against these dangers, but they ought to be anticipated and guarded against. Many of our citizens are engaged in commerce and navigation, and all of them are in a certain degree dependent on their prosperous state. Many are engaged in the fisheries. These interests are exposed to invasion in the wars between other powers, and we should disregard the faithful admonitions of experience if we did not expect it. We must support our rights, or lose our character, and with it, perhaps, our liberties. A people who fail to do it, can scarcely be said to hold a place among independent nations. National honor is national property of the highest value. The sentiment in the mind of every citizen, is national strength. It ought therefore to be cherished. To secure us against these dangers, our coast and in land frontiers should be fortified, our army and navy regulated upon just principles as to the force of each, be kept in perfect order, and our militia be placed on the best practicable footing. To put our extensive coast in such a state of defence as to secure our cities and interior from invasion, will be attended with expense ; but the work, when finished, will be permanent, and it is fair to presume that a single campaign of invasion, by a naval force, superior to our own, aided by a few thousand land troops, would expose us to a greater expense, without taking into the estimate the loss of property and distress of our citizens, than would be sufficient for this great work. Our land 91 and naval forces should be moderate, but adequate to the necessary purposes. The former to garrison and preserve our fortifications, and to meet the first invasions of a foreign foe ; and while constituting the elements of a greater force, to preserve the science, as well as all the necessary imple ments of war, in a state to be brought into activity in the event of war. The latter, retained within the limits proper in state of peace, might aid in maintaining the neutrality of the United States, with dignity, in the wars of other powers, and in saving the property of their citizens from spoliation. In time of war, with the enlargement of which the great naval resources of the country render it suscepti ble, and which should be duly fostered in time of peace, it would contribute essentially, both as an auxiliary of defence and as a powerful engine of annoyance, to diminish the calamities of war, and to bring the war to a speedy and honorable termination. But it ought always to be held prominently in view, that the safety of these states, and of every thing dear to a free feople, must depend in an eminent degree on the militia, nvasions may be made too formidable to be resisted by any land and naval force, which it would comport either with the principles of our government, or the circumstances of the United States, to maintain. In such cases, recourse must be had to the great body of the people, and in a man ner to produce the best effect. It is of the highest impor tance, therefore, that they be so organized and trained as to be prepared for any emergency. The arrangement should be such as to put at the command of the govern ment the ardent patriotism and youthful vigor of the country. If formed on equal and just principles, it cannot be oppressive. It is the crisis which makes the pressure, and not the laws which provide a remedy for it. This arrangement should be formed, too, in time of peace, to be the better prepared for war. With such an organization of such a people, the United States have nothing to dread from foreign invasion. At its approach, an overwhelming force of gallant men might always be put in motion. Other interests of high importance will claim attention; among which the improvement of our country by roads and canals, proceeding always with a constitutional sane- 92 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. tion, holds a distinguished place. By thus facilitating the intercourse between the states, we shall add much to the convenience and comfort of our fellow-citizens, much to the ornament of the country, and, what is of greater importance, we shall shorten distances, and by making each part more accessible to and dependent on the other, we shall bind the Union more closely together. Nature has done so much for us by intersecting the country with so many great rivers, bays, and lakes, approaching from distant points so near to each other, that the inducement to com plete the work seems to be peculiarly strong. A more interesting spectacle was perhaps never seen than is ex hibited within the limits of the United States a territory so vast, and advantageously situated, containing objects so grand, so useful, so happily connected in all their parts. Our manufactures will, likewise, require the systematic and fostering care of the government. Possessing, as we do, all the raw materials, the fruit of our own soil and in dustry, we ought not to depend, in the degree we have done, on supplies from other countries. While we are thus dependent, the sudden event of war, unsought and un expected, cannot fail to plunge us into the most serious difficulties. It is important, too, that the capital which nourishes our manufactures should be domestic, as its influence in that case, instead of exhausting, as it may do in foreign hands, would be felt advantageously on agricul ture, and every other branch of industry. Equally im portant is it to provide at home a market for our raw materials, as, by extending the competition, it will enhance the price, and protect the cultivator against the casualties incident to foreign markets. With the Indian tribes it is our duty to cultivate friendly relations, and to act with kindness and liberality in all our transactions. Equally proper is it to persevere in our efforts to extend to them the advantages of civilization. The great amount of our revenue, and the flourishing state of the treasury, are a full proof of the competency of the national resources for any emergency, as they are of the willingness of our fellow-citizens to bear the burdens which the public necessities require. The vast amount of vacant lands, the value of which daily augments, forms an 93 additional resource of great extent and duration. These resources, besides accomplishing every other necessary pur pose, puts it completely in the power of the United States to discharge the national debt at an early period. Peace is the best time for improvement and preparations of every kind ; it is in peace that our commerce flourishes most, that taxes are most easily paid, and that the revenue is most productive. The executive is charged, officially, in the departments under it, with the disbursement of the public money, and is responsible for the faithful application of it to the pur poses for which it is raised. The legislature is the watch ful guardian over the public purse. It is its duty to see that the disbursement has been honestly made. To meet the requisite responsibility, every facility should be afford ed to the executive, to enable it to bring the public agents intrusted with the public money, strictly and promptly to account. Nothing should be presumed against them; but if, with the requisite facilities, the public money is suffered to lie long and uselessly in their hands, they will not be the only defaulters, nor will the demoralizing effect be confined to them. It will evince a relaxation and want of tone in the administration, which will be felt by the whole community. I shall do all that I can to secure economy and fidelity in this important branch of the administration, and I doubt not that the legislature will perform its duty with equal zeal. A thorough examination should be regularly made, and I will promote it. It is particularly gratifying to me to enter on the dis charge of these duties at a time when the United States are blessed with peace. It is a state most consistent with their prosperity and happiness. It will be my sincere de sire to preserve it, so far as depends on the executive, on just principles with all nations, claiming nothing unreason able of any, and rendering to each what is its due. Equally gratifying is it to witness the increased harmony of opinion which pervades our Union. Discord does not belong to our system. Union is recommended, as well by the free and benign principles of our government, extend ing its blessings to every individual, as by the other eminent advantages attending it. The American people 94 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. have encountered together great dangers, and sustained severe trials, with success. They constitute one great family, with a common interest. Experience has enlight ened us on some questions of essential importance to the country. The progress has been slow, dictated by a just reflection, and a faithful regard to every interest connected with it. To promote this harmony, in accordance with the principles of our republican government, and in a manner to give the most complete effect, and to advance, in all other respects, the best interests of our country, will be the object of my constant and zealous exertions. Never did a government commence under auspices so favorable, nor ever was success so complete. If we look to the history of other nations, ancient or modern, we find no example of a growth so rapid, so gigantic ; of a people so prosperous and happy. In contemplating what we have still to perform, the heart of every citizen must expand with joy, when he reflects how near our government has approached to perfection ; that in respect to it we have no essential improvement to make ; that the great object is to preserve it in the essential principles and features which characterize it, and that that is to be done by preserving the virtue and enlightening the minds of the people ; and, as a security against foreign dangers, to adopt such ar rangements as are indispensable to the support of our independence, our rights and liberties. If we persevere in the career in which we have advanced so far, and in the path already traced, we cannot fail, under the favor of a gracious Providence, to attain the high destiny which seems to await us. In the administration of the illustrious men who have preceded me in this high station, with some of whom I have been connected by the closest ties from early life, examples are presented which will always be found highly instructive and useful to their successors. From these I shall endeavor to derive all the advantages which they may afford. Of my immediate predecessor, under whom so important a portion of this great and successful experiment has been made, I shall be pardoned for expressing my earnest wishes that he may long enjoy in his retirement the affections of a grateful country, the best reward 95 of exalted talents and the most faithful and meritorious services. Relying on the aid to be derived from the other departments of government, I enter on the trust to which I have been called by the suffrages of my fellow-citizens, with my fervent prayers to the Almighty that he will be graciously pleased to continue to us that protection which he has already so conspicuously displayed in our favor. MONROE S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. DECEMBER 3, 1817. Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives : AT no period of our political existence had we so much cause to felicitate ourselves at the prosperous and happy condition of our country. The abundant fruits of the earth have filled it with plenty. An extensive and profit able commerce has greatly augmented our revenue. The public credit has attained an extraordinary elevation. Our preparations for defence, in case of future wars, from which, by the experience of all nations, we ought not to ex pect to be exempted, are advancing, under a well-digested system, with all the despatch which so important a work will admit. Our free government, founded on the interests and affections of the people, has gained, and is daily gain ing strength. Local jealousies are rapidly yielding to more generous, enlarged, and enlightened views of national policy. For advantages so numerous and highly important, it is our duty to unite in grateful acknowledgments to that Omnipotent Being, from whom they are derived, and in unceasing prayer that he will endow us with virtue and strength to maintain and hand them down, in their utmost purity, to our latest posterity. I have the satisfaction to inform you, that an arrange ment, which had been commenced by my predecessor, with the British government, for the reduction of the naval force, by Great Britain and the United States, on the lakes, 96 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. has been concluded ; by which it is provided, that neither party shall keep in service on Lake Champlain more than one \ issel ; on Lake Ontario, more than one ; on Lake Erie and he upper lakes, more than two ; to be armed, each with one cannon only, and that all the other armed vessels of bo h parties, of which an exact list is interchanged, shall be dismantled. It is also agreed, that the force retained shall oe restricted in its duty to the internal purposes of each party ; and that the arrangement shall remain in force until six months shall have expired after notice having been given by one of the parties to the other of its desire that it should terminate. By this arrangement, useless expense on both sides, and, what is of greater importance, the danger of collision between armed vessels in those inland waters, which was great, is prevented. I have the satisfaction also to state, that the commission ers under the fourth article of the treaty of Ghent, to whom it was referred to decide to which party the several islands in ihz Bay of Passamaquoddy belonged, under the treaty of one thousand seven hundred and eighty -three, have agreed in a report, by which all the islands in the possession of each party before the late war have been decreed to it. The commissioners acting under the other articles of the treaty of Ghent, for the settlement of the boundaries, have also been engaged in the discharge of their respective duties, but have not yet completed them. The difference which arose between the two governments, under the treaty, respecting the right of the United States to take and cure fish on the coast of the British provinces, north of our limits, which had been secured by the treaty of one thousand seven hundred and eighty-three, is still in negoti ation. The proposition made by this government, to ex tend to the colonies of Great Britain the principle of the convention of London, by which the commerce between the ports of the United States and British ports of Europe had been placed on a footing of equality, has been declined by the British government. This subject having been thus amicably discussed between the two governments, and it appearing that the British government is unwilling to de part from its present regulations, it remains for Congress to decide whether they will make any other regulations in 97 consequence thereof, for the protection and improvement of our navigation. The negotiation with Spain, for spoliations on our com merce, and the settlement of boundaries, remains essen tially in the state it held in the communications that were made to Congress by my predecessor. It has been evident ly the policy of the Spanish government to keep the negotiation suspended, and in this the United States have acquiesced, from an amicable disposition towards Spain, and in the expectation that her government would, from a sense of justice, finally accede to such an arrangement as would be equal between the parties. A disposition has been lately shown by the Spanish government to move in the negotiation, which has been met by this government; and should the conciliatory and friendly policy which has invariably guided our councils be reciprocated, a just and satisfactory arrangement may be expected. It is proper, however, to remark that no proposition has yet been made from which such a result can be presumed. It was anticipated, at an early stage, that the contest between Spain and the colonies would become highly interesting to the United States. It was natural that our citizens should sympathize in events which affected their neighbors. It seemed probable, also, that the prosecution of the conflict, along our coast, and in contiguous coun tries, would occasionally interrupt our commerce, and otherwise affect the persons and property of our citizens. These anticipations have been realized. Such injuries have been received from persons aoting under the authority of both the parties, and for which redress has, in some instances, been withheld. Through every stage of the conflict, the United States have maintained an impartial neutrality, giving aid to neither of the parties in men, money, ships, or munitions of war. They have regarded the contest not in the light of an ordinary insurrection or rebellion, but as a civil war between parties nearly equal, having, as to neutral powers, equal rights. Our ports have been open to both, and every article the fruit of our soil, or of the industry of our citizens, which either was permitted to take, has been equally free to the other. Should the colonies establish their independence, it is 9 98 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. proper now to state that this government neither seeks nor would accept from them any advantage in commerce or otherwise, which will not be equally open to all other nations. The colonies will, in that event, become inde pendent states, free from any obligation to, or connection with us, which it may not then be their interest to form on a basis of fair reciprocity. In the summer of the present year, an expedition was set on foot against East Florida, by persons claiming to act under the authority of some of the colonies, who took possession of Amelia Island, at the mouth of St. Mary s River, near the boundary of the state of Georgia. As the province lies eastward of the Mississippi, and is bounded by the United States and the ocean on every side, and has been a subject of negotiation with the government of Spain, as an indemnity for losses by spoliation, or in exchange of territory of equal value, westward of the Mississippi, a fact well known to the world, it excited surprise that any countenance should be given to this measure by any of the colonies. As it would be difficult to reconcile it with the friendly relations existing between the United States and the colonies, a doubt was entertained whether it had been authorized by them, or any of them. This doubt has gained strength, by the circumstances which have unfolded themselves in the prosecution of the enterprise, which have marked it as a mere private, un authorized adventure. Projected and commenced with an incompetent force, reliance seems to have been placed on what might be drawn, in defiance of our laws, from within our limits ; and of late, as their resources have failed, it has assumed a more marked character of unfriendliness to us, the island being made a channel for the illicit intro duction of slaves from Africa into the United States, an asylum for fugitive slaves from the neighboring states, and a port for smuggling of every kind. A similar establishment was made, at an earlier period, by persons of the same description, in the Gulf of Mexico, at a place called Galveston, within the limits of the United States, as we contend, under the cession of Louisiana. This enterprise has been marked in a more signal manner by all the objectionable circumstances which characterized 99 the other, and more particularly by the equipment of privateers which have annoyed our commerce, and by smuggling. These establishments, if ever sanctioned by any authority whatever, which is not believed, have abused their trust and forfeited all claim to consideration. A just regard for the rights and interests of the United States required that they should be suppressed, and orders have accordingly been issued to that effect. The imperious considerations which produced this measure will be ex plained to the parties whom it may in any degree concern. To obtain correct information on every subject in which the United States are interested ; to inspire just sentiments in all persons in authority, on either side, of our friendly disposition, so far as it may comport with an impartial neutrality, and to secure proper respect to our commerce in every port, and from every flag, it has been thought proper to send a ship of war, with three distinguished citizens, along the southern coast, with instructions to touch at such ports as they may find most expedient for these purposes. With the existing authorities, with those in the possession of, and exercising the sovereignty, must the communication be held ; from them alone can redress for past injuries, committed by persons acting under them, be obtained ; by them alone can the commission of the like in future be prevented. Our relations with the other powers of Europe have experienced no essential change since the last session. In our intercourse with each, due attention continues to be paid to the protection of our commerce, and to every other object in which the United States are interested. A strong hope is entertained, that, by adhering to the maxims of a just, candid, and friendly policy, we may long preserve amicable relations with all the powers of Europe, on con ditions advantageous and honorable to our country. With the Barbary states and the Indian tribes, our pacific relations have been preserved. In calling your attention to the internal concerns of our country, the view which they exhibit is peculiarly gratifying. The payments which have been made into the treasury show the very productive state of the public revenue. After satisfying the appropriations made by law 100 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. for the support of the civil government and of the military and naval establishments, embracing suitable provision for fortification and for the gradual increase of the navy, pay ing the interest of the public debt, and extinguishing more than eighteen millions of the principal, within the present year, it is estimated that a balance of more than six mil lions of dollars will remain in the treasury on the first day of January, applicable to the current service of the en suing year. The payments into the treasury during the year one thousand eight hundred and seventeen, on account of imports and tonnage, resulting principally from duties which have accrued in the present year, may be fairly estimated at twenty millions of dollars ; internal revenues, at two millions five hundred thousand; public lands, at one million five hundred thousand ; bank dividends and inci dental receipts, at five hundred thousand ; making, in the whole, twenty-four millions and five hundred thousand dollars. The annual permanent expenditure for the support of the civil government, and of the army and navy, as now established by law, amounts to eleven millions eight hun dred thousand dollars ; and for the sinking fund, to ten millions ; making, in the whole, twenty-one millions eight hundred thousand dollars; leaving an annual excess of revenue, beyond the expenditure, of two millions seven hundred thousand dollars, exclusive of the balance esti mated to be in the treasury on the 1st day of January, one thousand eight hundred and eighteen. In the present state of the treasury, the whole of the Louisiana debt may be redeemed in the year 1819 ; after which, if the public debt continues as it now is, above par, there will be annually about five millions of the sinking fund unexpended, until the year 1825, when the loan of 1812, and the stock created by funding treasury notes, will be redeemable. It is also estimated that the Mississippi stock will be discharged during the year 1819, from the proceeds of the public lands assigned to that object; after which the receipts from those lands will annually add to the public revenue the sum of one million five hundred thousand dollars, mak- MONROE S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 101 ing the permanent annual revenue amount to twenty-six millions of dollars, and leaving an annual xcetis of revenue after the year 1819, beyond the permanettt -autfrorized expenditure, of more than four millions of jdqllarsj. , -, , By the last returns to the department of waT 9 ihe militia force of the several states may be estimated at eight hun dred thousand men, infantry, artillery, and cavalry. Great part of this force is armed, and measures are taken to arm the whole. An improvement in the organization and dis cipline of the rnilitia, is one of the great objects which claim the unremitted attention of Congress. The regular force amounts nearly to the number re quired by law, and is stationed along the Atlantic and inland frontiers. Of the naval force, it has been necessary to maintain strong squadrons in the Mediterranean and in the Gulf of Mexico. From several of the Indian tribes, inhabiting the coun try bordering on Lake Erie, purchases have been made of lands, on conditions very favorable to the United States, and, it is presumed, not less so to the tribes themselves. By these purchases, the Indian title, with moderate reser vations, has been extinguished to the whole of the land within the state of Ohio, and to a great part of that in Michigan territory, and of the state of Indiana. From the Cherokee tribe a tract has been purchased in the state of Georgia, and an arrangement made, by which, in exchange for lands beyond the Mississippi, a great part, if not the whole of the land belonging to the tribe, eastward of that river, in the states of North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee, and in the Alabama territory, will soon be acquired. By these acquisitions, and others that may reasonably be expected soon to follow, we shall be enabled to extend our settlements from the inhabited parts of the state of Ohio, along Lake Erie, into the Michigan territory, and to connect our settlements by degrees, through the state of Indiana and the Illinois territory, to that of Mis souri. A similar and equally advantageous effect will soon be produced to the south, through the whole extent of the states and territory which border on the waters emptying into the Mississippi and the Mobile. In this progress, 9* 102 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. which the rights of nature demand, and nothing can pre vent, aRarlsmg a ;growth rapid and gigantic, it is our duty to make new efforts for the preservation, improvement, and ,oiyili,z<atiQn of the native inhabitants. The hunter state ,ea. exist ^oaly-in the vast, uncultivated desert. It yields to the more dense and compact form and greater force of civilized population ; and of right it ought to yield, for the earth was given to mankind to support the greatest num ber of which it is capable, and no tribe or people have a right to withhold from the wants of others more than is necessary for their own support and comfort. It is grat ifying to know that the reservations of land made by the treaties with the tribes on Lake Erie, were made with a view to individual ownership among them, and to the cul tivation of the soil by all, and that an annual stipend has been pledged to supply their other wants. It will merit the consideration of Congress, whether other provisions, not stipulated by the treaty, ought to be made for these tribes, and for the advancement of the liberal and humane policy of the United States towards all the tribes within our limits, and more particularly for their improvement in the arts of civilized life. Among the advantages incident to these purchases, and to those which have preceded, the security which may thereby be afforded to our inland frontier is peculiarly important. With a strong barrier, consisting of our own people thus planted on the lakes, the Mississippi, and the Mobile, with the protection to be derived from the regular force, Indian hostilities, if they do not altogether cease, will henceforth lose their terror. Fortifications in those quarters to any extent will not be necessary, and the ex pense attending them may be saved. A people accustomed to the use of fire-arms only, as the Indian tribes are, will shun even moderate works which are defended by cannon. Great fortifications will therefore be requisite only in future along the coast, and at some points in the interior con nected with it. On these will the safety of towns and the commerce of our rivers, from the Bay of Fundy to the Mississippi, depend. On these, therefore, should the ut most attention, skill, and labor be bestowed. A considerable and rapid augmentation in the value of MONROE S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 103 all the public lands, proceeding from these and other ob vious causes, may henceforward be expected. The dif ficulties attending early emigrations will be dissipated even in the most remote parts. Several new states have been admitted into our Union to the west and south, and territo rial governments, happily organized, established over every other portion in which there is vacant land for sale. In terminating Indian hostilities, as must soon be done, in a formidable shape at least, the emigration, which has here tofore been great, will probably increase, and the demand for land, and the augmentation in its value, be in like propor tion. The great increase of our population throughout the Union will alone produce an important effect, and in no quarter will it be so sensibly felt as those in contemplation. The public lands are a public stock, which ought to be disposed of to the best advantage for the nation. The na tion should, therefore, derive the profit proceeding from the continual rise in their value. Every encouragement should be given to the emigrants, consistent with a fair competi tion between them ; but that competition should operate in the first sale to the advantage of the nation rather than of individuals. Great capitalists will derive all the benefit in cident to their superior wealth, under any mode of sale which may be adopted. But if, looking forward to the rise in the value of the public lands, they should have the opportunity of amassing, at a low price, vast bodies in their hands, the profit will accrue to them, and not to the public. They would also have the power, in that degree, to control the emigration and settlement in such a manner as their opinion of their respective interests might dictate. I submit the subject to the consideration of Congress, that such further provision may be made of the sale of the pub lic lands, with a view to the public interest, should any be deemed expedient, as in their judgment may be best adapted to the object. When we consider the vast extent of territory within the United States, the great amount and value of its pro ductions, the connection of its parts, and other circum stances on which their prosperity and happiness depend, we cannot fail to entertain a high sense of the advantage to be derived from the facility which may be afforded in 104 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the intercourse between them, by means of good roads and canals. Never did a country of such vast extent offer equal inducements to improvements of this kind, nor ever were consequences of such magnitude involved in them. As this subject was acted on by Congress at the last ses sion, and there may be a disposition to revive it at present, I have brought it into view for the purpose of communica ting my sentiments on a very important circumstance con nected with it, with that freedom and candor which a regard for the public interest and a proper respect for Congress require. A difference of opinion has existed from the first formation of our constitution to the present time, among our most enlightened and virtuous citizens, respecting the right of Congress to establish such a system of improve ment. Taking into view the trust with which I am now honored, it would be improper, after what has passed, that this discussion should be revived with an uncertainty of my opinion respecting the right. Disregarding early im pressions, I have bestowed on the subject all the deliber ation which its great importance, and a just sense of my duty, required, and the result is a settled conviction in my mind that Congress do not possess the right. It is not contained in any of the specified powers granted to Con gress, rior can I consider it incidental to, or a necessary mean, viewed on the most liberal scale, for carrying into effect any of the powers which are specifically granted. In communicating this result, I cannot resist the obligation which I feel, to suggest to Congress the propriety of rec ommending to the states an adoption of an amendment to the constitution, which shall give Congress the right in question. In cases of doubtful construction, especially of such vital interest, it comports with the nature and origin of our republican institutions, and will contribute much to preserve them, to apply to our constituents for an explicit grant of the power. We may confidently rely, that if it appears to their satisfaction that the power is necessary, it will be granted. In this case, I am happy to observe, that experience has afforded the most ample proof of its utility, and that the benign spirit of conciliation and harmony, which now manifests itself throughout our Union, promises to such a MONROE S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 105 recommendation the most prompt and favorable result. I think proper to suggest, also, in case this measure is adopted, that it be recommended to the states to include in the amendment sought, a right in Congress to institute, likewise, seminaries of learning, for the all-important pur pose of diffusing knowledge among our fellow-citizens throughout the United States. Our manufactures will require the continued attention of Congress. The capital employed in them is consider able, and the knowledge required in the machinery and fabric of all the most useful manufactures is of great value. Their preservation, which depends on due encouragement, is connected with the high interests of the nation. Although the progress of the public buildings has been as favorable as circumstances have permitted, it is to be regretted the capitol is not yet in a state to receive you. There is good cause to presume that the two wings, the only parts as yet commenced, will be prepared for that purpose the next session. The time seems now to have arrived, when this subject may be deemed worthy of the attention of Congress, on a scale adequate to national pur poses. The completion of the middle building will be necessary to the convenient accommodation of Congress, of the committees, and various officers belonging to it. It is evident that the other public buildings are altogether in sufficient for the accommodation of the several executive departments ; some of whom are much crowded, and even subject to the necessity of obtaining it in private buildings, at some distance from the head of the department, and with inconvenience to the management of the public business. Most nations have taken an interest and a pride in the improvement and ornament of their metropolis, and none were more conspicuous in that respect than the an cient republics. The policy which dictated the establish ment of a permanent residence Cor the national govern ment, and the spirit in which it was commenced and has been prosecuted, show that such improvement was thought worthy the attention of this nation. Its central position, between the northern and southern extremes of our Union, and its approach to the west, at the head of a great navi- 106 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. gable river, which interlocks with the western waters, prove the wisdom of the councils which established it. Nothing appears to be more reasonable and proper, than that convenient accommodation should be provided, on a well-digested plan, for the heads of the several de partments, and for the attorney-general ; and it is believed that the public ground in the city, applied to these objects, will be found amply sufficient. I submit this subject to the consideration of Congress, that such provision may be made in it as to them may seem proper. In contemplating the happy situation of the United States, our attention is drawn, with peculiar interest, to the surviving officers and soldiers of our revolutionary army, who so eminently contributed, by their services, to lay its foundation. Most of those very meritorious citi zens have paid the debt of nature and gone to repose. It is believed, that among the survivors there are some not provided for by existing laws, who are reduced to indi gence, and even to real distress. These men have a claim on the gratitude of their country, and it will do honor to their country to provide for them. The lapse of a few years more, and the opportunity will be forever lost ; indeed, so long, already, has been the interval, that the number to be benefited by any provision which may be made, will not be great. It appearing in a satisfactory manner that the revenue arising from imposts and tonnage, and from the sale of public lands, will be fully adequate to the support of the civil government, of the present military and naval estab lishments, including the annual augmentation of the latter to the extent provided for, to the payment of the interest on the public debt, and to the extinguishment of it at the times authorized, without the aid of the internal taxes, I consider it my duty to recommend to Congress their re peal. To impose taxes when the public exigencies require them, is an obligation of the most sacred charac ter, especially with a free people. The faithful fulfilment of it is among the highest proofs of their virtue and ca pacity for self-government. To dispense with taxes, when it may be done with perfect safety, is equally the J. Q,. ADAMS S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 107 duty of their representatives. In this instance, we have the satisfaction to know that they were imposed when the demand was imperious, and have been sustained with exemplary fidelity. I have to add, that, however gratify ing it may be to me, regarding the prosperous and happy condition of our country, to recommend the repeal of these taxes at this time, I shall, nevertheless, be attentive to events, and, should any future emergency occur, be not less prompt to suggest such measures and burdens as may then be requisite and proper. J. a ADAMS S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1825. IN compliance with a usage coeval with the existence of our federal constitution, and sanctioned by the example of my predecessors in the career upon which I am about to enter, I appear, my fellow-citizens, in your presence, and in that of Heaven, to bind myself, by the solemnities of a religious obligation, to the faithful performance of the duties allotted to me, in the station to which I have been called. In unfolding to my countrymen the principles by which I shall be governed in the fulfilment of those duties, my first resort will be to that constitution, which I shall swear, to the best of my ability, to preserve, protect, and defend. That revered instrument enumerates the powers and prescribes the duties of the executive magistrate ; and, in its first words, declares the purposes to which these, and the whole action of the government, instituted by it, should be invariably and sacredly devoted to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tran quillity, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to the people of this Union, in their successive generations. Since the adoption of this social compact, one of these generations has passed away. It is the work of our 108 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. forefathers. Administered by some of the most eminent men who contributed to its formation, through a most eventful period in the annals of the world, and through all the vicissitudes of peace and war, incidental to the condition of associated man, it has not disappointed the hopes and aspirations of those illustrious benefactors of their age and nation. It has promoted the lasting wel fare of that country, so dear to us all ; it has, to an extent far beyond the ordinary lot of humanity, secured the freedom and happiness of this people. We now receive it as a precious inheritance from those to whom we are indebted for its establishment, doubly bound by the ex amples they have left us, and by the blessings which we have enjoyed, as the fruits of their labors, to transmit the same, unimpaired, to the succeeding generations. In the compass of thirty-six years, since this great national covenant was instituted, a body of laws enacted under its authority, and in conformity with its provisions, has unfolded its powers, and carried into practical opera tion its effective energies. Subordinate departments have distributed the executive functions in their various rela tions to foreign affairs, to the revenue and expenditures, and to the military force of the Union by land and sea. A coordinate department of the judiciary has expounded the constitution and the laws; settling, in harmonious coincidence with the legislative will, numerous weighty questions of construction which the imperfection of hu man language had rendered unavoidable. The year of jubilee since the first formation of our Union has just elapsed; that of the declaration of independence is at hand. The consummation of both was effected by this constitution. Since that period, a population of four millions has multiplied to twelve. A territory, bounded by the Mississippi, has been extended from sea to sea. New states have been admitted to the Union, in numbers nearly equal to those of the first confederation. Treaties of peace, amity, and commerce, have been concluded with the principal dominions of the earth. The people of other nations, the inhabitants of regions acquired, not by conquest, but by compact, have been united with us in the participation of our rights and duties, of our burdens and j. q,. ADAMS S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 109 blessings. The forest has fallen by the axe of our woods men ; the soil has been made to teem by the tillage of our farmers ; our commerce has whitened every ocean. The dominion of man over physical nature has been ex tended by the invention of our artists. Liberty and law have marched hand in hand. All the purposes of human association have been accomplished as effectively as un der any other government on the globe, and at a cost little exceeding, in a whole generation, the expenditures of other nations in a single year. Such is the unexaggerated picture of our condition under a constitution founded upon the republican princi ple of equal rights. To admit that this picture has its shades, is but to say that it is still the condition of men upon earth. From evil, physical, moral, and political, it is not our claim to be exempt. We have suffered some times by the visitation of Heaven, through disease ; often by the wrongs and injustices of other nations, even to the extremities of war : and lastly, by dissensions among our selves dissensions, perhaps, inseparable from the enjoy ment of freedom, but which have more than once appeared to threaten the dissolution of the Union, and, with it, the overthrow of all the enjoyments of our present lot, and all our earthly hopes of the future. The causes of these dissensions have been various, founded upon differences of speculation in the theory of republican government; upon conflicting views of policy, in our relations with foreign nations ; upon jealousies of partial and sectional interests, aggravated by prejudices and prepossessions, which strangers to each other are ever apt to entertain. It is a source of gratification and of encouragement to me, to observe that the great result of this experiment upon the theory of human rights has, at the close of that generation by which it was formed, been crowned with success equal to the most sanguine expectations of its founders. Union, justice, tranquillity, the common de fence, the general welfare, and the blessings of liberty, all have been promoted by the government under which we have lived. Standing at this point of time; looking back to that generation which has gone by, and forward to that which is advancing, we may at once indulge in grateful 10 110 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. exultation and in cheering hope. From the experience of the past, we derive instructive lessons for the future. Of the two great political parties which have divided the opinions and feelings of our country, the candid and the just will now admit that both have contributed splendid talents, spotless integrity, ardent patriotism, and disinter ested sacrifices, to the formation and administration of this government ; and that both have required a liberal indul gence for a portion of human infirmity and error. The revolutionary wars of Europe, commencing precisely at the moment when the government of the United States first went into operation under this constitution, excited a collision of sentiments and of sympathies, which kin dled all the passions, and imbittered the conflict of par ties, till the nation was involved in war, and the Union was shaken to its centre. This time of trial embraced a period of five-and-twenty years, during which the policy of the Union, in its relations with Europe, constituted the principal basis of our political divisions, and the most arduous part of the action of our federal government. With the catastrophe in which the wars of the French revolution terminated, and our own subsequent peace with Great Britain, this baneful weed of party strife was uprooted. From that time, no difference of principle, connected either with the theory of government, or with our intercourse with foreign nations, has existed, or been called forth in force sufficient to sustain a continued com bination of parties, or give more than wholesome ani mation to public sentiment or legislative debate. Our political creed is, without a dissenting voice that can be heard, that the will of the people is the source, and the happiness of the people the end, of all legitimate govern ment upon earth. That the best security for the benefi cence, and the best guaranty against the abuse of power, consists in the freedom, the purity, and the frequency of popular elections ; that the general government of the Union, and the separate governments of the states, are all sovereignties of legitimated powers fellow-servants of the same masters, uncontrolled within their respective spheres, uncontrollable by encroachments upon each oth er ; that the firmest security of peace is the prepara- j. Q. ADAMS S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. Ill tion during peace of the defences of war ; that a rigor ous economy, and accountability of public expenditures, should guard against the aggravation, and alleviate, when possible, the burden of taxation ; that the military should be kept in strict subordination to the civil power ; that the freedom of the press and of religious opinion should be inviolate ; that the policy of our country is peace, and the ark of our salvation union, are articles of faith upon which we are all agreed. If there have been those who doubted whether a confederated representative de mocracy were a government competent to the wise and orderly management of the common concerns of a mighty nation, those doubts have been dispelled. If there have been projects of partial confederacies to be erected upon the ruins of the Union, they have been scattered to the winds. If there have been dangerous attachments to one foreign nation, and antipathies against another, they have been extinguished. Ten years of peace, at home and abroad, have assuaged the animosities of political conten tion, and blended into harmony the most discordant ele ments of public opinion. There still remains one effort of magnanimity, one sacrifice of prejudice and passion, to be made by the individuals throughout the nation, who have heretofore followed the standard of political party. It is that of discarding every remnant of rancor against each other ; of embracing as countrymen arid friends ; and of yielding to talents and virtue alone that confi dence which, in times of contention for principle, was bestowed only upon those who bore the badge of party communion. The collisions of party spirit, which originated in specu lative opinions, or in different views of administrative policy, are in their nature transitory. Those which are founded on geographical divisions, adverse interests of soil, climate, and modes of domestic life, are more per manent, and therefore, perhaps, more dangerous. It is this which gives inestimable value to the character of our government, at once federal and national. It holds out to us a perpetual admonition to preserve alike, and with equal anxiety, the rights of each individual state in its own government, and the rights of the whole nation in 112 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. that of the Union. Whatever is of domestic concernment, unconnected with the other members of the Union, or with f3reign lands, belongs exclusively to the administration of the state governments. Whatsoever directly involves the rights and interests of the federative fraternity, or of for eign powers, is of the resort of this general government. The duties of both are obvious in the general principle, though sometimes perplexed with difficulties in the detail. To respect the rights of the state governments is the inviolable duty of that of the Union ; the government of every state will feel its own obligation to respect and preserve the rights of the whole. The prejudices every where too commonly entertained against distant strangers are worn away, and the jealousies of jarring interests are allayed by the composition and functions of the great national councils annually assembled from all quarters of the Union at this place. Here the distinguished men from every section of our country, while meeting to deliberate upon the great interests of those by whom they are de puted, learn to estimate the talents, and do justice to the virtues, of each other. The harmony of the nation is promoted, and the whole Union is knit together by the sentiments of mutual respect, the habits of social inter course, and the ties of personal friendship, formed between the representatives of its several parts, in the performance of their service at this metropolis. Passing from this general review of the purposes and injunctions of the federal constitution and their results, as indicating the first traces of the path of duty in the discharge of my public trust, I turn to the administration of my immediate predecessor, as the second. It has passed away in a period of profound peace ; how much to the sat isfaction of our country, and to the honor of our country s name, is known to you all. The great features of its policy, in general concurrence with the will of the legis lature, have been to cherish peace while preparing for defensive war ; to yield exact justice to other nations, and maintain the rights of our own ; to cherish the principles of freedom and of equal rights, wherever they were pro claimed ; to discharge with all possible promptitude the national debt : to reduce within the narrowest limits j. Q. ADAMS S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 113 of efficiency the military force ; to improve the organiza tion and discipline of the army ; to provide and sustain a school of military science; to extend equal protection to all the great interests of the nation ; to promote the civil ization of the Indian tribes ; and to proceed in the great system of internal improvements within the limits of the constitutional power of the Union. Under the pledge of these promises, made by that eminent citizen, at the time of his first induction to this office, in his career of eight years, the internal taxes have been repealed : sixty millions of the public debt have been discharged; provision has been made for the comfort and relief of the aged and in digent among the surviving warriors of the revolution; the regular armed force has been reduced, and its constitution revised and perfected ; the accountability for the expend itures of public moneys has been made more effective ; the Floridas have been peaceably acquired, and our boun dary has been extended to the Pacific Ocean ; the independ ence of the southern nations of this hemisphere has been recognized, and recommended by example and by counsel to the potentates of Europe ; progress has been made in the defence of the country by fortifications, and the increase of the navy towards the effectual suppression of the African traffic in slaves in alluring the aboriginal hunt ers of our land to the cultivation of the soil and of the mind in exploring the interior regions of the Union, and in preparing, by scientific researches and surveys, for the further application of our national resources to the internal improvement of our country. In this brief outline of the promise and performance of my immediate predecessor, the line of duty for his suc cessor is clearly delineated. To pursue to their consum mation those purposes of improvement in our common condition, instituted or recommended by him, will embrace the whole sphere of my obligations. To the topic of in ternal improvement, emphatically urged by him at his inauguration, I recur with peculiar satisfaction. It is that from which I am convinced that the unborn millions of our posterity, who are in future ages to people this con tinent, will derive their most fervent gratitude to the founders of the Union ; that in which the beneficent action 10* 114 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. of its government will be most deeply felt and acknowl edged. The magnificence and splendor of their public works are among the imperishable glories of the ancient republics. The roads and aqueducts of Rome have been the admiration of all after-ages, and have survived thousands of years, after all her conquests have been swallowed up in despotism, or become the spoil of bar barians. Some diversity of opinion has prevailed with regard to the powers of Congress for legislation upon ob jects of this nature. The most respectful deference is due to doubts, originating in pure patriotism, and sustained by venerated authority. But nearly twenty years have passed since the construction of the first national road was com menced. The authority for its construction was then un questioned. To how many thousands of our countrymen has it proved a benefit ! To what single individual has it ever proved an injury ? Repeated, liberal, and candid discussions in the legislature have conciliated the sen timents, and approximated the opinions of enlightened minds, upon the question of constitutional power. I can not but hope that, by the same process of friendly, patient, and persevering deliberation, all constitutional objections will ultimately be removed. The extent and limitation of the powers of the general government, in relation to this transcendently important interest, will be settled and ac knowledged to the common satisfaction of all ; and every speculative scruple will be solved by a practical public blessing. Fellow-citizens, you are acquainted with the peculiar circumstances of the recent elections, which have resulted in affording me the opportunity of addressing you at this time. You have heard the exposition of the principles which will direct me in the fulfilment of the high and solemn trust imposed upon me in this station. Less pos sessed of your confidence in advance than any of my predecessors, I am deeply conscious of the prospect that I shall stand, more and oftener, in need of your indulgence. Intentions, upright and pure ; a heart devoted to the wel fare of our country, and the unceasing application of the faculties allotted to me to her service, are all the pledges that I can give to the faithful performance of the arduous j. Q. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 115 duties I am to undertake. To the guidance of the legis lative councils; to the assistance of the executive and subordinate departments; to the friendly cooperation of the respective state governments ; to the candid and liberal support of the people, so far as it may be deserved by honest industry and zeal, I shall look for whatever success may attend my public service ; and knowing that, except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain, with fervent supplications for his favor, to his overruling providence I commit, with humble but fearless confidence, my own fate and the future destinies of my country. J. Q. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. DECEMBER 6, 1825. To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States : IN taking a general survey of the concerns of our be loved country, with reference to subjects interesting to the common welfare, the first sentiment which impresses itself upon the mind, is of gratitude to the Omnipotent Disposer of all good, for the continuance of the signal blessings of his providence, and especially for that health which, to an unusual extent, has prevailed within our borders ; and for that abundance which, in the vicissitudes of the seasons, has been scattered with profusion over our land. Nor ought we less to ascribe to Him the glory, that we are permitted to enjoy the bounties of his hand in peace and tranquillity in peace with all the other nations of the earth, in tranquillity among ourselves. There has, indeed, rarely been a period in the history of civilized man, in which the general condition of the Christian nations has been marked so extensively by peace and prosperity. Europe, with a few partial and unhappy exceptions, has enjoyed ten years of peace, during which all her govern ments, whatever the theory of their constitutions may have been, are successively taught to feel that the end of their 116 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. institutions is the happiness of the people, and that the exercise of power among men can be justified only by the blessings it confers upon those over whom it is extended. During the same period, our intercourse with all those nations has been pacific and friendly ; it so continues. Since the close of your late session, no material variation has occurred in our relations with any one of them. In the commercial and navigation system of Great Britain, important changes of municipal regulations have recently been sanctioned by the acts of parliament, the effect of which upon the interests of other nations, and particularly upon ours, has not yet been fully developed. In the recent renewal of the diplomatic missions, on both sides, between the two governments, assurances have been given and re ceived of the continuance and increase of the mutual confidence and cordiality by which the adjustment of many points of difference has already been effected, and which affords the surest pledge for the ultimate satisfactory ad justment of those which still remain open, or may here after arise. The policy of the United States, in their commercial intercourse with other nations, has always been of the most liberal character. In the mutual exchange of their respective productions, they have abstained altogether from prohibitions ; they have interdicted themselves the power of laying taxes upon exports, and whenever they have favored their own shipping, by special preferences or ex clusive privileges in their own ports, it has been only with a view to countervail similar favors and exclusions granted by the nations with whom we have been engaged in traffic, to their own people or shipping, and to the disadvantage of ours. Immediately after the close of the last war, a proposal was fairly made by the act of Congress of the 3d March, 1815, to all maritime nations, to lay aside the sys tem of retaliating restrictions and exclusions, and to place the shipping of both parties to the common trade on a footing of equality in respect to the duties of tonnage and impost. This offer was partially and successively accepted by Great Britain, Sweden, the Netherlands, the Hanseatic cities, Prussia, Sardinia, the Duke of Oldenburg, and Rus sia. It was also adopted, under certain modifications, in j. Q,. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 117 our late commercial convention with France. And by the act of Congress of the 8th of January, 1824, it has received a new confirmation with all the nations who had acceded to it, and has been offered again to all those who are or may hereafter be willing to abide in reciprocity by it. But all these regulations, whether established by treaty or by municipal enactments, are still subject to one important restriction. The removal of discriminating duties of tonnage and impost, is limited to articles of the growth, produce, or manufacture of the country to which the vessel belongs, or to such articles as are most universally shipped from her ports. It will deserve the serious consideration of Congress, whether even this remnant of restriction may not be safely abandoned, and whether the general tender of equal competition, made in the act of 8th January, 1824, may not be extended to include all articles of merchandise not prohibited, of what country soever they may be the produce or manufacture. Propositions to this effect have already been made to us by more than one European gov ernment, and it is probable that if once established by legislation or compact with any distinguished maritime state, it would recommend itself, by the experience of its advantages, to the general accession of all. The convention of commerce and navigation between the United States and France, concluded on the 24th of June, 1822, was, in the understanding and intent of both parties, as appears upon its face, only a temporary arrange ment of the points of difference between them of the most immediate and pressing urgency. It was limited, in the first instance, to two years from the 1st of October, 1822, but with a proviso, that it should further continue in force till the conclusion of a general and definitive treaty of commerce, unless terminated by a notice six months in advance, of either of the parties to the other. Its opera tion, so far as it extended, has been mutually advantageous; and it still continues in force by common consent. But it left unadjusted several objects of great interest to the cit izens and subjects of both countries, and particularly a mass of claims, to considerable amount, of citizens of the United States upon the government of France, of indem- 118 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. nity for property taken or destroyed, under circumstances of the most aggravated and outrageous character. In the long period during which continued and earnest appeals have been made to the equity and magnanimity of France, in behalf of those claims, their justice has not been, as it could not be, denied. It was hoped that the accession of a new sovereign to the throne, would have afforded a favor able opportunity for presenting them to the consideration of his government. They have been presented and urged, hitherto without effect. The repeated and earnest represen tations of our minister at the court of France, remain as yet even without an answer. Were the demands of nations upon the justice of each other susceptible of adjudication by the decision of an impartial tribunal, those to whom I now refer would long since have been settled, and adequate indemnity would have been obtained. There are large amounts of similar claims upon the Netherlands, Naples, and Denmark. For those upon Spain, prior to 1819, in demnity was, after many years of patient forbearance, ob tained, and those of Sweden have been lately compromised by a private settlement, in which the claimants themselves have acquiesced. The governments of Denmark and of Naples have been recently reminded of those yet existing against them ; nor will any of them be forgotten while a hope may be indulged of obtaining justice, by the means within the constitutional power of the executive, and with out resorting to those means of self-redress, which, as well as the time, circumstances, and occasion, which may re quire them, are within the exclusive competency of the legislature. It is with great satisfaction that I am enabled to bear witness to the liberal spirit with which the republic of Colombia has made satisfaction for well-established claims of a similar character. And among the documents now communicated to Congress, will be distinguished a treaty of commerce and navigation with that republic, the ratifi cations of which have been exchanged since the last recess of the legislature. The negotiation of similar treaties with all the independent South American states, has been contemplated, and may yet be accomplished. The basis of them all, as proposed by the United States, has been j. Q,. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 119 laid in two principles; the one, of entire and unqualified reciprocity; the other, the mutual obligation of the parties to place each other permanently on the footing of the most favored nation. These principles are, indeed, indispen sable to the effectual emancipation of the American hemi sphere from the thraldom of colonizing monopolies and exclusions an event rapidly realizing in the progress of human affairs, and which the resistance still opposed in certain parts of Europe to the acknowledgment of the Southern American republics as independent states, will, it is believed, contribute more effectually to accomplish. The time has been, and that not remote, when some of these states might, in their anxious desire to obtain a nomi nal recognition, have accepted of a nominal independence, clogged Nvith burdensome conditions, and exclusive com mercial privileges, granted to the nation from which they have separated, to the disadvantage of all others. They now are all aware that such concessions to any European nation would be incompatible with that independence which they have declared and maintained. Among the measures which have been suggested to them by the new relations with one another, resulting from the recent changes in their condition, is that of assembling at the Isthmus of Panama, a Congress, at which each of them should be represented, to deliberate upon objects im portant to the welfare of all. The republics of Colombia, of Mexico, and of Central America, have already deputed plenipotentiaries to such a meeting, and they have invited the United States to be also represented there by their ministers. The invitation has been accepted, and ministers on the part of the United States will be commissioned to attend at those deliberations, and to take part in them, so far as it maybe compatible with that neutrality from which it is neither our intention nor the desire of the American states that we should depart. The commissioners under the seventh article of the treaty of Ghent have so nearly completed their arduous labors, that, by the report recently received from their agent on the part of the United States, there is reason to expect that the commission will be closed at their next session, appointed for the 22d of May, of the ensuing year. 120 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. The other commission, appointed to ascertain the in demnities due for slaves carried away from the United States, after the close of the late war, have met with some difficulty, which has delayed their progress in the inquiry. A reference has been made to the British government on the subject, which, it may be hoped, will tend to hasten the de cision of the commissioners, or serve as a substitute for it. Among the powers specifically granted to Congress by the constitution, are those of establishing uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States ; and for providing 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. The mag nitude and complexity of the interests affected by legisla tion upon these subjects, may account for the fact, that long and often as both of them have occupied the attention, and animated the debates of Congress, no systems have yet been devised for fulfilling, to the satisfaction of the com munity, the duties prescribed by these grants of power. To conciliate the claim of the individual citizen to the en joyment of personal liberty, with the effective obligation of private contracts, is the difficult problem to be solved by a law of bankruptcy. These are objects of the deepest in terest to society ; affecting all that is precious in the existence of multitudes of persons, many of them in the classes essentially dependent and helpless; of the age re quiring nurture, and of the sex entitled to protection from the free agency of the parent and the husband. The organization of the militia is yet more indispensable to the liberties of the country. It is only by an effective militia that we can at once enjoy the repose of peace, and bid defiance to foreign aggression; it is by the militia that we are constituted an armed nation, standing in perpetual panoply of defence, in the presence of all the other nations of the earth. To this end, it would be necessary, if possi ble, so to shape its organization, as to give it a more united and active energy. There are laws for establishing a uniform militia throughout the United States, and for arming and equipping its whole body. But it is a body of dislocated members, without the vigor of unity, and having little of uniformity but the name. To infuse into j. Q,. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 121 this most important institution the power of which it is susceptible, and to make it available for the defence of the Union, at the shortest notice, and at the smallest expense possible of time, of life, and of treasure, are among the benefits to be expected from the persevering deliberations of Congress. Among the unequivocal indications of our national prosperity, is the flourishing state of our finances. The revenues of the present year, from all their principal sources, will exceed the anticipations of the last. The balance in the treasury on the first of January last, was a little short of two millions of dollars, exclusive of two millions and a half, being a moiety of the loan of five millions, authorized by the act of the 26th May, 1824. The receipts into the treasury from the 1st of January to the 39th of September, exclusive of the other moiety of the same loan, are estimated at sixteen millions five hun dred thousand dollars; and it is expected that those of the current year will exceed five millions of dollars; form ing an aggregate of receipts of nearly twenty-two millions >( independent of the loan. The expenditures of the year will not exceed that sum more than two millions. By those expenditures, nearly eight millions of the principal, of the public debt have been discharged. More than a million and a half has been devoted to the debt of gratitude to the warriors of the revolution; a nearly equal sum to the construction of fortifications and the acquisition of ordnance, and other permanent preparations of national defence; half a million to the gradual increase of the navy ; an equal sum for purchases of territory from the Indians, and payment of annuities to them ; and upwards of a million for objects of internal improvement, author ized by special acts of the last Congress If we add to these, four millions of dollars for payment of interest upon the public debt, there remains a sum of about seven mil lions, which has defrayed the whole expense of the admin istration of government, in its legislative, executive, and judiciary departments, including the support of the military and naval establishments, and all the occasional contingen cies of a government coextensive with the Union. The amount of duties secured on merchandise imported, 11 122 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. since the commencement of the year, is about twenty-five millions and a half; and that which will accrue during the current quarter, is estimated at five millions and a half; from these thirty-one millions, deducting the drawbacks, estimated at less than seven millions, a sum exceeding twenty-four millions will constitute the revenue of the year, and will exceed the whole expenditures of the year. The entire amount of the public debt remaining due on the first of January next, will be short of eighty-one mil lions of dollars. By an act of Congress of the 3d of March last, a loan of twelve millions of dollars was authorized at four arid a half per cent., or an exchange of stock to that amount, of four and a half per cent., for a stock of six per cent., to create a fund for extinguishing an equal amount of the public debt, bearing an interest of six per cent., redeemable in 1826. An account of the measures taken to give effect to this act will be laid before you by the Secretary of the Treasury. As the object which it had in view has been but partially accomplished, it will be for the consideration of Congress, whether the power with which it clothed the executive should not be renewed at an early day of the present session, and under what modifications. The act of Congress of the 3d of March last, directing the Secretary of the Treasury to subscribe, in the name and for the use of the United States, for one thousand five hundred shares of the capital stock of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal Company, has been executed by the actual subscription for the sum specified ; and such other meas ures have been adopted by that officer, under the act, as the fulfilment of its intentions requires. The latest ac counts received of this important undertaking, authorize the belief that it is in successful progress. The payments into the treasury from proceeds of the sales of the public lands, during the present year, were estimated at one million of dollars. The actual receipts of the first two quarters have fallen very little short of that sum : it is not expected that the second half of the year will be equally productive ; but the income of the year, from that source, may now be safely estimated at a million and a half. The act of Congress of the 18th of May, J. a 1824, to provide for the extinguishment of the debt due to the United States by the purchasers of public lands, was limited, in its operation of relief to the purchaser, to the 10th of April last. Its effect at the end of the quarter during which it expired, was to reduce that debt from ten to seven millions. By the operation of similar prior laws of relief, from and since that of 2d March, 1821, the debt has been reduced from upwards of twenty-two millions to ten. It is exceedingly desirable that it should be ex tinguished altogether; and to facilitate that consummation, I recommend to Congress the revival, for one year more, of the act of 18th May, 1324, with such provisional modi fication as may be necessary to guard the public interests against fraudulent practices in the re-sale of relinquished land. The purchasers of public lands are among the most useful of our fellow-citizens ; and, since the system of sales for cash alone has been introduced, great indulgence has been justly extended to those who had previously pur chased upon credit. The debt which had been contracted under the credit sales had become unwieldy, and its ex tinction was alike advantageous to the purchaser and the public. Under the system of sales, matured as it has been by experience, and adapted to the exigencies of the times, the lands will continue, as they have become, an abundant source of revenue ; and when the pledge of them to the public creditor shall have been redeemed, by the entire discharge of the national debt, the swelling tide of wealth with which they replenish the common treasury, may be made to re-flow in unfailing streams of improvement, from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. The condition of the various branches of the public service resorting from the Department of War, and their ad ministration during the current year, will be exhibited in the report of the Secretary of War, and the accompanying documents, herewith communicated. The organization and discipline of the army are effective and satisfactory. To counteract the prevalence of desertion among the troops, it has been suggested to withhold from the men a small portion of their monthly pay, until the period of their discharge; and some expedient appears to be ne cessary, to preserve and maintain among the officers so 124 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. much of the art of horsemanship as could scarcely fail to be found wanting on the possibly sudden eruption of a war, which should overtake us unprovided with a single corps of cavalry. The Military Academy at West Point, under the restrictions of a severe but paternal superin tendence, recommends itself more and more to the patron age of the nation ; and the number of meritorious officers which it forms and introduces to the public service, fur nishes the means of multiplying the undertaking of public improvements, to which their acquirements at that insti tution are peculiarly adapted. The school of artillery practice, established at Fortress Monroe, is well suited to the same purpose, and may need the aid of further legis lative provision to the same end. The reports of the various officers at the head of the administrative branches of the military service, connected with the quartering, clothing, subsistence, health, and pay of the army, exhibit the assiduous vigilance of those officers in the perform ance of their respective duties, and the faithful accounta bility which has pervaded every part of the system. Our relations with the numerous tribes of aboriginal natives of this country, scattered over its extensive sur face, and so dependent, even for their existence, upon our power, have been, during the present year, highly inter esting. An act of Congress of the 25th of May, 1824, made an appropriation to defray the expenses of making treaties of trade and friendship with the Indian tribes beyond the Mississippi. An act of the 3d of March, 1825, authorized treaties to be made with the Indians for their consent to the making of a road from the frontier of Mis souri to that of New Mexico. And another act, of the same date, provided for defraying the expenses of holding treaties with the Sioux, Chippewas, Menomonees, Sacs, Foxes, &,c., for the purposes of establishing boundaries and promoting peace between said tribes. The first and the last objects of these acts have been accomplished; and the second is yet in a process of execution. The treaties which, since the last session of Congress, have been con cluded with the several tribes, will be laid before the Sen ate for their consideration, conformably to the constitution. They comprise large and valuable acquisitions of terri- j. Q. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 125 tory ; and they secure an adjustment of boundaries, and give pledges of permanent peace between several tribes which had been long waging bloody wars against each other. On the 12th of February last, a treaty was signed at the Indian Springs, between commissioners appointed on the part of the United States, and certain chiefs and in dividuals of the Creek nation of Indians, which was re ceived at the seat of government only a very few days before the close of the last session of Congress and of the late administration. The advice and consent of the Sen ate was given to it on the 3d of March, too late for it to receive the ratification of the then President of the United States : it was ratified on the 7th of March, under the unsuspecting impression that it had been negotiated in good faith, and in the confidence inspired by the recom mendation of the Senate. The subsequent transactions in relation to this treaty will form the subject of a sepa rate communication. The appropriations made by Congress for public works, as well in the construction of fortifications, as for pur poses of internal improvement, so far as they have been expended, have been faithfully applied. Their progress has been delayed by the want of suitable officers for su perintending them. An increase of both the corps of engineers, military and topographical, was recommended by my predecessor at the last session of Congress. The reasons upon which that recommendation was founded, subsist in all their force, and have acquired additional urgency since that time. It may also be expedient to organize the topographical engineers into a corps similar to the present establishment of the corps of engineers. The Military Academy at West Point will furnish, from the cadets annually graduated there, officers well qualified for carrying this measure into effect. The board of engineers for internal improvement, ap pointed for carrying into execution the act of Congress of 30th April, 1824, " to procure the necessary surveys, plans, and estimates, on the subject of roads and canals," have been actively engaged in that service from the close 11* 126 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. of the last session of Congress. They have completed the surveys necessary for ascertaining the practicability of a canal from the Chesapeake Bay to the Ohio River, and are preparing a full report on that subject, which, when completed, will be laid before you. The same ob servation is to be made with regard to the two other ob jects of national importance, upon which the board have been occupied ; namely, the accomplishment of a national road from this city to New Orleans, and the practicability of uniting the waters of Lake Memphremagog with Con necticut River, and the improvement of the navigation of that river. The surveys have been made, and are nearly completed. The report may be expected at an early pe riod during the present session of Congress. The acts of Congress of the last session, relative to the surveying, marking, or laying out roads in the territory of Florida, Arkansas, and Michigan, from Missouri to Mexico, and for the continuation of the Cumberland Road, are, some of them, fully executed, and others in the pro cess of execution. Those for completing or commencing fortifications, have been delayed only so far as the corps of engineers have been inadequate to furnish officers for the necessary superintendence of the works. Under the acts confirming the statutes of Virginia and Maryland, incorporating the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Company, three commissioners on the part of the United States have been appointed for opening books and receiving subscrip tions, in concert with a like number of commissioners appointed on the part of each of those states. A meeting of the commissioners has been postponed to await the definite report of the board of engineers. The light houses and monuments for the safety of our commerce and mariners ; the works for the security of Plymouth Beach, and for the preservation of the islands in Boston Tiarbor, have received the attention required by the laws relating to those objects, respectively. The continuation of the Cumberland Road, the most important of them all, after surmounting no inconsiderable difficulty in fixing upon the direction of the road, has commenced under the most promising auspices, with the improvements of recent j. q. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 127 invention in the mode of construction, and with the ad vantage of a great reduction in the comparative cost of the work. The operation of the laws relating to the revolutionary pensioners may deserve the renewed consideration of Congress. The act of the 18th March, 1818, while it made provision for many meritorious and indigent citi zens who had served in the war of independence, opened a door to numerous abuses and impositions. To remedy this, the act of 1st May, 1820, exacted proofs of absolute indigence, which many really in want were unable, and all, susceptible of that delicacy which is allied to many virtues, must be deeply reluctant to give. The result has been, that some among the least deserving have been retained, and some in whom the requisites both of worth and want were combined, have been stricken from the list. As the numbers of these venerable relics of an age gone by diminish as the decays of body, mind, and es tate, of those that survive, must, in the common course of nature, increase should not a more liberal portion of indulgence be dealt out to them ? May not the want, in most instances, be inferred from the demand, when the service can be duly proved ? and may not the last days of human infirmity be spared the mortification of purchasing a pittance of relief, only by the exposure of its own neces sities ? I submit to Congress the expediency of providing for individual cases of this description, by special enact ment, or of revising the act of the 1st of May, 1820, with a view to mitigate the rigor of its exclusions, in favor of persons to whom charity, now bestowed, can scarcely dis charge the debt of justice. The portion of the naval force of the Union, in actual service, has been chiefly employed on three stations : the Mediterranean, the coasts of South America bordering on the Pacific Ocean, and the West Indies. An occasional cruiser has been sent to range along the African shores most polluted by the traffic of slaves ; one armed vessel has been stationed on the coast of our eastern boundary, to cruise along the fishing-grounds in Hudson s Bay, and on the coast of Labrador ; and the first service of a new frigate has been performed in restoring to his native soil 128 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and domestic enjoyments the veteran hero whose youth ful blood and treasure had freely flowed in the cause of our country s independence, and whose whole life has been a series of services and sacrifices to the improve ment of his fellow-men. The visit of General Lafayette, alike honorable to himself and to our country, closed, as it had commenced, with the most affecting testimonials of devoted attachment on his part, and of unbounded gratitude of this people to him in return. It will form, hereafter, a pleasing incident in the annals of our Union, giving to real history the intense interest of romance, and signally marking the unpurchasable tribute of a great na tion s social affections to the disinterested champion of the liberties of human kind. The constant maintenance of a small squadron in the Mediterranean is a necessary substitute for the humili ating alternative of paying tribute for the security of our commerce in that sea, and for a precarious peace, at the mercy of every caprice of four Barbary states, by whom it was liable to be violated. An additional motive for keeping a respectable force stationed there at this time, is found in the maritime war raging between the Greeks and the Turks; and in which the neutral navigation of this Union is always in danger of outrage and depredation. A few instances have occurred of such depredations upon our merchant vessels by privateers or pirates wearing the Grecian flag, but without real authority from the Greek or any other government. The heroic struggles of the Greeks themselves, in which our warmest sympathies, as freemen and Christians, have been engaged, have con tinued to be maintained with vicissitudes of success ad verse and favorable. Similar motives have rendered expedient the keeping a like force on the coasts of Peru and Chili, on the Pacific. The irregular and convulsive character of the war upon the shores has been extended to the conflicts upon the ocean. An active warfare has been kept up for years, with alternate success, though generally to the advantage of the American patriots. But their naval forces have not always been under the control of their own governments. Blockades, unjustifiable upon any acknowledged principles J. ^. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 129 of international law, have been proclaimed by officers in command; and, though disavowed by the supreme author ities, the protection of our own commerce against them has been made a cause of complaint and erroneous im putations against some of the most gallant officers of our navy. Complaints equally groundless have been made by the commanders of the Spanish royal forces in those seas; but the most effective protection to our commerce has been the flag and the firmness of our own commanding officers. The cessation of the war, by the complete triumph of the patriot cause, has removed, it is hoped, all cause of dissen sion with one party, and all vestige of force of the other. But an unsettled coast of many degrees of latitude, form ing a part of our own territory, and a flourishing com merce and fishery, extending to the islands of the Pacific and to China, still require that the protecting power of the Union should be displayed under its flag, as well upon the ocean as upon the land. The objects of the West Indies squadron have been, to carry into execution the laws for the suppression of the African slave trade ; for the protection of our commerce against vessels of piratical character, though bearing com missions from either of the belligerent parties; for its pro tection against open and unequivocal pirates. These ob jects, during the present year, have been accomplished more effectually than at any former period. The African slave trade has long been excluded from the use of our flag ; and if some few citizens of our country have con tinued to set the laws of the Union, as well as those of nature and humanity, at defiance, by persevering in that abominable traffic, it has been only by sheltering them selves under the banners of other nations, less earnest for the total extinction of the trade than ours. The irregular privateers have, within the last year, been in a great meas ure banished from those seas ; and the pirates, for months past, appear to have been almost entirely swept away from the borders and the shores of the two Spanish islands in those regions. The active, persevering, and unremitted energy of Captain Warrington, and of the officers and men under his command, on that trying and perilous service, have been crowned with signal success, and are entitled to 130 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN the approbation of their country. But experience has shown that not even a temporary suspension or relaxation from assiduity can be indulged on that station without reproducing piracy and murder in all their horrors; nor is it probable that, for years to come, our immensely valuable commerce in those seas can navigate in security, without the steady continuance of an armed force devoted to its protection. It were indeed a vain and dangerous illusion to believe that in the present or probable condition of human society, a commerce so extensive and so rich as ours could exist and be pursued in safety, without the continual support of a military marine the only arm by which the power of this confederacy can be estimated or felt by foreign nations, and the only standing military force which can never be dangerous to our own liberties at home. A permanent naval peace establishment, therefore, adapted to our pres ent condition, and adaptable to that gigantic growth with which the nation is advancing in its career, is among the subjects which have already occupied the foresight of the last Congress, and which will deserve your serious delib erations. Our navy, commenced at an early period of our present political organization, upon a scale commensurate with the incipient energies, the scanty resources, and the comparative indigence of our infancy, was even then found adequate to cope with all the powers of Barbary, save the first, and with one of the principal maritime pow ers of Europe. At a period of further advancement, but with little ac cession of strength, it not only sustained with honor the most unequal of conflicts, but covered itself and our coun try with unfading glory. But it is only since the close of the late war that, by the numbers and force of the ships of which it was composed, it could deserve the name of a navy. Yet it retains nearly the same organization as when it consisted of only five frigates. The rules and regulations by which it is governed earnestly call for re vision ; and the want of a naval school of instruction, corresponding with the Military Academy at West Point, for the formation of scientific and accomplished officers, is felt with daily increasing aggravation. j. Q,. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 131 The act of Congress of 26th of May, 1824, authorizing an examination and survey of the harbor of Charleston, in South Carolina, of St. Mary s, in Georgia, and of the coast of Florida, and for other purposes, has been executed so far as the appropriation would admit. Those of the 3d of March last, authorizing the establishment of a navy- yard and depot on the coast of Florida, in the Gulf of Mexico, and authorizing the building often sloops of war, and for other purposes, are in the course of execution ; for the particulars of which and other objects connected with this department, I refer to the report of the Secretary of the Navy herewith communicated. A report from the Postmaster-general is also submitted, exhibiting the present flourishing condition of that de partment. For the first time for many years, the receipts for the year ending on the 1st of July last, exceeded the expenditures during the same period, to the amount of more than forty-five thousand dollars. Other facts, equally creditable to the administration of this department, are, that in two years from the 1st of July, 1823, an improve ment of more than one hundred and eighty-five thousand dollars in its pecuniary affairs, has been realized; that, in the same interval, the increase of the transportation of the mail has exceeded one million five hundred thousand miles annually ; and that one thousand and forty new post-offices have been established. It hence appears, that under ju dicious management, the income from this establishment may be relied on as fully adequate to defray its expenses ; and that, by the discontinuance of post roads, altogether unproductive, others of more useful character may be opened, till the circulation of the mail shall keep pace with the spread of our population, and the comforts of friendly correspondence, the exchanges of internal traffic, and the lights of the periodical press, shall be distributed to the remotest corners of the Union, at a charge scarcely perceptible to any individual, and without the cost of a dollar to the public treasury. Upon this first occasion of addressing the legislature of the Union, with which I have been honored, in presenting to their view the execution, so far as it has been effected, of the measures sanctioned by them, for promoting the 132 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. internal improvement of our country, I cannot close the communication without recommending to their calm and persevering consideration the general principle in a more enlarged extent. The great object of the institution of civil government is the improvement of the condition of those who are parties to the social compact. And no gov ernment, in whatever form constituted, can accomplish the lawful ends of its institution, but in proportion as it im proves the condition of those over whom it is established. Roads and canals, by multiplying and facilitating the com munications and intercourse between distant regions and multitudes of men, are among the most important means of improvement. But moral, political and intellectual improvement, are duties assigned by the Author of our ex istence, to social, no less than to individual man. For the fulfilment of those duties, governments are invested with power ; and, to the attainment of the end, the progressive improvement of the condition of the governed, the exercise of delegated powers, is a duty as sacred and indispensable as the usurpation of powers not granted is criminal and odious. Among the first, perhaps the very first instrument for the improvement of the condition of men, is knowl edge ; and to the acquisition of much of the knowledge adapted to the wants, the comforts, and enjoyments of human life, public institutions and seminaries of learning are essential. So convinced of this was the first of my predecessors in this office, now first in the memory, as, living, he was the first in the hearts of our country, that once and again, in his addresses to the Congresses with whom he cooperated in the public service, he earnestly recommended the establishment of seminaries of learning, to prepare for all the emergencies of peace and war a national university, and a military academy. With respect to the latter, had he lived to the present day, in turning his eyes to the institution at West Point, he would have en joyed the gratification of his most earnest wishes. But, in surveying the city which has been honored with his name, he would have seen the spot of earth which he had des tined and bequeathed to the use and benefit of his coun try as the site for a university, still bare and barren. In assuming her station among the civilized nations of j. q,. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 133 the earth, it would seem that our country had contracted the engagement to contribute her share of mind, of labor, and of expense, to the improvement of those parts of knowledge which lie beyond the reach of individual ac quisition ; and particularly to geographical and astronom ical science. Looking back to the history only of half the century since the declaration of our independence, and observing the generous emulation with which the govern ments of France, Great Britain, and Russia, have devoted the genius, the intelligence, the treasures of their respec tive nations, to the common improvement of the species in these branches of science, is it not incumbent upon us to inquire whether we are not bound by obligations of a high and honorable character to contribute our portion of en ergy and exertion to the common stock t The voyages of discovery prosecuted in the course of that time at the expense of those nations, have not only redounded to their glory, but to the improvement of human knowledge. We have been partakers of that improvement, and owe for it a sacred debt, not only of gratitude, but of equal or propor tional exertion in the same common cause. Of the cost of these undertakings, if the mere expenditures of outfit, equipment, and completion of the expeditions, were to be considered the only charges, it would be unworthy of a great and generous nation to take a second thought. One hundred expeditions of circumnavigation, like those of Cook and La Perouse, would not burden the exchequer of the nation fitting them out, so much as the ways and means of defraying a single campaign in war. But if we take into the account the lives of those benefactors of mankind, of which their services in the cause of their species were the purchase, how shall the cost of those heroic enterprises be estimated ? And what compensation can be made to them, or to their countries for them ? Is it not by bearing them in affectionate remembrance ? Is it not still more by imitating their example 1 by enabling countrymen of our own to pursue the same career, and to hazard their lives in the same cause ? On inviting the attention of Congress to the subject of internal improvements, upon a view thus enlarged, it is not my design to recommend the equipment of an expe- 12 134 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN dition for circumnavigating the globe for purposes of scientific research and inquiry. We have objects of use ful investigation nearer home, and to which our cares may be more beneficially applied. The interior of our own territories has yet been very imperfectly explored. Our coasts, along many degrees of latitude upon the shores of the Pacific Ocean, though much frequented by our spirited commercial navigators, have been barely visited by our public ships. The river of the west, first fully discovered and navigated by a countryman of our own, still bears the name of the ship in which he ascended its waters, and claims the protection of our armed national flag at its mouth. With the establishment of a military post there, or at some other point of that coast, recommended by my predecessor, and already matured in the deliberations of the last Congress, I would suggest the expediency of con necting the equipment of a public ship for the exploration of the whole north-west coast of this continent. The establishment of a uniform standard of weights and measures was one of the specific objects contemplated in the formation of our constitution ; and to fix that standard was one of the powers delegated by express terms, in that instrument, to Congress. The governments of Great Britain and France have scarcely ceased to be occupied with inquiries and speculations on the same subject, since the existence of our constitution ; and with them it has ex panded into profound, laborious, and expensive researches into the figure of the earth, and the comparative length of the pendulum vibrating seconds in various latitudes, from the equator to the pole. These researches have resulted in the composition and publication of several works highly interesting to the cause of science. The experiments are yet in the process of performance. Some of them have recently been made on our own shores, within the walls of one of our own colleges, and partly by one of our own fellow- citizens. It would be honorable to our country if the sequel of the same experiments should be countenanced by the patronage of our government, as they have hitherto been by those of France and Great Britain. Connected with the establishment of a university, or separate from it, might be undertaken the erection of an j. Q,. ADAMS S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 135 astronomical observatory, with provision for the support of an astronomer, to be in constant attendance of observa tion upon the phenomena of the heavens ; and for the periodical publication of his observations. It is with no feeling of pride, as an American, that the remark may be made, that, on the comparatively small territorial surface of Europe, there are existing upwards of one hundred and thirty of these lighthouses of the skies ; while throughout the whole American hemisphere there is not one. If we reflect a moment upon the discoveries which, in the last four centuries, have been made in the physical constitution of the universe, by the means of these buildings, and of observers stationed in them, shall we doubt of their useful ness to every nation t And while scarcely a year passes over our heads without bringing some new astronomical discovery to light, which we must fain receive at second hand from Europe, are we not cutting ourselves off from the means of returning light for light, while we have neither observatory nor observer upon our half of the globe, and the earth revolves in perpetual darkness to our unsearching eyes? When, on the 25th of October, 1791, the first President of the United States announced to Congress the result of the first enumeration of the inhabitants of this Union, he informed them that the returns gave the pleasing assurance that the population of the United States bordered on four millions of persons. At the distance of thirty years from that time, the last enumeration, five years since completed, presented a population bordering on ten millions. Perhaps of all the evidences of a prosperous and happy condition of human society, the rapidity of the increase of population is the most unequivocal. But the demonstration of our pros perity rests not alone upon this indication. Our commerce, our wealth, and the extent of our territories, have increased in corresponding proportions; and the number of inde pendent communities, associated in our federal Union, has, since that time, nearly doubled. The legislative represen tation of the states and people, in the two houses of Con gress, has grown with the growth of their constituent bodies. The House, which then consisted of sixty-five members, now numbers upwards of two hundred. The 136 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Senate, which consisted of twenty-six members, has now forty-eight. But the executive, and still more the judi ciary departments, are yet in a great measure confined to their primitive organization, and are now not adequate to the urgent wants of a still growing community. The naval armaments, which at an early period forced themselves upon the necessities of the Union, soon led to the establishment of a department of the navy. But the departments of foreign affairs and of the interior, which, early after the formation of the government, had been united in one, continue so united to this time, to the un questionable detriment of the public service. The multi plication of our relations with the nations and governments of the old world, has kept pace with that of our population and commerce, while, within the last ten years, a new family of nations, in our own hemisphere, has arisen among the inhabitants of the earth, with whom our inter course, commercial and political, would, of itself, furnish occupation to an active and industrious department. The constitution of the judiciary, experimental and imperfect as it was, even in the infancy of our existing government, is yet more inadequate to the administration of national justice at our present maturity. Nine years have elapsed since a predecessor in this office, now not the last, the citizen who, perhaps, of all others throughout the Union, contributed most to the formation and establishment of our constitution, in his valedictory address to Congress, immediately preceding his retirement from public life, urgently recommended the revision of the judiciary, and the establishment of an additional executive department. The exigencies of the public service, and its unavoidable deficiencies, as now in exercise, have added yearly cumu- lative weight to the considerations presented by him as persuasive to the measure; and in recommending it to your deliberations, I am happy to have the influence of his high authority in aid of the undoubting convictions of my own experience. The laws relating to the administration of the Patent Office are deserving of much consideration, and perhaps susceptible of some improvement. The grant of power to regulate the action of Congress on this subject, has speci- j. q fied both the end to be obtained and the means by which it is to be effected, " to promote the progress of science and the useful arts, by securing, for limited times, to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries." If an honest pride might be indulged in the reflection, that on the records of that office are already found inventions, the usefulness of which has scarcely been transcended in the annals of human ingenu ity, would not its exultation be allayed by the inquiry, whether the laws have effectively insured to the inventors the reward destined to them by the constitution even a limited term of exclusive right to their discoveries ? On the 24th of December, 1799, it was resolved by Congress, that a marble monument should be erected by the United States, in the capitol, at the city of Washing ton ; that the family of General Washington should be requested to permit his body to be deposited under it ; and that the monument be so designed as to commemorate the great events of his military and political life. In remind ing Congress of this resolution, and that the monument contemplated by it remains yet without execution, I shall indulge only the remarks, that the works at the capitol are approaching to completion ; that the consent of the family, desired by the resolution, was requested and obtained ; that a monument has been recently erected in this city, over the remains of another distinguished patriot of the revolution ; and that a spot has been reserved within the walls where you are deliberating for the benefit of this and future ages, in which the mortal remains may be deposited of him whose spirit hovers over you, and listens with delight to every act of the representatives of his nation which can tend to exalt and adorn his and their country. The constitution under which you are assembled, is a charter of limited powers. After full and solemn deliber ation upon all or any of the objects which, urged by an irresistible sense of my own duty, I have recommended to your attention, should you come to the conclusion, that, however desirable in themselves, the enactment of laws for effecting them would transcend the powers committed to you by that venerable instrument which we are all bound to support, let no consideration induce you to assume the 12* 138 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. exercise of powers not granted to you by the people. But if the power to exercise exclusive legislation, in all cases whatsoever, over the District of Columbia ; if the 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 ; if the power to reg ulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes ; to fix the stand ard of weights and measures ; to establish post-offices and post-roads; to declare war; to raise and support armies; to provide and maintain a navy ; to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States; and to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying these powers into execution; if these powers, and others enumerated in the constitution, may be ef fectually brought into action by laws promoting the im provement of agriculture, commerce, and manufactures, the cultivation and encouragement of the mechanic and of the elegant arts, the advancement of literature, and the progress of the sciences, ornamental and profound ; to refrain from exercising them for the benefit of the people themselves, would be to hide in the earth the talent com mitted to our charge would be treachery to the most sacred of trusts. The spirit of improvement is abroad upon the earth. It stimulates the hearts, and sharpens the faculties, not of our fellow-citizens alone, but of the nations of Europe, and of their rulers. While dwelling with pleasing satis faction upon the superior excellence of our political insti tutions, let us not be unmindful that liberty is power; that the nation blessed with the largest portion of liberty, must, in proportion to its numbers, be the most powerful nation upon earth ; and that the tenure of power by man is, in the moral purposes of his Creator, upon condition that it shall be exercised to ends of beneficence, to improve the condition of himself and his fellow-men. While foreign nations, less blessed with that freedom which is power than ourselves, are advancing with gigan tic strides in the career of public improvement, were we to slumber in indolence, or fold up our arms and proclaim 139 to the world that we are palsied by the will of our con stituents, would it not be to cast away the bounties of Providence, and doom ourselves to perpetual inferiority ? In the course of the year now drawing to its close, we have beheld, under the auspices and expense of one state in our Union, a new university unfolding its portals to the sons of science, and holding up the torch of human improvement to the eyes that seek the light. We have seen, under the persevering and enlightened enterprise of another state, the waters of our western lakes mingle with those of the ocean. If undertakings like these have been accomplished in the course of a few years, by the author ity of single members of our confederation, can we, the representative authorities of the whole Union, fall behind our fellow-servants in the exercise of the trust committed to us for the benefit of our common sovereign, by the ac complishment of works important to the whole, and to which neither the authority nor the resources of any one state can be adequate 1 Finally, fellow-citizens, I shall await, with cheering hope and faithful cooperation, the result of your delibera tions, assured that, without encroaching upon the powers reserved to the authorities of the respective states, or to the people, you will, with a due sense of your obligations to your country, and of the high responsibilities weighing upon yourselves, give efficacy to the means committed to you for the common good. And may He who searches the hearts of the children of men, prosper your exertions to secure the blessings of peace and promote the highest welfare of our country. JACKSON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1829. Fellow-Citizens : ABOUT to undertake the arduous duties that I have been appointed to perform, by the choice of a free people, I avail myself of this customary and solemn occasion to 140 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. express the gratitude which their confidence inspires, and to acknowledge the accountability which my situation en joins. While the magnitude of their interests convinces me that no thanks can be adequate to the honor they have conferred, it admonishes me that the best return I can make, is the zealous dedication of my humble abilities to their service and their good. As the instrument of the federal constitution, it will devolve upon me, for a stated period, to execute the Jaws of the United States ; to superintend their foreign and confederate relations ; to manage their revenue ; to com mand their forces ; and, by communications to the legis lature, to watch over and to promote their interests gen erally. And the principles of action by which I shall endeavor to accomplish this circle of duties, it is now proper for me briefly to explain. In administering the laws of Congress, I shall keep steadily in view the limitations as well as the extent of the executive power, trusting thereby to discharge the functions of my office, without transcending its authority. With foreign nations it will be my study to preserve peace, and to cultivate friendship on fair and honorable terms ; and in the adjustment of any differences that may exist or arise, to exhibit the forbearance becoming a power ful nation, rather than the sensibility belonging to a gal lant people. In such measures as I may be called on to pursue, in regard to the rights of the separate states, I hope to be animated by a proper respect for those sovereign mem bers of our Union ; taking care not to confound the pow ers they have reserved to themselves with those they have granted to the confederacy. The management of the public revenue that search ing operation of all governments is among the most delicate and important trusts in ours ; and it will, of course, demand no inconsiderable share of my official solicitude. Under every aspect in which it can be con sidered, it would appear that advantage must result from the observance of a strict and faithful economy. This I shall aim at the more anxiously, both because it will facilitate the extinguishment of the national debt, the 141 unnecessary duration of which is incompatible with real independence, and because it will counteract that ten dency to public and private profligacy which a profuse expenditure of money by the government is but too apt to engender. Powerful auxiliaries to the attainment of this desirable end are to be found in the regulations pro vided by the wisdom of Congress for the specific appro priation of public money, and the prompt accountability of public officers. With regard to a proper selection of the subjects of imposts, with a view to revenue, it would seem to me that the spirit of equity, caution, and com promise, in which the constitution was formed, requires that the great interests of agriculture, commerce, and man ufactures, should be equally favored, and that perhaps the only exception to this rule should consist in the peculiar encouragement of any products of either of them that may be found essential to our national independence. Internal improvement and the diffusion of knowledge, so far as they can be promoted by the constitutional acts of the federal government, are of high importance. Considering standing armies as dangerous to free gov ernments in time of peace, I shall not seek to enlarge our present establishment, nor to disregard that salutary lesson of political experience which teaches that the mil itary should be held subordinate to the civil power. The gradual increase of our navy, whose flag has displayed, in distant climes, our skill in navigation, and our fame in arms; the preservation of our forts, arsenals, and dock yards ; and the introduction of progressive improvements in the discipline and science of both branches of our mil itary service, are so plainly prescribed by prudence that I should be excused for omitting their mention, sooner than enlarging on their importance. But the bulwark of our defence is the national militia, which, in the present state of our intelligence and population, must render us invin cible. As long as our government is administered for the good of the people, and is regulated by their will ; as long as it secures to us the right of person and property, liberty of conscience and of the press, it will be worth defend ing ; and so long as it is worth defending, a patriotic mili tia will cover it with an impenetrable aegis. Partial inju ries and occasional mortifications we may be subjected 142 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to; but a million of armed freemen, possessed of the means of war, can never be conquered by a foreign foe. To any just system, therefore, calculated to strengthen this natural safeguard of the country, I shall cheerfully lend all the aid in my power. It will be my sincere and constant desire to observe towards the Indian tribes within our limits a just and liberal policy ; and to give that humane and considerate attention to their rights and their wants, which is con sistent with the habits of our government and the feelings of our people. The recent demonstration of public sentiment inscribes on the list of executive duties, in characters too legible to be overlooked, the task of reform ; which will require, par ticularly, the correction of those abuses that have brought the patronage of the federal government into conflict with the freedom of elections, and the counteraction of those causes which have disturbed the rightful course of ap pointment, and have placed or continued power in un faithful or incompetent hands. In the performance of a task thus generally delineated / I shall endeavor to select men whose diligence and talents will insure, in their respective stations, able and faithful cooperation depending, for the advancement of the pub lic service, more on the integrity and zeal of the public officers, than on their numbers. A diffidence, perhaps too just, in my own qualifica tions, will teach me to look with reverence to the exam ples of public virtue left by my illustrious predecessors, and with veneration to the lights that flow from the mind that founded and the mind that reformed our system. The same diffidence induces me to hope for instruction and aid from the coordinate branches of the government, and for the indulgence and support of my fellow-citizens generally. And a firm reliance on the goodness of that Power whose providence mercifully protected our national infancy, and has since upheld our liberties in various vicissitudes, encourages me to offer up my ardent suppli cations that He will continue to make our beloved country the object of His divine care and gracious benediction. THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 143 JACKSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. DECEMBER 8, 1829. Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives : Ir affords me pleasure to tender my friendly greetings to you on the occasion of your assembling at the seat of government, to enter upon the important duties to which you have been called by the voice of our countrymen. The task devolves on me, under a provision of the con stitution, to present to you, as the federal legislature of twenty-four sovereign states, and twelve millions of hap py people, a view of our affairs, and to propose such measures as, in the discharge of my official functions, have suggested themselves as necessary to promote the objects of our Union. In communicating with you Ibr the first time, it is to me a source of unfeigned satisfaction, calling for mutual gratulation and devout thanks to a benign Providence, that we are at peace with all mankind ; and that our country exhibits the most cheering evidence of general welfare and progressive improvement. Turning our eyes to other nations, our great desire is to see our brethren of the human race secured by the blessings enjoyed by ourselves, and advancing in knowledge, in freedom, and in social happiness. Our foreign relations, although in their general charac ter pacific and friendly, present objects of difference be tween us and other powers of deep interest, as well to the country at large as to many of our citizens. To effect an adjustment of these shall continue to be the object of my earnest endeavors; and, notwithstanding the difficulties of the task, I do not allow myself to apprehend unfavorable results. Blessed as our country is with every thing which constitutes national strength, she is fully adequate to the maintenance of all her interests. In discharging the re sponsible trust confided to the executive in this respect, it is my settled purpose to ask nothing that is not clearly right, and to submit to nothing that is wrong; and I flatter 144 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. myself, that, supported by the other branches of the gov ernment, and by the DlteJitgeQCe and patriotism of the people, we shall be able, under the protection of Prov idence, to cause all our just rights to be respected. Of the unsettled matters between the United States and other powers, the most prominent are those which have for years been the subject of negotiation with England, France, and Spain. The late periods at which our min isters to those governments left the United States, render it impossible, at this early day, to inform you of what has been done on the subjects with which they have been re spectively charged. Relying upon the justice of our views in relation to the points committed to negotiation, and the reciprocal good feeling which characterizes our intercourse with those nations, we have the best reason to hope for a satisfactory adjustment of existing differences. With Great Britain, alike distinguished in peace and war, we may look forward to years of peaceful, honorable, and elevated competition. Every thing in the condition and history of the two nations is calculated to inspire sentiments of mutual respect, and to carry conviction to the minds of both, that it is their policy to preserve the most cordial relations. Such are my own views; and it is not to be doubted that such are also the prevailing sen timents of our constituents. Although neither time nor opportunity has been afforded for a full development of the policy which the present cabinet of Great Britain designs to pursue towards this country, I indulge the hope that it will be of a just and pacific character; and if this anticipa tion be realized, we may look with confidence to a speedy and acceptable adjustment of our affairs. Under the convention for regulating, by reference to ar bitration, the disputed points of boundary under the fifth article of the treaty of Ghent, the proceedings have hitherto been conducted in the spirit of candor and liberality which ought ever to characterize the acts of sovereign states, seeking to adjust, by the most unexceptionable means, important and delicate subjects of contention. The lir<t statements of the parties have been exchanged, and the finil replication on our part is in a course of preparation. This subject has received the attention demanded by its JACKSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 145 great and peculiar importance to a patriotic member of this confederacy. The exposition of our rights, already made, is such as, from the nigh reputation of the commis sioners by whom it has been prepared, we had a right to expect. Our interests at. the court of the sovereign who has evinced his friendly disposition, by assuming the del icate task of arbitration, have been committed to a citi/en of the state of Maine, whose character, talents, and inti mate acquaintance with the subject, eminently qualify him for so responsible a trust. With full confidence in the justice of our cause, and in the probity, intelligence, and uncompromising independence of the illustrious arbitrator, we can have nothing to apprehend from the result. From France, our ancient ally, we have a right to expect that justice which becomes the sovereign of a powerful, intelligent, and magnanimous people. The beneficial effects produced by the commercial convention of 1822, limited as are its provisions, are too obvious not to make. a salutary impression upon the minds of those who are charged with the administration of her government. Should this result induce a disposition to embrace to their full extent the wholesome principles which constitute our commercial policy, our minister to that court will be found instructed to cherish such a disposition, and to aid in con ducting it to useful practical conclusions. The claims of our citizens for depredations upon their property, long since committed under the authority, arid in many in stances by the express direction, of the then existing gov ernment of France, remain unsatisfied ; and must, there fore, continue to furnish a subject of unpleasant discus sion, and possible collision, between the two governments. I cherish, however, a lively hope, founded as well on the validity of those claims, and the established policy of all enlightened governments, as on the known integrity of the French monarch, that the injurious delays of the past will find redress in the equity of the future. Our minister has been instructed to press these demands on the French government with all the earnestness which is called for by their importance and irrefutable justice; and in a spirit that will evince the respect which is due to the feelings of those from whom the satisfaction is required. 13 146 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Our minister recently appointed to Spain has been authorized to assist in removing evils alike injurious to both countries, either by concluding a commercial con vention upon liberal and reciprocal terms, or by urging the acceptance, in their full extent, of the mutually-bene ficial provisions of our navigation act. He has also been instructed to make a further appeal to the justice of Spain, in behalf of our citizens, for indemnity for spoliations upon our commerce, committed under her authority an appeal which the pacific and liberal course observed on our part, and a due confidence in the honor of that government, authorize us to expect will not be made in vain. With other European powers, our intercourse is on the most friendly footing. In Russia, placed, by her territo rial limits, extensive population, and great power, high in the rank of nations, the United States have always found a steadfast friend. Although her recent invasions of Turkey awakened a lively sympathy for those who were exposed to the desolations of war, we cannot but anticipate that the result will prove favorable to the cause of civil ization, and to the progress of human happiness. The treaty of peace between these powers having been ratified, we cannot be insensible to the great benefit to be derived by the commerce of the United States from unlocking the navigation of the Black Sea a free passage into which is secured to all merchant vessels bound to ports of Russia under a flag at peace with the Porte. This advantage, enjoyed upon conditions, by most of the powers of Eu rope, has hitherto been withheld from us. During the past summer, an antecedent but unsuccessful attempt to obtain it, was renewed under circumstances which promised the most favorable results. Although those results have for tunately been thus in part attained, further facilities to the enjoyment of this new field for the enterprise of our cit izens are, in my opinion, sufficiently desirable to insure to them our most zealous attention. Our trade with Austria, although of secondary impor tance, has been gradually increasing ; and is now so ex tended as to deserve the fostering care of the government. A negotiation, commenced and nearly completed with that power, by the late administration, has been consummated 147 by a treaty of amity, navigation, and commerce, which will be laid before the Senate. During the recess of Congress, our diplomatic relations with Portugal have been resumed. The peculiar state of things in that country caused a suspension of the recogni tion of the representative who presented himself, until an opportunity was had to obtain from our official organ there, information regarding the actual, and, as far as practicable, prospective condition of the authority by which the repre sentative in question was appointed. This information being received, the application of the established rule of our government, in like cases, was no longer withheld. Considerable advances have been made, during the present year, in the adjustment of claims of our citizens upon Denmark for spoliations ; but all that we have a right to demand from that government in their behalf has not yet been conceded. From the liberal footing, however, upon which this subject has, with the approbation of the claimants, been placed by the government, together with the uniformly just and friendly disposition which has been evinced by his Danish majesty, there is a reasonable ground to hope that this single subject of difference will speedily be removed. Our relations with the Barbary powers continue, as they have long been, of the most favorable character. The policy of keeping an adequate force in the Mediter ranean, as security for the continuance of this tranquillity, will be persevered in ; as well as a similar one for the pro tection of our commerce and fisheries in the Pacific. The southern republics of our hemisphere have not yet realized all the advantages for which they have been so long struggling. We trust, however, that the day is not distant when the restoration of peace and internal quiet, under permanent systems of government, securing the liberty and promoting the happiness of the citizens, will crown with complete success their long and arduous efforts in the cause of self-government, and enable us to salute them as friendly rivals in all that is truly great and glorious. The recent invasion of Mexico, and the effect thereby produced upon her domestic policy, must have a control- 148 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ling influence upon the great question of South American emancipation. We have seen the fell spirit of civil dissen sion rebuked, and, perhaps, forever stifled, in that republic, by the love of independence. If it be true, as appearances strongly indicate, that the spirit of independence is the master spirit, and if a corresponding sentiment prevail in the other states, this devotion to liberty cannot be without a proper effect upon the counsels of the mother country. The adoption by Spain of a pacific policy towards her former colonies an event consoling to humanity, and a blessing to the world, in which she herself cannot fail largely to participate may be most reasonably expected. The claims of our citizens upon the South American governments generally, are in a train of settlement, while the principal part of those upon Brazil have been adjusted ; and a decree in council, ordering bonds to be issued by the minister of the treasury for their amount, has received the sanction of his imperial majesty. This event, together with the exchange of the ratifications of the treaty negoti ated and concluded in 1828, happily terminates all serious causes of difference with that power. Measures have been taken to place our commercial re lations with Peru upon a better footing than that upon which they have hitherto rested ; and if met by a proper disposition on the part of that government, important benefits may be secured to both countries. Deeply interested as we are in the prosperity of our sister republics, and more particularly in that of our im mediate neighbor, it would be most gratifying to me were I permitted to say, that the treatment which we have re ceived at her hands has been as universally friendly, as the early and constant solicitude manifested by the United States for her success, gave us a right to expect. But it becomes my duty to inform you that prejudices long in dulged by a portion of the inhabitants of Mexico against the envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary of the United States, have had an unfortunate influence upon the affairs of the two countries, and have diminished that use fulness to his own which was justly to be expected from his talents and zeal. To this cause, in a great degree, is to be imputed the failure of several measures equally interest- 149 ing to both parties, but particulaily that of the Mexican government to ratify a treaty negotiated and concluded in its own capital, and under its own eye. Under these circumstances, it appeared expedient to give to Mr. Poin- sett the option either to return or not, as in his judgment the interest of his country might require, and instructions to that end were prepared ; but before they could be de spatched, a communication was received from the gov ernment of Mexico, through its charge d affaires here, requesting the recall of our minister. This was promptly complied with ; and a representative of a rank correspond ing with that of the Mexican diplomatic agent near this government was appointed. Our conduct towards that republic has been uniformly of the most friendly character ; and having thus removed the only alleged obstacle to harmonious intercourse, I cannot but. hope that an advan tageous change will occur in our affairs. In justice to Mr. Poinsett, it is proper to say, that my immediate compliance with the application for his recall, and the appointment of a successor, are not to be ascribed to any evidence that the imputation of an improper inter ference, by him, in the local politics of Mexico, was well founded ; nor to a want of confidence in his talents or in tegrity ; and to add, that the truth of that charge has never been affirmed by the federal government of Mexico, in their communications with this, I consider it one of the most urgent of my duties to bring to your attention the propriety of amending that part of our constitution which relates to the election of President and Vice-President. Our system of government was, by its framers, deemed an experiment ; and they, there fore, consistently provided a mode of remedying its defects. To the people belongs the right of electing their chief magistrate ; it was never designed that their choice should, in any case, be defeated, either by the intervention of electoral colleges, or by the agency confided, under certain contingencies, to the House of Representatives. Experi ence proves, that, in proportion as agents to execute the will of the people are multiplied, there is danger of their wishes being frustrated. Some may be unfaithful ; all are liable to err. So far, therefore, as the people can, with 13* 150 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. convenience, speak, it is safer for them to express their own will. The number of aspirants to the presidency, and the di versity of the interests which may influence their claims, leave little reason to expect a choice in the first instance ; and, in that event, the election must devolve on the House of Representatives, where, it is obvious, the will of the peo ple may not be always ascertained, or, if ascertained, may not be regarded. From the mode of voting by states, the choice is to be made by twenty-four votes; and it may often occur, that one of those will be controlled by an in dividual representative. Honors and offices are at the disposal of the successful candidate. Repeated ballotings may make it apparent that a single individual holds the cast in his hand. May he not be tempted to name his reward 1 But even without corruption supposing the probity of the representative to be proof against the power ful motives by which it may be assailed the will of the people is still constantly liable to be misrepresented. One may err from ignorance of the wishes of his constituents ; another, from the conviction that it is his duty to be gov erned by his own judgment of the fitness of the candidates ; finally, although all were inflexibly honest all accurately informed of the wishes of their constituents yet, under the present mode of election, a minority may often elect the President ; and when this happens, it may reasonably be expected that efforts will be made on the part of the majority to rectify this injurious operation of their institu tions. But although no evils of this character should result from such a perversion of the first principle of our system that the majority is to govern it must be very certain that a President elected by a minority cannot enjoy the con fidence necessary to the successful discharge of his duties. In this, as in all other matters of public concern, policy requires that as few impediments as possible should exist to the free operation of the public will. Let us, then, en deavor to so amend our system, that the office of chief magistrate may not be conferred upon any citizen but in pursuance of a fair expression of the will of the majority. I would therefore recommend such an amendment of the constitution as may remove all intermediate agency in the JACKSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 151 election of the President and Vice-President. The mode may be so regulated as to preserve to each state its present relative weight in the election; and a failure in the first attempt may be provided for by confining the second to a choice between the two highest candidates. In connection with such an amendment, it would seem advisable to limit the service of the chief magistrate to a single term of either four or six years. If, however, it should not be adopted, it is worthy of consideration whether a provision, disquali fying for office the representatives in Congress on whom such an election may have devolved, would not be proper. While members of Congress can be constitutionally ap pointed to offices of trust and profit, it will be the practice, even under the most conscientious adherence to duty, to select them for such stations as they are believed to be better qualified to fill than other citizens ; but the purity of our government would doubtless be promoted by their exclusion from all appointments in the gift of the President, in whose election they may have been officially concerned. The nature of the judicial office, and the necessity of securing in the cabinet, and diplomatic stations of the high est rank, the best talents and political experience, should, perhaps, except these from the exclusion. There are, perhaps, few men who can for any great length of time enjoy office and power, without being more or less under the influence of feelings unfavorable to the faithful discharge of their public duties. Their integrity may be proof against improper considerations immediately addressed to themselves ; but they are apt to acquire a hab it of looking with indifference upon the public interests, and of tolerating conduct from which an unpractised man would revolt. Office is considered as a species of proper ty ; and government rather as a means of promoting in dividual interest, than as an instrument created solely for the service of the people. Corruption in some, and in others a perversion of correct feelings and principles, divert government from its legitimate ends, and make it an engine for the support of the few at the expense of the many. The duties of all public officers are, or at least admit of being, made so plain and simple, that men of intelligence may readily qualify themselves for their performance ; and 152 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. I cannot but believe that more is lost by the long contin uance of men in office than is generally to be gained by their experience. I submit, therefore, to your considera tion, whether the efficiency of the government would not be promoted, and official industry and integrity better secured, by a general extension of the law which limits appoint ments to four years. In a country where offices are created solely for the benefit of the people, no one man has any more intrinsic right to official station than another. Offices were not established to give support to particular men at the public expense. No individual wrong is therefore done by re moval, since neither appointment to nor continuance in office is matter of right. The incumbent became an officer with a view to the public benefits ; and when these require his removal, they are not to be sacrificed to private inter ests. It is the people, and they alone, who have a right to complain when a bad officer is substituted for a good one. He who is removed has the same means of obtaining a liv ing that are enjoyed by the millions who never held office. The proposed limitation would destroy the idea of prop erty, now so generally connected with official station ; and although individual distress may be sometimes produced, it would, by promoting that rotation which constitutes a leading principle in the republican creed, give healthful action to the system. No very considerable change has occurred, during the recess of Congress, in the condition of either our agricul ture, commerce, or manufactures. The operation of the tariff has not proved so injurious to the two former, or as beneficial to the latter, as was anticipated. Importations of foreign goods have not been sensibly diminished ; while domestic competition, under an illusive excitement, has increased the production much beyond the demand for home consumption. The consequences have been, low prices, temporary embarrassment, and partial loss. That such of our manufacturing establishments as are based upon capital, and are prudently managed, will survive the shock, and be ultimately profitable, there is no good reason to doubt. To regulate its conduct, so as to promote equally the FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 153 prosperity of these three cardinal interests, is one of the most difficult tasks of government ; and it may be regretted that the complicated restrictions which now embarrass the intercourse of nations, could not by common consent be abolished, and commerce allowed to flow in those chan nels to which individual enterprise, always its surest guide, might direct it. But we must ever expect selfish legisla tion in other nations, and are, therefore, compelled to adapt our own to their regulations, in the manner best calculated to avoid serious injury, and to harmonize the conflicting interests of our agriculture, our commerce, and our man ufactures. Under these impressions, I invite your atten tion to the existing tariff, believing that some of its pro visions require modification. The general rule to be applied in graduating the duties upon the articles of foreign growth or manufacture, is that which will place our own in fair competition with those of other countries ; and the inducements to advance even a step beyond this point, are controlling in regard to those articles which are of primary necessity in time of war. When we reflect upon the difficulty and delicacy of this operation, it is important that it should never be attempted but with the utmost caution. Frequent legislation in re gard to any branch of industry, affecting its value, and by which its capital may be transferred to new channels, must always be productive of hazardous speculation and loss. In deliberating, therefore, on these interesting subjects, local feelings and prejudices should be merged in the patriotic determination to promote the great interests of the whole. All the attempts to connect them with the party conflicts of the day are necessarily injurious, and should be discountenanced. Our action upon them should be under the control of higher and purer motives. Legis lation, subjected to such influence, can never be just, and will not long retain the sanction of the people, whose active patriotism is not bounded by sectional limits, nor insensible to that spirit of concession and forbearance which gave life to our political compact, and still sustains it. Discarding all calculations of political ascendency, the north, the south, the east, and the west, should unite 154 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. in diminishing any burden, of which either may justly complain. The agricultural interest of our country is so essentially connected with every other, and so superior in importance to them all, that it is scarcely necessary to invite it to your particular attention. It is principally as manufactures and commerce tend to increase the value of agricultural pro ductions, and to extend their application to the wants and comforts of society, that they deserve the fostering care of government. Looking forward to the period, not far distant, when a sinking fund will no longer be required, the duties on those articles of importation which cannot come in com petition with our own productions, are the first that should engage the attention of Congress in the modification of the tariff. Of these, tea and coffee are the most prominent ; they enter largely into the consumption of the country, and have become articles of necessity to all classes. A reduc tion, therefore, of the existing duties, will be felt as a com mon benefit; but, like all other legislation connected with commerce, to be efficacious, and not injurious, it should be gradual and certain. The public prosperity is evinced in the increased rev enue arising from the sales of public lands : and in the steady maintenance of that produced by imposts and ton nage, notwithstanding the additional duties imposed by the act of 19th of May, 1828, and the unusual importations in the early part of that year. The balance in the treasury on the 1st January, 1829, was $5,972,435 81. The receipts of the current year are estimated at $24,602,230 ; and the expenditures for the same time at $26,164,595; leaving a balance in the treasury, on the 1st of January next, of $4,410,070 81. There will have been paid on account of the public debt during the present year, the sum of $12,405,005 80; reducing the whole debt of the government, on the 1st of January next, to $48,565,406 50, including seven millions of five per cent, stock subscribed to the Bank of the United States. The payment on account of the public debt, made on the 1st of July last, was $8,715,462 87. It JACKSON S FIRST ANNUAL, MESSAGE. 155 was apprehended that the sudden withdrawal of so large a sum from the banks in which it was deposited, at a time of unusual pressure in the money market, might cause much injury to the interests dependent on bank accommo dations. But this evil was wholly averted by an early an ticipation of it at the treasury, aided by the judicious arrangements of the officers of the Bank of the United States. The state of the finances exhibits the resources of the nation in an aspect highly flattering to its industry, and auspicious of the ability of the government, in a very short time, to extinguish the public debt. When this shall be done, our population will be relieved from a consider able portion of its present burdens ; and will find not only new motives to patriotic affection, but additional means for the display of individual enterprise. The fiscal power of the states will also be increased ; and may be more extensively exerted in favor of education and other public objects ; while ample means will remain in the federal government to promote the general wealth in all the modes permitted to its authority. After the extinction of the public debt, it is not proba ble that any adjustment of the tariff, upon principles satis factory to the people of the Union, will, until a remote period, if ever, leave the government without a consider able surplus in the treasury, beyond what may be required for its current service. As, then, the period approaches when the application of the revenue to payment of the debt will cease, the disposition of the surplus will present a subject for the serious deliberation of Congress ; and it may be fortunate for the country that it is yet to be deci ded. Considered in connection with the difficulties which have heretofore attended appropriations for purposes of internal improvement, and with those which this experi ence tells us will certainly arise, whenever power over such subjects may be exercised by the general government, it is hoped that it may lead to the adoption of some plan which will reconcile the diversified interests of the states, and strengthen the bonds which unite them. Every member of the Union, in peace and in war, will be bene fited by the improvement of inland navigation, and the 156 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. construction of highways in the several states. Let us, then, endeavor to attain this benefit in a mode that will be satisfactory to all. That hitherto adopted has, by many of our fellow-citizens, been deprecated as an infraction of the constitution; while by others it has been viewed as in expedient. All feel that it has been employed at the ex pense of harmony in the legislative councils. To avoid these evils, it appears to me that the most safe, just, and federal disposition which could be made of this surplus revenue, would be its apportionment among the several states, according to their ratio of representation ; and should this measure not be found warranted by the constitution, that it would be expedient to propose to the states an amendment authorizing it. I regard an appeal to the source of power, in all cases of real doubt, and where its exercise is deemed advisable to the general welfare, as among the most sacred of all our obligations. Upon this country, more than any other, has, in the providence of God, been cast the special guardianship of the great prin ciple of adherence to written constitutions. If it fail here, all hope in regard to it will be extinguished. That this was intended to be a government of limited and specific, and not general powers, must be admitted by all ; and it is our duty to preserve for it the character intended by its framers. If experience points out the necessity for an en largement of these powers, let us apply for it to those for whose benefit it is to be exercised, and not undermine the whole system by a resort to overstrained constructions. The scheme has worked well. It has exceeded the hopes of those who devised it, and become an object of admira tion to the world. We are responsible to our country, and to the glorious cause of self-government, for the preserva tion of so great a good. The great mass of legislation relating to our internal affairs, was intended to be left where the federal convention found it in the state governments. Nothing is clearer, in my view, than that we are chiefly indebted for the success of the constitution under which we are now acting, to the watchful and aux iliary operation of the state authorities. This is not the reflection of a day, but belongs to the most deeply-rooted convictions of my mind. I cannot, therefore, too strongly 157 or too earnestly, for my own sense of its importance, warn you against all encroachment upon the legitimate sphere of state sovereignty. Sustained by its healthful and in vigorating influence, the federal system can never fall. In the collection of the revenue, the long credits au thorized on goods imported from beyond the Cape of Good Hope are the chief cause of the losses at present sus tained. If these were shortened to six, nine, and twelve months, and warehouses provided by government, sufficient to receive the goods offered in deposit for security and for debenture, and if the right of the United States to a priority of payment out of the estates of its insolvent debtors was more effectually secured, this evil would in a great measure be obviated. An authority to construct such houses is, therefore, with the proposed alteration of the credits, recommended to your attention. It is worthy of notice, that the laws for the collection and security of the revenue arising from imposts, were chiefly framed when the rates of duties on imported goods- presented much less temptation for illicit trade than at present exists. There is reason to believe that these laws are, in some respects, quite insufficient for the proper se curity of the revenue, and the protection of the interests of those who are disposed to observe them. The injurious and demoralizing tendency of a successful system of smug gling is so obvious as not to require comment, and cannot be too carefully guarded against. I therefore suggest to Congress the propriety of adopting efficient measures to prevent this evil, avoiding, however, as much as possible, every unnecessary infringement of individual liberty, and embarrassment of fair and lawful business. On an examination of the records of the treasury, I have been forcibly struck with the large amount of public money which appears to be outstanding. Of this sum thus due^ from individuals to the government, a consider able portion is undoubtedly desperate, and, in many in stances, has probably been rendered so by remissness in the agents charged with its collection. By proper exer tions, a great part, however, may yet be recovered ; and whatever may be the portions respectively belonging to these two classes, it behoves the government to ascertain 14 158 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the real state of the fact. This can be done only by the prompt adoption of judicious measures for the collection of such as may be made available. It is believed that a very large amount has been lost through the inadequacy of the means provided for the collection of debts due to the public ; and that this inadequacy lies chiefly in the want of legal skill, habitually and constantly employed in the direction of the agents engaged in the service. It must, I think, be admitted, that the supervisory power over suits brought by the public, which is now vested in an accounting officer of the treasury, not selected with a view to his legal knowledge, and encumbered as he is with numerous other duties, operates unfavorably to the public interest. It is important that this branch of the public service should be subject to the supervision of such professional skill as will give it efficacy. The expense attendant upon such a modification of the executive department, would be justified by the soundest principles of econo my. I would recommend, therefore, that the duties now assigned to the agent of the treasury, so far as they relate to the superintendence and management of legal proceedings on the part of the United States, be trans ferred to the attorney-general ; and that this officer be placed on the same footing, in all respects, as the heads of the other departments receiving like compensation, and having such subordinate officers provided for his depart ment, as may be requisite for the discharge of these addi tional duties. The professional skill of the attorney- general, employed in directing the conduct of marshals and district attorneys, would hasten the collection of debts now in suit, and hereafter save much to the government. It might be further extended to the superintendence of all criminal proceedings for offences against the United States. In making this transfer, great care should be taken, how ever, that the power necessary to the treasury department be not impaired ; one of its greatest securities consisting in a control over all accounts until they are audited or reported for suit. In connection with the foregoing views, I would suggest, also, an inquiry, whether the provisions of the act of Con- 159 gress, authorizing the discharge of the persons of debtors to the government from imprisonment, may not, consist ently with the public interest, be extended to the release of the debt, where the conduct of the debtor is wholly exempt from the imputation of fraud. Some more liberal policy than that which now prevails in reference to this unfortunate class of citizens is certainly due to them, and would prove beneficial to the country. The continuance of the liability after the means to discharge it have been exhausted, can only serve to dispirit the debtor ; or where his resources are but partial, the want of power in the government to compromise and release the demand, insti gates to fraud, as the only resource for securing a support to his family. He thus sinks into a state of apathy, or becomes a useless drone in society, or a vicious member of it, if not a feeling witness of the rigor and inhumanity of his country. All experience proves that an oppressive debt is the bane of enterprise ; and it should be the care of a republic not to exert a grinding power over misfortune and poverty. Since the last session of Congress, numerous frauds on the treasury have been discovered, which I thought it my duty to bring under the cognizance of the United States Court, for this district, by a criminal prosecution. It was my opinion, and that of able counsel who were consulted, that the cases came within the penalties of the act of the 17th Congress, approved 3d March, 1823, providing for the punishment of frauds committed on the government of the United States. Either from some defect in the law or in its administration, every effort to bring the accused to trial under its provisions proved ineffectual, and the government was driven to the necessity of resorting to the vague and inadequate provisions of the common law. It is therefore my duty to call your attention to the laws which have been passed for the protection of the treasury. If, indeed, there is no provision by which those who may be unworthily intrusted with its guardianship, can be punished for the most flagrant violation of duty, extending even to the most fraudulent appropriation of the public funds to their own use, it is time to remedy so dangerous an omis sion. Or, if the law has been perverted from its original 160 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. purposes, and criminals deserving to be punished under its provisions, have been rescued by legal subtilties, it ought to be made so plain, by amendatory provisions, as to baffle the arts of perversion, and accomplish the ends of its original enactment. In one of the most flagrant cases, the court decided that the prosecution was barred by the statute which limits prosecutions for fraud to two years. In this case, all the evidences of the fraud, and indeed all knowledge that a fraud had been committed, were in the possession of the party accused, until after the two years had elapsed. Surely the statute ought not to run in favor of any man while he retains all the evidences of his crime in his own possession ; and least of all, in favor of a public officer who continues to defraud the treasury, and conceal the transaction for the brief term of two years. I would therefore recommend such an alteration of the law as will give the injured party and the government two years after the disclosure of the fraud, or after the accused is out of office, to commence their prosecution. In connection with this subject, I invite the attention of Congress to a general and minute inquiry into the condition of the government, with a view to ascertain what offices can be dispensed with, what expenses retrenched, and what improvements may be made in the organization of its various parts to secure the proper responsibility of public agents, and promote efficiency and justice in all its op erations. The report of the Secretary of War will make you acquainted with the condition of our army, fortifications, arsenals, and Indian affairs. The proper discipline of the army, the training and equipment of the militia, the edu cation bestowed at West Point, and the accumulation of the means of defence, applicable to the naval force, will tend to prolong the peace we now enjoy, and which every good citizen, more especially those who have felt the mis eries of even a successful warfare, must ardently desire to perpetuate. The returns from the subordinate branches of this ser vice exhibit a regularity and order highly creditable to its character : both officers and soldiers seem imbued with a 161 proper sense of duty, and conform to the restraints of exact discipline with that cheerfulness which becomes the profession of arms. There is need, however, of further legislation to obviate the inconveniences specified in the report under consideration; to some of which it is proper that I should call your particular attention. The act of Congress of the 2d March, 1821, to reduce and fix the military establishment, remaining unexecuted as it regards the command of one of the regiments of artillery, cannot now be deemed a guide to the executive in making the proper appointment. An explanatory act, designating the class of officers out of which this grade is to be filled, whether from the military list, as existing prior to the act of 1821, or from it, as it has been fixed by that act, would remove this difficulty. It is also important that the laws regulating the pay and emoluments of the officers generally, should be more specific than they now are. Those, for example, in relation to the paymaster and surgeon-general, assign to them an annual salary of $2,590 ; but are silent as to allowances which, in certain exigencies of the service, may be deemed in dispensable to the discharge of their duties. This circum stance has been the authority for extending to them various allowances at different times under former administrations ; but no uniform rule has been observed on the subject. Similar inconveniences exist in other cases, in which the construction put upon the laws by the public accountants may operate unequally, produce confusion, and expose officers to the odium of claiming what is not their due. I recommend to your fostering care, as one of our safest means of national defence, the Military Academy. This institution has already exercised the happiest influ ence upon the moral and intellectual character of our army ; and such of the graduates as, from various causes, may not pursue the profession of arms, will be scarcely less useful as citizens. Their knowledge of the military art will be advantageously employed in the militia ser vice, and in a measure secure to that class of troops the advantages which in this respect belong to standing armies. I would also sucrcrest a review of the pension law, for 14* 162 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the purpose of extending its benefits to every revolutionary soldier who aided in establishing our liberties, and who is unable to maintain himself in comfort. Those relics of the war of independence have strong claims upon their country s gratitude and bounty. The law is defective in not embracing within its provisions all those who were during the last war disabled from supporting themselves by manual labor. Such an amendment would add but little to the amount of pensions, and is called for by the sympathies of the people, as well as by considerations of sound policy. It will be perceived that a large addition to the list of pensioners has been occasioned by an order of the late administration, departing materially from the rules which had previously prevailed. Considering it an act of legislation, I suspended its operation as soon as I was in formed that it had commenced. Before this period, how ever, applications under the new regulation had been preferred, to the number of one hundred and fifty-four ; of which, on the 27th March, the date of its revocation, eighty-seven were admitted. For the amount there was neither estimate nor appropriation ; and besides this de ficiency, the regular allowances, according to the rules which have heretofore governed the department, exceed the estimate of its late secretary by about fifty thousand dollars, for which an appropriation is asked. Your particular attention is requested to that part of the report of the Secretary of War which relates to the money held in trust for the Seneca tribe of Indians. It will be perceived that, without legislative aid, the executive can not obviate the embarrassments occasioned by the dim inution of the dividends on that fund, which originally amounted to $100,000, and has recently been invested in the United States three per cent, stock. The condition and ulterior destiny of the Indian tribes within the limits of some of our states, have become ob jects of much interest and importance. It has long been the policy of government to introduce among them the arts of civilization, in the hope of gradually reclaiming them from a wandering life. This policy has, however, been coupled with another wholly incompatible with its success. Professing a desire to civilize and settle them. 163 we have at the same time lost no opportunity to purchase their lands, and thrust them farther into the wilderness. By this means, they have not only been kept in a wander ing state, but been led to look upon us as unjust and in different to their fate. Thus, though lavish in expenditures upon the subject, government has constantly defeated its own policy ; and the Indians, in general, receding farther and farther to the west, have retained their savage habits. A portion, however, of the southern tribes, having mingled much with the whites, and made some progress in the arts of civilized life, have lately attempted to erect an inde pendent government within the limits of Georgia and Ala bama. These states, claiming to be the only sovereigns within their territories, extended thesir laws over the In dians; which induced the latter to call upon the United States for protection. Under these circumstances, the question presented was, whether the general government had a right to sustain those people in their pretensions. The constitution de clares, that " no new state shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state," without the consent of its legislature. If the general government is not permitted to tolerate the erection of a confederate state within the territory of one of the members of this Union, against her consent, much less could it allow a foreign and independent government to establish itself there. Georgia became a member of the confederacy which eventuated in our federal union, as a sovereign state, always asserting her claim to certain limits; which having been originally denned in her colonial charter, and subsequently recognized in the treaty of peace, she has ever since continued to enjoy, except as they have been circumscribed by her own voluntary transfer of a portion of her territory to the United States, in the articles of cession of 1802. Alabama was admitted into the Union on the same footing with the original states, with boun daries which were prescribed by Congress. There is no constitutional, conventional, or legal provision, which al lows them less power over the Indians within their bor ders, than is possessed by Maine or New York. Would the people of Maine permit the Penobscot tribe to erect 164 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. an independent government within their state ? and unless they did, would it not be the duty of the general govern ment to support them in resisting such a measure? Would the people of New York permit each remnant of the Six Nations within her borders, to declare itself an independ ent people under the protection of the United States? Could the Indians establish a separate republic in each of their reservations in Ohio? and if they were so disposed, would it be the duty of this government to protect them in the attempt ? If the principle involved in the obvious answer to these questions be abandoned, it will follow that the objects of this government are reversed, and that it has become a part of its duty to aid in destroying the states which it was established to protect. Actuated by this view of the subject, I informed the Indians inhabiting parts of Georgia and Alabama, that their attempt to establish an independent government would not be countenanced by the executive of the United States, and advised them to emigrate beyond the Mississippi, or submit to the laws of those states. Our conduct towards these people is deeply interesting to our national character. Their present condition, con trasted with what they once were, makes a most powerful appeal to our sympathies. Our ancestors found them the uncontrolled possessors of these vast regions. By per suasion and force they have been made to retire from river to river, and from mountain to mountain, until some of the tribes have become extinct, and others have left but remnants, to preserve, for a while, their once terrible names. Surrounded by the whites, with their arts of civ ilization, which, by destroying the resources of the savage, doom him to weakness and decay, the fate of the Mohe- gan, the Narraganset, and the Delaware, is fast overtaking the Choctaw, the Cherokee, and the Creek. That this fate surely awaits them if they remain within the limits of the states, does not admit of a doubt. Humanity and national honor demand that every effort should be made to avert so great a calamity. It is too late to inquire whether it was just in the United States to include them and their territory within the bounds of new states whose limits they could control. That step cannot be retraced. 165 A state cannot be dismembered by Congress, or restricted in the exercise of her constitutional power. But the peo ple of those states, and of every state, actuated by feelings of justice and a regard for our national honor, submit to you the interesting question, whether something cannot be done, consistently with the rights of the states, to preserve this much injured race. As a means of effecting this end, I suggest for your consideration the propriety of setting apart an ample dis trict west of the Mississippi, and without the limits of any state or territory now formed, to be guarantied to the Indian tribes, as long as they shall occupy it ; each tribe having a distinct control over the portion designated for its use. There they may be secured in the enjoyment of governments of their own choice, subject to no other con trol from the United States than such as may be necessary to preserve peace on the frontier, and between the several tribes. There the benevolent may endeavor to teach them the arts of civilization; and, by promoting union and har mony among them, to raise up an interesting common wealth, destined to perpetuate the race, and to attest the humanity arid justice of this government. This emigration should be voluntary, for it would be as cruel as unjust to compel the aborigines to abandon the graves of their fathers, and seek a home in a distant land. But they should be distinctly informed that, if they remain within the limits of the states, they must be subject to their laws. In return for their obedience as individuals, they will, without doubt, be protected in the enjoyment of those possessions which they have improved by their industry. But it seems to me visionary to sup pose, that, in this state of things, claims can be allowed on tracts of country on which they have neither dwelt nor made improvements, merely because they have seen them from the mountain, or passed them in the chase. Submitting to the laws of the states, and receiving, like other citizens, protection in their persons and property, they will ere long become merged in the mass of our population. The accompanying report of the Secretary of the Navy will make you acquainted with the condition and useful 166 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. employment of that branch of our service during the pres ent year. Constituting, as it does, the best standing se curity of this country against foreign aggression, it claims the especial attention of government. In this spirit, the measures which, since the termination of the last war, have been in operation for its gradual enlargement, were adopted, and it should continue to be cherished as the offspring of our national experience. It will be seen, how ever, that, notwithstanding the great solicitude which has been manifested for the perfect organization of this arm, and the liberality of the appropriations which that solici tude has suggested, this object has, in many important respects, not been secured. In time of peace we have need of no more ships of war than are requisite to the protection of our commerce. Those not wanted for this object, must lie in the har bors, where, without proper covering, they rapidly decay ; and, even under the best precautions for their preserva tion, must soon become useless. Such is already the case with many of our finest vessels ; which, though un finished, will now require immense sums of money to be restored to the condition in which they were when com mitted to their proper element. On this subject there can be little doubt that our best policy would be to discon tinue the building of the first and second class, and look rather to the possession of ample materials, prepared for the emergencies of war, than to the number of vessels which we can float in a season of peace, as an index of our naval power. Judicious deposits in the navy-yards, of timber and other materials, fashioned under the hands of skilful workmen, and fitted for prompt application to their various purposes, would enable us, at all times, to construct vessels as fast as they can be manned; and save the heavy expense of repairs, except to such vessels as must be employed in guarding our commerce. The proper points for the establishment of these yards are indicated with so much force in the report of the Navy Board, that, in recommending it to your attention, I deem it unnecessary to do more than express my hearty concur rence in their views. The yard in this district, being already furnished with most of the machinery necessary JACKSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 167 for ship-building, will be competent to the supply of the two selected by the board as the best for the concentra tion of materials; and from the facility and certainty of communication between them, it will be useless to incur, at those depots, the expense of similar machinery, espe cially that used in preparing the usual metallic and wooden furniture of vessels. Another improvement would be effected by dispensing altogether with the Navy Board, as now constituted, and substituting in its stead bureaus similar to those already existing in the War Department. Each member of the board, transferred to the head of a separate bureau charged with specific duties, would feel, in its highest degree, that wholesome responsibility which cannot be divided without a far more proportionate diminution of its force. Their valuable services would become still more so when sepa- i ately appropriated to distinct portions of the great inter ests of the navy ; to the prosperity of which each would be impelled to devote himself by the strongest motives. Under such an arrangement, every branch of this im portant service would assume a more simple and precise character; its efficiency would be increased, and scru pulous economy in the expenditure of public money pro moted. I would also recommend that the marine corps be merged in the artillery or infantry, as the best mode of curing the many defects of its organization. But little exceeding in number any of the regiments of infantry, that corps has, besides its lieutenant-colonel commandant, five brevet lieutenant-colonels, who receive the full pay and emoluments of their brevet rank, without rendering proportionate service. Details for marine service could as well be made from the artillery or infantry there being no peculiar training requisite for it. With these improvements, and such others as zealous watchfulness and mature consideration may suggest, there can be little doubt that, under an energetic administration of its affairs, the navy may soon be made every thing that the nation wishes it to be. Its efficiency in the suppres sion of piracy in the West India seas, and wherever its squadrons have been employed in securing the interests 168 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. of the country, will appear from the report of the secre tary, to which I refer you for other interesting details. Among these I would bespeak the attention of Congress for the views presented in relation to the inequality be tween the army and navy as to the pay of officers. No such inequality should prevail between these brave defend ers of their country ; and where it does exist, it is submitted to Congress whether it ought not to be rectified. The report of the Postmaster-general is referred to as exhibiting a highly satisfactory administration of that de partment. Abuses have been reformed ; increased expe dition in the transportation of the mail secured ; and its revenue much improved. In a political point of view, this department is chiefly important as affording the means of diffusing knowledge. It is to the body politic what the veins and arteries are to the natural conveying rapidly and regularly, to the remotest parts of the system, correct information of the operations of the government, and bringing back to it the wishes and feelings of the people. Through its agency, we have secured to ourselves the full enjoyment of the blessings of a free press. In this general survey of our affairs, a subject of high importance presents itself in the present organization of the judiciary. A uniform operation of the federal govern ment in the different states is certainly desirable ; and existing, as they do in the Union, on the basis of perfect equality, each state has a right to expect that the benefits conferred on the citizens of others should be extended to hers. The judicial system of the United States exists in all its efficiency in only fifteen members of the Union ; to three others, the circuit courts, which constitute an im portant part of that system, have been imperfectly extend ed ; and to the remaining six, altogether denied. The effect has been to withhold from the inhabitants of the latter the advantages afforded (by the supreme court) to their fellow-citizens in other states, in the whole extent of the criminal, and much of the civil authority of the federal judiciary. That this state of things ought to be remedied, if it can be done consistently with the public welfare, is not to be doubted ; neither is it to be disguised that the organization of our judicial JACKSON S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 169 system is at once a difficult and delicate task. To extend the circuit courts equally throughout the different parts of the Union, and, at the same time, to avoid such a mul tiplication of members as would encumber the supreme appellate tribunal, is the object desired. Perhaps it might be accomplished by dividing the circuit judges into two classes, and providing that the supreme court should be held by those classes alternately the chief justice always presiding. If an extension of the circuit court system to those states which do not now enjoy its benefits should be de termined upon, it would of course be necessary to revise the present arrangements of the circuits ; and even if that system should not be enlarged, such a revision is recom mended. A provision for taking the census of the people of the United States will, to insure the completion of that work within a convenient time, claim the early attention of Congress. The great and constant increase of business in the De partment of State forced itself, at an ear]y period, upon the attention of the executive. Thirteen years ago, it was, in Mr. Madison s last message to Congress, made the sub ject of an earnest recommendation, which has been re peated by both of his successors ; and my comparatively limited experience has satisfied me of its justness. It has arisen from many causes, not the least of which is, the large addition which has been made to the family of independent nations, and the proportionate extension of our foreign relations. The remedy proposed was the es tablishment of a Home Department a measure which does not appear to have met the views of Congress, on account of its supposed tendency to increase gradually, and imperceptibly, the already too strong bias of the fed eral system towards the exercise of authority not delegated to it. I am not, therefore, disposed to revive the recom mendation ; but am not the less impressed with the impor tance of so organizing that department, that its secretary may devote more of his time to our foreign relations. Clearly satisfied that the public good would be promoted 15 170 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. by some suitable provision on the subject, I respectfully invite your attention to it. The charter of the Bank of the United States expires in 1836, and its stockholders will most probably apply for a renewal of their privileges. In order to avoid the evils resulting from precipitancy in a measure involving such important principles, and such deep pecuniary interests, I feel that I cannot, in justice to the parties interested, too soon present it to the deliberate consideration of the legislature and the people. Both the constitutionality and the expediency of the law creating this bank are well questioned by a large portion of our fellow-citizens ; and it must be admitted by all, that it has failed in the great end of establishing a uniform and sound currency. Under these circumstances, if such an institution is deemed essential to the fiscal operations of the govern ment, I submit to the wisdom of the legislature whether a national one, founded upon the credit of the government and its revenues, might not be devised, which would avoid all constitutional difficulties, and, at the same time, secure all the advantages to the government and country that were expected to result from the present bank. I cannot close this communication without bringing to your view the just claim of the representatives of Com modore Decatur, his officers and crew, arising from the recapture of the frigate Philadelphia, under the heavy batteries of Tripoli. Although sensible, as a general rule, of the impropriety of executive interference under a gov ernment like ours, where every individual enjoys the right of directly petitioning Congress, yet, viewing this case as one of very peculiar character, I deem it my duty to rec ommend it to your favorable consideration. Besides the justice of this claim, as corresponding to those which have been since recognized and satisfied, it is the fruit of a deed of patriotic and chivalrous daring, which infused life and confidence into our infant navy, and contributed, as much as any exploit in its history, to elevate our national character. Public gratitude, therefore, stamps her seal upon it; and the meed should not be withheld which may hereafter operate as a stimulus to our gallant tars. 171 I now commend you, fellow-citizens, to the guidance of Almighty God, with a full reliance on his merciful Providence for the maintenance of our free institutions ; and with an earnest supplication, that whatever errors it may be my lot to commit, in discharging the arduous duties which have devolved on me, will find a remedy in the harmony and wisdom of your counsels. JACKSON S FAREWELL ADDRESS. Felloie-Oitizens : BEING about to retire finally from public life, I beg leave to offer you my grateful thanks for the many proofs of kindness and confidence which I have received at your hands. It has been my fortune, in the discharge of public duties, civil and military, frequently to have found myself in difficult and trying situations, where prompt decision and energetic action were necessary, and where the in terests of the country required that high responsibilities should be fearlessly encountered ; and it is with the deep est emotions of gratitude that I acknowledge the continued and unbroken confidence with which you have sustained me in every trial. My public life has been a long one, and I cannot hope that it has at all times been free from errors. But I have the consolation of knowing that, if mistakes have been committed, they have not seriously injured the country I so anxiously endeavored to serve; and at the moment when I surrender my last public trust, I leave this great people prosperous and happy ; in the full enjoyment of liberty and peace, and honored and respected by every nation of the world. If my humble efforts have, in any degree, contributed to preserve to you these blessings, I have been more than rewarded by the honor you have heaped upon me ; and, above all, by the generous confidence with which you have supported me in every peril, and with which you have continued to animate and cheer my path to the closing hour of my political life. The time has now come, when 172 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. advanced age and a broken frame warn me to retire from public concerns; but the recollection of the many favors you have bestowed upon me is engraven upon my heart, and I have felt that J could not part from your service without making this public acknowledgment of the grati tude I owe you. And if I use the occasion to offer to you the counsels of age and experience, you will, I trust, re ceive them with the same indulgent kindness which you have so often extended to me ; and will, at least, see in them an earnest desire to perpetuate, in this favored land, the blessings of liberty and equal laws. We have now lived almost fifty years under the consti tution framed by the sages and patriots of the revolution. The conflicts in which the nations of Europe were en gaged during a great part of this period, the spirit in which they waged war with each other, and our intimate commercial connections with every part of the civilized world, rendered it a time of much difficulty for the gov ernment of the United States. We have had our seasons of peace and of war, with all the evils which precede or follow a state of hostility with powerful nations. We en countered these trials with our constitution yet in its in fancy, and under the disadvantages which a new and untried government must always feel when it is called to put forth its whole strength, without the lights of experi ence to guide it, or the weight of precedent to justify its measures. But we have passed triumphantly through all these difficulties. Our constitution is no longer a doubt* ful experiment ; and at the end of nearly half a century, we find that it has preserved unimpaired the liberties of the people, secured the rights of property, and that our country has improved, and is flourishing beyond any for mer example in the history of nations. In our domestic concerns, there is every thing to en courage us ; and if you are true to yourselves, nothing can impede your march to the highest point of national prosperity. The states which had so long been retarded in their improvement, by the Indian tribes residing in the midst of them, are at length relieved from the evil ; and this unhappy race the original dwellers in our land are now placed in a situation where we may well hope 173 that they will share in the blessings of civilization, and be saved from that degradation and destruction to which they were rapidly hastening while they remained in the states ; and while the safety and comfort of our own citizens have been greatly promoted by their removal, the philanthropist will rejoice that the remnant of that ill-fated race has been at length placed beyond the reach of injury or oppression, and that the paternal care of the general government will hereafter watch over them and protect them. If we turn to our relations with foreign powers, we find our condition equally gratifying. Actuated by the sincere desire to do justice to every nation, and to preserve the blessing of peace, our intercourse with them has been conducted, on the part of this government, in the spirit of frankness, and I take pleasure in saying that it has gener ally been met in a corresponding temper. Difficulties of old standing have been surmounted by friendly discussion and the mutual desire to be just ; and the claims of our citizens, which had been long withheld, have at length been acknowledged and adjusted, and satisfactory arrange ments made for their final payment ; and with a limited, and, I trust, a temporary exception, our relations with every foreign power are now of the most friendly character, our commerce continually expanding, and our flag respected in every quarter of the world. These cheering and grateful prospects, and these multi plied favors, we owe, under Providence, to the adoption of the federal constitution. It is no longer a question whether this great country can remain happily united, and flourish under our present form of government. Experience, the unerring test of all human undertakings, has shown the wisdom and foresight of those who framed it, and has proved, that in the union of these states there is a sure foundation for the brightest hopes of freedom, and for the happiness of the people. At every hazard, and by every sacrifice, this union must be preserved. The necessity of watching with jealous anxiety for the preservation of the union, was earnestly pressed upon his fellow-citizens by the father of his country, in his farewell address. He has there told us, that "while experience shall not have demonstrated its impracticability, there will 15* 174 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. always be reason to distrust the patriotism of those who, in any quarter, may endeavor to weaken its bonds ; " and he has cautioned us in the strongest terms against the forma tion of parties, on geographical discriminations, as one of the means which might disturb our union, and to which designing men would be likely to resort. The lessons contained in this invaluable legacy of Washington to his countrymen, should be cherished in the heart of every citizen to the latest generation ; and, perhaps, at no period of time could they be more usefully remem bered than at the present moment. For when we look upon the scenes that are passing around us, and dwell upon the pages of his parting address, his paternal counsels would seem to be not merely the offspring of wisdom and foresight, but the voice of prophecy foretelling events, and warning us of the evil to come. Forty years have passed since that imperishable document was given to his country men. The federal constitution was then regarded by him as an experiment, and he so speaks of it in his address ; but an experiment upon the success of which the best iiopes of his country depended, and we all know that he was prepared to lay down his life, if necessary, to secure to it a full and fair trial. The trial has been made. It lias succeeded beyond the proudest hopes of those who iframed it. Every quarter of this widely-extended nation has felt its blessings, and shared in the general prosperity produced by its adoption. But amid this general prosperity and splendid success, the dangers of which he warned us are becoming every day more evident, and the signs of evil are sufficiently apparent to awaken the deepest anxiety in the bosom of the patriot. We behold systematic efforts publicly made to sow the seeds of discord between different parts of the United States, and to place party divisions directly upon geographical distinctions ; to excite the south against the north, and the north against the south, and to force into the controversy the most delicate and exciting topics, upon which it is impossible that a large portion of the Union can ever speak without strong emotions. Ap peals, too, are constantly made to sectional interests, in order to influence the election of the chief magistrate, as if it were desired that he should favor a particular quarter of the 175 country, instead of fulfilling the duties of his station with impartial justice to all ; and the possible dissolution of the Union has at length become an ordinary and familiar sub ject of discussion. Has the warning voice of Washington been forgotten ? or have designs already been formed to sever the Union ? Let it not be supposed that I impute to all of those who have taken an active part in these unwise and unprofitable discussions a want of patriotism or of public virtue. The honorable feeling of state pride and local attachments find a place in the bosoms of the most enlightened and pure. But while such men are conscious of their own integrity and honesty of purpose, they ought never to forget that the citizens of other states are their political brethren ; and that, however mistaken they may be in their views, the great body of them are equally honest and upright with themselves. Mutual suspicions and re proaches may in time create mutual hostility, and artful and designing men will always be found, who are ready to foment these fatal divisions, and to inflame the natural jealousies of different sections of the country. The his tory of the world is full of such examples, and especially the history of republics. What have you to gain by division and dissension 1 Delude not yourselves with the belief that a breach once made may be afterwards repaired. If the Union is once severed, the line of separation will grow wider and wider, and the controversies which are now debated and settled in the halls of legislation, will then be tried in fields of battle, and be determined by the sword. Neither should you deceive yourselves with the hope, that the first line of separation would be the permanent one, and that nothing but harmony and concord would be found in the new associations, formed upon the dissolution of this Union. Local interests would still be found there, and unchastened ambition. And if the recollection of common dangers, in which the people of these United States stood side by side against the common foe ; the memory of victories won by their united valor ; the prosperity and happiness they have enjoyed under the present constitution ; the proud name they bear as citizens of this great republic; if these rec ollections and proofs of common interest are not strong 176 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. enough to bind us together as one people, what tie will hold this Union dissevered ? The first line of separation would not last for a single generation; new fragments would be torn off; new leaders would spring up ; and this great and glorious republic would soon be broken into a multitude of petty states ; armed for mutual aggressions ; loaded with taxes to pay armies and leaders ; seeking aid against each other from foreign powers ; insulted and trampled upon by the nations of Europe, until, harassed with conflicts, and humbled and debased in spirit, they would be ready to submit to the absolute dominion of any military adventurer, and to surrender their liberty for the sake of repose. It is impossible to look on the conse quences that would inevitably follow the destruction of this government, and not feel indignant when we hear cold calculations about the value of the Union, and have so constantly before us a line of conduct so well calculated to weaken its ties. There is too much at stake to allow pride or passion to influence your decision. Never for a moment believe that the great body of the citizens of any state or states can de liberately intend to do wrong. They may, under the in fluence of temporary excitement or misguided opinions, commit mistakes; they may be misled for a time by the suggestions of self-interest; but in a community so en lightened and patriotic as the people of the United States, argument will soon make them sensible of their errors ; and, when convinced, they will be ready to repair them. If they have no higher or better motives to govern them, they will at least perceive that their own interest requires them to be just to others as they hope to receive justice at their hands. But in order to maintain the Union unimpaired, it is ab solutely necessary that the laws passed by the constituted authorities should be faithfully executed in every part of the country, and that every good citizen should, at all times, stand ready to put down, with the combined force of the nation, every attempt at unlawful resistance, under whatever pretext it may be made, or whatever shape it may assume. Unconstitutional or oppressive laws may, no doubt, be passed by Congress, either from erroneous views or the 177 want of due consideration ; if they are within reach of judicial authority, the remedy is easy and peaceful ; and if, from the character of the law, it is an abuse of power not within the control of the judiciary, then free discussion and calm appeals to reason and to the justice of the people, will not fail to redress the wrong. But until the law shall be declared void by the courts, or repealed by Congress, no individual or combination of individuals can be justified in forcibly resisting its execution. It is impossible that any government can continue to exist upon any other prin ciples. It would cease to be a government, and be un worthy of the name, if it had not the power to enforce the execution of its own laws within its own sphere of action. It is true that cases may be imagined disclosing such a settled purpose of usurpation and oppression, on the part of the government, as would justify an appeal to arms. These, however, are extreme cases, which we have no reason to apprehend in a government where the power is in the hands of a patriotic people ; and no citizen who loves his country, would in any case whatever resort to forcible resistance, unless he clearly saw that the time had come when a freeman should prefer death to submission ; for if such a struggle is once begun, and the citizens of one section of the country arrayed in arms against those of another, in doubtful conflict, let the battle result as it may, there will be an end of the Union, arid with it an end of the hopes of freedom. The victory of the injured would not secure to them the blessings of liberty ; it would avenge their wrongs, but they would themselves share in the common ruin. But the constitution cannot be maintained, nor the Union preserved, in opposition to public feeling, by the mere ex ertion of the coercive powers confided to the general gov ernment. The foundations must be laid in the affections of the people ; in the security it gives to life, liberty, char acter, and property, in every quarter of the country, and in the fraternal attachments which the citizens of the several states bear to one another, as members of one political family, mutually contributing to promote the happiness of each other. Hence the citizens of every state should studiously avoid every thing calculated to wound the sen- 178 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. sibility or offend the just pride of the people of other states; and they should frown upon any proceedings within their own borders likely to disturb the tranquillity of their polit ical brethren in other portions of the Union. In a country so extensive as the United States, and with pursuits so varied, the internal regulations of the several states must frequently differ from one another in important particulars; and this difference is unavoidably increased by the varying principles upon which the American colonies were origin ally planted principles which had taken deep root in their social relations before the revolution, and therefore, of ne cessity, influencing their policy since they became free and independent states. But each state has the unquestionable right to regulate its own internal concerns according to its own pleasure ; and while it does not interfere with the rights of the people of other states, or the rights of the Union, every state must be the sole judge of that measure proper to secure the safety of its citizens and promote their happiness ; and all efforts on the part of the people of other states to cast odium upon their institutions, and all measures calculated to disturb their rights of property, or to put in jeopardy their peace and internal tranquillity, are in direct opposition to the spirit in which the Union was formed, and must endanger its safety. Motives of philanthropy may be assigned for this unwarrantable inter ference ; and weak men may persuade themselves for a moment that they are laboring in the cause of humanity, and asserting the rights of the human race ; but every one, upon sober reflection, will see that nothing but mischief can come from these improper assaults upon the feelings and rights of others. Rest assured, that the men found busy in this work of discord are not worthy of your con fidence, and deserve your strongest reprobation. In the legislation of Congress, also, and in every meas ure of the general govemrrent, justice to every portion of the United States should be faithfully observed. No free government can stand without virtue in the people, and a lofty spirit of patriotism ; and if the sordid feelings of mere selfishness shall usurp the place which ought to be filled by public spirit, the legislation of Congress will soon be con verted into a scramble for personal and sectional advan- 179 tages. Under our free institutions, the citizens in every quarter of our country are capable of attaining a high de gree of prosperity and happiness, without seeking to profit themselves at the expense of others ; and every such attempt must in the end fail to succeed, for the people in every part of the United States are too enlightened not to understand their own rights and interests, and to detect and defeat every effort to gain undue advantages over them ; and when such designs are discovered, it naturally provokes resent ments which cannot be always allayed. Justice, full and ample justice, to every portion of the United States, should be the ruling principle of every freeman, and should guide the deliberations of every public body, whether it be state or national. It is well known that there have always been those among us who wish to enlarge the powers of the general government ; and experience would seem to indicate that there is a tendency on the part of this government to overstep the boundaries marked out for it by the consti tution. Its legitimate authority is abundantly sufficient for all the purposes for which it is created ; and its pow ers being expressly enumerated, there can be no justifi cation for claiming any thing beyond them. Every at tempt to exercise power beyond these limits should be promptly and firmly opposed. For one evil example will lead to other measures still more mischievous; and if the principle of constructive powers, or supposed advantages, or temporary circumstances, shall ever be permitted to justify the assumption of a power not given by the consti tution, the general government will before long absorb all the powers of legislation, and you will have, in effect, but one consolidated government. From the extent of our country, its diversified interests, different pursuits, and different habits, it is too obvious for argument that a sin gle consolidated government would be wholly inadequate to watch over and protect its interests ; and every friend of our free institutions should be always prepared to main tain unimpaired and in full vicror the rights and sover eignty of the states, and to confine the action of the gen eral government strictly to the sphere of its appropriate duties. 180 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. There is, perhaps, no one of the powers conferred on the federal government so liable to abuse as the taxing power. The most productive and convenient sources of revenue were necessarily given to it, that it might per form the important duties imposed upon it ; and the taxes which it lays upon commerce being concealed from the real payer in the price of the article, they do not so read ily attract the attention of the people as smaller sums demanded from them directly by the tax-gatherer. But the tax imposed on goods enhances by so much the price of the commodity to the consumer ; and as many of these duties are imposed on articles of necessity which are daily used by the great body of the people, the money raised by these imposts is drawn from their pockets. Congress has no right, under the constitution, to take money from the people, unless it is required to execute some one of the specific powers intrusted to the government ; and if they raise more than is necessary for such purposes, it is an abuse of the power of taxation, and unjust and op pressive. It may, indeed, happen that the revenue will sometimes exceed the amount anticipated when the taxes were laid. When, however, this is ascertained, it is easy to reduce them ; and, in such a case, it is unquestionably the duty of the government to reduce them, for no circum stances can justify it in assuming a power not given to it by the constitution, nor in taking away the money of the people when it is not needed for the legitimate wants of the government. Plain as these principles appear to be, you will find that there is a constant effort to induce the general government to go beyond the limits of its taxing power, and to impose unnecessary burdens upon the people. Many powerful interests are continually at work to procure heavy duties on commerce, and to swell the revenue beyond the real necessities of the public service; and the country has already felt the injurious effects of their combined in fluence. They succeeded in obtaining a tariff of duties bearing most oppressively on the agricultural and labor ing classes of society, and producing a revenue that could not be usefully employed within the range of the powers conferred upon Congress ; and, in order to fasten upon 181 the people this unjust and unequal system of taxation, extravagant schemes of internal improvement were got up, in various quarters, to squander the money and to pur chase support. Thus one unconstitutional measure was intended to be upheld by another, and the abuse of the power of taxation was to be maintained by usurping the power of expending the money in internal improvements. You cannot have forgotten the severe and doubtful strug gle through which we passed, when the executive depart ment of the government, by its veto, endeavored to arrest this prodigal scheme of injustice, and to bring back the legislation of Congress to the boundaries prescribed by the constitution. The good sense and practical judgment of the people, when the subject was brought before them, sustained the course of the executive; and this plan of unconstitutional expenditure for the purposes of corrupt influence is, I trust, finally overthrown. The result of this decision has been felt in the rapid extinguishment of the public debt, and the large accumu lation of a surplus in the treasury, notwithstanding the tariff was reduced, and is now far below the amount originally contemplated by its advocates. But, rely upon it, the design to collect an extravagant revenue, and to burden you with taxes beyond the economical wants of the government, is not yet abandoned. The various interests which have combined together to impose a heavy tariff, and to produce an overflowing treasury, are too strong, and have too much at stake, to surrender the contest. The corporations and wealthy individuals who are engaged in large manufacturing establishments, desire a high tariff to increase their gains. Designing politicians will sup port it to conciliate their favor, and to obtain the means of profuse expenditure, for the purpose of purchasing in fluence in other quarters ; and since the people have de cided that the federal government cannot be permitted to employ its income in internal improvements, efforts will be made to seduce and mislead the citizens of the several states by holding out to them the deceitful prospect of benefits to be derived from a surplus revenue collected by the general government, and annually divided among the states. And if, encouraged by these fallacious hopes, the 16 182 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. states should disregard the principles of economy which ought to characterize every republican government, and should indulge in lavish expenditures exceeding their re sources, they will, before long, find themselves oppressed with debts which they are unable to pay, and the temp tation will become irresistible to support a high tariff, in order to obtain a surplus distribution. Do not allow your selves, my fellow-citizens, to be misled on this subject. The federal government cannot collect a surplus for such purposes, without violating the principles of the consti tution, and assuming powers which have not been granted. It is, moreover, a system of injustice, and, if persisted in, will inevitably lead to corruption, and must end in ruin. The surplus revenue will be drawn from the pockets of the people from the farmer, the mechanic, and the laboring classes of society ; but who will receive it when distributed among the states, where it is to be disposed of by leading politicians who have friends to favor, and po litical partisans to gratify ? It will certainly not be re turned to those who paid it, and who have most need of it, and are honestly entitled to it. There is but one safe rule, and that is to confine the general government rigidly within the sphere of its appropriate duties. It has no power to raise a revenue, or impose taxes, except for the pur poses enumerated in the constitution ; and if its income is found to exceed these wants, it should be forthwith re duced, and the burdens of the people so far lightened. In reviewing the conflicts which have taken place be tween different interests in the United States, and the policy pursued since the adoption of our present form of government, we find nothing that has produced such deep- seated evil as the course of legislation in relation to the currency. The constitution of the United States un questionably intended to secure the people a circulating medium of gold and silver. But the establishment of a national bank by Congress, with the privilege of issuing paper money receivable in the payment of the public dues, and the unfortunate course of legislation in the several states upon the same subject, drove from general circu lation the constitutional currency, and substituted one of paper in its place. 183 It was not easy for men engaged in the ordinary pursuits of business, whose attention had not been particularly drawn to the subject, to foresee all the consequences of a currency exclusively of paper ; and we ought not, on that account, to be surprised at the facility with which laws were obtained to carry into effect the paper system. Honest, and even enlightened men are sometimes misled by the specious and plausible statements of the designing. But experience has now proved the mischiefs and dangers of a paper currency, and it rests with you to determine whether the proper remedy shall be applied. The paper system being founded on public confidence, and having of itself no intrinsic value, it is liable to great and sudden fluctuations, thereby rendering property in secure, and the wages of labor unsteady and uncertain. The corporations which create the paper money cannot be relied upon to keep the circulating medium uniform in amount. In times of prosperity, when confidence is high, they are tempted, by the prospect of gain, or by the influ ence of those who hope to profit by it, to extend their issues of paper beyond the bounds of discretion and the reasonable demands of business. And when these issues have been pushed on, from day to day, until public con fidence is at length shaken, then a reaction takes place, and they immediately withdraw the credits they have given, suddenly curtail their issues, and produce an unexpected and ruinous contraction of the circulating medium, which is felt by the whole community. The banks, by this means, save themselves, and the mischievous consequences of their imprudence or cupidity are visited upon the pub lic. Nor does the evil stop here. These ebbs and flows in the currency, and these indiscreet extensions of credit, naturally engender a spirit of speculation injurious to the habits and character of the people. We have already seen its effects in the wild spirit of speculation in the public lands, and various kinds of stock, which, within the last year or two, seized upon such a multitude of our citizens, and threatened to pervade all classes of society, and to withdraw their attention from the sober pursuits of honest industry. It is not by encouraging this spirit that we shall 184 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. best preserve public virtue, and promote the true interests of our country. But if your currency continues as ex clusively paper as it now is, it will foster this eager desire to amass wealth without labor ; it will multiply the num ber of dependants on bank accommodations and bank favors ; the temptation to obtain money at any sacrifice will become stronger and stronger, and inevitably lead to corruption, which will find its way into your public coun cils, and destroy, at no distant day, the purity of your gov ernment. Some of the evils which arise from this system of paper, press with peculiar hardship upon the class of society least able to bear it. A portion of this currency frequently becomes depreciated or worthless, and all of it is easily counterfeited, in such a manner as to require pe culiar skill and much experience to distinguish the coun terfeit from the genuine notes. These frauds are most generally perpetrated in the smaller notes, which are used in the daily transactions of ordinary business ; and the losses occasioned by them are commonly thrown upon the laboring classes of society, whose situation and pursuits put it out of their power to guard themselves from these impositions, and whose daily wages are necessary for their subsistence. It is the duty of every government so to regulate its currency, as to pro tect this numerous class, as far as practicable, from the im positions of avarice and fraud. It is more especially the duty of the United States, where the government is em phatically the government of the people, and where this respectable portion of our citizens are so proudly distin guished from the laboring classes of all other nations, by their independent spirit, their love of liberty, their intelli gence, and their high tone of moral character. Their industry in peace is the source of our wealth ; and their bravery in war has covered us with glory; and the gov ernment of the United States will but ill discharge its duties, if it leaves them a prey to such dishonest imposi tions. Yet- it is evident that their interests cannot be effectually protected, unless silver and gold are restored to circulation. These views alone, of the paper currency, are sufficient FAREWELL ADDRESS. 185 to call for immediate reform; but there is another con sideration which should still more strongly press it upon your attention. Recent events have proved that the paper money sys tem of this country may be used as an engine to under mine your free institutions ; and that those who desire to engross all power in the hands of the few, and to govern by corruption or force, are aware of its power, and pre pared to employ it. Your banks now furnish your only circulating medium, and money is plenty or scarce accord ing to the quantity of notes issued by them. While they have capitals not greatly disproportioned to each other, they are competitors in business, and no one of them can exercise dominion over the rest ; and although, in the present state of the currency, these banks may and do operate injuriously upon the habits of business, the pe cuniary concerns, and the moral tone of society, yet, from their number and dispersed situation, they cannot combine for the purposes of political influence ; and whatever may be the dispositions of some of them, their power of mis chief must necessarily be confined to a narrow space, and felt only in their immediate neighborhood. But when the charter for the Bank of the United States was obtained from Congress, it perfected the schemes of the paper system, and gave its advocates the position they have struggled to obtain, from the commencement of the federal government down to the present hour. The im mense capital, the peculiar privileges bestowed upon it, enabled it to exercise despotic sway over the other banks in every part of the country. From its superior strength, it could seriously injure, if not destroy, the business of any one of them which might incur its resentment ; and it openly claimed for itself the power of regulating the cur rency throughout the United States. In other words, it asserted (and undoubtedly possessed) the power to make money plenty or scarce, at its pleasure, at any time, and in any quarter of the Union, by controlling the issues of other banks, and permitting an expansion, or compelling a gen eral contraction, of the circulating medium, according to its own will. The other banking institutions were sensi ble of its strength, and the soon generally became its 16* 186 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. obedient instruments, ready, at all times, to execute its mandates; and with the banks necessarily went also that numerous class of persons in our commercial cities, who depend altogether on bank credits for their solvency and means of business; and who are, therefore, obliged, for their own safety, to propitiate the favor of the money power by distinguished zeal and devotion in its service. The result of the ill-advised legislation which established this great monopoly was to concentrate the whole moneyed power of the Union, with its boundless means of corrup tion, and its numerous dependants, under the direction and command of one acknowledged head ; thus organizing this particular interest as one body, and securing to it unity and concert of action throughout the United States, and enabling it to bring forward, upon any occasion, its entire and undivided strength to support or defeat any measure of the government. In the hands of this formidable power, thus perfectly organized, was also placed unlimited dominion over the amount of the circulating medium, giving it the power to regulate the value of property and the fruits of labor in every quarter of the Union; and to bestow prosperity, or bring ruin, upon any city or section of the country, as might best comport with its own inter est or policy. We are not left to conjecture how the moneyed power, thus organized, and with such a weapon in its hands, would be likely to use it. The distress and alarm which pervaded and agitated the whole country, when the Bank of the United States waged war upon the people, in order to compel them to submit to its demands, cannot yet be forgotten. The ruthless and unsparing temper with which whole cities and communities were oppressed, in dividuals impoverished and ruined, and a scene of cheer ful prosperity suddenly changed into one of gloom and de spondency, ought to be indelibly impressed on the memory of the people of the United States. If such was its power in a time of peace, what would it not have been in a sea son of war, with an enemy at your doors? No nation but the freemen of the United States could have come out victo rious from such a contest ; yet, if you had not conquered, the government would have passed from the hands of the many JACKSON S FAREWELL ADDRESS. 187 to the hands of the few ; and this organized money power, from its secret conclave, would have dictated the choice of your highest officers, and compelled you to make peace or war, as best suited their own wishes. The forms of your government might, for a time, have remained ; but its living spirit would have departed from it. The distress and sufferings inflicted on the people by the bank, are some of the fruits of that system of policy which is continually striving to enlarge the authority of the federal government beyond the limits fixed by the constitution. The powers enumerated in that instrument do not confer on Congress the right to establish such a corporation as the Bank of the United States ; and the evil consequences which followed may warn us of the danger of departing from the true rule of construction, and of permitting temporary circumstances, or the hope of better promoting the public welfare, to influence, in any degree, our decisions upon the extent of the authority of the gen eral government. Let us abide by the constitution as it is written, or amend it in the constitutional mode if it is found defective. The severe lessons of experience will, I doubt not, be sufficient to prevent Congress from again chartering such a monopoly, even if the constitution did not present an insuperable objection to it. But you must remember, my fellow-citizens, that eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty ; and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing. It behoves you, therefore, to be watchful in your states, as well as in the federal govern ment. The power which the moneyed interest can exer cise, when concentrated under a single head and with our present system of currency, was sufficiently demonstrated in the struggle made by the United States Bank. Defeat ed in the general government, the same class of intriguers and politicians will now resort to the states, and endeavor to obtain there the same organization, which they failed to perpetuate in the Union ; and with specious and de ceitful plans of public advantages, and state interests, and state pride, they will endeavor to establish, in the different states, one moneyed institution with overgrown capital, and exclusive privileges sufficient to enable it to control 188 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the operations of other banks. Such an institution will be pregnant with the same evils produced by the Bank of the United States, although its sphere of action is more confined ; and in the state in which it is chartered, the money power will be able to imbody its whole strength, and to move together with undivided force to accomplish any object it may wish to attain. You have already had abundant evidence of its powers to inflict injury upon the agricultural, mechanical, and laboring classes of society; and over those whose engagements in trade or specula tion render them dependent on bank facilities, the do minion of the state monopoly will be absolute, and their obedience unlimited. With such a bank and a paper currency, the money power would in a few years govern the state and control its measures ; and if a sufficient number of states can be induced to create such establish ments, the time will soon come when it will again take the field against the United States, and succeed in per fecting and perpetuating its organization by a charter from Congress. It is one of the serious evils of our present system of banking, that it enables one class of society and that by no means a numerous one by its control over the cur rency, to act injuriously upon the interests of all the others, and to exercise more than its just proportion of influence in political affairs. The agricultural, the me chanical, and the laboring classes, have little or no share in the direction of the great moneyed corporations ; and from their habits and the nature of their pursuits, they are incapable of forming extensive combinations to act together with united force. Such concert of action may sometimes be produced in a single city, or in a small dis trict of country, by means of personal communications with each other ; but they have no regular or active cor respondence with those who are engaged in similar pur suits in distant places ; they have but little patronage to give to the press, and exercise but a small share of influ ence over it ; they have no crowd of dependants about them, who hope to grow rich without labor, by their coun tenance and favor, and who are, therefore, always ready to execute their wishes. The planter, the farmer, the me- JACKSON S FAREWELL ADDRESS. 189 chanic, and the laborer, all know that their success depends upon their own industry and economy, and that they must not expect to become suddenly rich by the fruits of their toil. Yet these classes form the great body of the people of the United States ; they are the bone and sinew of the country ; men who love liberty, and desire nothing but equal rights and equal laws, and who, moreover, hold the great mass of our national wealth, although it is distributed in moderate amounts among the millions of freemen who possess it. But, with overwhelming numbers and wealth on their side, they are in constant danger of losing their fair influence in the government, and with difficulty main tain their just rights against the incessant efforts daily made to encroach upon them. The mischief springs from the power which the mon eyed interest derives from a paper currency, which they are able to control, from the multitude of corporations with exclusive privileges, which they have succeeded in obtaining in the different states, and which are employed altogether for their benefit ; and unless you become more watchful in your states, and check this spirit of monopo ly, and thirst for exclusive privileges, you will, in the end, find that the most important powers of government have been given or bartered away, and the control over your dearest interests has passed into the hands of these cor porations. The paper-moneyed system, and its natural associates, monopoly and exclusive privileges, have already struck their roots deep in the soil, and it will require all your efforts to check its further growth, and to eradicate the evil. The men who profit by the abuses, and desire to perpetuate them, will continue to besiege the halls of legislation in the general government as well as in the states, and will seek, by every artifice, to mislead and de ceive the public servants. It is to yourselves that you must look for safety and the means of guarding and per petuating your free institutions. In your hands is right fully placed the sovereignty of the country, and to you every one placed in authority is ultimately responsible. It is always in your power to see that the wishes of the people are carried into faithful execution, and their will, 190 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. when once made known, must, sooner or later, be obeyed. And while the people remain, as I trust they ever will, uncorrupted and incorruptible, and continue watchful and jealous of their rights, the government is safe, and the cause of freedom will continue to triumph over all its enemies. But it will require steady and persevering exertions on your part to rid yourselves of the iniquities and mischiefs of the paper system, and to check the spirit of monopoly and other abuses which have sprung up with it, and of which it is the main support. So many interests are uni ted to resist all reform on this subject, that you must not hope the conflict will be a short one, nor success easy. My humble efforts have not been spared, during my ad ministration of the government, to restore the constitu tional currency of gold and silver; and something, I trust, has been done towards the accomplishment of this most desirable object. But enough yet remains to require all your energy and perseverance. The power, however, is in your hands, and the remedy must and will be applied if you determine upon it. While I am thus endeavoring to press upon your atten tion the principles which I deem of vital importance to the domestic concerns of the country, I ought not to pass over without notice the important considerations which should govern your policy towards foreign powers. It is unquestionably our true interest to cultivate the most friendly understanding with every nation, and to avoid, by every honorable means, the calamities of war ; and we shall best attain that object by frankness and sincerity in our foreign intercourse, by the prompt and faithful execu tion of treaties, and by justice and impartiality in our conduct to all. But no nation, however desirous of peace, can hope to escape collisions with other powers ; and the soundest dictates of policy require that we should place ourselves in a condition to assert our rights, if a resort to force should ever become necessary. Our local situation, our long line of sea-coast, indented by numerous bays, with deep rivers opening into the interior, as well as her extended and still increasing commerce, point to the navy as our natural means of defence. It will, in the end, be JACKSON S FAREWELL ADDRESS. 191 found to be the cheapest and most effectual ; and now is the time, in a season of peace, and with an overflowing revenue, that we can, year after year, add to its strength, without increasing the burdens of the people. It is your true policy. For your navy will not only protect your rich and flourishing commerce in distant sens, but enable you to reach and annoy the enemy, and will give to de fence its greatest efficiency, by meeting danger at a dis tance from home. It is impossible, by any line of fortifi cations, to guard every point from attack against a hostile force advancing from the ocean, and selecting its object; but they are indispensable to prevent cities from bombard ment ; dock-yards and navy arsenals from destruction ; to give shelter to merchant vessels in time of war, and to single ships of weaker squadrons when pressed by supe rior force. Fortifications of this description cannot be too soon completed and armed, and placed in a condition of the most perfect preparation. The abundant means we now possess cannot be applied in any manner more useful to the country ; and when this is done, and our naval force sufficiently strengthened, and our military armed, we need not fear that any nation will wantonly insult us, or needlessly provoke hostilities. We shall more certainly preserve peace, when it is well understood that we are prepared for war. In presenting to you, my fellow-citizens, these parting counsels, I have brought before you the leading principles upon which I endeavored to administer the government in the high office with which you twice honored me. Knowing that the path of freedom is continually beset by enemies, who often assume the disguise of frie-nds, I have devoted the last hours of my public life to warn you of the dangers. The progress of the United States, under our free and happy institutions, has surpassed the most san guine hopes of the founders of the republic. Our growth has been rapid beyond all former example, in numbers, in wealth, in knowledge, and all the useful arts which con tribute to the comforts and convenience of man ; and from the earliest ages of history to the present day, there never have been thirteen millions of people associated together in one political body, who enjoyed so much free- 192 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. dom and happiness as the people of these United States. You have no longer any cause to fear danger from abroad; your strength and power are well known throughout the civilized world, as well as the high and gallant bearing of your sons. It is from within, among yourselves, from cupidity, from corruption, from disappointed ambition, and inordinate thirst for power, that factions will be formed and liberty endangered. It is against such de signs, whatever disguise the actors may assume, that you have especially to guard yourselves. You have the highest of human trusts committed to your care. Providence has showered on this favored land blessings without number, and has chosen you, as the guardians of freedom, to pre serve it for the benefit of the human race. May He, who holds in his hands the destinies of nations, make you wor thy of the favors he has bestowed, and enable you, with pure hearts, and pure hands, and sleepless vigilance, to guard and defend to the end of time the great charge he has committed to your keeping. My own race is nearly run ; advanced age and failing health warn me that before long I must pass beyond the reach of human events, and cease to feel the vicissitudes of human affairs. I thank God that my life has been spent in a land of liberty, and that he has given me a heart to love my country with the affection of a son. And filled with gratitude for your constant and un wavering kindness, I bid you a last and affectionate farewell. VAN BUREN S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1837. Fellow-Citizens : THE practice of all my predecessors imposes on me an obligation I cheerfully fulfil, to accompany the first and solemn act of my public trust with an avowal of the prin ciples that will guide me in performing it, and an ex pression of my feelings on assuming a charge so respon- VAN BUREN S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 193 sible and vast. In imitating their example, I tread iu the footsteps of illustrious men, whose superiors it is our hap piness to believe are not found on the executive calendar of any country. Among them we recognize the earliest and firmest pillars of the republic ; those by whom our national independence was first declared ; him who, above all others, contributed to establish it on the field of battle; and those whose expanded intellect and patriotism con structed, improved, and perfected the inestimable insti tutions under which we live. If such men, in the position I now occupy, felt themselves overwhelmed by a sense of gratitude for this, the highest of all marks of their coun try s confidence, and by a consciousness of their inability adequately to discharge the duties of an office so difficult and exalted, how much more must these considerations affect one who can rely on no such claim for favor or forbearance! Unlike all who have preceded me, the revo lution that gave us existence as one people, was achieved at the period of my birth ; and whilst I contemplate, with grateful reverence, that memorable event, I feel that I belong to a later age, and that I may not expect my countrymen to weigh my actions with the same kind and partial hand. So sensibly, fellow-citizens, do these circumstances press themselves upon me, that I should not dare to enter upon my path of duty, did I not look for the generous aid of those who will be associated with me in the various and coordinate branches of the government ; did I not repose with unwavering reliance on the patriotism, the intelligence, and the kindness of a people who never yet deserted a public servant honestly laboring in their cause; and, above all, did I not permit myself humbly to hope for the sustaining support of an ever-watchful and beneficent Providence. To the confidence and consolation derived from these sources, it would be ungrateful not to add those which spring from our present fortunate condition. Thougli not altogether exempt from embarrassments that disturb our tranquillity at home and threaten it abroad, yet in all the attributes of a great, happy, and flourishing people, we stand without a parallel in the world. Abroad, we enjoy 17 194 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the respect, and, with scarcely an exception, the friend ship of every nation ; at home, while our government quietly, but efficiently, performs the sole legitimate end of political institutions, in doing the greatest good to the greatest number, we present an aggregate of human pros perity surely not elsewhere to be found. How imperious, then, is the obligation imposed upon every citizen, in his own sphere of action, whether limited or extended, to exert himself in perpetuating a condition of things so singularly happy ! All the lessons of history and experience must be lost upon us, if we are content to trust alone to the peculiar advantages we happen to pos sess. Position and climate, and the bounteous resources that nature has scattered with so liberal a hand, even the diffused intelligence and elevated character of our people, will avail us nothing, if we fail sacredly to up hold those political institutions that were wisely and delib erately formed, with reference to every circumstance that could preserve or might endanger the blessings we enjoy. The thoughtful framers of our constitution legislated for our country as they found it. Looking upon it with the eyes of statesmen and of patriots, they saw all the sources of rapid and wonderful prosperity; but they saw, also, that various habits, opinions, and institutions, peculiar to the various portions of so vast a region, were deeply fixed. Distinct sovereignties were in actual existence, whose cor dial union was essential to the welfare and happiness of all. Between many of them there was, at least to some extent, a real diversity of interests, liable to be exagger ated through sinister designs; they differed in size, in population, in wealth, and in actual and prospective re sources and power ; they varied in the character of their industry and staple productions; and in some existed domestic institutions, which, unwisely disturbed, might endanger the harmony of the whole. Most carefully were all these circumstances weighed, and the foundation of the government laid upon principles of mutual concession and equitable compromise. The jealousies which the smaller states might entertain of the power of the rest, were allayed by a rule of representation, confessedly un equal at the time, and designed forever to remain so. A VAN BUREN S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 195 natural fear that the broad scope of general legislation might bear upon and unwisely control particular interests, was counteracted by limits strictly drawn around the ac tion of the federal authority; and to the people and the states was left unimpaired their sovereign power over the innumerable subjects embraced in the internal government of a just republic, excepting such only as necessarily ap- pert lin to the concerns of the whole confederacy, or its intercourse, as a united community, with the other nations of the world. This provident forecast has been verified by time. Half a century, teeming with extraordinary events, and elsewhere producing astonishing results, has passed along; but on our institutions it has left no injurious mark. From a small community, we have risen to a people pow erful in numbers and in strength ; but with our increase has gone hand in hand the progress of just principle ; the privileges, civil and religious, of the humblest individual are sacredly protected at home ; and while the valor and fortitude of our people have removed far from us the slightest apprehension of foreign power, they have not yet induced us, in a single instance, to forget what is right. Our commerce has been extended to the remotest nations; the value, and even nature of the productions has been greatly changed ; a wide difference has arisen in the relative wealth and resources of every portion of our country; yet the spirit of mutual regard and of faithful adherence to existing compacts, has continued to prevail in our councils, and never long been absent from our conduct. We have learned by experience a fruitful lesson, that an implicit and undeviating adherence to the principles on which we set out can carry us prosperously onward through all the conflicts of circumstances, and the vicissitudes in separable from the lapse of years. The success that has thus attended our great experi ment is, in itself, sufficient cause for gratitude, on account of the happiness it has actually conferred, and the example it has unanswerably given. But to me, my fellow-citizens, looking forward to the far-distant future, with ardent prayers and confiding hopes, this retrospect presents a ground for still deeper delight. It impresses on my mind 196 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. a firm belief that the perpetuity of our institutions depends upon themselves ; that, if we maintain the principles on which they were established, they are destined to confer their benefits on countless generations yet to come ; and that America will present to every friend of mankind the cheering proof, that a popular government, wisely formed, is wanting in no element of endurance or strength. Fifty years ago, its rapid failure was predicted. Latent and un controllable causes of dissolution were supposed to exist, even by the wise and good ; and not only did unfriendly or speculative theorists anticipate for us the fate of past repub lics, but the fear of many an honest patriot overbalanced his sanguine hopes. Look back on these forebodings, not hastily, but reluctantly made, and see how, in every in stance, they have completely failed. An imperfect experience, during the struggles of the revolution, was supposed to warrant the belief that the people would not bear the taxation requisite to the dis charge of an immense public debt already incurred, and to defray the necessary expenses of government. The cost of two wars has been paid, not only without a mur mur, but with unequalled alacrity. No one is now left to doubt that every burden will be cheerfully borne that may be necessary to sustain our civil institutions, or guard our honor or our welfare. Indeed, all experience has shown that the willingness of the people to contribute to these ends, in cases of emergency, has uniformly outrun the con fidence of their representatives. In the early stages of the new government, when all felt the imposing influence, as they recognized the unequalled services of the first President, it was a common sentiment, that the great weight of his character could alone bind the discordant materials of our government together, and save us from the violence of contending factions. Since his death, nearly forty years are gone. Party exasperation has been often carried to its highest point ; the virtue and fortitude of the people have sometimes been greatly tried ; yet our system, purified and enhanced in value by all it has encountered, still preserves its spirit of free and fear less discussion, blended with unimpaired fraternal feeling. The capacity of the people for self-government, and 197 their willingness, from a high sense of duty, and without those exhibitions of coercive power so generally employed in other countries, to submit to all needful restraints and exactions of the municipal law, have also been favorably exemplified in the history of the American states. Oc casionally, it is true, the ardor of public sentiment, out running the regular process of the judicial tribunals, or seeking to reach cases not denounced as criminal by the existing law, has displayed itself in a manner calculated to give pain to the friends of free government, and to en courage the hopes of those who wish for its overthrow. These occurrences, however, have been less frequent in our country than any other of eqpal population on the globe ; and with the diffusion of intelligence, it may well be hoped that they will constantly diminish in frequency and violence. The generous patriotism and sound com mon sense of the great mass of our fellow-citizens, will assuredly, in time, produce this result; for as every as sumption of illegal power not only wounds the majesty of the law, but furnishes a pretext for abridging the liberties of the people, the latter have the most direct and perma nent interest in preserving the great landmarks of social order, and maintaining, on all occasions, the inviolability of those constitutional and legal provisions which they themselves have made. In a supposed unfitness of our institutions for those hostile emergencies which no country can always avoid, their friends found a fruitful source of apprehension, their enemies of hope. While they foresaw less promptness of action than in governments differently formed, they over looked the far more important considerations, that with us war could never be the result of individual or irrespon sible will, but must be a measure of redress for injuries sustained, voluntarily resorted to by those who were to bear the necessary sacrifice, who would consequently feel an individual interest in the contest, and whose energy would be commensurate with the difficulties to be encountered. Actual events have proved their error ; the last war, far from impairing, gave new confidence to our government ; and amid recent apprehensions of a similar conflict, we saw that the energies of our country would not be wanting in 17* 198 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ample season to vindicate its rights. We may not possess, as we should not desire to possess, the extended and ever- ready military organization of other nations ; we may oc casionally suffer in the outset for the want of it, but, among ourselves, all doubt upon this great point has ceased, while a salutary experience will prevent a contrai-y opinion from inviting aggression from abroad. Certain danger was foretold from the extension of our territory, the multiplication of states, and the increase of population. Our system was supposed to be adapted only to boundaries comparatively narrow. These have been widened beyond conjecture ; the members of our confed eracy are already doubled ; and the numbers of our people are incredibly augmented. The alleged causes of danger have long surpassed anticipation, but none of the conse quences have followed. The power and influence of the republic have risen to a height obvious to all mankind ; respect for its authority was not more apparent at its ancient than it is at its present limits; new and inexhaustible sources of general prosperity have been opened ; the effects of distance have been averted by the inventive genius of our people, developed and fostered by the spirit of our in stitutions ; and the large variety and amount of interests, productions, and pursuits, have strengthened the chain of mutual dependence, and formed a circle of mutual benefits, too apparent ever to be overlooked. In justly balancing the powers of the federal and state authorities, difficulties nearly insurmountable arose at the outset, and subsequent collisions were deemed inevitable. Amid these, it was scarcely believed possible that a scheme of government so complex in construction could remain uninjured. From time to time, embarrassments have cer tainly occurred ; but how just is the confidence of future safety imparted by the knowledge that each in succession has been happily removed ! Overlooking partial and tem porary evils as inseparable from the practical operation of all human institutions, and looking only to the general result, every patriot has reason to be satisfied. While the federal government has successfully performed its appro priate functions in relation to foreign affairs, and concerns evidently national, that of every state has remarkably im- VAN BUREN S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 199 proved in protecting and developing local interests and individual welfare; and if the vibrations of authority have occasionally tended too much towards one or other, it is unquestionably certain that the ultimate operation of the entire system has been to strengthen all the existing insti tutions, and to elevate our whole country in prosperity and renown. The last, perhaps the greatest, of the prominent sources of discord and disaster supposed to lurk in our political condition, was the institution of domestic slavery. Our forefathers were deeply impressed with the delicacy of this subject, and they treated it with a forbearance so evidently wise, that, in spite of every sinister foreboding, it never, until the present period, disturbed the tranquillity of our common country. Such a result is sufficient evidence of the justice and patriotism of their course; it is evidence not to be mistaken, that an adherence to it can prevent all embarrassment from this, as well as every other anticipated cause of difficulty or danger. Have not recent events made it obvious to the slightest reflection, that the least deviation from this spirit of forbearance is injurious to every interest, that of humanity included ? Amidst the violence of excited passions, this generous and fraternal feeling has been sometimes disregarded ; and standing as I now do before my countrymen, in this high place of honor and trust, 1 cannot refrain from anxiously invoking my fellow-citizens never to be deaf to its dictates. Perceiving, before my election, the deep interest this sub ject was beginning to excite, I believed it a solemn duty fully to make known my sentiments in regard to it ; and now, when every motive for misrepresentation has passed away, I trust that they will be candidly weighed and un derstood. At least they will be my standard of conduct in the path before me. I then declared that, if the desire of those of my countrymen who were favorable to my election was gratified, "I must go into the presidential chair the inflexible and uncompromising opponent of every attempt, on the part of Congress, to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia, against the wishes of the slaveholding states; and also with a determination equally decided to resist the slightest interference with it in the states where it exists." 200 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. I submitted also to my fellow-citizens, with fulness and frankness, the reasons which led me to this determination. The result authorizes me to believe that they have been approved, and are confided in by a majority of the people of the United States, including those whom they most im mediately affect. It now only remains to add, that no bill conflicting with these views can ever receive my constitu tional sanction. These opinions have been adopted in the firm belief that they are in accordance with the spirit that actuated the venerated fathers of the republic, and that succeeding experience has proved them to be humane, patriotic, expedient, honorable, and just. If the agitation of this subject was intended to reach the stability of our institutions, enough has occurred to show that it has signally failed ; and that in this, as in every other instance, the apprehensions of the timid and the hopes of the wicked for the destruction of our government, are again destined to be disappointed. Here and there, indeed, scenes of dangerous excitement have occurred ; terrifying instances of local violence have been witnessed; and a reckless dis regard of the consequences of their conduct has exposed individuals to popular indignation ; but neither masses of the people nor sections of the country have swerved from their devotion to the bond of union, and the principles it has made sacred. It will be ever thus. Such attempts at agitation may periodically return, but with each the object will be better understood. That predominating affection for our political system which prevails throughout our ter ritorial limits, that calm and enlightened judgment which ultimately governs our people as one vast body, will always be at hand to resist and control every effort, foreign or domestic, which aims or would lead to overthrow our in stitutions. What can be more gratifying than such a retrospect as this ? We look back on obstacles avoided and dangers overcome; on expectations more than realized, and pros perity perfectly secured. To the hopes of the hostile, the fears of the timid, and the doubts of the anxious, actual experience has given the conclusive reply. We have seen time gradually dispel every unfavorable foreboding, and our constitution surmount every adverse circumstance, VAN BUREN S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 201 dreaded at the outset as beyond control. Present excite ment will, at all times, magnify present dangers; but true philosophy must teach us that none more threatening than the past can remain to be overcome ; and we ought, for we have just reason, to entertain an abiding confidence in the stability of our institutions, and an entire conviction that, if administered in the true form, character, and spirit in which they were established, they are abundantly adequate to preserve to us and our children the rich blessings al ready derived from them ; to make our beloved land, for a thousand generations, that chosen spot where happiness springs from a perfect equality of political rights. For myself, therefore, I desire to declare, that the prin ciple that will govern me in the high duty to which my country calls me, is a strict adherence to the letter and spirit of the constitution, as it was designed by those who framed it. Looking back to it as a sacred instrument, carefully and not easily framed; remembering that it was throughout a work of concession and compromise, viewing it as limited to national objects ; regarding it as leaving to the people and the states all power not explicitly parted with, I shall endeavor to preserve, protect, and defend it, by anxiously referring to its provisions for direction in every action. To matters of domestic concernment which it has intrusted to the federal government, and to such as relate to our intercourse with foreign nations, I shall zeal ously devote myself; beyond those limits I shall never pass. To enter, on this occasion, into a further or more minute exposition of my views on the various questions of domestic policy, would be as obtrusive as it is probably unexpected. Before the suffrages of my countrymen were conferred upon me, I submitted to them, with great pre cision, my opinions on all the most prominent of these subjects. Those opinions I shall endeavor to carry out with the utmost of my ability. Our course of foreign policy has been so uniform and intelligible, as to constitute a rule of executive conduct which leaves little to my discretion, unless, indeed, I were willing to run counter to the lights of experience, and the known opinions of my constituents. We sedulously cul tivate the friendship of all nations, as the condition most 202 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. compatible with our welfare, and the principles of our government. We decline alliances, as adverse to our peace. We desire commercial relations on equal terms, being ever willing to give a fair equivalent for advantages received. We endeavor to conduct our intercourse with openness and sincerity ; promptly avowing our objects, and seeking to establish that mutual frankness which is as beneficial in the dealings of nations as of men. We have no disposition, and we disclaim all right, to meddle in dis putes, whether internal or foreign, that may molest other countries; regarding them in their actual state, as social communities, and preserving a strict neutrality in all their controversies. Well knowing the tried valor of our people, and our exhaustless resources, we neither anticipate nor fear any designed aggression ; and in the consciousness of our own just conduct, we feel a security that we shall never be called upon to exert our determination, never to permit an invasion of our rights, without punishment or redress. In approaching, then, in the presence of my assembled countrymen, to make the solemn promise that yet remains, and to pledge myself that I will faithfully execute the office I am about to fill, I bring with me a settled purpose to maintain the institutions of my country, which, I trust, will atone for the errors I commit. In receiving from the people the sacred trust twice con fided to my illustrious predecessor, and which he has dis charged so faithfully and so well, I know that I cannot expect to perform the arduous task with equal ability and success. But, united as I have been in his counsels, a daily witness of his exclusive and unsurpassed devotion to his country s welfare, agreeing with him in sentiments which his countrymen have warmly supported, and per mitted to partake largely of his confidence, I may hope that somewhat of the same cheering approbation will be found to attend upon my path. For him, I but express, with my own, the wishes of all, that he may yet long live to enjoy the brilliant evening of his well-spent life, and for myself, conscious of but one desire, faithfully to serve my country, I throw myself, without fear, on its justice and kindness. Beyond that, I only look to the gracious VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 203 protection of that Divine Being whose strengthening sup port I humbly solicit, and whom I fervently pray to look down upon us all. May it be among the dispensations of his providence to bless our beloved country with honors and with length of days ; may her ways be ways of pleas antness, and all her paths be peace. VAN BUREFS FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. DECEMBER 4, 1837. To the Senate and House of Representatives : WE have reason to renew the expression of our devout gratitude to the Giver of all good for his benign protec tion. Our country presents on every side the evidences of that continued favor under whose auspices it has grad ually risen from a few feeble and dependent colonies to a prosperous and powerful confederacy. We are blessed with domestic tranquillity and all the elements of national prosperity. The pestilence which, invading for a time some flourishing portions of the Union, interrupted the general prevalence of unusual health, has happily been limited in extent, and arrested in its fatal career. The industry and prudence of our citizens are gradually reliev ing them from the pecuniary embarrassments under which portions of them have labored; judicious legislation, and the natural and boundless resources of the country, have afforded wise and timely aid to private enterprise ; and the activity always characteristic of our people has already in a great degree resumed its usual and profitable channels. The condition of our foreign relations has not materially changed since the last annual message of my predecessor. We remain in peace with all nations ; and no efforts on my part, consistent with the preservation of our rights and the honor of our country, shall be spared to maintain a position so consonant to our institutions. We have faithfully sus tained the foreign policy with which the United States, 204 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. under the guidance of their first President, took their stand in the family of nations that of regulating their inter course with other powers by the approved principles of private life ; asking and according equal rights and equal privileges ; rendering and demanding justice in all cases ; advancing their own and discussing the pretensions of others, with candor, directness, and sincerity ; appealing at all times to reason, but never yielding to force, nor seeking to acquire any thing for themselves by its exercise. A rigid adherence to this policy has left this government with scarcely a claim upon its justice, for injuries arising from acts committed by its authority. The most imposing and perplexing of those of the United States upon foreign governments for aggressions upon our citizens, were dis posed of by my predecessor. Independently of the benefits conferred upon our citizens by restoring to the mercantile community so many millions of which they had been wrongfully divested, a great service was also rendered to his country by the satisfactory adjustment of so many an cient and irritating subjects of contention ; and it reflects no ordinary credit on his successful administration of pub lic affairs, that this great object was accomplished without compromising, on any occasion, either the honor or the, peace of the nation. With European powers, no new subjects of difficulty have arisen ; arid those which were under discussion, al though not terminated, do not present a more unfavorable aspect for the future preservation of that good understand ing which it has ever been our desire to cultivate. Of pending questions, the most important is that which exists with the government of Great Britain, in respect to our north-eastern boundary. It is with unfeigned regret that the people of the United States must look back upon the abortive efforts made by the executive, for a period of more than half a century, to determine, what no nation should suffer long to remain in dispute, the true line which divides its possessions from those of other powers. The nature of the settlement on the borders of the United States, and of the neighboring territory, was for a season such, that this, perhaps, was not indispensable to a faithful performance of the duties of the federal government. Time has, however, changed this state of things ; and has brought about a condition of affairs, in which the true interests of both countries imperatively require that this question should be put at rest. It is not to be disguised, that with full confidence, often expressed, in the desire of the British government to terminate it, we are apparently as far from its adjustment as we were at the time of signing the treaty of peace in 1783. The sole result of long-pend ing negotiations, and a perplexing arbitration, appears to be a conviction, on its part, that a conventional line must be adopted, from the impossibility of ascertaining the true one according to the description contained in that treaty. Without coinciding in this opinion, which is not thought to be well founded, my predecessor gave the strongest proof of the earnest desire of the United States to terminate satisfactorily this dispute, by proposing the substitution of a conventional line, if the consent of the states interested in the question could be obtained. To this proposition, no answer has yet been received. The attention of the British government, however, has been earnestly invited to the subject, and its reply cannot, I am confident, be much longer delayed. The general relations between Great Britain and the United States are of the most friendly character, and I am well satisfied of the sincere disposition of that government to maintain them upon their present footing. This disposition has also, I m persuaded, become more general with the peo ple of England than at any previous period. It is scarcely necessary to say to you, how cordially it is reciprocated by the government and the people of the United States. The conviction, which must be common to all, of the in jurious consequences that result from keeping open this irritating question, and the certainty that its final settle ment cannot be much longer deferred, will, I trust, lead to an early and satisfactory adjustment. At your last session, I laid before you the recent communications be tween the two governments, and between this government and that of the state of Maine, in whose solicitude, con cerning a subject in which she has so deep an interest, every portion of the Union participates. The feelings produced by a temporary interruption of 18 206 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. those harmonious relations between France and the Uni ted States, which are due as well to the recollections of former times as to a correct appreciation of existing inter ests, have been happily succeeded by a cordial disposition on both sides to cultivate an active friendship in their future intercourse. The opinion, undoubtedly correct, and steadily entertained by us, that, the commercial relations at present existing between the two countries, are suscep tible of great and reciprocally beneficial improvements, is obviously gaining ground in France ; and I am assured of the disposition of that government to favor the accom plishment of such an object. This disposition shall be met in a proper spirit on our part. The few and com paratively unimportant questions that remain to be ad justed between us, can, I have no doubt, be settled with entire satisfaction, and without difficulty. Between Russia and the United States, sentiments of good-will continue to be mutually cherished. Our min ister recently accredited to that court, has been received with a frankness and cordiality, and with evidences of respect for his country, which leaves us no room to doubt the preservation in future of those amicable and liberal relations which have so long and so uninterruptedly ex isted between the two countries. On the few subjects under discussion between us, an early and just decision is confidently anticipated. A correspondence has been opened with the government of Austria, for the establishment of diplomatic relations, in conformity with the wishes of Congress, as indicated by an appropriation act of the session of 1837, and ar rangements made for the purpose, which will be duly carried into effect. With Austria and Prussia, and with the states of the German empire, now composing with the latter the Com mercial League, our political relations are of the most friendly character, while our commercial intercourse is gradually extending, with benefit to all who are engaged in it. Civil war yet rages in Spain, producing intense suffer ing to its own people, and to other nations inconvenience and regret. Our citizens who have claims upon that VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 207 country will be prejudiced for a time by the condition of its treasury, the inevitable consequence of long-continued and exhausting internal wars. The last instalment of the interest of the debt due under the convention with the queen of Spain has not been paid ; and similar failures may be expected to happen until a portion of the resources of her kingdom can be devoted to the extinguishment of its foreign debt. Having received satisfactory evidence that discriminating tonnage duties were charged upon vessels of the United States in the ports of Portugal, a proclamation was issued on the llth day of October last, in compliance with the act of May 25th, 1832, declaring that fact, and the duties on foreign tonnage, which were levied upon Portuguese vessels in the United States, previously to the passage of that act, are accordingly revived. The act of July 4th, 1836, suspending the discriminating duties upon the produce of Portugal imported into this country in Portuguese vessels, was passed, upon the appli cation of that government, through its representative here, under the belief that no similar discrimination existed in Portugal to the prejudice of the United States. I regret to state that such duties are now exacted, in that country, upon the cargoes of American vessels ; and as the act re ferred to vests no discretion in the executive, it is for Congress to determine upon the expediency of further legislation upon the subject. Against these discrimina tions, affecting the vessels of this country and their cargoes, seasonable remonstrance was made, and notice was given to the Portuguese government, that, unless they should be discontinued, the adoption of countervailing measures on the part of the United States would become necessary ; but the reply of that government, received at the department of state through our charge d affaires at Lisbon, in the month of September last, afforded no ground to hope for the abandonment of a system so little in harmony with the treatment shown to the vessels of Portugal and their car goes, in the ports of this country, and so contrary to the expectations we had a right to entertain. With Holland, Sweden, Denmark, Naples, and Bel- 208 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. gium, a friendly intercourse has been uninterruptedly maintained. With the government of the Ottoman Porte, and its de pendencies on the coast of the Mediterranean, peace and good-will are carefully cultivated, and have been fostered by such good offices as the relative distance and the con dition of those countries would permit. Our commerce with Greece is carried on under the laws of the two governments, reciprocally beneficial to the nav igating interests of both ; and I have reason to look for ward to the adoption of other measures which will be more extensively and permanently advantageous. Copies of the treaties concluded with the governments of Siam and Muscat are transmitted for the information of Congress, the ratifications having been received, and the treaties made public, since the close of the last annual session. Already have we reason to congratulate ourselves on the prospect of considerable commercial benefit ; and we have, besides, received from the Sultan of Muscat, prompt evidence of his desire to cultivate the most friendly feelings, by liberal acts towards one of our vessels, bestowed in a manner so striking as to require on our part a grateful acknowledgment. Our commerce with the Island of Cuba and Porto Rico still labors under heavy restrictions, the continuance of which is a subject of regret. The only effect of an adherence to them will be to benefit the navigation of other countries, at the expense both of the United States and Spain. The independent nations of this continent have, ever since they emerged from the colonial state, experienced severe trials in their progress to the permanent establish ment of liberal political institutions. Their unsettled condition not only interrupts their own advances to pros perity, but has often seriously injured the other powers of the world. The claims of our citizens upon Peru, Chili., Brazil, the Argentine Republic, the governments formed out of the republics of Colombia and Mexico, are still pending, although many of them have been presented for examination more than twenty years. New Grenada, VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 209 Venezuela, and Ecuador, have recently formed a conven tion for the purpose of ascertaining and adjusting the claims upon the republic of Colombia, from which it is earnestly hoped our citizens will, ere long, receive full compensation for the injuries originally inflicted upon them, and for the delay in affording it. An advantageous treaty of commerce has been con cluded by the United States with the Peru-Bolivian Con federation, which wants only the ratification of that gov ernment. The progress of a subsequent negotiation for the settlement of claims upon Peru, has been unfavorably affected by the war between that power and Chili, and the Argentine Republic ; and the same event is likely to produce delays in the settlement of our demands on those powers. The aggravating circumstances connected with our claims upon Mexico, and a variety of events touching the honor and integrity of our government, led my prede cessor to make, at the second session of the last Congress, a special recommendation of the course to be pursued to obtain a speedy and final satisfaction of the injuries com plained of by this government and by our citizens. He recommended a final demand of redress, with a contingent authority to the executive to make reprisals, if that de mand should be made in vain. From the proceedings of Congress on that recommendation, it appeared that the opinion of both branches of the legislature coincided with that of the executive, that any mode of redress known to the law of nations might justifiably be used. It was ob vious, too, that Congress believed, with the President, that another demand should be made, in order to give undeniable and satisfactory proof of our desire to avoid extremities with a neighboring power ; but that there was an indisposition to vest a discretionary authority in the executive to take redress, should it unfortunately be either denied or unreasonably delayed by the Mexican government. So soon as the necessary documents were prepared, after entering upon the duties of my office, a special mes senger was sent to Mexico, to make a final demand of re dress, with the documents required by the provisions of IS* 210 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. our treaty. The demand was made on the 20th of July last. The reply, which bears date the 29th of the same month, contains assurances of a desire, on the part of that government, to give a prompt and explicit answer respect ing each of the complaints, but that the examination of them would necessarily be deliberate ; that in this exami nation it would be guided by the principles of public law and the obligation of treaties ; that nothing should be left undone that might lead to the most equitable adjustment of our demands ; and that its determination, in respect to each case, should be communicated through the Mexican minister here. Since that time, an envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary has been accredited to this government by that of the Mexican republic. He brought with him assurances of a sincere desire that the pending differences between the two governments should be terminated in a manner satisfactory to both. He was received with re ciprocal assurances, and a hope was entertained that his mission would lead to a speedy, satisfactory, and final ad justment of all existing subjects of complaint. A sincere believer in the wisdom of the pacific policy by which the United States have always been governed in their inter course with foreign nations, it was my particular desire, from the proximity of the Mexican republic, and well- known occurrences on our frontier, to be instrumental in obviating all existing difficulties with that government, and in restoring to the intercourse between the two re publics, that liberal and friendly character by which they should always be distinguished. I regret, therefore, the more deeply, to have found in the recent communications of that government, so little reason to hope that any efforts of mine for the accomplishment of those desirable objects would be successful. Although the larger number, and many of them aggra vated cases, of personal wrongs have been now for years before the Mexican government, and some of the causes of national complaint, and those of the most offensive char acter, admitted of immediate, simple, and satisfactory re plies, it is only within a few days past that any specific communication in answer to our last demand, made five VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 211 months ago, has been received from the Mexican minis ter. By the report of the secretary of state, herewith presented, and the accompanying documents, it will be seen that for not one of our public complaints has satis faction been given or offered ; that but one of the causes of personal wrong has been favorably considered ; and that but four cases of both descriptions, out of all those formally presented, and earnestly pressed, have as yet been decided upon by the Mexican government. Not perceiving in what manner any of the powers given to the executive alone, could be further usefully employed in bringing this unfortunate controversy to a satisfactory termination, the subject was, by my predecessor, referred to Congress, as one calling for its interposition. In ac cordance with the clearly understood wishes of the legis lature, another and formal demand for satisfaction has been made upon the Mexican government, with what suc cess the documents now communicated will show. On a careful and deliberate examination of their contents, and considering the spirit manifested by the Mexican gov ernment, it has become my painful duty to return the subject, as it now stands, to Congress, to whom it belongs to decide upon the time, the mode, and the measures of redress. Whatever may be your decision, it shall be faithfully executed, confident that it will be characterized by that moderation and justice which will, I trust, under all circumstances, govern the councils of our country. The balance in the treasury on the first day of January, 1837, was forty-five millions nine hundred and sixty-eight thousand five hundred and twenty-three dollars. The receipts, during the present year, from all sources, inclu ding the amount of treasury notes issued, are estimated at twenty-three millions four hundred and ninety-nine thou sand nine hundred and eighty-one dollars, constituting an aggregate of sixty-nine millions four hundred and sixty- eight thousand five hundred and four dollars. Of this amount, about thirty-five millions two hundred and eighty- one thousand three hundred and sixty-one dollars will have been expended, at the end of the year, on appro priations made by Congress ; and the residue, amounting to thirty-four millions one hundred and eighty-seven thou- 212 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. sand one hundred and forty-three dollars, will be the nominal balance in the treasury on the first of January next. But of that sum, only one million eighty-five thou sand four hundred and ninety-eight dollars is considered as immediately available for, and applicable to, public purposes. Those portions of it which will be for some time una vailable, consist chiefly of sums deposited with the states, and due from the former deposit banks. The details upon this subject will be found in the annual report of the secretary of the treasury. The amount of treasury notes which it will be necessary to issue during the year on account of those funds being unavailable, will, it is supposed, not exceed four and a half millions. It seemed proper, in the condition of the country, to have the esti mates on all subjects made as low as practicable, without prejudice to any great public measures. The departments were, therefore, desired to prepare their estimates accord ingly ; and I am happy to find that they have been able to graduate them on so economical a scale. In the great and often unexpected fluctuations to which the revenue is subjected, it is not possible to compute the receipts beforehand with great certainty ; but should they not differ essentially from present anticipations, and should the appropriations not much exceed the estimates, no dif ficulty seems likely to happen in defraying the current expenses with promptitude and fidelity. Notwithstanding the great embarrassments which have recently occurred in commercial affairs, and the liberal in dulgence which, in consequence of those embarrassments, has been extended to both the merchants and the banks, it is gratifying to be able to anticipate that the treasury notes which have been issued during the present year will be redeemed, and that the resources of the treas ury, without any resort to loans or increased taxes, will prove ample for defraying all charges imposed on it during 1838. The report of the secretary of the treasury will afford you a more minute exposition of all matters connected with the administration of the finances during the current year; a period which, for the amount of public moneys disbursed and deposited with the states, as well as the financial difficulties encountered and overcome, has few parallels in our history. Your attention was, at the last session, invited to the necessity of additional legislative provisions in respect to the collection, safe-keeping, and transfer of the public money. No law having been then matured, and not un derstanding the proceedings of Congress as intended to be final, it becomes my duty again to bring the subject to your notice. On that occasion, three modes of performing this branch of the public service were presented for consideration. These were, the creation of a national bank ; the revival, with modifications, of the deposit system established by the act of the 23d June, 1836, permitting the use of the public moneys by the banks ; and the discontinuance of the use of such institutions for the purposes referred to, with suitable provisions for their accomplishment through the agency of public officers. Considering the opinions of both houses of Congress on the two first propositions as expressed in the negative, in which I entirely concur, it is unnecessary for me again to recur to them. In respect to the last, you have had an opportunity, since your adjourn ment, not only to test still further the expediency of the measure, by the continued practical operation of such parts of it as are now in force, but also to discover what should ever be sought for and regarded with the utmost deference the opinions and wishes of the people. The national will is the supreme law of the republic, and, on all subjects within the limits of its constitutional powers, should be faithfully obeyed by the public servant. Since the measure in question was submitted to your con sideration, most of you have enjoyed the advantage of per sonal communication with your constituents. For one state only has an election been held for the federal gov ernment; but the early day at which it took place, de prives the measure under consideration of much of the support it might otherwise have derived from the result. Local elections for state officers have, however, been held in several of the states, at which the expediency of the plan proposed by the executive has been more or less dis- 214 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. cussed. You will, I am confident, yield to their results the respect due to every expression of the public voice. Desiring, however, to arrive at truth and a just view of the subject in all its bearings, you will at the same time remember, that questions of far deeper and more imme diate local interest than the fiscal plans of the national treasury were involved in those elections. Above all, we cannot overlook the striking fact, that there were, at the time, in those states, more than one hundred arid sixty millions of bank capital, of which large portions were subject to actual forfeiture other large portions upheld only by special and limited legislative in dulgences and most of it, if not all, to a greater or less extent, dependent for a continuance of its corporate ex istence upon the will of the state legislatures to be then chosen. Apprized of this circumstance, you will judge whether it is not most probable that the peculiar con dition of that vast interest in these respects, the extent to which it has been spread through all the ramifications of society, its direct connection with the then pending elections, and the feelings it was calculated to infuse into the canvass, have not exercised a far greater influence over the result than any which could possibly have been produced by a conflict of opinion in respect to a question in the administration of the general government, more remote and far less important in its bearings upon that interest. I have found no reason to change my own opinion as to the expediency of adopting the system proposed, being perfectly satisfied that there will be neither stability nor safety, either in the fiscal affairs of the government, or in the pecuniary transactions of individuals and corporations, so long as a connection exists between them, which, like the past, offers such strong inducements to make them the subjects of political agitation. Indeed, I am more than ever convinced of the dangers to which the free and unbiased exercise of political opinion the only sure foundation and safeguard of republican government would be exposed by any further increase of the already overgrown influence of corporate authorities. I cannot, therefore, consistently with my views of duty, advise a VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 215 renewal of a connection which circumstances have dis solved. The discontinuance of the use of state banks for fiscal purposes ought not to be regarded as a measure of hos tility towards these institutions. Banks properly estab lished and conducted are highly useful to the business of the country, and doubtless will continue to exist in the states so long as they conform to their laws, and are found to be safe and beneficial. How they should be created, what privileges they should enjoy, under what responsibilities they should act, and to what restrictions they should be subject, are questions which, as I observed on a previous occasion, belong to the states to decide. Upon their rights, or the exercise of them, the general government can have no motive to encroach. Its duty toward them is well performed, when it refrains from legislating for their special benefit, because such legisla tion would violate the spirit of the constitution, and be unjust to other interests ; when it takes no steps to impair their usefulness, but so manages its own affairs as to make it the interest of those institutions to strengthen and improve their condition for the security and welfare of the community at large. They have no right to insist on a connection with the federal government, nor on the use of the public money for their own benefit. The object of the measure under consideration is, to avoid for the future a compulsory connection of this kind. It proposes to place the general government, in regard to the essential points of the collection, safe-keeping, and transfer of the public money, in a situation which shall relieve it from all dependence on the will of irresponsible individuals or corporations ; to withdraw those moneys from the uses of private trade, and confine them to agents constitutionally selected and controlled by law ; to abstain from improper interference with the industry of the peo ple, and withhold inducements to improvident dealings on the part of individuals ; to give stability to the con cerns of the treasury ; to preserve the measures of the government from the unavoidable reproaches that flow from such a connection, and the banks themselves from the injurious effects of a supposed participation in the 216 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. political conflicts of the day, from which they will other wise find it difficult to escape. These are my views upon this important subject ; formed after careful reflection, and with no desire but to arrive at what is most likely to promote the public interest. They are now, as they were before, submitted with an unfeigned deference for the opinions of others. It was hardly to be hoped that changes so important, on a subject so interest ing, could be made without producing a serious diversity of opinion; but so long as those conflicting views are kept above the influence of individual or local interests ; so long as they pursue only the general good, and are dis cussed with moderation and candor, such diversity is a benefit, not an injury. If a majority of Congress see the public welfare in a different light, and more especially if they should be satisfied that the measure proposed would not be acceptable to the people, I shall look to their wis dom to substitute such as may be more conducive to the one, and more satisfactory to the other. In any event, they may confidently rely on my hearty cooperation to the fullest extent which my views of the constitution and my sense of duty will permit. It is obviously important to this branch of the public service, and to the business and quiet of the country, that the whole subject should in some way be settled and regu lated by law; and, if possible, at your present session. Besides the plan above referred to, I am not aware that any one has been suggested, except that of keeping the public money in the state banks, in special deposit. This plan is, to some extent, in accordance with the practice of the government, and which, except, perhaps, during the operation of the late deposit act, has always been allowed, even during the existence of a national bank, to make a temporary use of the state banks, in particular places, for the safe-keeping of portions of the revenue. This discretionary power might be continued, if Con gress deem it desirable, whatever general system may be adopted. So long as the connection is voluntary, we need, perhaps, anticipate few of those difficulties, and little of that dependence on the banks, which must attend every such connection when compulsory in its nature, and when VAN BUREN s FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 217 so arranged as to make the banks a fixed part of the ma chinery of government. It is undoubtedly in the power of Congress so to regulate and guard it as to prevent the public money from being applied to the use, or intermin gled with the affairs, of individuals. Thus arranged, although it would not give to the government that control over its own funds which I desire to secure to it by the plan I have proposed, it would, it must be admitted, in a great degree, accomplish one of the objects which has recommended that plan to my judgment the separation of the fiscal concerns of the government from those of individuals or corporations. With these observations, I recommend the whole mat ter to your dispassionate reflection ; confidently hoping that some conclusion may be reached by your delibera tions, which, on the one hand, shall give stability to the fiscal operations of the government, and be consistent, on the other, with the genius of our institutions, and with the interests and wishes of the great mass of our con stituents. It was my hope that nothing would occur to make necessary, on this occasion, any allusion to the late national bank. There are circumstances, however, connected with the present state of its affairs, that bear so directly on the character of the government and the welfare of the citi zen, that I should not feel myself excused in neglecting to notice them. The charter which terminated its bank ing privileges on the 4th of March, 1836, continued its corporate powers two years more, for the sole purpose of closing its affairs, with authority " to use the corporate name, style, and capacity, for the purpose of suits, for a final settlement and liquidation of the affairs and acts of the corporation, and for the sale and disposition of their estate, real, personal, and mixed, but for no other purpose, or in any other manner whatsoever." Just before the banking privileges ceased, its effects were transferred by the bank to a new state institution, then recently incor porated, in trust, for the discharge of its debts and the settlement of its affairs. With this trustee, by authority of Congress, an adjust ment was subsequently made of the large interest which 19 218 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the government had in the stock of the institution. The manner in which a trust unexpectedly created upon the act granting the charter, and involving such great public interests, has been executed, would, under any circum stances, be a fit subject of inquiry ; but much more does it deserve your attention when it embraces the redemption of obligations to which the authority and credit of the United States have given value. The two years allowed are now nearly at an end. It is well understood that the trustee has not redeemed and cancelled the outstanding notes of the bank, but has re-issued, and is continually re issuing, since the 3d of March, 1836, the notes which have been received by it to a vast amount. According to its own official statement, so late as the 1st of October last, nineteen months after .he banking privileges given by the charter had expired, it had under its control uncancelled notes of the late Bank of the United States to the amount of twenty-seven millions five hundred and sixty-one thousand eight hundred and sixty-six dollars, of which six millions one hundred and seventy-five thou sand eight hundred and sixty-one dollars were in actual circulation, one million four hundred and sixty-eight thousand six hundred and twenty-seven dollars at state bank agencies, and three millions two thousand three hundred and ninety dollars in transitu ; thus showing that upwards often millions and a haif of the notes of the old bank were then still kept outstanding. The impropriety of this procedure is obvious ; it being the duty of the trustee to cancel, and not to put forth, the notes of an institution whose concerns it had undertaken to wind up. If the trustee has a right to re-issue these notes now, I can see no reason why he may not continue to do so after the expiration of the two years. As no one could have anticipated a course so extraordinary, the pro hibitory clause of the charter above quoted was not ac companied by any penalty or other special provision for enforcing it ; nor have we any general law for the pre vention of similar acts in future. But it is not in this view of the subject alone that your interposition is required. The United States, in settling with the trustee for their stock, have withdrawn their funds from their former direct liability to the creditors of the old bank; yet notes of the institution continue to be sent forth in its name, and apparently upon the authority of the United States. The transactions connected with the employment of the bills of the old bank are of vast extent ; and should they result unfortunately, the interests of individuals may be deeply compromised. Without un dertaking to decide how far, or in what form, if any, the trustee could be made liable for notes which contain no obligation on his part ; or the old bank, for such as are put in circulation after the expiration of its charter, and without its authority ; or the government for indemnity in case of loss, the question still presses itself upon your con sideration, whether it is consistent with duty and good faith on the part of the government, to witness this pro ceeding without a single effort to arrest it. The report of the Commissioner of the General Land Office, which will be laid before you by the secretary of the treasury, will show how the affairs of that office have been conducted for the past year. The disposition of the public lands is one of the most important trusts confided to Congress. The practicability of retaining the title and control of such extensive domains in the general govern ment, and at the same time admitting the territories em bracing them into the federal Union, as coequal with the original states, was seriously doubted by many of our wisest statesmen. All feared that they would become a source of discord, and many carried their apprehensions so far as to see in them the seeds of a future dissolution of the confederacy. But happily our experience has al ready been sufficient to quiet, in a great degree, all such apprehensions. The position, at one time assumed, that the admission of new states into the Union on the same footing with the original states, was incompatible with a right of soil in the United States, and operated as a sur render thereof, notwithstanding the terms of the compacts by which their admission was designed to be regulated, has been wisely abandoned. Whether in the new or the old states, all now agree that the right of soil to the public lands remains in the federal government, and that these lands constitute a common 220 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. property, to be disposed of for the common benefit of all the states, old and new. Acquiescence in this just princi ple by the people of the new states has naturally promoted a disposition to adopt the most liberal policy in the sale of the public lands. A policy which should be limited to the mere object of selling the lands for the greatest pos sible sum of money, without regard to higher considera tions, finds but few advocates. On the contrary, it is generally conceded, that, while the mode of disposition adopted by the government should always be a prudent one, yet its leading object ought to be the early settlement and cultivation of the lands sold ; and that it should dis countenance, if it cannot prevent, the accumulation of large tracts in the same hands, which must necessarily re tard the growth of the new states, or entail upon them a dependent territory and its attendant evils. A question embracing such important interests, and so well calculated to enlist the feelings of the people in every quarter of the Union, has very naturally given rise to numerous plans for the improvement of the existing sys tem. The distinctive features of the policy that has hither to prevailed, are, to dispose of the public lands at mod erate prices, thus enabling a greater number to enter into competition for their purchase, and accomplishing a dou ble object of promoting their rapid settlement by the pur chasers, and at the same time increasing the receipts of the treasury ; to sell for cash, thereby preventing the disturb ing influence of a large mass of private citizens indebted to the government which they have a voice in controlling ; to bring them into the market no faster than good lands are supposed to be wanted for improvements, thereby pre venting the accumulation of large tracts in few hands; and to apply the proceeds of the sales to the general purposes of the government ; thus diminishing the amount to be raised from the people of the states by taxation, and giving each state its portion of the benefits to be derived from this common fund in a manner the most quiet, and, at the same time, perhaps, the most equitable that can be devised. These provisions,, with occasional enactments in behalf of special interests deemed entitled to the favor of govern- ANNUAL MESSAGE. 221 ment, have, in their execution, produced results as bene ficial, upon the whole, as could reasonably be expected in a matter so vast, so complicated, arid so exciting. Upwards of seventy millions of acres have been sold, the greater part of which is believed to have been purchased for actual settlement. The population of the new states and territo ries created out of the public domain, increased, between 1800 and 1830, from less than sixty thousand, to upwards of two millions three hundred thousand souls, constituting, at the latter period, about one fifth of the whole people of the United States. The increase since cannot be ac curately known, but the whole may now be safely estimated at over three and a half millions of souls ; composing nine states, the representatives of which constitute above one third of the Senate, and over one sixth of the House of the Representatives of the United States. Thus has been formed a body of free and independent landholders, with a rapidity unequalled in the history of mankind ; and this great result has been produced without leaving any thing for future adjustment between the gov ernment and its citizens. The system under which so much has been accomplished cannot be intrinsically bad, and with occasional modifications, to correct abuses, and to adapt it to changes of circumstances, may, I think, be safely trusted for the future. There is in the management of such extensive interests, much virtue in stability ; and although great and obvious improvements should not be declined, changes should never be made without the full est examination, and the clearest demonstration of their practical utility. In the history of the past, we have an assurance that this safe rule of action will not be departed from in relation to the public lands ; nor is it believed that any necessity exists for interfering with the fundamental principles of the sys tem, or that the public mind, even in the new states, is desirous of any radical alterations. On the contrary, the general disposition appears to be, to make such modifications and additions only as will more effectually carry out the original policy of filling our new states and territories with an industrious and independent population. The modification most perseveringly pressed upon Con- 19* 222 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. gress, which has occupied so much of its time for years past, and will probably do so for a long time to come, if not sooner satisfactorily adjusted, is a reduction in the cost of such portions of the public lands as are ascertained to be unsalable at the rate now established by law, and a graduation, according to their relative value, of the prices at which they may hereafter be sold. It is worthy of con sideration whether justice may not be done to every inter est in this matter, and a vexed question set at rest, perhaps forever, by a reasonable compromise of conflicting opinions. Hitherto, after being offered at public sale, lands have been disposed of at one uniform price, whatever difference there might be in their intrinsic value. The leading considerations urged in favor of the measure referred to, are, that in almost all the land districts, and particularly in those in which the lands have been long surveyed and exposed to sale, there are still remaining nu merous and large tracts of every gradation of value, from the government price downward ; that these lands will not be purchased at the government price, so long as better can be conveniently obtained for the same amount ; that there are large tracts which even the improvements of the adjacent lands will never raise to that price, and that the present uniform price, combined with their irregular value, operates to prevent a desirable compactness of settlement in the new states, and to retard the full development of that wise policy on which our land system is founded, to the injury not only of the several states where the lands lie, but of the United States as a whole. The remedy proposed has been a reduction in prices according to the length of time the lands have been in the market, without reference to any other circumstances. The certainty that the efflux of time would not always in such cases, and perhaps not even generally, furnish a true criterion of value, and the probability that persons residing in the vicinity, as the period for the reduction of prices approached, would postpone purchases they would other wise make, for the purpose of availing themselves of the lower price, with other considerations of a similar char acter, have hitherto been successfully urged to defeat the graduation upon time. 223 May not all reasonable desires upon this subject be sat isfied without encountering any of these objections ? All will concede the abstract principle, that the price of the public lands should be proportioned to their relative value, so far as that can be accomplished without departing from the rule heretofore observed, requiring fixed prices in cases of private entries. The difficulty of the subject seems to lie in the mode of ascertaining what that value is. Would not the safest plan be that which has been adopted by many of the states as to the basis of taxation an actual valuation of lands and classification of them into differ ent rates? Would it not be practicable and expedient to cause the relative value of the public lands in the old districts, which have been for a certain length of time in market, to be ap praised and classed into two or more rates below the pres ent minimum price, by the officers now employed in this branch of the public service, or in any other mode deemed preferable, and to make those prices permanent, if, upon the coming in of the report, they shall prove satisfactory to Congress 1 Cannot all the objects of graduation be ac complished in this way, and the objections which have hitherto been urged against, it avoided ? It would seem to me that such a step, with a restriction of the sales to limited quantities, and for actual improvement, would be free from all just exceptions. By the full exposition of the value of the lands thus furnished and extensively promulgated, persons living at a distance would be informed of their true condition, and enabled to enter into competition with those residing in the vicinity ; the means of acquiring an independent home would be brought within the reach of many who are unable to purchase at present prices ; the population of the new states would be more compact, and large tracts would be sold which would otherwise remain on hand; not only would the land be brought within the means of a large number of purchasers, but many persons possessed of greater means would be content to settle on a larger quan tity of the poorer lands, rather than emigrate farther west in pursuit of a smaller quantity of better lands. Such a measure would also seem to be more consistent 224 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. with the policy of the existing laws that of converting the public domain into cultivated farms owned by their occupants. That policy is not best promoted by sending emigration up the almost interminable streams of the west, to occupy in groups the best spots of land, leaving im mense wastes behind them, and enlarging the frontier be yond the means of the government to afford it adequate protection ; but in encouraging it to occupy, with reason able denseness, the territory over which it advances, and find its best defence in the compact front which it presents to the Indian tribes. Many of you will bring to the con sideration of the subject the advantage of local knowledge and greater experience, and all will be desirous of making an early and final disposition of every disturbing question in regard to this important interest. If these suggestions shall in any degree contribute to the accomplishment of so important a result, it will afford me sincere satisfaction. In some sections of the country, most of the public lands have been sold, and the registers and receivers have littlti to do. It is a subject worthy of inquiry whether, in many cases, two or more districts might not be consolidated, and the number of persons employed in this business consider ably reduced. Indeed, the time will come, when it will be the true policy of the general government, as to some of the states, to transfer to them, for a reasonable equivalent, all the refuse and unsold lands, and to withdraw the machinery of the federal land-offices altogether. All who take a comprehensive view of our federal system, and be lieve that one of its greatest excellences consists in inter fering as little as possible with the internal concerns of the states, look forward with great interest to this result. A modification of the existing laws in respect to the prices of the public lands, might also have a favorable in fluence on the legislation of Congress, in relation to an other branch of the subject. Many who have not the ability to buy at present prices, settle on those lands, with the hope of acquiring from their cultivation the means of purchasing under preemption laws, from time to time passed by Congress. For this encroachment on the rights of the United States, they excuse themselves under the plea of their own necessities ; the fact that they dispossess VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 225 nobody, and only enter upon the waste domain ; that they give additional value to the public lands in their vicinity, and their intention ultimately to pay the government prices. So much weight has from time to time been attached to these considerations, that Congress have passed laws giving actual settlers on the public lands a right of preemption to the tracts occupied by them, at the minimum price. These laws have in all instances been retrospective in their operations ; but in a few years after their passage, crowds of new settlers have been found on the public lands, for similar reasons, and under like expectations, who have been indulged with the same privilege. This course of legislation tends to impair public respect for the laws of the country. Either the laws to prevent intrusion upon the "public lands should be executed, or, if that should be impracticable or inexpedient, they should be modified or repealed. If the public lands are to be con sidered as open to be occupied by any, they should, by law, be thrown open to all. That which is intended, in all instances, to be legalized, should at once be made legal, that those who are disposed to conform to the laws, may enjoy at least equal privileges with those who are not. But it is not believed to be the disposition of Congress to open the public lands to occu pancy without regular entries and payment of the govern ment price, as such a course must tend to worse evils than the credit system, which it was found necessary to abolish. It would seem, therefore, to be the part of wisdom and sound policy to remove, as far as practicable, the causes which produce intrusions upon the public lands, and then take efficient steps to prevent them in future. Would any single measure be so effective in removing all plausible grounds for these intrusions as the graduation of price already suggested 1 A short period of industry and econ omy in any part of our country would enable the poorest citizen to accumulate the means to buy him a home at the lowest prices, and leave him without apology for settling on lands not his own. If he did not, under such circum stances, he would enlist no sympathy in his favor ; and the laws would be readily executed without doing violence to public opinion. 226 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. A large portion of our citizens have seated themselves on the public lands, without authority, since the passage of the last preemption law, and now ask the enactment of another, to enable them to retain the lands occupied, upon payment of the minimum government price. They ask that which has been repeatedly granted before. If the future may be judged of by the past, little harm can be done to the interests of the treasury by yielding to their request. Upon a critical examination, it is found that the lands sold at the public sales since the introduction of cash payments in 1820, have produced, on an average, the net revenue of only six cents on an acre more than the minimum govern ment price. There is no reason to suppose that future sales will be more productive. The government, therefore, has no adequate pecuniary interest to induce it to drive those people from the lands they occupy, for the purpose of sell ing them to others. Entertaining these views, I recommend the passage of a preemption law for their benefit, in connection with the preparatory steps towards the graduation of the price of the public lands, and further and more effectual provisions to prevent intrusions hereafter. Indulgence to those who have settled on these lands with expectations that past legislation would be made a rule for the future, and at the same time removing the most plausible ground on which intrusions are excused, and adopting more efficient means to prevent them hereafter, appears to me the most judicious disposition which can be made of this difficult subject. The limitations and restrictions to guard against abuses in the execution of the preemption law, will necessarily attract the attention of Congress; but under no circum stances is it considered expedient to authorize floating claims in any shape. They have been heretofore, and doubt less would be hereafter, most prolific sources of fraud and oppression, and instead of operating to confer the favor of the government on industrious settlers, are often used only to minister to a spirit of cupidity at the expense of the most meritorious of that class. The accompanying report of the secretary of war will bring to your view the state of the army, and all the va- VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 227 rious subjects confided to the superintendence of that officer. The principal part of the army has been concentrated in Florida, with a view and in the expectation of bringing the war in that territory to a speedy close. The necessity of stripping the posts on the maritime and inland frontiers of their entire garrisons, for the purpose of assembling in the field an army of less than four thousand men, would seem to indicate the necessity of increasing our regular forces ; and the superior efficiency, as well as greatly diminished expense, of that description of troops, recommend this measure as one of economy, as well as of expediency. I refer to the report for the reasons which have induced the secretary of war to urge the reorganization and enlarge ment of the staff of the army, and of the ordnance corps, in which I fully concur. It is not, however, compatible with the interest of the people to maintain, in time of peace, a regular force ad equate to the defence of our extensive frontiers. In pe riods of danger and alarm, we must rely principally upon a well-organized militia; and some general arrangement that will render this description of force more efficient, has long been a subject of anxious solicitude. It was recom mended to the first Congress by General Washington, and has since been frequently brought to your notice, and re cently its importance strongly urged by my immediate pred ecessor. The provision in the constitution that renders it neces sary to adopt a uniform system of organization for the militia throughout the United States, presents an insur mountable obstacle to an efficient arrangement by the classification heretofore proposed, and I invite your atten tion to the plan which will be submitted by the secretary of war, for the organization of the volunteer corps, and the instruction of militia officers, as more simple and practica ble, if not equally advantageous, as a general arrangement of the whole militia of the United States. A moderate increase of the corps both of military and topographical engineers, has been more than once recom mended by my predecessor, and my conviction of the pro priety, not to say necessity, of the measure, in order to 228 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. enable them to perform the various and important duties imposed upon them, induces me to repeat the recommen dation. The Military Academy continues to answer all the purposes of its establishment, and not only furnishes well- educated officers of the army, but serves to diffuse through out the mass of our citizens, individuals possessed of mil itary knowledge, and the scientific attainments of civil and military engineering. At present, the cadet is bound, with the consent of his parents or guardians, to remain in ser vice five years from the period of his enlistment, unless sooner discharged, thus exacting only one year s service in the army after his education is completed. This does not appear to me sufficient. Government ought to command for a longer period the services of those who are educated at the public expense ; and I recommend that the term of enlistment be extended to seven years, and the terms of the engagement strictly enforced. The creation of a national foundery for cannon, to be common to the service of the army and navy of the United States, has been heretofore recommended, and appears to be required, in order to place our ordnance on an equal footing with that of other countries, and to enable that branch of the service to control the prices of those arti cles, and graduate the supplies to the wants of the gov ernment, as well as to regulate their quality and insure their uniformity. The same reasons induce me to recommend the erection of a manufactory of gunpowder, to be under the direction of the ordnance office. The establishment of a manufac tory of small arms west of the Alleghany Mountains, upon the plan proposed by the secretary of war, will contribute to extend throughout that country the improvements which exist in establishments of a similar description in the At lantic states, and tend to a much more economical distri bution of the armament required in the western portion of our Union. The system of removing the Indians west of the Mis sissippi, commenced by Mr. Jefferson, in 1804, has been steadily persevered in by every succeeding President, and may be considered the settled policy of the country. Unconnected at first with any well-defined system for their improvement, the inducements held out to the In dians were confined to the greater abundance of game to be found in the west ; but when the beneficial effects of their removal were made apparent, a more philanthropic and enlightened policy was adopted, in purchasing their lands east of the Mississippi. Liberal prices were given, and provisions inserted in all the treaties with them for the application of the funds they received in exchange, to such purposes as were best calculated to promote their present welfare, and advance their future civilization. These measures have been attended thus far with the happiest results. It will be seen, by referring to the report of the Com missioner of Indian Affairs, that the most sanguine expec tations of the friends and promoters of this system have been realized. The Choctaws, Cherokees, and other tribes that first emigrated beyond the Mississippi, have, for the most part, abandoned the hunter state, and become cultivators of the soil. The improvement of their con dition has been rapid, and it is believed that they are now fitted to enjoy the advantages of a simple form of gov ernment, which has been submitted to them, and received their sanction ; and I cannot too strongly urge this sub ject upon the attention of Congress. Stipulations have been made with all the Indian tribes to remove them beyond the Mississippi, except with the band of the Wyandotts, the Six Nations, in New York, the Menomonees, Mandans, and Stockbridges, in Wis consin, and Miamies, in Indiana. With all but the Me nomonees, it is expected that arrangements for their emi gration will be completed the present year. The resist ance which has been opposed to their removal by some tribes, even after treaties had been made with them to that effect, has arisen from various causes, operating dif ferently on each of them. In most instances, they have been instigated to resist ance by persons to whom the trade with them and the ac quisition of their annuities were important ; and in some by the personal influence of interested chiefs. These ob stacles must be overcome ; for the government cannot 20 230 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. relinquish the execution of this policy without sacrificing important interests, and abandoning the tribes remaining east of the Mississippi to certain destruction. The decrease in numbers of the tribes within the limits of the states and territories has been most rapid. If they be removed, they can be protected from those associations and evil practices which exert so pernicious and destruc tive an influence over their destinies. They can be in duced to labor, and to acquire property, and its acquisition will inspire them with a feeling of independence. Their minds can be cultivated, and they can be taught the value of salutary and uniform laws, and be made sensible of the blessings of free government, and capable of enjoying its advantages. In the possession of property, knowledge, and a good government, free to give what direction they please to their labor, and sharers in the legislation by which their persons and the profits of their industry are to be pro tected and secured, they will have an ever-present con viction of the importance of union, of peace among themselves, and of the preservation of amicable relations with us. The interests of the United States would also be greatly promoted by freeing the relations between the general and state governments from what has proved a most embar rassing encumbrance, by a satisfactory adjustment of con flicting titles to lands, caused by the occupation of the Indians, and by causing the resources of the whole coun try to be developed by the power of the state and general governments, and improved by the enterprise of a white population. Intimately connected with this subject is the obligation of the government to fulfil its treaty stipulations, and to protect the Indians thus assembled " at their new residence from all interruptions and disturbances from any other tribes or nations of Indians, or from any other person or persons whatsoever," and the equally solemn obligation to guard from Indian hostilities its own border settlements stretching along a line of more than one thousand miles. To enable the government to redeem their pledge to the Indians, and to afford adequate protection to its own citi- zens, will require the continual presence of a considerable regular force on the frontiers, and the establishment of a chain of permanent posts. Examinations of the country are now making, with a view to decide on the most suit able points for the erection of fortresses and other works of defence, the results of which will be presented to you by the secretary of war at an early day, together with a plan for the effectual protection of friendly Indians, and the permanent defence of the frontier states. By the report of the secretary of the navy, herewith communicated, it appears that unremitted exertions have been made at the different navy-yards, to carry into effect all authorized measures for the extension and employment of our naval force. The launching and preparation of the ship of the line Pennsylvania, and the complete repairs of the ships of the line Ohio, Delaware, and Columbus, may be noticed, as forming a respectable addition to this important arm of our national defence. Our commerce and navigation have received increased aid and protection during the present year. Our squadrons in the Pacific and on the Brazilian stations have been much increased, and that in the Mediterranean, although small, is adequate to the present wants of our commerce in that sea. Addi tions have been made to our squadron on the West India station, where the large force under Commodore Dallas has been most actively and efficiently employed in protect ing our commerce, in preventing the importation of slaves, and in cooperating with the officers of the army in carry ing on the war in Florida. The satisfactory condition of our naval force abroad leaves at our disposal the means of conveniently providing for a home squadron, for the protection of commerce upon our extensive coast. The amount of appropriations re quired for such a squadron will be found in the general estimates for the naval service, for the year 1838. The naval officers engaged upon our coast survey, have rendered important service to our navigation. The dis covery of a new channel into the harbor of New York, through which our largest ships may pass without danger, must afford important commercial advantages to that har bor, and add greatly to its value as a naval station. The 232 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. accurate survey of George s Shoals, off the coast of Mas sachusetts, lately completed, will render comparatively safe a navigation hitherto considered dangerous. Considerable additions have been made to the number of captains, commanders, lieutenants, surgeons, and assist ant surgeons in the navy. These additions were rendered necessary, by the increased number of vessels put in com mission, to answer the exigencies of our growing commerce. Your attention is respectfully invited to the various suggestions of the secretary, for the improvement of the naval service. The report of the postmaster-general exhibits the prog ress and condition of the mail service. The operations of the post-office department constitute one of the most active elements of our national prosperity, and it is grati fying to observe with what vigor they are conducted. The mail routes of the United States cover an extent of about one hundred and forty-two thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven miles, having been increased about thirty-seven thousand one hundred and three miles within the last two years. The annual mail transportation on these routes is about 36,228,962 miles, having been increased about 10,359,476 miles within the same period. The number of postoffices has also been increased from 10,770 to 12,099, very few of which receive the mails less than once a week, and a large portion of them daily. Contractors and postmasters in general are represented as attending to their duties with most commendable zeal and fidelity. The revenue of the department within the year ending on the 30th of June last, was $4,137,066 59; and its lia bilities accruing within the same time, were $3,380,847 75. The increase of revenue over that of the preceding year, was $708,16641. For many interesting details, I refer you to the report of the postmaster-general, with the accompanying paper. Your particular attention is invited to the necessity of providing a more safe and convenient building for the ac commodation of the department. I lay before Congress copies of reports, submitted in pursuance of a call made by me upon the heads of depart- VAN BUREN S FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE. 233 ments, for such suggestions as their experience might enable them to make, as to what further legislative pro visions may be advantageously adopted to secure the faithful application of public money to the objects for which they are appropriated ; to prevent their misapplication or em bezzlement by those intrusted with the expenditure of them ; arid generally to increase the security of the gov ernment against losses in their disbursement. It is needless to dilate on the importance of providing such new safe guards as are within the power of legislation to promote these ends ; and I have little to add to the recommendations submitted in the accompanying papers. By law, the terms of service of our most important col lecting and disbursing officers in the civil departments, are limited to four years, and when reappointed their bonds are required to be renewed. The safety of the public is much increased by this feature of the law, and there can be no doubt that its application to all officers intrusted with the collection or disbursement of the public money, whatever may be the tenure of their offices, would be equally bene ficial. I therefore recommend, in addition to such of the suggestions presented by the heads of department as you may think useful, a general provision that all officers of the army or navy, or in the civil department, intrusted with the receipt or payment of the public money, and whose term of service is either unlimited or for a longer time than four years, be required to give bonds, with good and suffi cient securities, at the expiration of every such period. A change in the period of terminating the fiscal year, from the 1st of October to the 1st of April, has been frequently recommended, and appears to be desirable. The distressing casualties in steamboats, which have so frequently happened, during the year, seem to evince the necessity of attempting to prevent them by means of se vere provisions connected with their custom-house papers. This subject was submitted to the attention of Congress by the secretary of the treasury, in his last annual report, and will be again noticed at the present session, with addi tional details. It will doubtless receive that early and careful consideration which its pressing importance ap pears to require. 20* 234 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Your attention has heretofore been frequently called to the affairs of the District of Columbia, and I should not again ask it, did not their entire dependence on Congress give them a constant claim upon its notice. Separated by the constitution from the rest of the Union, limited in extent, and aided by no legislature of its own, it would seem to be a spot where a wise and uniform system of local government might have been easily adopted. This district, however, unfortunately, has been left to linger behind the rest of the Union ; its codes, civil and criminal, are not only very defective, but full of obsolete or inconvenient provisions ; being formed of portions of two states, discrepancies in the laws prevail in different parts of the territory, small as it is ; and although it was selected as the seat of the general government, the site of its public edifices, the depository of its archives, and the residence of officers intrusted with large amounts of public property, and the management of public business, yet it has never been subjected to, or received, that spe cial and comprehensive legislation which these circum stances peculiarly demand. I am well aware of the various subjects of greater mag nitude and immediate interest, that press themselves on the consideration of Congress ; but I believe there is no one that appeals more directly to its justice, than a liberal and even generous attention to the interests of the District of Columbia, and a thorough and careful revision of its local government. HARRISON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. MARCH 4, 1841. CALLED from a retirement which I had supposed was to continue for the residue of my life, to fill the chief ex ecutive office of this great and free nation, I appear before you, fellow-citizens, to take the oaths which the constitu tion prescribes as a necessary qualification for the per formance of its duties. And in obedience with a custom 235 coeval with our government, and what I believe to be your expectations, I proceed to present to you a summary of the principles which will govern me in the discharge of the duties which I shall be called upon to perform. It was the remark of a Roman consul, in an early pe riod of that celebrated republic, that a most striking con trast was observable in the conduct of candidates for offices of power and trust, before and after obtaining them they seldom carrying out, in the latter case, the pledges and promises made in the former. However much the world may have improved, in many respects, in the lapse of upwards of two thousand years since the remark was made by the virtuous and indignant Roman, I fear that a strict examination of the annals of some of the modern elective governments would develop similar instances of violated confidence. Although the fiat of the people has gone forth, pro claiming me the chief magistrate of this glorious Union, nothing upon their part remaining to be done, it may be thought that a motive may exist to keep up the delusion under which they may be supposed to have acted in rela tion to my principles and opinions ; and perhaps there may be some in this assembly, who have come here either prepared to condemn those I shall now deliver, or, ap proving them, to doubt the sincerity with which they are uttered. But the lapse of a few months will confirm or dispel their fears. The outline of principles to govern, and measures to be adopted by an administration not yet begun, will soon be exchanged for immutable history, and I shall stand either exonerated by my countrymen, or classed with the mass of those who promised that they might deceive, and flattered with the intention to betray. However strong may be my present purpose to realize the expectations of a magnanimous and confiding people, I too well understand the infirmities of human nature, and the dangerous temptations to which I shall be exposed, from the magnitude of the power which it has been the pleasure of the people to commit to my hands, not to place my chief confidence upon the aid of that Almighty Power which has hitherto protected me, and enabled me to bring 236 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to favorable issues other important but still greatly inferior trusts heretofore confided to me by my country. The broad foundation upon which our constitution rests being the people a breath of theirs having made, as a breath can unmake, change, or modify it it can be as signed to none of the great divisions of government, but to that of democracy. If such is its theory, those who are called upon to administer it, must recognize, as its leading principle, the duty of shaping their measures so as to produce the greatest good to the greatest number. But, with these broad admissions, if we would compare the sovereignty acknowledged to exist in the mass of the peo ple with the power claimed by other sovereignties, even by those which had been considered most purely demo cratic, we shall find a most essential difference. All others lay claim to power limited only by their own will. The majority of our citizens, on the contrary, possess a sovereignty, with an amount of power precisely equal to that which has been granted to them by the parties to the national compact, and nothing beyond. We admit of no government by divine right ; believing that, so far as power is concerned, the beneficent Creator has made no distinction among men, that all are upon an equality, and that the only legitimate right to govern is an express grant of power from the governed. The con stitution of the United States is the instrument containing this grant of power to the several departments composing the government. On an examination of that instrument, it will be found to contain declarations of power granted and power withheld. The latter is also susceptible of di vision into power which the majority had a right to grant, but which they did not think proper to intrust to their agents, and that which they could not have granted, not being possessed by themselves. In other words, there are certain rights possessed by each individual American citi zen, which, in his compact with the others, he has never surrendered. Some of them, indeed, he is unable to sur render, being, in the language of our system, inalienable. The boasted privilege of a Roman citizen was to him a shield only against a petty provincial ruler, whilst the 237 proud democrat of Athens could console himself under a sentence of death, for a supposed violation of national faith, which no one understood, and which at times was the subject of the mockery of all, or banishment from his home, his family, and his country, with or without an alleged cause, that it was not the act of a single tyrant, or hated aristocracy, but of his assembled countrymen. Far different is the power of our sovereignty. It can interfere with no man s faith, prescribe forms of worship for no one s observance, inflict no punishment but after well-ascertained guilt, the result of investigation under forms prescribed by the constitution itself. These pre cious privileges, and those, scarcely less important, of giving expression to his thoughts and opinions, either by writing or speaking, unrestrained but by the liability of injury to others, and that of a full participation in all the advantages which flow from the government, the acknowledged property of all, the American citizen re ceives from no charter derived from his fellow-man. He claims them, because he is himself a man, fashioned by the same almighty hand as the rest of his species, and entitled to the same blessings with which He has endowed them. Notwithstanding the limited sovereignty possessed by the people of the United States, and the restricted grant of power to the government which they have adopted, enough has been given to accomplish all the objects for which it was created. It has been found powerful in war, and, hitherto, justice has been administered, an inti mate union effected, domestic tranquillity preserved, and personal liberty secured to the citizen. As was to be ex pected, however, from the defect of language, and the ne cessarily sententious manner in which the constitution is written, disputes have arisen as to the amount of power which it has actually granted, or was intended to grant. This is more particularly the case in relation to that part of the instrument which treats of the legislative branch ; and not only as regards the exercise of powers, claimed under a general clause, giving that body the authority to carry into effect the specified powers, but in relation to the latter also. It is, however, consolatory to reflect that 238 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. most of the instances of alleged departure from the letter or spirit of the constitution, have ultimately received the sanction of a majority of the people. And the fact that many of our statesmen, most distinguished for talent and patriotism, have been, at one time or other of their politi cal career, on both sides of each of the most warmly dispu-. ted questions, forces upon us the inference that the errors, if errors there were, are attributable to the intrinsic diffi culty, in many instances, of ascertaining the intention of the framers of the constitution, rather than the influence of any sinister or unpatriotic motives. But the great danger to our institutions does not appear to me to be in a usurpation, by the government, of power not granted by the people, but by the accumulation, in one of the departments, of that which was assigned to others. Limited as are the powers which have been granted, they are sufficient to constitute a despotism, if concentrated in one of the departments. This danger is greatly heightened, as it has always been observable that men are less jealous of encroachments of one department upon another than upon their own reserved rights. When the constitution of the United States first came from the hands of the convention which formed it, many of the sternest republicans of the day were alarmed at the extent of the power which had been granted to the federal government, and more particularly to that portion w r hich had been assigned to the executive branch. There were in it features which appeared not to be in harmony with their ideas of a simple representative democracy or re public. And knowing the tendency of power to increase itself, particularly when executed by a single individual, predictions were made that, at no very remote period, the government would terminate in virtual monarchy. It would not become me to say that the fears of these patriots have been already realized. But, as I sincerely believe that the tendency of measures and of men s opinions, for some years past, has been in that direction, it is, I conceive, strictly proper that I should take this occasion to repeat the assurances I have heretofore given, of my determina tion to arrest the progress of that tendency if it really ex ists, and restore the government to its pristine health and HARRISON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 239 vigor, as far as this can be effected by any legitimate ex ercise of the power placed in my hands. I proceed to state, in as summary manner as I can, my opinion of the sources of the evils which have been so extensively complained of, and the correctives which may be applied. Some of the former are unquestionably to be found in the defects of the constitution ; others, in my opinion, are attributable to a misconstruction of some of its provisions. Of the former is the eligibility of the same individual to a second term of the presidency. The sagacious mind of Mr. Jefferson early saw and lamented this error, and attempts have been made, hitherto without success, to apply the amendatory power of the states to its correction. As, however, one mode of correction is in the power of every President, and consequently in mine, it would be useless, and perhaps invidious, to enumerate the evils of which, in the opinion of many of our fellow-citizens, this error of the sages who framed the constitution may have been the source, and the bitter fruits which we are still to gather from it, if it continues to disfigure our system. It may be observed, however, as a general remark, that republics can commit no greater error than to adopt or continue any feature in their systems of government which may be calculated to create or increase the love of power in the bosoms of those to whom necessity obliges them to commit the management of their affairs. And surely nothing is more likely to produce such a state of mind than the long continuance of an office of high trust. Nothing can be more corrupting, nothing more destructive to all those nobler feelings which belong to the character of a devoted republican patriot. When this corrupting passion once takes possession of the human mind, like the love of gold, it becomes insatiable. It is the never-dying worm in his bosom, grows with his growth, and strengthens with the declining years of its victim. If this is true, it is the part of wisdom for a republic to limit the service of that officer, at least, to whom she has intrusted the man agement of her foreign relations, the execution of her laws, and the command of her armies and navies, to a period so short as to prevent his forgetting that he is an accounta- 240 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ble agent, not the principal the servant, not the master. Until an amendment of the constitution can be effected, public opinion may secure the desired object. 1 give my aid to it by renewing the pledge heretofore given, that under no circumstances will I consent to serve a second term. But if there is danger to public liberty from the ac knowledged defect of the constitution, in the want of limit to the continuance of the executive power in the same hands, there is, I apprehend, not much less from a mis construction of the instrument, as it regards the powers actually given. I cannot conceive that, by a fair con struction, any or either of its provisions would be found to constitute the President a part of the legislative power. It cannot be claimed from the power to recommend, since, although enjoined as a duty upon him, it is a duty he holds in common with every other citizen. And although there may be something more of confidence in the propriety of the measures recommended in the one case than in the other, in the obligations of ultimate decision there can be no difference. In the language of the constitution, " all the legislative powers" which it grants " are vested in the Congress of the United States." It would be a solecism in language to say that any portion of these is not included in the whole. It may be said, indeed, that the constitution has given to the executive the power to annul the acts of the legisla tive body, by refusing to them his assent. So a similar power has necessarily resulted from that instrument to the judiciary, and yet the judiciary forms no part of the legis lature. There is, it is true, this difference between these grants of power ; the executive can put his negative upon the acts of the legislature for other cause than that of want of conformity to the constitution, while the judiciary can only declare void those which violate that instrument. But the decision of the judiciary is final in such a case, whereas, in every instance where the veto of the executive is applied, it may be overcome by a vote of two thirds of both houses of Congress. The negative upon the acts of the legislative, by the executive authority, and that in the hands of one individual, would seem to be an incongruity HARRISON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 241 in our system. Like some others of a similar character, however, it appears to be highly expedient, and if used only with the forbearance and in the spirit which was in tended by its authors, it may be productive of great good, and be found one of the best safeguards to the Union. At the period of the formation of the constitution, the principle does not appear to have enjoyed much favor in the state governments. It existed but in two, and in one of these there was a plural executive. If we would search for the motives which operated upon the purely patriotic and enlightened assembly which framed the constitution, for the adoption of a provision so apparently repugnant to the leading democratic principle, that the majority should govern, we must reject the idea that they anticipated from it any benefit to the ordinary course of legislation. They knew too well the high degree of intelligence which existed among the people, and the enlightened character of the state legislatures, not to have the fullest confidence that the two bodies elected by them would be worthy represen tatives of such constituents, and, of course, that they would require no aid in conceiving and maturing the measures which the circumstances of the country might require. And it is preposterous to suppose that a thought could for a mo ment have been entertained that the President, placed at the capitol in the centre of the country, could better under stand the wants and wishes of the people than their own immediate representatives, who spend a part of every year among them, living with them, often laboring with them, and bound to them by the triple tie of interest, duty, and affection. To assist or control Congress, then, in its ordinary legis lation, could not, I conceive, have been the motive for con ferring the veto power on the President. This argument acquires additional force from the fact of its never having been thus used by the first six Presidents and two of them were members of the convention, one presiding over its deliberations, and the other having a larger share in consummating the labors of that august body than any other person. But if bills were never returned to Con gress by either of the Presidents above referred to, upon the ground of their being inexpedient, or not as well 21 242 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. adapted as they might be to the wants of the people, the veto was applied upon that of want of conformity to the constitution, or because errors had been committed from a too hasty enactment. There is another ground for the adoption of the veto principle, which had probably more influence in recom mending it to the convention than any other : I refer to the security which it gives to the just and equitable action of the legislature upon all parts of the Union. It could not but have occurred to the convention, that in a country so extensive, embracing so great a variety of soil and cli mate, and consequently of products, and which, from the same causes, must ever exhibit a great difference in the amount of the population of its various sections, calling for a great diversity in the employments of the people, that the legislation of the majority might not always justly regard the rights and interests of the minority ; and that acts of this character might be passed, under an express grant by the words of the constitution, and, therefore, not within the competency of the judiciary to declare void ; that how ever enlightened and patriotic they might suppose, from past experience, the members of Congress might be, and however largely partaking, in the general, of the liberal feelings of the people, it was impossible to expect that bodies so constituted should not sometimes be controlled by local interests and sectional feeling. It was proper, therefore, to provide some umpire, from whose situation and mode of appointment, more independence and freedom from such influences might be expected. Such a one was afforded by the executive department, constituted by the constitution. A person elected to that high office, having his constituents in every section, state, and subdivision of the Union, must consider himself bound by the most solemn sanctions to guard, protect, and defend the rights of all, and every portion, great or small, from the injustice and oppression of the rest. I consider the veto power, therefore, given by the con stitution to the executive of the United States, solely as a conservative power ; to be used only, 1st, to protect the constitution from violation ; 2dly, the people from the ef fects of hasty legislation, where their will has been proba- 243 bly disregarded, or not well understood; and, 3dly, to prevent the effects of combinations violative of the rights of minorities. In reference to the second of these objects, I may observe that I consider it the right and privilege of the people to decide disputed points of the constitution, arising from the general grant of power to Congress to car ry into effect the powers expressly given. And I believe, with Mr. Madison, " that repeated recognitions under varied circumstances, in acts of the legislative, executive, and judi cial branches of the government, accompanied by indica tions, in different modes, of the concurrence of the general will of the nation, as affording to the President sufficient au thority for his considering such disputed points as settled." Upward of half a century has elapsed since the adoption of our present form of government. It would be an object more highly desirable than the gratification of the curiosity of speculative statesmen, if its precise situation could be ascertained, a fair exhibit made of the operations of each of its departments, of the powers which they respectively claim and exercise, of the collisions which have occurred between them, or between the whole government and those of the states, or either of them. We could then compare our actual condition, after fifty years trial of our system, with what it was in the commencement of its operations, and ascertain whether the predictions of the patriots who opposed its adoption, or the confident hopes of its advocates, have been best realized. The great dread of the former seems to have been, that the reserved powers of the states would be absorbed by those of the federal government, and a consolidated power established, leaving to the states the shadow, only, of that independent action for which they had so zealously contended, and on the preservation of which they relied as the last hope of liberty. Without denying that the result to which they looked with so much apprehension is in the way of being realized, it is obvious that they did not clearly see the mode of its accomplishment. The general government has seized upon none of the reserved rights of the states. As far as any open warfare may have gone, the state authorities have amply maintained their rights. To a casual observer, our 244 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. system presents no appearance of discord between the dif ferent members which compose it. Even the addition of many new ones has produced no jarring. They move in their respective orbits in perfect harmony with each, other. But there is still an under-current at work, by which, if not seasonably checked, the worst apprehensions of our anti-federal patriots will be realized. And not only will the state authorities be overshadowed by the great increase of power in the executive department of the general gov ernment, but the character of that government, if not its designation, be essentially and radically changed. This state of things has been in part effected by causes inherent in the constitution, arid in part by the never-failing tenden cy of political power to increase itself. By making the President the sole distributor of all the patronage of the government, the framers of the constitu tion do not appear to have anticipated at how short a pe riod it would become a formidable instrument to control the free operation of the state governments. Of trifling importance at first, it had, early in Mr. Jefferson s admin istration, become so powerful as to create great alarm in the mind of that patriot from the potent influence it might exert in controlling the freedom of the elective franchise. If such could have been the effects of its influence then, how much greater must be the danger at this time, quad rupled in amount, as it certainly is, and more completely under the control of the executive will, than their con struction of their powers allowed, or the forbearing char acters of all the early Presidents permitted them to make? But it is not by the extent of its patronage alone that the executive department has become dangerous, but by the use which it appears may be made of the appointing power, to bring under its control the whole revenues of the country. The constitution has declared it to be the duty of the President to see that the laws are executed, and it makes him commander-in-chief of the armies and navy of the United States. If the opinion of the most approved wri ters upon that species of mixed government, which, in modern Europe, is termed monarchy, in contradistinction to despotism, is correct, there was wanting no other addi- HARRISON S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 245 tion to the powers of our chief magistrate to stamp a monarchical character upon our government, but the con trol of the public finances. And to me it appears strange, indeed, that any one should doubt that the entire control which the President possesses over the officers who have the custody of the public money, by the power of removal with or without cause, does, for all mischievous purposes at least, virtually subject the treasure also to his disposal. The first Roman emperor, in his attempt to seize the sa cred treasure, silenced the opposition of the officer to whose charge it had been committed, by a significant allusion to his sword. By a selection of political instru ments for the care of the public money, a reference to their commissions by a President would be quite as effec tual an argument as that of Caesar to the Roman knight. I am not insensible of the great difficulty that exists in devising a plan for the safe-keeping and disbursement of the public revenues, and I know the importance which has been attached by men of great abilities and patriotism to the divorce, as it is called, of the treasury from the banking institutions. It is not the divorce which is complained of, but the unhallowed union of the treasury with the executive department, which has created such extensive alarm. To this danger to our republican in stitutions, and that created by the influence given to the executive through the instrumentality of the federal offi cers, I propose to apply all the remedies which may be at my command. It was certainly a great error in the framers of the constitution, not to have made the officer at the head of the treasury department entirely independ ent of the executive. He should at least have been re movable only upon the demand of the popular branch of the legislature. I have determined never to remove a secretary of the treasury without communicating /all the circumstances attending such removal to both houses of Congress. The influence of the executive in controlling the free dom of the elective franchise through the medium of the public officers can be effectually checked by renewing the prohibition published by Mr Jefferson, forbidding their interference in elections further than giving their own 21* 246 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. votes ; and their own independence secured by an assur ance of perfect immunity, in exercising this sacred privi lege of freemen under the dictates of their own unbiased judgments. Never, with my consent, shall an officer of the people, compensated for his services out of their pockets, become the pliant instrument of executive will. There is no part of the means placed in the hands of the executive which might be used with greater effect, for unhallowed purposes, than the control of the public press. The maxim which our ancestors derived from the mother country, that " the freedom of the press is the great bulwark of civil and religious liberty," is one of the most precious legacies which they have left us. We have learned, too, from our own, as well as the experience of other countries, that golden shackles, by whomsoever, or by whatever pretence imposed, are as fatal to it as the iron bonds of despotism. The presses in the necessary employment of government should never be used to " clear the guilty or to varnish crimes." A decent and manly examination of the acts of the government should be not only tolerated, but encouraged. Upon another occasion, I have given my opinion, at some length, upon the impropriety of executive interfer ence in the legislation of Congress; that the article in the constitution making it the duty of the President to communicate information, and authorizing him to recom mend measures, was not intended to make him the source of legislation, and, in particular, that he should never be looked to for schemes of finance. It would be very strange, indeed, that the constitution should have strictly forbidden one branch of the legislature from interfering in the origination of such bills, and that it should be con sidered proper that an altogether different department of the government should be permitted to do so. Some of our best political maxims and opinions have been drawn from our parent isle. There are others, however, which cannot be introduced into our system without singular incongruity, and the production of much mischief. And this I conceive to be one. No matter in which of the houses of Parliament a bill may originate, nor by whom introduced, a minister, or a member of the opposition, by 247 the fiction of law, or rather of constitutional principle, the sovereign is supposed to have prepared it agreeably to his will, and then submitted it to Parliament for their advice and consent. Now, the very reverse is the case here, not only with regard to the principle, but the forms prescribed by the constitution. The principle certainly assigns to the only body constituted by the constitution (the legislative body) the power to make laws, and the forms even direct that the enactment should be ascribed to them. The Senate, in relation to revenue bills, have the right to propose amendments ; and so has the executive, by the power given him to return them to the House of Representatives, with his objections. It is in his power, also, to propose amendments in the existing revenue laws, suggested by his observations upon their defective or injurious opera tion. But the delicate duty of devising schemes of reve nue should be left where the constitution has placed it, with the immediate representatives of the people. For similar reasons, the mode of keeping the public treasure should be prescribed by them ; and the farther removed it may be from the control of the executive, the more whole some in arrangement, and the more in accordance with republican principles. Connected with this subject is the character of the cur rency. The idea of making it exclusively metallic, how ever well intended, appears to me to be fraught with more fatal consequences than any other scheme, having no rela tion to the personal rights of the citizen, that has ever been devised. If any single scheme could produce the effect of arresting, at once, that mutation of condition by which thousands of our most indigent fellow-citizens, by their industry and enterprise, are raised to the possession of wealth, that is one. If there is one measure better calculated than another to produce that state of things so much deprecated by all true republicans, by which the rich are daily adding to their hoards, and the poor sinking deeper into penury, it is an exclusive metallic currency. Or if there is a process by which the character of the country for generosity and nobleness of feeling may be 248 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. destroyed by the great increase and necessary toleration of usury, it is an exclusive metallic currency. Amongst the other duties of a delicate character which the President is called upon to perform, is the supervision of the government of the territories of the United States. Those of them which are destined to become members of our great political family, are compensated by their rapid progress from infancy to manhood, for the partial and temporary deprivation of their political rights. It is in this district only, where American citizens are to be found, who, under a settled system of policy, are de prived of many important political privileges, without any inspiring hope as to the future. Their only consolation under circumstances of such deprivation, is that of the devoted exterior guards of a camp that their sufferings secure tranquillity and safety within. Are there any of their countrymen who would subject them to greater sacri fices, to any other humiliations, than those essentially necessary to the security of the object for which they were thus separated from their fellow-citizens? Are their rights alone not to be guarantied by the application of those great principles, upon which all our constitutions are founded 1 We are told by the greatest of British orators and statesmen, that, at the commencement of the war of the revolution, the most stupid men in England spoke of " their American subjects." Are there, indeed, citizens of any of our states who have dreamed of their subjects in the District of Columbia? Such dreams can never be realized by any agency of mine. The people of the District of Columbia are not the sub jects of the people of the states, but free American citi zens. Being in the latter condition when the constitution was formed, no words used in that instrument could have been intended to deprive them of that character. If there is any thing in the great principles of inalienable rights, so emphatically insisted upon in our Declaration of Inde pendence, they could neither make, nor the United States accept, a surrender of their liberties, and become the sub jects, in other words the slaves, of their former fellow-citi zens. If this be true, and it will scarcely be denied by any INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 249 one who has a correct idea of his own rights as an Ameri can citizen, the grant to Congress of exclusive jurisdic tion in the District of Columbia, can be interpreted, so far as respects the aggregate people of the United States, as meaning nothing more than to allow Congress the con trolling power necessary to afford a free and safe exercise of the functions assigned to the general government by the constitution. In all other respects, the legislation of Congress should be adapted to their peculiar condition and wants, and be conformable with their deliberate opinions of their own interests. I have spoken of the necessity of keeping the respective departments of the government, as well as all the other authorities of our country, within their appropriate orbits. This is a matter of difficulty in some cases, as the powers which they respectively claim are often not denned by very distinct lines. Mischievous, however, in their tendencies, as collisions of this kind may be, those which arise be tween the respective communities, which for certain pur poses compose one nation, are much more so ; for no such nation can long exist without the careful culture of those feelings of confidence and affection which are the effec tive bonds of union between free and confederated states. Strong as is the tie of interest, it has been often found in effectual. Men, blinded by their passions, have been known to adopt measures for their country in direct oppo sition to all the suggestions of policy. The alternative, then, is, to keep down a bad passion by creating and fos tering a good one ; and this seems to be the corner-stone upon which our American political architects have reared the fabric of our government. The cement which was to bind it, and perpetuate its existence, was the affectionate attachment between all its members. To insure the continuance of this feeling, pro duced at first by a community of dangers, of sufferings, and of interests, the advantages of each were made acces sible to all. No participation in any good, possessed by any member of an extensive confederacy, except in do mestic government, was withheld from the citizen of any other member. By a process attended with no difficulty, no delay, no expense but that of removal, the citizen of 250 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the one might become the citizen of any other, and suc cessively of the whole. The lines, too, separating powers to be exercised by the citizens of one state from those of another, seem to be so distinctly drawn as to leave no room for misunderstanding. The citizens of each state unite in their persons all the privileges which that char acter confers, and all that they may claim as citizens of the United States ; but in no case can the same person, at the same time, act as the citizen of two separate states, and he is therefore positively precluded from any inter ference with the reserved powers of any state, but that of which he is, for the time being, a citizen. He may, in deed, offer to citizens of other states his advice as to their management, and the form in which it is tendered is left to his own discretion and sense of propriety. It may be observed, however, that organized associa tions of citizens, requiring compliance with their wishes, too much resemble the recommendations of Athens to her allies supported by an armed and powerful fleet. It was, indeed, to the ambition of the leading states of Greece to control the domestic concerns of the others, that the destruction of that celebrated confederacy, and subse quently of all its members, is mainly to be attributed. And it is owing to the absence of that spirit that the Hel vetic confederacy had been for so many years preserved. Never had there been seen in the institutions of the sepa rate members of any confederacy more elements of discord. In the principles and forms of government and religion, as well as in the circumstances of the several cantons, so marked a discrepancy was observable as to promise any thing but harmony in their intercourse, or permanency in their alliance. And yet, for ages, neither has been inter rupted. Content with the positive benefits which their union produced, with the independence and safety from foreign aggression which it secured, these sagacious peo ple respected the institutions of each other, however re pugnant to their own principles and prejudices. Our confederacy, fellow-citizens, can only be preserved by the same forbearance. Our citizens must be content with the exercise of the powers with which the constitution clothes them. The attempt of those of one state to control ADDRESS. 251 the domestic institutions of another, can only result in feelings of distrust and jealousy, the certain harbingers of disunion, violence, civil war, and the ultimate destruction of our free institutions. Our confederacy is perfectly illustrated by the terms and principles governing a common copartnership. There a fund of power is to be exercised under the direction of the joint councils of the allied mem bers, but that which has been reserved by the individual members is intangible by the common government, or the individual members composing it. To attempt it finds no support in the principles of our constitution. It should be our constant and earnest endeavor mutually to cultivate a spirit of concord and harmony among the various parts of our confederacy. Experience has abundantly taught us that the agitation, by citizens of one part of the Union, of a subject not confided to the general government, but ex clusively under the guardianship of the local authorities, is productive of no other consequences than bitterness, alien ation, discord, and injury to the very cause which is intended to be advanced. Of all the great interests which appertain to our country, that of union cordial, confiding, fraternal union is by far the most important, since it is the only true and sure guaranty of all others. In consequence of the embarrassed state of business and the currency, some of the states may meet with difficulty in their financial concerns. However deeply we may regret any thing imprudent or excessive in the engagements into which states have entered for purposes of their own, it does not become us to disparage the state governments, nor to discourage them from making proper efforts for their own relief; on the contrary, it is our duty to encourage them, to the extent of our constitutional authority, to apply their best means, and cheerfully to make all necessary sacrifices, and submit to all necessary burdens, to fulfil their engagements and maintain their credit ; for the character and credit of the several states form part of the character and credit of the whole country. The resources of the country are abundant, the enterprise and activity of our people proverbial ; and we may well hope that wise legislation and prudent administration, by the respective governments, 250 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the one might become the citizen of any other, and suc cessively of the whole. The lines, too, separating powers to be exercised by the citizens of one state from those of another, seem to be so distinctly drawn as to leave no room for misunderstanding. The citizens of each state unite in their persons all the privileges which that char acter confers, and all that they may claim as citizens of the United States ; but in no case can the same person, at the same time, act as the citizen of two separate states, and he is therefore positively precluded from any inter ference with the reserved powers of any state, but that of which he is, for the time being, a citizen. He may, in deed, offer to citizens of other states his advice as to their management, and the form in which it is tendered is left to his own discretion and sense of propriety. It may be observed, however, that organized associa tions of citizens, requiring compliance with their wishes, too much resemble the recommendations of Athens to her allies supported by an armed and powerful fleet. It was, indeed, to the ambition of the leading states of Greece to control the domestic concerns of the others, that the destruction of that celebrated confederacy, and subse quently of all its members, is mainly to be attributed. And it is owing to the absence of that spirit that the Hel vetic confederacy had been for so many years preserved. Never had there been seen in the institutions of the sepa rate members of any confederacy more elements of discord. In the principles and forms of government and religion, as well as in the circumstances of the several cantons, so marked a discrepancy was observable as to promise any thing but harmony in their intercourse, or permanency in their alliance. And yet, for ages, neither has been inter rupted. Content with the positive benefits which their union produced, with the independence and safety from foreign aggression which it secured, these sagacious peo ple respected the institutions of each other, however re pugnant to their own principles and prejudices. Our confederacy, fellow-citizens, can only be preserved by the same forbearance. Our citizens must be content with the exercise of the powers with which the constitution clothes them. The attempt of those of one state to control INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 251 the domestic institutions of another, can only jesult in feelings of distrust and jealousy, the certain harbingers of disunion, violence, civil war, and the ultimate destruction of our free institutions. Our confederacy is perfectly illustrated by the terms and principles governing a common copartnership. There a fund of power is to be exercised under the direction of the joint councils of the allied mem bers, but that which has been reserved by the individual members is intangible by the common government, or the individual members composing it. To attempt it finds no support in the principles of our constitution. It should be our constant and earnest endeavor mutually to cultivate a spirit of concord and harmony among the various parts of our confederacy. Experience has abundantly taught us that the agitation, by citizens of one part of the Union, of a subject not confided to the general government, but ex clusively under the guardianship of the local authorities, is productive of no other consequences than bitterness, alien ation, discord, and injury to the very cause which is intended to be advanced. Of all the great interests which appertain to our country, that of union cordial, confiding, fraternal union is by far the most important, since it is the only true and sure guaranty of all others. In consequence of the embarrassed state of business and the currency, some of the states may meet with difficulty in their financial concerns. However deeply we may regret any thing imprudent or excessive in the engagements into which states have entered for purposes of their own, it does not become us to disparage the state governments, nor to discourage them from making proper efforts for their own relief; on the contrary, it is our duty to encourage them, to the extent of our constitutional authority, to apply their best means, and cheerfully to make all necessary sacrifices, and submit to all necessary burdens, to fulfil their engagements and maintain their credit ; for the character and credit of the several states form part of the character and credit of the whole country. The resources of the country are abundant, the enterprise and activity of our people proverbial ; and we may well hope that wise legislation and prudent administration, by the respective governments, 252 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. each acting .within its own sphere, will restore former prosperitjx. Unpleasant and even dangerous as collisions may some times be, between the constituted authorities or the citi zens of our country, in relation to the lines which separate their respective jurisdictions, the results can be of no vital injury to our institutions, if that ardent patriotism, that devoted attachment to liberty, that spirit of moderation and forbearance for which our countrymen were once distin guished, continue to be cherished. If this continues to be the ruling passion of our souls, the weaker feelings of the mistaken enthusiast will be corrected, the Utopian dreams of the scheming politician dissipated, and the complicated intrigues of the demagogue rendered harmless. The spirit of liberty is the sovereign balm for every injury which our institutions may receive. On the contrary, no care that can be used in the con struction of our government, no division of powers, no distribution of checks in its departments, will prove effec tual to keep us a free people, if this spirit is suffered to decay ; and decay it will without constant nurture. To the neglect of this duty, the best historians agree in attributing the ruin of all the republics with whose existence and fall their writings have made us acquainted. The same causes will ever produce the same effects ; and as long as the love of power is a dominant passion of the human bosom, and as long as the understandings of men can be warped and their affections changed by operations upon their passions and prejudices, so long will the liberty of a people depend on their own constant attention to its preservation. The danger to all well-established free governments arises from the unwillingness of the people to believe in its existence, or from the influence of designing men, di verting their attention from the quarter whence it ap proaches, to a source from which it can never come. This is the old trick of those who would usurp the government of their country. In the name of Democracy they speak, warning the people against the influence of wealth and the danger of aristocracy. History, ancient and modern, HARRISON S INAUGURAL, ADDRESS. 253 is full of such examples. Caesar became the master of the Roman people and the senate, under the pretence of supporting the democratic claims of the former against the aristocracy of the latter; Cromwell, in the character of protector of the liberties of the people, became the dic tator of England ; and Bolivar possessed himself of un limited power with the title of his country s Liberator. There is, on the contrary, no single instance on record of an extensive and well-established republic being changed into an aristocracy. The tendency of all such govern ments, in their decline, is to monarchy; and the antago nist principle to liberty there is the spirit of faction a spirit which assumes the character, and, in times of great excitement, imposes itself upon the people as the genuine spirit of freedom, and like the false Christs whose coming was foretold by the Savior, seeks to, and, were it possible, would, impose upon the true and most faithful disciples of liberty. It is in periods like this, that it behoves the people to be most watchful of those to whom they have intrusted power. And although there is at times much difficulty in distinguishing the false from the true spirit, a calm and dispassionate investigation will detect the counterfeit as well by the character of its operations, as the results that are produced. The true spirit of liberty, although de voted, persevering, bold, and uncompromising in prin ciple, that secured, is mild and tolerant, scrupulous as to the means it employs ; whilst the spirit of party, assuming to be that of liberty, is harsh, vindictive, and intolerant, and totally reckless as to the character of the allies which it brings to the aid of its cause. When the genuine spirit of liberty animates the body of a people to a thorough ex amination of their affairs, it leads to the excision of every excrescence which may have fastened itself upon any of the departments of the government, and restores the sys tem to its pristine health and beauty. But the reign of an intolerant spirit of party amongst a free people, seldom fails to result in a dangerous accession to the executive power, introduced and established amidst unusual pro fessions of devotion to democracy. The foregoing remarks relate almost exclusively to mat- 22 256 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. is with the people. Something, however, may be effected by the means which they have placed in my hands. It is union that we want, not of a party for the sake of that party, but of the whole country for the sake of the whole country for the defence of its interests and its honor against foreign aggression, for the defence of those principles for which our ancestors so gloriously contended. As far as it depends upon me it shall be accomplished. All the influence which I possess shall be exerted to pre vent the formation at least of an executive party in the halls of the legislative body. I wish for the support of no member of that body to any measure of mine that does not satisfy his judgment and his sense of duty to those from whom he holds his appointment; nor any confidence in ad vance from the people, but that asked by Mr. Jefferson, " to give firmness and effect to the legal administration of their affairs." I deem the present occasion sufficiently important and solemn to justify me in expressing to my fellow-citizens a profound reverence for the Christian religion, and a thorough conviction that sound morals, religious liberty, and a just sense of religious responsibility, are essentially connected with all true and lasting happiness ; and to that good Being who has blessed us by the gift of civil and religious freedom, who watched over and prospered the labors of our fathers, and has hitherto preserved to us institutions far exceeding in excellence those of any other people, let us unite in fervently commending every inter est of our beloved country in all future time. Fellow-citizens Being fully invested with that high office to which the partiality of my countrymen has called me, I now take an affectionate leave of you. You will bear with you to your homes the remembrance of the pledge I have this day given to discharge all the high du ties of my exalted station according to the best of my ability; and I shall enter upon their performance with entire confidence in the support of a just and generous people. THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 257 TYLER S ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE. APRIL 9, 1841. In just one month after entering upon his duties as President of the United States, William Henry Harrison died the first that has died in office since the formation of the government. Consequently it became the duty of the Vice-President, John Tyler, to assume the presidential chair ; on which occasion he published the following ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OF THE U. STATES. Fellow-Citizens : BEFORE my arrival at the seat of government, the pain ful communication was made to you by the officers presi ding over the several departments, of the deeply-regretted death of William Henry Harrison, President of the United States. Upon him you had conferred your gift, and had selected him as your chosen instrument to correct and re form all such errors and abuses as had manifested them selves from time to time in the practical operation of the government. While standing at the threshold of this great work, he has, by the dispensation of Providence, been removed from us, and by the provisions of the constitution the efforts to be directed to the accomplishment of this vitally-important task have devolved upon myself. The same occurrence has subjected the wisdom and sufficiency of our institutions to a new test. For the first time in our history, the person elected to the vice-presidency of the United States, by the happen ing of a contingency provided for in the constitution, has had devolved upon him the presidential office. The spirit of faction, which is directly opposed to the spirit of a lofty patriotism, may find in this, occasion for assaults upon my administration. And in succeeding, under circumstances so sudden and unexpected, and to responsibilities so greatly augmented, to the administration of public affairs, I shall place in the intelligence and patriotism of the people my only sure reliance. My earnest prayer shall be constantly addressed to the all-wise and all-powerful Being who made 22* 258 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. me, and by whose dispensation I am called to the high office of President of this confederacy, that I may be ena bled understandingly to carry out the principles of that constitution which I have sworn to " protect, preserve, and defend." The usual opportunity which is afforded a chief magis trate, upon his induction to office, of presenting to his countrymen an exposition of the policy which would guide his administration, in the form of an inaugural address, not having, under the peculiar circumstances which have brought me to the discharge of the high duties of President of the United States, been offered to me, a brief exposition of the principles which will govern me in the general course of my administration of public affairs, would seem due as well to myself as to you. In regard to foreign na tions, the groundwork of my policy will be justice on our part to all, submitting to injustice from none. While I shall sedulously cultivate the relation of peace and amity with one and all, it will be my most imperative duty to see that the honor of the country shall sustain no blemish. With a view to this, the condition of our military defences will become a matter of anxious solicitude. The army, which has in other days covered itself with renown, and the navy, not inappropriately termed the right hand of the public defence, which has spread a light of glory over the American standard in all the waters of the earth, should be rendered replete with efficiency. In view of the fact, well avouched by history, that the tendency of all human institutions is to concentrate power in the hands of a single man, and that their ultimate down fall has proceeded from this cause, I deem it of the most essential importance that a complete separation should take place between the sword and the purse. No matter where or how the public moneys shall be deposited, so long as the President can exert the power of appointing arid removing, at his pleasure, the agents selected for their custody, the commander-in-chief of the army and navy is in fact the treasurer. A permanent and radical change should therefore be decreed. The patronage incident to the presidential office, already great, is constantly increas ing. Such increase is destined to keep pace with the 259 growth of our population, until, without a figure of speech, an army of office-holders may be spread over the land. The unrestrained power exerted by a selfishly ambitious man, in order either to perpetuate his authority or to hand it over to some favorite as his successor, may lead to the employment of all the means within his control to accom plish his object. The right to remove from office, while subjected to no restraint, is inevitably destined to produce a spirit of crouching servility with the official corps, which, in order to uphold the hand which feeds them, would lead to direct and active interference in the elections, both state and federal, thereby subjecting the course of state legislation to the dictation of the chief executive officer ; and making the will of that officer absolute and supreme. I will, at a proper time, invoke the action of Congress upon this sub ject, and shall readily acquiesce in the adoption of all proper measures which are calculated to arrest these evils, so full of danger in their tendency. I will remove no incumbent from office who has faith fully and honestly acquitted himself of the duties of his office, except in cases where such officer has been guilty of an active partisanship, or by secret means the less manly, and therefore the more objectionable has given his official influence to the purposes of party, thereby bringing the patronage of the government in conflict with the freedom of elections. Numerous removals may be come necessary under this rule. These will be made by me through no acerbity of feeling. I have had no cause to cherish or indulge unkind feelings towards any, but my conduct will be regulated by a profound sense of what is due to the country and its institutions; nor shall I neglect to apply the same unbending rule to those of my appoint ment. Freedom of opinion will be tolerated, the right of suffrage will be maintained as the birthright of every Amer ican citizen, but I say emphatically to the official corps, " Thus far, and no farther." I have dwelt the longer upon this subject, because re movals from office are likely often to arise, and I would have my countrymen to understand the principle of ex ecutive action. 260 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. In all public expenditures the most rigid economy should be resorted to, and as one of its results, a public debt in time of peace be sedulously avoided. A wise and patriotic constituency will never object to the imposition of necessary burdens for useful ends, and true wisdom dic tates the resort to such means, in order to supply deficien cies in the revenue, rather than to those doubtful expedi ents, which, ultimating in a public debt, serve to embarrass the resources of the country, and to lessen its ability to meet any great emergency which may arise. All sinecures should be abolished. The appropriations should be direct and explicit, so as to leave as limited a share of discretion to the disbursing agents as may be found compatible with the public service. A strict responsibility on the part of all agents of the government should be maintained, and peculation and defalcation visited with immediate expul sion from office and the most condign punishment. The public interest demands that, if any war has existed between the government and the currency, it shall cease. Measures of a financial character, now having the sanction of legal enactment, shall be faithfully enforced until re pealed by the legislative authority. But I owe it to myself to say, that I regard existing enactments as unwise and im politic, and in a high degree oppressive. I shall promptly give sanction to any constitutional measure which, originating in Congress, shall have for its object the restoration of a sound circulating medium, so essentially necessary to give confidence in all the trans actions of life, to secure to industry its just and adequate rewards, and to reestablish the public prosperity. In de ciding upon the adaptation of any such measure to the end proposed, as well as its conformity to the constitution, I shall resort to the fathers of the great republican school, for advice and instruction-, to be drawn from their sage views of our system of government, and the light of their ever-glorious example. The institutions under which we live, my countrymen, secure each person in the perfect enjoyment of all his rights. The spectacle is exhibited to the world of a gov ernment deriving its power from the consent of the gov erned, and having imparted to it only so much power as is 261 necessary for its successful operation. Those who are charged with its administration should carefully abstain from all attempts to enlarge the range of powers thus granted to the several departments of the government, other than by an appeal to the people for additional grants, lest by so doing they disturb that balance which the pat riots and statesmen who framed the constitution designed to establish between the federal government and the states composing the Union. The observance of these rules is enjoined upon us by that feeling of reverence and affection which finds a place in the heart of every patriot for the preservation of union and the blessings of union for the good of our children and our children s children, through countless genera tions. An opposite course could not fail to generate fac tions, intent upon the gratification of their selfish ends; to give birth to local and sectional jealousies, and to ulti mate either in breaking asunder the bonds of union, or in building up a central system which would inevitably end in a bloody sceptre and an iron crown. In conclusion, I beg you to be assured that I shall exert myself to carry the foregoing principles into practice dur ing my administraton of the government, and, confiding in the protecting care of an ever-watchful and overruling Providence, it shall be my first and highest duty to preserve unimpaired the free institutions under which we live, and transmit them to those who shall succeed me in their full force and vigor. TYLER S EXTRA SESSION MESSAGE. JUNE 1, 1841. To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States : FELLOW-CITIZENS : You have been assembled in your respective halls of legislation under a proclamation bear ing the signature of the illustrious citizen who was so lately called by the direct suffrages of the people to the 262 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. discharge of the important functions of their chief execu tive office. Upon the expiration of a single month from the day of his installation, he has paid the great debt of nature, leaving behind him a name associated with the recollection of numerous benefits conferred upon the coun try during a long life of patriotic devotion. With this pub lic bereavement are connected other considerations, which will not escape the attention of Congress. The prepara tions necessary for his removal to the seat of government, in view of a residence of four years, must have devolved upon the late President heavy expenditures, which, if per mitted to burden the limited resources of his private fortune, may tend to the serious embarrassment of his surviving family; and it is therefore respectfully submitted to Congress whether the ordinary principles of justice would not dictate the propriety of its legislative interpo sition. By the provisions of the fundamental law, the powers and duties of the high station to which he was elected have devolved upon me, and in the dispositions of the representatives of the states and of the people will be found to a great extent a solution of the problem to which our institutions are for the first time subjected. In entering upon the duties of this office, I did not feel that it would be becoming in me to disturb what had been ordered by my lamented predecessor. Whatever, there fore, may have been my opinion, originally, as to the pro priety of convening Congress at so early a day from that of its late adjournment, I found a new and a controlling inducement not to interfere with the patriotic desires of the late President, in the novelty of the situation in which I was so unexpectedly placed. My first wish under such circumstances would necessarily have been to have called to my aid, in the administration of public affairs, the com bined wisdom of the two Houses of Congress, in order to take their counsel and advice as to the best mode of ex tricating the government and the country from the em barrassments weighing heavily on both. I am then most happy in finding myself, so soon after my accession to the Presidency, surrounded by the immediate representatives of the states and people. No important changes having taken place in our for- 263 eign relations since the last session of Congress, it is not deemed necessary, on this occasion, to go into a detailed statement in regard to them. I am happy to say that I see nothing to destroy the hope of being able to preserve peace. The ratification of the treaty with Portugal has been duly exchanged between the two governments. This gov ernment has not been inattentive to the interests of those of our citizens who have claims on the government of Spain founded on express treaty stipulations, and a hope is indulged that the representations which have been made to that government on this subject may lead ere Jong to beneficial results. A correspondence has taken place between the secretary of state and the minister of her Britannic majesty ac credited to this government, on the subject of Alexander McLeod s indictment and imprisonment, copies of which are herewith communicated to Congress. In addition to what appears from these papers, it may be proper to state that Alexander McLeod has been heard by the Supreme Court of the State of New York on his motion to be discharged from imprisonment, and that the decision of that court has not as yet been pro nounced. The secretary of state has addressed to me a piper upon two subjects, interesting to the commerce of the country, which will receive my consideration, and which I have the honor to communicate to Congress. So far as it depends on the course of this government, our relations of good-will and friendship will be sedulously cultivated with all nations. The true American policy will be found to consist in the exercise of a spirit of justice to be manifested in the discharge of all our international ob ligations, to the weakest of the family of nations as well as to the most powerful. Occasional conflicts of opinion may arise, but when the discussions incident to them are con ducted in the language of truth and with a strict regard to justice, the scourge of war will for the most part be avoided. The time ought to be regarded as having gone by when a resort to arms is to be esteemed as the only proper arbiter of national differences. 264 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. The census recently taken shows a regularly progres sive increase in our population. Upon the breaking out of the war of the revolution, our numbers scarcely equalled three millions of souls: they already exceed seventeen millions, and will continue to increase in a ratio which duplicates in a period of about twenty-three years. The old states contain a territory sufficient in itself to maintain a population of additional millions, arid the most populous of the new states may even yet be regarded as but par tially settled, while of the new lands on this side of the Rocky Mountains, to say nothing of the immense region which stretches from the base of those mountains to the mouth of the Columbia River, about 770,000,000 of acres, ceded and unceded, still remain to be brought into mar ket. We hold out to the people of other countries an in vitation to come and settle among us as members of our rapidly-growing family ; and, for the blessings which we offer them, we require of them to look upon our country as their country, and to unite with us in the great task of preserving our institutions and thereby perpetuating our liberties. No motive exists for foreign conquests. We desire but to reclaim our almost illimitable wildernesses, and to introduce into their depths the lights of civilization. While we shall at all times be prepared to vindicate the national honor, our most earnest desire will be to maintain an unbroken peace. In presenting the foregoing views, I cannot withhold the expression of the opinion that there exists nothing in the extension of our empire over our acknowledged pos sessions to excite the alarm of the patriot for the safety of our institutions. The federative system, leaving to each state the care of its domestic concerns, and devolving on the federal government those of general import, admits in safety of the greatest expansion : but, at the same time, I deem it proper to add that there will be found to exist at all times an imperious necessity for restraining all the functionaries of this government within the range of their respective powers, thereby preserving a just balance be tween the powers granted to this government and those reserved to the states and to the people. From the report of the secretary of the treasury, you 265 will perceive that the fiscal means present and accruing are insufficient co supply the wants of the government for the current year. The balance in the treasury on the fourth day of March last, not covered by outstanding drafts, and exclusive of trust funds, is estimated at $869,000. This includes the sum of $215,000 deposited in the Mint and its branches to procure metal for coining, and in the process of coinage, and which could not be withdrawn without inconvenience ; thus leaving subject to draft in the various depositories the sum of $645,000. By virtue of two several acts of Congress, the secretary of the treas ury was authorized to issue, on and after the fourth day of March last, treasury notes to the amount of $5,413,000, making an aggregate available fund of $6,058,000 on hand. But this fund was chargeable with outstanding treasury notes redeemable in the current year and interest thereon to the estimated amount of five millions two hundred and eighty thousand dollars. There is also thrown upon the treasury the payment of a large amount of demands ac crued in whole or in part in former years, which will ex haust the available means of the treasury, and leave the accruing revenue, reduced as it is in amount, burdened with debt and charged with the current expenses of the government. The aggregate amount of outstanding appropriations on the fourth day of March last was $33,4-29,616 59, of which $24,210,000 will be required during the current year ; and there will also be required for the use of the war department additional appropri ations to the amount of $2,511,132 93, the special ob jects of which will be seen by reference to the report of the secretary of war. The anticipated means of the treasury are greatly in adequate to this demand. The receipts from customs for the last three quarters of the last year, and the first quar ter of the present year, amounted to $12,100,000; the re ceipts for lands for the same time to $2,742,439 69 ; show ing an average revenue from both sources of $1,236,870 per month. A gradual expansion of trade, growing out of a restoration of confidence, together with a reduction in the expenses of collecting, and punctuality on the part of collecting officers, may cause an addition to the monthly 23 266 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. receipts from the customs. They are estim-ated for the residue of the year from the 4th of March at $12,000,000 ; the receipts from the public lands for the same time are estimated at $2,590,000; and from miscellaneous sources at $170,000; making an aggregate of available funds within the year of $ 14,670,000; which will leave a prob able deficit of $11,406,000. To meet this, some tem porary provision is necessary, until the amount can be absorbed by the excess of revenues which are anticipated to accrue at no distant day. There will fall due within the next three months treas ury notes of the issues of 1840, including interest, about $2,850,000. There is chargeable in the same period for arrearages for taking the sixth census $294,000; and the estimated expenditures for the current service are about $8,100,000, making the aggregate demand upon the treasu ry, prior to the 1st of September next, about $11,340,000. The ways and means in the treasury, and estimated to accrue within the above-named period, consist of about $694,000, of funds available on the 28th ultimo ; an un issued balance of treasury notes authorized by the act of 1841 amounting to $1,955,000, and estimated receipts from all sources of $3,800,000, making an aggregate of about $6,450,000, and leaving a probable deficit on the 1st of September next of about $4,845,000. In order to supply the wants of the government, an in telligent constituency, in view of their best interests, will, without hesitation, submit to all necessary burdens. But it is nevertheless important so to impose them as to avoid defeating the just expectations of the country, growing out of preexisting laws. The act of the 2d March, 1833, commonly called the compromise act, should not be altered except under urgent necessities, which are not believed at this time to exist. One year only remains to complete the series of reductions provided for by that law, at which time provisions made by the same law, and which then will be brought actively in aid of the manufacturing in terests of the Union, will not fail to produce the most ben eficial results. Under a system of discriminating duties imposed for purposes of revenue, in unison with the pro visions of existing laws, it is to be hoped that our policy 267 will, in the future, be fixed and permanent, so as to avoid those constant fluctuations which defeat the very objects they have in view. We shall thus best maintain a posi tion which, while it will enable us the more readily to meet the advances of other countries calculated to promote our trade and commerce, will, at the same time, leave in our own hands the means of retaliating with greater effect unjust regulations. In intimate connection with the question of revenue is that which makes provision for a suitable fiscal agent ca pable of adding increased facilities in the collection and disbursement of the public revenues, rendering more se cure their custody, and consulting a true economy in the great, multiplied, and delicate operations of the treasury department. Upon such an agent depends, in an eminent degree, the establishment of a currency of uniform value, which is of so great importance to all the essential inter ests of society; and on the wisdom to be manifested in its creation much depends. So intimately interwoven are its operations not only with the interests of individuals, but of states, that it may be regarded in a great degree as controlling both. If paper be used as the chief medi um of circulation, and the power be vested in the govern ment of issuing it at pleasure, either in the form of treas ury drafts or any other, or if banks be used as the public depositories, with liberty to regard all surpluses, from day to day, as so much added to their active capital, prices are exposed to constant fluctuations, and industry to se vere suffering. In the one case, political considerations, directed to party purposes, may control, while excessive cupidity may prevail in the other. The public is thus constantly liable to imposition. Expansions and contrac tions may follow each other in rapid succession, the one engendering a reckless spirit of adventure and speculation, which embraces states as well as individuals ; the other causing a fall in prices, and accomplishing an entire change in the aspect of affairs. Stocks of all kinds rap idly decline, individuals are ruined, and states embar rassed even in their efforts to meet with punctuality the interest on their debts. Such, unhappily, is the condi tion of things now existing in the United States. The^e 268 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. effects may readily be traced to the causes above referred to. The public revenues, on being removed from the then Bank of the United States, under an order of a late President, were placed in selected state banks, which, actuated by the double motive of conciliating the govern ment and augmenting their profits to the greatest possible extent, enlarged extravagantly their discounts, thus ena bling all other existing banks to do the same. Large dividends were declared, which, stimulating the cupidity of capitalists, caused a rush to be made to the legislatures of the respective states for similar acts of incorporation, which, by many of the states, under a temporary infatu ation, were readily granted, and thus the augmentation of the circulating medium, consisting almost exclusively of paper, produced a most fatal delusion. An illustration, derived from the land sales of the period alluded to, will serve best to show the effect of the whole system. The average sales of the public lands, for a period of ten years prior to 1834, had not much exceeded $2,000,000 per annum. In 1834 they attained, in round numbers, to the amount of $6,000,000. In the succeed ing year of 1835 they reached $16,000,000. And in 1836 they amounted to the enormous sum of $25,000,000. Thus crowding into the short space of three years up wards of twenty-three years purchase of the public do main. So apparent had become the necessity of arresting this course of things, that the executive department as sumed the highly-questionable power of discriminating in the funds to be used in payment by different classes of public debtors a discrimination which was doubtless de signed to correct this most ruinous state of things by the exaction of specie in all payments for the public lands, but which could not at once arrest the tide which had so strongly set in. Hence the demands for specie became unceasing, and corresponding prostration rapidly ensued under the necessities created with the banks to curtail their discounts, and thereby to reduce their circulation. I recur to these things with no disposition to censure pre existing administrations of the government, but simply in exemplification of the truth of the position which I have assumed. If, then, any fiscal agent which may be created 269 shall be placed, without due restrictions, either in the hands of the administrators of the government or those of private individuals, the temptation to abuse will prove to be resistless. Objects of political aggrandizement may seduce the first, and the promptings of a boundless cupid ity will assail the last. Aided by the experience of the past, it will be the pleasure of Congress so to guard and fortify the public interests, in the creation of any new agent, as to place them, so far as human wisdom can ac complish it, on a footing of perfect security. Within a few years past, three different schemes have been before the country. The charter of the Bank of the United States expired by its own limitations in 1836. An effort was made to renew it, which received the sanction of the two houses of Congress ; but the then President of the United States exercised his veto power, and the mea sure was defeated. A regard to truth requires me to say that the President was fully sustained in the course he had taken by the popular voice. His successor in the chair of state unqualifiedly pronounced his opposition to any new charter of a similar institution ; and not only the popular election which brought him into power, but the elections through much of his term, seemed clearly to in dicate a concurrence with him in sentiment on the part of the people. After the public moneys were withdrawn from the United States Bank, they were placed in deposit with the state banks, and the result of that policy has been before the country. To say nothing as to the ques tions whether that experiment was made under propitious or adverse circumstances, it may safely be asserted that it did receive the unqualified condemnation of most of its early advocates, and, it is believed, was also condemned by the popular sentiment. The existing sub-treasury system does not seem to stand in higher favor with the people, but has recently been condemned in a manner too plainly indicated to admit of a doubt. Thus, in the short period of eight years, the popular voice may be regarded as having successively condemned each of the three schemes of finance to which I have adverted. As to the first, it was introduced at a time (1816) when the state banks, then comparatively few in number, had been forced to 23* 270 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN suspend specie payments, by reason of the war which h?d previously prevailed with Great Britain. Whether, if the United States Bank charter, which expired in 1811, had been renewed in due season, it would have been enabled to continue specie payments during the war and the dis astrous period to the commerce of the country which im mediately succeeded, is, to say the least, problematical ; and whether the United States Bank of 1816 produced a restoration of specie payments, or the same was accom plished through the instrumentality of other means, was a matter of some difficulty at that time to determine. Certain it is that, for the first years of the operation of that bank, its course was as disastrous as for the greater part of its subsequent career it became eminently success ful. As to the second, the experiment was tried with a redundant treasury, which continued to increase until it seemed to be the part of wisdom to distribute the surplus revenue among the states, which, operating at the same time with the specie circular, and the causes before ad verted to, caused them to suspend specie payments, and involved the country in the greatest embarrassment. And, as to the third, if carried through all the stages of its transmutation, from paper and specie to nothing but the precious metals, to say nothing of the insecurity of the public moneys, its injurious effects have been anticipated by the country in its unqualified condemnation. What is now to be regarded as the judgment of the American people on this whole subject, I have no accurate means of determining, but by appealing to their more immediate representatives. The late contest, which terminated in the election of General Harrison to the Presidency, was decided on principles well known and openly declared ; and, while the sub-treasury received in the result the most decided condemnation, yet no other scheme of finance seemed to have been concurred in. To you, then, who have come more directly from the body of our com mon constituents, I submit the entire question, as best qualified to give a full exposition of their wishes and opinions. I shall be ready to concur with you in the adoption of such system as you may propose, reserving to myself the ultimate power of rejecting any measure TYLER S EXTRA SESSION MESSAGE. 271 which may, in my view of it, conflict with the constitution, or otherwise jeopard the prosperity of the country a power which I could not part with even if I would, but which I will not believe any act of yours will call into requisition. I cannot avoid recurring, in connection with this subject, to the necessity which exists for adopting some suitable measure whereby the unlimited creation of banks by the states may be corrected in future. Such result can be most readily achieved by the consent of the states, to be expressed in the form of a compact among themselves, which they can only enter into with the consent and appro bation of this government a consent which, in the present emergency of the public demands, may justifiably be given by Congress in advance of any action by the states as an inducement to such action upon terms well defined by the act of tender. Such a measure, addressing itself to the calm reflection of the states, would find in the experience of the past and the condition of the present, much to sustain it. And it is greatly to be doubted whether any scheme of finance can prove for any length of time successful while the states shall continue in the unrestrained exercise of the power of creating banking corporations. This power can only be limited by their consent. With the adoption of a financial agency of a satisfactory character, the hope may be indulged that the country may once more return to a state of prosperity. Measures aux iliary thereto, and, in some measure, inseparably connected with its success, will doubtless claim the attention of Con gress. Among such, a distribution of the proceeds of the sales of the public lands, provided such distribution does not force upon Congress the necessity of imposing upon com merce heavier burdens than those contemplated by the act of 1833, would act as an efficient remedial measure by being brought directly in aid of the states. As one sin cerely devoted to the task of preserving a just balance in our system of government, by the maintenance of the states in a condition the most free and respectable, and in the full possession of all their power, I can no otherwise than feel desirous for their emancipation from the situation to which the pressure on their finances now subjects them. And, 272 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. while I must repudiate as a measure founded in error, and wanting constitutional sanction, the slightest approach to an assumption by this government of the debts of the states, yet I can see, in the distribution adverted to, much to rec ommend it. The compacts between the proprietor states and this government expressly guaranty to the states all the benefits which may arise from the sales. The mode by which this is to be effected addresses itself to the discretion of Congress, as the trustee for the states ; and its exercise, after the most beneficial manner, is restrained by nothing in the grants or in the constitution, so long as Congress shall consult that equality in the distribution which the compacts require. In the present condition of some of the states, the question of distribution may be regarded as substantially a question between direct and indirect taxa tion. If the distribution be not made in some form or other, the necessity will daily become more urgent with the debtor states for a resort to an oppressive system of direct taxation, or their credit, and necessarily their power and influence, will be greatly diminished. The payment of taxes, after the most inconvenient and oppressive mode, will be exacted in place of contributions for the most part voluntarily made, and therefore comparatively unoppressive. The states are emphatically the constituents of this gov ernment ; and we should be entirely regardless of the ob jects held in view by them in the creation of this govern ment if we could be indifferent to their good. The happy effects of such a measure upon all the states would imme diately be manifested. With the debtor states it would effect the relief, to a great extent, of the citizens from a heavy burden of direct taxation, which presses with severity on the laboring classes, and eminently assist in restoring the general prosperity. An immediate advance wculd take place in the price of the state securities, and the attitude of the states would become once more, as it should ever be, lofty and erect. With states laboring under no ex treme pressure from debt, the fund which they would derive from this source wculd enable them to improve their condi tion in an eminent degree. So far as this government is concerned, appropriations to domestic objects, approaching in amount the revenue derived from the land sales, might 273 be abandoned, and thus a system of unequal and therefore unjust legislation would be substituted by one dispensing equality to all the members of this confederacy. Whether such distribution should be made directly to the states in the proceeds of the sales, or in the form of profits by virtue of the operations of any fiscal agency having these proceeds as its basis, should such measure be contemplated by Con gress, would well deserve its consideration. Nor would such disposition of the proceeds of the sales in any man ner prevent Congress from time to time from passing all necessary preemption laws for the benefit of actual settlers, or from making any new arrangement as to the price of the public lands which might in future be esteemed desirable. I beg leave particularly to call your attention to the accompanying report from the secretary of war. Besides the present state of the war which has so long afflicted the territory of Florida, and the various other matters of interest therein referred to, you will learn from it that the secretary has instituted an inquiry into abuses, which promises to develop great enormities in connection with Indian treaties which have been negotiated, as well as in the expenditures for the removal and subsistence of the Indians. He represents, also, other irregularities of a serious nature that have grown up in the practice of the Indian department, which will require the appropriation of upwards of $200,009 to correct, and which claim the immediate attention of Congress. In reflecting on the proper means of defending the country, we cannot shut our eyes to the consequences which the introduction and use of the power of steam upon the ocean are likely to produce in wars between maritime states. We cannot yet see the extent to which this power may be applied in belligerent operations, con necting itself as it does with recent improvements in the sci ence of gunnery and projectiles; but we need have no fear of being left, in regard to these things, behind the most active and skilful of other nations, if the genius and en terprise of our fellow-citizens receive proper encourage ment and direction from government. True wisdom would, nevertheless, seem to dictate the necessity of placing in perfect condition those fortifications 274 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. which are designed for the protection of our principal cities and roadsteads. For the defence of our extended maritime coast, our chief reliance should be placed en our navy, aided by those inventions which are destined to recommend themselves to public adoption. But no time should be lost in placing our principal cities on the seaboard and the lakes in a state of entire security from foreign assault Separated as we are from the countries of the old world, and in much unaffected by their policy, we are happily relieved from the necessity of maintaining large standing armies in times of peace. The policy which was adopted by Mr. Monroe, shortly after the conclusion of the late war with Great Britain, of preserving a regularly-organized staff sufficient for the command of a large military force, should the necessity for one arise, is founded as well in economy as in true wisdom. Provision is thus made, upon filling up the rank and file, which can readily be done on any emergency, for the introduction of a system of discipline both promptly and efficiently. All that is required in time of peace is to maintain a sufficient number of men to guard our fortifications, to meet any sudden contingency, and to encounter the first shock of war. Our chief reliance must be placed on the militia. They constitute the great body of national guards, and, inspired by an ardent love of country, will be found ready at all times and at all seasons to repair with alacrity to its defence. It will be regarded by Congress, I doubt not, at a suitable time, as one of its highest duties to attend to their complete organization and discipline. By the report of the secretary of the navy it will be seen that the state of the navy pension fund requires the immediate attention of Congress. By the operation of the act of the 3d of March, 1837, entitled " An act for the more equitable administration of the navy pension fund," that fund has been exhausted. It will be seen that there will be required for the payment of navy pensions, on the 1st of July next, $88,706 06, and on the 1st of January, 1842, the sum of $69,000. In addition to these sums, about $6,000 will be required to pay arrears of pensions which will probably be allowed between the 1st of July and the 1st of January, 1842, making in the whole 275 $163,706 06. To meet these payments, there is within the control of the department the sum of $23,043, leaving a deficit of $139,6615 06. The public faith requires that immediate provision should be made for the payment of these sums. In order to introduce into the navy a desirable efficien cy, a new system of accountability may be found to be indispensably necessary. To mature a plan having for its object the accomplishment of an end so important, and to meet the just expectations of the country, require more time than has yet been allowed to the secretary at the head of that department. The hope is indulged that, by the time of your next regular session, measures of impor tance, in connection with this branch of the public service, may be matured for your consideration. Although the laws regulating the post-office depart ment only require from the officer charged with its direc tion to report at the usual annual session of Congress, the postmaster-general has presented me with some ficts connected with the financial condition of the department which are deemed worthy the attention of Congress. By the accompanying report of that officer, it appears that the existing liabilities of that department beyond the means of payment at its command cannot be less than $500,090. As the laws organizing that branch of the public service confine the expenditure to its own revenues, deficiencies therein cannot be presented under the usual estimates for the expenses of government. It must therefore be left to Congress to determine whether the moneys now due to contractors, shall be paid from the public treasury, or whether that department shall continue under its present embarrassments. It will be seen by the report of the postmaster-general that the recent lettings of contracts in several of the states have been made at such reduced rates of compensation as to encourage the belief, that if the department was relieved from existing difficulties, its future operations might be conducted without any further call upon the general treasury. The power of appointing to office is one of a character the most delicate and responsible. The appointing power is evermore exposed to be led into error. With anxious 276 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. solicitude to select the most trustworthy for official station, I cannot be supposed to possess a personal knowledge of the qualifications of every applicant. I deem it therefore proper, in this most public manner, to invite, on the part of the Senate, a just scrutiny into the character and pre tensions of every person whom I may bring to their notice in the regular form of a nomination to office. Unless per sons every way trustworthy are employed in the public service, corruption and irregularity will inevitably follow. I shall, with the greatest cheerfulness, acquiesce in the decision of that body, and, regarding it as wisely consti tuted to aid the executive department in the performance of this delicate duty, I shall look to its " consent and ad vice" as given only in furtherance of the best interests of the country. I shall also, at the earliest proper occasion, invite the attention of Congress to such measures as in my judgment will be best calculated to regulate and con trol the executive power in reference to this vitally-im portant subject. I shall also, at the proper season, invite your attention to the statutory enactments for the suppression of the slave trade, which may require to be rendered more effi cient in their provisions. There is reason to believe that the traffic is on the increase. Whether such increase is to be ascribed to the abolition of slave labor in the British possessions in our vicinity, and an attendant diminution in the supply of those articles which enter into the general consumption of the world, thereby augmenting the demand from other quarters, and thus calling for additional labor, it were needless to inquire. The highest considerations of public honor, as well as the strongest promptings of hu manity, require a resort to the most vigorous efforts to suppress the trade. In conclusion, I beg leave to invite your particular at tention to the interests of this District. Nor do I doubt but that, in a liberal spirit of legislation, you will seek to advance its commercial as well as its local interests. Should Congress deem it to be its duty to repeal the ex isting sub-treasury law, the necessity of providing a suit able phce of deposit for the public moneys which may be required within the District must be apparent to all. 277 I have felt it due to the country to present the forego ing topics to your consideration and reflection. Others, with which it. might not seem proper to trouble you at an extraordinary session, will be laid before you at a future day. I am happy in committing the important affairs of the country into your hands. The tendency of public sentiment, I am pleased to believe, is towards the adop tion, in a spirit of union and harmony, of such measures as will fortify the public interests. To cherish such a tendency of public opinion is the task of an elevated pa triotism. That differences of opinion as to the means of accomplishing these desirable objects should exist, is reasonably to be expected. Nor can all be made satisfied with any system of measures. But I flatter myself with the hope that the great body of the people will readily unite in the support of those whose efforts spring from a disinterested desire to promote their happiness ; to pre serve the federal and state governments within their re spective orbits ; to cultivate peace with all the nations of the earth, on just and honorable grounds ; to exact obe dience to the laws; to intrench liberty and property in full security ; and, consulting the most rigid economy, to abolish all useless expenses. JACKSON S MAYSVILLE ROAD VETO. MAY 27, 1830. To the House of Representatives : GENTLEMEN : I have maturely considered the bill pro posing to authorize " a subscription of stock in the Mays- ville, Washington, Paris, and Lexington Turnpike-Road Company," and now return the same to the House of Representatives, in which it originated, with my objections to its passage. Sincerely friendly to the improvement of our country by means of roads and canals, I regret that any difference of opinion in the mode of contributing to it should exist 24 278 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. between us ; and if, in stating this difference, I go beyond what the occasion may be deemed to call for, I hope to find an apology in the great importance of the subject, an unfeigned respect for the high source from which this branch of it has emanated, and an anxious wish to be correctly understood by my constituents in the discharge of all my duties. Diversity of sentiment among public functionaries, actuated by the same general motives, on the character and tendency of particular measures, is an inci dent common to all governments, and the more to be ex pected in one which, like ours, owes its existence to the freedom of opinion, and must be upheld by the same influ ence. Controlled, as we thus are, by a higher tribunal, before which our respective acts will be canvassed with the indulgence due to the imperfections of our nature, and with that intelligence and unbiased judgment which are the true correctives of error, all that our responsibility de mands is, that the public good should be the measure of our views, dictating alike their frank expression and hon est maintenance. In the message which was presented to Congress at the opening of its present session, I endeavored to exhibit briefly my views upon the important and highly-inter esting subject to which our attention is now to be directed. I was desirous of presenting to the representatives of the several states, in Congress assembled, the inquiry, whether some mode could not be devised, which would reconcile the diversity of opinion concerning the powers of this government over the subject of internal improvement, and the manner in which these powers, if conferred by the constitution, ought to be exercised. The act which I am called upon to consider has therefore been passed with a knowledge of my views on this question, as these are expressed in the message referred to. In that document, the following suggestions will be found : " After the extinction of the public debt, it is not prob able that any adjustment of the tariff, upon principles satisfactory to the people of the Union, will, until a remote period, if ever, leave the government without a consid erable surplus in the treasury, beyond what may be re quired for its current service. As, then, the period ap- JACKSON S MAYSVILLE ROAD VETO. 279 proaches when the application of the revenue to the pay- merit of debt will cease, (he disposition of the surplus will present a subject for the serious deliberation of Congress; and it may be fortunate for the country that it is yet to be decided. Considered in connection with the difficulties which have heretofore attended appropriations for pur poses of internal improvement, and with those which this experience tells us will certainly arise whenever power over such subjects may be exercised by the general gov ernment, it is hoped that it may lead to the adoption of some plan which will reconcile the diversified interests of the states, and strengthen the bonds which unite them. Every member of the Union, in peace and in war, will be benefited by the improvement of inland navigation, and the construction of highways in the several states. Let us, then, endeavor to attain this benefit in a mode which will be satisfactory to all. That hitherto adopted has, by many of our fellow-citizens, been deprecated as an in fraction of the constitution ; while by others it has been viewed as inexpedient. All feel that it has been employed at the expense of harmony in the legislative councils." And adverting to the constitutional power of Congress to make what I consider a proper disposition of the surplus revenue, I subjoined the following remarks: " To avoid these evils, it appears to me that the most safe, just, and federal disposition which could be made of the surplus revenue, would be its apportionment among the several states according to their ratio of representation ; and should this measure not be found warranted by the consti tution, that it would be expedient to propose to the states an amendment authorizing it." The constitutional power of the federal government to construct or promote works of internal improvement, pre sents itself in two points of view, the first, as bearing upon the sovereignty of the states within whose limits their execution is contemplated, if jurisdiction of the ter ritory which they may occupy be claimed as necessary to their preservation and use ; the second, as asserting the simple right to appropriate money from the national treas ury in aid of such works, when undertaken by state authority, surrendering the claim of jurisdiction. In the 280 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. first view, the question of power is an open one, and can be decided without the embarrassment attending the other, arising from the practice of the government. Although frequently and strenuously attempted, the power, to this extent, has never been exercised by the government in a single instance. It does not, in my opinion, possess it; and DO bill, therefore, which admits it, can receive my official sanction. But, in the other view of the power, the question is differently situated. The ground taken at an early period of the government was, " that, whenever money has been raised by the general authority, and is to be applied to a particular measure, a question arises, whether a particular measure be within the enumerated authorities vested in Congress. If it be, the money requisite for it may be ap plied to it; if not, no such application can be made." The document in which this principle was first advanced is of deservedly high authority, and should be held in grateful remembrance for its immediate agency in res cuing the country from much existing abuse, and for its conservative effect upon some of the most valuable prin ciples of the constitution. The symmetry and purity of the government would doubtless have been better pre served if this restriction of the power of appropriation could have been maintained without weakening its ability to fulfil the general objects of its institution an effect so likely to attend its admission, notwithstanding its apparent fitness, that every subsequent administration of the gov ernment, embracing a period of thirty out of forty-two years of its existence, has adopted a more enlarged con struction of the power. It is not my purpose to detain you by a minute recital of the acts which sustain this assertion, but it is proper that I should notice some of the most prominent, in order that the reflections which they suggest to my mind may be better understood. In the administration of Mr. Jefferson, we have two ex amples of the exercise of the right of appropriation, which, in the considerations that led to their adoption, and in their effects upon the public mind, have had a greater agency in marking the character of the power than any subsequent events. I allude to the payment of fifteen JACKSON S MAYSVILLE ROAD VETO. 281 millions of dollars for the purchase of Louisiana, and to the origin il appropriation for the construction of the Cum berland road ; the latter act deriving much weight from the acquiescence and approbation of the three most pow erful of the original members of the confederacy, expressed through their respective legislatures. Although the cir cumstances of the latter case may be such as to deprive so much of it as relates to the actual construction of the road, of the force of an obligatory exposition of the con stitution, it must nevertheless be admitted that so far as the mere appropriation of money is concerned, they pre sent the principle in its most imposing aspect. No less than twenty-three different laws have been passed through all the forms of the constitution, appropriating upwards of two millions and a half dollars out of the national treasury in support of that improvement, with the appro bation of every President of the United States, including my predecessor, since its commencement. Independently of the sanction giving appropriations for the Cumberland and other roads and objects, under this power, the administration of Mr. Madison was charac terized by an act which furnishes the strongest evidence of its extent. A bill was passed through both houses of Congress, and presented for his approval, " setting apart and pledging certain funds for constructing roads and canals, and improving the navigation of watercourses, in order to facilitate, promote, and give security to internal commerce among the several states, and to render more easy and less expensive the means and provisions for the common defence." Regarding the bill as asserting a power in the federal government to construct roads and canals within the limits of the states in which they were made, he objected to its passage, on the ground of its unconstitutionally, declaring that the assent of the respec tive states, in the mode provided by the bill, could not confer the power in question ; that the only cases in which the consent and cession of particular states can extend the power of Congress, are those specified and provided for in the constitution ; and superadding these avowals, his opinion that a restriction of the power " to provide for the common defence and general welfare " to 24* 282 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. cases which are to be provided for by the expenditure of money, would still leave within the legislative power of Congress all the great and most important measures of government, money being the ordinary and necessary means of carrying them into execution. I have not been able to consider these declarations in any other point of view than as a concession that the right of appropriation is not limited by the power to carry into effect the meas ure for which the money is asked, as was formerly con tended. The views of Mr. Monroe upon this subject were not left to inference. During his administration, a bill was passed through both houses of Congress, conferring the jurisdiction, and prescribing the mode by which the fed eral government should exercise it, in the case of the Cumberland road. He returned it, with objections to its passage, and, in assigning them, took occasion to say, that in the early stages of the government, he had inclined to the construction that it had no right to expend money except in the performance of acts authorized by the other specific grants of power, according to a strict construc tion of them ; but that, on further reflection and observa tion, his mind had undergone a change ; that his opinion then was, " that Congress have an unlimited power to raise money, and that in its appropriation they have a dis cretionary power, restricted by the duty to appropriate to purposes of common defence, and of general, not local ; national, not state benefit: " and this was avowed to be the governing principle through the residue of his admin istration. The views of the last administration are of such recent date as to render a particular reference to them unnecessary. It is well known that the appropriating power, to the utmost extent which had been claimed for it in relation to internal improvements, was fully recognized and exercised by it. This brief reference to known facts will be sufficient to show the difficulty, if not impracticability, of bringing back the operations of the government to the construction of the constitution set up in 1798, assuming that to be its true reading, in relation to the power under considera tion ; thus giving an admonitory proof of the force of im- plication, and the necessity of guarding the constitution with sleepless vigilance against the authority of prece dents which have not the sanction of its most plainly-de fined powers. For, although it is the duty of all to look to that sacred instrument, instead of the statute-book ; to repudiate, at all times, encroachments upon its spirit, which are too apt to be effected by the conjuncture of pe culiar and facilitating circumstances ; it is not less true that the public good and the nature of our political insti tutions require that individual differences should yield to a well-settled acquiescence of the people and confederated authorities, in particular constructions of the constitution on doubtful points. Not to concede this much to the spirit of our institutions, would impair their stability, and defeat the objects of the constitution itself. The bill before me does not call for a more definite opinion upon the particular circumstances which will war rant appropriations of money by Congress, to aid works of internal improvement; for, although the extension of the power to apply money beyond that of carrying into effect the object for which it is appropriated, has, as we have seen, been long claimed and exercised by the fed eral government, yet such grants have always been profess edly under ths control of the general principle, that the works which might be thus aided, should be " of a gen eral, not local ; national, not state character." A disre gard of this distinction would of necessity lead to the subversion of the federal system. That even this is an unsafe one, arbitrary in its nature, and liable consequently to great abuses, is too obvious to require the confirmation of experience. It is, however, sufficiently definitive and imperative to my mind to forbid my approbation of any bill having the character of the one under consideration. I have given to its provisions all the reflection demanded by a just regard for the interests of those of our fellow- citizens who have desired its passage, and by the respect which is due to a coordinate branch of the government; but I am not able to view it in any other light than as a measure of purely local character ; or, if it can be con sidered national, that no further distinction between the appropriate duties of the general and state governments 284 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. need be attempted ; for there can be no local interest that may not with equal propriety be denominated national. It has no connection with any established system of im provements; is exclusively within the limits of a state, starting at a point on the Ohio River, and running out sixty miles to an interior town ; and even so far as the state is interested, conferring partial, instead of general advantages. Considering the magnitude and importance of the pow er, and the embarrassments to which, from the very nature of the thing, its exercise must necessarily be subjected, the real friends of internal improvement ought not to be willing to confide it to accident and chance. What is properly national in its character or otherwise, is an in quiry which is often difficult of solution. The appropri ations of one year, for an object which is considered na tional, may be rendered nugatory by the refusal of a suc ceeding Congress to continue the work, on the ground that it is local. No aid can be derived from the intervention of corporations. The question regards the character of the work, not that of those by whom it is to be accom plished. Notwithstanding the union of the government with the corporation, by whose immediate agency any work of internal improvement is carried on, the inquiry will still remain, Is it national, and conducive to the ben efit of the whole, or local, and operating only to the ad vantage of a portion of the Union ? But, although I might not feel it to be my official duty to interpose the executive veto to the passage of a bill appropriating money for the construction of such works as are authorized by the states, and are national in their character, I do not wish to be understood as expressing an opinion that it is expedient, at this time, for the general government to embark in a system of this kind ; and, anx ious that my constituents should be possessed of my views on this as well as on all other subjects which they have committed to my discretion, I shall state them frankly and briefly. Besides many minor considerations, there are two prominent views of the subject which I think are well en titled to your serious attention, and will, I hope, be ma turely weighed by the people. 285 From the official communication submitted to yon, it appears that, if no adverse or unforeseen contingency happens in our foreign relations, and no unusual diver sion be made of the funds set apart for the payment of the national debt, we may look with confidence to its en tire extinguishment in the short period of four years. The extent to which this pleasing anticipation is depend ent upon the policy which may be pursued in relation to measures of the character of the one now under consid eration, must be obvious to all, and equally so that the events of the present session are well calculated to awa ken public solicitude upon the subject. By the statement from the treasury department, and those from the clerks of the Senate and House of Representatives, herewith submitted, it appears that the bills which have passed into laws, and those which, in all probability, will pass before the adjournment of Congress, anticipate appropri ations which, with ordinary expenditures for the support of government, will exceed considerably the amount in the treasury for the year 1830. Thus, whilst we are di minishing the revenues by a reduction of the duties on tea, coffee, and cocoa, the appropriations for internal improve ment are increasing beyond the available means in the treasury; and if to this calculation be added the amounts contained in bills which are pending before the two houses, it may be safely affirmed that ten millions of dollars would not make up the excess over the treasury receipts, unless the payment of the national debt be postponed, and the means now pledged to that object applied to those enumerated in these bills. Without a well-regulated system of internal improvement, this exhausting mode of appropriation is not likely to be avoided, and the plain consequence must be, either a continuance of the national debt, or a resort to additional taxes. Although many of the states, with a laudable zeal, and under the influence of an enlightened policy, are succes sively applying their separate efforts to works of this char acter, the desire to enlist the aid of the general govern ment in the construction of such as, from their nature, outfit to devolve upon it, and to which the means of the individual states are inadequate, is both rational and pa- 286 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. triotic ; and if that desire is not gratified now, it does not follow that it never will be. The general intelligence and public spirit of the American people furnish a sure guaranty, that, at the proper time, this policy will be made to prevail under circumstances more auspicious to its successful prosecution than those which now exist. But, great as this object undoubtedly is, it is not the only one which demands the fostering care of the government. The preservation and success of the republican principle rests with us. To elevate its character, and extend its influence, rank among our most important duties ; and the best means to accomplish this desirable end, are those which will rivet the attachment of our citizens to the government of their choice, by the comparative lightness of their public burdens, and by the attraction which the superior success of its operations will present to the ad miration and respect of the world. Through the favor of an overruling and indulgent Providence, our country is blessed with general prosperity, and our citizens exempt ed from the pressure of taxation which other less favored portions of the human family are obliged to bear; yet it is true that many of the taxes collected from our citizens, through the medium of imposts, have, for a considerable period, been onerous. In many particulars, these taxes have borne severely upon the laboring and less prosper ous classes of the community, being imposed on the neces saries of life, and this, too, in cases where the burden was not relieved by the consciousness that it would ul timately contribute to make us independent of foreign nations for articles of prime necessity, by the encourage ment of their growth and manufacture at home. They have been cheerfully borne, because they were thought to be necessary to the support of government, and the payment of the. debts unavoidably incurred in the acqui sition and maintenance of our national rights and liber ties. But have we a right to calculate on the same cheerful acquiescence, when it is known that the necessi ty for their continuance would cease, were it not for irreg ular, improvident, and unequal appropriations of the pub lic funds? Will not the people demand, as they have a right to do, such a prudent system of expenditure as will JACKSON S MAYSVILLE ROAD VETO. 287 pay the debts of the Union, and authorize the reduction of every fix to as low a point as the wise observance of the necessity to protect that portion of our manufactures and labor, whose prosperity is essential to our national safety and independence, will allow 1 When the national debt is paid, the duties upon those articles which we do not raise may be repealed with safety, and still leave, I trust, without oppression to any section of the country, an accumulating surplus fund, which may be beneficially ap plied to some well-digested system of improvement. Under this view, the question, as to the manner in which the federal government can, or ought to embark in the construction of roads and canals, arid the extent to which it may impose burdens on the people for these pur poses, may be presented on its own merits, free of all dis guise, and of every embarrassment except such as may arise from the constitution itself. Assuming these sugges tions to be correct, will not our citizens require the obser vance of a course by which they can be effected? Ought they not to require it ? With the best disposition to aid, as far as I can conscientiously, in the furtherance of works of internal improvement, my opinion is, that the soundest views of national policy, at this time, point to such a course. Besides the avoidance of an evil influence upon the local concerns of the country, how solid is the advan tage which the government will reap from it in the eleva tion of its character ! How gratifying the effect of pre senting to the world the sublime spectacle of a republic, of more than twelve millions of happy people, in the fifty- fourth year of her existence after having passed through two protracted wars, the one for the acquisition, and the other for the maintenance of liberty free from debt, and with all her immense resources unfettered ! What a salu tary influence would not such an exhibition exercise upon the cause of liberal principles and free government through out the world ! Would we not ourselves find in its effect an additional guaranty that our political institutions will be transmitted to the most remote posterity without decay ? A course of policy destined to witness events like these, cannot be benefited by a legislation which tolerates a scramble for appropriations that have no relation to any 288 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. general system of improvement, and whose good effects must of necessity be very limited. In the best view of these appropriations, the abuses to which they lead far exceed the good which they are capable of promoting. They may be resorted to as artful expedients to shift upon the government the losses of unsuccessful private specula tion, and thus, by ministering to personal ambition and self-aggrandizement, tend to sap the foundations of public virtue, and taint the administration of the government with a demoralizing influence. In the other view of the subject, and the only remaining one which it is my intention to present at this time, is in volved the expediency of embarking in a system of inter nal improvement without a previous amendment of the con stitution, explaining and denning the precise pOA-ers of the federal government over it. Assuming the right to appro priate money to aid in the construction of national works to be warranted by the contemporaneous and continued exposition of the constitution, its insufficiency for the suc cessful prosecution of them must be admitted by all can did minds. If we look to usage to define the extent of the right, that will be found so variant, and embracing so much that has been overruled, as to involve the whole subject in great uncertainty, and to render the execution of our re spective duties in relation to it replete with difficulty and embarrassment. It is in regard to such works, and the ac quisition of additional territory, that the practice obtained its first footing. In most, if not all other disputed ques tions of appropriation, the construction of the constitution may be regarded as unsettled, if the right to apply money, in the enumerated cases, is placed on the ground of usage. This subject has been of much, and, I may add, painful reflection to me. It has bearings that are well calculated to exert a powerful influence upon our hitherto prosperous system of government, and which, on some accounts, may even excite despondency in the breast of an American citi zen. I will not detain you with professions of zeal in the cause of internal improvements. If to be their friend is a virtue which deserves commendation, our country is blessed with an abundance of it; for I do not suppose there is an intelligent citizen who does not wish to see them flourish. 289 But though all are their friends, but few, I trust, are un mindful of the means by which they should be promoted ; none certainly are so degenerate as to desire their success at the cost of that sacred instrument, with the preservation of which is iridissolubly bound our country s hopes. If different impressions are entertained in any quarter ; if it is expected that the people of this country, reckless of their constitutional obligation, will prefer their local interest to the principles of the Union, such expectations will in the end be disappointed ; or, if it be not so, then indeed has the world but little to hope from the example of a free gov ernment. When an honest observance of constitutional compacts cannot be obtained from communities like ours, it need not be anticipated elsewhere; and the cause in which there has been so much martyrdom, and from which so much was expected by the friends of liberty, may be abandoned, and the degrading truth, that man is unfit for self-government, admitted. And this will be the case, if expediency be made the rule of construction in interpreting the constitution. Power, in no government, could desire a better shield for the insidious advances with which it is ever ready to break up the checks that are designed to re strain its action. But I do not entertain such gloomy apprehensions. If it be the wish of the people that the construction of roads and canals should be conducted by the federal government, it is not only highly expedient, but indispensably necessary, that a previous amendment of the constitution, delegating the necessary power, and defining and restricting its ex ercise with reference to the sovereignty of the states, should be made. Without it, nothing extensively useful can be effected. The right to exercise as much jurisdic tion as is necessary to preserve the works, and to raise funds by the collection of tolls to keep them in repair, cannot be dispensed with. The Cumberland road should be an instructive admonition of the consequences of acting without this right. Year after year, contests are witnessed, growing out of efforts to obtain the necessary appro priations for completing and repairing this useful work. Whilst one Congress may claim and exercise the power, a succeeding one may deny it ; and this fluctuation of opinion. 25 \ THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. must be Unavoidably fatal to any scheme which, from its extent, would promote the interests and elevate the char acter of the country. The experience of the past has shown that the opinion of Congress is subject to such fluctuations. If it be the desire, .of the people that the agency of the federal government should be confined to the appropriation of money in aid of such undertakings, in virtue of state authorities, then the occasion, the manner, and the extent 6f the appropriations, should be made the subject of con stitutional regulation. This is the more necessary, in order that they may be equitable among the several states ; pro mote harmony between different sections of the Union and their representatives ; preserve other parts of the constitu tion from being undermined by the exercise of doubtful powers, or the too great extension of those which are not so ; and protect the whole subject against the deleterious influence of combinations to carry by concert, measures which, considered by themselves, might meet but little countenance. That a constitutional adjustment of this power upon equitable principles is in the highest degree desirable, can scarcely be doubted ; nor can it fail to be promoted by every sincere friend to the success of our political institutions. In no government are appeals to the source of power, in cases of real doubt, more suitable than in ours. No good motive can be assigned for the exercise of power by the constituted authorities, while those for whose benefit it is to be exercised have not conferred it, and may not be willing to confer it. It would seem to me that an honest application of the conceded powers of the general government to the advancement of the common weal, presents a sufficient scope to satisfy a reasonable am bition. The difficulty and supposed impracticability of obtaining an amendment of the constitution in this respect, is, I firmly believe, in a great degree unfounded. The time has never yet been when the patriotism and intelli gence of the American people were not fully equal to the greatest exigency ; and it never will, when the subject, calling forth their interposition is plainly presented to them. To do so with the questions involved in this bill, and to urge them to an early, zealous, and full consideration of 291 their deep importance, is in my estimation among the highest of our duties. A supposed connection between appropriations for in ternal improvement and the system of protecting duties, growing out of the anxieties of those more immediately interested in their success, has given rise to suggestions which it is proper I should notice on this occasion. My opinions on these subjects have never been concealed from those who had a right to know them. Those which I have entertained on the latter have frequently placed me in opposition to individuals, as well as communities, whose claims upon my friendship and gratitude are of the strongest character; but I trust there has been nothing in my public life which has exposed me to the suspicion of being thought capable of sacrificing ray views of duty to private consideration??, however strong they may have been, or deep tho regrets which they are : capable of ex citing. As long as the encouragement of domestic manufactures is directed to national ends, it shall -receive from me a temperate but steady support. There is no necessary connection between it and the system of appropriations. On the contrary, it appears to me that the supposition of their dependence upon each other is calculated to excite the prejudices of the public against both. The former is sustained on the grounds of its consistency with the letter and spirit of the constitution, of its origin being traced to the assent of all the parties to the original com pact, and of its having the support and approbation of a majority of the people ; on which account it is at least entitled to a fair experiment. The suggestions to which I have alluded, refer to a forced continuance of the na tional debt, by means of large appropriations, as a sub stitute for the security which the system derives from the principles on which it has hitherto been sustained. Such a course would certainly indicate either an unreasonable distrust of the people, or a consciousness that the system does not possess sufficient soundness for its support, if left to their voluntary choice and its own merits. Those who suppose that any policy thus founded can be long upheld in this country, have looked upon its history with eyes 292 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. very different from mine. This policy, like every other, must abide the will of the people, who will not be likely to allow any device, however specious, to conceal its character and tendency. In presenting these opinions, I have spoken with the freedom and candor which I thought the occasion for their expression called for ; and now respectfully return the bill which has been under consideration, for your further deliberation and judgment. JACKSOFS BANK VETO. JULY 10, 1832. To the Senate : THE bill to " modify and continue " the act entitled " An act to incorporate the subscribers to the Bank of the United States," was presented to me on the 4th of July instant. Having considered it with that solemn re gard to the principles of the constitution which the day was calculated to inspire, and come to the conclusion that it ought not to become a law, I herewith return it to the Senate, in which it originated, with my objections. . A Bank of the United States is in many respects con venient for the government and useful to the people. En tertaining this opinion, and deeply impressed with the belief that some of the powers and privileges possessed by the existing bank are unauthorized by the constitution, subversive of the rights of the states, and dangerous to the liberties of the people, I felt it my duty, at an early period of my administration, to call the attention of Con gress to the practicability of organizing an institution combining all its advantages, and obviating these ob jections. I sincerely regret, that in the act before me, I can perceive none of those modifications of the bank charter which are necessary, in my opinion, to make it compatible with justice, with sound policy, or with the constitution of our country. The present corporate body, denominated the President, JACKSON S BANK VETO. 293 Directors, and Company of the Bank of the United States, will have existed, at the time this act is intended to take effect, twenty years. It enjoys- an exclusive privilege of banking, under the authority of the general government, a monopoly of its favor and support, and, as a necessary consequence, almost a monopoly of the foreign and do mestic exchange. The powers, privileges, and favors be stowed upon it, in the original charter, by increasing the value of the stock far above its par value, operated as a gratuity of many millions to the stockholders. An apology may be found for the failure to guard against this result, in the consideration that the effect of the original act of incorporation could not be certainly foreseen at the time of its passage. The act before me proposes another gratuity to the holders of the same stock, and, in many cases, to the same men, of at least seven millions more. This donation finds no apology in any uncertainty as to the effect of the act. On all hands it is conceded that its passage will increase, at least, twenty or thirty per cent, more, the market price of the stock, sub ject to the payment of the annuity of $200,000 per year secured by the act ; thus adding, in a moment, one fourth to its par value. It is not our own citizens only who are to receive the bounty of our government. More than eight millions of the stock of this bank are held by for eigners. By this act, the American republic proposes vir tually to make them a present of some millions of dollars. For these gratuities to foreigners, and to some of our own opulent citizens, the act secures no equivalent whatever. They are the certain gains of the present stockholders under the operation of this act, after making full allowance for the payment of the bonus. Every monopoly, and all exclusive privileges, are granted at the expense of the public, which ought to receive a fair equivalent. The many millions which this act proposes to bestow on the stockholders of the existing bank, must come directly or indirectly out of the earnings of the American people. It is due to them, therefore, if their government sell monopolies and exclusive privileges, that they should at least exact for them as much as they are worth in open market. The value of the monopoly in 25* 294 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. this case may be correctly ascertained. The twenty-eight millions of stock would probably be at an advance of fifty per cent., and command in the market at least forty-two millions of dollars, subject to the payment of the present bonus. The present value of the monopoly, therefore, is seventeen millions of dollars, which this act proposes to sell for three millions, payable in fifteen annual instal ments of $200,000 each. It is not conceivable how the present stockholders can have any claim to the special favor of the government The present corporation has enjoyed its monopoly during the period stipulated in the original contract. If we must have such a corporation, why should not the government sell out the whole stock, and thus secure to the people the full market value of the privileges granted 1 Why should not Congress create and sell twenty-eight millions of stock, incorporating the purchasers with all the powers and privi leges secured in this act, and put the premium upon the sales into the treasury 1 But this act does not permit competition in the purchase of this monopoly. It seems to me predicated on the er roneous idea that the present stockholders have a prescrip tive right not only to the favor, but to the bounty of gov ernment. It appears that more than a fourth part of the stock is held by foreigners, and the residue is held by a few hundred of our own citizens, chiefly of the richest class. For their benefit does this act exclude the whole American people from competition in the purchase of this monopoly, and dispose of it for many millions less than it is worth. This seems the less excusable, because some of our citizens, not now stockholders, petitioned that the door of competition might be opened, and offered to take a char ter on terms much more favorable to the government and country. But this proposition, although made by men whose ag gregate wealth is believed to be equal to all the private stock in the existing bank, has been set aside, arid the bounty of our government is proposed to be again bestowed on the few who have been fortunate enough to secure the stock, and at this moment wield the power of the ex isting institution. I cannot perceive the justice or policy 295 of this course. If our government must sell monopolies, it would seem to be its duty to take nothing less than their full value; and if gratuities must be made once in fifteen or twenty years, let them not be bestowed on the subjects of a foreign government, nor upon a designated and favored class of men in our own country. It is but justice and good policy, as far as the nature of the case will admit, to confine our favors to our own fellow-citizens, and let each in his turn enjoy an opportunity to profit by our bounty. In the bearings of the act before me, upon these points, 1 find ample reasons why it should not become a law. It has been urged as an argument in favor of recharter- ing the present bank, that the calling in its loans will pro duce great embarrassment and distress. The time allowed to close its concerns is ample; and if it has been well managed, its pressure will be light, and heavy only in case its management has been bad. If, therefore, it shall pro duce distress, the fault will be its own ; and it would furnish a reason against renewing a power which has been so obviously abused. But will there ever be a time when this reason will be less powerful 1 To acknowledge its force, is to admit that the bank ought to be perpetual ; and, as a consequence, the present stockholders, and those inheriting their rights as successors, be established a priv ileged order, clothed both with great political power, and enjoying immense pecuniary advantages from their con nection with the government. The modifications of the existing charter, proposed by this act, are not such, in my view, as make it consistent with the rights of the states or the liberties of the people. The qualification of the right of the bank to hold real estate, the limitation of its power to establish branches, and the power reserved to Congress to forbid the circula tion of small notes, are restrictions comparatively of little value or importance. All the objectionable principles of the existing corporation, and most of its odious features, are retained without alleviation. The fourth section provides " that the notes or bills of the said corporation, although the same be on the faces thereof, respectively, made payable at one place only, shall, nevertheless, be received by the said corporation at the 296 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. bank, or at any of the offices of discount and deposit there of, if tendered in liquidation or payment of any balance or balances due to said corporation, or to such office of dis count and deposit, from any other incorporated bank." This provision secures to the state banks a legal privilege in the Bank of the United States, which is withheld from all private citizens. If a state bank in Philadelphia owe the Bank of the United States, and have notes issued by the St. Louis branch, it can pay the debt with those notes ; but if a merchant, mechanic, or other private citizen, be in like circumstances, he cannot, by law, pay his debts with those notes; but must sell them at a discount, or send them to St. Louis to be cashed. This boon conceded to the state banks, though not unjust in itself, is most odious ; because it does not measure out equal justice to the high and the low, the rich and the poor. To the. extent of its practical effect, it is a bond of union, among the banking establishments of the nation, erecting them into an interest separate from that of the people ; and its necessary ten dency is to unite the Bank of the United States and the state banks in any measure which may be thought con ducive to their common interest. The ninth section of the act recognizes principles of worse tendency than any provision of the present charter. It enacts that " the cashier of the bank shall annually report to the secretary of the treasury the names of all the stockholders who are not resident citizens of the United States ; and, on the application of the treasurer of any state, shall make out and transmit to such treasurer a list of stockholders residing in, or citizens of such state, with the amount of stock owned by each." Although this provision, taken in connection with a decision of the Supreme Court, surrenders, by its silence, the right of the states to tax the banking institutions created by this cor poration, under the name of branches, throughout the Union, it is evidently intended to be construed as a con cession of their right to tax that portion of the stock which may be held by their own citizens and residents. In this light, if the act becomes a law, it will be understood by the states, who will probably proceed to levy a tax equal to that paid upon the stock of the banks incorporated by 297 themselves. In some states, that tax is now one per cent., either on the capital or on the shares, and that may be as sumed as the amount which all citizens or resident stock holders would be taxed under the operation of this act. As it is only the stock held in the states, and not that employed between them, which would be subject to tax ation, and as the names of foreign stockholders are not to be reported to the treasurers of the states, it is obvious that the stock held by them will be exempt from this bur den. Their annual profits will, therefore, be one per cent, more than the citizen stockholders ; and, as the annual dividends of the bank may be safely estimated at seven per cent, the stock will be worth ten or fifteen per cent, more to foreigners than to citizens of the United States. To appreciate the effect which this state of things will produce, we must take a brief review of the operations and present condition of the Bank of the United States By documents submitted to Congress at the present ses sion, it appears that on the 1st of January, 1832, of the twenty-eight millions of private stock in the corporation, $8,405,500 were held by foreigners, mostly of Great Britain. The amount of stock held in the nine Western and South-Western States, is $140,200, and in the four Southern States, is $5,623,100, and in the Middle and Eastern States, is about $13,522,000. The profits of the bank in 1831, as shown in a statement to Congress, were about $3,455,598 ; of this, there accrued in the nine West ern States, about $1,640,048 ; in the four Southern States, about $352,507; and in the Middle and Eastern States, about $1,463,041. As little stock is held in the west, it is obvious that the debt of the people in that section, to the bank, is principally a debt to the eastern and foreign stockholders ; that the interest they pay upon it, is carried into the Eastern States, and into Europe ; and that it is a burden upon their industry, and a drain of their currency, which no country can bear without inconvenience and oc casional distress. To meet this burden, and equalize the exchange operations of the bank, the amount of specie drawn from those states, through its branches, within the last two years, as shown by its official reports, was about $6,000,000. More than half a million of this amount does 298 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. not stop in the Eastern States, but passes on to Europe, to pay the dividends. of the foreign stockholders. In the principle of taxation recognized by this act, the Western States find no adequate compensation, for this perpetual burden on their industry, and drain of their currency. The branch bank at -Mobile made, last year, $95,140; yet, under the provisions of this act, the state of Alabama can raise no revenue from these profitable operations, because not a share of the stock is held by any of her citizens. Mississippi arid Missouri are in the same erudition, in re lation to the branches a t Natchez and St. Louis; and such, in a greater!^ less degree, is the condition of every Western state. TPlfe tendency of the plan of taxation which this act proposes, will be to place the whole United States ^:same relation to foreign countries which the Western now bear to the Eastern. When, by a tax on resi- Mit stockholders, the stock of this bank is made worth ten vlifteen per cent, more to foreigners than to residents, >st of it will inevitably leave the country. Thus will this provision, in* its practical effect, deprive the Eastern as well as the Southern and Western States, of the means of raising a revenue from the extension of business and great profits of the institution. It will make the American people debtors to aliens, in nearly the whole amount due to this bank, and send across the Atlantic from two to five millions of specie every year to pay the bank dividends. In another of its bearings this provision is fraught with danger. Of the twenty-five directors of this bank, five are chosen by the government, and twenty by the citizen stockholders. From all voice in these elections, the foreign stockholders are excluded by the charter. In pro portion, therefore, as the stock is transferred to foreign holders, the extent of suffrage in the choice of directors is curtailed. Already is almost a third of the stock in foreign hands, and not represented in elections. It is constantly passing out of the country ; and this act will accelerate its de parture. The entire control of the institution would necessarily fall into the hands of a few citizen stock holders; and the ease with which the object would be 299 accomplished, would be a temptation to designing men to secure that control in their own hands, by monopoliz ing the remaining stock. There is danger that a presi dent and directors would then be able to elect themselves from year to year, and, without responsibility or control, manage the whole concerns of the bank during the exist ence of its charter. It is easy to conceive that great evils to our country and its institutions might flow from such a concentration of power in the hands of a few men, irre sponsible to the people. Is there no danger to our liberty and independence in a bank, that in its nature has so little to bind it to our country? The president of the bank has told us that most of the state banks exist by its forbearance. Should its influence become concentred, as it may under the operation of such an act as this, in the hands of a self- elected directory, whose interests are identified with those of the foreign stockholder, will there not be cause to trem ble for the purity of our elections in peace, and for the independence of our country in war 1 Their power would be great whenever they might choose to exert it ; but if this monopoly were regularly renewed every fifteen or twenty years, on terms proposed by themselves, they might seldom in peace put forth their strength to influence elections or control the affairs of the nation. But if any private citizen or public functionary should interpose to curtail its powers, or prevent a renewal of its privileges, it cannot be doubted that he would be made to feel .its influence. Should the stock of the bank principally pass into the hands of the subjects of a foreign country, and we should unfortunately become involved in a war with that country, what would be our condition ? Of the course which would be pursued by a bank almost wholly owned by the subjects of a foreign power, and managed by those whose interests, if not affections, would run in the same direction, there can be no doubt. All its operations within, would be in aid of the hostile fleets and armies without. Con trolling our currency, receiving our public moneys, and holding thousands of our citizens in dependence, it would 300 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. be more formidable and dangerous than the naval and military power of the enemy. If we must have a bank with private stockholders, every consideration of sound policy, and every impulse of American feeling, admonishes that it should be purely American. Its stockholders should be composed exclu sively of our own citizens, who at least ought to be friendly to our government, and willing to support it in times of difficulty and danger. So abundant is domestic capital, that competition in subscribing for the stock of local banks has recently led almost to riots. To a bank exclusively of American stockholders, possessing the powers and privi leges granted by this act, subscriptions for two hundred millions of dollars could be readily obtained. Instead of sending abroad the stock of the bank in which the gov ernment must deposit its funds, and on which it must rely to sustain its credit in times of emergency, it would rather seem to be expedient to prohibit its sale to aliens under penalty of absolute forfeiture. It is maintained by the advocates of the bank, that its constitutionality, in all its features, ought to be considered as settled by precedent, and by the decision of the Su preme Court. To this conclusion I cannot assent. Mere precedent is a dangerous source of authority, and should not be regarded as deciding questions of constitutional power, except where the acquiescence of the people and the states can be considered as well settled. So far from this being the case on this subject, an argument against the bank might be based on precedent. One Congress, in 1791, decided in favor of a bank ; another, in 1811, decided against it. One Congress, in 1815, decided against a bank ; another, in 1816, decided in its favor. Prior to the present Congress, therefore, the precedents drawn from that source were equal. If we resort to the states, the expressions of legislative, judicial, and executive opinions against the bank have been probably to those in its favor as four to one. There is nothing in precedent, therefore, which, if its authority were admitted, ought to weigh in favor of the act before me. If the opinion of the Supreme Court covered the whole 301 ground of this act, it ought not to control the coordinate authorities of this government. The Congress, the ex ecutive, and the court, must each for itself be guided by its own opinion of the constitution. Each public officer who takes an oath to support the constitution, swears that he will support it as he understands it, and riot as it is understood by others. It is as much the duty of the House of Representatives, of the Senate, and of the Pres ident, to decide upon the constitutionality of any bill or resolution which may be presented to them for passage or approval as it is of the supreme judges when it may be brought before them for judicial decision. The opinion of the judges has no more authority over Congress than the opinion of Congress has over the judges ; and on that point the President is independent of both. The authority of the Supreme Court must not, therefore, be permitted to control the Congress or the executive, when acting in their legislative capacities, but to have only such influence as the force of their reasoning may deserve. But in the case relied upon, the Supreme Court have not decided that all the features of this corporation are compatible with the constitution. It is true that the court have said that the law incorporating the bank is a consti* tutional exercise of power by Congress. But taking into view the whole opinion of the court, and the reasoning by which they have come to that conclusion, I understand them to have decided that, inasmuch as a bank is an ap propriate means for carrying into effect the enumerated powers of the general government, therefore the law in corporating it, is in accordance with that provision of the constitution which declares that Congress shall have power " to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying those powers into execution." Having satis fied themselves that the word " necessary ," in the consti tution, means " needful" " requisite, " essential" " eonrlu- civfi to," and that " a bank " is a convenient, a useful, and essential instrument in the prosecution of the gov ernment s " fiscal operations," they conclude that " to use one must be in the discretion of Congress," and that " the act to incorporate the Bank of the United States is a law made in pursuance of the constitution ; " " but," say they, 26 302 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. " where the law is not prohibited, and is really calculated to effect any of the objects intrusted to the government, to undertake here to inquire into the degree of its neces sity, would be to pass the line which circumscribes the judicial department, and to tread on legislative ground/ The principle here affirmed is, that the " degree of its necessity," involving all the details of a banking institu tion, is a question exclusively for legislative consideration. A bank is constitutional ; but it is the province of the le gislature to determine whether this or that particular power, privilege, or exemption, " is necessary and proper" to ena ble the bank to discharge its duties to the government ; and from their decision there is no appeal to the courts of justice. Under the decision of the Supreme Court, there fore, it is the exclusive province of Congress and the Pres ident to decide whether the particular features of this act are necessary and proper, in order to enable the bank to perform conveniently and efficiently the public duties as signed to it as a fiscal agent, and therefore constitutional; or unnecessary and improper, and therefore unconstitu tional. Without commenting on the general principle affirmed by the Supreme Court, let us examine the details of this act in accordance with the rule of legislative action which they have laid down. It will be found that many of the powers and privileges conferred on it, cannot be sup posed necessary for the purpose for which it is proposed to be created, and are not, therefore, means necessary to at tain the end in view, and consequently not justified by the constitution. The original act of incorporation, section 21st, enacts, " that no other bank shall be established, by any future law of the United States, during the continuance of the corporation hereby created, for which the faith of the United States is hereby pledged; Provided, Congress may renew exiting charters for banks within the District of Columbia, not increasing the capital thereof; and may also establish any other bank or banks in said District, with capitals not exceeding in the whole six millions of dollars, if they shall deem it expedient." This provision is con tinued in force by the act before me, fifteen years from the 3d of March, 1S36. JACKSON S BANK VETO. 303 If Congress possessed the power to establish one bank, they had power to establish more than one, if, in their opinion, two or more banks had been " necessary " to fa cilitate the execution of the powers delegated to them in the constitution. If they possess the power to establish a second bank, it was a power derived from the constitution, to be exercised from time to time, and at any time when the interests of the country or the emergencies of the gov ernment might make it expedient. It was possessed by one Congress as well as another, and by all Congresses alike, and alike at every session. But the Congress of 181(5 have taken it away from their successors for twenty years, and the Congress of 1832 proposed to abolish it for fifteen years more. It cannot be " necessary" or "proper" for Congress to barter away, or divest themselves of any of the powers vested in them by the constitution to be ex ercised for the public good. It is not " necessary " to the efficiency of the bank, nor is it "proper" in relation to themselves and their successors. They may "properly" use the discretion vested in them, but they may not limit the discretion of their successors. This restriction on themselves, and grant of a monopoly to the bank, is there fore unconstitutional. In another point of view, this provision is a palpable attempt to amend the constitution by an act of legislation. The constitution declares that " the Congress shall have power to exercise exclusive legislation, in all cases what soever," over the District of Columbia. Its constitutional power, therefore, to establish banks in the District of Co lumbia, and increase their capital at will, is unlimited and uncontrollable by any other power than that which gave authority to the constitution. Yet this act declares that Congress shall not increase the capital of existing banks, nor create other banks with capitals exceeding in the whole six million of dollars. The constitution declares that Con gress shall have power to exercise exclusive legislation over this District " in all cases whatsoever;" and this act declares they shall not. Which is the supreme law of the land? This provision cannot be "necessary" or "proper " or " constitutional," unless the absurdity be ad mitted, that, whenever it be " necessary and proper," in 304 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the opinion of Congress, they have a right to barter away one portion of the powers vested in them by the constitu tion, as a means of executing the rest. On two subjects only does the constitution recognize in Congress the power to grant exclusive privileges or mo nopolies. It declares that " Congress shall have power 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." Out of this express delegation of power have grown our laws of patents and copy-rights. As the constitution ex pressly delegates to Congress the power to grant exclusive privileges, in these cases, as the means of executing the substantive power " to promote the progress of science and useful arts," it is consistent with the fair rules of construc tion, to conclude that such a power was not intended to be granted as a means of accomplishing any other end. On every other subject which comes within the scope of con gressional power there is an ever-living discretion in the use of proper means, which cannot be restricted or abol ished without an amendment of the constitution. Every act of Congress, therefore, which attempts by grants or monopolies, or sales of exclusive privileges for a limited time, or a time without limit, to restrict or extinguish its own discretion in the choice of means to execute its dele gated powers, is equivalent to a legislative amendment of the constitution, and palpably unconstitutional. This act authorizes and encourages transfers of its stock to foreigners, and grants them an exemption from all state and national taxation. So far from being "necessary and proper " that the bank should possess this power to make it a safe and efficient agent of the government in its fiscal operations, it is calculated to convert the Bank of the United States into a foreign bank, to impoverish our peo ple in time of peace, to disseminate a foreign influence through every section of the republic, and in war, to en danger our independence. The several states reserved the power, at the formation of the constitution, to regulate and control titles and trans fers of real property ; and most, if not all of them, have laws disqualifying aliens from acquiring or holding lands within 305 their limits. But this act, in disregard of the undoubted right of the states to prescribe such disqualifications, gives to aliens, stockholders in this bank, an interest and title, as members of the corporation, to all the real property it may acquire within any of the states of this Union. This privilege granted to aliens is not " necessary " to enable the bank to perform its public duties, nor in any sense " proper" because it is vitally subversive of the rights of the states. The government of the United States have no constitu tional power to purchase lands within the states, except " for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock-yards, and other needful buildings ; " and even for these objects, only " by the consent of the legislature of the state in which the same shall be." By making themselves stock holders in the bank, and granting to the corporation the power to purchase lands for other purposes, they assume a power not granted in the constitution, and grant to others what they do not themselves possess. It is not " necessary " to the receiving, safe-keeping, or transmission of the funds of the government, that the bank should possess this power ; and it is not " proper" that Congress should thus enlarge the powers delegated to them in the constitution. The old Bank of the United States possessed a capital of only eleven millions of dollars, which was found fully sufficient to enable it, with despatch and safety, to perform all the functions required of it by the government. The capital of the present bank is thirty-five millions of dollars, at least twenty-four more than experience has proved to be " necessary " to enable a bank to perform its public func tions. The public debt which existed during the period of the old bank, and on the establishment of the new, has been nearly paid off, and our revenue will soon be reduced. This increase of capital is therefore not for public, but for private purposes. The government is the only "proper" judge where its agents should reside and keep their offices, because it best knows where their presence will be " necessary." It can not, therefore, be " necessary" or "proper" to authorize the bank to locate branches where it pleases, to perform the public service, without consulting the government, and 26* 306 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. contrary to its will. The principle laid down by the Su preme Court concedes that Congress cannot establish a bank for purposes of private speculation and gain, but only as a means of executing the delegated powers of the general government. By the same principle, a branch bank cannot constitutionally be established for other than public purposes. The power which this act gives to es tablish two branches in any state, without the injunction or request of the government, and for other than public purposes, is not " necessary " to the due execution of the powers delegated to Congress. The bonus which is exacted from the bank is a con fession, upon the face of the act, that the powers granted by it are greater than are " necessary" to its character of a fiscal agent. The government does not tax its officers and agents for the privilege of serving it. The bonus of a million and a half required by the original charter, and that of three millions proposed by this act, are not exacted for the privilege of giving " the necessary facilities for transferring the public funds from place to place, within the United States or the territories thereof, and for distrib uting the same in payment of the public creditors, without charging commission or claiming allowance on account of the difference of exchange," as required by the act of in corporation, but for something more beneficial to the stock holders. The original act declares, that it (the bonus) is granted " in consideration of the exclusive privileges and benefits conferred by this act upon the said bank," and the act before me declares it to be " in consideration of the exclusive benefits and privileges continued by this act to the said corporation for fifteen years, as aforesaid." It is, therefore, for " exclusive privileges and benefits" conferred for their own use and emclument, and not for the advantage of the government, that a bonus is exacted. These surplus powers, for which the bank is required to pay, cannot surely : be " necessary " to make it the fiscal agent of the treasury. If they were, the exaction of a bonus for them would not be "proper" It is maintained by some that the bank is a means of executing the constitutirnal power " to coin money and regulate the value thereof." Congress have established a 307 mint to coin money, and passed laws to regulate the value thereof. The money so coined, with the value so regu lated, and such foreign coins as Congress may adopt, arc the only currency known to the constitution. But if they have other power to regulate the currency, it was conferred to be exercised by themselves, and not to be transferred to a corporation. If the bank be established for that purpose, with a charter unalterable without its consent, Congress have parted with their power for a term of years, during which the constitution is a dead letter. It is neither ne cessary nor proper to transfer its legislative power to such a bank, and therefore unconstitutional. By its silence, considered in connection with the decis ion of the Supreme Court, in the case of McCulloch against the State of Maryland, this act takes from the states the power to tax a portion of the banking business carried on within their^ limits, in subversion of one of the strongest barriers which secured them against federal encroachments. Banking, like farming, manufacturing, or any other occu pation or profession, is a business, the right to follow which is not originally derived from the laws. Every citizen and every company of citizens, in all of our states, possessed the right, until the state legislatures deemed it good policy to prohibit private banking by law. If the prohibitory state laws were now repealed, every citizen would again possess the right. The state banks are a qualified restora tion of the right which lias been taken away by the laws against banking, guarded by such provisions and limitations as in the opinion of the state legislatures the public interest requires. These corporations, unless there be an exemp tion in their charter, are, like private bankers and bank ing companies, subject to state taxation. The manner in which these taxes shall be laid, depends wholly on legisla tive discretion. It may be upon the bank, upon the stock, upon the profits, or in any other mode which the sovereign power shall will. Upon the formation of the constitution the states guard ed their taxing power with peculiar jealousy. They sur rendered it only as regards imports and exports. In rela tion to every other object within their jurisdiction, whether persons, property, business, or professions, it was secured 308 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. in as ample a manner as it was before possessed. All persons, though United States officers, are liable to a poll tax by the states within which they reside. The lands of the United States are liable to the usual land tax, except in the new states, from whom agreements that they will not tax unsold lands are exacted when they are admitted into the Union ; horses, wagons, any beasts or vehicles, tools or property belonging to private citizens, though employed in the service of the United States, are subject to state taxation. Every private business, whether car ried on by an officer of the general government or not, whether it be mixed with the public concerns or not, even if it be carried on by the United States itself, separately or in partnership, falls within the scope of the taxing power of the state. Nothing comes more fully within it than banks, and the business of banking, by whomsoever instituted and carried on. Over this whole subject mat- ter, it is just as absolute, unlimited, and uncontrollable, as if the constitution never had been adopted, because in the formation of that instrument, it was reserved without qualification. The principle is conceded that the states cannot right fully tax the operations of the general government. They cannot tax the money of the government deposited in the state banks, nor the agency of those banks in remitting it ; but will any man maintain that their mere selection to perform this public service for the general government, would exempt the state banks and their ordinary business from state taxation ? Had the United States, instead of establishing a bank at Philadelphia, employed a private banker to keep and transmit their funds, would it have deprived Pennsylvania of the right to tax his bank and his usual banking operations 1 It will not be pretended. Upon what principle, then, are the banking establishments of the Bank of the United States, and their usual banking operations, to be exempted from taxation ? It is not their public agency or the deposits of the government which the states claim a right to tax, but their banks, and their bank ing powers, instituted and exercised within state jurisdic tion for their private emolument, those powers and privi leges for which they pay a bonus, and which the states tax JACKSON S BANK VETO. 309 in their own banks. The exercise of these powers within a state, no matter by whom, or under what authority, whether by private citizens in their original right, by cor porate bodies created by the states, by foreigners, or the agents of foreign governments located within their limits, forms a legitimate object of state taxation. From this and like sources, from the persons, property, and business that are found residing, located, or carried on under their jurisdiction, must the states, since the surrender of their right to raise a revenue from imports and exports, draw all the money necessary for the support of their govern ments and the maintenance of their independence. There is no more appropriate subject of taxation than banks, banking, and bank stocks, and none to which the states ought more pertinaciously to cling. It cannot be " necessary " to the character of the bank as a fiscal agent of the government, that its private busi ness should be exempted from that taxation to which all state banks are liable ; nor can I conceive it "proper " that the substantive and most essential powers reserved by the states shall be thus attacked and annihilated as a means of executing the powers delegated to the general government. It may be safely assumed that none of those sages who had an agency in forming or adopting our constitution, ever imagined that any portion of the taxing power of the states, not prohibited to them nor delegated to Congress, was to be swept away and annihi lated, as a means of executing certain powers delegated to Congress. If our power over means is so absolute that the Su preme Court will not call in question the constitutionality of an act of Congress, the subject of which " is not pro hibited, and is really calculated l.o effect any of the objects intrusted to the government," although, as in the case before me, it takes away powers expressly granted to Congress, and rights scrupulously reserved to the states, it becomes us to proceed in our legislation with the ut most caution. Though not directly, our own powers and the rights of the states may be indirectly legislated away in the use of means to execute substantive powers. We may not enact that Congress shall not have the power of 310 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. exclusive legislation over the District of Columbia, but we may pledge the faith of the United States that, as a means of executing other powers, it shall not be exercised for twenty years, or forever. We may not pass an act prohibiting the states to tax the banking business carried on within their limits, but we may, as a means of execu ting power over other objects, place that business in the hands of our agents, and then declare it exempt from state taxation in their hands. Thus may our own powers and the rights of the states, which we cannot directly curtail or invade, be frittered away and extinguished in the use of means employed by us to execute other powers. That a Bank of the United States, competent to all the duties which may be required by the government, might be so organized as not to infringe on our own delegated powers, or the reserved rights of the states, I do not en tertain a doubt. Had the executive been called upon to furnish the project of such an institution, the duty would have been cheerfully performed. In the absence of such a call, it is obviously proper that he should confine himself to pointing out those prominent features in the act pre sented, which, in his opinion, make it incompatible with the constitution and sound policy. A general discussion will now take place, eliciting new light, and settling im portant principles ; and a new Congress, elected in the midst of such discussion, and furnishing an equal repre sentation of the people according to the last census, will bear to the capitol the verdict of public opinion, and, I doubt not, bring this important question to a satisfactory- result. Under such circumstances, the bank comes forward and asks a renewal of its charter for a term of fifteen years, upon conditions which not only operate as a gra tuity to the stockholders of many millions of dollars, but will sanction any abuses and legalize any encroachments. Suspicions are entertained, and charges are made, of gross abuse and violation of its charter. An investigation unwillingly conceded, and so restricted in time as neces sarily to make it incomplete and unsatisfactory, disclosed enough to excite suspicion arid alarm. In the practices of the principal bank partially unveiled, in the absence of 311 important witnesses, and in numerous charges confidently made, and as yet wholly uninvestigated, there was enough to induce a majority of the committee of investigation, a committee which was selected from the most able and honorable members of the House of Representatives, to recommend a suspension of further action upon the bill, and a prosecution of the inquiry. As the charter had yet four years to run, and as a renewal now was not necessary to the successful prosecution of its business, it was to have been expected that the bank itself, conscious of its purity, and proud of its character, would have withdrawn its ap plication for the present, and demanded the severest scru tiny into all its transactions. In their declining to do so, there seems to be an additional reason why the func tionaries of the government should proceed with less haste and more caution in the renewal of their monopoly. The bank is professedly established as an agent of the executive branches of the government, and its consti tutionality is maintained on that ground. Neither upon the propriety of present action, nor upon the provisions of this act, was the executive consulted. It has had no opportunity to say that it neither needs nor wants an agent clothed with such powers, and favored by such exemp tions. There is nothing in its legitimate functions which makes it necessary or proper. Whatever interest or influ ence, whether public or private, has given birth to this act, it cannot be found either in the wishes or necessities of the executive department, by which present action is deemed premature, and the powers conferred upon its agent not only unnecessary, but dangerous to the gov ernment and country. It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their selfish purposes. Distinctions in society will always exist under every just government. Equality of talents, of education, or of wealth, cannot be produced by human institutions. In the full enjoyment of the gifts of Heaven, and the fruits of superior industry, economy, and virtue, every man is equally entitled to protection by law. But when the laws undertake to add to these natural and just advantages, artificial distinctions, to grant titles, gratuities, and ex- 312 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. elusive privileges, to make the rich richer, and the potent more powerful, the humble members of society, the farm ers, mechanics, and laborers, who have neither the time nor the means of securing like favors to themselves, have a right to complain of the injustice of their government. There are no necessary evils in government. Its evils exist only in its abuses. If it would confine itself to equal protection, and, as Heaven does its rains, shower its favors alike on the high and the low, the rich and the poor, it would be an unqualified blessing. In the act before me, there seems to be a wide and unnecessary departure from these just principles. Nor is our government to be maintained, or our Union preserved, by invasion of the rights and powers of the several states. In thus attempting to make our general government strong, we make it weak. Its true strength consists in leaving individuals and states, as much as possible, to themselves ; in making itself felt, not in its power, but in its beneficence; not in its control, but in its protection ; not in binding the states more closely to the centre, but leaving each to move unobstructed in its proper orbit. Experience should teach us wisdom. Most of the diffi culties our government now encounters, and most of the dangers which impend over our Union, have sprung from an abandonment of the legitimate objects of government by our national legislation, and the adoption of such prin ciples as are imbodied in this act. Many of our rich men have not been content with equal protection and equal benefits, but have besought us to make them richer by act of Congress. By attempting to gratify their desires, we have, in the results of our legislation, arrayed section against section, interest against interest, and man against man, in a fearful commotion, which threatens to shake the foundations of our Union. It is time to pause in our career, to review our principles, and, if possible, revive that devoted patriotism and spirit of compromise which distinguished the sages of the revolution and the fathers of our Union. If we cannot at once, in justice to the interests vested under improvident legislation, make our government what it ought to be, we can at least take a TYLER S FIRST BANK VETO. 313 stand against all new grants of monopolies and exclusive privileges, against any prostitution of our government to the advancement of the few at the expense of the many, and in favor of compromise and gradual reform in our code of laws and system of political economy. I have now done my duty to my country. If sustained by my fellow-citizens, I shall be grateful and happy ; if not, I shall find in the motives which impel me, ample grounds for contentment and peace. In the difficulties which surround us, and the dangers which threaten our institutions, there is cause for neither dismay nor alarm. For relief and deliverance, let us firmly rely on that kind Providence which, I am sure, watches with peculiar care over the destinies of our republic, and on the intelligence and wisdom of our countrymen. Through His abundant goodness, and their patriotic devotion, our liberty and union will be preserved. TYLER S FIRST RANK VETO. AUGUST 16, 1841. To the Senate of the United States : THE bill entitled " An act to incorporate the subscribers to the Fiscal Bank of the United States," which origina ted in the Senate, has been considered by me, with a sin cere desire to conform my action in regard to it to that of the two Houses of Congress. By the constitution it is made my duty either to approve the bill by the signing act, or to return it, with my objections, to the house in which it originated. I cannot conscientiously give it my approval, and I proceed to discharge the duty required of me by the constitution to give my reasons for disap proving. The power of Congress to create a national bank to op erate per se over the Union, has been a question of dis pute from the origin of our government. Men most justly and deservedly esteemed for their high intellectual en- 27 314 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. dowments, their virtue, and their patriotism, have, in re gard to it, entertained different and conflicting opinions. Congresses have differed. The approval of one President has been followed by the disapproval of another. The people at different times have acquiesced in decisions both for and against. The country has been, and still is, deeply agitated by this unsettled question. It will suffice for me to say, that my own opinion has been uniformly pro claimed to be against the exercise of any such power by this government. On all suitable occasions, during a pe riod of twenty-five years, the opinion thus entertained has been unreservedly expressed. I declared it in the legislature of my native state. In the House of Repre sentatives of the United States it has been openly vindi cated by me. In the Senate chamber, in the presence and hearing of many who are at this time members of that body, it has been affirmed and re-affirmed, in speeches and re ports there made, and by votes there recorded. In popu lar assemblies I have unhesitatingly announced it ; and the last public declaration which I have made, and that but a short time before the late presidential election, I re ferred to my previously expressed opinions as being those then entertained by me ; with a full knowledge of the opinions thus entertained, and never conceded, I was elected by the people Vice-President of the United States. By the occurrence of a contingency provided for by the constitution, and arising under an impressive dispensa tion of Providence, I succeeded to the presidential office. Before entering upon the duties of that office, I took an oath that I would "preserve, protect, and defend the con stitution of the United States." Entertaining the opinions alluded to, and having taken this oath, the Senate and the country will see that I could not give my sanction to a measure of the character de scribed, without surrendering all claim to the respect of honorable men all confidence on the part of the people all self-respect all regard for moral and religious ob ligations; without an observance of which, no govern ment can be prosperous, and no people can be happy. It would be to commit a crime which I would not wil- j 315 fully commit to gain any earthly reward, and which would justly subject me to the^ ridicule and scorn of all virtu ous men. I deem it entirely unnecessary at this time to enter upon the reasons which have brought my mind to the convic tions I feel and entertain on this subject. They have over and over again been repeated. If some of those who have preceded me in this high office have entertained and avowed different opinions, I yield all confidence that their convictions were sincere. I claim only to have the same measure meted out to myself. Without going further into the argument, I will say that, in looking to the powers of this government to collect, safely keep, and disburse the public revenue, and incidentally regulate the commerce and exchanges, I have not been able to satisfy myself that the establishment, by this government, of a bank of dis count, in the ordinary acceptation of that term, was a necessary means, or one demanded by propriety, to execute those powers. What can the local discounts of a bank have to do with the collecting, safe-keeping, and disbursing of the revenue ? So far as the mere discounting of a paper is con cerned, it is quite immaterial to this question, whether the discount is obtained at a state bank or a United States Bank. They are both equally local both beginning and both ending in a local accommodation. What influence have local discounts, granted by any form of banks, in the reg ulating of the currency and the exchanges ? Let the his tory of the late United States Bank aid us in answering this inquiry. For several years after the establishment of that insti tution, it dealt almost exclusively in local discounts, and during that period the country was, for the most part, disappointed in the consequences anticipated from its in corporation. A uniform currency was not provided, ex changes were not regulated, and little or nothing was added to the general circulation; and in 1820 its em barrassments had become so great, that the directors peti tioned Congress to repeal that article of the charter which 316 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. made its notes receivable every where, in payment of public dues. It had, to that period, dealt to but a very small extent in exchanges, either foreign or domestic ; and as late as 1832, its operations in that line amounted to little more than $7,090,000 per annum : a very rapid augmentation soon after occurred, and in 1833 its dealings in the ex changes amounted to upward of 100,000,000, including the sales of its own drafts ; and all these immense trans actions were effected without the employment of extraor dinary means. The currency of the country became sound, and the negotiations in the exchanges were carried on at the lowest possible rates. The circulation was increased to more than $22,000,000, and the notes of the bank were regarded as equal to specie all over the country ; thus showing, most conclu sively, that it was their capacity to deal in exchanges, and not in local discounts, which furnished these facili ties and advantages. It may be remembered, too, that notwithstanding the immense transactions of the bank, in the purchase of exchange, the losses were merely nom inal, while in the time of discounts, the suspended debt was enormous, and found most disastrous to the bank and the country. Its power of local discount has, in fact, proved to be a fruitful source of favoritism and cor ruption, alike destructive to the public morals and to the general weal. The capital invested in banks of discount in the United States at this time exceeds $350,000,000 ; and if the dis counting of local paper could have produced any benefi cial effects, the United States ought to possess the sound est currency in the world ; but the reverse is lamentably the fact. Is the measure now under consideration of the objec tionable character to which I have alluded ? It is clearly so. unless by the 16th fundamental article of the llth section it is made otherwise. That article is in the fol lowing words : " The directors of the said corporation shall establish one competent office of discount and deposit in any state 317 in which two thousand share* shall have been subscribed, or may be held, whenever, upon application of the legis lature of such state, Congress may, by law, require the same. And the said directors may also establish one or more competent offices of discount and deposit in any ter ritory or district of the United States, and in any state, with the assent of such state ; and when established, the said office or offices shall be only withdrawn or removed by the said directors, prior to the expiration of this char ter, with the previous assent of Congress. " Provided, in respect to any state which shall not, at the first session of the legislature thereof, held after the passage of this act, by resolution, or other usual legisla tive proceeding, unconditionally assent or dissent to the establishment of such office or offices within it, such assent of the said state shall be thereafter presumed ; and provided, nevertheless, That, whenever it shall become necessary and proper for carrying into execution any of the powers granted by the Constitution, to establish an office or offices in any of the states whatever, and the establishment thereof shall be directed by law, it shall be the duty of the said directors to establish such office or offices accordingly." It will be seen by this clause that the directors are invested with the fullest power to establish a branch in any state which has yielded its assent, and, having es tablished such branch, it shall not afterward be withdrawn except by order of Congress. Such assent is to be implied, and to have the force and sanction of an actually expressed assent, " provided, in respect to any state which shall not, at the first session of the legislature held thereof after the passage of this act, by resolution or other usual legislative proceeding, unconditionally assent or dissent to the estab lishment of such office or offices within it, such assent of such state shall be presumed." The assent or dissent is to be expressed unconditionally, at the first session of the legislature, by some formal legislative act; and if not so expressed, its assent is to be implied, and the directors are therefore invested with power, at such time thereafter as they may please, to establish branches, which cannot after ward be withdrawn, except by resolve of Congress : no matter what may be the cause which may operate with the 27* 318 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. legislature, which either prevents it from speaking, or ad dresses itself to its wisdom to induce delay, its assent is to be implied binding and inflexible. It is the lawgiver of the master to the vassal ; an unconditional answer is claimed forthwith, and delay, postponement, or incapacity to an swer, produces an implied assent, which is ever after irrevocable. Many of the state elections have already taken place, without any knowledge on the part of the people, that such a question was to come up. The representatives may de sire a submission of the question to their constituents pre paratory to final action upon it, but this high privilege is denied ; whatever may be the motives and views entertained by the representatives of the people to induce delay, their .assent is to be presumed, and is ever afterward binding, unless their dissent shall be unconditionally expressed at their first session after the passage of this bill into a law. They may by formal resolution declare the question of assent or dissent to be undecided and postponed, and yet, in opposition to their express declaration to the contrary, their assent is to be implied. Cases innumerable might be cited to manifest the irrationality of such an inference. Let one or two in addition suffice the popular branch of the legislature may express the dissent by a unanimous vote, and its resolution may be defeated by the vote of the Senate ; and yet the assent is to be implied. Both branches of the legislature may concur in a resolution of decided dissent, and yet the governor may exert the veto power conferred on him by the state constitution, and their legislative action be defeated ; and yet the assent of the legislative authority is implied, and the directors of this contemplated institution are authorized to establish a branch or branches in such state, whenever they may find it conducive to the interest of the stockholders to do so ; and having once established it, they can under no circum stances withdraw it, except by an act of Congress. The state may afterward protest against any such unjust inference but its authority is gone. Its assent is implied by its failure or inability to act at its first session, and its voice can never afterward be heard. To inferences so violent, and, as they seem to me, irrational, I cannot yield 319 my consent. No court of justice would or could sanction them, without reversing all that is established in judicial proceedings, by introducing presumptions at variance to the fact, and inferences at the expense of reason. A state in a condition of duress would be presumed to speak, as an in dividual manacled and imprisoned might be presumed to be in the enjoyment of freedom. Far better to say to the states boldly and frankly Congress wills, and submis sion is demanded. It may be said that the directors may not establish branches under such circumstances; but this is a question of power, and this bill invests them with full power to do so. If the legislature of New York, or Pennsylvania, or any other state, should be found in such condition as I have supposed, could there be any security furnished against such a step on the part of the directors ? Nay, is it not fairly to be presumed that this proviso was introduced for the sole purpose of meeting the contingency referred to ? Why else should it have been introduced ? And I would submit to the Senate, whether it can be believed, that any state would be likely to sit quietly down, under such a state of things ? In a great measure of pub lic interest their patriotism may be successfully appealed to; but to infer their assent from circumstances at war with such inference, I cannot but regard as calculated to excite a feeling at fatal enmity with the peace and harmony of the country. I must therefore regard this clause as assert ing the power to be in Congress to establish offices of dis count in a state, not only without its assent, but against its dissent ; and so regarding it, I cannot sanction it. On general principles, the right in Congress to pre scribe terms to any state, implies a superiority of power and control, deprives the transaction of all pretence to the compact between them, and terminates, as we have seen, in the total abrogation of freedom and action on the part of the states. But fourth ; the state may express, after the most solemn form of legislation, its dissent, which may from time to time thereafter be repeated, in full view of its own interest, which can never be separated from the wise and beneficent operations of this government ; and yet Congress may, by virtue of the last proviso, overrule its law. and upon grounds which, to such state, will appear 320 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to rest on a constructive necessity and propriety, and nothing more. I regard the bill as asserting for Congress the right to incorporate a United States Bank, with power and right to establish offices of discount and deposit in the several states of this Union, with or without their consent a prin ciple to which I have always heretofore been opposed, and which can never obtain my sanction. And waiving all other considerations growing out of its other provisions, I return it to the house in which it originated with these my objections to its approval. TYLER S SECOND BANK VETO. SEPTEMBER 9, 1841. To the House of Representatives of the United States : IT is with extreme regret that I feel myself constrained, by the duty faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States, and to the best of my ability " to pre serve, protect, and defend the constitution of the United States," to return to that house in which it- originated the bill " to provide for the better collection, safe-keeping, and disbursement of the public revenue by means of a corporation to be styled the Fiscal Corporation of the United States," with my written objections. In my message sent to the Senate on the 16th day of August last, returning the bill " to incorporate the sub scribers to the Fiscal Bank of the United States," I dis tinctly declared that " my own opinion has been uniformly proclaimed to be against the exercise of the power of Congress to create a national bank, to operate per se over the Union;" and entertaining that opinion, my main ob jection to that bill was based upon the highest moral and religious obligations of conscience and the constitution. I readily admit, that, whilst the qualified Veto with which the chief magistrate is invested, should be re garded, and was intended by the wise men who made it a part of the constitution, as a great conservative principle 321 of our system, without the exercise of which, on important occasions, a mere representative majority might urge the government, in its legislation, beyond the limits fixed by its framers, or might exert its just powers too hastily or oppressively, yet it is a power which ought to be most cautiously exerted, and perhaps never, except in a case eminently involving the public interest, or one in which the oath of the President, acting under his convictions, both mental and moral, imperiously requires its exercise. In such a case, he has no alternative. He must either exert the negative power intrusted to him by the constitu tion chiefly for its own preservation, protection, and de fence, or commit an act of gross moral turpitude. Mere regard to the will of a majority, must not, in a constitutional republic like ours, control this sacred and solemn duty of a sworn officer. The constitution itself I regard and cherish as the imbodied and written will of the whole peo ple of the United States. It is their fixed and fundamental law, which they unanimously prescribe to the public func tionaries, their mere trustees and servants. This their will, and the law which they have given us as the rule of our action, has no guard, no guaranty of preservation, protection, and defence, but the oaths which it prescribes to public officers, the sanctity with which they shall reli giously observe those oaths, and the patriotism with which the people shall shield it by their own sovereignty, which has made the constitution supreme. It must be exerted against the will of a mere representative majority, or not at all. It is alone in pursuance of that will that any measure can ever reach the President; and to say, because a ma jority in Congress have passed a bill, the President should therefore sanction it, is to abrogate the power altogether, and to render its insertion in the constitution a work of absolute supererogation. The duty is to guard the funda mental will of the people themselves from in this case I admit unintentional change or infraction by a majority in Congress ; and in that- light alone do I regard the con stitutional duty which I now most reluctantly discharge. Is this bill, now presented for my approval, such a bill as I have already declared could not receive my sanction? Is it such a bill as calls for the exercise of the negative 322 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. power under the constitution 1 Does it violate the const! tution by creating a national bank to operate per se over the Union? Its title, in the first place, describes its gen eral character. It is " An act to provide for the better collection, safe-keeping, and disbursement of the public revenue by means of a corporation, to be styled the Fiscal Corporation of the United States." In style, then, it is plainly national in its character. Its powers, functions, and duties, are those pertaining to the collecting, keeping, . and disbursing the public revenue. The means by which these are to be exerted, is a corporation, to be styled the Fiscal Corporation of the United States. It is a corpora tion created by the Congress of the United States, in its character of a national legislature for the whole Union, to perform the fiscal purposes, meet the fiscal wants and exi gencies, supply the fiscal uses, and exert the fiscal agencies of the treasury of the United States. Such is its own de scription of itself. Do its provisions contradict its own title? They do not. It is true, that by its first section it provides that it shall be established in the District of Co lumbia, but the amount of its capital the manner in which its stock is to be subscribed for and held the per sons and bodies corporate and politic by whom its stock may be held the appointment of its directors, and their powers and duties its fundamental articles, especially that to establish agencies in any part of the Union the corporate powers and business of such agencies the pro hibition of Congress to establish any other corporation, with similar powers, for twenty years, with express res ervation, in the same clause, to modify or create any bank for the District of Columbia so that the aggregate capital shall not exceed five millions without enumerating other features which are equally distinctive and characteristic clearly show that it cannot be regarded as other than a Bank of the United States, with powers seemingly more limited than have heretofore been granted by such an in stitution. It operates per se over the Union, by virtue of the unaided, and, in rny view, assumed authority of Con gress as a national legislature, as distinguished from a bank created by Congress for the District of Columbia, as the local legislature of the District. Every United States TYLER S SECOND BANK VETO. 323 Bank heretofore created has had power to deal in bills of exchange as well as local discounts. Both were trading privileges conferred, and both exercised by virtue of the aforesaid power of Congress, over the whole Union. The question of power remains unchanged, without reference to the extent of privilege granted. If this proposed cor poration is to be regarded as a local bank of the District of Columbia, invested by Congress with general powers to operate over the Union, it is obnoxious to still stronger objections. It assumes that Congress may invest a local institution with general or national powers. With the same propriety that it may do this in regard to a bank of the District of Columbia, it may as to a state bank. Yet who can indulge the idea that this government can right fully, by making a state bank its fiscal agent, invest it with the absolute and unqualified powers conferred by this bill ? When I come to look to the details of the bill, they do not recommend it strongly to my adoption. A brief notice of some of its provisions will suffice: 1st. It may justify substantially a system of discounts of the most objectionable character. It is to deal in bills of exchange drawn in one state and payable in another, without any restraint. The bill of exchange may have an unlimited term to run, and its renewability is nowhere guarded against. It may, in fact, assume the most ob jectionable form of accommodation. It is not required to rest on any actual, real, or substantial exchange basis. A drawer in one place becomes the acceptor in another, and so in turn the acceptor may become the drawer upon a mutual understanding. It may at the same time indulge in mere local discounts under the name of bills of ex change. A bill drawn at Philadelphia on Camden, New Jersey at New York on Bordentown in Nevy Jersey at Cincinnati on Newport, Kentucky, not to multiply other examples, might for any thing in this bill to restrain it, be come a mere matter of local accommodation. Cities thus relatively situated would possess advantages over cities otherwise situated, of so decided a character as most justly to excite dissatisfaction. 2d. There is no limit prescribed to the premium in the purchase of bills of exchange, thereby correcting none of 324 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the evils under which the community now labors, and operating most injuriously upon the agricultural states, in which the inequalities in the rates of exchange are most severely felt. Nor are these the only consequences : a re sumption of specie payments by the banks of those states would be liable to indefinite postponement ; for, as the operation of the agencies of the interior would chiefly con sist in selling bills of exchange, and the purchases could only be made in specie or the notes of banks paying specie, the state banks would either have to continue with their doors closed., or exist at the mercy of this national monop oly of brokerage. Nor can it be passed over without re mark, that, whilst the District of Columbia is made the seat of the principal bank, its citizens are excluded from all participation in any benefit it might afford, by a positive prohibition on the bank from all discounting within the District. These are some of the objections which prominently exist against the details of the bill ; others might be urged of much force ; but it would be unprofitable to dwell upon them. Suffice it to add, that this charter is designed to continue for twenty years without a competitor that the defects to which I have alluded, being founded in the fundamental law of the corporation, are irrevocable and that if the objections be well founded, it would be over- hazardous to pass the bill into a law. In conclusion, I take leave most respectfully to say, that I have felt the most anxious solicitude to meet the wishes of Congress in the adoption of a fiscal agent which, avoid ing all constitutional objections, should harmonize con flicting opinions. Actuated by this feeling, I have been ready to yield much, in a spirit of conciliation, to the opinions of others. And it is with great pain that I now feel compelled to differ from Congress a second time in the same session. At the commencement of this ses sion, inclined from choice to defer to the legislative will, I submitted to Congress the propriety of adopting a fiscal agent which, without violating the constitution, would separate the public money from the executive con trol, perform the operations of the treasury without being burdensome to the people, or inconvenient, or expensive TYLER S SECOND BANK VETO. 325 to the government. It is deeply to be regretted, that this department of the government cannot, upon constitutional grounds, concur with the legislative department in this last measure proposed to attain these desirable objects. Owing to the brief space between the period of the death of my lamented predecessor and rny own installation into office, I was, in fact, not left time to prepare and submit a definite recommendation of my own, in my regular, mes sage ; and since, my mind has been wholly occupied in a most anxious attempt to conform my action to the legisla tive will. In this communication, I am confined by the constitution to my objections simply to this bill ; but the period of the regular session will soon arrive, when it will be my duty, under another clause of the constitution, " to give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as I shall judge necessary and expedient." And I most respect fully submit, in a spirit of harmony, whether the present differences of opinion should be pressed further at this time, and whether the peculiarity of my situation does not entitle me to a postponement of this subject to a more au spicious period for deliberation. The two houses of Con gress have distinguished themselves, at this extraordinary session, by the performance of an immense mass of labor, at a season very unfavorable both to the health and action ; and have passed many laws, which, I trust, will prove highly beneficial to the interests of the country, and fully answer its just expectations. It has been my good fortune and pleasure to concur with them in all measures, except this. And why should our difference on this alone be pushed to extremes ? It is my anxious desire that it should not be. I, too, have been burdened with extraordi nary labors of late, and I sincerely desire time for deep and deliberate reflection on this the greatest difficulty of my administration. May we not now pause, until a more favorable time, when, with the most anxious hope that the executive and Congress may cordially unite, some measure of finance may be deliberately adopted, promotive of the good of our common country ? I will take this occasion to declare that the conclusions to which I have brought myself, are those of a settled con- 2S 326 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. viction, founded, in my opinion, on a just view of the con stitution ; that, in arriving at it, I have been actuated by no other motive or desire, than to uphold the institutions of the country, as they have come down to us from the hands of our godlike ancestors ; and that I shall esteem my efforts to sustain them, even though I perish, more honorable than to win the applause of men by a sacrifice of my duty and my conscience. STATISTICAL TABLES. Extra Sessions of Congress. Congress has been called together on extraordinary occasions nineteen times since the formation of the government, as fol lows : September 29, 1789 1st Monday in January, 1791 March 2,1791 4th October, 1791 May 5, 1792 1st November, 1792. May 30, 1794 1st " November, 1794. March 3,1797 1st " November, 1797. May 13, 1800 3d " November, 1800. March 3, 1803 1st " November, 1803. March 26, 1804 1st " November, 1804. April 22, 1808 1st " November, 1808. January 30, 1809 4th " May, 1809 June 24,1809 4th " November, 1809. July 6, 1812 1st November, 1812. February 27,1813 4th " May, 1813. July 26, 1813 1st November, 1813. April 13,1814 4th October, 1814. April 13, 1818 3d " November, 1818. May 13, 1820 2d " November, 1820. Mr. Van Buren s call was made in the spring of 1837, and Con gress was convened the first Monday in September of the same year. President Harrison, on the 17th of March, 1841, called Congress to gether on the last Monday in May, 1841. STATISTICAL TABLES. 327 Governors of the several States and Territories^ With their Salaries, Terms of Office, and Expiration of their respective Terms ; the Number of Senators and Representatives in the State Legis latures, with their respective Terms. States. Governors. Salary. Gov. Term, years. Term expires. 1 = : f Mg i- gd |1 Maine, John Fairfield, 1,500 1 Jan. 1843 31 1 200 N. H. Henry Hubbard, 1,200 1 June,1843 L2 250 Vt. Charles Paine, 750 1 Oct. 1842 30 233 Mass. John Davis, 3,666 1 Jan. 1843 40 356 R. I. Samuel W. King, 400 1 May, 1843 LO 72 Conn. C. F. Cleavland, 1,100 1 May, 1843 21 208 N. Y. Wm. H. Seward, 4,000 2 Jan. 1844 32 4 128 N. J. Wm. Pennington, 2,000 1 Oct. 1843 14 1 50 Penn. David R. Porter, 4,000 3 Jan. 1845 33 3 100 Del. William B. Cooper, 1,333 3 Jan. 1844 9 4 21 Md. Francis Thomas, 4,200 3 Jan. 1845 21 5 79 Va. J. Rutherford, Act. 3,333J 3 Mar. 1842 32 4 134 N. C. J. M. Morehead, 2,000 2 Jan. 1843 50 ^ 120 2 s. c. J. P. Richardson, 3,500 2 Dec. 1842 49 4 124 a Ga. Ch. J. McDonald, 4,000 2 Nov. 1843 80 1 207 i Ala. Benj. Fitzpatrick, 3,500 2 Dec. 1843 30 3 100 i Miss. T. A. Tucker, 3,000 2 Jan. 1844 SO 4 91 2 La. A. B. Roman, 7,500 4 Jan. 1843 17 4 50 XJ Ark. Archibald Yell, 2,000 4 Nov. 1844 17 4 54 J Tenn. James C. Jones, 2,000 2 Oct. 1843 25 9 75 9 Ken. Robert P. Letcher, 2,500 4 Sept. 1844 :*8 4 100 1 Ohio, Thomas Corwin, 1,500 2 Dec. 1842 36 J 72 1 Mich. John S. Barry, 2,000 2 Jan. 1844 IH 9 53 J Ind. Samuel Bigger, 1,500 3 Dec. 1843 30 3 62 2 111. Thomas Carlin, 1,500 4 Dec. 1842 40 4 91 2 Mo. Thomas Reynolds, 2,000 4 Nov. 1844 16 4 49 2 Territo. Flor. Richard K. Call, 2,500 3 Dec. 1844 11 2 29 i Wise. James D. Doty, 2,500 3 May, 1844 13 4 26 2 Iowa, John Chambers, 2,500 3 July, 1844 13 2 26 1 In all the states, except New Jersey, Virginia, and South Carolina, the governor is voted for by the people ; and, if no one has a ma jority of all the votes, in the states in which such a majority is re quired, the legislature elects to the office of governor one of the candidates voted for by the people. 328 g g * l g S si irect Tax, and Sales of Public yed in collecting the same; the llected ; with General Results ; oms, Internal Re Number of Office ers, and to the A the fro , also, of Defa 2 25 S ^^ g* g^ H 3g & I w & P-. M W J < NIS deri hibit , h N in Relation to the Revenue of the Unit , from 4>th March, 1789, to 4^/i March, t of Defalcations, and the Ratio of Los ed in Periods of Four Years each. A m arr St THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. I I II *.\ pousj tpBaui STS 01 001$ d SSOT jo ~.-C Iff 111 V 0) p^3H wd ssoi jo open t*3RU?| 2 g8gi irf to" paXojdois aSni pouaj qo i p3A0[dius isqtun S| IIII jo sapsg mojj Xauo Bj31|nvj3a jo jaqtun.M jo saojD3uoo| STATISTICAL TABLES. 2 I I S3 I "51 o i 329 sis ^ "j G? "-* tO r^ CO 00 O lO UO OO IO 5 ITS r-H CM O O C 7 "" 7>r^- co oo f7\f ^ oaDr^o t^-vCi-Hoo oc t"i^Ls, "^^l"!^ R,^v^.^l ^.^??i*Tt ^^^ i-TcrTco ^ r-Ti-T p^p-Ti-Tr-T i-Tof crTfyT co"-^-^- oo d o co CM o> co i OO OP ^ < t- Otf St-^-HOO 00-HCOC7 lOOOOJOO C5OCOIO lO FH a 10 so tic (jiq^oq - o r-. r- - . l 1 II II g:| II II g| 1 | S S3 06 I to o c S Sfjsf CD COOtCt^- OOOO OCO?OO> ^HC^r^OO ^-5 ^ -H i S S 8 S5 S. ^, fo S S S S S.5 J S. 8 J5 Sj gdg OSC^-i .. inn ^rmcooo ooo -coo ^ TTO5O COCCOO O COOOCOC1 i J> CO 00 t 00 < 100 CO O t- CM CMCMCO CO C^ i-l i-c < wggg 2^3 SS25 23^ CT^SSS SSfiS CTcocoi gw OOOOOOOO OOOOXJOO OOGOOOOO OOOOX)00 CX)QCODOO OOOOQOQO OOGOOOOO COOOOO 17 330 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Statement in Relation to the Disbursements of the Revenue of the United States, exclusive of Payments on Account of Public Debt and Trust Funds, from <kth March, 1789, to 4th March, 1837 ; exhibiting, also, the Number of Officers em ployed in the Disbursement, the Amount of Defalcations ; with General Results ; arranged in Periods of Four Years each. 1 No. of De faulters in each Year. Whole No. of De faulters in each Year. Amount of Defalcation in each Year. Aggregate Amount of De falcation in each Period. Whole Number em ployed in each Year. Amount of Ex penditure in each Year, ex clusive of Pub lic Debt. Aggregate Amount of Ex- penditure in each Period, exclusive of Public Debt and Trust Funds. r^ * w t? II S| Civil. Military and Naval. 1789 1790 1791 1792 1793 1794 1795 1796 1797 1798 1799 1800 1801 1802 1803 1804 1805 1806 1807 1808 1809 1810 1811 1812 1813 1814 1815 1816 1817 1818 1819 1820 1821 1822 1823 1824 1825 1826 1827 1828 1829 1830 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835 1836 Total j 1 1 1 6 7 vj 9 4 B 6 4 7 3 7 8 B 10 3 8 4 5 7 -.7 ," - L9 6 3 fi 6 :: g 7 10 1Q 8 in 6 2 1 1 1 2 7 11 17 13 14 5 9 6 7 10 29 39 39 39 213 141 170 170 147 296 247 227 146 141 90 72 43 27 22 33 10 7 4 10 8 9 10 21 2,516 j 1 g 1 4 2 6 13 18 20 18 16 5 13 15 13 14 36 42 46 47 215 151 173 178 151 301 254 334 151 148 102 78 50 27 28 39 13 16 11 20 18 17 20 29 2,760 $ 3,390.95 12,050.56 100.00 18,953.40 280.42 13,531.58 139,026.53 10,275.65 3,697.92 3,955.76 4,273.34 11,128.29 7,106,63 9,390,76 4,832.79 27,411.37 5,905.85 29,593.99 9,867.62 748.58 55,814.58 18,893.94 62,097.38 5,910.24 21,269.21 46,281.56 30,662.13 17.158.11 39,734.67 54,381.80 1,613.51 21,657.41 47,445.04 8,453.63 2,007.91 18,349.01 10,477.50 6,506.74 37,158.82 24,121.30 29,200.78 23,303.33 $ 1,498.18 1,280.00 344.27 600.00 136.22 7,149.25 5,771.27 11,362.42 14,656.50 5,152.41 11,321.07 13,898.67 10,229.81 71,467.58 24,514.17 84,495.40 41,503.93 44,863.22 216,711.35 185,230.08 293.978.55 360,139.18 210,919.77 258,821.56 185,044.40 267,798.80 391,365.25 338,715.07 267,050.38 228,206.91 39,782.08 49,543.68 22,404.28 82,031.66 95,851.79 22,135.29 24,656.00 6,376.07 14,994.36 13,558.79 13,115.25 20,506.82 69,368.23 $ 4,889.13 140 140 140 433 327 380 435 457 448 475 623 594 716 588 649 536 582 586 551 665 782 811 883 942 1,946 2,166 2,226 1,968 1,541 1,620 1,557 1,428 1,244 1,137 934 895 848 792 829 826 825 830 882 882 924 942 971 1,048 $ 1,919,589.52 1,877,903.68 1,710,070.26 3,500,546.68 4,350,658.04 2,521,930.40 2,823,590.96 4,623,223.54 6,480,166.72 7,411,369.97 4,981,669.90 3,737,079.91 4,002,824.24 4,452,858.91 6,357,224.70 6,081,109.36 4,984,572.89 6,504,338.85 7,414,672.14 5,311,082.28 5,592,604.86 17,829,498.70 28,082,396.92 30,127.686.38 20,953,571.00 23,373,452.58 15,454,609.92 13,808,673.78 16,300,273.44 13,134,500.57 10,723,479.07 9,827,643.55 9,784,154.59 15,330,144.71 11,490,459.94 13,062,316.27 12,254,448.92 12,505,972.05 12,651,457.24 13,220,499.95 13,803,786.20 16,514,134.69 22,049,297.95 18,420,467.12 17,005,418.55 29,655,244.46 $3,797,493.20 32,728.23 12,083,205.38 176,770.92 21,338,351.19 54,419.42 17,174,432.96 152,568.70 23,927,245.80 460,352.73 36,147,857.98 1,217,822.06 108,537,106.88 1,207,153.15 58,698,057.71 986,642.53 45,665,421.92 327,387.49 49,313,197.18 105,502.88 56,249,878.08 230,336.32 87,130,428.08 241 898,023.59 4,058,549.97 4,956,573.56 520,062,676.36 STATISTICAL TABLES. 33 J Exhibit of the Number of Persons indeoted, ana tne Amount of Indebtedness, to the Government on Custom-House Bonds, embracing successive Periods of Four Years, from the 4th ofMarch,H89, to the 4*/i of March, 1837; also the Amount of Duties collected during the same Period ; together with the actual Loss and Ratio of Loss to the Amount of Duties collected under each Administration. Year. K Whole Loss each Four Years. Whole Amount of Duties collected each Four Years. Ratio of Loss each Four Years to the Duties collected. From 4th March, 1789, to 4th March, 1793, From 4th March, 1793, to 4th March, 1797, From 4th March, 1797, to 4th March, 1801, From 4th March, 1801, to 4th March, 1805, From 4th March, 1805, to 4th March, 1809, From 4th March, 180&, to 4th March, 1813. From 4th March, 1813, to 4th March, 1817, From 4th March, 1817, to 4th March, 1821, From 4th March, 1821, to 4th March, 18-25, From 4th March, 1825, to 4th March, 1829, From 4th March, 1829, to 4th March, 1833, From 4th March, 1833, to 4th March, 1837, Total, 10 125 148 150 208 263 446 488 431 457 209 1,307 $ 686.46 12,097,850.50 .0056 .0033 .0025 .0013 .0022 .0084 .009065 .01344 .02100 .0256 .002892 .01859 82,359.84 24,552,164.13 85,179.08 33,548,222.90 61,872.69 46,952,705.72 122,478.51 54,172,790.94 374,654.23 44,079,932.82 688,836.51 75,871,937.67 880,111.67 65,470,053.06 1,568,470.17 74,655,234.54 2,278,558.47 88,941,104.61 299,798.51 103,644,579.31 1,305,305.45 70,185,498.66 4,242 7,748,318.89 694,172,034.86 .0111 Average loss per head, $ 1,826.57. Table exhibiting tJie Seats of Government, the Times of Holding the Election of State OJicers, and the Times of tJie Meeting of the Legislatures, of the several States. States. Seats of Govern ment. Times of Holding Elections. Times of the Meeting of the Legislatures. Maine, Augusta, 2(1 Monday in Sept. 1st Wednesday in Jan. N. Hampshire, Concord, 2d Tuesday in March, 1st Wednesday in June. Vermont, Montpelier, 1st Tuesday in Sept. 2d Thursday in October. Massachusetts, Boston, 2d Monday in Nov. 1st Wednesday in Jan. Rhode Island, I Providence I and Newport. Gov. and Sen. in April, Rep. in April and Aug. 1st Wed. in May & June, last Wed. in Oct. and Jan Connecticut, Hart. &. N. Hav. 1st Monday in April, 1st Wednesday in May. New York, Albany, 1st Monday in Nov. 1st Tuesday in January New Jersey, Trenton, 2d Tuesday in October, 4th Tuesday in October. Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, 2d Tuesday in October, 1st Tuesday in January. Delaware, Dover, 2d Tuesday in Nov. 1st Tuesday in Jan. bien. Maryland, Virginia, Annapolis, Richmond, 1st Wednesday in Oct. 4th Thursday in April, last Monday in December. 1st Monday in December. North Carolina, Raleigh, Commonly in August, 2d Monday in Nov. bien. South Carolina, Columbia, 2d Monday in October, 4th Monday in November. Georgia, Milledgeville, 1st Monday in October. 1st Monday in November. Alabama, Tuscaloosa, 1st Monday in August^ 1st Monday in November Mississippi, Jackson, 1st Mon. & Tues. Nov. 1st Monday in Jan. bien. Louisiana, New Orleans, 1st Monday in July, 1st Monday in January. Arkansas, Little Rock, 1st Monday in October, 2d Monday in Oct. bien. Tennessee, Nashville, 1st Thursday in Aug. 1st Monday in Oct. bien. Kentucky, Frankfort, 1st Monday in August, 1st Monday in December. Ohio, Columbus, 2d Tuesday in October, 1st Monday in December. Indiana, Indianapolis, 1st Monday in August, 1st Monday in December. Illinois, Springfield, 1st Monday in August, 1st Monday in Dec. bien. Missouri, Jefferson City, 1st Monday in August, 1st Monday in Nov. bien. Michigan, Detroit, 1st Monday in October, 1st Monday in November. 332 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Dates of the First Settlement of the several Colonies. Virginia 1607 New York 1614 Massachusetts 1620 New Hampshire 1623 New Jersey 1624 Delaware 1627 Maine 1630 Maryland 1633 Connecticut . , 1635 Rhode Island.... 1636 North Carolina 1650 South Carolina 1670 Pennsylvania 1682 Georgia 1733 Adoption of the fast State Constitution. New Hampshire January 5 1776 South Carolina March 24 1776 Virginia June 29 1776 New Jersey July 2 1776 Maryland August 14 177 6 Pennsylvania September 1776 Delaware September 1776 North Carolina December 1776 New York April 1777 Massachusetts March 1786 Vermont July 4 1786 Georgia May 1789 Amount of Money expended in each State and Territory, by the United States, upon Works of Internal Improvement, from the Adoption of the Federal Constitution, to the 1st Day of October, Maine $ 11,724 22 Massachusetts 104,042 46 Connecticut 2,069 97 Rhode Island 195 19 New York 68,138 45 Pennsylvania 39,728 32 Delaware 307,104 01 Maryland 10,000 00 Virginia 150,000 00 North Carolina 1,000 00 Kentucky 90,000 00 Tennessee $ 4,200 00 Ohio 390,159 03 Indiana 108,123 88 Mississippi 49,385 52 Illinois 8,000 00 Alabama 81,762 78 Missouri 22,702 24 Arkansas 44,690 00 Michigan 48,607 95 Florida ....799,002 01 Total $2,341,136 03 Navy-Yards in the United States. Portsmouth, N. H. Washington, D. C. Charlestown, Mass. Norfolk, Va. Brooklyn, N. Y. Pensacola, Fa. Philadelphia, Pa. New Orleans, La. STATISTICAL TABLES. 333 United States Mint. Officers of the Mint at Philadelphia. Salary. R. M. Patterson, Director. $3,500 Wm. Findlay, Treasurer.. 2,000 Franklin Peale,C^/ Comer 2,000 J. R. Eckfeldt, Assayer. . . .2,000 J. R. McClintock, Melt- Salary. er and Refiner William Kneas, Engraver . 1 ,500 , 2d Engraver. 1,500 Officers of the Branch at New Orleajis, La. Salary. J. M. Kennedy, Superin. $2,500 Wm. P. Kort, Assayer,. . . 2,000 John L. Riadel, Melt, fy #e/.2,000 Salary. Philos B. Tyler, Coiner ..$2,000 Hor. C. Cammack, Treas. 2,000 Officers of the Branch at Dahlonega, Ga. Salary. J. J. Singleton, Superin. .$2,000 J. W. Farnham, Assayer.. 1,500 Salary. David M. Mason, Coiner . . 1,500 Officers of the Branch at Charlotte, N. C. Salary. J. H. Wheeler, Superin. .$2,000 J. H. Gibbon, Assayer 1,500 Salary. John R. Bolton, Coiner ..$1,500 Number of Post Offices on the 1st of May, 1840 13,376. Privilege of Franking. Letters and packets to and from the following officers of the government, are by law received and conveyed by post, free of postage : The President and Vice-President of the United States, Secre taries of State, Treasury, War, and Navy; Attorney- General ; Postmasters- General, and Assistant Postmasters- General; Comp trollers, Auditors, Register, and Solicitor of the Treasury ; Treas urer; Commissioner of the General Land Office; Commissioners of the Navy Board ; Commissary- General ; Inspectors- General ; Quartermaster-General; Pay master- General; Superintendent of Patent Office ; Speaker and Clerk of the House of Representa tives ; President and Secretary of the Senate ; and any individual who shall have been, or may hereafter be, President of the United States ; and each may receive newspapers by post, free of postage. Each member of the Senate, and each member and delegate of the House of Representatives, may send and receive, free of post age, newspapers, letters, and packets, weighing not more than two ounces, (in case of excess of weight, excess alone to be paid for,) and all documents printed by order of either house, from the period 334 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. of sixty days before he takes his seat in Congress, till the next meeting of the next Congress. Postmasters may send and receive, free of postage, letters and packets not exceeding half an ounce in weight ; and they may re ceive one daily newspaper each, or what is equivalent thereto. Printers of newspapers may send one paper to each and every other printer of newspapers within the United States, free of postage, under such regulations as the Postmaster-General may provide. United States Executive Government. The fourteenth presidential term of four years, since the estab lishment of the government of the United States under the consti tution, began on the 4th of March, 1841, and it will expire on the 3d of March, 1845. William H. Harrison, Ohio, President $25,000 John Tyler, Va., Vice- President, and President by the death of General Harrison. THE CABINET. The following are the principal officers in tne executive depart ment of the government, who form the cabinet, and who hold their offices at the will of the President : Salary. Samuel L. Southard, New Jersey, acting Vice-P resident. ...$5,000 Daniel Webster, Mass., Secretary of State 6,000 A. P. Upshur, Virginia, Secretary of the Navy 6,000 John C. Spencer, New York, Secretary of War 6,000 Walter Forward, Penn., Secretary of the Treasury 6,000 Charles A. WicklifFe, Kentucky, Postmaster- General 6,000 Hugh S. Legare, South Carolina, Attorney- General 4,000 Officers of the Senate. Secretary $3.000 Chief Clerk 1,800 Executive Clerk 1 ,500 First Legislative Clerk 1,500 Second do 1,500 First Engrossing Clerk 1,500 Salarj. Second Engrossing Clerk . $1 ,500 Sergeant at Arms and ) Doorkeeper, 5 Assistant Doorkeeper 1,450 Messenger 700 Officers of the House of Representatives. Salary. Clerk of the House $3,000 Chief Clerk of Office 1 ,800 Ten Clerks in Office, each. 1,500 Sergeant at Arms 1,500 Snlary. Doorkeeper 1,500 Assistant Doorkeeper 1,450 Postmaster 1 ,500 STATISTICAL TABLES. 335 Librarian LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. Salary. I Salary. $1,500 Assistant Librarian $1,150 Salaries in the different Departments of the General Government. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. Salary. Secretary $6,000 Chief Clerk 2,000 Diplomatic Bureau. One Clerk 1,600 Another 1,500 Another 1,400 Consular Bureau. Two Clerks, each 1,400 Home Bureau. Two Clerks, each 1,400 TREASURY DEPARTMENT. Salary. Secretary $6,000 Chief Clerk $2,000 Comptrollers. 1st Comptroller 3,500 Chief Clerk 1,700 2d Comptroller 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Auditors. 1st Auditor 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 2d Auditor 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 3d Auditor 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 4th Auditor 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Salary. Another $1,000 Another 900 Translator 1,600 Distributing Agent 1,400 Patent Office. Commissioner of Patents .. 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Two Examiners, each 1 ,500 Salary. 5th Auditor 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Treasurer s Office. Treasurer 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Register s Office. Register 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Solicitor s Office. Solicitor 3,500 Land Office. Commissioner General. . ..3,000 Recorder 2,000 Solicitor 2,000 Chief Clerk 1,800 WAR DEPARTMENT. Salary. Secretary Chief Clerk 2,0)0 Pension Office. Commissioner 3,000 Chief Clerk 1,760 Adjutant- General s Office. Colonel and Adjutant- General. Rix Assistant Adjutants-Gen. Clerk 1,200 Bounty Lands. Principal 1,600 Indian Affairs. Commissioner Salary. ,3,000 Chief Clerk 1,600 Paymaster- General s Office. Pay master- General 2,500 Chief Clerk 1,700 Purchasing Department. Com. General of Purch. ..3,000 Chief Clerk 1,700 Surgeon- General s Office. Surgeon-General 2,500 Clerk 1,150 336 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. NAVY DEPARTMENT. Salary. , Salary. Secretary $6,000 Chief Clerk 2,000 Navy Commissioners. Three, each 3,500 Secretary 2,000 Chief Clerk 1,720 SURVEY OF THE COAST OF THE UNITED STATES. Salary. Principal $6,000 Two Assistants, each 4,000 Two others, each 3,000 Salary. Three others, each $2,000 Three others, each 1,500 Another 1,000 POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT. Assistant Postmaster- General, First Division $2,500 Second Division 2,500 Third Division 2,500 Chief Clerk 2,000 Auditor of the Post-Office 3,000 Chief Clerk , 2,000 Salaries of the Officers of the Supreme Court. Salary. Chief Justice $5,000 Eight Assoc. Justices, each 4,500 Attorney- General 4,000 Salary. Reporter $1,000 Clerk 1,000 Marshal Fees, &c. The Supreme Court is held in the city of Washington, and has one session annually, commencing on the 2d Monday of January. Congress. The Congress of the United States consists of a Senate and House of Representatives, and must assemble, at least, once every year, on the 1st Monday of December, unless it is otherwise pro vided by law. The Senate is composed of two members from each state; and of course the regular number is now 52. They are chosen by the legislatures of the several states, for the term of six years, one third of them being elected biennially. The Vice-President of the United States is the President of the Senate, in which body he has only a casting vote, which is given in case of an equal division of the votes of the Senators. In his absence, a President pro tempore is chosen by the Senate. The House of Representatives is composed of members from the several states, elected by the people for the term of two years. The Representatives are apportioned among the different states ac- STATISTICAL TABLES. 337 cording to population; and the 23d, 24th, 25th, and 26th Con- grasses have been elected in accordance with an act of Congress of 1832, one representative being returned for every 47,700 persons, computed according to the rule prescribed by the constitution ; (five slaves being computed equivalent to three free persons.) The present regular number is 242 representatives, and 3 delegates. Since the 4th of March, 1807, the compensation of each member of the Senate and House of Representatives has been $8 a day, during the period of his attendance in Congress, without deduction in case of sickness ; and $8 for every twenty miles travel, in the usual road, in going to and returning from the seat of government. The compensation of the President of the Senate, p? o tempore, and of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, is $>1G a day. Votes for President and Vice-President. The following table, which we have prepared at the expense of some labor, will be found useful for reference. It exhibits the electoral votes given for the most prominent candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States, at the different elections since Gen. Washington s retirement. 1796 President, John Adams 71, Thomas Jefferson 68; Vice- President, T. Pinkney 58, Aaron Burr 50. 1800 President, Thomas Jefferson 73, John Adams 64; Vice- President, Aaron Burr 73, T. Pinkney 58. 1804 President, Thomas Jefferson 162, Charles C. Pinkney 14; Vice-President, G. Clinton 163, R. King 14. 1808 President, J. Madison 152, C. C. Pinkney 45; Vice-Pres ident, G. Clinton 118, R. King 47. 1812 President, J.Madison 127, De Witt Clinton 89; Vice- President, E. Gerry 128, Jared Ingersoll 58. 1816 President, J Monroe 188, R. King 34; Vice-President, D. D. Tompkins 113, opposition scattering. 1820 President, J. Monroe 218, no opposition, except one vote given from New Hampshire ; Vice-President, D. D. Tompkins 212, opposition divided. 1824 Andrew Jackson 99, J. Q. Adams 84, W. H. Craw ford 41, H. Clay 37. J. Q. Adams chosen by the house. 1828 President, A. Jackson 178, J. Q. Adams 83; Vice-Presi dent, J. C. Calhoun 173, R. Rush 83. 1832 President, A. Jackson 219, H. Clay 49, John Floyd 11, Wm. Wirt 7 ; Vice-President, Martin Van Buren 189, John Sar geant 49, William Wilkins 30, Henry Lee 11, Levi Ellmaker 7. 1836 President, Martin Van Buren 170, W. H. Harrison 73, H- L. White 26, W. P. Mangum 11, Daniel Webster 14 ; Vice-Presi dent, R. M. Johnson 147, Francis Granger 63, scattering 84. 1840 President, William Henry Harrison 234, Martin Van Bu ren 60 ; Vice-President, John Tyler 234, Richard M. Johnson 48, J.K. Polk 1, L. W. Tazewell 1 1 . [Harrison 19 states ; Van Buren 7 do.] The electors meet at the capitals of the respective states in which 29 338 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. they are chosen, on the second day of December, and give in their ballots for President and Vice-President. Population, Square Miles, fyc. of the United States. 2,257,374 s<*. M. j 17,357,226 INHAB. Capital, WASHINGTON, 23,346 inhab. ; lat. 38| N., long. 77 W. Division. Sq. m. Maine 35,000 N. Hampshire .9,500 Vermont 10,000 Massachusetts. .7,750 Ruode Island ..1,250 Connecticut. . . .4,760 Pop. 501,793 284,574 291,948 737,699 108,830 q no, 7 Q ,09,^78 Settled. 1630 1632 1724 1620 1636 1fi oo 3 3 New York ....46,000 New Jersey 7,800 Pennsylvania. .47,000 Delaware 2,100 Maryland 10,000 Virginia 68,000 N. Carolina 50,000 S. Carolina 32,000 Georgia 61,000 Alabama 52,000 Mississippi . . . .48,000 Louisiana 49,000 Tennessee 43,000 Kentucky 40,000 Ohio. 45,000 Michigan 63,000 Indiana 36,000 Illinois 59,000 Missouri 63JOOO Arkansas 55,000 Dist. of Col 100 Florida 54,000 Wisconsin 125,000 Iowa 100,000 ^Oregon 600,000 ^Missouri 548,000 Indian 190,000 Dacotah. New England States. Dist. fr. Capital. Pop. Wash. Augusta ...... 5,314 600 Concord ...... 4,897 450 Montpelier .... 3,725 500 Boston ...... 93,383 436 Providence. ..23,171 410 Hartford ..... 12,793 336 N e W Haven.. 14,390 320 Middle States. 2,428,921 1614 Albany ...... 33,721 387 373,306 1624 Trenton ...... 4,035 167 1,724,033 1682 Harrisburg. . ..5,980 100 78,085 1627 Dover ........ 3,790 100 Southern States. 469,232 1634 Annapolis .. ..2,792 33 Richmond .. .20,153 123 Raleigh ...... 2,244 288 Columbia ..... 4,340 490 Milledgeviile . .2,000 635 Tuscaloosa ... 2,000 880 1,239,797 753,419 594,398 691,392 590,756 375,651 352,411 1607 1650 1670 1733 1783 1716 1699 Western States. 829,210 1765 Nashville. 779,828 1775 Frankfort 1788 1670 1730 1749 1663 1685 Jackson ...... 1,000 1190 N. Orleans.. 102,193 1260 1,519,467 212,267 685,866 476,183 383,702 97,574 Territories. 43,712 54,477 30,945 43,112 1 00,000 108,800 94,860 6,929 1,917 Columbus.... 6,048 Detroit ....... 9,102 Indianapolis ..2,692 Springfield . . .2,579 Jefferson City 1,000 720 565 418 556 603 850 950 Little Rock ..1,000 1000 1665 Washington .23,364 Tallahassee... 1,616 Madison 1,712 Burlington ...1,000 896 700 650 1811 t Astona ...... ..30 2350 * Inhabited by Indians principally, t Settlement commenced by John J. Council Bluff ..... 1050 Astor, Esq., 1811. STATISTICAL TABLES. 339 Imports and Exports of the United States, In each year (ending 30th September) since 1820. Yean. 1821 1823 1823 1824 1823 1826 1827 1828 1829 1830 Imports. $62,565,724 83,241,541 77,579,267 80,549,007 96,340,075 84,074,477 79,484,068 88,509,824 74,492,527 70,876,920 Exports. $64,974,382 74,160,281 74,099,03.) 75,986,G57 99,535,388 77,595.32-2 82,324,827 72,264,086 72,358,6tfl 73,849,508 Yews. 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835 1836 1837 1838 1839 1840 Imports. $103,191,124 101,029,266 108,118,311 126,521,332 149,895,742 189,980,035 140,989,217 113,717,404 162,092,132 104,305,891 Export*. $81,310,583 77,176,943 90,140,433 81,024,162 121,693,557 127,663,040 117,419,376 108,486,616 121,023,416 131,571,950 Cities of the Portland, Me 15$18 Boston, Mass 93,383 Salem, Mass 15,082 Lowell, Mass 20,796 Providence, R. 1 23,171 New London, Ct 5,519 Norwich, Ct 4,200 Hartford, Ct 12,793 New Haven, Ct 14,390 Middle town, Ct 3,511 New York, N. Y 312,710 Brooklyn, N. Y 36,233 Hudson, N. Y 5,672 Albany, N. Y 33.721 Schenectady, N. Y 6,784 Troy, N. Y 19,334 Utica, N. Y 12,782 Rochester, N. Y 20,191 Buffalo, N.Y 18,213 Newark, N. J 17,290 Burlington, N. J., 3,250 United States. Philadelphia, Pa 228&1 Pittsburg, Pa 21,115 Lancaster, Pa 8,417 Chicago, 111 4,470 Baltimore, Md 102,313 Annapolis, Md 2,792 Washington, D. C 23,364 Alexandria, D. C 8,459 Richmond, Va 20,153 Charleston, S. C 29,261 Savannah, Ga 11 ,214 St. Augustine, Fa 2,459 Tallahassee, Fa 1,616 Mobile, Ala 18,741 New Orleans, La 102,193 Natchez, Miss 4,800 St. Louis, Mo 35,979 Louisville, Ky 21,210 Nashville, Tenn 6,929 Cincinnati, 46,338 Detroit, Mich 9,102 Apportionment of Representation. By an act of Congress passed June, 1842, the States are entitled to one Representative for every 70,680 inhabitants. This will give a total of 223, besides three Delegates from the Territories. Each State is required to be divided into districts, corresponding in number to the representatives to be elected, each of which shall choose one. States. Rep. Maine 7 New Hampshire. -.4 Vermont 4 Massachusetts .... 10 Rhode Island 2 Connecticut 4 New York 34 New Jersey 5 Pennsylvania ....24 Delaware.. ..I Suites. Rep. Maryland 6 Virginia 15 North Carolina 9 South Carolina 7 Georgia 8 Alabama 7 Mississippi 4 Louisiana 4 Arkansas 1 Tennessee .. ..11 Rep. .10 States. Kentucky Ohio 21 Michigan 3 Indiana 10 Illinois 7 Missouri 5 Territories. Florida, (del.) 1 Wisconsin " .. ..1 Iowa " . . 1 340 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Supreme Court. Residence. Appointed. Salary. Roger B. Taney, . . Maryland, Chief Justice 1836 $5,000 Joseph Story, . . . .Massachusetts, . .Associate Justice. . .1811 . .4,500 Smith Thompson,. New York, " " . .1823. .4,500 John McLean, Ohio, " " ..1829. .4,500 Henry Baldwin, .. Pennsylvania, .. " " ..1830. .4,500 John M. Wayne, . . Georgia, " " . .1835. .4,500 John McKinley, ..Alabama, " . .1837. .4,500 John Catron, Tennessee, " " . .1837. .4,500 Peter Y. Daniel, . . Virginia, " . . 1841 . . 4,500 Hugh S. Legare, .Washington, . . .Attorney- General 4,000 Richard Peters, . . . Philadelphia, . . .Reporter 1,000 William T. CorroU, Washington, . . . Clerk 1,000 Alexander Hunter, Washington, . . .Marshal Fees. The Supreme Court is held in Washington on the second Mon day of January, annually. Circuit Courts. First Circuit. Presiding Judge. Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. ..Story. Second Circuit. Vermont, Connecticut, and New York Thompson. TJiird Circuit. New Jersey and Pennsylvania Baldwin. Fourth Circuit. Delaware and Maryland .Taney. Fifth Circuit. Virginia and North Carolina Daniel. Sixth Circuit. South Carolina and Georgia Wayne. Seventh Circuit. Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan McLean, Eighth Circuit. Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri Catron. Ninth Circuit. Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas McKinley. The Circuit Courts are held in the several districts of each circuit, the district judge acting as associate justice. There is a local court held in the District of Columbia, STATISTICAL TABLES. 341 District Courts. District*. Judges. Attorneys. Marshals. Clerks. Maine, Ashur Ware,... John Holmes, .... J.D. Kinsman,. John Mussey. N. Hamp. .. Matth. Harvey,. Joel Eastman,.... J. W. Kelley,.. C. W. Cutter. Vermont, .. Samuel Premiss, Charles Davis, . . . Wm. Barron,.. Jesse Gove. Mass Peleg Sprague, . Franklin Dexter,. S. Lincoln, . . . F. Bassett. R. Island, .. John Pilman,... R. W.Greene, ... S. Hartshorn, . J. T. Pitman. Connecticut, A. T. Judson, .. Charles Chapman, J.B. Eldridge,. C. A. Ingersoll. NT V $ N.D. A. Conkling,... J. A. Spencer,.... C. Robinson,.. R. B. Miller. N Y - S. D. Samuel A. Belts, Ogden Hoffman, . S. M. Stilwell,. F. J. Belts. N. Jersey,.. P. Dickerson, . . J. S. Greene, J. S. Darcy,... R. D. Spencer. PO (E.D.. J. Hopkinson,.. W. M. Meredith, . Isaac Otis, F. Hopkinson. ra | W.D. Thomas Irwin,. Cor. Darragh, .... H.C. Bossier,.. E. J. Roberts. Delaware,.. Willard Hall,... J. A. Bayard, D. C.Wilson, . W.A.Mendenhal. Maryland,.. Upton S. Heath, N. Williams, N. Snyder,.... Thomas Spicer. John Y. Mason, R. C. Nicholas, . . E. Christian,.. R. Jeffries. Va - | W D D. I.S.Pennybacker W. G. Singleton,. James Points. N. Carolina, Henrv Potter, . . W. H. Hay wood,. Bev ly Daniel,. W. H. Haywood S. Carolina, R. B. Gilchrist,. E. McCreary, T. C. Condy,;. James Jarvey. Georgia,.... John C. Nicoll,. R. M. Charlton,.. W. J. Davis,.. George Glenn. Wm. Crawford, George W. Gayle, Jer. Clemens, .... R.L.Crawford, B. Patterson,.. D. Files. C. R. Clifton. / N. D. S. F. Butterworth, A.K.McClung. MiSS. | g^ j)[ S. J. Gholson, . . R. M. Gaines,.... A. Miller, William Burns. La. j^ D D AbnerN. Ogden, Bailie Peyton, II. Taylor, M. Marigney. C. N. Garrett,. J. Lessassier. c W.D! H. W. McCorrv,.. R. I. Chester. Ten. 1 M. D. B. Brown, R. J. Melgs,./.... S. B. Marshall, N. A. McNairy. (E. D. J. A. McKinney,. R. M. Woods, W. C. Mynatt. Kentucky, . T. B. Monroe,.. P.S.Loughborough J. M.McCalla,. J. H. Hanna. Ohio, H. A. Leavitt,.. Israel Hamilton,.. J. Patterson, .. William Miner. Indiana, . . J. L. Holman,.. C. Cushing, R. Hanna, .... Henry Hurst. Illinois, .. . Nathaniel Pope, J. Butterfield, Wm. Prentiss, Wm. H. Brown. Missouri Rob t. W. Wells, M Blair W. H. Russell, Joseph Gamble. Michigan, . Ross Wilkins,.. George C. Bates, . Josh. Howard. Arkansas, . Benj. Johnson, . Absalom Fowler,. T. W. Newton. Dist. Col. . William Cranch, Francis S. Key, .. Alex. Hunter,. W. Brent. Presidents of Congress, from 1774 to 1788. Prom Elected Peyton Randolph, Virginia, September 5, 1774. Henry Middle ton, South Carolina, October 22, 1774. Peyton Randolph, Virginia, May 10, 1775. John Hancock, Massachusetts, May 24, 1775. Henry Laurens, South Carolina, .... November 1, 1777. John Jay, New York, December 10, 1778. Samuel Huntington, . . .Connecticut, September 28, 1779. Thomas McKean, Delaware, July 10, 1781. John Hanson, Maryland, November 5, 1781 . Elias Boudinot, New Jersey, November 4, 1782. Thomas Mifflin, Pennsylvania, November 3, 3783. Richard Henry Lee, . . .Virginia, November 30, 1786. Nathaniel Gorham, ... .Massachusetts, ... .June 6, 1786. Arthur St. Clair, Pennsylvania, February 2, 1787. Cyrus Griffin, Virginia, January 22, 1788. 342 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Signers of the Declaration of Independence. Names. born. 1776. NEW HAMPSHIRE. Josiah Bartlett, N. H. . .47 William Whipple,. . .Maine. .40 Matthew Thornton,. .Ireland. 62 MASSACHUSETTS. John Hancock, ... .Mass. ..39 Samuel Adams,... . " ..54 John Adams, " ..41 Robert T. Paine, ... " . .45 Elbridge Gerry,... . " ..32 RHODE ISLAND. T ucic A^e iri Names. born. 1?70. James Smith, Ireland. George Taylor, " ..60 James Wilson, Scot. . . . 34 George Ross, Del 46 DELAWARE. Caesar Rodney, Del 46 George Read, Md .42 Thomas McKean, . . . Penn. ..42 MARYLAND. Samuel Chase, Maryl. . .35 William Paca, " ..36 Stephen Hopkins, ... R. Isl...69 William Ellery, " ..49 CONNECTICUT. Roger Sherman, Mass. . . 55 Samuel Huntington,.Conn. ..44 William Williams, . . " . .45 Oliver Wolcott, " ..50 NEW YORK. William Floyd, L. ls. . .42 Philip Livingston, . . . N. York. 60 Francis Lewis, S.Wales.63 Lewis Morris, N.York. 50 Thomas Stone, " . .36 Charles Carroll, " . .39 VIRGINIA. George Wythe, Vir 50 Richard H. Lee,. . " 44 Thomas Jefferson, . " ....33 Benjamin Harrison . " .... Thomas Nelson, . . " .... 38 Francis L. Lee, . . . " ... .42 Carter Braxton,.. . " ....40 NORTH CAROLINA. NEW JERSEY. Richard Stockton, . . . N. Jer. . .46 John Witherspoon, . .Scot. . . .54 Francis Hopkinson,. .Penn. . .39 John Hart, N. Jer. . . Abraham Clark, " . .50 PENNSYLVANIA. Robert Morris,. . Eng. . . .43 Benjamin Rush, . . . .Penn. . .31 Benjamin Franklin,. .Mass. T.70 John Morton, Del 52 George Clymer, Penn. . . 37 William Hooper,. . . .Mass. . .34 Joseph Hewes, N. Jer. . .46 John Penn, Vir 35 SOUTH CAROLINA. Edward Rutledge,.. .S. Car. .27 Thomas Hey ward, ... " . . 30 Thomas Lynch, " . .27 Arthur Middleton, ... " . . 33 GEORGIA. Button Gwinnett, . . . Eng. . . .44 Lyman Hall, Conn. . .45 George Walton, Vir 36 STATISTICAL TABLES. 343 Settlement of the Colonies. Virginia 1607 New York 1614 Massachusetts 1620 New Hampshire 1623 New Jersey 1624 Delaware 1627 Maine... ..1630 Maryland 1633 Connecticut 1635 Rhode Island 1636 North Carolina 1650 South Carolina 1670 Pennsylvania 1682 Georgia 1733 Forces supplied to the Revolutionary Army by each State, from 1775 to 1783, inclusive. New Hampshire 12,497 Massachusetts 67,907 Rhode Island 5,908 Connecticut 31,939 New York 17,781 New Jersey 10,726 Pennsylvania 25,678 Delaware 2,386 Maryland 13,912 Virginia 26,678 North Carolina 7,263 South Carolina 6,417 Georgia 2,679 Total. Regular troops 231 ,761 Militia 56,163 Chronological List of the Cabinet Officers of each Administration. First Administration ; - 1789 to 1797 j-8 years. GEORGE WASHINGTON,.. Virginia, John Adams, Massachusetts Thomas Jefferson, ... Edmund Randolph,.. Timothy Pickering,.. Alexander Hamilton,. Oliver Wolcott, Henry Knox, Timothy Pickering,.. James McHenry, .... Samuel Osgood, Timothy Pickering,.. Joseph Habersham,.. Edmund Randolph,.. William Bradford,... Charles Lee, ...Virginia, .... ...Virginia, .... ...Pennsylvania ...New York,.., ...Connecticut,. ...Massachusetts, . . .Pennsylvania, . ..Maryland, .... . . .Massachusetts, ...Pennsylvania,. ...Georgia, ...Virginia, ...Pennsylvania,. ...Virginia, ..April 30, 1789. President. ,.. April 30, 1789. Vice-President. Appointed. ..Sept. 26, 1789.) Jan. 2, 1794. } Secretaries of State. . .Dec. 10, 1795.) ..Sept. 11, 1789. ) Secretaries of the ..Feb. 3,1795.) Treasury. .Sept. 12, 1789. ) Jan. 2, 1795. > Secretaries of War. . .Jan. 27, 1796. ) ..Sept. 26, 1789. ) Nov. 7, 1791. Postmasters General. ..Feb. 25, 1795.) ..Sept. 26, 1789.) Jan. 27, 1794. > Attorneys General. ..Dec. 10, 1795.) 344 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Second Administration ; - JOHN ADAMS, Massachusetts, Thomas Jefferson, Virginia, Timothy Pickering, ....Pennsylvania, , John Marshall, Virginia, Oliver Wolcott, Connecticut, .. Samuel Dexter, Massachusetts, James McHenry, Maryland, .... Samuel Dexter, Massachusetts, Roger Gris wold, Connecticut, . . , George Cabot, Massachusetts, Benjamin Stoddert, Maryland, Joseph Habersham, Georgia, Charles Lee Virginia President. Vice-President. 1797 to 1801 5 4 years. .March 4, 1797. .March 4, 1797. Appointed, .(cont d in office.) .May 13, 1800. .(con? din office.) .Dec. 31, 1800. Secretaries of State. Secretaries of the Treasury. Secretaries of War. .(cont din office.) .May 13, 1800. .Feb. 3, 1801 .May 3, 1798. ) Secretaries of the .May 21, 1798. j Navy. .(confd in office.) Postmaster General. .(conf din office.) Attorney General. Third Administration ; 1801 to 1809 5 8 years. THOMAS JEFFERSON, Virginia, March 4, 1801. President. Aaron Burr, New York, March 4, 1801. ) , r p .,, t George Clinton, New York, March 4, 1805. J Vl .Appointed. James Madison, Virginia, March 5, 1801. Secretary of State. Samuel Dexter, Massachusetts, ..(cont d in office.) ) Secretaries of the Albert Gallatin, Pennsylvania,. . .Jan. 26, 1802. \ Treasury. Henry Dearborn, Massachusetts, . . March 5, 1801. Secretary of War. Benjamin Stoddert, Maryland, (cont d in office.) ) Secretaries of the Robert Smith, Maryland, Jan. 26, 1802. \ Navy. Joseph Habersham, Georgia, (contain office.) Gideon Granger, Connecticut, ... .Jan. 26, 1802. Levi Lincoln, Massachusetts, .. March 5, 1801.) John Breckeuridge, Kentucky, Dec. 23, 1805. > Attorneys General. Caesar A. Rodney, Delaware, Jan. 20, 1607.) Fourth Administration ; 1809 to 1817 5 8 years. JAMES MADISON, Virginia, March 4, 1809. President. George Clinton, N. Y.. 1S09, (died April 20, J812.) ) v . Prpsli . 1pnt , Elbridge Gerry, ..Mass., 18J3, (died JYov. 23, 1814.) j Vice-Presidents. Appointed. Robert Smith, Maryland, March 6, 1809.) James Monroe, Virginia, Nov. 25, 1811. > Secretaries of State. James Monroe, Virginia, Feb. 28, 1815.) Albert Gallatin, Pennsylvania, . .. cont d in office.) ) & ,t a oo f the George W. Campbell,. . .Tennessee, ..... Feb. 9, 1814 I SeCr r Alexander J. Dallas, ....Pennsylvania, ...Oct. 6, 1814.) treasury. William Eustis, Massachusetts, ..March 7, 1809. ) John Armstrong, JN ew York, Jan. 13, 1813. f cwrAtari** r,f wr James Monroef. Virginia,. . Sept. 27 1814. ( Se c retaries of War- William H. Crawford, . .Georgia March 2, 1815. J Paul Hamilton, South Carolina, .March 7, 1809. ) ~. - t - William Jones, Pennsylvania,.. .Jan. 12, ]813 ( Secretaries of the Benj. W.Crowninshield, Massachusetts,.. Dec. 19, 1814.) Gideon Granger, Connecticut, (conCd in office.) \ p Aqtmf ,,,tPra rptipral Return J. Meigs, Ohio, .March 17, 1814. \ Postmasters General. Caesar A, Rodney, Delaware, (contfd in office.) ) William Pinkney, Maryland, Dec. 11, 1811. Attorneys General. Richard Rush, Pennsylvania,... Feb. 10, 1814.) Fifth Administration ; 1817 to 1835 j 8 years. JAMES MONROE, Virginia, March 4, 1817. President. Daniel D. Tompkins, . . .New York, March 4, 1817. Vice-President. Appointed. John Q. Adams, Massachusetts, . . March 5, 1817. Secretary of State William H. Crawford, . .Georgia, March 5, 1817. Sec. of the Treasury STATISTICAL TABLES. 345 Isaac Shelby, ........... Kentucky, ...... March 5, 1817. ; c prrptari p< nf War John C. Calhoun, ....... South Carolina, .Dec. 16, 1817. j Secreta of War - Benj. W. CrowninshieldjMassachusetts, ..(con? din office.) ) a fPrt > tar i- 9 nf th p Smith Thompson, ...... .New York,. . . . . .Nov. 30, 1818. SeCret Na VV Samuel L. Southard,. . . .New Jersey, . . . .Dec. 9, 1823. ) Sixth Administration ; 1885 to 1839; 4: years. JOHN GIUINCY ADAMS,... Massachusetts, ..March 4, 1825. President. John C. Calhoun, ....... South Carolina,. .March 4, 1825. Vice-President. Appointed. Henry Clay, ............ Kentucky, ...... March 8, 1825. Secretary of State. Richard Rush, .......... Pennsylvania,... March 7, 1825. Sec. of the Treasury. James Barbour, ......... Virginia, ........ March 7, 1825. \ e p ,,,.p tn ,jp<= nf Wir Peter B. Porter, ........ New York, ...... May 20, 1828. j Secretaries of War - Samuel L. Southard ..... New Jersey, . . ..(cont d in office.) Sec. of the Navy. Seventh Administration 5 1839 to 1837 ; 8 years. ANDKEW JACKSO.V, ...... Tennessee, ..... March 4, 1829. President. John C. Calhoun, ....... South Carolina, .March 4, 1829. ) v . p^^enta Martin Van Buren, ..... New York, ...... March 4, 1833. | V1 Martin Van Buren, ..... New York ..................... } John Forsyth, .......... Georgia, ...................... ) Samuel D. Ingham, ..... Pennsylvania, ................. Louis McLane, ......... Delaware, .................... I Vwrotxri** n f tho William J. Duane, ...... Pennsylvania, ................. J T r r^ Roger B. Taney, ........ Maryland, .................... \ Levi Woodbury, ........ New Hampshire, .............. John H. Eaton, ......... Tennessee .................... \ Lewis Cass, ............ Michigan, ..................... > Secretaries of War. ew Yor Benj. F. Butler, (acting,) New York, .................... ) John Branch, ........... North Carolina ) Sprrpt nrip* nf th Levi Woodbury, ........ New Hampshire, .............. Mahlon Dickerson ....... New Jersey, .................. ) John McLean, .......... Ohio, ......................... ) Postmasters General, William T. Barry ....... Kentucky, .................... [now first considered^ Amos Kendall, ......... Kentucky, ........ , ..... ,...,. ) as Cabinet officers,] Eighth Administration j 1837 to 1841 5 4: years. MARTIN VAN BUREN,. . .New York, ...... March 4, 1837. President. Richard M. Johnson,. . . .Kentucky, ...... March 4, 1837. Vice-President. Appointed. John Forsyth, .......... Georgia, ........ (confd in office.) Secretary of State. Levi Woodbury, ........ New Hampshire, (confdin office.) Sec. of the Treasury. Joel R. Poinsett, ........ South Carolina, . March 5, 1837. Secretary of War. Mahlon Dickerson, ...... New Jersey, ....(cont d in office.) Sec. of the Navy. Amos Kendall, ......... Kentucky, ...... (cont d in office.) ) PnRtmastf>re , r w p n p ra i John M. Niles, .......... Connecticut, .................. | Po Ninth Administration ; 1841. WILLIAM H. HARRISON,. Ohio, ........... March 4, 1841. President. John Tyler, ............ Virginia, ........ March 4, 1841 . Vice-President Daniel Webster, ........ Massachusetts, ............ , ..... Secretary of State. Thomas Ewing, ........ Ohio, ........................... Sec. of the Treasury. John Bell, .............. Tennessee, ..................... Secretary of War. George E. Badger, ...... North Carolina, ................. Sec. of the Navy, Francis Granger, ....... New York, ..................... Postmaster General. John J. Crittenden, ..... Kentucky, ...................... Attorney General 346 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 4 Record of Events connected ivith the History of the United States. 1492. Columbus, on the 12th of October, landed at San Salvador, one of the Bahama Islands. He was the first European who set foot in the New World. 1493. He discovered St. Domingo, Jamaica, and other islands in the vicinity. 1497. North America was discovered by John Cabot and his son, who sailed from England on an exploring expedition. 1498. Columbus discovered South America. 1607. Jamestown, in Virginia, was founded. 1609. New York Was discovered by Henry Hudson. 1613. The Dutch erected a fort near Albany, and established a few trading houses at New York, then New Amsterdam, Manhattan Island. 1620. The Mayflower arrived at Plymouth ; her crew com menced the first settlement in Massachusetts. This year the Dutch first introduced slaves into Virginia. 1634. A settlement was made in Maryland by Lord Baltimore. 1635. The first settlement was made in Connecticut. 1664. New York, then New Amsterdam, was surrendered by the Dutch into the hands of the English. 1680. Carolina began to be permanently settled. 1681. A settlement was made in Pennsylvania by William Penn. 1720. Difficulties arose between the representatives of the peo ple and the governor of New England. 1721. Carolina was divided into North and South Carolina. 1733. The first settlement was made in Georgia. At this period the whole coast between New Brunswick and Florida became settled with colonies, under the government of Great Britain. 1748. Delegates from seven of the colonies met at Albany to hold a conference with the Indians. 1755. Braddock was defeated by the Indians. George Wash ington was his aid, and took command after Braddock and others in command were slain. 1764. The British Parliament enacted a law imposing a duty on certain articles of merchandise. The colonies denied the right, asserting that they had domestic governments, which they alone supported. 1765. The stamp act was passed by Great Britain. This led to a quarrel between the colonies and the mother country. 1770. An affray took place between the British and Americans, in King Street, Boston, (now State Street,) in which four persons were killed, and others wounded. 1773. The tea, sent from England, was thrown from the ships into the sea, in Boston harbor. Soon after, large bodies of troops were sent to subject the people. STATISTICAL TABLES. 347 1774. The General Court of Massachusetts recommended a Con tinental Congress. It first assembled in 1775, in October. 1775. General Gage was eommander-in-chief of the British forces in America. This year the militia was fired at by the British at Lexington, Massachusetts, and a battle followed. A few months after, the battle of Bunker Hill took place. 1775. Bills of credit, or paper money, were first authorized -by Congress. The population of the colonies at this time, about three mil lions. 1776. A written constitution was adopted by New Hamp shire. It acknowledged no source of power but the people. This was the first adopted in the colonies. This same year, Congress recommended the colonies generally to adopt constitutions. 1776. July 4, the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed by order of Congress. 1776. December. A law was passed by the English Parlia ment, amounting to a declaration of war against the colonies. 1777. September. The battle of Still water was fought. 1777. Congress adopted articles of confederation, which were subsequently ratified by the several states. 1778. The independence of the United States was acknowl edged by France. 1779. Up to this period $150,000,000 of paper money had been issued by order of Congress. Thirty dollars of paper were given for one of silver : people finally refused to take it. 1781. Cornwallis surrendered to General Washington at York- town. The British naval force at this place was at the same time surrendered to count de Grasse. 1782. Pacific overtures were made by Great Britain to the colonies. John Adams, of Massachusetts, had been previously appointed, on the part of the colonies, to treat with Great Britain ; three others were now added to act with him. Preliminary articles were, in November of this year, agreed upon at Paris. 1783. December. A definite treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United States was signed. 1783. The patriot army was dissolved. In November of this year, the British troops left New York. " Independence and peace did not immediately produce all the advantages which had been anticipated by an ardent and sanguine people. The evils of war were protracted beyond its duration. Public and private debts bore heavily upon the people, restraining their enterprise, and demanding all their resources." 1786. In Massachusetts, the commercial distress, and the dif ficulty of effecting exchanges of property, was so great, that an assembly of two thousand persons chose Daniel Shays for their leader, and demanded that the collection of debts should be suspended, and that the legislature should authorize an emis- 348 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. sion of paper money for general circulation. They were dispersed by the militia. 1787. The constitution of the United States was agreed upon in Convention, and was afterwards submitted to the different states for ratification. 1789. March 4th was the day designed for the new government to commence operations. It was, however, prevented until the 30th of April, when the first inauguration of president, under the con stitution, took place. The first object of Congress was to establish a revenue sufficient for the support of government and the discharge of the debt con tracted by the war. The departments of state, of the treasury, and of war, were created. A national judiciary was established and organized. 1790. The government debt was funded, amounting to a little over $ 75,000,000. 1791. A duty was laid on foreign imports, and a national bank recommended and passed. 1791. The exports amounted to $19,000,000, and the imports to $20,000,000; the revenue to $4,771,000. 1799. Washington died in December. 1800. War was declared against France, and a satisfactory treaty concluded the same year. 1800. The exports were $94,000,000, and the revenue $12,- 945,000. 1803. The United States national debt was $85,000,000. 1807. America had the carrying trade, Great Britain and France being at war. This year the British ship Leopard, on the coast of the United States, fired into the United States frigate Chesapeake. 1808. An embargo was laid. 1809. The embargo was repealed, and a non-intercourse with both France and England established in its place. 1811. The British sloop of war Little Belt and the United States ship President had an encounter. From 1803 to 1811, the British had captured nine hundred Amer ican vessels. 181 L. The United States Bank charter expired. 1812. June 18. War was declared by the United States against Great Britain. At this time the national debt was reduced to $45,000,000. 1813. Treasury notes were authorized by Congress. 1813. The naval battle on Lake Erie was fought, and the British navy on that lake captured. 1.814. A loan to the amount of $20,000,000 was authorized by Congress, and an issue of treasury notes to the amount of $5,- 000,000 more. 1814. A treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United States was negotiated at Ghent in December ; was ratified by the United States Senate in 1815. Thus terminated the second war with Great Britain. STATISTICAL TABLES. 349 18 . By the war, the United States debt was in creased $80,000,000 To which add the debt, owing in 1812, of * . 45,000,000 1815. The amount of debt was - $ 125,000,000 1816. The tariff was revised, a national bank established, and a course of policy entered upon by the government, having in view the support of the government, the payment of the interest of the national debt, and its subsequent liquidation. 1823. The national debt was $91,000,000. 1824. The tariff was again revised. 1828. The tariff was again revised. 1832. The tariff was again revised, and important alterations made in it. Prior to this date, the duties on imports were payable at 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, and 18 months. By this law, the duty on woollens, and all sums under two hun dred dollars, were made cash. On sums over two hundred dollars, three and six months credit only was allowed. This law went into operation in 1833, from and after the 3d of March. 1833. The removal of the deposits took place. Kendall s letter to the state banks, dated in August. 1834. In May, the money for the payment of the national debt was placed in the United States Bank. 1834. The law changing the standard value of gold went into operation July 1. 1834. The withdrawal of small bills from circulation was di rected in many of the states. In December, 1834, the amount in New York was $ 3,730,902. This was, by a law of the legislature, ordered withdrawn in nine months. 1835. In December was the great fire in New York, and loss of insurance stock. 34, 35, and 36, excessive importations of specie took place. 1836. The final withdrawal of the United States Bank branches from the states took place, and the distribution of the public revenue. 1836. The specie circular was issued. 1837. There was a deficiency of bread stuffs, and the suspension of specie payments by the banks took place. J838. The extension of duty on imports, to 6, 9, and 12 months, was directed by government. 1839. The law of 1833, making the duties cash, and 3 and 6 months, was again in operation. Prior to 1833, the credit given by government on importations of salt was nine months. Importations of wine, 12 months. On other imports : from the East Indies, 8, 10, and 18 months. From round Cape Horn, 8, 10, and 18 months. From the West Indies, 6 and 9 months. From Europe, 8, 10, and 12 months. 30 350 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. in 2 S g - o a a a a a S S* . s 25 a g to ~ 2 "3 ui s^ 6 > .2 i "rf S,; .2 co in "<r t~~ o> l <M c li 1 2| a a 2, a & i i a |fii 1 to - 0) " s > * V Baltimor 2 | to -" 18 adv. ... Ii|i : ; i| Mi|4 ri 2| a* rtrt rtrt^S^ S 110 3 w o, o. o. c. ^ ^-e rH . id ~w ; 1 2 " 00 -r 1 1 a? r- ** ^^^Illrtj O 13 1, o. "i.i ^^i. ^ ^ ^ -*t I *"* -Kl i-H r-l * 09 to - oo -5" 2 j a * S5 g" 3 i 2 s" 2 E^ " =3 a =5 a 1 S3 to " - 1" i i SPANISH DOLLARS,... AMERICAN DOLLARS, . Iti.fWilii 1 1 S i i 1 M -g^S-Sd^s^? 5 1 > d I S 5 o o g 1 5? J 1 i ^ 4 ^- 1 STATISTICAL TABLES. 351 I 00 -.6 - > > > .-8 ui oo -< D i -s o - : 5 : 8 ^ 6 o o i i i a I i S M * I I * I j :| & J D g Q ^ o ^ S * ^ 5 2 S > Q 352 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. SAMUEL ADAMS. THE memories of few men will perhaps be cherished, by their posterity, with a more jealous and grateful admi ration than those of the patriotic individuals who first signed the political independence of our country. They hazarded by the deed not only their lands and possessions, but their personal freedom and their lives ; and when it is considered that most of them were in the vigor of ex istence, gifted with considerable fortunes, and with all the offices and emoluments at the disposal of royalty within their reach, the sacrifice which they risked appears mag nified, and their disinterested patriotism more worthy of remembrance. Although many of them can rest their sole claim to lasting distinction upon the one great act with which they were adventitiously connected, still their lives present a valuable transcript of the times in which they lived, and afford examples of inflexible honesty, he roic decision, and noble energy of mind, quite as inter esting as any records of the eccentricities of genius, or the grasping efforts of ambition. Not one of the least ardent and uncompromising as- sertors of the rights and liberties of his country, was the subject of our present sketch SAMUEL ADAMS. This gentleman, descended from a respectable family, which emigrated to America with the first settlers of the land, was born at Quincy, in Massachusetts, September 22d, 1722. In 1736, he became a member of Harvard College, and took his degree of master in 1743. On this latter occasion, he proposed the following question, in which he maintained the affirmative : " Whether it be lawful to resist the supreme magistrate, if the commonwealth cannot be otherwise preserve!." BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 353 On quitting the university, he commenced the study of the law ; but soon afterwards, at the request of his mother, became a clerk in the counting-house of Thomas Gushing, at that time an eminent merchant. The genius of Adams was not suited to commercial pursuits. His devotion to politics, and his interest in the welfare of his country, di verted his attention from his own business concerns ; and he retired from his mercantile connections poorer by far than when he entered into them. In 1763, when a com mittee was appointed by the people of Boston to remon strate against the taxation of the colonies by the British ministry, the instructions of that committee were drawn by Mr. Adams, and gave a powerful proof of his ability and zeal. He soon became an influential leader in the popular assemblies, and was bold in denouncing the op pressive acts of the mother country. In 1765, he was chosen a representative to the General Court of the state, from the town of Boston. Here he soon made himself conspicuous, and became clerk of the legislative body. About this time, he was the author of several spirited essays, and plans of resistance to the ex actions of the British ministry. He suggested the first Congress at New York, which was a step to the estab lishment of a Continental Congress, ten years after. In 1770, two regiments of troops were quartered in the town of Boston, apparently to superintend the conduct of the inhabitants. This measure roused the public indig nation to the utmost, and soon gave occasion to a quarrel between a party of soldiers and citizens, in which eleven of the latter were killed or wounded by a guard under the command of Captain Preston. This rencontre, which is well known under the name of the " Boston Massacre," and will long remain memorable as the first instance of bloodshed between the British and Americans, did not tend to allay the excitement caused by the presence of the troops. On the following morning, a meeting of the citizens was called, and Samuel Adams first rose to ad dress the assembly. His style of eloquence was bold and impressive, and few could exercise a more absolute con trol over the passions of a multitude. A committee, of which he was one, was chosen to wait upon Governor 30* 354 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Hutchinson, with a request that the troops might be in stantly removed. The governor replied that the troops were not under his command ; but Adams, with his usual intrepidity, would brook no prevarication or excuse, and declared that if he permitted them to remain, it would be at his peril. The governor, alarmed at the personal dan ger which threatened him, finally consented to the demand, and further hostilities were, for a time, suspended. The injudicious management of his private affairs ren dered Mr. Adams poor. When this was known in Eng land, it was proposed to bribe him, by the gift of some lucrative office. A suggestion of the kind being made to Governor Hutchinson, he replied, that " such was the obstinacy and inflexible disposition of the man, that he could never be conciliated by any office or gift whatever." A higher compliment could not have been paid him. The offer, however, was made, it is said, and rejected. About the year 1773, Governor Gage renewed the experiment. Colonel Felton waited upon Mr. Adams, with the assur ance of Governor Gage, that any benefit he might ask would be conferred on him, on condition that he would forsake the popular faction ; while, at the same time, sig nificant threats were thrown out of the consequences which might ensue, if he persisted in his opposition to the measures of the ministry. The reply of the undaunted patriot was characteristic: "Go tell Governor Gage," said he, " that my peace has long since been made with the King of kings ; and that it is the advice of Samuel Adams to him, no longer to insult the feelings of an already ex asperated people." Under the irritation produced by this answer, Governor Gage issued a proclamation, which comprehended the fol lowing language : "I do hereby, in his majesty s name, offer and promise his most gracious pardon to all persons who shall forthwith lay down their arms, and return to the duties of peaceable subjects ; excepting only from the benefits of such pardon SAMUEL ADAMS and JOHN HAN COCK, whose offences are of too flagitious a nature to admit of any other consideration but that of condign punishment." Mr. Adams was a member of the first Continental Con- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 355 gress, which assembled in Philadelphia, in 1774 ; and he remained an active member of that body until the year 1781. During this period, he was one of the warmest advocates for the declaration of American independence. After that declaration had been irrecoverably adopted, and when the subsequent gloom which overspread the land had depressed the spirits of the most ardent advocates of liberty, the firmness and enthusiasm of Mr. Adams were unchanged. His example contributed in a high degree to inspire his countrymen with a confidence of their final success. The following encomium upon him is from a work upon the American rebellion, by Mr. Galloway, pub lished in England, in 1780 : " He eats little, drinks little, sleeps little, thinks much, and is most indefatigable in the pursuit of his object. It was this man, who, by his su perior application, managed at once the factions in Con gress at Philadelphia, and the factions of New England." In 1781, Mr. Adams retired from Congress; but, having already been a member of the Convention which formed the constitution of his native state, he was placed in the Senate, and for several years presided over that body. In 1789, he was elected lieutenant-governor, in which office he continued till 1794; when, upon the death of Hancock, he was chosen governor, and was annually re- elected till 1797, when he retired from public life. He died October 2d, 1803, at the advanced age of eighty-two. In his person, Mr. Adams was only of the middle size ; but his countenance indicated great decision of purpose and an energetic mind. He was a sincere and practical Christian ; and the last production of his pen was in favor of Christian truth. His writings were voluminous ; but as they chiefly related to the temporary politics of the day, few of them remain. He always manifested a singular indifference to pecuniary considerations. He was poor while he lived ; and it has been said that, had not the death of an only son relieved the poverty of his latter days, Samuel Adams would have had to claim a burial from private charity, or at the public expense. ; ! 356 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. JOSIAH JBARTLETT. JOSIAH BARTLETT, governor of New Hampshire, and the first from that state who signed the Declaration of Independence, was born in Arnesbury, Massachusetts, in 1729. Without the advantages of a collegiate education, but possessing a competent knowledge of the Greek and Latin languages, he commenced the study of medicine at the age of sixteen. After devoting himself for five years to the acquisition of the necessary knowledge and expe rience, he commenced the practice of his profession at Kingston, in the year 1750. Here he soon obtained very considerable reputation, and introduced many efficacious changes in the treatment of several diseases. In the year 1765, Doctor Bartlett was elected to the legislature of the province of New Hampshire, from the town of Kingston. In his legislative capacity, he was a determined opposer of the mercenary views of the royal governor, John Wentworth, who, desiring to conciliate him to his interest, appointed him justice of the peace. This, though a trivial distinction, was a token of the governor s respect for his talents and influence. Doctor Bartlett accepted the appointment, but continued firm in his opposition. His attachment to the patriotic side, and the spirit with which he resisted the royal exactions, soon afterwards produced his dismissal from the commission of justice of the peace, as also from a command which he held in the militia. In 1774, a Convention was convoked at Exeter, for the purpose of choosing deputies to the Continental Congress, which was to meet at Philadelphia. In this Convention, Doctor Bartlett, and John Pickering, a lawyer of Ports mouth, were appointed delegates to Congress ; but the former, having a little previously lost his house by fire, was obliged to decline the honor. The latter gentleman wishing likewise to be excused, others were chosen in their stead. From this time the political difficulties in New Hampshire increased. At length Governor Went worth found it expedient to retire on board a man-of-war then lying in the harbor of Portsmouth ; and soon after issued his proclamation, adjourning the state Assembly BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 357 till the following April. This act, however, was disre garded, and soon terminated the royal government in New Hampshire, after it had existed there for a period of ninety years. In September, 1775, Doctor Bartlett, who had been elected to the Continental Congress, took his seat in that body. Here having largely participated in an unwearied devotion to business, his health was considerably impaired ; but in a second election, the ensuing year, he was again chosen a delegate to the same body. He was present on the memorable occasion of taking the vote on the question of a declaration of independence. On putting the ques tion, it was agreed to begin with the northernmost colony. Doctor Bartlett, therefore, had the honor of being the first to vote for, and the first, after the president, to sign the Declaration of Independence. In August, 1778, a new election taking place, Doctor Bartlett was again chosen a delegate to Congress. He continued at Philadelphia, however, but a small part of the session ; and, his domestic concerns requiring his at tention, he resided the remaining part of his life in New Hampshire. In 1779, he was appointed chief justice of the Court of Common Pleas. In 1782, he became an associate justice of the Supreme Court, and in 1788, was advanced to the head of the bench. Doctor Bartlett was a member of the Convention which adopted the present constitution of the state, and by his zeal greatly aided its ratification. In 1789, he was elected a senator to Congress ; but his age and infirmities induced him to de cline the honor. In 1793, he was elected first governor of the state, which office he filled with his usual fidelity and good sense, until the infirm state of his health obliged him to resign, and retire wholly from public life. He did not remain long, however, to enjoy the repose which he coveted; but died on the 19th of May, 1795, in the sixty- sixth year of his age. The patriotism of this eminent man was of a pure arid highly disinterested nature. He rose to distinction un aided by family influence or party connections, and main tained through life a reputation for strict integrity, great penetration of mind, and considerable abilities. 358 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. CARTER BRAXTON. CARTER BRAXTON was born in Newington, Virginia, on the 10th of September, 1736. His father was a wealthy planter, and his mother the daughter of Robert Carter, who was for some time a member, and the president of the king s Council. Carter Braxton was liberally educated at the College of William and Mary ; and on his father s death, he became possessed of a considerable fortune, consisting principally of land and slaves. At the early age of nineteen, he re ceived a large accession to his estate by marriage. But, having the misfortune to lose his wife, he soon after em barked for England, with a view of improving himself by travel. He returned to America in 1760, and the following year was married to a daughter of Richard Cor- bin, of Lannerville, by whom he had sixteen children. Mr. Braxton did not study any profession, but became a gentleman planter, and lived in a style of hospitality and splendor which was not incommensurate with his means. Upon his return from Europe, he was called to a seat in the House of Burgesses, where he was characterized for his patriotic zeal and firmness, in all the duties which he was called upon to discharge. In 1775, Mr. Braxton was elected a delegate to Con gress. In that body he soon after took his seat, and was present on the occasion of signing the Declaration of Independence. In June, 1776, the Convention of Vir ginia reduced the number of their delegates in Congress, and, in consequence, he was omitted. Mr. Braxton was a member of the first General Assembly, under the repub lican constitution, which met at Williamsburg. Here he had the honor of receiving, in connection with Thomas Jefferson, an expression of the public thanks for the " dil igence, ability, and integrity, with which they executed the important trust reposed in them, as delegates in the General Congress." In 1786, he became a member of the Council of State, which office he held until the 30th of March, 1791. AHter an interval of a few years, during which he occu pied a seat in the House of Delegates, he was reflected BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 359 into the Executive Council. He died on the 10th of Oc tober, 1797, by means of an attack of paralysis. Mr. Braxton was a gentleman of a polished mind, of considerable conversational powers, and respectable tal ents. His latter days were unfortunately clouded by pe cuniary embarrassments, caused by the miscarriage of his commercial speculations, and by several vexatious lawsuits. Of his numerous family, but one daughter, it is believed, survives. CHARLES CARROLL. CHARLES CARROLL was a descendant of Daniel Carroll, an Irish gentleman, who emigrated from England to Amer ica about the year 1689. He settled in the province of Maryland, where, a few years after, he received the ap pointment of judge, and register of the land office, and became agent for Lord Baltimore. Charles Carroll, the father of the subject of the present sketch, was born in 1702. His son, Charles Carroll, sur- named of Carrollton, was born September 8, 1737, O. S., at Annapolis, in the province of Maryland. At the age of eight years, he was sent to France for the purpose of obtaining an education. He was placed at a college of English Jesuits, at St. Omer s, where he re mained for six years. Afterwards, he staid some time at Rheims, whence he was removed to the College of Louis le Grand. On leaving college, he entered upon the study of the civil law, at Bourges ; from which place he returned to Paris, where he remained till 1757, in which year he removed to London, and commenced the study of law. He returned to America in 1764, an accomplished scholar, and an accomplished man. Although he had lived abroad, and might naturally be supposed to have imbibed a predi lection for the monarchical institutions of Europe, he entered with great spirit into the controversy between the colonies and Great Britain, which, about the time of his arrival, was beginning to assume a most serious as pect. A few years following the repeal of the stamp act, the violent excitement occasioned by that measure in a de- 360 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. gree subsided throughout all the colonies. In this calmer state of things the people of Maryland participated. But about the year 1771, great commotion was excited in that province, in consequence of the arbitrary conduct of Gov ernor Eden and his council, touching the fees of the civil officers of the colonial government. The controversy which grew out of this became ex ceedingly spirited. It involved the great principles of the revolution. Several writers of distinguished character enlisted themselves on different sides of the question. Among these writers, no one was more conspicuous than Mr. Carroll.. The natural consequence of his firmness in defence of the rights of the people was, that great confi dence was reposed in him on their part, and he was looked up to as one who was eminently qualified to lead in the great struggle which was approaching between the colonies and the parent country. An anecdote is related of Mr. Carroll, which will illus trate his influence with the people of Maryland. By a resolution of the delegates of Maryland, on the 22d day of June, 1774, the importation of tea was prohibited. Some time after, however, a vessel arrived at Annapolis, having a quantity of this article on board. This becom ing known, the people assembled in great multitudes, to take effectual measures to prevent its being landed. At length, the excitement became so high, that the personal safety of the captain of the vessel became endangered. In this state of things, the friends of the captain made ap plication to Mr. Carroll, to interpose his influence with the people in his behalf. The public indignation was too great to be easily allayed. This Mr. Carroll perceived, and advised the captain and his friends, as the only prob able means of safety to himself, to set fire to the vessel, and burn it to the water s edge. This alternative was indeed severe ; but, as it was obviously a measure of ne cessity, the vessel was drawn out, her sails were set, her colors unfurled, in which attitude the fire was applied to her, and, in the presence of an immense concourse of people, she was consumed. This atonement was deemed satisfactory, and the captain was no further molested. In the early part of 1776, Mr. Carroll, whose distin- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 361 guished exertions in Maryland had become extensively known, was appointed by Congress, in connection with Dr. Franklin and Samuel Chase, on a commission to pro ceed to Canada, to persuade the people of that province to relinquish their allegiance to the crown of England, and unite with the Americans in their struggle for inde pendence. In the discharge of their duties, the commissioners met with unexpected difficulties. The defeat and death of Montgomery, together with the compulsion which the American troops found it necessary to exercise, in obtain ing the means of support in that province, conspired to diminish the ardor of the Canadians in favor of a union with the colonies, and even, at length, to render them hos tile to the measure. To conciliate their affections, and to bring to a favorable result the object of their mission, the commissioners employed their utmost ingenuity and influ ence. They issued their proclamations, in which they assured the people of the disposition of Congress to rem edy the temporary evils which the inhabitants suffered in consequence of the presence of the American troops, so soon as it should be in their power to provide specie, and clothing, and provisions. A strong tide, however, was now setting against the American colonies, the strength of which was much increased by the Roman Catholic priests, who, as a body, had always been opposed to any connection with the United Colonies. Despairing of accomplishing the wishes of Congress, the commissioners at length aban doned the object, and returned to Philadelphia. The great subject of independence was, at this time, undergoing a discussion in the hall of Congress. The Maryland delegation, in that body, had been instructed by their Convention to refuse their assent to a declaration of independence. On returning to Maryland, Mr. Carroll resumed his seat in the Convention, and, with the advo cates of a declaration of independence, urged the with drawal of the above instructions, and the granting of pow er to their delegates to unite in such a declaration. The friends of the measure had at length the happiness, on the 28th of June, of procuring a new set of instructions, which 31 362 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. secured the vote of the important province of Maryland in favor of the independence of America. On the same day on which the great question was deci ded in Congress in favor of a declaration of independence, Mr. Carroll was elected a delegate to that body from Maryland, and accordingly took his seat on the eighteenth of the same month. Although not a member of Congress at the time the question of a declaration of independence was settled, Mr. Carroll had the honor of greatly contributing to a measure so auspicious to the interests of his country, by assisting in procuring the withdrawal of the prohibiting instructions, and the adoption of a new set, by which the Maryland delegates found themselves authorized to vote for independ ence. He had the honor, also, of affixing his signature to the Declaration on the second of August, at which time the members generally signed an engrossed copy, which had been prepared for that purpose. A signature to the Declaration was an important step for every individual member of Congress. It exposed the signers of it to the confiscation of their estates, and the loss of life, should the British arms prove victorious. Few men had more at stake in respect to property than Mr. Carroll, he being considered the richest individual in the colonies. But wealth was of secondary value in his esti mation, in comparison with the rights and liberties of his country. When asked whether he would annex his name, he replied, " Most willingly," and, seizing a pen, instantly subscribed " to this record of glory." " There go a few millions," said some one who watched the pen as it traced the name of " Charles Carroll, of Carrollton," on the parchment. Millions would indeed have gone, for his for tune was princely, had not success crowned the American arms, in the long-fought contest. Mr. Carroll was continued a member of Congress until 1778, at which time he resigned his seat in that body, and devoted himself more particularly to the interest of his na tive state. He had served in her Convention in 1776, in the latter part of which year he had assisted in drafting her constitution. Soon after, the new constitution went BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 363 into operation, and Mr. Carroll was chosen a member of the Senate of Maryland. In 1781, he was reflected to the same station, and in 1788, on the adoption of the fed eral constitution, was chosen to the Senate of the United States. In 1791, Mr. Carroll relinquished his seat in the na tional Senate, and was again called to the Senate of his native state. This office he continued to hold until 1804, at which time, the democratic party was successful in electing their candidate, to the exclusion of this long-tried and faithful patriot. At this time, Mr. Carroll took leave of public life, and sought in retirement the quiet enjoyment of his family circle. Since the date of his retirement from public office, few incidents have occurred in the life of this worthy man, which demand particular notice. Like a peaceful stream, his days glided along, and continued to be lengthened out, till the generation of illustrious men, with whom he acted on the memorable fourth of July, 1776, had all descended to the tomb. He died in 1832. " These last thirty years of his life," says a recent writer, " have passed away in serenity and happiness, almost un paralleled in the history of man. He has enjoyed, as it were, an Indian summer of existence, a tranquil arid lovely period, when the leaves of the forest are richly variegated, but not yet seared ; when the parent bird and the spring nestling are o the same flock, and move on equal wing; when the day of increase and the day of the necessity of provisions are gone ; when the fruits of the earth are abun dant, and the lakes of the woods are smooth and joyous as if reflecting the bowers of Eden. Such an Indian summer has this patriot enjoyed : his life has been thrice, yea, four times blessed ; blessed in his birth and education, in his health, in his basket, and in his store ; blessed in his nu merous and honorable progeny, which extend to several generations ; blessed in the protracted measure of his days, in which have been crowded the events of many centuries; and blessed in the wonderful prosperity of his country, whose population has since his birth increased from nine hundred thousand souls to more than twelve millions, en joying the blessings of freemen. It is, perhaps, from the 364 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. fact, that the world think it quite enough for one mortal that he should be virtuous, prosperous, and enjoy a green old age, that an analysis of his intellectual powers, or a description of his rare attainments, has seldom been at tempted ; but talents and attainments he had, that made him one of the most successful of the business men of the momentous period in which he lived a period when that which the head conceived the hands were ready to execute. There were too few at that time, and those too zealous, to make the proper division of labor. The senator armed for the field, and the soldier met with the Conscript Fathers." " Mr. Carroll was an orator. His eloquence was of the smooth, gentle, satisfactory kind, delighting all, and con vincing many. It is not pretended that, like John Adams, he came down upon his hearers as with the thunder-blast from Sinai, raising the tables of independence on high, and threatening, in his wrath, to break them if they were not received by the people ; nor that, like Dickinson, he exhausted rhetoric and metaphysics to gain his end, and was forever striving to be heard ; but Carroll came to his subject well informed, thoroughly imbued with its spirit, and with happy conceptions and graceful delivery, and with chaste and delicate language, he, without violence, conquered the understandings, and led captive the senses, of his hearers. All was natural, yet sweet and polished as education could make it. He never seemed ^atigued with his labors, nor faint with his exertions. His blood and judgment were so well commingled, that his highest efforts were as easy and natural as if he had been engaged in the course of ordinary duties. This happy faculty still contin ues with the patriarch, for his conversation has now that elegant vivacity and delicacy that characterized the sage Nestor of elder times, whose words fell like vernal snows, as he spake to the people. " His serenity, and in no small degree, perhaps, his longevity, may be owing to the permanency of his princi ples. In early life he founded his political creed on the rights of man, and reposing his faith in the religion of his fathers, he has felt none of those vacillations and changes so common in times of political or religious agitations. It were good for the nation that he should long continue BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 365 among us, for in his presence all party feuds are hushed ; and the demagogue, accustomed to vociferate elsewhere, in his vanity to be heard, talks not above his breath when the aged patriot is near. In a republic where titles are not known, we ought to make a peerage of talents, virtues, patriotism, and age, that every youth may learn to admire, respect, and imitate the wise and good. With all our wishes for his stay here on earth, the patriarch must soon be gathered to his fathers, and his name given to the his torian and the poet. The bard shall then strike his harp and sing, in strains not light nor melancholy/ but with admiration, touched with religious hope. Full of years and honors, through the gate Of painless slumber he retired. And as a river pure Meets in its course a subterraneous void, Then dips his silver head, again to rise, And rising glides through fields and meadows new, So hath Oileus in those happy climes, Where joys ne er fade, nor the soul s powers decay, But youth and spring eternal bloom. " The name of Carroll is the only one on the Declaration to which the residence of the signer is appended. The reason why it was done in this case, is understood to be as follows: The patriots who signed that document, did it, almost literally, with ropes about their necks, it being generally supposed that they would, if unsuccessful, be hung as rebels. When Carroll had signed his name, some one at his elbow remarked, "You ll get clear there are several of that name they will not know which to take." " Not so," replied he, arid immediately added, " of Carroll ton." In 1827, the editor of the Philadelphia National Gazette published a biography of Mr. Carroll, which appeared in the American Quarterly Review. He records the follow ing fact : In 1825, one of Mr. Carroll s granddaughters was married to the marquis of Wellesley, then viceroy of Ireland ; and it is a singular circumstance that, one hun dred and forty years after the first emigration of her an cestors to America, this lady should become vice-queen of 31* 366 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the country from which they fled, at the summit of a system which a more immediate ancestor had risked every thing to destroy ; or, in the energetic and poetical lan guage of Bishop England, " that in the land from which his father s father fled in fear, his daughter s daughter now reigns as queen." From the same publication, it appears that Mr. Carroll, some years before our revolutionary war, wrote to a mem ber of the British Parliament as follows : " Your thousands of soldiers may come, but they will be masters of the spot only on which they encamp. They will find nought but enemies before and around them. If we are beaten on the plains, we will retreat to the mountains and defy them. Our resources will increase with our difficulties. Necessity will force us to exertion ; until, tired of combating in vain against a spirit which victory cannot subdue, your armies will evacuate our soil, and your country retire, an immense loser, from the con test. No, sir ; we have made up our minds to abide the issue of the approaching struggle ; and though much blood may be spilled, we have no doubt of our ultimate success." His whole career, says Mr. Walsh, public and private, suited the dignity of his distinctive appellation the Sur viving Signer. He was always a model of regularity in conduct and sedateness in judgment. In natural sagacity, in refinement of tastes and pleasures, in unaffected, habit ual courtesy, in vigilant observation, vivacity of spirit and tone, susceptibility of domestic and social happiness in the best forms, he had but few equals during the greater part of his bright and long existence. The mind of Mr. Car roll was highly cultivated ; he fully improved the advan tages of an excellent classical education and extensive for eign travel ; he had read much of ancient and modern literature, and gave the keenest attention to contemporary events and characters. His patriotism never lost its earn estness and elevation. It was our good fortune, in our youth, to pass months at a time under his roof, and we never left his mansion without additional impressions of peculiar respect for the singular felicity of temperament and perfection of self-discipline, from which it resulted that no one, neither kindred, domestic, nor guest, could BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 367 feel his presence and society as in the least oppressive or irksome exact and systematic, opulent and honored, enlightened and heedful though he was. The announcement of the death of Charles Carroll was made as follows in one of the Baltimore papers of the date : " It becomes our painful duty to announce to our read ers the demise of the last surviving signer of the Declara tion of Independence. Charles Carroll of Carrollton is no more ! He expired at four o clock yesterday morning. Thus, one after another, the luminaries of the revolution are leaving this stage of action, and soon the whole of the bright galaxy, which in those dark days adorned the land, must be numbered with the silent dead, and live only in the grateful recollection of those for whom they have pur chased liberty, independence, prosperity, and happiness. Here and there a solitary star remains, to attract the eye and warm the hearts of those who love and admire them for their virtues and their services. Mr. Carroll had reached a good old age, and had the happiness to see this young republic, which he had performed so prominent a part in aiding to establish, emerge from obscurity, and take a station among the most powerful of the nations of the earth. He had lived to see her pass triumphantly through a second war with the mistress of the seas, as England has been long demominated, in which the proud Lion was a second time compelled to cower beneath the power of the Eagle ; to see her banner waving over every sea, and her prowess acknowledged and feared in every land. He has lived to witness the anomaly in the records of the world, of a powerful people almost entirely clear of debt, and without any dangerous or distracting controversy subsisting with any foreign power, which can be thought likely to require the expenditure of money for the main tenance of her rights. He saw the people for whom he had toiled, and pledged his life, his fortune, and his sa cred honor, united, prosperous, and happy, and lived to see a worthy fellow-citizen elected a second time to the chief magistracy of the nation by an almost unanimous voice, embracing a large portion of every section of the Union ; thus evincing that there is no reason to appre- 368 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. hend any danger of a severance of this happy Union. In casting a retrospective glance over the path he had trod den in the course of his eventful life, how it warmed and animated his heart ! It was a subject upon which he al ways delighted to dwell ; and whenever it was touched upon, it caused him almost to forget his age, arid to put on the vigor and fire of youth. " In his own immediate neighborhood, in the place of a small and obscure village, he lived to see a large and populous city spring up, and assume a station the third only in the Union in point of extent, wealth, and com mercial enterprise, and inhabited by a virtuous and gal lant people, partaking of his feelings, and following his bright and glorious example. What more could a mortal desire to witness 1 The cup of happiness with him was full to overflowing. He has fought a good fight, and his triumph has been complete. He has now run his race, and his remains repose in silence, and his grateful countrymen are showering their benedictions upon him. Peace to his ashes ! May his brilliant example long serve to animate the hearts and nerve the arms of his countrymen." SAMUEL CHASE. SAMUEL CHASE was born in Somerset county, Mary land, in 1741. He was educated by his father, a distin guished clergyman, who had emigrated to America, and whose attainments in classical literature were of a very superior order. Under such instruction, the son soon outstripped most of his compeers, and at the age of eigh teen was sent to Annapolis to commence the study of the law. He was admitted to the bar in that town at the age of twenty, and soon after connected himself in marriage with a lady, by whom he had two sons and two daughters. The political career of Mr. Chase may be dated from the year 1774, when he was sent to the Congress of Phil adelphia, as a delegate from his native state. This sta tion he continued to occupy for several years. In 1776, he was appointed, in conjunction with Benjamin Franklin and Charles Carroll, to proceed to Canada for the pur pose of inducing the inhabitants to cancel their allegiance BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 369 to Great Britain, and join the American confederacy. Although the expedition proved unsuccessful, the zeal and ability of the commissioners were never, for a mo ment, brought into question. On his return to Philadelphia, Mr. Chase found the question of independence in agitation in Congress. The situation of the Maryland delegation, at this juncture, was embarrassing. They had been expressly prohibited, by their constituents, from voting in favor of a declaration of independence; and as they had accepted their appointments under this restriction, they did not feel at liberty to give their active support to such a measure. It was not compat ible with the spirit of Mr. Chase, quietly to endure such a situation. He left Congress, and proceeded to Maryland. He traversed the province, and, assisted by his colleagues, awakened the people to a sense of patriotism and liberty, and persuaded them to send addresses to the Convention, then sitting at Annapolis, in favor of independence. Such an expression of popular feeling the Convention could not resist, and at length gave a unanimous vote for the meas ure of independence. With this vote, Mr. Chase hastened to Philadelphia, where he arrived in time to take his seat on Monday morning, having rode, on the two previous days, one hundred and fifty miles. On the day of his arri val, the resolution to issue a declaration of independence came before the house, and he had the privilege of uniting with a majority in favor of it. Mr. Chase continued a bold, eloquent, and efficient member of Congress throughout the war, when he returned to the practice of his profession. In 1783, Mr. Chase visited England, on behalf of the state of Maryland, for the purpose of reclaiming a large amount of property, which, while a colony, she had intrust ed to the Bank of England. He continued in England about a year, during which time he became acquainted with many of the most distinguished men of that country, among whom were Burke, Pitt, and Fox. While in Eng land, he was married to his second wife, the daughter of Dr. Samuel Giles, of Kentbury, with whom, in 1784, he returned to America. In the year 1786, at the invitation of his friend, Colonel Howard, who had generously pre sented him with a portion of land in Baltimore, he removed 370 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to that city. On this occasion, the corporation of Annap olis tendered to Mr. Chase the expressions of their respect in a flattering address, to which he made a suitable reply. In 1791, he accepted the appointment of chief justice of the General Court of Maryland. In the year 1794, a circumstance took place in Balti more, in which Judge Chase evinced considerable firmness and energy of character. Two men had been tarred and feathered in the public streets, on an occasion of some popular excitement. The investigation of the case was undertaken by him, in the issue of which he caused two respectable and influential individuals to be arrested as ringleaders. On being arraigned before the court, they refused to give bail. Upon this the judge informed them that they must go to jail. Accordingly, he directed the sheriff to take one of the prisoners to jail. This the sheriff declared he could not do, as he apprehended resistance. " Summon the posse comitatus, then," exclaimed the judge. " Sir," said the sheriff, " no one will serve." " Summon me, then," said Judge Chase, in a tone of lofty indignation ; " I will be the posse comitatus, and I will take him to jail." In 1796, Judge Chase was appointed by Washington an associate judge of the Supreme Court of the United States a station which he occupied for fifteen years, and which he supported with great dignity and ability. It was his ill fortune, however, to have his latter days imbittered by an impeachment by the House of Representatives, at Wash ington. This impeachment originated in political animos ities, from the offence which his conduct in the Circuit Court had given to the democratic party. The articles of impeachment originally reported were six in number, to which two others were afterwards added. On five of the charges a majority of the Senate acquitted him. On the others a majority was against him ; but as a vote of two thirds is necessary to conviction, he was acquitted of the whole. This celebrated trial commenced on the second of January, and ended on the fifth of March, 1805. Judge Chase continued to exercise his judicial functions till 1811, when his health failed him, and he expired on the nineteenth of June in that year. In his dying hour, he appeared calm and resigned. He was a firm believer in BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 371 Christianity, and partook of the sacrament but a short time before his death, declaring himself to be in peace with all mankind. In his will, he directed that no mourning should be worn for him, and requested that only his name, with the dates of his birth and death, should be inscribed upon his tomb. He was a sincere patriot, and, though of an irascible temperament, was a man of high intellect and undaunted courage. ABRAHAM CLARK. THE quiet and unobtrusive course of life, which Mr. CLARK pursued, furnishes few materials for biography. He was born in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, on the 15th of February, 1726. He was an only child, and his early education, although confined to English branches of study, was respectable. For the mathematics and the civil law, he discovered an early predilection. He was bred a farm er ; but, not being of a robust constitution, he turned his attention to surveying, conveyancing, and imparting legal advice. As he performed the latter service gratuitously, he was called " the poor man s counsellor." Mr. Clark s habits of life and generosity of character soon rendered him popular, and, on the commencement of the troubles with the mother country, he was chosen one of the New Jersey delegation to the Continental Congress. Of this body he was a member for a considerable period, and was conspicuous for his sound patriotism and his unwavering decision. A few days after he took his seat for the first time, as a member of Congress, he was called upon to vote for, or against, the proclamation of independ ence. But he was at no loss on which side to throw his influence, and readily signed the Declaration, which placed in peril his fortune and individual safety. Mr. Clark frequently after this time represented New Jersey in the national councils ; and was also often a member of the state legislature. He was elected a rep resentative in the second Congress, under the federal constitution an appointment which he held until a short time previous to his death. Two or three of the sons of Mr. Clark were officers in the army during the revolu- 372 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. tionary struggle. Unfortunately, they were captured by the enemy. During a part of their captivity, their suffer ings were extreme, being confined in the notorious prison- ship Jersey. Painful as was the condition of his sons, Mr. Clark scrupulously avoided calling the attention of Congress to the subject, excepting in a single instance. One of his sons, a captain of artillery, had been cast into a dungeon, where he received no other food than that which was conveyed to him by his fellow-prisoners through a key hole. On a representation of these facts to Congress, that body immediately directed a course of retaliation on a British officer. This had the desired effect, and Captain Clark s condition was improved. On the adjournment of Congress, in June, 1794, Mr. Clark retired from public life. He did not live long, however, to enjoy the limited comforts he possessed. In the autumn of the same year, a stroke of the sun put an end to his existence, after it had been lengthened out to sixty-nine years. The church at Rahway contains his mortal remains, and a marble slab marks the spot where they are deposited. It bears the following inscription : Firm and decided as a patriot, zealous and faithful as a friend to the public, he loved his country, and adhered to her cause in the darkest hours of her struggles against oppression. GEORGE CLYMER. GEORGE CLYMER was born in the city of Philadelphia, in 1739. His father emigrated from Bristol, in England, and became connected by marriage with a lady of Phila delphia. Young Clymer was left an orphan at the age of seven years, and, after the completion of his studies, he en tered the counting-house of his maternal uncle. At a sub sequent period, he established himself in business, in con nection with Mr. Robert Ritchie, and afterwards with a father and son of the name of Meredith, a daughter of the former of whom he married. Although engaged in mercantile pursuits for many years, BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 373 Mr. Clymer was never warmly attached to them, but de voted a great part of his time to literature and the study of the fine arts. He became also well versed in the prin ciples of law, history, and politics, and imbibed an early detestation of arbitrary rule and oppression. When all hopes of conciliation with the parent country had failed, he was one of the foremost to adopt measures necessary for a successful opposition. He accepted a captain s com mission in a company of volunteers, raised for the defence of the province, and vigorously opposed, in 1773, the sale of the tea, which tended indirectly to levy a tax upon the Americans, without their consent. He was appointed chairman of a committee to wait upon the consignees of the offensive article, and request them not to sell it. The consequence was, that not a single pound of tea was offered for sale in Philadelphia. In 1775, Mr. Clymer was chosen a member of the coun cil of safety, and one of the first continental treasurers. On the 20th of July of the following year, he was elected a member of the Continental Congress. Though not present when the vote was taken in relation to a dec laration of independence, he had the honor of affixing his signature to that instrument in the following month. In December, Congress, finding it necessary to adjourn to Baltimore, in consequence of the advance of the British army towards Philadelphia, left Mr. Clymer, Robert Mor ris, and George Walton, a committee to transact such business as remained unfinished, in that city. In 1777, Mr. Clymer was again a member of Congress ; and his labors during that session being extremely arduous, he was obliged to retire for a season, to repair his health. In the autumn of the same year, his family, which then resided in the county of Chester, suffered severely from an attack of the British ; escaping only with the sacrifice of con siderable property. Mr. Clymer was then in Philadelphia. On the arrival of the enemy in that place, they sought out his place of residence, and were only diverted from razing it to the ground, by learning that it did not belong to him. During the same year, he was sent, in conjunction with others, to Pittsburg, to enlist warriors from the Shawnese and Delaware tribes of Indians, on the side of the United 32 374 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. States. While residing at Pittsburg, he narrowly escaped death from the tomahawk, by accidentally turning from a road, where he afterwards learned a party of hostile sav ages lay encamped. On the occasion of the establishment of a bank by Robert Morris and other patriotic citizens of Philadelphia, for the purpose of relieving the army, Mr. Clymer, who gave his active support to the measure, was chosen di rector of the institution. He was again elected to Con gress in 1780, and for two years was a laborious member of that body. In 1782, he removed with his family to Princeton, N. J., but in 1784, he was summoned by the citizens of his native state, to take a part in their General Assembly. He afterwards represented Pennsylvania in Congress for two years; when, declining a reelection, he closed his long and able legislative career. In 1791, Congress passed a bill imposing a duty on spirits distilled in the United States. To the southern and western part of the country, this measure proved very offensive. Mr. Clymer was placed at the head of the ex cise department in the state of Pennsylvania; but he was soon induced to resign the disagreeable office. In 1796, he was appointed, with Colonel Hawkins and Colonel Pickiris, to negotiate a treaty with the Cherokee and Creek Indians, in Georgia. He sailed for Savannah, ac- <companied by his wife. The voyage proved extremely unpleasant and perilous ; but, having completed the busi ness of the mission, they returned to Philadelphia. Mr. Clymer was afterwards called to preside over the Phila delphia Bank, and the Academy of Fine Arts. He held these offices till the period of his death, which took place on the 23d of January, 1813, in the seventy-fourth year of his age. He was of a studious and contemplative cast of mind, and eager to promote every scheme for the im provement of his country. His intellect was strong and cultivated, his character amiable and pure, and his integ rity inviolable. He was singularly punctual in the dis charge of his duties, and was a man of extensive infor- niation and the smallest pretensions. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 375 WILLIAM ELLERY. WILLIAM ELLERY was born in Newport, Rhode Island, December 22d, 1727. He was graduated at Harvard Col lege, in his twentieth year, and entered upon the practice of the law, at Newport, after the usual preparatory course. He acquired a competent fortune from his profession, and received the esteem and confidence of his fellow-citizens. Mr. Ellery was elected a delegate to the Congress of 1776, and took his seat in that body on the 17th of May. Here he soon became an efficient and influential member, and during the session signed the Declaration of Inde pendence. Of this transaction he frequently spoke. He relates having placed himself beside secretary Thompson, that he might observe how the members looked, as they put their names to their death warrant. He tasked his powers of penetration, but could discover no symptom of fear among them, though all seemed impressed with the solemnity of the occasion. In 1777, Mr. Ellery was ap pointed one of the marine committee of Congress, and is supposed to have first recommended the plan of preparing fireships, and sending them out from the state of Rhode Island. He shared considerably in the common loss of property, which was sustained by the inhabitants of New port, on the occasion of the British taking possession of that town. Mr. Ellery continued a member of Congress until the year 1785, when he retired to his native state. He was successively a commissioner of the continental loan-office, a chief justice of the Superior Court of Rhode Island, and collector of the customs for the town of Newport. He retained the latter office till the day of his death, which occurred on the 15th of February, 1820, at the advanced age of ninety years. The springs of existence seemed to have worn out by gradual and imperceptible degrees. On the day of his death, he had risen as usual, and rested in his chair, employed in reading " Cicero de Officiis." While thus engaged, his family physician called to see him. On feeling his pulse, he found that it had ceased to beat. A draught of wine and water quickened it into motion, however, once more, and being placed and 376 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. supported on the bed, he continued reading, until his bodily functions no longer afforded a tenement for the immortal spirit, and discontinued their operations. Mr. Ellery was a man of much humility of spirit, and manifested an uncommon disregard of the applause of men. He looked upon the world and its convulsions with religious serenity, and, in times of trouble and alarm, con soled himself and others with the pious reflection of the Psalmist, " The Lord reigneth " WILLIAM FLOYD. WILLIAM FLOYD was born on Long Island, December 17th, 1734. His father died while he was yet young, and left him heir to a large estate. His education was some what limited, but his native powers being respectable, he improved himself by his intercourse with the opulent and intelligent families of his neighborhood. At an early period of the controversy between the colo nies and mother country, Mr. Floyd warmly interested himself in the cause of the former. His devotion to the popular side led to his appointment as a delegate from New York to the first Continental Congress. In the measures adopted by that body he most heartily con curred. He was reelected a delegate the following year, and continued a member of Congress until after the dec laration of independence. On that occasion he affixed his signature to the instrument which gave such a mo mentous direction to the fate of a growing nation. He likewise served on numerous important committees, and rendered essential service to the patriotic cause, Mr. Floyd suffered severely from the destructive effects of the war upon his property, and for nearly seven years, his family were refugees from their habitation ; nor did he derive any benefit from his landed estate. In 1777, Gen eral Floyd (he received this appellation from his having commanded the militia on long Island) was appointed a senator of the state of New York. In 1778, he was again chosen to represent his native state in the Continental Con gress. From this time, until the expiration of the first Congress under the federal constitution, General Floyd BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 377 was either a member of the National Assembly, or of the Senate of New York. In 1784, he purchased an unin habited tract of land on the Mohawk River. To the im provement of this tract, he devoted the leisure of several successive summers; and hither he removed his resi dence in 1803. He continued to enjoy unusual health, until a few days previous to his decease, when a general debility fell upon him, and he died August 4th, 18*21, at the age of eighty-seven years. General Floyd was uniform and independent in his conduct ; and if public estimation be a just criterion of his merit, he was excelled by few, since for more than fifty years, he was honored with offices of trust and responsibility, by his fellow-citizens. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, the statesman and philosopher, was born in Boston, on the 17th of January, 1706. His father emigrated from England, and had recourse for a livelihood to the business of a chandler and soap-boiler. His mother was a native of Boston, and belonged to a re spectable family of the name of Folger. Young Franklin was placed at a grammar school at an early age, but, at the expiration of a year, was taken home to assist his father in his business. In this occupa tion he continued two years, when he became heartily tired of cutting wicks for candles, filling moulds, and run ning errands. He resolved to embark on a seafaring life ; but his parents objected, having already lost a son at sea. Having a passionate fondness for books, he was finally ap prenticed as a printer to his brother, who at that time pub lished a newspaper in Boston. It was while he was in this situation, that he began to try his powers of literary com position. Street ballads and articles in a newspaper were his first efforts. Many of his essays, which were inserted anonymously, were highly commended by people of taste. Dissatisfied with the manner in which he was treated by his relative, he, at the age of seventeen, privately quitted him, and went to Philadelphia. The day following his ar rival, he wandered through the streets of that city with an appearance little short of a beggar. His pockets were dis- 378 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. tended by his clothes, which were crowded into them ; and, provided with a roll of bread under each arm, he proceeded through the principal streets of the city. His ludicrous appearance attracted the notice of several of the citizens, and among others of Miss Reed, the lady whom he after wards married. He soon obtained employment as a print er, and was exemplary in the discharge of his duties. De luded by a promise of patronage from the governor, Sir William Keith, Franklin visited England to procure the necessary materials for establishing a printing-office in Philadelphia. He was accompanied by his friend Ralph, one of his literary associates. On their arrival in Lon don, Franklin found that he had been deceived ; and he was obliged to work as a journeyman for eighteen months. In the British metropolis, the morals of neither of our ad venturers were improved. Ralph conducted as if he had forgotten that he had a wife and child across the Atlantic ; and Franklin was equally unmindful of his pledges to Miss Reed. About this period he published " A Disserta tion on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain." In 1726, Franklin returned to Philadelphia ; not long after which he entered into business as a printer and sta tioner, and, in 1728, established a newspaper. In 1730, he married the lady to whom he was engaged previous to his leaving America. In 1732, he began to publish " Poor Richard s Almanac," a work which was continued for twenty-five years, and which, besides answering the pur poses of a calendar, contained many excellent prudential maxims, which rendered it very useful arid popular. Ten thousand copies of this almanac were published every year in America, and the maxims contained in it were often translated into the languages of Europe. The political career of Franklin commenced in 1736, when he was appointed clerk to the General Assembly of Pennsylvania. His next office was the valuable one of postmaster ; and he was subsequently chosen as a repre sentative. He assisted in the establishment of the Amer ican Philosophical Society, and of a college, which now exists under the title of the University of Pennsylvania. Chiefly by his exertions, a public library, a fire-preventing company, an insurance company, and a voluntary associa- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 379 tion for defence, were established at Philadelphia. He was chosen a member of the Provincial Assembly, to which body he was annually reflected for ten years. Philosophy now began to attract his attention, and, in 1749, he made those inquiries into the nature of electricity, the results of which placed him high among the men of science of the age. The experiment of the kite is well known. He had conceived the idea of explaining the phenomena of light ning upon electrical principles. While waiting for the erection of a spire for the trial of his theory, it occurred to him that he might have more ready access to the re gion of clouds by means of a common kite. He accord ingly prepared one for the purpose, affixing to the upright stick an iron point. The string was, as usual, of hemp, except the lower end, which was silk, and where the hempen part terminated, a key was fastened. With this simple apparatus, on the appearance of a thunder-cloud, he went into the fields, accompanied by his son, to whom alone he communicated his intentions, dreading probably the ridicule which frequently attends unsuccessful attempts in experimental philosophy. For some time, no sign of electricity presented itself; he was beginning to despair of success, when he suddenly observed the loose fibres of the string to start forward in an erect position. He now presented his knuckle to the key, and received a strong spark. On this depended the fate of his theory ; repeated sparks were drawn from the key, a phial was charged, a shock given, and all the experiments made which are usually performed with electricity. This great discovery he applied to the securing of buildings from the effects of lightning. In 1753, Dr. Franklin was appointed deputy postmaster- general of British America. In this station, he rendered important services to General Braddock, in his expedition against Fort Du Quesne, and marched at the head of a company of volunteers to the protection of the frontier. He visited England in 1757, as agent for the colony of Pennsylvania, and was also intrusted by the other colonies with important business. While in London, he wrote a pamphlet, pointing out the advantages of a conquest of Canada by the English ; and his arguments are believed 380 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to have conduced considerably to that event. About this period, his talents as a philosopher were duly appreciated in various parts of Europe. He was admitted a fellow of the Royal Society of London, and the degree of doctor of laws was c-onferred upon him at St. Andrews, Edinburgh, and at Oxford. In 1762, he returned to America, and in 1764 was again appointed the agent of Pennsylvania, to manage her concerns in England, in which country he arrived in the month of December. About this period, the stamp act was exciting violent commotions in America. To this measure Dr. Franklin was strongly opposed, and he pre sented a petition against it, which, at his suggestion, had been drawn up by the Pennsylvania Assembly. Among others, he was summoned before the House of Commons, where he underwent a long examination. His answers were fearless and decisive, and to his representations the repeal of the act was, no doubt, in a great measure, at tributable. In the year 1766 67, he made an excursion to Holland, Germany, and France, where he met with a most flattering reception. He was chosen a member of the French Academy of Sciences, and received diplomas from many other learned societies. Certain letters had been written by Governor Hutchin- son, addressed to his friends in England, which reflected in the severest manner upon the people of America. These letters had fallen into the hands of Dr. Franklin, and by him had been transmitted to America, where they were at length inserted in the public journals. For a time, no one in England knew through what channel the letters had been conveyed to America. In 1773, Franklin pub licly avowed himself to be the person who obtained the letters and transmitted them to America. This produced a violent clamor against him, and upon his attending be fore the privy council, in the following January, to present a petition from the colony of Massachusetts, for the dismis sal of Governor Hutchinson, a most abusive invective was pronounced against him, by Mr. Weddeburne, afterwards Lord Loughborough. Among other epithets, the honor able member called Franklin a coward, a murderer, and a thief. During the whole of this insulting harangue, Frank- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 381 lin sat with a composed and unaverted aspect, " as if his countenance had been made of wood." Throughout this personal and public outrage, the whole assembly seemed greatly amused at Doctor Franklin s expense. The presi dent even laughed aloud. There was a single person present, however, Lord North, who to his honor be it recorded expressed great disapprobation of the indecent conduct of the assembly. The intended insult, however, was entirely lost. The coolness and dignity of Franklin soon discomposed his enemies, who were compelled to feel the superiority of his character. Their animosity caused him to be removed from the office of postmaster- general, interrupted the payment of his salary as agent for the colonies, and finally instituted against him a suit in chancery concerning the letters of Hutchinson. Despairing of restoring harmony between the colonies and mother country, Doctor Franklin embarked for Amer ica, where he arrived in 1775. He was received with every mark of esteem and admiration. He was imme diately elected a delegate to the General Congress, and signed the Declaration of Independence. In 1776, he was deputed, with others, to proceed to Canada, to per suade the people of that province to throw off the British yoke ; but the inhabitants of Canada had been so much disgusted with the zeal of the people of New England, who had burnt some of their chapels, that they refused to listen to the proposals made to them by Franklin and his associates. In 1778, he was despatched by Congress, as ambassador to France. The treaty of alliance with the French government, and the treaties of peace, in 1782 and 1783, as well as treaties with Sweden and Prussia, were signed by him. On his reaching Philadelphia, in September, 1785, his arrival was hailed by applauding thousands of his countrymen, who conducted him in tri umph to his residence. This was a period of which he always spoke with peculiar pleasure. In 1788, he with drew from public life, and on the 17th of April, 1790, he expired in the city of Philadelphia, in the eighty-fourth year of his age. Congress directed a general mourning for him throughout the United States ; and the National Assembly of France decreed that each member should 382 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. wear mourning for three days. Doctor Franklin lies buried in the north-west corner of Christ Churchyard, in Philadelphia. In his will he directed that no monumental ornaments should mark his grave. A small marble slab points out, the spot where he lies. Doctor Franklin had two children, a son and a daugh ter. The son, under the British government, was ap pointed governor of New Jersey. On the breaking out of the revolution, he took up his residence in England, where he spent the remainder of his days. The daughter was respectably married, in Philadelphia, to Mr. William Bache, whose descendants still reside in that city. In stature, Dr. Franklin was above the middle size. He possessed a sound constitution, and his countenance indicated a placid state of mind, great depth of thought, and an inflexible resolution. In youth he took a skeptical turn with regard to religion, but his strength of mind led him to fortify himself against vice by such moral princi ples as directed him to the most valuable ends, by honor able means. According to the testimony of his most in timate friend, Dr. William Smith, he became, in maturer years, a believer in divine revelation. The following epitaph on himself was written by Doctor Franklin, many years previously to his death : The body of BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, PRINTER, like the cover of an old book, its contents torn out, and stripped of its lettering and gilding, lies here food for worms. Yet the work itself shall not be lost; for it will (as he believed) appear once more in a new and more beautiful edition, corrected and amended by the Author. ELBRIDGE GERRY. ELBRIDGE GERRY was born at Marblehead, in the state of Massachusetts, July 17th, 1744. He became a member of Harvard College before his fourteenth year, and, on leaving the university, engaged in commercial pursuits at BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 383 Marblehead, under the direction of his father. His in clination would have led him to the study of medicine ; but great success attended his mercantile enterprise, and, in a few years, he found himself in the enjoyment of a competent fortune. In May, 1772, Mr. Gerry was chosen a representative to the General Court of Massachusetts, to which office he was reelected the following year. During this year, he was appointed one of the committee of correspondence and inquiry. In June, the celebrated letters of Governor Hutchinson to persons in England were laid before the house by Mr. Adams. In the debates on this disclosure, Mr. Gerry highly distinguished himself. He was also particularly active in the scenes of 1774. He was a member of the Provincial Congress which met at Con cord, and powerfully contributed to the measures of oppo sition which led to the revolution. In 1775, the new Provincial Congress, of which he was one, assembled at Cambridge. In this body, he evinced a degree of patri otic intrepidity, which was surpassed by none. A committee of Congress, among whom were Mr. Gerry, Colonel Orne, and Colonel Hancock, had been in session in the village of Menotomy, then part of the town ship of Cambridge. The latter gentleman, after the close of the session, had gone to Lexington. Mr. Gerry and Mr. Orne remained at the village; the other members of the committee had dispersed. Some officers of the royal army had passed through the villages just before dusk, and the circumstance so far attracted the attention of Mr. Gerry, that he despatched an express to Colonel Hancock, who, with Samuel Adams, was at Lexington. Mr. Gerry and Colonel Orne retired to rest, without taking the least precaution against personal exposure, and they remained quietly in their beds, until the British advance were within view of the dwelling-house. It was a beautiful night, and the polished arms of the soldiers glittered in the moon beams, as they moved on in silence. The front passed on. When the centre were opposite the house occupied by the committee, an officer and file of men were detached by signal, and marched towards it. The inmates, for whom they were in search, found means to escape, half- 384 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. dressed, into an adjoining cornfield, where they remained concealed until the troops were withdrawn. Every part of the house was searched for " the members of the rebel Congress;" even the beds in which they had lain were examined. But their property, and, among other things, a valuable watch of Mr. Gerry s, which was under his pillow, were undisturbed. On the 17th day of June, the memorable battle of Bunker Hill was fought. The Provincial Congress was at that time in session at Watertown. Before the battle, Dr. Joseph Warren, president of the Congress, who was the companion and room-mate of Mr. Gerry, communicated to him his intention of mingling in the approaching contest. The night preceding the doctor s departure to the scene of battle, he is said to have lodged in the same bed with Mr. Gerry. In the morning, in reply to the admonitions of his friend, he uttered the well-known words, " Dulce et de corum est pro patria mori." * The sweetness and the glory he but too truly experienced, and died one of the earliest victims to the cause of his country s freedom. In 1775, Mr. Gerry proposed a law in the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts, to encourage the fitting out of armed vessels, and to provide for the adjudication of prizes. This important measure was passed, and, under its sanction, several of the enemy s vessels, with valuable cargoes, were captured. In 1776, Mr. Gerry was chosen a delegate to the Continental Congress, in which body he shortly after took his seat. His services in this capacity were numerous and important. Having married in New York, he returned to his native state, and fixed his resi dence at Cambridge, a few miles from Boston. In 1787, Mr. Gerry was chosen a delegate to the Convention which assembled at Philadelphia, to revise the articles of confed eration. To him there appeared strong objections to the federal constitution, and he declined affixing his sig nature to the instrument. But when that constitution had gone into effect, and he was chosen a representative to Congress, he cheerfully united in its support, since it had received the sanction of the country. * It is sweet and glorious to die for one s country. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 385 In 1797, Mr. Gerry was appointed to accompany Gen eral Pinckney and Mr. Marshall on a special mission to France. On their arrival in Paris, the tools of the gov ernment made the extraordinary demand of a large sum of money, as the condition of any negotiation. This being refused, the ridiculous attempt was made by the Directory, to excite their fears for themselves and their country. In the spring of 1798, two of the envoys, Messrs. Pinckney and Marshall, were ordered to quit the territories of France, while Mr. Gerry was invited to re main, and resume the negotiation which had been sus pended. He accepted the invitation to remain, but reso lutely refused to resume the negotiation. His object in remaining was to prevent an immediate rupture with France, which, it was feared, would result from his de parture. His continuance seems to have eventuated in the good of his country. " He finally saved the peace of the nation," said the late President Adams, " for he alone discovered and furnished the evidence that X. Y. and Z. were employed by Talleyrand ; and he alone brought home the direct, formal, and official assurances, upon which the subsequent commission proceeded, and peace was made." Mr. Gerry returned to America in 1798, and in 1805 was elected, by the republican party, governor of Massa chusetts. In the following year he retired, but in 1810 was again chosen chief magistrate of that commonwealth, which office he held for two succeeding years. In 1812, he was elected vice-president of the United States, into which office he was inaugurated on the 4th of March, 1813. While attending to his duties at Washington, he was suddenly summoned from the scene of his earthly labors. A beautiful monument, erected at the national expense, bears the following inscription : . THK TOMB OF ELBRIDGE GERRY, Vice-President of the United States, who died suddenly, in this city, on his way to the Capitol, as President, of the Senate, November 23d, 1814, aged 70. 33 386 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. BUTTON GWINNETT. BUTTON GWINNETT was born in England, about the year 1732, and, on coming of age, became a merchant in the city of Bristol. Some time after his marriage in his native country, he removed to Charleston, South Carolina ; and, having continued there two years, he purchased a large tract of land in Georgia, where he became exten sively engaged in agricultural pursuits. Mr. Gwinnett had long taken a deep interest in the welfare of the colonies; but he despaired of a successful resistance to Great Britain. His sentiments on this point, however, underwent a great change, and he became a warm advocate for opposing the unjust exactions of the mother country. In 1776, he was elected a represen tative of the province of Georgia, in Congress. He ac cordingly repaired to Philadelphia, and took his seat in the national Council, to which he was reflected the en suing year. He was afterwards a member of the Con vention held at Savannah, to frame a constitution for the state, and is said to have furnished the outlines of the constitution which was finally adopted. On the death of the president of the Provincial Council, Mr. Gwinnett was elected to the vacant station. In this situation he seems to have indulged in an unbecoming hostility towards an old political rival, Colonel Mclntosh ; adopting several expedients to mortify his adversary, and never divesting himself of his imbittered hatred towards him. In an ex pedition which he had projected against East Florida, Mr. Gwinnett designed to command the continental troops and militia of Georgia himself, thereby excluding Colonel Mclntosh from the command even of his own brigade. Just at this period, it became necessary to convene the legislature. In consequence of his official duties, Mr. Gwinnett was prevented from proceeding on the expedi tion. He therefore appointed to the command a subordi nate officer of Mclntosh s brigade. The expedition failed entirely, and contributed to defeat the election of Mr. Gwinnett as governor of the state. This failure blasted his hopes, and brought his political career to a close. Mclntosh was foolish enough to exult in the mortification BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 387 of his adversary. The consequence was, that Mr. Gwin- nett presented him a challenge. They fought at the dis tance of only twelve feet. Both were severely wounded. The wound of Mr. Gwinnett proved fatal. He expired on the 27th of May, 1777, in the forty-fifth year of his age, a melancholy instance of the misery produced by harboring in the heart the absorbing passion of rancor ous envy. In person, Mr. Gwinnett was tall, and of a noble appear ance. In his temper, he was irritable ; but in his man ners, courteous, graceful, and polite. LYMAN HALL. LYMAN HALL was born in Connecticut, about the year 1731, After receiving a collegiate education, and acquir ing a competent knowledge of medicine, he removed to Georgia, where he established himself in his profession, in Sunbury, in the district of Medway. On the com mencement of the struggle with Great Britain, he accepted of a situation in the parish of St. John, which was a frontier settlement, and exposed to incursions of the Creek Indians, and of the royalists of Florida. The parish of St. John, at an early period, entered with spirit into the opposition to the mother country, while the rest of Geor gia generally maintained different sentiments. So widely opposite were the feelings of this patriotic parish to those of the other inhabitants of the province, that an almost total alienation took place between them. In 1774, the liberal party held a general meeting, at Savannah, where Dr. Hall appeared as a representative of the parish of St. John. The measures adopted, how ever, fell far short of his wishes, and those of his constitu ents. At a subsequent meeting, it was agreed to petition the king for a redress of grievances. The parish of St. John, dissatisfied with the half-way measures of the Savannah Convention, endeavored to negotiate an alliance with the committee of correspond ence in Charleston, South Carolina. But this being impracticable, the inhabitants of St. John resolved to cut off all commercial intercourse with Savannah and the 388 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. surrounding parishes. Having taken this independent stand, they next made a unanimous choice of Dr. Hall as their representative to Congress. In the following May, Dr. Hall appeared in the hall of Congress, and by that body was unanimously admitted to a seat; but, as he did not represent the whole of Georgia, it was resolved to reserve the question, as to his right to vote, for further deliberation. Fortunately, however, on the 15th of July, Georgia acceded to the general confederacy, and proceed ed to the appointment of five delegates to Congress, three of whom attended at the adjourned meeting of that body in 1775. Among these delegates, Dr. Hall was one. He was annually reelected until 1780, when he retired from the national legislature. On the possession of Georgia by the British, his property was confiscated, and he obliged to leave the state. He returned in 1782, and the follow ing year was elected to the chief magistracy of Georgia. After holding this office for some time, he retired from public life, and died at his residence in Burke county,, about the sixtieth year of his age. JOHN HANCOCK. JOHN HANCOCK was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, in the year 1737. Both his father and grandfather were clergymen. Having lost the former relative while yet a child, he was adopted by a paternal uncle, Thomas Han cock, " the most opulent merchant in Boston, and the most enterprising man in New England." A professorship had been founded in Harvard College by his liberality, and to the library of that institution he was a principal benefactor. Under the patronage of his uncle, the nephew received a liberal education in the above university, where he was graduated in 1754. On leaving college, he was employed as a clerk in the counting-house of his uncle, where he continued till 1760, when he visited England for the pur pose of extending his information and correspondence. He returned to America in 17(34 ; shortly after which, his uncle died, leaving him the direction of his enormous BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 389 business, and a fortune the largest in the province. Han cock became neither haughty nor profligate by this sud den accession of wealth. He was kind and liberal to the numerous persons dependent upon him for employment, and maintained a character for integrity and ability in the management of his vast and complicated concerns. His princely estate, added to his honorable and generous char acter, soon gave him influence, and ever rendered him popular. In 1766, he was chosen a member of the legislature of Massachusetts, and thus became intimately associated with James Otis, Samuel Adams, and other distinguished patriots. In this assembly, his genius rapidly developed itself, and he became conspicuous for the purity of his principles, and the excellence of his abilities. The arrival of a vessel belonging to Mr. Hancock, in 1768, which was said to be loaded contrary to the revenue laws, produced a violent ebullition of popular feeling. This vessel was seized by the custom-house officers, and placed under the guns of the Romney, at that time in the harbor, for security. This seizure greatly exasperated the people, and, in their excitement, they assaulted the revenue officers, and compelled them to seek safety on board the armed vessel, or in the neighboring castle. The boat of the collector was destroyed, and several of the houses of his partisans were razed to the ground. Mr. Hancock, although in no wise concerned in the transaction, received from it a considerable accession of popularity. A few days after the affray which is usually termed " the Boston Massacre," and to which we have briefly adverted in the sketch of Samuel Adams, Mr. Hancock was appointed to deliver an address in commemoration of the event. After speaking of his attachment to a just government, and his detestation of tyranny, he proceeded to describe the profligacy and abandoned life of the troops quartered amongst them. Not satisfied with their own shameful debauchery, they strove to vitiate the morals of the citizens, and " thereby render them worthy of destruc tion." He spoke in terms of unmeasured indi mation of the massacre of the inhabitants, and in appalling lan- 33 * 390 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. guage forewarned the perpetrators of the deed of the vengeance which would overtake them hereafter, " if the laboring earth did not expand her jaws; if the air they breathed were not commissioned to be the immediate minister of death." He proceeded in the following spir ited strain : " But I gladly quit this theme of death. I would not dwell too long upon the horrid effects which have already followed from quartering regular troops in this town ; let our misfortunes instruct posterity to guard against these evils. Standing armies are sometimes (I would by no means say generally, much less universally) composed of persons who have rendered themselves unfit to live in civil society ; who are equally indifferent to the glory of a George or a Louis ; who, for the addition of one penny a day to their wages, would desert from the Christian cross, and fight under the crescent of the Turkish sultan : from such men as these what has not a state to fear ? With such as these, usurping Caesar passed the Rubicon ; with such as these, he humbled mighty Rome, and forced the mistress of the world to own a master in a traitor. These are the men whom sceptred robbers now employ to frustrate the designs of God, and render vain the bounties which his gracious hand pours indiscriminately upon his creatures." The intrepid style of this address removed all doubts as to the devoted patriotism of Mr. Hancock. His manners and habits had spread an opinion unfavorable to his re publican principles. His mansion rivalled the magnifi cence of a European palace. Gold and silver embroidery adorned his garments ; and his carriage, horses, and ser vants in livery, emulated the splendor of the English nobil ity. But the sentiments expressed by him in the above address were so public and explicit as to cause a complete renovation of his popularity. From this time, he became odious to the governor and his adherents. Efforts were made to get possession of his person, and he, with Samuel Adams , was excluded from the general pardon offered by Governor Gage to all who would manifest a proper peni tence for their opposition to the royal authority. In 1774, Hancock was unanimously elected to the BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 391 presidential chair of the Provincial Congress of Massachu setts. The following year, the honor of the presidency of the Continental Congress was conferred upon him. His recent proscription by Governor Gage, no doubt, contrib uted to his popularity in that body. In this station Han cock continued till October, 1777 ; when his infirm health induced him to resign his office. He was afterwards a member of the Convention appointed to frame a constitu tion for Massachusetts, and in 1780 was chosen first gov ernor of the commonwealth, to which station he was annually elected, until the year 1785, when he resigned. After an interval of two years, he was reflected to the same office. He continued in it till the time of his death, which took place the 8th of October, 1793, in the fifty-fifth year of his age. Mr. Hancock was a firm and energetic patriot, and, though possessed of immense wealth, devoted himself to the laborious service of his country. It has been remarked, that by the force with which he inscribed his name on the parchment, which bears the declaration of independ ence, he seems to have determined that his name should never be erased. His liberality was great, and hundreds of families, in. times of distress, were daily fed from his munificence. He has been accused by his enemies of a passion for popularity; but, whatever may have been the truth of the charge, a fondness for being beloved can be hardly reckoned among the bad traits of a man s character. A noble instance of his contempt of wealth, in comparison with public expediency, is recorded. At the time the American army was besieging Boston to expel the British, who held possession of the town, the entire destruction of the place was proposed by the Ameri can officers. By the execution of such a plan, the whole fortune of Mr. Hancock would have been sacrificed. Yet he readily acceded to the measure, declaring his willing ness to surrender his all, whenever the liberties of his country should require it. 392 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. BENJAMIN HARRISON. BENJAMIN HARRISON was born in Berkley, Virginia. He was the descendant of a family distinguished in the history of the state, and was a student in the College of William and Mary, at the time of his father s death. In conse quence of a misunderstanding with an officer of that insti tution, he left it before the regular period of graduation, and returned home. The management of his father s estate now devolved upon him, and he displayed an unusual degree of pru dence and ability in the discharge of his trust. He was summoned at an early date, even before he had attained the age required by law, to sustain the reputation acquired by his ancestors, in state affairs. He was chosen a mem ber of the legislature about the year 1764, a station which he may be said to have held through life, since he was always elected to a seat, whenever his other political avocations admitted of his occupying it. His fortune being ample, and his influence as a political leader very considerable, the royal government proposed to create him a member of the Executive Council of Virginia. Mr. Har rison was not to be seduced, however, by the attractions of rank and power. Though young, he was ardently de voted to the cause of the people, and remained steadfast in his opposition to royal oppression. Mr. Harrison was a member of the Congress of 1774, and from that period, during nearly every session, repre sented his native state in that assembly. In this situation he was characterized for great firmness, good sense, and a peculiar sagacity in difficult and critical junctures. He was likewise extremely popular as chairman of the com mittee of the whole house. An anecdote is related of him on the occasion of the declaration of independence. While signing the instrument, he noticed Mr. Gerry, of Massachusetts, standing beside him. Mr. Harrison him self was quite corpulent ; Mr. Gerry was slender and spare. As the former raised his hand, having inscribed his name on the roll, he turned to Mr. Gerry, and facetiously ob served, that when the time of hanging should come, he should have the advantage over him. " It will be over BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 393 with me," said he, " in a minute ; but you will be kicking in the air half an hour after I am gone." Towards the close of 1777, Mr. Harrison resigned his seat in Congress, and returned to Virginia. In 1782, he was chosen governor of the state, to which office he was twice reflected, when he became ineligible by the pro visions of the constitution. In 1788, when the new con stitution of the United States was submitted to Virginia, he was returned a member of her Convention. In 1799, he was again proposed as a candidate for the executive chair, but declined in favor of his friend, Beverly Randolph. In the spring of 1791, Mr. Harrison was attacked by a severe fit of the gout, a recurrence of which malady shortly after put a period to his life. Mr. Harrison became connected by marriage with Miss Bassett, a niece to the sister of Mrs. Washington. He had many children, and several of his sons became men of distinction. His third son, William Henry Harrison, has honorably served his country in various official capacities, and died April 4, 1841, one month after his inauguration fts President of the United States, JOHN HART. JOHN HART was the son of Edward Hart, of Hopewell, in the county of Hunterdon, in New Jersey. He inherited from his father a considerable estate, and, having married, devoted himself to agricultural pursuits, and became a worthy and respectable farmer. The reputation which he acquired for integrity, dis crimination, and enlightened prudence, soon brought him into notice, and he was often chosen a member of the Co lonial Assembly. Although one of the most gentle and unobtrusive of men, he could not suppress his abhorrence of the aggressions of the British ministry. He maintained a fearless and uniform opinion with regard to the rights of the colonies, and did not hesitate to express it when occa sion invited him. On the meeting of the Congress of 1774, Mr. Hart appeared and took his seat ; having been elected by a conference of committees from several parts of the 394 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. colony. During several succeeding sessions, he continued to represent the people of New Jersey, in the same Assembly. When the question of a declaration of independence was brought forward, he was at his post, and voted for the measure with unusual zeal. In 1776, New Jersey became the theatre of war, and Mr. Hart sustained severe losses, by the destruction of his property. His children were compelled to flee, his farm was pillaged, and great exertions were made to secure him as a prisoner. For some time he was hunted with untir ing perseverance. He was reduced to the most distressing shifts to elude his enemies ; being often severely pressed by hunger, and destitute of a place of repose for the night. In one instance, he was obliged to conceal himself in the usual resting-place of a large dog, who was his companion for the time. The battles of Trenton and Princeton led to the evacu ation of New Jersey by the British. On this event, Mr. Hart again collected his family around him, and began to repair the desolation of his farm. His constitution, how ever, had sustained a shock which was irreparable. His health gradually failed him; and though he lived to see the prospects of his country brighten, he died before the conflict was so gloriously terminated. He expired in the year 1780. The best praise that can be awarded to Mr. Hart, is, that he was beloved by all who knew him. He was very liberal to the Baptist church of Hopewell, to which community he belonged ; and his memory was hal lowed by the esteem and regret of a large circle of friends. JOSEPH HEWES. JOSEPH HEWES was born near Kingston, in New Jer sey, in the year 1730. His parents were Quakers, who removed from Connecticut, on account of the existing prejudices against them among the Puritans, and of the hostilities of the Indians. At a suitable age, Joseph Hewes became a member of Princeton College ; and, after having graduated in due course, he was placed in the counting-house of a gentle- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 395 man at Philadelphia, to be educated as a merchant. On leaving this situation, he entered into business for himself, and was highly successful in his commercial transactions. At the age of thirty he removed to North Carolina, and settled in the village of Edenton. Prosperity continued to attend him here, and he soon acquired a handsome for tune. By his probity and liberal dealings, he also gained the esteem of the people among whom he lived, and was called to represent them in the colonial legislature of the province. This distinction was conferred upon him for several successive years, during which he increased in popularity with his constituents. In 1774, Mr. Hewes was chosen one of the three dele gates from North Carolina to the Continental Congress. No members of that body brought with them credentials of a bolder stamp than the delegates from North Carolina. They were invested with such powers as might " make any acts done by them, or consent given in behalf of this province, obligatory in honor upon any inhabitant thereof, who is not an alien to his country s good, and an apostate, to the liberties of America." On the meeting of this Congress, Mr. Hewes was nominated one of the committee appointed to " state the rights of the colonies in general, the several instances in which those rights had been vio lated or infringed, arid the means most proper to be pur sued for obtaining a restoration of them." He also assist ed in preparing their celebrated report, which was drawn up as follows : " 1. That they are entitled to life, liberty, and property; and they have never ceded to any sovereign power what ever a right to dispose of either, without their consent. "2. That our ancestors, who first settled these colonies, were, at the time of their emigration from the mother country, entitled to all the rights, liberties, and immunities of free and natural born subjects, within the realm of England. " 3. That by such emigration they by no means for feited, surrendered, or lost, any of those rights ; but that they were, and their descendants now are, entitled to the exercise and enjoyment of all such of them as their local 396 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and other circumstances enable them to exercise and enjoy. " 4. That the foundation of English liberty, and of 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, cannot properly be represented in the British Parliament, they are entitled to a free and exclusive power of legisla tion in their several provincial legislatures, where their right of representation can alone be pursued in all cases of taxation and internal polity, subject only to the negative of their sovereign, in such manner as has been hereto fore used and accustomed ; but if, from the necessity of the case, and a regard to the mutual interests of both countries, we cheerfully consent to the operation of such acts of the British Parliament as are bona fide restrained to the regulation of our external commerce, for the pur pose of securing the commercial advantages of the whole eirpire to the mother country, and the commercial benefit of its respective members ; excluding every idea of taxa tion, internal or external, for raising a revenue on the sub jects in America, without their consent. " 5. That the respective colonies are entitled to the common law of England, and, more especially, to the great and inestimable privilege of being tried by their peers of the vicinage, according to the course of that law. " 6. That they are entitled to the benefit of such of the English statutes as existed at the time of their coloniza tion, and which they have, by experience, respectively found applicable to their several local and other circum stances. " 7. That these his majesty s colonies are likewise en titled to all the immunities and privileges granted and con firmed to them by royal charters, or secured by their several codes of provincial laws. " 8. That they have a right peaceably to assemble, con sider of their grievances, and petition the king ; and that all prosecutions, prohibitory proclamations, and commit ments for the same, are illegal. " 9. That the keeping a standing army in these colonies BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 397 in times of peace, without consent of the legislature of that colony in which such army is kept, is against the law. " 10. It is indispensably necessary to good government, and rendered essential by the English constitution, that the constituent branches of the legislature be independent of each other; and therefore the exercise of legislative power in several colonies by a council appointed during pleasure by the crown, is unconstitutional, dangerous, and destructive to the freedom of American legislation. " All and each of which the aforesaid deputies, in be half of themselves and their constituents, do claim, de mand, and insist on, as their indisputable rights and lib erties, which cannot be legally taken from them, altered, or abridged, by any power whatever, without their con sent, by their representatives in their several provincial legislatures." To the above declaration of rights was added an enu meration of the wrongs already sustained by the colonies ; after stating which, the report concluded as follows : " To these grievous acts and measures Americans can not submit ; but in hopes their fellow-subjects in Great Britain will, on a revision of them, restore us to that state in which both countries found happiness and prosperity, we have, for the present, only resolved to pursue the fol lowing peaceable measures: 1. To enter into a non-im portation, non-consumption, and non-exportation agree ment or association ; 2. to prepare an address to the peo ple of Great Britain, and a memorial to the inhabitants of British America ; and, 3. to prepare a loyal address to his majesty, agreeably to resolutions already entered into." Although engaged in extensive commercial transactions, Mr. Hewes, about this time, assisted in forming the plan of the non-importation association, and readily became a member of it. He was again elected to Congress by the people of North Carolina in 1775, and remained in Phila delphia until the adjournment of that assembly in July. He continued to represent the same state, almost without intermission, for four succeeding years, and gave very general satisfaction. The last time that he appeared in Congress was on the 29th of October, 1779. After this date, an indisposition, under which he had labored for 34 398 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. some time, confined him to his chamber, and at length, on the 10th of November, terminated his life, in the fiftieth year of his age. His funeral was numerously attended, and, in testimony of their respect to his memory, Congress resolved to wear crape round the left arm for the space of one month. Mr. Hewes left a large fortune, but no chil dren to inherit it. THOMAS HEYWARD. THOMAS HEYW\RD was born in St. Luke s parish, in South Carolina, in the ycjar 1746. His father was a planter of fortune, and young Hey ward received the best education that the province could afford. Having finished his scholastic studies, he entered upon those of the law, and, after the usual term of application, was sent to Eng land to complete himself in his profession. He was en rolled as a student in one of the Inns of Court, and devo ted himself with great ardor to the acquirement of legal knowledge. On completing his studies in England, he commenced the tour of Europe, which occupied him several years. After enjoying the advantages of foreign travel, he returned to his native country, and devoted himself, with great zeal for a man of fortune, to the labors of the law. In 1775, Mr. Heyward was elected to supply a vacancy in Congress, and arrived at Philadelphia in season to join in the discussion of the great question of independence. In 1778, he was prompted by a sense of duty to accept of an appointment as judge of the Criminal Court of the new government. Soon after his elevation to the bench, he was called upon to preside at the trial and condemna tion of several persons charged with a treasonable corre spondence with the enemy. The conviction of these indi viduals was followed by their execution, which took place within view of the British army, to whom it rendered the judge particularly obnoxious. In the sprint; of 1780, the city of Charleston was taken possession of by General Clinton. Judge Heyward, at that time, had command of a battalion. On the reduction of the place, he became a prisoner of war, and was trans- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 399 ported, with some others, to St. Augustine. During his absence, he suffered greatly in respect to his property. His plantation was much injured, and his slaves were seized and carried away. He at length had leave to re turn to Philadelphia, On his passage thither, he nar rowly escaped a watery grave. By some accident he fell overboard ; but, fortunately, he kept himself from sink ing, by holding to the rudder of the ship, until assistance could be rendered him. On his return to Carolina, he re sumed his judicial duties, in the exercise of which he con tinued till 1798. He was a member of the Convention for forming the state constitPtion, in 1791), and was conspic uous for his sound judgment and unchanging patriotism. Having retired from the most arduous of his public labors and cares, he died in March, 1839, in the sixty-fourth year of his age. Mr. Heyward was twice married, and was the father of several children. He was estimable for his amiable disposition, his virtuous principles, and his exten sive acquaintance with men and things. WILLIAM HOOPER. WILLIAM HOOPER was born in Boston, on the 17th of June, 1742. He entered Harvard University at the age of fifteen, and was graduated in 1769. His father, who was pastor of Trinity Church, in Boston, had destined his son for the ministerial profession; but the latter having an inclination for the law, he was placed in the office of the celebrated James Otis, to pursue the study of his choice. On being qualified for the bar, young Hooper removed to North Carolina, and, having married, finally established himself in the practice of his profession at Wilmington. He was soon placed, by his talents, among the foremost advocates of the province, and was chosen to represent the town of Wilmington, in the General Assembly. He was elected to a seat in the same body the following year, and was always one of the boldest opposers of the tyran nical encroachments of the British government. In 1774, Mr. Hooper was chosen a delegate to the memorable Congress which met at Philadelphia. He took an im- 400 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. portant share in the discussions of this assembly, and was remarkable for his fluent and animated elocution. He was a member of the same body the following year, and, during the session, drew up, as chairman of different committees, several able addresses and reports. In 1776, the private affairs of Mr. Hooper requiring his attention in North Carolina, he did not, for some time, attend upon the sitting of Congress. He returned, however, in season to share in the honor and danger of signing the imperisha ble instrument which declared the colonies of North Amer ica free and independent. Having been elected to Congress a third time, Mr. Hooper was obliged to resign his seat in February, 1777, and return to the adjustment of his own embarrassed affairs. In 1786, he was appointed, by Congress, one of the judges of a federal court, formed for the purpose of set tling a controversy which existed between the states of New York and Massachusetts, in regard to certain lands. In the following year, his health being considerably im paired, he sought to restore it by private retirement. This, however, he did not live long to enjoy. He died in October, 1790, at the age of forty-eight years, leaving a wife and three children. Mr. Hooper was distinguished for his conversational powers, his good taste, and his de votion to his profession. As a politician, he was constant, judicious, and enthusiastic. He never gave way to de spondency, possessing an unshaken confidence that Heav en would defend the right. STEPHEN HOPKINS. STEPHEN HOPKINS was born near Providence, R. L, in a place now called Scituate, on the 7th of March, 1707. He was of respectable parentage, being a descendant of Benedict Arnold, the first governor of Rhode Island. His early education was limited ; but he is said to have excelled in penmanship, and in the practical branches of mathematics. For several years he followed the profession of a farm er. He was afterwards chosen town clerk of Scituate, and a representative to the General Assembly. He was BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 401 subsequently appointed a justice of the peace, and a jus tice of one of the Courts of Common Pleas. In 1733, he became chief justice of that court. In 1742, he removed to Providence, where he entered into commerce, and was extensively engaged in building and fitting out vessels. He was chosen a representative from that town to the Gen eral Assembly, and became speaker of the House of Rep resentatives. In 1751, he was made chief justice of the Superior Court, and held that office till the year 1754, when he was appointed a commissioner to the celebrated Albany Convention. The object of this Convention was the securing of the friendship of the five great Indian na tions, in the approaching French war, and a union between the several colonies of America. In 1756, Mr. Hopkins was elected chief magistrate of the colony of Rhode Island. This office he continued to hold, almost without intermission, until 1767, discharging its duties in an efficient and highly satisfactory manner. He resolutely espoused the cause of the colonies, and, in a pamphlet, entitled "The Rights of Colonies examined," proved the injustice of the stamp act, and other meas ures of the British ministry. In 1774, Mr. Hopkins re ceived the appointment of delegate from Rhode Island to the Continental Congress. In this assembly he took his seat on the first day of the session, and became one of the most zealous advocates of the measures adopted by that illustrious body of men. In the years 1775 and 1776, he again represented Rhode Island in Congress. In this latter year, he affixed his name to the Declaration of In dependence. His signature was the only *bne upon the roll which gave indications of a trembling hand ; but it was not the tremulousness of fear. Mr. Hopkins had for some time been afflicted with a paralytic affection, which compelled him, when he wrote, to guide his right hand with his left. In 1778, Mr. Hopkins was a delegate to Congress for the last time; but for several years afterwards, he was a member of the General Assembly of Rhode Island. He closed his useful and honorable life on the 13th of July, 1785, in the seventy-eighth year of his age. Mr. Hopkins was enabled, by the vigor of his understanding, to surmount 34* ~ 402 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. his early deficiencies, and rise to the most distinguished offices in the gift of his fellow-citizens. He possessed considerable fondness for literature, and greatly excelled as a mathematician. He was an unshaken friend of his country, and an enemy to civil and religious intolerance, distinguished for his liberality, and for the correct and honorable discharge of his various duties. FRANCIS HOPKINSON. FRANCIS HOPKINSON was born in Philadelphia, in the year 1737. His father was an Englishman, who, a short time previous to his emigration to America, married a niece of the bishop of Worcester. He was a man of a cultivated mind and considerable literary accomplishments, and became intimate with Benjamin Franklin, by whom he was held in high estimation. Upon the death of Mr. Hopkinson, which occurred while he was in the prime of life, the care of his family devolved upon his widow, who was eminently qualified for the task. She was a woman of superior mind; and, discovering early indications of talent in her son, she resolved to make every sacrifice to furnish him with a good education. She placed him at the -College of Philadelphia, and lived to see him graduate with reputation, and attain a high eminence at the bar. In 1766, Francis Hopkinson embarked for England, and received, upon the occasion, a public expression of respect and affection from the board of trustees of the College of Philadelphia. After a residence of more than two years in the land of his forefathers, he returned to America. He soon after married Miss Borderi, of Bor- dentown, in New Jersey, where he took up his residence, and was appointed collector of the customs and executive counsellor. These offices he did not long enjoy, having sacrificed them to his attachment to the liberties of his country. He enlisted himself warmly in the cause of the people, and in 1776 was appointed a delegate from New Jersey to the Continental Congress. He voted for the declaration of independence, and affixed his signature to the engrossed copy of that instrument. In 1779, he was Appointed judge of the Admiralty Court of Pennsylvania, BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 403 and for ten years continued to discharge with fidelity the duties of that office. Soon after the adoption of the federal constitution, Mr. Hopkinson received from Washington the appoint ment of judge of the United States for the district of Pennsylvania. In this station, he conscientiously avoided mingling in party politics. His life was suddenly termi nated, while in the midst of his usefulness, on the 8th of May, 1791. He died of an apoplectic fit, which, in two hours after the attack, put a period to his existence. Mr. Hopkinson was endued with considerable powers of humor and satire, which he employed effectually in rousing the feelings of the people, during the war of the revolution. He was the author of several fugitive pieces, which were very popular in their day. His well-known ballad, called "The Battle of the Kegs," gives evidence of a rich and exhaustless fund of humor, and will probably last the wear of centuries. He excelled in music, and had some knowledge of painting. His library was extensive, and his stock of knowledge constantly accumulating. In stature, Mr. Hopkinson was below the common size. His countenance was animated, his speech fluent, and his motions were unusually rapid. Few men were kinder in their dispositions, or more benevolent in their lives. He left, at his decease, a widow and five children. The eldest of these, Joseph Hopkinson, occupies an eminent rank among the advocates of the American bar. SAMUEL HUNTINGTON. SAMUEL E!UNTINGTON was born in Windham, Connecti cut, on the 2d of July, 1732. Being the eldest son, his father required his assistance on the farm, and his oppor tunities for study were accordingly brief and extremely rare. He possessed, however, a vigorous understanding, and supplied his deficiencies of instruction by an assiduous and a persevering devotion to the acquisition of knowledge. At the age of twenty-one years, he was probably equal, in point of literary attainments, to most of those who had re ceived a collegiate education. Conceiving a fondness for legal pursuits, he abandoned 404 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. his occupation of husbandry, and resolved to enter alone and unaided upon the study of the law. He soon obtained a competent knowledge of the principles of the profession, to commence the practice of an attorney in his native town ; but in 1760, he removed to Norwich, where a wider field presented itself for the exercise of his talents. Here he soon became distinguished for his ability, his integrity, and his strict attention to business. In 1764, Mr. Hunt- ington represented the town of Norwich in the General Assembly, and the following year was appointed to the office of king s attorney. In 1774, he became an associ ate judge in the Superior Court, and soon after an assistant in the Council of Connecticut. His talents and patriotism recommending him to public confidence, he was elected, in 1775, a delegate to the Con tinental Congress. In the subsequent July, he voted in favor of the declaration of independence. Mr. Hunting- ton continued a member of Congress until the year 1781, when ill health induced him to resign. On the departure of Mr. Jay, as minister to Spain, he had been appointed to the presidency of the Congress, and had served in that honorable station with distinguished ability and dignity. [n testimony of their approbation of his conduct in the chair, and in the execution of public business, Congress, soon after his retirement, accorded to Mr. Huntington the expression of their public thanks. On his return to his native state, he resumed his judicial functions, and in 1782 was reflected to Congress. He did not attend, however, till the following year, when he resumed his seat. He con tinued a conspicuous member until November, at which time he finally retired from the national assembly. Soon after his return to Connecticut, he was placed at the head of the Superior Court, and the following year was chosen lieutenant-governor of the state. In 1786, he succeeded Governor Griswold in the office of chief magis trate, and was annually reflected to that station during the remainder of his life. His death took place on the 5th of January, 1796, in the sixty-fourth year of his age. Mr. Huntington was a sincere Christian, and few men possessed a greater share of mildness and equanimity of temper. He rose from the humble situation of a ploughboy by his BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 405 own industry and perseverance, and without the advantage of family patronage or influence. He married in the thirtieth year of his age ; but, having no children, he adopted a son and daughter of his brother, the Rev. Joseph Huntington. ) FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE. FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE was born in Virginia, in 1734. He was the fourth son of Thomas Lee, who for several years held the office of president of the king s council. Francis Lightfoot did not receive the advantage, enjoyed by his elder brothers, of an education at the English uni versities. He was placed, however, under the care of an accomplished domestic tutor of the name of Craig, and acquired an early fondness for literature. He became well versed in the most important branches of science, and probably obtained as good an education as the country could then afford. The fortune bequeathed him by his father rendered the study of a profession unnecessary, and he accordingly surrendered himself, for several years, to the enjoyment of literary ease and social intercourse. He possessed, however, an active mind, and warmly interested himself in the advancement of his country. In 1765, he was returned a member of the House of Burgesses from the county of Loudon, where his estate was situated. He was annually reflected to this office until 1772, when, having married a lady of Richmond county, he removed thither, and was soon after chosen by the citizens of that place to the same station. In 1775, Mr. Lee was appointed by the Virginia Con vention a delegate to the Continental Congress. He took his seat in this assembly, and, though he seldom engaged in the public discussions, was surpassed by none in his zeal to forward the interests of the colonies. His brother, Richard Henry Lee, had the high honor of bringing for ward the momentous question of independence ; but no one was, perhaps, a warmer friend of the measure than Francis Lightfoot. Mr. Lee retired from Congress in 1779. He was fondly attached to the pleasures of home, and eagerly sought an 406 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. opportunity when his services were not essentially needed by his country, to resume the undisturbed quiet of his former life. He was not long permitted to enjoy his seclusion. He reluctantly obeyed the summons of his fellow-citizens to represent them once more in the legis lature of Virginia. His duties were most faithfully dis charged while a member of this body ; but he soon became weary of the bustle and vexations of public life, and relin quished them for the pleasures of retirement. In the latter period of his life, he found an unfailing source of happiness to himself, in contributing largely to the enjoy ment of others. His benevolence and the urbanity of his manners rendered him beloved by all. He was a practical friend to the poor, and a companion to the young or the aged, the light-hearted or the broken in spirit. Having no children, he devoted his time chiefly to reading, farming, and company. His death was occasioned by a pleurisy, which disease also terminated the life of his wife a few days after his own departure. He died in the consoling belief of the gospel, and in peace with all mankind and his own conscience. The brothers of Mr. Lee were all eminently distin guished for their talents and for their services to their country Philip Ludwell, a member of the king s Coun cil ; Thomas Ludwell, a member of the Virginia As sembly ; Richard Henry, as the champion of American freedom ; William, as a sheriff and alderman of London, and afterwards a commissioner of the Continental Con gress at the courts of Berlin and Vienna ; and Arthur, as a scholar, a politician, and diplomatist. RICHARD HENRY LEE. RICHARD HENRY LEE, a brother of the foregoing, was born at Stratford, Westmoreland county, Virginia, on the 20th of January, 1732. He received his education in England, where his acquisitions were considerable in scientific and classical knowledge. He returned to his na tive country when in his nineteenth year, arid devoted him self to the general study of history, politics, law, and polite literature, without engaging in any particular profession. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 407 About the year 1757, he was chosen a delegate to the House of Burgesses, where a natural diffidence for some time prevented him from displaying the full extent of his powers and resources. This impediment, however, was gradually removed, and he rapidly rose into notice as a persuasive and eloquent speaker. In 1764, he was ap pointed to draught an address to the king, and a me morial to the House of Lords, which are among the best state papers of the period. Some years afterwards, Le brought forward his celebrated plan for the formation of a committee of correspondence, whose object was " to watch the conduct of the British Parliament ; to spread more widely correct information on topics connected with the interests of the colonies, and to form a chosen union of the men of influence in each." This plan was origi nated about the same time in Massachusetts, by Samuel Adams. The efforts of Mr. Lee in resisting the various en croachments of the British government were indefatigable, and in 1774 he attended the first General Congress at Philadelphia, as a delegate from Virginia. He was a member of most of the important committees of this body, and labored with unceasing vigilance and energy. The memorial of Congress to the people of British America, and the second address of Congress to the people of Great Britain, were both from his pen. The following year, he was again deputed to represent Virginia in the same as sembly, and his exertions were equally zealous and suc cessful. Among other responsible duties, he was ap pointed, as chairman of a committee, to furnish General Washington, who had been summoned to the command of the American armies, with his commission and in structions. On the 7th of June, 1776, Mr. Lee introduced the measure which declared, " That these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown ; and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved." This important motion he supported by a 408 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. speech of the most brilliant eloquence. " Why, then, sir," said he, in conclusion, " why do we longer delay? Why still deliberate ? Let this happy day give birth to an American republic. Let her arise, not to devastate and to conquer, but to reestablish the reign of peace and of law. The eyes of Europe are fixed upon us ; she de mands of us a living example of freedom, that may ex hibit a contrast in the felicity of the citizen to the ever- increasing tyranny which desolates her polluted shores. She invites us to prepare an asylum, where the unhappy may find solace, and the persecuted repose. She invites us to cultivate a propitious soil, where that generous plant which first sprung up and grew in England, but is now withered by the poisonous blasts of Scottish tyranny, may revive and flourish, sheltering under its salubrious and interminable shade all the unfortunate of the human race. If we are not this day wanting in our duty, the names of the American legislators of 1776 will be placed by pos terity at the side of Theseus, Lycurgus, and Romulus, of the three Williams of Nassau, and of all those whose memory has been, and ever will be, dear to virtuous men and good citizens." The debate on the above motion of Mr. Lee was pro tracted until the tenth of June, when Congress resolved, " That the consideration of the resolution respecting in dependence be postponed till the first Monday in July next ; and in the mean while, that no time may be lost, in case the Congress agree thereto, that a committee be appointed to prepare a declaration to the effect of the said resolution." As the mover of the original resolution for inde pendence, it would, according to parliamentary usage, have devolved upon Mr. Lee to have been appointed chair man of the committee selected to prepare a declaration, and, as chairman, to have furnished that important doc ument. But on the day on which the resolution was taken, Mr. Lee was unexpectedly summoned to attend upon his family in Virginia, some of the members of which were dangerously ill ; and Mr. Jefferson was appointed chair man in his place. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 409 Mr. Lee continued to hold a seat in Congress till June, 1777, when he solicited leave of absence on account of the delicate state of his health. In August of the next year, he was again elected to Congress, and continued in that body till 1780, when he declined a reelection, be lieving that he would be more useful to his native state by holding a seat in her Assembly. In 1784, however, he again accepted an appointment as representative to Congress, of which body he was unanimously elected president. In this exalted station he presided with great ability ; and on his retirement, received the acknowl edgments of Congress. Mr. Lee was opposed to the adoption of the federal constitution, without amendment. Its tendency, he be lieved, was to consolidation. To guard against this, it was his wish that the respective states should impart to the Federal Head only so much power as was necessary for mutual safety and happiness v He was appointed a senator from Virginia, under the new constitution. About the year 1792, Mr. Lee was compelled, by his bodily debility and infirmities, to retire wholly from public business. Not long after, he had the pleasure of receiv ing, from the legislature of his native state, a unanimous vote of thanks for his public services, and of sympathy for the impaired condition of his health. He died on the 19th of June, 1794, at the age of sixty-three years. In private life, Mr. Lee was the delight of all who knew him. He had a numerous family of children, the offspring of two marriages, who were tenderly devoted to their father. As an orator, he exercised an uncommon sway over the minds of men. His gesture was graceful and highly finished, and his language perfectly chaste. He reasoned well, and declaimed freely and splendidly ; and such was his promptitude, that he required no preparation for debate. He was well acquainted with classical litera ture, and possessed a rich store of political knowledge. Few men have passed through life in a more honorable and brilliant manner, or left behind them a more desirable reputation, than Richard Henry Lee. 35 410 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. FRANCIS LEWIS. FRANCIS LEWIS was a native of Landaff, in South Wales, where he was born in the year 1713. Being left an orphan at the age of four or five years, the care of him devolved upon a maiden aunt, who took singular pains to instruct him in the native language of his country. He was afterwards sent to Scotland, where, in the family of a relation, he acquired a knowledge of the Gaelic. From this he was transferred to the school of Westminster, xvhere he completed his education, and enjoyed the repu tation of being a good classical scholar. Having determined on the pursuit of commerce, he en tered the counting-room of a London merchant, and in a few years acquired a competent knowledge of his pro fession. On attaining the age of twenty-one years, he converted the whole of his property into merchandise, and sailed for New York, where he arrived in the spring of 1735. Leaving a part of his goods to be disposed of by Mr. Edward Annesly, with whom he had formed a com mercial connection, he transported the remainder to Phila delphia. After a residence of two years in the latter city, he returned to New York, and there became extensively engaged in navigation and foreign trade. He married the sister of his partner, by whom he had several children. Mr. Lewis acquired the character of an active and en terprising merchant. In the course of his commercial transactions, he visited several of the seaports of Russia, the Orkney and Shetland Islands, and was twice ship wrecked on the Irish coast. During the French or Canadian war, he was agent for supplying the British troops, and was present, in 1756, at the surrender of Fort Oswego to the French general, De Montcalm. He exhibited great firmness and ability on the occasion ; and his services were held in such con sideration by the British government, that, at the close of the war, he received a grant of five thousand acres of land. The conditions upon which the garrison at Fort Oswego surrendered, were shamefully violated by De Montcalm. He allowed the chief warrior of the Indians, who assisted BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 411 in taking the fort, to select about thirty of the prisoners, and to do with them as he pleased. Of this number Mr. Lewis was one. Thus placed at the disposal of savage power, a speedy death was one of the least evils to be expected. It has been asserted, however, that Mr. Lewis discovered that he was able to converse with the Indians, by reason of. the similarity of the ancient language of Wales, which he understood, to their dialect.* His abil ity to communicate by words to the chief, so pleased the latter, that he treated him kindly, and, on arriving at Mont real, requested the French governor to allow him to return to his family without ransom. The request, however, was not granted, and Mr. Lewis was sent as a prisoner to France, from which country, being some time after ex changed, he returned to America. Although Mr. Lewis was not a native of America, yet his attachment to the country was early and devoted. He vigorously opposed the oppressive measures of Great Brit ain, and esteemed liberty the choicest blessing that a nation can enjoy. His intellectual powers, and uniform nobility of sentiment, commanded the respect of the peo ple; and, in 1775, he was unanimously elected a delegate to Congress. He remained a member of that body through the following year, 1776, and was among the number who signed the Declaration of Independence. For several subsequent years, he was appointed to rep resent New York in the national assembly, and per formed various secret and important services, with great fidelity and prudence. In 1775, Mr. Lewis removed his family and effects to a country-seat which he owned on Long Island. This proved an unfortunate step. In the autumn of the follow ing year, his house was plundered by a party of British light horse. His extensive library and valuable papers were wantonly destroyed. His wife fell into the power of the enemy, and was retained a prisoner for several months. During her captivity, she experienced the most atrocious * It is almost needless to remark, that such an occurrence is, to say the best of it, extremely improbable. There exists no affinity between the ancient language of Wales and that of any of the Indian tribes known in North America. 412 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. treatment, being closely confined, and deprived of a bed and sufficient clothing. By the influence of Washington, she was at length released ; but her constitution had been so impaired by her sufferings, that, in a year or two, she sank into the grave. The latter days of Mr. Lewis were spent in comparative poverty. He died on the 30th day of December, 1803, in the ninetieth year of his age. PHILIP LIVINGSTON. PHILIP LIVINGSTON was born at Albany, on the 15th of January, 1716. He was the fourth son of Gilbert Liv ingston, and his ancestors were highly respectable, holding a distinguished rank in New York, and possessing a beau tiful tract of land on the banks of the Hudson. This tract, since known as the Manor of Livingston, has belonged to the family from that time to the present. Philip Livingston received his education at Yale College, where he was graduated in 1737. He soon after engaged extensively in commerce in the city of New York, and was very successful in his transactions. In 1754, he was elected an alderman, and continued in the office for nine successive years. In 1759, he was returned a member to the General Assembly of the colony, where his talents and influence were most usefully employed. His views were liberal and enlightened, and he did much to improve the commercial and agricultural facilities of the country. Previous to the revolution, it was usual for the respec tive colonies to have an agent in England, to manage their individual concerns with the British government. This agent was appointed by the popular branch of the Assem bly. In 1770, the agent of the colony of New York dying, the celebrated Edmund Burke was chosen in his stead, and received for the office a salary of five hundred pounds. Between this gentleman and a committee of the Colonial Assembly, a correspondence was maintained; and upon their representations the agent depended for a knowledge of the state of the colony. Of this committee Mr. Liv ingston was a member. From his communications and those of his colleagues Mr. Burke doubtless obtained that BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 413 information of the state of the colonies, which he some times brought forward to the perfect surprise of the House of Commons, and upon which he often founded arguments, and proposed measures, which were not to be resisted. Mr. Livingston regarded with patriotic indignation the measures by which the British ministry thought to humble the spirit of the colonies. His avowed sentiments, and the prominent part he had always taken in favor of the rights of the colonies, caused him to be elected, in 1774, a delegate to the Continental Congress. He was also a member of the distinguished Congress of 1776, and was among those whose names are enduringly recorded on the great charter of their country s freedom and national existence. He was reflected to the same assembly the following year, and was also chosen a senator to the state legislature, after the adop tion of a new constitution. He again took his seat in Con gress, in May, 1778 ; but his health was shockingly im paired, and such was the nature of his disease, which was a dropsy in the chest, that no rational prospect existed of his recovery. Before his departure from Albany, he took a final farewell of his family and friends, and expressed his conviction that he should not live to see them again. His anticipations proved true. From the period of his return to Congress, his decline was rapid; and he closed his valuable life on the 12th of June, 1778. Suitable demon strations of respect to his memory were paid by Congress, and his funeral was publicly attended. Mr. Livingston married the daughter of Colonel Dirck Ten Broeck, by whom he had several children. His fam ily has furnished many distinguished characters. Mr. Liv ingston was amiable in his disposition, and a firm believer in the great truths of Christianity. He died respected and esteemed by all who knew him. THOMAS LYNCH. THOMAS LYNCH was born on the 5th of August, 1749, at Prince George s parish, in South Carolina. Before he had reached the age of thirteen years, young Lynch was sent to England for his education. Having passed some time at the institution of Eton, he was en- 35* 414 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. tered a member of the University of Cambridge, the de grees of which college he received in due course. He left Cambridge with a high reputation for classical attain ments and virtues of character, and entered his name at the Temple, with a view to the profession of law. After applying himself assiduously to the study of jurispru dence, and enriching himself, both in mind and manners, with the numberless accomplishments of a gentleman, he returned to South Carolina, after an absence of eight or nine years. In 1775, on the raising of the first South Carolina regi ment of provincial regulars, Mr. Lynch was appointed to the command of a company. Unfortunately, on his march to Charleston, at the head of his men, he was at tacked by a violent fever, which greatly injured his consti tution, and from the effects of which he never afterwards wholly recovered. He joined his regiment, but the en feebled state of his health prevented him from performing the exertions which he considered incumbent upon him. Added to this, he received afflicting intelligence of the illness of his father, at Philadelphia, and resolved to make arrangements to depart for that city. Upon applying for a furlough, however, he was denied by the commanding of ficer, Colonel Gadsden. But being opportunely elected to Congress, as the successor of his father, he was repaid for his disappointment, and lost no time in hastening to Philadelphia. The health of the younger Mr. Lynch, soon after join ing Congress, began to decline with the most alarming ra pidity. He continued, however, his attendance upon that body, until the Declaration of Independence had been voted, and his signature affixed to it. He then set out for Carolina, in company with his father ; but the life of the latter was terminated at Annapolis, by a second paralytic attack. Soon after this afflicting event, a change of climate was recommended to Mr. Lynch, as presenting the only chance of his recovery. He embarked, with his wife, on board a vessel proceeding to St. Eustatia, designing to proceed by a circuitous route to the south of France. From the time of their sailing, nothing more has been known of their fate. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 415 Various rumors for a time were in circulation, which served to keep their friends in painful suspense ; but the conclusion finally adopted was, that the vessel must have foundered at sea, and the faithful pair been consigned to a watery grave. THOMAS M KEAN. THOMAS M KEAN was of Irish descent, and born in New London, Chester county, Pennsylvania, on the 19th of March, 1734. After completing the regular course of school instruction, he was entered as a student at law, in the office of David Finney, who resided in New Castle, in Delaware. Before he had attained the age of twenty-one years, he commenced the practice of the law, in the Courts of Common Pleas for the counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex, and also in the Supreme Court. In 1757, he was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court in Penn sylvania, and was elected clerk of the House of Assembly. The political career of Mr. M Kean commenced in 1762, at which time he was returned a member of the Assembly from the county of New Castle. This county he continued to represent in the same body for several successive years, although the last six years of that period he spent in Philadelphia. A Congress, usually called the Stamp Act Congress, assembled in New York in 1765, for the purpose of ob taining a redress of the grievances under which the colo nies then labored. Of this memorable body Mr. M Kean was a member, along with James Otis, and other cele brated men. A short time previous to the meeting of the Congress of 1774, Mr. M Kean took up his permanent residence in the city of Philadelphia. The people of the lower coun ties on the Delaware were desirous that he should repre sent them in that body, and he was accordingly elected as their delegate. On the 3d of September, he took his seat in Congress. From this time until the 1st of February, 1783, a period of eight years and a half, he was annually chosen a member of the great national council. At the 416 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. same time, Mr. M Kean represented Delaware in Congress ; he was president of it in 1781, and from July, 1777, was the chief justice of Pennsylvania. Mr. M Kean was, from the first, decidedly in favor of the declaration of independence. He subscribed his name to the original instrument, but, by some mistake, it was omitted in the copy published in the journals of Congress. At the time Congress passed the declaration of inde pendence, the situation of Washington and his army, in New Jersey, was extremely precarious. On the 5th of July, it was agreed, by several public committees in Phil adelphia, to despatch all the associated militia of the state to the assistance of Washington. Mr. M Kean was at this time colonel of a regiment of associated militia. A few days subsequent to the declaration of independence, he was on his way t9 Perth Amboy, in New Jersey, at the head of his battalion. The associate militia being at length discharged, Mr. M Kean returned to Philadelphia, and was present in Con gress on the 2d of August, when the engrossed copy of the Declaration of Independence was signed by the members. A few days after this, receiving intelligence of his being elected a member of the Convention in Delaware, assem bled for the purpose of forming a constitution for that state, he departed for Dover. Although excessively fa tigued on his arrival, at the request of a committee of gentlemen of the Convention, he retired to his room in the public inn, where he was employed the whole night in preparing a constitution for the future government of the state. This he did without the least assistance, and even without the aid of a book. At ten o clock the next morn ing, it was presented to the Convention, by whom it was unanimously adopted. In 1777, Mr. M Kean was chosen president of the state of Delaware, and, during the same year, was appointed chief justice of Pennsylvania. The duties of the latter station he discharged with great dignity and impartiality for twenty-two years. At the time of accepting these of fices, he was speaker of the House of Assembly, and mem- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 417 ber of Congress. He was chosen president of Congress in 1781 ; and his conduct in the chair was highly honorable and satisfactory. Mr. M Kean was a delegate from Philadelphia, in 1787, to the Convention assembled to ratify the constitution of the United States. He was a principal leader in this as sembly, and was an able and eloquent advocate for the adoption of the constitution ; declaring it to be, in his consideration, " the best the world had yet seen." In 1799, he was elected a governor of the state of Pennsylvania, and his administration continued for nine years. His course was ultimately beneficial to the state ; but the numerous removals from office of his political op ponents produced considerable excitement, and perhaps placed his character in an unamiable light. During the years 1807 and 1808, an attempt was made to impeach him of certain crimes and misdemeanors ; and an inquiry was instituted by the legislature into his official conduct. The result was an honorable acquittal from the charges alleged, and a total vindication of his character. In 1808, Mr. M Kean retired from public life, having discharged the duties of a great variety of offices with much ability and reputation. He died on the 24th of June, 1817, in the eighty-third year of his age. ARTHUR MIDDLETON. ARTHUR MIDDLETON was born in the year 1743, in South Carolina, near the banks of the Ashley. At the age of twelve years, he was sent to the school of Hackney, near London ; and two years afterwards was sent to the school of Westminster. Here he soon became a proficient in classical literature, and gained the reputation of being an excellent Greek scholar. After several years spent in obtaining his education, and in foreign travel, Mr. Middle- ton returned to South Carolina. Soon after his return, he married, and again embarked for Europe, accompanied by his wife. He possessed a great fondness for travelling, and during this tour visited many places in England, and the principal places of France and Spain. In 1773, Mr. Middleton again re- 418 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. turned to America, and settled on the delightful banks of the Ashley. In the spring of 1775, Mr. Arthur Middleton was cho sen one of a secret committee, who were authorized to place the colony in a state of defence; and in June, the Provincial Assembly of South Carolina appointed him a member of the council of safety. In the following year, he was chosen on a committee to prepare a constitution for the colony. Shortly afterwards, he was elected a del egate from South Carolina to the Congress assembled at Philadelphia. Here he had an opportunity of inscribing his name on the great charter of American liberty. At the close of the year 1777, he resigned his seat, leaving behind a character for the purest patriotism and the most fearless decision. In 1778, Mr. Middleton was elected to the chair of governor of South Carolina, which office had been left vacant in consequence of the resignation of John Rut- ledge, who had refused his assent to the new constitution formed by the legislature. But, candidly avowing the same sentiments with the late governor, Mr. Middleton conscientiously refused to accept the appointment, under the constitution which had been adopted. The Assem bly proceeded to another choice, and elected Mr. Lowrides to fill the vacancy, who gave his sanction to the new con stitution. In the year 1779, many of the southern plantations were ravaged by the enemy, and that of Mr. Middleton did not escape. His valuable collection of paintings was much injured, but his family were fortunately absent from the place. On the surrender of Charleston, Mr. Middle- ton was taken prisoner, and, with several others, was sent by sea to St. Augustine, in East Florida, where he was kept in confinement for nearly a year. At length, in July, 1781, he was exchanged, and proceeded in a cartel to Philadelphia. On his arrival there, he was appointed a representative in Congress, to which office he was also elected the following year. In 1783, Mr. Middleton declined accepting a seat in Congress, but was afterwards occasionally a member of the state legislature. He died on the 1st of January, 1787, BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 419 LEWIS MORRIS. LEWIS MORRIS was born at the manor of Morrisania, in the state of New York, in the year 1726. He was edu cated at Yale College, of which institution he received the honors. On his return home, he devoted himself to agriculture. When the dissensions with the mother coun try began, he was in a most fortunate condition ; with an ample estate, a fine family, an excellent constitution, liter ary taste, and general occupations, of which he was fond. He renounced at once all these comforts and attractions, in order to assert the rights of his country. He was elect ed a delegate from New York to the Congress of 1775, wherein he served on the most important committees. He was placed on a committee of which Washington was chairman, to devise means to supply the colonies with am munition ; and was appointed to the arduous task of de taching the western Indians from a coalition with Great Britain. On this errand, he repaired to Pittsburg, and acted with great zeal and address. In the beginning of 1776, he resumed his seat in Congress, where he continued a laborious and very useful member. When the subject of independence began to be openly talked of among the people of America, in none of the colonies was a greater unwillingness to the measure be trayed than among the inhabitants of New York. There were many, however, who were the determined opposers of all further attempts at compromise ; and among the latter was Mr. Morris. When he signed the Declaration of Independence, it was at the most obvious risk of his rich and beautiful estate, the dispersion of his family, and the ruin of his domestic enjoyments and hopes. He man ifested on the occasion a degree of patriotism and disin terestedness, which few had it in their power to display. It happened as was anticipated. The beautiful manor of Morrisania was laid waste by the hostile army ; and a tract of wood land of more than a thousand acres in extent was destroyed. Few men, during the revolution, were called to make greater sacrifices than Mr. Morris; and none could make them more cheerfully. He quitted Congress in 1777, and was afterwards a 420 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. member of the state legislature, and a major-general of militia. His latter years were devoted to the pursuit of agriculture, his fondness for which was an amiable trait in his character. He died, very generally esteemed, on his paternal estate, in January, 1798, at the age of sev enty-one years. ROBERT MORRIS. ROBERT MORRIS, the great financier of the American revolution, was born in Lancashire, England, January, 17334, O. S., of respectable parentage. His father em barked for America, and caused him to follow, at the age of thirteen. He received a respectable education, and, be fore he reached his fifteenth year, was placed in the count ing-house of Mr. Charles Willing, at that time one of the first merchants at Philadelphia. His diligence and ca pacity gained him the full confidence of Mr. Willing, after whose death he entered into partnership with his son, Thomas Willing, subsequently president of the Bank of the United States. This connection lasted from the year 1754 until 1793, a period of thirty-nine years. At the commencement of the American revolution, Mr. Morris was more extensively engaged in commerce than any other merchant of Philadelphia. He zealously opposed the encroachments of the British government on the liberties of the colonists, and embraced the popular cause, at the imminent sacrifice of his private interest and wealth. He declared himself immediately against the stamp act, signed, without hesitation, the non-importation agreement of 1765, and, in so doing, made a direct sacri fice of trade. In 1775, Mr. Morris was elected, by the legislature of Pennsylvania, a delegate to the second General Congress. He was placed upon every committee of ways and means, and connected with all the deliberations and arrange ments relative to the navy, maritime affairs, and financial interests. Besides aiding his country by his talents for business, his judgment, and his knowledge, he employed his extensive credit in obtaining loans, to a large amount, for the use of the government. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 421 In May, 1777, he was elected a third time to Congress, and continued to be the chief director of the financial op erations of the government. In 1780, he proposed the establishment of a bank, the chief object of which was, to supply the army with provisions. He headed the list with a subscription of ten thousand pounds ; and others followed to the amount of three hundred thousand pounds. The institution was established, and continued until the Bank of North America went into operation, in the fol lowing year. In 1781, Mr. Morris was appointed, by Congress, su perintendent of finance. The state of the treasury, when he was appointed to its superintendence, was as bad as possible. Abroad, the public credit was every moment in danger of annihilation. At home, the greatest public, as well as private, distress prevailed. The treasury was so much in arrears to the servants of the public offices, that many of them could not without payment perform their duties, but must have gone to jail for debts they had contracted to enable them to live. It was even asserted, by some of the members of the board of war, that they had not the means of sending an express to the army. But the wasted and prostrate skeleton of public credit sprung to life and action at the reviving touch of Robert Morris. The face of things was suddenly changed. Public and private credit was restored ; and it has been said, that " the Americans owe as much acknowledgment to the financial operations of Robert Morris, as to the negotiations of Benjamin Franklin, or even the arms of George Washington." The establishment of the Bank of North America was one of his first and most beneficial measures ; an institu tion which he himself planned, and to forward which, he pledged his personal credit to an immense amount. In 1786, Mr. Morris was chosen to the Assembly of Pennsylvania; and the same year was elected a member of the Convention which framed the federal constitution For the adoption of the present system, he was one of the most strenuous advocates. In 1788, the General As sembly of Pennsylvania appointed him to represent the state in the first Senate of the United States, which as- 36 422 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. sembled in New York. He was a fluent and impressive speaker, and wrote with great ease and power. His conversation was replete with interest and instruction. When the federal government was organized, Washing ton offered him the post of secretary of the treasury, which he declined ; and, being requested to designate a person for it, he named General Hamilton. At the con clusion of the war, he was among the first who engaged in the East India and China trade. He was, also, the first who made an attempt to effect what is termed an out of season passage to China. In his latter days, Mr. Morris embarked in vast land speculations, which proved fatal to his fortune. The man who had so immensely contributed to our national exist ence and independence, passed the closing years of his life in a prison a beautiful commentary upon those laws which make no distinction between guilt and misfortune, and condemn the honest debtor to the punishment of the convicted felon ! He died on the 8th of May, 1806, in the seventy-third year of his age. Until the period of his impoverishment, the house of Mr. Morris was a scene of the most lavish hospitality. It was open, for nearly half a century, to all the respectable strangers who visited Philadelphia. He was active in the acquisition of money, but no one more freely parted with his gains. No one pursued a more enlightened policy, or manifested through life a greater degree of humanity, vir tue, energy, arid gentlemanly spirit, than Robert Morris JOHN MORTON. JOHN MORTON was born in the county of Chester, (now Delaware,) in Pennsylvania. His ancestors were of Swedish extraction ; and his father died a few months previous to his birth. About the year 1764, Mr. Morton was sent as a dele gate to the General Assembly of Pennsylvania, of which he continued for several years an active and distinguished member. He was also appointed to attend the General Congress at New York. In 1766, he was made sheriff of the county in which he resided, and, shortly after, was ele- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 423 vated to a seat on the bench, in the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. He was deputed to the Congress of 1774, and continued to represent Pennsylvania in that assem bly through the memorable session of 1776. On the question of declaring independence, in the latter year, the delegation from Pennsylvania being divided, Mr. Morton gave his casting vote in the affirmative. This was an act of great intrepidity, under all the circumstances of the case, and placed upon him a fearful load of responsibility. But he did not hesitate to assume it. The enemies of the measure were exasperated at his conduct; but on his death-bed, he desired his attendants to tell his revilers that the hour would come, when it would be acknowledged, that his vote in favor of American independence was the most illustrious act of his life. It is needless to observe how fully and comprehensively his prophetic annunciation has been fulfilled. In 1777, Mr. Morton assisted in organizing a system of confederation for the colonies, and was chairman of the committee of the whole, at the time when it was agreed to. During the same year, he was seized with an inflammatory fever, and died on the 15th of November, in the fifty-fourth year of his age. He left behind a character for piety, lib erality, and patriotism, which his actions are sufficient to substantiate. THOMAS NELSON, JUN. THOMAS NELSON was born at York, in Virginia, on the 26th of December, 1738. At the age of fourteen, he was sent to England, and placed at a private school in the neighborhood of London. He was afterwards removed to the University of Cambridge, where he enjoyed the instruction of the eminent Doctor Porteus, subsequently Bishop of London. About the close of 1761, he returned to his native country, and, in the following year, married the daughter of Philip Grymes, Esq., of Brandon. His ample fortune enabled him to indulge his spirit of hospi tality to its fullest extent, and to live in a style of unusual elegance. It is not determined with certainty at what period the 424 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. political career of Mr. Nelson commenced. He was a member of the House of Burgesses in 1774, and during the same year was deputed to the first General Convention of the province, which met at Williamsburg on the 1st of Au gust. The next year, he was again returned a member to the General Convention, and introduced a resolution for organizing a military force in the province. In July, 1775, Mr. Nelson was appointed a delegate from Virginia to the General Congress about to assemble at Philadelphia. He retained his seat in this body until 1777. In May of that year, he was obliged to resign all serious occupation, in consequence of a disease in the head. When relieved from this malady, his energies were again called into action, and he was appointed brigadier- general and commander-in-chief of the forces of the com monwealth. In this office, he rendered the most impor tant service to his country, and in times of emergency often advanced money, to carry forward the military oper ations. In 1779, he was again chosen to Congress ; but a close application to business produced a recurrence of his former complaint, and he was again compelled to re turn home. Soon after his recovery, General Nelson entered with animation into several military expeditions against the British, who, at that time, were making the Southern States the chief theatre of war. It was owing to his measures that the army was kept together, until the cap ture of Yorktown terminated the war. For this service, Governor Nelson had the pleasure of receiving the ac knowledgments of Washington, who, in his general orders of the 20th of October, 1781, thus spoke of him : " The general would be guilty of the highest ingratitude, a crime of which he hopes he shall never be accused, if he forgot to return his sincere acknowledgments to his excellency, Governor Nelson, for the succors which he received from him, and the militia under his command, to whose activity, emulation, and bravery, the highest praises are due." A month subsequent to the surrender of Lord Corn- wallis, Governor Nelson resigned his station in conse quence of ill health, and immediately afterwards was ac cused by his enemies of having transcended his powers in BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 425 acting without the consent of his council; but he was honorably acquitted by the legislature, before whom the charge was preferred. He died on the 4th of January, 1789, just after he had completed his fiftieth year. WILLIAM PACA. WILLIAM PACA was born on the 31st of October, 1740. He was the second son of John Paca, a gentleman of large estate, who resided in Hartford county, Maryland. After receiving his degree of bachelor of arts at the College of Philadelphia, in 1759, he studied law, and, when admitted to the bar, established himself at Annapolis. In 1771, Mr. Paca was chosen a representative of the county in the legislature. At this time, much contention existed between the proprietary government of Maryland and the people. Mr. Paca, who represented the people in this body, proved himself a stanch and determined assertor of their rights, which no one more clearly under stood. He zealously opposed the avaricious proceedings of the proprietor and his partisans, and manifested on all occasions a settled hostility to tyranny and oppression. Mr. Paca was a delegate from Maryland to the Conti nental Congress of 1774, and was reappointed to the same station until the year 1778, at the close of which he retired. He was an open advocate for a declaration of independence, as were several of his colleagues. A ma jority of the people of Maryland, however, were not pre pared for such a measure. A change was afterwards effected among the people in relation to this subject. The Convention of Maryland recalled their prohibitory instruc tions to their delegates ; and Mr. Paca gladly received permission to vote according to the dictates of his own fearless and unshackled judgment. In 1778, Mr. Paca was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court of Maryland, an office which he continued to exercise with great ability until 1780, when he was made, by Congress, chief judge of the Court of Appeals in prize and admiralty cases. In 1782, he was elected governor of his native state. He was distinguished for great correctness and integrity in the discharge of the 426 THF AMERICAN POLITICIAN. duties of this station, and manifested a peculiar regard for the interests of religion and literature. At the close of the year, he retired to private life. In 1786, he again ac cepted the executive chair, and continued in it for a year. On the organization of the federal government, in 1789, he received from Washington the appointment of judge of the District Court ^ c the United States for Maryland. This office he held until the year 1799, when he died, in the sixtieth year of his age. ROBERT TREAT PAINE. ROBERT TREAT PAINE was born in Boston, in 1731. At the age of fourteen years, he became a member of Harvard College, and, after leaving it, kept, for a period, a public school, the fortune of his father having been considerably reduced. With the view of obtaining more ample means for the maintenance of his parents, he also made a voyage to Europe. Before entering on the study of the law, he devoted some time to the subject of the ology. In 1775, he acted as chaplain to the troops of the provinces at the northward, and afterwards preached occa sionally in other places. At length, he applied himself earnestly to the study of the law. On being admitted to the bar, he established himself at Taunton, in the county of Bristol, where he resided for many years. In 1768, he was chosen a delegate from that town to the Con vention called by the leading men of Boston, in conse quence of the abrupt dissolution of the General Court, by Governor Bernard. In 1770, Mr. Paine was engaged in the celebrated trial of Captain Preston, and his men, for the part which they acted in the well-known Boston Massacre. On this oc casion, in the absence of the attorney-general, he con ducted the prosecution on the part of the crown. He managed the case with great credit and ability, and re ceived from it a considerable degree of distinction. In 1773, he was elected a representative to the General As sembly from Taunton, and was afterwards chosen a mem ber of the Continental Congress, which met at Phila delphia. The following year he was reelected. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 427 Of the Congress of 1776, Mr. Paine was also a member, and to the Declaration of Independence gave his vote and signed his name. In 1780, Mr. Paine was sent to the Convention which met to deliberate respecting a constitution for the state of Massachusetts ; and of the committee which framed that instrument he was a conspicuous member. Under the government organized, he was appointed attorney- general, an office which he held until 1790, when he was transferred to a seat on the bench of the Supreme Ju dicial Court. In this station he continued until his sev enty-third year. His legal attainments were extensive ; and he discharged his judicial functions with the most rigid impartiality. Indeed, his strict fidelity sometimes gave him the reputation of unnecessary severity ; but the charge could only have proceeded from the lawless and licentious. His memory was uncommonly retentive ; and his conversation was marked by great brilliancy of wit and quickness of apprehension. If he sometimes indulged in raillery, he evinced no ill humor at being the subject of it in his turn. He was an excellent scholar, and to literary and religious institutions rendered important ser vices. The death of Judge Paine occurred on the 1 1th of May, 1814 ; he having attained the age of eighty-four years. He was a founder of the American Academy, estab lished in Massachusetts in 1780, and continued his ser vices to it till his death. The degree of doctor of laws was conferred on him by Harvard College. JOHN PENN. JOHN PENN was born in Caroline county, Virginia, on the 17th of May, 1741. His early education was greatly neglected ; and at his father s death, 1759, he became the sole manager of the fortune left him, which, though not large, was competent. At the age of twenty-one, he was licensed as a prac titioner of law. He rose rapidly into notice, and was soon eminently distinguished as an advocate. In 1774, Mr. Penn moved to the province of North 428 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Carolina, where he attained as high a rank in his pro fession as he had done in Virginia. The following year, he was chosen a delegate from North Carolina to the General Congress, in which body he took his seat on the 12th of October. He was successively reflected to Con gress, in the years 1777, 1778, and 1779, and was re spected for his promptitude and fidelity in the discharge of the duties assigned him. He was seldom aosuit from his seat, and was a watchful guardian of the rights and liberties of his constituents. He was urgent in forwarding the measures which led to the total emancipation of the colonies. After the return of peace, Mr. Penn betook himself to private retirement. The even tenor of his way was marked by few prominent incidents after this period. He departed from this world, September, 1788, at the age of forty-six years. He had three children, two of whom died unmarried. GEORGE READ. GEORGE READ was born in Maryland, in the year 1734. Being designed by his parents for one of the learned pro fessions, he was placed at a seminary at Chester, Penn sylvania. Having there acquired the rudiments of the languages, he was transferred to the care of the accom plished Dr. Allison, with whom he remained until his seventeenth year. He was then placed in the office of John Morland, Esq., a lawyer in the city of Philadelphia, for the purpose of fitting himself for the legal profession. In 1753, at the age of nineteen years, Mr. Read was admitted to the bar. In the year following, he com menced the practice of the law, in the town of New Castle. In 1763, he was appointed attorney-general of the three lower counties on the Delaware. In the year 1765, Mr. Read was elected a representative from New Castle county to the General Assembly of Delaware, a post which he occupied for twelve years. On the 1st of August, 1774, Mr. Read was chosen a delegate from Delaware to the Continental Congress. To this station he was annually reflected, during the whole BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 429 revolutionary war. Mr. Read did not vote for the dec laration of independence. But when, at length, the measure had received the sanction of the great national council, and the time arrived for signing the instrument, Mr. Read affixed his signature to it, with all the cor diality of those who had voted in its favor. Mr. Read was president of the Convention which formed the first constitution of the state of Delaware. In 1782, he accepted the appointment of judge of the Court of Appeals, in admiralty cases, an office which he held until the abolition of the court. In 1787, he represented the state of Delaware, in the Convention which framed the constitution of the United States, under which he was immediately chosen a member of the Senate. The duties of this exalted station he discharged till 1793, when he accepted of a seat on the bench of the Supreme Court of Delaware, as chief justice. He died in this office, in the autumn of 1798. The legal attainments of Mr. Read were extensive ; and his decisions are still respected as precedents of no slight authority. In private life he was esteemed for an ex panded benevolence to all around him. CJ3SAR RODNEY. C^SAR RODNEY was a native of Dover, in Delaware, where he was born about the year 1730. He inherited from his father a large landed estate. At the age of twenty-eight, he was appointed high sheriff in the county where he resided, and, on the expiration of his term of service, was created a justice of the peace and a judge of the lower courts. In 1762, and perhaps at an earlier date, he represented the county of Kent, in the provincial legislature. In the year 1765, he was sent to the first General Congress, which assembled at New York, to adopt the necessary measures for obtaining a repeal of the stamp act, and other odious measures of the British ministry. In 1769, Mr. Rodney was elected speaker of the House of Representatives, an office which he continued to fill for several years. About the same time, he was appointed 430 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. chairman of the committee of correspondence with the other colonies. He was a member of the well-known Congress of 1774, when he had for his colleagues Thomas M Kean and George Read. At the time that the question of independence came before Congress, Mr. Rodney was absent, on a tour of duty, in the southern part of Delaware. Mr. M Kean and Mr. Read, his colleagues, were divided upon the subject. Aware of the importance of a unanimous vote, Mr. M Kean despatched, at his private expense, an express into Delaware, to acquaint Mr. Rodney of the delicate posture of affairs, and to hasten his return to Philadelphia. With great exertion, he arrived on the spot just as the members were entering the door of the State-House, at the final discussion of the subject. In the autumn of 1776, a Convention was called in Del aware, for the purpose of framing a new constitution, and of appointing delegates to the succeeding Congress. In this Convention, the influence of the royalists proved suffi ciently strong to deprive Mr. Rodney of his seat in Con gress. He remained, however, a member of the council of safety, and of the committee of inspection, in both of which offices he exerted himself with great diligence. In 1777, he repaired in person to the camp near Princeton, where he remained for nearly two months, in the most active and laborious employment. During the same year, he was reappointed a delegate to Congress, but, before taking his seat, was elected president of the state. In the latter office he continued for about four years, at the close of which period he retired from public life. He was again elected to Congress, but it does not appear that he ever after took his seat in that body. A cancer, which had afflicted him for some time, and which had greatly disfigured his face, now increased its ravages, and, in the early part of the year 1783, brought him to the grave. Mr. Rodney was distinguished for a remarkable degree of good humor and vivacity, and, in generosity of character, was an ornament to human nature. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 431 GEORGE ROSS. GEORGE Ross was born at New Castle, Delaware, in the year 1 730. At the age of eighteen, he entered upon the study of the law, and, when admitted to the bar, estab lished himself at Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Here he mar ried, and devoted himself with great zeal to the duties of his profession. Mr. Ross commenced his political career in 1768, when he was sent a representative to the Assembly of his adopt ed state. Of this body he continued a member until the year 1774, when he was elected a delegate to the Conti nental Congress. To this office he was annually re- elected till January, 1777, when he retired. The high sense entertained, by his constituents, of his public services and patriotism, was expressed, not merely by thanks, but by a present of one hundred and fifty pounds. This offer was respectfully but firmly declined. Mr. Ross was an active and influential member of the provincial legislature. He was also a member of the Convention which assembled to prepare a declaration of rights on behalf of the state, and to define what should be considered high treason against it. In 1779, he was appointed a judge of the Court of Admiralty for the state of Pennsylvania. In July of the same year, he died of a sudden attack of the gout, in the fiftieth year of his age. He left behind him the reputation of a thorough and skilful lawyer, a consistent politician, and an esti mable man. BENJAMIN RUSH. BENJAMIN RUSH was born in Byberry, Pennsylvania, on the 24th of December, 1745. His father died when he was only six years of age, and the care of his education devolved upon his mother, whose prudent management of her son may be learned from the result. After completing his preparatory studies, he was en tered, in 1759, a student in the College of Princeton. On leaving college, he commenced the study of medicine, under the superintendence of Dr. Redman, of Philadel- 432 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. phia. In 1766, he went to Edinburgh, where he spent two years at the university in that city, and from which he received the degree of M. D., in 1768. The next winter after his graduation he passed in London, and, having visited France, he returned, in the autumn of the same year, to Philadelphia, and commenced the prac tice of medicine. In 1769, he was elected professor of chemistry in the College of Philadelphia ; and was after wards appointed professor of the institutes and practice of medicine, and of clinical practice, in the same uni versity. In the year 1793, Philadelphia was visited by that hor rible scourge, the yellow fever. For some time after its commencement, no successful system of management was resorted to. Dr. Rush afterwards met with a manuscript, which contained an account of the yellow fever, as it pre vailed in Virginia, in 1741, and which was given to him by Dr. Franklin, and had been written by Dr. Mitchell, of Virginia. In this manuscript, the efficacy of powerful evacuants was urged, even in cases of extreme debility. This plan Dr. Rush adopted, and imparted the prescrip tion to the college of physicians. An immense accession of business was the consequence, and his mode of treat ment was wonderfully successful. The following entry, dated September 10th, is found in his note-book : " Thank God, out of one hundred patients, whom I visited or pre scribed for this day, I have lost none." Between the 8th and 15th of September, Dr. Rush visited and prescribed for a hundred and a hundred and twenty patients a day. In the short intervals of business, which he spent at his meals, his house was filled with patients, chiefly the poor, waiting for his gratuitous ad vice. For many weeks he seldom ate without prescribing for many as he sat at table. While thus endangering his health and his life by excess of practice, Dr. Rush received repeated letters from his friends in the country, entreating him to leave the city. To one of these letters he replied, " that he had resolved to stick to his principles, his prac tice, and his patients, to the last extremity." The incessant labors of Dr. Rush, during this awful visitation, nearly prostrated his constitution ; but he was BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 433 finally so far restored as to resume the duties of his pro fession. His mode of treatment was also called into question by many of his contemporaries, notwithstanding the success which had attended it. At length the preji> dices against him infected not only physicians, but a con siderable part of the community. The public journals were enlisted against him, and in numerous pamphlets his system was attacked with great severity. He was even called a murderer, and was at length threatened to be prosecuted and expelled the city. Notwithstanding the great labors of Dr. Rush as a lec- turer and practitioner, he was a voluminous writer. His printed works consist of seven volumes, six of which treat of medical subjects, and the other is a collection of essays, literary, moral, and philosophical. He was a con stant and indefatigable scholar. He extracted so largely from the magazine of information accumulated in the mind of Benjamin Franklin, that he once mentioned to a friend his intention of writing a book with the title of Frankliniana, in which he proposed to collect the frag ments of wisdom, which he had treasured in his men> ory, as they fell, in conversation, from the lips of that great man. Doctor Rush was a member of the celebrated Congress of 1776, which declared these states free and independ ent. The impulse gwjen to learning and science by this event he used to estimate of incalculable value. In 1777, he was appointed physician-general of the military ho&- pital in the middle department. In 1787, he became a member of the Convention of Pennsylvania, for the adop tion of the federal constitution. This instrument re ceived his warmest approbation. For -the last fourteen years of his life, he was treasurer for the United States mint, by appointment of President Adams. Doctor Rush took a deep interest in the many private associations, for the advancement of human happiness, with which Pennsylvania abounds. He led the way in. the establishment of the Philadelphia Dispensary, and was the principal agent in founding Dickinson College, in Carlisle. For some years he was president of the Society for the Abolition of Slavery, and also of the Philadelphia 37 434 THfi AMERICA*? POLITICIAN. Medical Society. He was the founder of the Philadelphia Bible Society, and vice-president of the American Philo sophical Society. He was an honorary member of many of the literary institutions, both of this country and of Eu rope*. In 1805, he was honored by the king of Prussia with a medal, for his replies to certain questions on the yellow fever. On a similar account, he was presented with a gold medal, in 1807, from the queen of Etruria; and in 1811, the emperor of Russia sent him a diamond ring, as a testimony of his respect for his medical char acter. The pen of Doctor Rush was powerfully employed against some of the vices and habits of mankind. His " Inquiry into the Effects of Ardent Spirits upon the Hu man Body and Mind," has been more read than any of his works. He was a brilliant and eloquent lecturer ; and he possessed in a high degree those talents which engage the heart. The life -of Doctor Rush was terminated on the 19th of April, 1813, in the sixty-eighth year of his age. During hjs illness, which was but of few days continuance, his house was beset by crowds of citizens; such was the gen eral anxiety in respect to this excellent man. When at length he died, the news of his decease spread a deep gloom over the city, and expressions of profound sympathy were received from all parts of the country. EDWARD RUTLEDGE. EDWARD RUTLEDGE was born in Charleston, South Carolina, November, 1749. After .receiving a respecta ble education in the learned languages, he commenced the study of the law with his elder brother, who, at that time, was becoming the most eminent advocate at the Charleston bar. When arrived at the age of twenty-one years, Edward Rutledge sailed for England, to complete his legal education. In 1773, he returned to his native country, and began the practice of his profession. He soon became distinguished for his quickness of apprehension, fluency of speech, and graceful delivery. The general estimation- in which his BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 435 talents were held, was evinced, in 1774, by his appointment to the General Congress as delegate from South Caroling. He was at this time but twenty-five years of age. In the Congress of 1776, Mr. Rutledge took a con spicuous part in the discussions which preceded the dec laration of independence. At a subsequent date, he was appointed, with Doctor Franklin and John Adams, a com missioner to wait upon Lord Howe, who had requested Congress to appoint such a committee to enter with him into negotiations for peace. Mr. Rutledge" was again elected to Congress in 1779 ; but, in consequence of ill health, he was unable to reach the seat of government, and returned home. In 1780, during the investment of Charles ton by the British, he was taken prisoner by the enemy, an.d sent to St. Augustine, where he was detained nearly a year before he was exchanged. On the evacuation of Charleston by the British, he re turned to the place of his nativity, and, for the space of seventeen years, was successfully engaged in the practice of his profession : rendering, from time to time, important services to the state, as a member of her legislature. la 1798, he relinquished his station at the bar, and was elected chief magistrate of South Carolina. He continue4 to per form the duties of this office until within a short time be fore his death, which took place on the 23d day of January, 1800. Military and other honors were paid to his mem ory f and universal regret was expressed at his departure. ROGER SHERMAN. ROGER SHERMAN was born in Newton, Massachusetts, on the 19th of April, 1721. He was early apprenticed to a shoemaker, and followed the business of one for some time after he was twenty-two years of age. The father of Roger Sherman died in 174^ leaving his family, whjch was quite numerous, dependent upon his son for support, He entered upon the task with great cheerfulness. TCo<- wards his mother, whose life was protracted to a great age, he always manifested the tenderest affection-, and assisted two of his younger brothers to qualify themselves for c^pr- gymen. 436 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. An elder brother had established himself in New Mil- ford, Connecticut. In 1743, the family of Mf. Sherman removed to that place, and he again commenced business as a shoemaker ; but, not long after, he entered into part nership with his brother, whose occupation was that of a country merchant. The mind of Roger Sherman was invincibly bent upon the acquisition of knowledge. The variety and extent of his attainments, even at. this time, were almost incredible. He soon became known in the county of Litchfield, where he resided, as a man of supe rior talents, and of unusual skill in the science of mathe matics. At the early age of twenty-four, he was appointed to the office of county surveyor. At this time, he had also made- no trifling advances in the science of astronomy. As early as 1748, he supplied the astronomical calculations for an almanac, published in New York, and continued to furnish them for several succeeding years. In 1749, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Hartwell, of Stoughton, in Massachusetts. After her decease, in 1760, he married Miss Rebecca Prescott, of Danvers, in the same state. By these wives he had fifteen children. In 1754, Mr. Sherman was admitted as an attorney to the bar. The circumstance which led to his study of the profession was merely accidental, and an accident which, in a mind less decided and persevering than that of Sher man, would have passed away without improvement. He became rapidly distinguished as a counsellor, and, the year, following his admission to the bar, was appointed a justice of the peace for New Milford, which town he also repre sented in the Colonial Assembly. In 1759, he was ap pointed judge of the Court of Common Pleas for the coun ty of Litchfield, which office he held for two years. At the expiration of that time, he became a resident of New Ha ven, of which town he was soon after appointed a justice of the peace, and often represented it in the Colonial As sembly. In 1765, he was made a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and about the same time was appointed treasurer of Yale College, which institution bestowed Upon him the honorary degree of master of arts. In 1766, Mr. Sherman was elected a member of the Up per House, in the/ General Assembly of Connecticut j and BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 437 during the same year he was appointed a judge of the Superior Court. He continued a member of the Upper House for nineteen years, until 1785, when, tfre two offices which he held being considered incompatible, he relin quished his seat at the council board, preferring his station as a judge. The latter office he continued to exercise un til 1789, when he resigned it on being choseji to Congress, under the federal constitution. Mr. Sherman was a delegate to the celebrated Congress of 1774, ajid continued uninterruptedly a member of that body until his death, in 1793. His services during his congressional career were many and important. He was employed on numerous committees, and was indefatigable in the investigation of complicated and difficult subjects. In 1776, he received the most flattering testimony of the high respect in which he was held, in being associated with Adams, Jefferson, Franklin, and Livingston, in the responsible duty of preparing the Declaration! of Independ ence. In the state where he resjded, Mr. Sherman con tinued to receive repeated demonstrations of the esteem with which his fellow-citizens regarded him. Under the new constitution, Mr. Sherman was elected a representative to Congress from the state of Connecti cut. At the expiration of two years, a vacancy occurring in the Senate, he was elevated to a seat in that body. In this office he died, on the 23d of July, 1793, in the seventy- third year of his age. A predominant trait in the character of Roger Sherman was his practical \visdom. Although inferior to many in rapidity of genius, he was surpassed by none in clearness of apprehension, energy of mind, or honesty of action. A remark of Jefferson bears testimony to the strength and soundness of his intellect. " That is Sherman," said he to a friend, to whom he was pointing out the most re markable men of Congress, " a man who never said a foolish thing in his life." Not less honorable to the in tegrity of his character is the remark of Fisher Ames, who was wont to say, " If I am absent during the discussion of a subject, and consequently know not on which side to vote, I always look at Roger Sherman, for I am sure if I vote vnth him I shall vqte right" 37* 438 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. JAMES SMITH. JAMES SMITH was born in Ireland, but at what period has not been ascertained. His father was a respectable farmer, who removed to America with a numerous family, and settled on the west side of the Susquehanna River. After being qualified for the profession of the law, Mr. Smith took up his residence, as a lawyer and surveyor, near the present town of Shippensburg ; but he subsequently removed to the flourishing village of York, where he con tinued the practice of his profession during the remain- der of his life. On the commencement of the difficulties with the mother country, he resolutely enlisted himself on the patriotic side, and became an uncompromising oppo- ser of the insulting aggressions of the British government. He was chosen a delegate to all the patriotic meetings of the province, and was always in favor of the most vigor ous and decided measures, He was the first one who raised a volunteer corps in Pennsylvania, in opposition to the armies of Great Britain, and was elected captain, and afterwards colonel of a regiment. In January, 1775, he was a delegate to the Convention for the province of Penn- .sylvania, and concurred in the spirited declarations of that assembly. In the month of July, a Convention was held in Phila delphia, for the purpose of forming a new constitution for Pennsylvania. Of this body Mr. Smith was a member, and by it he was chosen a delegate to Congress. He con tinued to represent his constituents for several years in the great national assembly, and was always active and ef ficient in the discharge of his duties. On withdrawing from Congress, in November, 1788, he resumed his pro fessional pursuits, which he continued to exercise until the year 1800, when he withdrew from the bar, having practised the law for about sixty years. He died in the year 1806. RICHARD STOCKTON. RICHARD STOCKTON was born near Princeton, New Jer sey, on the 1st day of October, 1730, and received his BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 439 education at the college in his native state, where he grad uated at the age of eighteen. On leaving college, Mr. Stockton commenced the study of the law, and, on his admission to the bar, rose quickly to an enviable distinction. About the year 1767, he re linquished his professional business for the purpose of visiting Great Britain. During his tour through the united countries, he was received with great attention. On visit ing Edinburgh, he was complimented with a public dinner, by the authorities of that city, the freedom of which was unanimously conferred upon him. During his stay in Scotland, he was so fortunate as to induce the Reverend Dr. Witherspoon, of Paisley, to remove to America, and accept the presidency of New Jersey College. On his return to this country, Mr. Stockton stood high in the royal favor, and was appointed one- of the royal judges oif the province, and a member of the Executive Council. But on the commencement of the aggravating system of oppression by which the mother country hoped to humiliate the colonists, he separated himself from the royal Council, and joyfully concurred in all the liberal measures of the day. On the 21st of June, 1776, he was elected a delegate to the General Congress, then sitting in Philadelphia. Here he discharged, with fidelity and en ergy, all the duties assigned him ; and, on the agitatipn of the great question of independence, he addressed the house in its behalf. On the 30th of November, Mr. Stockton was unfortu nately taken prisoner by a party of refugee royalists. He was dragged from his bed at night, and carried to New York. Here he was treated with the utmost rigor and in dignity. Congress remonstrated with General Howe in his behalf, and he was finally released from his captivity ; but the iron had entered his soul. His constitution had experienced an irreparable shock, and his ample fortune was completely reduced. He continued to languish for several years, and at length died, at his residence in Princeton, on the 28th of February, 1781, in the fifty- third year of his age. His character was in every respect estimable. He possessed a cultivated taste for literature, and was a polished and eloquent speaker, 440 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN, THOMAS STONE. THOMAS STONE was born in Charles county, Maryland, in 1743. He was a descendant of William Stone, who was governor of Maryland during the protectorate of Oliver Cromwell. After acquiring a tolerable acquaintance with the learn ed languages, he entered upon the study of the law. Having obtained a competent knowledge of the profession, he commenced practice in Fredericktown, Maryland, Af ter residing at this place two years, he removed to Charles county, in the same state. At the age of twenty-eight, he received by marriage the sum of one thousand pounds sterling, and with it purchased a farm near the village of Port Tobacco, upon which he continued to reside dgring the revolutionary struggle. Although his business was by no means lucrative, nor his fortune considerable, his well- known honesty and ability caused him to be sent a dele gate to the Congress of 1776^, to which body he was re- elected for several subsequent years* After the Maryland legislature had relieved him and his colleagues of the re strictions which bound them, he joyfully affixed his -name to the Declaration of Independence. Mr. Stone was a member of the committee appointed by Congress to. prepare articles of confederation; and the manner in which he discharged the duties devolving upon him in that station, was highly satisfactory. After seeing the confederation finally agreed upon in Congress, he de clined a reappointment to that body, but became a mem* ber of the legislature of his native state. In 1783, "he was again chosen to Congress, and, in the session of 1784, acted for some time as president pro tcmpore. On the adjournment of Congress this year, he retired from that body, and engaged actively in the dudes of his profession. His practice now became lucrative in Annapolis, whither he had removed ; and he soon rose to distinction at the bar. As an advocate, he excelled in strength of argu ment, and was often employed in cases of great difficulty, Mr. Stone died on the 5th of October, 1787, in the forty- fifth year of his age, and while on the point of embarking for Europe, for the benefit of his health. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 441 GEORGE TAYLOR, GEORGE TAYLOR was born in Ireland, in the year 1716, At a suitable age, he commenced the study of medicine ; but, his genius not being adapted to his profession, he re linquished his medical studies, and soon after set sail for America. On his arrival, he was entirely destitute of money, and was obliged to resort to manual labor to pay the expenses of his voyage-. He was first engaged in the iron works of Mr. Savage, at Durham, on the Delaware, and was afterwards taken into his counting-room as a clerk. In this situation he rendered himself very useful, and, at length, upon the death of Mr. Savage, he became connected in marriage with his widow, and consequently the proprietor of the whole establishment. In a few years, the fortune of Mr. Taylor was considerably augmented. He now purchased a handsome estate, near the River Le- high, in the county of Northampton, where he erected a spacious mansion, and took up his permanent abode. In 1764, he was chosen a member of the Provincial Assem bly, where he soon became conspicuous. In this body he continued to represent the county of Northampton until 1770 ; but he afterwards returned to Durham, to repair the losses of fortune, to which the change of his place of busi ness had led, In October, 1775, he was again chosen to the Provin cial Assembly, and, the following month, was appointed, in connection with others, to report a set of instructions to the delegates which the Assembly had just appointed to the Continental Congress. Pennsylvania was for some time opposed to an immediate rupture with the mother country ; and it was only by the casting vote of Mr. Morton, that her consent to the measure of independence was secured. On the 20th of July, 1776, the Pennsylvania Convention pro ceeded to a new choice of representatives. Mr. Morton, Dr. Franklin, Mr. Morris, and Mr. Wilson, who had voted in favor of the declaration of independence, were reflected. Those who had opposed it were at this time dropped, and the following gentlemen were appointed in their place, viz., Mr. Taylor, Mr. Ross, Mr. Clymer, Dr. Rush, and Mr, Smith, 442 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Mr. Taylor retired from Congress in 1777, and died on the 23d of February, 1781, in the sixty-sixth year of his age, MATTHEW THORNTON. MATTHEW THOHIQTON was born in Ireland, about the year 1714. When he was two or three years old, his father emigrated to America, and, after a residence of a few years at Wiscasset, in Maine, he removed to Worces ter, in Massachusetts. Here young Thornton received a respectable education, and subsequently commenced^ tlie study of medicine. Soon after completing his prepaYatory course, he removed to Londonderry, in New Hampshire, where he entered upon the practice of his profession, and soon became distinguished, both as a physician and a surgeon. In 1745, Dr. Thornton was appointed to accompany the New Hampshire troops, as a surgeon, in the well-known expedition, planned by Governor Shirley, against Cape Breton. His professional abilities were here creditably tested ; for of the corps of five hundred men, of whom he had charge as a physician, only six died of sickness, previ ous to the surrender of Louisburg, notwithstanding the hardships to which they were exposed. Under the royal government, Dr. Thornton was invested with the office of justice of the peace, and commissioned as colonel of the militia. But when that government was dissolved, Colonel Thornton abjured the British interest, and adhered to the patriotic cause. He was president of a Provincial Convention, assembled at Exeter, in 1775. The next year he was chosen a delegate to the Continental Congress, and signed his name to the engrossed copy of the Declaration of Independence. During the same year he was appointed -chief justice of the Court of Common Pleijs, and shortly after was raised to the office of judge of the Superior Court of New Hampshire, in which office he con tinued until 1782. Two years previous to this latter date, he had purchased a farm, pleasantly situated on the banks of the Merrimack, near Exeter, where he principally de voted himself to agriculture. He Was a member of the General Court for one or two years, and a senator in the BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 443 state legislature, as also a member of the Conine^ in 1785, under President Langdon. Dr. Thornton died while on a visit at Newburyport, on the 24th of June, 1803, in the eighty-ninth year of his age. He was a man of strong powers of mind, and was re markably entertaining and instructive in conversation., GEORGE WALTON. GEORGE WALTON was born In the county of Frederick, Virginia, about the year 1740. He was early apprenticed to a carpenter, who, being a man of contracted views, not only kept him hard at work during the day, but refused him the privilege of a candle, by which to read at night. Young Walton, however, was resolutely ent on the ac quisition of knowledge, ahtl contrived to collect, at his leisure moments, pieces of lightwood, which served, at night, in place of a candle. His application was intense, and his attainments were rapid and valuable. At the expiration of his apprenticeship, he removed to the province- of Georgia, and, entering upon the study of the law, commenced,- in 1774, the practice of that profes=- sion. At this time, the British government was in the ex ercise of full power in Georgia. Mr. Walton was one of the, mosj; zealous of the few advocates of the patriotic cause. He was a member of the committee which pre pared a petition to the king ; and, in 1776, he was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress. In this station he continued to represent the state of Georgia, until October, 1781. He was extremely useful on many important com mittees, and always evinced much zeal and intelligence in the discharge of his duties. In December, 1778, Mr. Walton received a colonel s commission in the militia, and was present at the sur render of Savannah to the British arms. During the obstinate defence of that place, he was wounded in the thigh, in consequence of which, he fell from his horse, and was made a prisoner by the British troops. A brigadier- general was demanded in exchange for him; but, in September, 1779, he was exchanged for a captain in the navy. In the following month, he was chosen governor of 444 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the state, and, in the succeeding January, was elected a member of Congress for two years. The remainder of Mr. Walton s life was rilled up in the discharge of the most respectable offices within the gift of the state. He was at six different times chosen a repre sentative to Congress ; twice appointed governor of the state; once a senator of the United States; and at four different periods, a judge of the Superior Courts. He was a man of no ordinary talents, and was conspicuous for his uniform devotion to liberty. He died on the 2d of February, 1804. WILLIAM WHIPPLE. WILLIAM WHIPPLE was born at Kittery, Maine, in the year 1730. His education was limited, and, on leaving school, he entered on board a merchant vessel, and devoted himself for several years to commercial pursuits. His voy ages were chiefly to the West Indies, and, proving success ful, he acquired a considerable fortune. In 1759, he relinquished his seafaring occupation, and commenced business at Portsmouth. He entered with spirit into the controversy between Great Britain and the colonies, and, in- 1775, represented the town of Ports mouth in the Provincial Congress, which met at Exeter. In 1776, he was appointed a delegate to the General Con gress, of which body he continued a member, until Sep tember, 1779. In the year 1777, while Mr. Whipple was a member of Congress, the appointment of brigadier-general was be stowed upon him and the celebrated John Stark, by the Assembly of New Hampshire. He was present at the des perate battle of Saratoga; and his meritorious conduct on the occasion was rewarded by his being jointly appointed, with Colonel Wilkinson, as the representative of General Gates, to meet two officers from General Burgoyne, and settle the articles of capitulation. He was also selected as one of the officers who were appointed to conduct the surrendered army to their destined encampment, on Winter Hill, in the vicinity of Boston. In 1778, General Whipple, with a detachment of New Hampshire militia,. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 445 was engaged, under General Sullivan, in executing a plan for the retaking of Rhode Island from the British. During the remaining years of his life, Mr. W hipple filled many important offices. -As a representative to the state legislature, he was highly popular; and, in 1782, he received the appointment of receiver of public moneys for New Hampshire, from Mr. Morris, the superintendent of finance. He relinquished the office in 1784, and con tinued in the station of judge of the Superior Court of Judicature. The duties of the latter office he discharged until the 28th of November, 1785, when he expired, in the fifty-fifth year of his age. WILLIAM WILLIAMS. WILLIAM WILLIAMS was born in Lebanon, Connecticut, on the 8th of April, 1731. At the age 6f sixteen, he en tered Harvard College, and, after the usual period, was honorably graduated. For some time after his return home, he devoted himself to theological studies, under the direc tion of his father. In 1755, he belonged to the staff of Colonel Ephraim Williams, the founder of Williams Col lege in Massachusetts, and was present at the celebrated battle fought at the head of Lake -George, between the provincial troops and the French Canadians. During the contest, Colonel Williams was shot through the head by an Indian, and killed. Soon after this occurrence, William Williams returned to Lebanon, and, in 1756, was chosen clerk of the town an office which he continued to hold for the space of forty- five years. About the same time, he was appointed a rep resentative to the General Assembly of Connecticut. . In this latter capacity he served for many years, during which he was often appointed clerk of the house, and not unfre- quently filled the speaker s chair. In 1780, he was trans ferred to the Upper House, being elected an assistant an office which he held for twenty-four years. Mr. Williams was a member of the Continental Con gress, during the years 1776 and 1777, and took an hon orable part in the deliberations of that body. During his campaign at the north, he had been disgusted with the 38 446 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. British commanders, on account of the haughtiness of their conduct, and the little attachment which they manifested for his native country. The impression was powerful and enduring, and led him to form a sincere and devoted wish for the independence of America. The following anecdote has been related as a proof of the patriotic spirit of Mr. Williams : Towards the close of the year 1776, the military affairs of the colonies wore a gloomy aspect. In this doubtful state of things, the council of safety for Connecticut was called to sit at Leb anon. Two of the members of this council, William Hill- house and Benjamin Huntington, quartered with Mr. Wil liams. One evening, the conversation turned upon the gloomy state of the country, and the probability, that, after all, success would crown the British arms. "Well," said Mr. Williams, with great calmness, " if they succeed, it is pretty evident wftat will be my fate. I have done much to prosecute the contest, and one thing I have done which the British will never pardon I have signed the Decla ration of Independence. I shall be hanged." Mr. Hill- house expressed a confident hope that America would yet be successful. Mr. Huntington observed, that, in case of ill success, lie should be exempt from the gallows, as his signature was not attached to the Declaration, nor had he written any thing against the British government. To this Mr. Williams replied, his eye kindling as he spoke, " Then, sir, you deserve to be hanged, for not having done your duty." Mr. Williams died on the 2d day of August, 1811, in the eighty-first year of his age. JAMES WILSON. JAMES WILSON was born in Scotland, about the year 1742. He received an excellent education, studying suc cessively at Glasgow, St. Andrews, arid Edinburgh, and enjoying the instruction of the distinguished Dr. Blair, and the not less celebrated Dr. Watts. After completing his studies, he embarked for America, and arrived at Philadelphia early in the year 1766. Here he served some time in the capacity of tutor in the college BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 447 of the city, and acquired the reputation of being a fine classical scholar. He shortly after entered the law office of Mr. John Dickinson, and, at the expiration of two years, commenced practice, first at Reading and Carlisle, then at Annapolis, and finally at Philadelphia, where he continued to reside during the remainder of his life. At an early period, Mr. Wilson espoused the cause of the colonies. He was an American in principle from the time that he landed on the American shore. He became a member of the Provincial Convention of Pennsylvania, and, in 1775, wns unanimously elected a delegate to Con gress. His standing, during the whole course of his at tendance on this body, was deservedly high. He evinced great ability and fidelity in the discharge of his numerous duties, and voted in favor of independence, in opposition to a majority of his colleagues. The high estimation in which Mr. Wilson was held, may be learned from his receiving the appointment of advocate-general for the French government, in the United States. He continued to hold this office, which was both arduous and delicate, for several years, at the close of which, the king of France handsomely rewarded him by a gift of ten thousand livres. About the year 1782, Mr. Wilson was appointed a counsellor and agent for Penn sylvania, in the great controversy between that state and the state of Connecticut, relating to certain lands within the charter boundary of Pennsylvania. He discovered much legal knowledge and tact in the management of this business ; and the question was finally settled in favor of Pennsylvania. He was a member of the celebrated Convention of 1787, which assembled in Philadelphia, for the purpose of forming the constitution of the United States. During the long deliberations on this instrument, he rendered the most important services. He was on the committee which reported the draught of the constitution, and did much to settle, upon just principles, the great and impor tant points which naturally arose in the formation of a new (Tovernment. When the state Convention of Pennsylvania assembled to ratify the federal constitution, Mr. W r ilson was re- 448 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. turned a member of that body; and, as he was the only one who had assisted in forming that instrument, it de volved upon him to explain to the Convention the princi ples upon which it was founded, and the great objects which it had in view. In 1789, Mr. Wilson was appointed, by Washington, a judge of the Supreme Court, under the federal constitu tion. . In this office he continued until his ueath, which occurred on the 28th of August, 1798, at Edenton, in North Carolina, while on a circuit attending to his judicial duties. Mr. Wilson was twice married ; the first time to a daughter of William Bird, of Berks county, and the sec ond time to a daughter of Mr. Ellis Gray, of Boston. JOHN WITHERSPOON. JOHN WITHERSPOON, alike distinguished as a minister of the gospel and a patriot of the revolution, was born in the parish of Yester, a few miles from Edinburgh, on the 5th of February, 1722. He was lineally descended from John Knox, the celebrated Scottish reformer, and was sent at an early age to the public school at Hadding- ton, where he applied himself closely to the study of clas sical literature. At the age of fourteen, he was removed to the Univer sity of Edinburgh ; and, on completing his theological studies, he was ordained and settled in the parish of Beith, in the west of Scotland. Doctor Witherspoon left behind him a sphere of great usefulness and respectability, in retiring from his native land. He arrived in America in August, 1768, and in the same month was inaugurated president of the College of New Jersey. His exertions .in raising the character and increasing the funds of this institution, were success ful and indefatigable. On the occurrence of the American war, the college was broken up, and the officers and students were dis persed. Doctor Witherspoon now assumed a new atti tude before the American public. On becoming a citizen of the country, he warmly espoused her cause against the British ministry. He was a delegate to the Convention BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 449 which formed the republican constitution of New Jersey, and proved himself as able a politician as he was known to be philosopher and divine. Early in the year 1776, he was chosen a representative to the General Congress, by the people of New Jersey. He took a part in the de liberations on the question of independence, for which he was a warm advocate. To a gentleman, who declared that the country was not yet ripe for a declaration of independence, he replied, " Sir, in my judgment, the country is not only ripe, but rotting." For the space of seven years, Doctor Witherspoon continued a delegate from New Jersey to the Continental Congress. Few men acted with more energy or promp titude, or attended more closely and faithfully than he to the duties of his station. At the close of the year 1779, Doctor Witherspoon vol untarily retired from Congress, and resigned the care and instruction of the students to another. His name, how ever, continued to add celebrity to the institution over which he had so creditably presided. But he did not remain long in repose. In 1781, he was again chosen to Congress, and, in 1783, he embarked for England, with the view of promoting the interests of the college, for which he had already done so much. He returned to America in 1784, and again withdrew from active life. Doctor Witherspoon was an admirable model for a young preacher. " A profound theologian, perspicuous and simple in his manner; a universal scholar, ac quainted with human nature ; a grave, dignified, solemn speaker, - he brought all the advantages derived from these sources, to the illustration and enforcement of divine truth. His social qualities rendered him one of the most companionable of men." Doctor Witherspoon was twice married ; the first time in Scotland, at an early age, to a lady of the name of Montgomery ; and the second time, at the age of seventy years, to a lady who was only twenty-three. He had several children ? who all passed, or are pissing, honora bly through life. He died on the 15th day of November, 1794, in the seventy-third year of his age. His works have been collected in four volumes, octavo. 38* 450 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. OLIVER WOLCOTT. OLIVER WOLCOTT was born in Connecticut, in 1726. His family was ancient and distinguished; and his an cestors successively held a long list" of honorable offices in the state. He was graduated at, Yale College, in 1747, and the same year received a commission as captain in the army, in the French war. At the head of a company, which was raised by his own exertions, he proceeded to the defence of the northern frontiers, where he continued until the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle. At this time, he returned to his native state, and entered upon the study of medicine. He never engaged in the practice of the profession, however, in consequence of receiving the appointment of sheriff of the county of Litchfield. In 1774, he was elected an assistant in the Council of the state, and continued in the office till 1786., He was also for some time chief judge of the Court of Common Pleas for the county, and judge of the Court of Probate for the district of Litchfield. In 1776, he was chosen a delegate from Connecticut to the national Con gress, which assembled at Philadelphia. He participated in the deliberations of that body, and had the honor of recording his name in favor of the declaration of inde pendence. From the time of the adoption of that measure until 1786, he was either in attendance upon Congress, in the field in defence of his country, or, as a commissioner of Indian affairs for the northern department, assisting in settling the terms, of peace with the Six Nations. In 1786, he was chosen lieutenant-governor of Connecticut, an office which he continued to .hold for ten years, at the expiration of which he w as raised to the chief magistracy of the state. He died on the 1st of December, 1797, in the seventy-second year of his age. Mr. Wolcott was possessed of great resolution of char acter, and his attainments in literature were of a superior order. He was also distinguished -for his Jove of order and religion. In 1755, he was married to a Miss Collins, of Guilford, an estimable woman, with whom he enjoyed much domestic felicity, for the space of forty years. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 451 GEORGE WYTHE. GEORGE WYTHE was born in the county of Elizabeth City, Virginia, in the year 1726. His mother, who was a woman of superior acquirements, instructed him in the learned languages, and he made considerable progress in several of the solid sciences, and in polite literature. Before he became of age, he was deprived of both his parents ; and, inheriting considerable property, he became addict ed, for several years, to dissipated courses and habits of profligacy. But, at the age of thirty, he abandoned en tirely his youthful follies, and applied himself with inde fatigable industry to study, never relapsing into any indul gence inconsistent with a manly and virtuous character. Having studied the profession of law, he soon attained a high reputation at the bar, and was appointed from his native county to a seat in the House of Burgesses. He took a conspicuous part in the proceedings of this assem bly, and some of the most eloquent state papers of the time were drawn up by him. The remonstrance to the House of Commons, which was of a remarkably fearless and independent tone, was the production of his pen. By his patriotic firmness and zeal, he powerfully contributed to the ultimate success of his country. In 1775, Mr. Wythe was elected a delegate from Vir ginia to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. He assisted in bringing forward and urging the Declaration of Independence, and affixed his name to that deathless instrument. During this latter year, he was appointed, in connection with Thomas Jefferson, Edward Pendleton, and others, to revise the laws of the state of Virginia. In the year 1777, Mr. Wythe was chosen speaker of the House of Delegates, and during the same year was made judge of the High Court of Chancery. On the new organization of the Court of Equity, in a subsequent year, he was ap pointed sole chancellor, a station which he filled, with great ability, for more than twenty years. In the course of the revolution, Mr. Wythe suffered much in respect to his property. By judicious manage ment, however, he contrived to retrieve his fortune, and preserve his credit unimpaired. Of the Convention of 452 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 1787, appointed to revise the federal constitution, he was an efficient member. During the debates, he acted for the most part as chairman. He was a warm advocate for the constitution, and esteemed it the surest guaranty of the peace and prosperity of the country. He died on the 8th of June, 1806, in the eighty -first year of his age, after a short but very excruciating sickness. By his last will and testament, Mr. Wythe bequeathed his valuable library and philosophical apparatus to his friend, Mr. Jef ferson, and distributed the remainder of his little property among the grandchildren of his sister, and the slaves whom he had set free. SELECT LIVES OF PERSONS DISTINGUISHED IN AMERICAN HISTORY, AMES, FISHER, one of the most eloquent of Ameri can writers and statesmen, was born at Dedham, in Mas sachusetts, in the year 1758. He was educated at Harvard College, where he received his degree in 1774. About seven years afterwards, he began the practice of the law, and an opportunity soon occurred for the display of his superior qualifications both as a speaker and essay-writer. He distinguished himself as a member of the Massachu setts Convention for ratifying the constitution in 1788, and from this body passed to the House of Representatives in the state legislature. Soon after, he was elected the first representative of the Suffolk district in the Congress of the United States, where he remained with the highest honor during the eight years cf Washington s administra tion. On the retirement of the first president, Mr. Ames returned to the practice of his profession in his native town. During the remaining years of his life, his health was very much impaired ; Lut his mind still continued SELECT LIVES, 453 deeply interested in politics, and he published a consider able number of essays on the most stirring topics of the day. He died in 1808. In the following year, his works were issued in one volume octavo, prefaced by a biograph ical notice from the pen of his friend, the Rev. Dr. Kirk- land. ALLEN, ETHAN, J a brigadier-general in the revolu tionary army, was born in Salisbury, Connecticut, but was educated principally in Vermont. In 1775, soon after the battle of Lexington, he collected a body of about three hundred Green Mountain boys, as they were called, and marched against the fortresses of Ticonderoga and Crown Point ; and in each of these enterprises he was successful. He was shortly after taken prisoner and sent to England. Of the events of his captivity he has himself given an in teresting narrative. On release from his confinement, he repaired to the head-quarters of General Washington, where he was received with much respect. As his health was much injured, he returned to Vermont, after having made an offer of his services to the commander-in-chief in case of his recovery. He died suddenly at Colchester, in 1789. Among other publications, Allen was the author of a work entitled Allen s Theology, or the Oracles of Reason, the first formal attack upon the Christian religion issued in the United States. He was a man of an exceed ingly strong mind, but entirely rough and uneducated. ALEXANDER, WILLIAM, a major-general in the American army, during the revolutionary war, was born in the city of New York, but passed a portion of his life in New Jersey. He acted an important part throughout the revolution, and distinguished himself particularly in the battles of Long Island, Germantown, and Monmouth. He died at Albany, in 1783, at the age of fifty-seven years, leaving behind him the reputation of a brave officer and a learned man. ARNOLD, BENEDICT, known for his distinguished services and daring treachery in the American revolu tion, was born in Connecticut, of an obscure parentage, and received an education suitable to his humble condi tion. Eager for renown, and greedy of money, he em braced the cause of his countrymen at an early period, 454 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and took the command of a company of volunteers at New Haven. He soon won a high military reputation, and was employed by Washington in expeditions that re quired the highest skill and courage, and placed in the command of posts of the highest importance. When the English evacuated Philadelphia, Arnold was directed to take possession of that city with some troops of the Penn sylvania line. Here he was guilty of the most profligate extravagance and the meanest peculation. Charges were preferred against him ; he was tried before a court-martial, arid condemned to be reprimanded by the commander-in- chief. He immediately quitted the army, and thenceforth nourished an implacable hatred against the cause which he had so brilliantly defended. Having subsequently entered into a correspondence with Sir Henry Clinton, arid a di rect communication with the English general having been established, it was agreed between them that Arnold should dissemble his real feelings, and make every effort to obtain a command from General Washington. He was but too successful, and the fortress of West Point, a mili tary station of very great importance, was confidently in trusted to him. This fortress he bargained with General Clinton to deliver into his hands ; and the price of his treachery was the promise of 30,000 pounds sterling, and the rank of brigadier-general in the British army. The treason was discovered by the accidental arrest of Andre, the agent of the British general in effecting the negotia tion. Arnold escaped with difficulty on board a British ship of war, and on the conclusion of the war was reward ed by his employers with a pension. He died in London in 1801. ANDRE, JOHN ; an adjutant-general in the British army in North America dur. ng the revolutionary war. Being employed to negotiate with Arnold the delivery of the works at West Point, he was apprehended in disguise within the American lines. He was condemned as a spy from the enemy, and, according to the established usages of war, was executed in 1780, at the age of twenty-nine years. A monument has been erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. He is the author of a poem entitled The Cow Chase, SELECT LIVES. 455 BULL, WILLIAM, M. D., was the first white person born in South Carolina, and is supposed to be the first American who obtained a degree in medicine. He was a pupil of the great Boerhaave, and acquired some literary and professional distinction. In 1734, he defended and published, at the University of Leyden, his inaugural thesis De Colica Pictorurn. After returning from Europe to his native state, he was successively a member of the Council, speaker of the House of Representatives, and lieutenant- governor. When the British troops removed from South Carolina in 1782, he accompanied them to England, and died in London, in 1791, in the eighty-second year of his age. BOONE, DANIEL, one of the earliest settlers in Kentucky, was born in Virginia, and was from infancy ad dicted to hunting in the woods. He set out on an expedi tion to explore the region of Kentucky, in May, 1769, with five companions. After meeting with a variety of adven tures, Boone was left with his brother, the only white men in the wilderness. They passed the winter in a cabin, and, in the summer of 1770, traversed the country to the Cum berland River. In September, 1773, Boone commenced his removal to Kentucky, with his own and five other families. He was joined by forty men, who put themselves under his direction ; but, being attacked by the Indians, the whole party returned to the settlements on Clinch River. Boone was afterwards employed, by a company of North Carolina, to buy, from the Indians, lands on the south side of the Kentucky River. In April, 1775, he built a fort at Saltspring, where Boonesborough is now situated. Here he sustained several sieges from the Indians, and was once taken prisoner by them, while hunting, with a number of his men. In 1782, the depredations of the savages in creased to an alarming extent, and Boone, with other mi litia officers, collected one hundred and seventy-six men, and went in pursuit of a large body, who had marched beyond the Blue Licks, forty miles from Lexington. From that time till 1793, he resided alternately in Kentucky and Virginia. In that year, having received a grant of two thousand acres of land from the Spanish authorities, he removed to Upper Louisiana, with his children and 456 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. followers, who were presented with eight hundred acres each. He settled with them at Charette, on the Missouri River, where he followed his usual course of life, hunting and trapping bears, till September, 1822, when he died in the eighty-fifth year of his age. He expired while on his knees, taking aim at some object, and was found in that position, with his gun resting on the trunk of a tree. BOUDINOT, ELIAS, a descendant of one of the Hugue nots, was born in Philadelphia, in 1740. He received a lib eral education, and entered into the practice of the law in New Jersey, where he soon rose to considerable eminence. In 1777, he was chosen a member of Congress, and, in 1782, was elected president of that body. On the return of peace, he resumed his profession, but, in 1789, was elected to a seat in the House of Representatives of the United States, which he continued to occupy for six years. He was then appointed, by Washington, director of the na tional mint, in which office he remained for about twelve years. Resigning this office, he retired to private life, and resided from that time in Burlington, New Jersey. Here he passed his time in literary pursuits, liberal hospi tality, and in discharging all the duties of an expansive and ever-active benevolence. Being possessed of an am ple fortune, he made munificent donations to various charitable and theological institutions, and was one of the earliest and most efficient friends of the American Bible Society. Of this institution he was the first president, and it was particularly the object of his princely bounty. He died in October, 1821. BALDWIN, ABRAHAM, eminent as a statesman, and president of the University of Georgia, was graduated at Yale College, in 1772. He was a member of the Con vention which formed the constitution of the United States, in 1787, and held a seat successively in both houses of Congress. He died at Washington, in 1807. BARLOW, JOEL, an American poet and diplomatist, was born in Reading, in Connecticut, about the year 1755. His father died while he was yet a lad at school, and left him little more than sufficient to defray the expenses of a liberal education. He was first placed at Dartmouth College, Hew Hampshire, then in its infancy, and, after a SELECT LIVES. 457 very short residence there, removed to Yale College, New Haven. From this institution he received a degree in 1778, when he first came before the public in his poetical character, by reciting an original poem, which was soon after published. On leaving college, he was successively a chaplain in the revolutionary army, an editor, a booksell er, a lawyer, and a merchant. He next visited England, and published, in London, the first part of Advice to the Privileged Orders ; and, in the succeeding year, a poem called the Conspiracy of Kings. In the latter p.art of 1792, he was appointed one of the deputies from the Lon don Constitutional Society to present an address to the National Convention of France. Information of the notice which the British government had taken of this mission, led him to think that it would be unsafe to return to Eng land ; and he continued to reside in Paris for about three years. It was about this time that he composed his most popular poem, entitled Hasty Pudding. He was subse quently appointed consul for the United States at Algiers, with powers to negotiate a peace with the dey, and to re deem all American citizens held in slavery on the coast of Barbary. After discharging these duties, he returned to Paris, and, again engaging in trade, amassed a considerable fortune. In 1805, he returned to his native country, and fixed his residence at Washington, where he displayed a liberal hospitality, and lived on terms of intimacy with most of our distinguished statesmen. He now devoted himself to the publication of the Columbiad, which was based upon a poem written while he was in the army, and published soon after the close of the war, under the title of the Vision of Columbus. This was issued in a style of elegance which few works, either American or Euro pean, have ever equalled. In 1811, he was appointed minister to France, and, in October of the following year, was invited to a conference with the emperor Napoleon at Wilna. He immediately set off on this mission, travelling day and night ; but, sinking under the fatigue, and want of food and sleep to which he was obliged to submit, he fell into a state of debility and torpor from which he never recovered. He died in December, 1812, at Zarnawica, a village in Poland, near Cracow. 39 458 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. BOWDOIN, JAMES, a governor of Massachusetts, was born at Boston, in the year 1727, and was graduated at Harvard College, in 1745. He took an early stand against the encroachments of the British government upon the provincial rights, and, in 1774, was elected a delegate to the first Congress. The state of his health prevented his attendance, and his place was afterwards filled by Mr. Hancock. In 1778, he was chosen president of the con vention which formed the constitution of Massachusetts, and, in 1785, was chosen governor of that state. He was a member of the Massachusetts convention assembled to deliberate on the adoption of the constitution of the United States, and exerted himself in its favor. He was the first president of the Academy of Arts and Sciences, established at Boston in 1780, and was admitted a member of several foreign societies of distinction. He died at Boston, in 1790. BIDDLE, NICHOLAS, an American naval officer, was born in Philadelphia, in 1750. He entered the British fleet in 1770, having previously served several years as a seaman on board merchant ships. On the commencement of hostilities between the colonies and the mother country, he returned to Philadelphia, and received from Congress the captaincy of the Andrew Doria, a brig of fourteen guns, employed in the expedition against New Providence. To wards the close of 1776, he received command of the Randolph, a new frigate of thirty-two guns, with which he soon captured a Jamaica fleet of four sail, richly laden. This prize he carried into Charleston, and was soon after furnished by the government of that town with four ad ditional vessels, to attack several British cruisers, at that time harassing the commerce of the vicinity. He fell in with the royal line of battle ship Yarmouth, of sixty-four guns, on the 7th of March, 1778, and, after an action of twenty minutes, perished, with all his crew except four, by the blowing up of the ship. BRADDOCK, EDWARD, major-general of the British army, and commander of the detachment engaged in the expedition against the French on the River Ohio, in 1755, arrived in Virginia in February of that year, and in the spring marched against Fort Du Quesne. On his march SELECT LIVES. 459 thither, he fell into an amhuscade of the Indians, by which he lost nearly one half of his troops, and received himself a mortal wound. BAYARD, JAMES A., an eminent American lawyer and politician, was born in Philadelphia, in 1767, and edu cated at Princeton College. In the year 1784, he engaged in the study of the law, and, on admission to the bar, settled in the state of Delaware, where he soon acquired practice and consideration. He was elected to a seat in Congress towards the close of the administration of Mr. Adams, and first particularly distinguished himself in conducting the impeachment of senator Blount. In 1804, he was elected to the Senate of the United States by the legislature of Dela ware, and remained for several-years a conspicuous member of that assembly. In 1813, he was appointed, by President Madison, one of the ministers to conclude a treaty of peace with Great Britain, and assisted in the successful negotiations at Ghent, in the following year. He then re ceived the appointment of minister to the court of St. Pe tersburg ; but an alarming illness induced him to return immediately to the United States. He died soon after his arrival home, in July, 1815. BARNEY, JOSHUA, a distinguished naval com mander in the service of the United States, was born at Baltimore, Maryland, in 1759. He went to sea at a very early age ; and, when the war commenced between Great Britain and the colonies, Barney offered his services to the latter, and obtained the situation of master s mate in the sloop of war Hornet. During the war, he was several times taken prisoner by the enemy, and displayed, on numerous occasions, great valor and enterprise. In 1795, he received the commission of captain in the French service, but in 1800, resigned his command, and returned to America. In 1812, when war was declared against Great Britain, he offered his services to the general gov ernment, and was appointed to the command of the flotilla for the defence of the Chesapeake. While in this sit uation, during the summer of 1814, he kept up an active warfare with the enemy ; and in the latter part of July, he was severely wounded in a land engagement near Bladens- burg. In the following year, he was sent on a mission to 460 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Europe. He died at Pittsburg, in 1818, in the sixtieth year of his ao-e. BROWN, JOHN, was born in 1736, in Providence, Rhode Island, and was a leader of the party which, in 1772, destroyed the British sloop of war Gasper in Nar- raganset Bay. He became an enterprising and wealthy merchant, and was the first in his native state who traded with the East Indies and China. He was chosen a mem ber of Congress, and was a generous patron of literature, and a creat projector of works of public utility. He died in 1803. BURNET, WILLIAM, the son of Bishop Burnet, was bowl at the Hague, in 1688. After having held the office of comptroller of the customs in England, he was, in 1720, appointed governor of New York and New Jersey. In 1728, he was appointed to the government of Massa chusetts and New Hampshire, where his administration was rendered unpleasant by a controversy with the Assem bly. He died at Boston, in 1729. He was a man of learning, and published several works on theological and philosophical subjects. BURR, AARON, vice-president of the United States, was born at Newark, New Jersey, February 6, 1756. His father, Rev. Aaron Burr, was the first president of Nassau Hall College. He was a divine of great eloquence and piety, though rather eccentric. He married the daugh ter of the celebrated Jonathan Edwards. They both died before the subject of this memoir was three years old. Thus in his infancy deprived of his natural guardians, with a large estate to purchase the smiles of the world and quench its frowns, lie gave way to all the vagaries of a naturally wayward disposition. At the age of four years, he ran away from his teacher, and could not be found till three or four days had expired. At the age often, he performed the same feat, and entered as a cabin boy on board of an outward-bound vessel, where he was found by his uncle, perched on the mast-head, ready to receive him and arrange articles of capitulation, before he put himself into the power of the enemy. He entered the sophomore class at Nassau Hall College at the age of thirteen, and w^s exceedingly disappointed in SELECT LIVES. 461 being excluded from entrance into the junior class, for which he was prepared. For a few months, he pursued his studies with great vigor ; but, on comparing himself with his classmates, he found them so much below himself in attainment, that he lost the desire to shine as a scholar, and left college with a reputation for great talents, based on the result of a few months application in the early part of his college life. He, however, took his diploma, left his books, and leaped upon the stage of active life. Armed with the keenest weapons that could be drawn from the armory of a powerful mind, an indomitable will, a quenchless en ergy, and a self-possession which was never known but once to forsake him in the whole course of his eventful life, no competition could arrest him, though it might divert him from his immediate object ; no power could chain him, till it attacked a vulnerable part, his moral character. On leaving college, he entered the family of Rev. Jon athan Bellamy, to pursue a course of reading on theology, where he remained about six months, when he believed that he had learned " that the way to heaven was open alike to all." He then commenced the study of law, which was continually interrupted by the turmoil of political strife. At this period, the subject of taxation and of hu man rights was every where debated in our land, and Aaron Burr gave his whole soul to the contest, and em braced the cause of patriotism. He joined the army at Cambridge as a volunteer ; but, dissatisfied with a state of inactivity, though of slender frame, and enfeebled by disease, he resolved to join the expedition of Arnold up the Kennebec, through the wil derness to Quebec. A messenger from his uncle, who was his guardian, announced to Burr, that he had been- sent to convey him home. " There are but two ways to effect your purpose," said Burr ; " the one, to obtain my consent, which you shall never have ; the other, to take me by force, which if you attempt, I will have you hung up in ten minutes." He accordingly departed from Newbury- port with the expedition, September 20, 1775. The sufferings of this detachment from wet, cold, hun- 39* 462 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ger, and fatigue, were excessive. On one occasion, Burr was carried over a fall of nearly twenty feet, where one man was drowned, and a large quantity of baggage lost. His fortitude and sagacity usually procured for him appointments of a particularly delicate or dangerous char acter. On the arrival of the troops at Chaudiere Pond, Arnold sent him with a verbal message to General Montgomery. Furnished with a guide, and disguised as a priest, he pen etrated the enemy s country as far as Three Rivers, where the guide, becoming alarmed, refused to proceed ; they remained, therefore, three days, concealed in a convent, and, finding no further cause of alarm, they recommenced their toilsome and dangerous journey, and arrived in safe ty at the camp of Montgomery. The general was astonished at the boyish appearance of the messenger of news so important ; but, after listening to the incidents of his journey, he was still more aston ished at his maturity of judgment, and his skill manifested in the execution of his trust, and appointed him one of his aids, though but nineteen years of age. After the arrival of Arnold, preparations were made to storm the city. General Montgomery, M Pherson, Cheese- man, Burr, and a French guide, led the van, and the Ca nadians fled before them. But by the accidental dis charge of a piece of artillery, three out of the five in the van of the column were killed, leaving only Burr and the French guide, on which Colonel Campbell ordered a retreat. Soon after his return from Quebec, at the invitation of General Washington, Burr joined his family ; but, a mu tual dislike arising between them, he remained but a short time. Whatever may have been the cause of this dislike, General Washington, even while doing justice to his merit as a skilful officer, from that time, never extended to Burr his confidence. Burr at length received a commission as lieutenant- colonel in the regiment of Colonel Malcolm, stationed in Orange county, New York. On presenting himself for the first time at the head-quarters of the regiment, Colonel Malcolm was greatly disappointed ; for, having had little SELECT LIVES. 463 military experience himself, he had relied much on the aid of his second in command, and he very much feared that the boy who was now introduced to him would fail in judgment and discretion. In a few days, however, he dis covered that he had fallen into the error of Darius of Persia, who gave to Alexander , the epithet of " the mad boy of Macedon," and, feeling no longer any apprehen sion of the consequences, he departed to his family, about twenty miles distant, leaving Burr in command, kindly remarking, " You shall have all the honor of disciplining and fighting the regiment, while I will be its father." Colonel Burr now gave his whole attention to the duties of his station. He introduced order and discipline among a citizen soldiery ; he examined and drew a map of every road, wood, hill, or creek, in his vicinity, obtained intelli gence of all the important movements, and even the de signs of the enemy, and personally visited every important post of the camp once in every two hours of the night. One day, an officer was surprised at Colonel Burr s hastily remarking to him, " Drake, that post on the river will be attacked to-night, and neither officers nor men know their duty; you must defend it; keep your eyes open,- or you will have your throat "cut before morning." Drake assumed the command, ordered every soldier to stand at his post, prepared for instant battle, where they stood in darkness and in silence till past midnight, when a party of mounted men cautiously approached the Ameri can works, hoping for tin easy victory; but, to their dis may, the whole garrison lighted up the darkness of the night, and showed the way by the blaze of their muskets ; but the enemy declined advancing nearer, and, practising " the better part of V.alor," retired in confusion to their main body. During the course of the war, it was generally found that the tract of country which was the immediate theatre of operations, was infested by armed bands of men styled skinner s, who assumed the character of either party, as circumstances required, and made the politics of every rich whig or tory the ostensible cause of every species of rapine. A prominent tory, whose house had one night been 464 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. plundered, in the morning sent his son to inform Colonel Burr of the event. The young man made his way, by a se cret path, to the tent of Colonel Burr, thus violating the rules of the camp, for which the colonel promptly punished him, and sent a party of men to secure the robbers. In a few hours they were found, compelled to restore their plunder, to pay a heavy fine, to receive ten lashes each, arid to leave the state, with what skin they had left. But the military career of Colonel Burr was now draw ing to a close. His health, which had always been deli cate, now gave way under the excessive fatigue of the duties of the camp, and compelled him to resign his com mission ; and, through the inefficiency of his successor, the regiment, which he had taught never to surrender with arms in their hands, was surprised, the greater part, with their commander, destroyed, and the rest taken prisoners. On leaving the army, Colonel Burr resumed the study of Jaw, and was admitted to the bar at Albany, whence he removed to New York, and soon became the successful competitor of General Hamilton, who was then at the head of the bar. At the close of the presidential term of the elder Ad ams, no choice of a successor was made by the people, and the matter came into the House of Representatives. Jefferson and Burr, of the same political party, were the rival candidates, with an equal number of votes. After thirty-six ballotings, Mr. Burr voluntarily yielded to his rival, and Mr. Jefferson became president ; and Mr. Burr, by the law then existing, became vice-president of the United States. But so violent had been the contest, that Mr. Jefferson never forgave the man who had so nearly defeat ed his election. In all his succeeding career, Mr. Burr found himself hedged in by the machinations of his power ful rival ; so that, by the efforts of Mr. Jefferson in one party, and of Mr. Hamilton in the other, Mr. Burr soon lost his political influence. In the course of a state election in New York, a letter of Dr. Cooper was published containing the following ex pression " I could detail to you a still more despicable opinion that General Hamilton has expressed of Mr. Burr." SELECT LIVES. 465 The hostility of these prominent individuals had now arrived at the highest point ; all attempts to effect a recon ciliation failed, and a duel at Hoboken resulted in the death of Hamilton and in the flight of Burr, disgraced by a coroner s verdict of " wilful murder." About the same time, there were strong expectations of a war between the United States and Spain. General Wilkinson, Colonel Burr, and others, formed a plan of operations against Mexico in case of war. But General Wilkinson became alarmed at the change of af fairs, forsook his associates, and took measures to defeat the very scheme that he had originated, and with the Mex ican government made a merit of having defeated it, claiming for his services a large reward, while Colonel Burr was stigmatized as a traitor to his country, and tried for his life. No proof to substantiate the charge was found against him, and he was therefore acquitted. Colonel Burr now embarked for England, to mature a project of effecting a revolution in* South America; but, failing in his expectations of aid from England, he applied to Bonaparte, yet with no better success, and returned to his own country. He reestablished an office in New York, where he continued to. practise law till his death, which occurred April 14, 1836, in the ,81st year of his age. CLINTON, JAMES, was born in 1736, at the resi dence of his father, in Ulster county, New York. He dis played an early inclination for a military life, and held successively several offices in the militia and provincial troops. During the French war, he exhibited many proofs of courage, and received the appointment of captain-com mandant of the four regiments levied for the protection of the western frontiers of the counties of Ulster and Orange. In 1775, he was appointed colonel of the third regiment of New York forces, and in the same year marched with Montgomery to Quebec. During the war, he rendered eminent services to his country, and, on the conclusion of it, retired to enjoy repose on his ample estates. He was, how ever, frequently called from retirement by the unsolicited voice of his fellow-citizens; and was a member of the 466 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Convention for the adoption of the present constitution of the United States. He died in 1812. CLINTON, GEORGE, vice-president of the United States, was born in the county of Ulster, New York, in 1739, and was educated to the profession of the law. In 1768, he was chosen to a seat in the colonial assembly, and was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1775. In 1776, he was appointed brigadier-general of the militia of Ulster county, and some time after a briga dier in the army of the United States, and continued, during the progress of the war, to render important ser vices to the military department. In April, 1777, he was elected both governor and lieutenant-governor of New York, and was continued in the former office for eighteen years. He was unanimously chosen president of the Con vention which assembled at Poughkeepsie, in 1788, to de liberate on the new federal constitution. In 1801, he again accepted the office of governor, and, after continuing in that capacity for three years, he was elevated to the vice-presidency of the United States a dignity which he retained till his death, at Washington, in 1812. In private, he was kind and amiable, and as a public man, he is enti tled to respectful remembrance. CLINTON, DE WITT, was born in 1769, at Little Britain, in Orange county, New York. He was educated at Columbia College, commenced the study of the law, and was admitted to the bar, but was never much engaged in professional practice. He early imbibed a predilection for political life, and was appointed the private secretary of his uncle, George Clinton, then governor of the state. In 1797, he was sent to the legislature from the city of New York, and two years after was chosen a member of the state Senate. In 1801, he was appointed a senator of the United States, and continued in that capacity for two sessions. He retired from the Senate in 1803, in conse quence of his election to the mayoralty of New York an office to which he was annually reelected, with the inter mission of but two years, till 1815, when he was obliged to retire by the violence of party politics. In 1817, he was elected, almost unanimously, governor of the state, SELECT LIVES. 467 was again chosen in 1820, but in 1822 declined being a candidate for reelection. In 1810, Mr. Clinton had been appointed, by the Senate of his state, one of the board of canal commissioners ; but, the displeasure of his political opponents having been excited, he was removed from this office in 1823, by a vote of both branches of the legis lature. This insult created a strong reaction in popular feeling, and Mr. Clinton was immediately nominated for governor, and elected by an unprecedented majority. In 1826, he was again elected, but he died before the com pletion of his term. He expired very suddenly, while sitting in his library, after dinner, February 11, 1828. Mr. Clinton was not only eminent as a statesman, but he occupied a conspicuous rank as a man of learning. He was a member of a large part of the benevolent, literary, and scientific societies of the United States, and an hon orary member of several foreign societies. His pro ductions are numerous, consisting of his speeches and messages to the state legislature; his discourses before various institutions ; his speeches in the Senate of the Union; his addresses to the army during the late war; his communications concerning the canal ; his judicial opin ions ; and various fugitive pieces. His national services were of the highest importance ; and the Erie Canal, especially, though the honor of projecting it may belong to another, will remain a perpetual monument of the pa triotism and perseverance of Clinton. CABOT, GEORGE, was born in Salem, Massachu setts, in the year 1752, and spent the early part of his life in the employment of a shipmaster. He possessed a vig orous and inquisitive mind, and took advantage of every opportunity of improvement and acquisition, even amid the restlessness and danger of a seafaring life. Before he was twenty-six years of age, he was elected a member of the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts, which met with the visionary project of establishing a maximum in the prices of provision. There he displayed that sound sense, and that acquaintance with the true principles of political economy, for which he afterwards became so much dis tinguished. Mr. Cabot was a member of the state Con vention assembled to deliberate on the adoption of the 468 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. federal constitution, and in 1790 was elected to a seat in the Senate of the United States. Of this body he became one of the most distinguished members, and enjoyed the unlimited confidence and friendship of Hamilton and Washington. In 1808, he became a member of the Coun cil of Massachusetts, and, in 18J4, was appointed a delegate to the Convention which met at Hartford, and was chosen to preside over its deliberations. He died at Boston, in 1823, at the age of seventy-two years. He possessed a mind of great energy and penetration, and in private life was much loved and esteemed. As a public man, he was pure and disinterested, of high sagacity and persuasive eloquence. His favorite studies were political economy and the science of government. CHAMPE, JOHN, a soldier in the American revo lution, was born in Loudon county, Virginia. In the -year 1776, he was appointed a sergeant-major in Lee s regiment of cavalry, and, after the discovery of Arnold s treason, was employed by Washington in a service of much danger and difficulty ; this was, to visit the British army as a deserter, in order to ascertain if any other American officers were engaged in that conspiracy, and to secure, if possible, the person of Arnold. In the latter object of his enterprise he unfortunately failed; but he effected his. own escape in safety, and returned to his companions. Washington treated him munificently, and presented him with his dis charge from further .service, lest, in the vicissitudes of war, he should fall into the hands of the enemy, and perish upon a gibbet. He died in Kentucky, about the year 1797. CRAIK, JAMES, was born in Scotland, where he re ceived his education for the medical service of the British army. He came to the colony of Virginia in early life, and accompanied Washington in his expeditions against the French and Indians in 1754, and in the following year attended Braddock in his march through the wil derness, and assisted in dressing his wounds. At the commencement of the revolution, by the aid of his early and fast friend, General Washington, he was transferred to the medical department in the continental army, and rose to the first rank and . distinction. He continued in SELECT LIVES. 469 the army to the end of the war, and was present at the surrender of Cornwallis, on the memorable 19th of Octo ber, 1781. After the cessation of hostilities, he removed to the neighborhood of Mount Vernon, and, in 1798, was once more appointed by Washington to his former station in the medical staff. He was present with his illustrious friend in his last moments, and died in 1814, in the eighty-fourth year of his age. He was a skilful and suc cessful physician, and Washington mentioned him as "my compatriot in arms, my old and intimate friend." GUSHING, THOMAS, was born at Boston, in 1725, educated at Cambridge College, where he was graduated in 1744. He engaged early in public life, and, in 1763, was chosen speaker of the General Court of Massachusetts, and continued in the office for several consecutive years. Though patriotic in his principles, he was by no means violent, and by his intervention much good was effected between the contending parties. He was a member of the two first Continental Congresses, and, on his return to his state, was chosen a member of the Council. He was also appointed judge of the Courts of Common Pleas and of Probate ; and, on the adoption of the present consti tution, he was elected lieutenant-governor of the state, and continued so until his death, in 1788. COOKE, ELISHA, a physician of Boston, Massa chusetts, was graduated at Harvard College, in 1657. He distinguished himself by his vigorous efforts in advocating popular rights, during the contentions between the legis lature of the colony and the royal governors. In 1689, he went to England as agent of Massachusetts, to procure the restoration of the charter. He was bold and patriotic, and possessed much strength of intellect. After holding va rious important offices in the province, he died in 1715. ELISHA, son of the preceding, and also distinguished in the early political contentions of the province, was grad uated at Harvard College, in 1697, held several public offices, and died in 1737. CRAFTS, WILLIAM, a lawyer and miscellaneous writer, was born in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1787 He received his education at Harvard College, and studied law in his native city, where he acquired some reputation 40 470 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. for talent and eloquence. He was a member of the South Carolina legislature, and for some time editor of the Charleston Courier. He died at Lebanon Springs, New York, in 1826. A collection of his works, comprising poems, essays in prose, and orations, with a biographical memoir, was published in Charleston, in 1828. CADWALADER, JOHN, was born in Philadelphia, and rose to the rank of brigadier-general in the American army during the revolutionary war. He was a man of in flexible courage, and possessed in a high degree the es teem and confidence of Washington. In 1778, he was ap pointed by Congress general of cavalry, an appointment which he declined on the score of being more useful in the situation he then occupied. After the war, he was a member of the Assembly of Maryland, and died in 1786, in the forty-fourth year of his age. CLARKE, GEORGE ROGERS, colonel in the ser vice of Virginia, against the Indians in the revolutionary war, distinguished himself greatly in that post, and ren dered efficient service to the inhabitants of the frontiers. In 1779, he descended the Ohio, and built Fort Jefferson on the eastern bank of the Mississippi; ii. 1781, he re ceived a general s commission. He died in 1817, at his seat near Louisville, Kentucky. DECATUR, STEPHEN, a distinguished officer in the navy of the United States, was born in Maryland, in 1779, and received his education in Philadelphia. He entered the navy in 1798, and first distinguished himself, when in the rank of lieutenant, by the de struction of the American frigate Philadelphia, which had run upon a rock in the harbor of Tripoli, and fallen into the hands of the enemy. For this exploit, the American Congress gave him a vote of thanks and a sword, and the president immediately sent him a cap taincy. At the bombardment of Tripoli, the next year, he distinguished himself by the capture of two of the enemy s boats, which were moored along the mouth of the harbor, and immediately under the batteries. When peace was concluded with Tripoli, Decatur returned home in the Congress, and afterward succeeded Commodore Barron in the command of the Chesapeake. In the late SELECT LIVES. 471 war between Great Britain and the United States, his chief exploit was the capture of the British frigate Mace donian, commanded by Captain Garden. In January, 1815, he attempted to sail from New York, which was then blockaded by four British ships ; but the frigate under his command was injured in passing the bar, and was captured by the whole squadron, after a running fight of two or three hours. He was restored to his country after the conclusion of peace. In the summer of the same year, he was sent with a squadron to the Mediterranean, in order to compel the Algerines to desist from their depre dations on American commerce. He arrived at Algiers on the twenty-eighth of June, and, in less than forty-eight hours, terrified the regency into an entire accession to all his terms. Thence he went to Tripoli, where he met with like success. On returning to the United States, he was appointed a member of the board of commissioners for the navy, and held that office till March, 1820, when he was shot in a duel with Commodore Barron. He was a man of an active and powerful frame, and possessed a high de gree of energy, sagacity, and courage. DICKINSON, JOHN, a celebrated political writer, was born in Maryland, in 1732, and educated in Delaware. He pursued the study of law, and practised with success in Philadelphia. He was soon elected to the state legislature, and distinguished himself as an early and efficient advocate of colonial rights. In 1765, he was appointed by Pennsyl vania a delegate to the first Congress, held at New York, and prepared the draught of the bold resolutions of that body. His celebrated Farmer s Letters to the inhabitants of the British colonies were issued in Philadelphia, in 1767; they were reprinted in London, with a preface by Dr. Franklin, and a French translation of them was published at Paris. While in Congress, he wrote a large number of the most able and eloquent state papers of the time, and as an orator he had few superiors in that assembly. He conscientiously opposed the declaration of independence, and his opin ions upon this subject rendered him for a time unpopular, but they did not permanently affect his reputation and in fluence. He was afterwards a member of Congress, and president of Pennsylvania and Delaware, successively. 472 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. He died at Wilmington, in 1808. Mr. Dickinson was a man of a strong mind, great knowledge and eloquence, and much elegance of taste and manners. DALE, RICHARD, an American naval commander, was born in Virginia, 1756. At twelve years of age, he was sent to sea, and in 1777 he entered as a midshipman on board of the American brig of war Lexington. In the following year, he was taken prisoner by a British cruiser, and after a twelve months confinement, he escaped from Mill Prison, and succeeded in reaching France. Here he joined, in the character of master s mate, the celebrated Paul Jones, then commanding the American ship Bon Homme Richard. He was soon raised to the rank of first lieutenant, and signalized himself in the sanguinary engagement between the Bon Homme Richard and the English frigate Serapis. In 1794, the United States made him a captain in the navy, and in 1801 he took command of the American squadron which sailed in that year from Hampton Roads to the Mediterranean. From the year 1802, he passed his life in Philadelphia, in the enjoyment of a competent estate, and much esteemed by his fellow- citizens. He died in 1826, leaving the reputation of a brave and intelligent seaman. ELLSWORTH, OLIVER, an American judge and statesman, was born at Windsor, Connecticut, in 1745, and was graduated at the college of Nassau Hall, at Princeton, in 1766. Devoting himself to the practice of the law, he soon rose to distinction by the energy of his mind and his eloquence. From the earliest period of dis content, he joined the cause of the colonies, and in 1777 was elected a member of the Continental Congress. In this body he remained for three years ; and in 1784 he was appointed a judge of the Superior Court of the state. He was a delegate to the Convention for framing the federal constitution, and was a senator in the first Congress. In 1796, he was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and in 1799 was sent envoy extraor dinary to France. The decline of his health induced him to resign his seat on the bench, and he retired to his family residence at Windsor, where he died in 1807. EATON, WILLIAM, general in the service of the SELECT LIVES. 473 United States, was born in Woodstock, Connecticut, in 1764, and was graduated at Dartmouth College, in 1790. In 1792, he received a captain s commission in the army, and served for some time under General Wayne, on the Mississippi and in Georgia. In 1797, he was appointed consul to the kingdom of Tunis, and continued there engaged in a variety of adventures and negotiations, till 1803, when he returned to the United States. In 1804, he was appointed navy agent for the Barbary powers, for the purpose of cooperating with Hamet Bashaw in the war against Tripoli, but was disappointed by the conclusion of a premature peace between the American consul and the Tripolitan bashaw. On his return to the United States, he failed in obtaining from the government any compensation for his pecuniary losses, or any employment corresponding with his merit and services. Under the in fluence of his disappointments, he fell into habits of in ebriety, and died in 1811. His Life, published by one of his friends in Massachusetts, is full of interesting ad venture. FULTON, ROBERT, an American engineer and pro jector, was born, in 1765, at Little Britain, in Pennsyl vania. Abandoning the trade of a jeweller, he studied for some years under West, with the intention of being a painter ; but, having become acquainted with a fellow- countryman named Rurnsey, who was skilled in mechan ics, he became fond of that science, and ultimately adopted the profession of a civil engineer. Before he left England, he published, in 1796, a treatise On Inland Navigation, in which he proposed to supersede locks by inclined planes. In 1800, he introduced, with much profit to himself, the panorama into the French capital. For some years, he was engaged in experiments to perfect a machine called a torpedo, intended to destroy ships of war by explosion. After his return to America, he gave to the world an ac count of several inventions, among which are a machine for sawing and polishing marble, another for rope-rnaking, and a boat to be navigated under water. He obtained a patent for his inventions in navigation by steam in 1^09, and another for some improvements in 1811. In 1814, he contrived an armed steam ship for the defence of the 40* 474 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. harbor of New York, and a submarine vessel large enough to carry one hundred men ; the plans of which being ap proved by government, he was authorized to construct them at the public expense. But before completing either of those works, he died suddenly in 1815. Though not the inventor of it, he was the first who successfully em ployed the steam engine in navigation. GORE, CHRISTOPHER, governor of Massachusetts, was born in Boston, in 1758, and received his early in struction in the public schools of that town. He was graduated at Harvard College, in 1776, and soon after com menced the study of the law. When he entered on the practice of his profession, he rose rapidly in public esteem as a lawyer, a politician, and an honest man. At the age of thirty, he was sent by his fellow-citizens, with Hancock and Samuel Adams, to the state Convention which consid ered the adoption of the national constitution. In 1789, he was appointed, by Washington, the first United States attorney for the district of Massachusetts, and, in 1796, one of the commissioners, under the fourth article of Jay s treaty, to settle our claims for spoliations. He remained abroad in the public service for about eight years, and, ou his return, was welcomed home with the strongest marks of public favor. Having held seats in the state Senate and the House of Representatives, he was chosen, in 1809, gov ernor of Massachusetts, but retained this dignity only one year. In 1814, he was appointed senator to Congress, and served in this capacity about three years, when he with drew into final retirement. He died in 1827. Mr. Gore was a useful member of several important literary asso ciations. To the American Academy, and the Massa chusetts Historical Society, he left valuable bequests ; and he made Harvard College, of which institution he had been some years a fellow, his residuary legatee. He was a man of a clear, acute, and discriminating mind. GORDON, WILLIAM, an historian of the American revolution, was born in England, and settled, at an early age, pastor of an independent church at Ipswich. In 1770, he came to America, and soon after settled in Rox- bury. In 1776, he began the collection of materials for the history of the revolution, and at the close of the war SELECT LIVES. 475 he repaired to England and published them. He died at Ipswich, in 1807. GREENE, SAMUEL, was the first printer in North America. The first thing printed was the Freeman s Oath, in 1639, the next an almanac, arid the third the New England version of the Psalms, in 1640. The time of his death is unknown. GREENE, NATHANIEL, major-general in the army of the United States, was born in Warwick, Rhode Island, in 1742. Though enjoying very few advantages of edu cation, he displayed an early fondness for knowledge, and devoted his leisure time assiduously to study. In 1770, he was elected a member of the state legislature, and in 1774 enrolled himself as a private in a company called the Kentish Guards. From this situation he was elevated to the head of three regiments, with the title of major-gen eral. In 1776, he accepted from Congress a commission of brigadier-general, and soon after, at the battles of Tren ton and Princeton, distinguished himself by his skill arid bravery. In 1778, he was appointed quartermaster-gen eral, and in that office rendered efficient service to the country by his unwearied zeal and great talents for busi ness. He presided at the court-martial which tried Major Andre, in 1780, and was appointed to succeed Arnold in the command at West Point ; but he held this post only a few days. In December of the same year, he assumed the command of the southern army, and in this situation dis played a prudence, intrepidity, and firmness, which raised him to an elevated rank among our revolutionary generals. In September, 1781, he obtained the famous victory at Eutaw Springs, for which he received from Congress a British standard and a gold medal, as a testimony of their value of his conduct and services. On the termination of hostilities, he returned to Rhode Island, arid in 1785 re moved with his family to Georgia, where he died suddenly in June of the following year. He was a man of high en ergy, courage, and ability, and possessed the entire con fidence of Washington. GAGE, THOMAS, the last governor of Massachusetts appointed by the king, first came to America, as a lieu tenant, with Braddock, and was present at the battle in 476 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. which that officer received his mortal wound. He was appointed governor of Montreal in 1760, and in 1703 succeeded General Amherst as commander-in-chief of the British forces in North America. In 1774, he succeeded Hutchinson as governor of Massachusetts, when he soon began the course of illegal and oppressive acts that brought on the war of the revolution. In 1775, the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts declared him an enemy to the colony ; and, not long after, he returned to England, where he died in 1787. GADSDEN, CHRISTOPHER, a patriot of the Ameri can revolution, was born in South Carolina, in the year 1724. In 1765, he was a member of the Congress which was convened at New York, for the purpose of petitioning against the stamp act, and again of that which assembled in 1774. He remained in Charleston during the siege in 1780. In 1782, he was elected governor of his native state, but declined the office on account of the infirmities of age. He died in 1805. GOOKIN, DANIEL, a major-general of Massachu setts, was born in England, and in 1621 emigrated to Virginia. In 1644, he removed to New England, and was appointed superintendent of all the Indians who had submitted to the government of Massachusetts. In 1681, he received the appointment of major-general of the prov ince. He died in 1687, at the age of seventy-five. He left in manuscript historical collections of New England Indians, which were published in the first volume of the Massachusetts Historical Society. He also left in man uscript a history of New England. HAWLEY, JOSEPH, a patriot of the American revo lution, was born at Northampton, Massachusetts, in 1724, and, after graduating at Yale College, in 1742, pursued the profession of the law in his native town. He soon rose to distinction and extensive practice ; but, by the efforts of the friends of the British administration, he was afterwards for a short time excluded from the bar. He was one of the first who proposed to resist British encroachments by force, and he continued through his life to be an active and efficient advocate of the rights of his country. He died in 1788 SELECT LIVES. 477 HENRY, PATRICK, an American orator and states man, was born in Virginia, in 1736, and, after receiving a common school education, and spending some time in trade and agriculture, commenced the practice of the law, after only six weeks of preparatory study. After several years of poverty, with the encumbrance of a family, he first rose to distinction in managing the popular cause in the controversy between the legislature and the clergy, touch ing the stipend which was claimed by the latter. In 1765, he was elected a member of the House of Burgesses, with express reference to an opposition to the British stamp act. In this assembly he obtained the honor of being the first to commence the opposition to the measures of the British government, which terminated in the revolution. He was one of the delegates sent by Virginia to the first General Congress of the colonies, in 1774, and in that body dis tinguished himself by his boldness and eloquence. In 1776, he was appointed the first governor of the common wealth, and to this office was repeatedly reflected. In 1786, he was appointed by the legislature one of the dep uties to the Convention held at Philadelphia, for the purpose of revising the federal constitution. In 1788, he was a member of the Convention which met in Virginia to consider the constitution of the United States, and ex erted himself strenuously against its adoption. In 1794 he retired from the bar, and died in 1799. Without ex tensive information upon legal or political topics, he was a natural orator of the highest order, possessing great powers of imagination, sarcasm, and humor, united with great force and energy of manner, and a deep knowledge of human nature. HOWARD, JOHN EAGER, an officer of the army of the American revolution, was born in Baltimore, in 1752. After serving in the rank of captain, in 1779, he was appointed lieutenant-colonel, and distinguished himself by his valor and activity during the war. At the battle of Cowpens, Colonel Howard, at one time, had in his hands the swords of seven officers who had surrendered to him personally. He was also present at the battles of German- town, White Plains, Monmouth, Camden, and Hobkirks Hill. On the disbanding of the army, he retired to his 478 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. patrimonial estates, near Baltimore, and was subsequently governor of Maryland, and member of the Senate of the United States. He died in 1827. General Greene said of him, that, as a patriot and soldier, he deserved a statue of gold no less than Roman and Grecian heroes. HEATH, WILLIAM, an officer in the army of the revolution, was born in Roxbury, in 1737, and was bred a fanner. He was particularly attentive to the study of military tactics, and in 1775 he was commissioned as a brigadier-general by the Provincial Congress. In 1776, he was promoted to the rank of major-general in the conti nental army, and in the campaign of that year commanded a division near the enemy s lines, at King s Bridge and Morrisania. During the year 1777, and till November, 1778, he was the commanding officer of the eastern de partment, and his head-quarters were at Boston. In 1779, he returned to the main army, and was invested with the chief command of the troops on the east side of the Hud son. After the close of the war, he served in several pub lic offices, till the time of his death, in 1814, HAMILTON, ALEXANDER, was born in the Island of Nevis, in 1757. At the age of sixteen, he ac companied his mother to New York, and was placed at Columbia College, where he soon gave proof of extraordi nary talent, by the publication of some political essays, of such strength and sagacity that they were generally attrib uted to Mr. Jay. At the age of nineteen, he entered the American army, and in 1777 was appointed aid-de-camp of Washington, with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. In this capacity he served during the remainder of the war, and, at the siege of Yorktown, led in person the de tachment that carried by assault one of the enemy s out works. After the war, he commenced the study of the law, entered into its practice in New York, and soon rose to distinction. In 1782, he was chosen a member of Congress from the state of New York; in 1787, a member of the Convention which formed the constitution of the United States, and in 1787 and 1788 wrote, in connection with Mr. Jay and Mr. Madison, the essays published under the title of the Federalist. In 1789, he was placed by Wash ington at the head of the treasury department, and, SELECT LIVES. 479 while in this situation, rendered the most efficient service to the country by the establishment of an admirable system of finance, which raised public credit from the lowest depression to an unprecedented height. In 1795, he retired from office, in order to secure, by his profes sional labors, a more ample provision for his numerous family. In 1793, his public services were again required, to take the second command in the army that was raised on account of the apprehended invasion of the French. On the disbanding of the army, he resumed the practice of the law in New York, and continued to acquire new success and reputation. In 1804, he fell in a duel with Colonel Burr, vice-president of the United States, and died universally lamented and beloved. Besides his share in the Federalist, General Hamilton was the author of numerous congressional reports, the essays of Pacificus, and the essays of Phocion. A collection of his works in three vols. 8vo. was issued at New York some time after his death. He was a man of transcendent abilities and unsullied integrity, and no one labored more efficiently in the organization of the present federal government. HUMPHREYS, DAVID, minister of the United States to the court of Spain, was born in Connecticut, in 1753, and received his education at Yale College. Soon after the commencement of the revolutionary war, he entered the army, and was successively an aid to Parsons, Putnam, Greene, and Washington. He left the army with the rank of colonel. In 1784, he was appointed secretary of lega tion to Paris, and was subsequently ambassador to the court of Lisbon, and in 1797 minister plenipotentiary to the court of Madrid. While in the military service, he published a poem addressed to the American armies, and, nf er the war, another on the happiness and glory of Amend. In 1789, he p/ .iblished a life of General Putnam, aid, wh ; le in E irope, a number of miscellaneous poems. He died in 1818. HUTCHINS, THOMAS, was born in New Jersey, TV ! entered the army in the Western States as an ensign. In 1779, he was in England, and was imprisoned some time on suspicion of holding a correspondence with Franklin i:i France. He was nominated geographer-general to the 480 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. United States, and died at Pittsburg, in 1789. He pub lished an historical sketch of the expedition of Bouquet against the Indians of Ohio, in 1764 ; a topographical de scription of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Caro lina, with maps, (London, 1778 ;) an historical account of Louisiana, &,c., (1784.) HUTCHINSON, THOMAS, a governor of the colony of Massachusetts, was born in Boston, in 1711, and was graduated at Harvard College. He was for a while occu pied with commercial pursuits, but soon engaged in the study of law arid politics, and was sent agent to Great Brit ain. On his return, he was elected a representative, and after a few years was chosen speaker of the house, and in 1752 judge of probate. After being a member of the Council, lieutenant-governor, and chief justice, in 1771 he received his commission as governor of Massachusetts. In 1774, he was removed from his office, and was succeeded by General Gage. He then repaired to England, fell into disgrace, and died in retirement in 1780. He is the author of a valuable history of Massachusetts, some occa sional essays, and a pamphlet on colonial claims. It is said that no man contributed more effectually to bring about the separation between the colonies and Great Brit ain than Hutchinson. JAY, JOHN, was born in the city of New York, in 1745. He was graduated at Columbia College, in 1764, and in 1768 was admitted to the bar. He socn rose to eminence as a lawyer, and began to take an active part in politics. In 1774, he was elected a delegate to the first Congress. In May, 1776, he was recalled from Congress by the Provincial Convention, to aid in forming the gov ernment for the province; and to this it is owing that his name does not appear among the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Upon the organization of the state government, in 1777, Mr. Jay was appointed chief justice, and held this office till 1779. In November, 1778, he was again chosen a delegate to the Continental Congress, and, three days after taking his seat, was elected president of that venerable body. In September, 1779, he was ap pointed minister plenipotentiary to the court of Spain, and he arrived at Cadiz in January of the following year SELECT LIVES. 481 Having resigned his commission as minister in 1783, in 1784 he returned to the United States, and was placed at tne head of the department for foreign affairs. In this post he remained till the adoption of the present constitution, when he was appointed chief justice of the United States. In 1794, he was sent as envoy extraordinary to Great Brit ain, and before his return, in 1795, he had been elected governor of his native state. In 1798, he was reflected to this office, and in 1801, went into voluntary retirement. The remainder of his life was passed in the faithful dis charge of the charitable duties, and he was publicly known only by the occasional appearance of his name, or the employment of his pen, in the service of philanthropy and piety. He died in 1829. Besides a variety of state papers and political essays, Mr. Jay was the author of the 3d, 3d, 4th, 5th, and 64th numbers of the Federalist. JONES, JOHN PAUL, a native of Scotland, was born, in 1747, at Selkirk, and settled in America when young. He distinguished himself by his bravery in the American service, during the contest with the mother country, particularly in a desperate action with the Serapis frigate, which he captured. He died in Paris, in 1792, and was buried at the expense of the National Convention. Jones was not only a man of signal courage, but also of great talent, and keen sagacity, wrote poetry, and in France aspired to be a man of fashion. His memorials and correspondence are quite voluminous. JOHNSON, Sir WILLIAM, a military officer, who served with distinction in North Carolina, was born in Ireland, about the year 1714. Early in life he came to America, and settled on the Mohawk, and carried on an extensive traffic with the Indians. In 1755, he command ed the provincial troops of New York in the expedition against Crown Point, and for his services received from the House of Commons the gift of ^5000, and from the king the title of baronet. He died in 1774. He was shrewd, brave, and successful. JACKSON, JAMES, an officer in the army of the American revolution, was born in England, in 1757. In 1772, he emigrated to America, and settled in Georgia. He served with distinction during the war, and displayed 41 482 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. much intrepidity. On the disbanding of the army, he commenced the practice of the law, to which he had been educated, in Georgia, and soon obtained a lucrative amount of business. After having been a member of the state legislature, and successively colonel, brigadier-general, and major-general, in the militia, he was chosen a member of Congress, and died in Washington, in 1806. KNOX, HENRY, an American general, was born in Boston, in 1750, and, after receiving a common school ed ucation, commenced business as a bookseller in his native town. He took an early part in the affairs of the revolu tion, and was present as a volunteer at the battle of Bunker Hill. For his services in procuring some pieces of ord nance from the Canadian frontiers, he was intrusted by Congress with the command of the artillery department, with the rank of brigadier-general. He was present and displayed great skill and courage at the battles of Trenton, Princeton, Germantown, and Monmouth, and contributed greatly to the capture of Cornwallis. Immediately after this event, he received from Congress the commission of major-general. In 1785, he succeeded General Lincoln in the office of secretary of war, and, having filled this de partment for eleven years, he obtained a reluctant permis sion to retire into private life. In 1798, when our rela tions with France were assuming a cloudy aspect, he was called upon to take a command in the army; but the peaceful arrangement of affairs soon permitted him to re turn into his retirement. He died at Thomaston, Maine, in 1806. In private life he was amiable, in his public character persevering, and of unsurpassed courage. LEE, ARTHUR, an eminent American patriot, was born in Virginia, in 1740, and received his education in England, taking his degree of M. D. at the University of Edinburgh. He then returned to his native state, and for some years practised physic at Williamsburg ; but political affairs were then assuming so interesting an aspect, that he again went to England, and entered on the study of law in the Temple. In 1770, he visited London, and became a member of the famous society of the supporters of the bill of rights. His political publications at this period, under the signature of Junius Americanus, were numerous, SELECT LIVES. 483 and procured for him the acquaintance of the leaders of the popular party. In 1776, he was appointed minister to France, in conjunction with Dr. Franklin and Mr. Dearie, and assisted in negotiating the treaty with that nation. In 1779, in consequence of the false accusations of Mr. Deane, complaints of his political conduct were freely circulated at home, and in the following year he resigned his appoint ments and returned. In 1781, he was elected to the As sembly of Virginia, and by this body returned to Congress, where he continued to represent the state till 1785. In 1784, he was employed to arrange a treaty with the six Indian nations. He was next called to the board of treasury, where he continued till 1789, when he went into retirement. He died in 1792. LEE, CHARLES, a major-general in the army of the American revolution, was born in North Wales, and be came an officer at the age of 11 years. He served at an early age in America, and afterwards distinguished him self under General Burgoyne, in Portugal. He subse quently entered the Polish service, wandered all over Europe, killed an Italian officer in a duel, and in 1773 sailed for New York. Espousing the cause of the colonies, he received a commission from Congress in 1775, with the rank of major-general. In 1776, he was invested with the command at New York, and afterwards with the chief command in the southern department. In December, 1776, he was made prisoner by the English, as he lay, carelessly guarded, at a considerable distance from the main body of the army in New Jersey. He was kept prisoner till the surrender of Burgoyne, in 1777, and treated in a manner unworthy of a generous enemy. In 1778, he was arraigned before a court-martial, in conse quence of his misconduct at the battle of Monmouth, and was suspended from any commission in the army of the United States for one year. He retired to a hovel in Vir ginia, living in entire seclusion, surrounded by his books and his dogs. In 1782, he went to reside at Philadelphia, where he died in obscurity in October of the same year. He was a man of much energy and courage, with consid erable literary attainments, but morose and avaricious. He published essays on military, literary, and political 484 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. subjects, which, with his extensive correspondence, were collected in a volume in 1792. The authorship of the Letters of Junius has been ascribed to him. LEE, HENRY, a distinguished officer in the Amer ican revolutionary army, was born in Virginia, in 1756, and was graduated at the college in Princeton. In 1776 he was a captain of one of the six companies of cavalry, raised by Virginia, and afterwards incorporated into one regiment, arid in 1777 added to the main body of the pro vincials. At the battle of Germantown, Lee was selected, with his company, to attend Washington as his body-guard. In 1780, being raised to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, he was sent, with his legion, to the army of the south, under General Greene, and continued with it till the end of the war. He distinguished himself at the battle of Eutaw Springs, and in the ensuing October was sent on a special commission to -the commander-in-chief, then employed in the siege of Yorktown. In 1786, he was appointed a del egate to Congress, from the state of Virginia, arid remained in that body till the adoption of the present constitution. He was a member of the state Convention which ratified that instrument, and in 1792, he was raised to the chair of governor of Virginia. In 1799, he was again a member of Congress, and, while there, selected to pronounce a funeral oration on the death of Washington. The latter years of his life were embarrassed by want; and it was while confined for debt in the limits of Spottsylvania county, that he prepared for publication his excellent Me moirs of the southern campaign. He was severely wounded during the riot in Baltimore, in 1814, and his health rap idly declined. He died on Cumberland Island, Georgia, in 1818. LINCOLN, BENJAMIN, a major-general in the Amer ican army, was born in Hingham, Massachusetts, in 1733, and until the age of forty years was engaged in the pursuits of agriculture. At the commencement of the revolution, he was elected a member of the Provincial Congress, in 1776 received the commission of major-general, and em ployed himself vigorously to improve the discipline of the militia. He was second in command in the army which compelled the surrender of Burgoyne. On the day after SELECT LIVES. 485 the battle of Stillwater, he received a dangerous wound in his leg, and was confined for several months by its effects. In the following year, he was appointed to the command of the southern department, and while in this post he at tempted the defence of Charleston, but was compelled to capitulate in May, 1780. He was exchanged in Novem ber, and in the spring following joined the army on the North River. At the siege of Yorktown, he commanded a central division, and shared largely in the dangers and honors of the day. In 1781, he was appointed secretary of the war department, and afterwards, on several occasions, commissioner to treat with the Indians. On the establish ment of peace, he returned to his native state, and in 1787 was appointed to command the troops employed in the suppression of the insurgents in Massachusetts. In 1788, he was chosen lieutenant-governor, and in the following year he was a member of the Convention which ratified the constitution of the United States. He died in 1810. He was the author of several published letters and essays, a member of the American Academy of the Arts and Sciences, and president of the Society of Cincinnati of Massachusetts. LEWIS, MERIWETHER, a celebrated explorer, was born in Virginia, in 1774, and, after receiving a good school education, engaged in agriculture. When General Washington called out a body of militia in consequence of the discontent produced by the excise taxes, young Lewis entered as a volunteer, and from that situation was removed to the regular service. In 1803, he was sent by President Jefferson on an exploring expedition to the north western part of our continent ; and of this expedition, which was completed in about three years, and in which he was accompanied by Mr. Clarke, a highly-interesting account was afterwards published. Lewis was subsequently ap pointed governor of the Louisiana territory. He put an end to his own life in 1809. He was a man of energy, perseverance, and of a sound understanding. LAURENS, HENRY, an American patriot and states man, was born at Charleston, S. C.,in 1724. After re ceiving a good school education, he engaged in commerce, and soon amassed an ample fortune. At the breaking out 41* 486 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. of the revolution, he was in London ; but he immediately returned to his native country, and in 1776 was elected a delegate to the General Congress. He was soon chosen president of this body, and remained so till the close of the year 1778. In 1779, he received the appointment of minister plenipotentiary to Holland, but on his way thither was captured by the British, and committed to the Tower, where he was in confinement fourteen months. He was one of the commissioners for negotiating a peace with Great Britain, and in 1783 he signed, with Jay and Frank lin, the preliminaries of the treaty. His health, however, was much impaired, and he soon returned home, and passed the remainder of his life in agricultural pursuits. He died in 1792. LAURENS, JOHN, lieutenant-colonel, son of the pre ceding, was liberally educated in England, and, having returned to his native country, joined the American army in 1777. He displayed prodigies of valor at Brandy- wine, Germantown, Monmouth, Savannah, and Charleston, and was killed, at the very close of the war, by carelessly exposing himself in a trifling skirmish. In 1780, he was sent as a special minister to France, to negotiate a loan ; and, after being subjected to a vexatious delay, he deter mined to present a memorial to the king in person at the levee. This purpose he carried into effect ; the memorial was graciously received, and the object of negotiation satisfactorily arranged. LAWRENCE, JAMES, an officer of the American navy, was born in New Jersey, in 1781, and became a midshipman in 1798. In 1803, he was sent to the Medi terranean, as first lieutenant to the schooner Enterprise, and, while there, distinguished himself by his activity and valor. He remained on this station for three years, and then returned to the United States, having been transferred to the frigate John Adams. In February, 1813, he was in command of the Hornet, and took the fine British brig Peacock, after an action of fifteen minutes. On his return to the United States, he was transferred to the frigate Chesa peake, and in June of the same year, while engaged in battle with the frigate Shannon, he received a mortal wound. His last exclamation, as they were carrying him SELECT LIVES. 487 below, was, " Don t give up the ship." He lingered in great pain for four days, when he died. His remains were buried at Halifax. LIVINGSTON, ROBERT R., a celebrated American statesman and lawyer, was born in New York, and was educated at King s College. He engaged in the profession of the law, and was elected to the first General Congress of the colonies, where he was one of the committee appoint ed to prepare the Declaration of Independence. In 1780, he was appointed secretary of foreign affairs, and, at the adoption of the constitution of New York, chancellor of that state. This last office he held till 1804, when he was sent minister plenipotentiary to France. It was in Paris that he formed a personal friendship with Robert Fulton, whom he materially assisted. In 1805, he re turned to the United States, and devoted the remainder of his life to the promotion of agriculture, and the arts. He died in 1813. LANGDON, JOHN, a distinguished American patriot, was born at Portsmouth, N. H., in 1739. He engaged in commerce, and took an early and efficient interest in the cause of the colonies. He was successively a delegate to the General Congress, navy agent, speaker of the Assembly of his native state, president of his native state, a delegate to the Convention that framed the federal constitution, and a member of the Senate of the United States. In 18D5, he was chosen governor of his state, and again in 1810. He died in 1819. LLOYD, JAMES, was born in Boston, in 1769. and, after graduating at Harvard College, entered into com mercial pursuits, and spent some time in Europe. In 1808, he was elected by the legislature of Massachusetts a sen ator in Congress, and for five years conducted himself with great prudence and firmness, during a period of great po litical excitement. In 18*22, he was again appointed to the national Senate, and was distinguished for his application to business. In 1826, he published, at Boston, a pamphlet on the Report of the Committee of Commerce of the Senate of the United States on the British Colonial In tercourse. He died at New York, in 1831. LOWELL, JOHN, an eminent American lawyer, was 488 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. born at Newbury, in 1744, and was educated at Harvard College. He studied law, and, rising to reputation, in 1761, he removed to Boston, and soon distinguished him self by his political knowledge and eloquence. In 1781, he was elected a member of Congress, and, on the estab lishment of the federal government, was appointed a judge of the Circuit Court of the United States. In these situa tions he was much respected for his legal knowledge and dignity. He died in 1802. JLAFAYETTE, GILBERT MOTTIER, was born in Auvergne, in the south of France, September 6, 1757. About two years after his birth, his father fell in the battle of M iinden. The orphan was placed at the College ofDu Plessis, where he received a highly-finished education, and, in his subsequent eventful career, often gave evidence of the industry of his youth. At the age of seventeen, he married the daughter of the duke d Ayen, son of the duke de Noailles. Though nursed in the bosom of afflu ence^ surrounded by the splendors of a proud monarchy, courted by the most powerful of the aristocracy, the pro tege of the queen herself, he yet preserved a heart which responded to the cry for liberty, that, from a distant land, claimed sympathy among the slaves of European despots. He had been but two years married to one of the most noble, faithful, heroic women that ever blessed " the sunny soil of his delightful France," when he determined to for sake all, and to give his fortune, his very life, if it were needful, to the cause of liberty in a distant land, of which even the name was scarce known to the proud inmates of the court in which he moved. He applied to the American agents at Paris for a passage to America, which, in their poverty, they were unable to supply. " Then," said he, " I shall purchase and fit out a vessel for myself." He did so. With a fortune of $25,000 per annum, he determined that the poverty of those whom he designed to aid, should not detain him. But before he could embark, he was arrested by some officers, sent for that purpose from the French court, from whom he made his escape. In the disguise of a postilion, with blackened face and crisped hair, he rode forward, and ordered horses for a coach, which he had pro cured for the purpose, as if to receive him on the road, SELECT LIVES. 489 which, of course, should the officers overtake it, would at tract their chief attention. He thus arrived in safety at Passage, when he immediately put to sea. He requested the captain to steer at once to some port in the United States, and, on his refusing to do so, through fear of the French and British cruisers, Lafayette first gave him a bond for 40,000 francs, and then threatened that, if further delay occurred, he would have him put in irons, and give the command of his vessel to the mate. The captain yielded, and they arrived in safety at Charleston, S. C., April 25, 1777. His arrival was to the astonished Americans the star of hope, the joyful omen of ultimate success. A short time before, it had seemed to them that the last embers of ex piring liberty were to be trodden out on the plains of New Jersey, and that their friends in Europe would sing the requiem of the martyred Washington and his high-souled associates. But now all eyes are turned to the illustrious stranger. He joins the family of their beloved chief; he refuses the honors of a grateful people, till he has done something to deserve them. He pours out his treasure like water, to feed, clothe, and equip a corps of two thousand men, at whose head, with the commission of major-general, he rushes into the field of strife. On the plains of Brandy- wine he is wounded ; with a far inferior force, he baffles the veteran Cornwallis, when the latter believed, and had announced in an intercepted letter, that " the boy could not escape him." No longer now is seen the brow of American patriots overcast with gloom, no longer is heard the voice of de spondency ; in the enthusiasm of the youthful stranger, they read the hearts of European millions, they see the ap proaching aid of powerful France, they read the doom of England s power in America. Having remained about two years in America, he re turned to France to plead her cause, and solicited aid. On his arrival, he held a long conference with Maurepas, the French minister, but was not permitted to see the king. His house, nevertheless, was thronged with the elite of the French capital, and from every hand the cup of adula tion was proffered to his acceptance. But the importance 490 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. of his mission suffered him not to repose in careless inac tivity. He labored incessantly with the French govern ment to induce them to send us a fleet and troops, and, when he felt sure of success, he -again embarked for America, and on his arrival announced the important intel ligence to Washington. The year following, he visited France, to make still greater exertions in our favor. Con gress passed a resolution requesting all our foreign ministers to confer with him in all their negotiations concerning our affairs. He arrived in Fiance, and received the plaudits of the whole nation. Even the drama lent its aid to swell the popular enthusiasm. But amid the honors that were thus heaped upon him, he never forgot the stern duties of his mission, and at length succeeded in obtaining an order to Count d Estaing, as soon as Lafayette should join him, to sail with forty-nine ships and twenty thousand men. But before the necessary preparations were made, he had the satisfaction of announcing peace, in a letter to Con gress, dated in the harbor of Cadiz, February 5, 1783. After travelling in Prussia, he returned to France, and became a member of the Assembly of Notables, where he made a motion, which no one dared to second, calling for an election of representatives of the states general. In two years from that time, his plan was carried into effect. Dissatisfaction at the existing order of things continued to increase, and sectional jealousies arose. The people of Paris were indignant that the royal family chose to reside at Versailles, rather than at Paris, where the influence of the latter city might be more immediately felt. They mounted the blue and red cockade, to which Lafayette added white, the royal color, remarking, when he fixed it to his hat, that " it would go around the world." On the 5th of October, Lafayette, having learned that a mob of one hundred thousand ferocious men and wo men had gone to Versailles, hastened, with a part of the National Guards, to protect the royal family. But, on ar riving at Versailles, he was permitted only to occupy the outposts of the palace, a measure that had nearly proved fatal to the queen ; for in the night the populace were ad mitted to the palace by private passages, and the queen had barely time to escape from the room, half naked, ere the SELECT LIVES. 491 guard of her chamber was forced : at this moment, La fayette, with some guards, rushed in and saved her. The Jacobin clubs found in him no supporter ; yet La fayette voted for the decree abolishing titles, and re nounced his own, which he never after resumed. lie ad vocated and procured the adoption of a representative constitution, when, in imitation of his great commander, he retired to his quiet retreat at La Grange. The war with Austria, in 1792, called him from this re treat, and required him to resume a command in the army. Meanwhile, the Jacobin clubs became more violent, mak ing demonstrations of designs so dangerous, that Lafayette, unable longer to keep silence, wrote a letter denouncing their designs, which was read in the National Assembly ; and so great was their power at that time, that the letter was pronounced a forgery. The members could not be lieve any man bold enough to dare their vengeance. But Lafayette appeared in the Assembly, and acknowledged the letter, when even the Jacobins shrank from an open contest with him, but set into operation the infernal machinery which at once laid low the loftiest heads in France. La fayette foresaw the coming storm, and, attended by three of his officers, left the French camp, intending to pass through the Austrian camp, reach the frontiers of France, and thence embark for America. They were, however, arrested the first night, by the Austrian patroles, given over to the Prussians, and sent to Wesel, on the Rhine, thence to Magdeburg ; whence they were transferred to the Aus- trians, and finally sent to the citadel of Olmutz. Lafayette was told, on his entrance, that he had seen the light of day for the last time ; that he should no more have the least communication with the world, or its events; that his very name would be unknown to all in and around his prison ; that he would be mentioned in the prison reports merely by the number of his room, and that no intelligence of his fate would ever be suffered to reach his friends. For three years these refined cruelties were practised upon him, apparently with the design of breaking down his great spirit. But, during all this time, his friends left no means un tried to discover the place of his confinement. They employed Count Lally Tollendal to prosecute inquiries in 492 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. every direction. Dr. Erick Bolleman was employed as an agent in the business. After laboring, with no success, for a long time, he at length traced them to the several pris ons in which they had been confined, and paused, at last, before the very citadel of Olmutz. Here he succeeded in forming an acquaintance with the surgeon of the prison, from whom he learned that they had one prisoner of great importance, respecting whom the most profound secrecy was preserved. After many inquiries cautiously made, Bolleman was convinced that he had discovered the object of his search. He opened a communication with the prisoner by means of the surgeon, and found that he was understood ; he also ascertained that the prisoner was al lowed occasionally to ride, attended by an officer, with a guard behind the carriage. He communicated his project, based on the information he had obtained, to Mr. Francis K. Huger. He entered with ardor into the plan. They procured two saddle horses, and trained one of them to carry two riders. On the day appointed for making the attempt, they saw the carriage leave the prison, and advanced to meet it, exchanging signs with the prisoner as they passed. They soon turned, and followed the carriage at a distance, for several miles, till they arrived at a spot remote from any habitations, when Lafayette and the officer left the carriage, and retired to a distance from the guards. This was the moment selected to effect their design. They suddenly seized, bound, and gagged the officer, while the guard fled to raise the alarm at the citadel. One of the horses had escaped, and Lafayette was put upon the other, and told to go to HofT, which he unfortunately understood as a direction to go off. This he did without any design or plan of escape. The other horse was soon recovered, and Bolleman and Huger mounted him to follow La fayette ; but the animal proved intractable, and threw them off, after which Huger mounted alone, and rode full speed to Hoff, where, of course, he found not Lafayette. In a short time, they were all three under the roof of the citadel at Olmutz, where Huger was chained to the floor, and Lafayette was led to believe that his friends were to be executed before his window, and that he was reserved for the same fate. SELECT LIVES. 493 His heroic wife and his two daughters now claimed ad mission to his dungeon, which was granted only on condi tion that they should never leave it. Here, literally buried alive, in the moist, unhealthy, and loathsome dungeon, for twenty-two months, they strove to sustain and cheer the spirits of the suffering patriot. At length the exhausted powers of his wife required that she should leave the dun geon to save her life, and she received permission to do so, only on condition that she should never return a boon which she indignantly refused, arid then prepared to die with her husband. But now, the voice of France was heaud in remonstrance at this outrageous treatment of a French citizen, and ne gotiations were commenced to effect his liberation ;. which, after a series of protracted delays, was effected, and La fayette went with his family to reside in Holstein, whence, in about a year, he departed for Utrecht, and returned thence to France. During the consulship of Napoleon, and under the imperial dynasty, he steadily refused all dis tinction offered him, that was not derived from the con sent of the French people : refused to acknowledge the right of Napoleon to assume the imperial purple, and never failed to present to the eyes of all Europe an illustrious instance of disinterested patriotism, derived from the ex ample of his " adored commander." After the lapse of nearly fifty years, he again landed on the shores of his adopted country. At the moment of his landing, he was embraced in the arms of a whole people ; all sectional jealousies, all party animosities, were forgotten in the universal peal of " Welcome, Lafayette," that resounded from every hamlet and city in our land. European des potism quailed at the sound, and from that moment Euro pe in serfs have less patiently endured their bondage, and striven to burst their chains. In his calm retreat at La Grange, to which the eyes of the whole civilized world were turned with the joy of demons or the sorrow of angels, the philanthropic hero, at the acre of 77, breathed his last, May 20th, 1834. MORGAN, DANIEL, a distinguished officer in the army of the American revolution, was born in New Jersey, 42 494 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and removed to Virginia in 1755. He enlisted in Brad- dock s expedition as a private soldier, and, on the defeat of that general, returned to his occupation as a farmer. At the commencement of the revolution, he was appointed to the command of a troop of horse, and joined the army under Washington, then in the neighborhood of Boston. He distinguished himself very much in the expedition against Quebec, where he fell into the hands of the enemy. On the exchange of prisoners, he rejoined the American army, was appointed to the command of a select rifle corps, and detached to assist General Gates on the north ern frontier, where he contributed materially to the capture of General Burgoyne. After a short retirement from ser vice, on account of ill health, he was appointed brigadier- general by brevet, and commanded the force by which Colonel Tarleton was routed at the battle of Cowpeus. He soon after resigned his commission. In 1794, he com manded the militia of Virginia called out to suppress the insurrection in Pennsylvania, and continued in the service till 1795. He afterwards was elected to a seat in Con gress. He died in 1799. MORGAN, JOHN, an eminent American physician, was born in Philadelphia, in 1735, and was educated at the college in that city. He completed his medical studies in Europe, and, on his return in 1765, was elected profess or of the theory and practice of medicine in the medical college in Philadelphia. In October, 1775, he was ap pointed chief physician to the general hospitals of the American army, but in 1775, was removed on account of certain accusations which he afterwards proved to be en tirely groundless. He died in 1789. He was the author of several medical treatises. MARION, FRANCIS, a distinguished officer in the American army, was born in South Carolina, in 1732, and first served in 1761, as lieutenant against the Cherokees. Soon after the commencement of the revolution, he re ceived a major s commission, and, in 1780, he obtained that of brigadier-general. He continually surprised and captured parties of the British and the royalists by the se crecy and rapidity of his movements. On the evacuation SELECT LIVES. 495 of Charleston, he retired to his plantation, where he died in 1795. He was bold, generous, and severe in his dis cipline. MORTON, NATHANIEL, one of the first settlers of Plymouth, New England, and a magistrate of the col ony, was the author of a history of the church at Plym outh, and of a volume called New England s Memorial. This work was originally published in 1669, and a new edition of it has been recently issued, NICHOLSON, JAMES, an officer in the American navy, was born in Chestertown, Maryland, in 1737. He followed the life of a sailor till the year 1763, when he married, and settled in the city of New York. Here he remained until 1771, when he returned to his native prov ince. At the commencement of the revolution, the gov ernment of Maryland built and equipped a ship of war, called the Defence, and the command of her was intrusted to Nicholson. He performed various exploits during the war, and, before the close of it, was taken prisoner, and carried into New York. He died in 1806. OLIVER, ANDREW, was graduated at Harvard Col lege, in 1724, and was early engaged in public employ ments, succeeded Hutchinson, as lieutenant-governor of Massachusetts, in 1771, and retained that office till his death, in 1774. He rendered himself very unpopular by accepting from the British government the office of stamp distributor of the province. OTIS, JAMES, a distinguished American statesman, was born at West Barnstable, Massachusetts, in 1725, and was graduated at Harvard College, in 1743. He pursued the profession of the law, and, establishing himself in Bos ton, soon rose to eminence. His public career may be said to have opened with his celebrated speech against writs of assistance. At the next election, he was chosen a representative to the legislature, and soon became the leader of the popular party. In 1765, he was a member of the Congress which assembled at New York. In 1769, he was severely wounded in an assault committed upon him by some British officers ; from one of whom he recov ered large damages, which he remitted on receiving a written apology. In 1772, he retired from public life, and, 496 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. in May of the following year, was killed by a stroke of lightning. He was a good scholar, a learned and able lawyer, a bold and commanding orator, arid possessed in finite powers of humor and wit. PARSONS, THEOPHILUS, a distinguished lawyer, was born at Byeneld, Massachusetts, in 1750, and gradu ated at Harvard College, in 1769. He studied, and pur sued the practice of the law, for some years, in Falmouth, now Portland ; but, when that town was destroyed by the British, he retired to the house of his father in Newbury. About a year afterwards, he opened an office in Newbury- port. He soon rose to the highest rank in his profession, and made immense acquisitions in legal knowledge. His professional services were sought for in all directions, and, after thirty-five years of extensive practice, he was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts. In 1780, he was a member of the Convention which formed the constitution of the state, and of the Convention which accepted the federal constitution. He was a powerful speaker, without a rival in knowledge of law, and surpassed by few in his acquaintance with science and classical liter ature. He continued in the seat of chief justice till his death, in 1813. PICKERING, TIMOTHY, an American statesman, was born in Salem, in 1746, and was graduated at Harvard College, in 1763. He took an active part in the popular cause, and, in organizing the provisional government of Massachusetts in 1775, was appointed a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Essex, and sole judge of the Mari time Court for the middle district. During the war, he was appointed adjutant-general, and subsequently a mem ber of the board of war. From 1790 to 1798, at diifer- ent intervals, he was employed on various negotiations with the Indians. He was successively postmaster-gen eral, secretary of war, and secretary of state. From the last office he was removed by President Adams, in 1800. From 1803 to 1811, he was a senator in Congress from his na tive state, and from 1814 to 1817, a representative in that body. In public life, he was distinguished for firmness, energy, activity, and disinterestedness. He died in Salem, in 1829. SELECT LIVES. 497 PRATT, BENJAMIN, chief justice of New York, was born in Massachusetts, in 1710, and was graduated at Harvard College. He studied law, and, entering on its practice in Boston, soon became eminent. Turning his attention to public affairs, he soon rose to political dis tinction, and, by the influence of Governor Pownell, was appointed chief justice of New York. He died in Jan uary, 1763. He had made collections for a history of New England, and possessed considerable talent for poetry. PETERS, RICHARD, an eminent judge, was born in June, 1744, and received his education in the city of Philadelphia. He adopted the profession of the law, and soon obtained an extensive practice. At the commence ment of hostilities with the mother country, Mr. Pe ters joined the side of the colonies, and, in 1776, was appointed, by Congress, secretary of the board of war. His exertions in this department were highly meritorious and useful; and, on resigning the post, in 1781, he was elected a member of Congress, and assisted in closing the business of the war. On the organization of the new government, Mr. Peters was appointed judge of the Dis trict Court of Pennsylvania, and performed the duties of this office for thirty-six years. During this time, he was engaged in several objects of public improvement, and issued several valuable publications in relation to agricul ture. As a judge, he possessed powers of a high order, and his decisions on admiralty law form the groundwork of this branch of our jurisprudence. Their principles were not only sanctioned by our own courts, but were simul taneously adopted by Lord Stowell, the distinguished marU time judge of Great Britain. Judge Peters died in Au^ gust, 1828. 3 PINCKNEY, CHARLES COTESWORTH, a dis tinguished officer of the revolutionary army, was born in South Carolina, received his education in England, and studied law in the Temple. On returning to his native province, in 1769, he devoted himself to the successful practice of his profession. On the commencement of hos tilities, he renounced law for the study of military tactics, and was soon promoted to the command of the first regi~ ment of Carolina infantry. He was subsequently aid-de- 42* 498 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. camp to Washington, and, in this capacity, at the battles of Brandy wine and Germantown. On the surrender of Charleston, he was taken prisoner, and remained so till all opportunity of gaining fresh reputation in the field had passed. He was a member of the Convention which formed the federal constitution, and, in 1796, was ap pointed minister to France. When preparations were making for war on account of the expected French inva sion, Mr. Pinckney was nominated a major-general; but he soon had an opportunity of retiring to the quiet of private life. He was afterwards president of the Cincinnati So ciety of the United States. He died in 1825. PUTNAM, ISRAEL, an officer in the army of the American revolution, was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1718. He received but a meagre education, and, re moving to Connecticut, engaged in agriculture. In the French war, he commanded a company, and was engaged in several contests with the enemy. In 1756, he fell into an ambuscade of savages, and was exposed to the most cruel tortures. He obtained his release in 1 759, and returned to his farm. Soon after the battle at Lexington, he joined the army at Cambridge, was appointed major- general, and distinguished himself at Bunker s Hill. In 1776, he was sent to complete the fortifications at New York, and afterwards to fortify Philadelphia. In the win ter of 1777, he was stationed with a small body at Prince ton, and in the spring appointed to a command in the High lands, where he remained most of the time till the close of 1779, when he was disabled by an attack of paralysis. He died in 1790. He was brave, energetic, and one of the most efficient officers of the revolution. POCAHONTAS, daughter of an Indian chief, and much celebrated in the early history of Virginia, was born about the year 1595. She became warmly attached to the English, and rendered them important services on various occasions. She married an Englishman, and, in 1616, accompanied her husband to his native country, where she was presented at court. She soon after died at Graves- end, when about to return to Virginia. She left one son. PARKER, ISAAC, an eminent lawyer, was born in Boston, and graduated at Harvard College, in 1786. He SELECT LIVES. 499 studied law in the office of Judge Tudor, and commenced practice at Castine, in Maine, then an integral part of Mas sachusetts. Removing to Portland, he was sent, for one term, to Congress, as a representative from Cumberland county. He also held, for a short time, the office of United States marshal for that district. In 180(5, he was appointed, by Governor Strong, associate judge of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts, and soon after took up his residence at Boston. In 1814, he was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court, and held that office till his sudden death in July, 1830, at the age of sixty-three years. He was distinguished for urbanity, and his legal opinions are very highly respected. PULASKI, count, a celebrated soldier, was a na tive of Poland, and made brave though unsuccessful efforts to restore his country to independence. He came to the United States during the revolutionary war, and was ap pointed a brigadier-general in the American army. He was mortally wounded in the attack on Savannah, in 1779. Congress voted to erect a monument to his memory. QUINCY, JOSIAH, a distinguished lawyer and pa triot, was born in Boston, in 1743, and was graduated at Harvard College. He soon became eminent in the prac tice of law, and distinguished by his active exertions in the popular cause. His powers of eloquence were of a very high order. In 1774, he took a voyage to Europe for the benefit of his health, and to advance the interests of the colonies. He died on his return, on the 25th of April, 1775, the day the vessel reached the harbor of Cape Ann. REED, JOSEPH, a patriot of the American revolution, was graduated at the college in New Jersey, in 1 757. While a member of Congress, in 1778, the British commissioner endeavored to procure his influence to bring about a recon ciliation between the colonies and the mother country ; he rejected their offers with the reply, " That he was not worth purchasing; but, such as he was, the king of Great Britain was not rich enough to buy him." In 1778, he was chosen president of Pennsylvania, and retained that office till his death, in 1781. RITTENHOUSE, DAVID, a celebrated mathemati- 500 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. cian, was born in Pennsylvania, in 1732. During his early life, he was employed in agriculture ; but, as his con stitution was feeble, he became a clock and mathematical instrument maker. In 1770, he removed to Philadelphia, and practised his trade. He was elected a member, and for some time president, of the Philosophical Society, and one of the commissioners employed to determine the boundary line between Pennsylvania and Virginia, and be tween New York and Massachusetts. He was treasurer of Pennsylvania from 1777 to 1789, and from 1792 to 1795, director of the United States mint. His death took place in 1796. His mathematical talents were of the highest order. RAMSAY, DAVID, an American historian, was born in Pennsylvania, in 1749, was educated at Princeton Col lege, and commenced the study of medicine. After prac tising a short time in Maryland, he removed to Charleston, South Carolina, in 1773, and soon rose to an extensive practice. He took an active and early part in the cause of the colonies, and was for some time a surgeon in the revolutionary army. In 1782, he was chosen to a seat in Congress. He wrote a History of the Revolution in South Carolina; a History of the American Revolution; a Life of Washington ; a History of South Carolina ; and a His tory of the United States. He died in 1815. REEVE, TAPPING, an eminent lawyer, was born at Brook Haven, in 1744, and was graduated at Princeton College. He established himself as a lawyer in Litchfield, Connecticut, where he founded the law school, of which, for nearly thirty years, he was the principal instructor. He was for many years judge of the Supreme Court of that state, and some time chief justice. His legal attainments were of a high order, and, as a man, he possessed the esteem and respect of the community. STRONG, CALEB, governor of Massachusetts, was born at Northampton, in 1744, and graduated at Harvard College. He pursued the profession of the law, and estab lished himself in his native town. Taking an early and active part in the revolutionary movements, he was ap pointed, in 1775, one of the committee of safety, and, in the following year, a member of the state legislature. He SELECT LIVES. 501 was a member of the Convention which formed the consti tution of the state, and of that which formed the constitu tion of the United States. Subsequently he was a senator to Congress, and for eleven years, at different periods, chief magistrate of Massachusetts. He died in 1820. SEDGWICK, THEODORE, was born at Hartford, in 1746, was educated at Yale College, and, removing to Massachusetts, pursued the study of the law. He em barked with spirit in the cause of the popular party before the revolution, held a seat several years in the state legis lature, and was a member of Congress under the old confederation. He was a member of the Massachusetts Convention to decide on the adoption of the federal consti tution, was a representative and senator to Congress, and, in 1802, was appointed judge of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. In this office he remained till his death, in 1813. SMITH, JOHN, one of the early settlers of Virginia, was born in Lincolnshire, in 1579. After passing through a variety of wonderful adventures, he resolved to visit North America ; and having, with a number of other per sons, procured a charter of South Virginia, he came over thither in 1697. Being taken prisoner by the Indians, and condemned to death, his life was saved by the daugh ter of the savage chief, the celebrated Pocahontas. He published an account of several of his voyages to Virginia, a history of that colony, and an account of his own life. He died at London, in 1631. SULLIVAN, JOHN, an officer in the army of the American revolution, was born in Maine, and established himself in the profession of law in New Hampshire. Turning his attention to military affairs, he received, iri 1772, the commission of major, and, in 1775, that of brig adier-general. The next year, he was sent to Canada, and, on the death of General Thomas, the command of the army devolved on him. In this year, he was promoted to the rank of major-general, and was soon after captured by the British in the battle on Long Island. He commanded a division of the army at the battles of Trenton, Brandy- wine, and Gennantown, and was the sole commander of an expedition to the Island of Newport, which failed o02 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. through want of cooperation from the French fleet. In 1779, he commanded an expedition against the Indians. He was afterwards a member of Congress, and for three years president of New Hampshire. In 1789, he was ap pointed a judge of the District Court, and continued in that office till his death, in 1795. SULLIVAN, JAMES, was born at Berwick, Maine, in 1744, and, after passing the early part of his life in agri cultural pursuits, adopted the profession of the law. He took an early part in the revolutionary struggle, and in 1775 was chosen a member of the Provincial Congress. In 1776, he was appointed a judge of the Superior Court. He was subsequently a member of Congress, a member of the executive council, judge of probate, and, in 1790, was appointed attorney-general. In 1807, he was elected gov ernor of Massachusetts, arid again in the following year, in the December of which he died. He was the author of a History of Land Titles, a History of the District of Maine, and an Essay on Banks. His rank at the bar was in the very first class, and in his private character he was distin guished for piety, patriotism, and integrity. STARK, JOHN, a general in the army of the Ameri can revolution, was born in Londonderry, New Hampshire, in 1728. During the French war, he was captain of a company of rangers in the provincial service, in 1755, and was with Lord Howe when that general was killed, in storming the French lines at Ticonderoga, in 1758. On receiving the report of the battle of Lexington, he was en gaged at work in his saw-mill ; and, fired with indignation, seized his musket, and immediately proceeded to Cam bridge, He was at the battles of Bunker s Hill and of Trenton, and achieved a glorious victory at Bennington. He rose to the rank of brigadier-general, and was distin guished throughout the war for enterprise and courage. He died in 1822, STEUBEN, FREDERICK WILLIAM AUGUSTUS, baron de, was a Prussian officer, aid-de-camp to Fred- erick the Great, and lieutenant-general in the army of that distinguished commander. He arrived in America in 1777, and immediately offered his services to the Conti nental Congress, In 1778, he was appointed inspector- SELECT LIVES. 503 general, with the rank of major-general, and rendered the most efficient services in the establishment of a regular system of discipline. During the war, he was exceedingly active and useful, and after the peace, he retired to a farm in the vicinity of New York, where, with the assistance of books and friends, he passed his time as agreeably as a frequent want of funds would permit. The state of New York afterwards gave him a tract of sixteen thousand acres in the county of Oneida, and the general government made him a grant of two thousand five hundred dollars per annum. He died in 1795, and, at his own request, was wrapped in his cloak, placed in a plain coffin, and hid in the earth, without a stone to tell where he was laid. STANDISH, MILES, the first captain at Plymouth, New England, was born at Lancashire, in 1534, and ac- compinied Mr. Robinson s congregation to Plymouth, in 16*29. His services in the wars with the Indians were highly useful, and many of his exploits were daring and extraordinary. He died in 1656. TRUMBULL, JOHN, the author of McFingal, was born in Connecticut, in 1751), and was educated at Yale College, where he entered at a very early age. In 1772, he published the first part of his poem, the Progress of Dulness. In the following year, he was admitted to the bar in Connecticut, arid, removing to Boston, continued his legal studies in the office of John Adams. He re turned to h s native state in 1774, and commenced prac tice at New Haven. The first part of McFingal was pub lished at Philadelphia, in 1775 : the poem Was completed and published in 1782, at Hartford, where the author at that time lived. More than thirty editions of this work have been printed. In 1789, he was appointed state-attor ney for the county of Hartford, and, in 1891, was appoint ed a judge of the Superior Court of Errors, and held this appointment till 1819. In 1829, a collection of his poems was published in two volumes, 8vo. In 1825, he removed to Detroit, where he died, in May, 1831. TYLER, ROYALL, a lawyer and miscellaneous wri ter, was born in Boston, and graduated at Harvard Col lege, in 1776. In 1799, he removed his residence to Ver mont, and soon distinguished himself in his profession of 504 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. law. For six years he was an associate judge of the Su preme Court of that state, and for six years more chief justice. He was the author of several dramatic pieces of considerable merit; a novel, called the Algerine Captive; and numerous pieces, in prose and verse, published in the Farmers Museum, when edited by Dennie. In addition to these, he published two volumes, entitled Vermont Re ports. He died at Brattleborough, in 1825. TILGHMAN, WILLIAM, an eminent jurist, was born in 1756, in Talbot county, on the eastern shore of Maryland. In 1772, he began the study of law in Phila delphia, but was not admitted to the practice of the profes sion till 1783. In 1788, and for some successive years, he was elected a representative to the legislature of Mary land. In 1793, he returned to Philadelphia, and pursued the practice of the law in that city till 1801, when he was appointed chief judge of the Circuit Court of the United States for the third circuit. After the abolition of this court, he resumed his profession, and continued in it till 1805, when he was appointed president of the Courts of Common Pleas in the first district of Pennsylvania. In the following year, he was commissioned as chief justice of the Supreme Court of that state. He died in 1827. TUDOR, WILLIAM, a man of letters, was born in the state of Massachusetts, and was graduated at Harvard College, in 1796. He soon after visited Europe, and passed several years there. After having been some time a member of the legislature of his native stale, he was appointed, in 1823, consul at Lima and for the ports of Peru. In 1827, he was appointed charge d affaires of the United States at the court of Brazil. He died at Rio de Janeiro, in 1830. Mr. Tudor was the founder, and for two years the sole editor, of the North American Review. He was the author of Letters on the Eastern States, and a Life of James Otis, and left a number of volumes in manu script, nearly prepared for the press. WILLIAMS, OTHO HOLLAND, an officer in the American army, was born in Maryland, in 1748, served in various capacities during the revolutionary war, and fought at the battles of Guilford, Hobkirk s Hill, and the Eutaws. Before the disbanding of the army, he was made brigadier- SELECT LIVES. 505 general. For several years, he was collector at Baltimore. He died in 1794. WINTHROP, JOHN, first governor of Massachusetts, was born at Groton, England, in 1.5S7. He arrived, with the colonists, in Salern, in 1639, having a commission as their governor, and held this office, with the exception of six or seven years, till his death, in 1649. He kept a minute journal of the affairs of the colony, which has been publishe I, and possesses much value. WINTHROP, JOHN, son of the foregoing, was born in England, in 1605, and received his education at Cam bridge. He came to Massachusetts in 1633, Hnd, subse quently visiting England, returned, and established a colo ny at Saybrook, Connecticut. In 1657, he was chosen governor of that colony, and remained so till his death, in 1676. He was distinguished for his love of natural philos ophy, and was one of the founders of the Royal Society of London. WINTHROP, JAMES, a man of letters, was born at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1752, and was graduated at Harvard College. He was for twenty years librarian of that institution. His acquirements in the exact sciences, the ancient and modern languages, and in biblical and po lite literature, were extensive. He died in 1821. WHEELOCK, JOHN, was born at Lebanon, Con necticut, in 1754. During the revolution, he held the com mission of lieutenant-colonel, and obtained some military reputation. In 1779, he became president of Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, and, in 1782, visited Europe to obtain contributions for that seminary. He remained in that office for thirty-six years. His death took place in 1817. WARREN, JOSEPH, a patriot of the American revo lution, was born in Roxbury, near Boston, in 1741, and was graduated at Harvard College, in 1759. He pursued the profession of medicine, and, soon after commencing the practice, distinguished himself by his successful treat ment, of the small-pox. Early engaging in politics, he ob tained great influence, and rendered efficient service by his writings and addresses. He was twice elected to deliver the oration in commemoration of the massacre on 43 506 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the 5th of March. In June, 1775, the Provincial Con gress of Massachusetts, of which he was at this time president, made him a major-general of their forces. At the battle of Bunker s Hill he fought as a volunteer, and was slain within a few yards of the breastwork, as he was among the last slowly retiring from it. He was a man of the most generous and intrepid spirit, much elegance of manners, and of commanding eloquence. His loss was deeply felt and regretted. In 1770, his remains were removed from the battle-ground, and interred in Boston. WARREN, JAMES, was born at Plymouth, in 1726, and was graduated at Harvard College, in 1745. He took an early and active part in the cause of the colonies against the aggressions of the mother country, was a member of the General Court, proposed the establish ment of committees of correspondence, and, after the death of General Warren, was appointed president of the Provincial Congress. He was afterwards appointed a major-general of the militia. On the adoption of the constitution of Massachusetts, he was for many years speaker of the House of Representatives. He died at Plymouth, in 1808. WASHINGTON, BUSHROD, an eminent judge, was born in Westmoreland county, Virginia, and was educated at William and Mary s College. He pursued the study of the law in the office of Mr. Wilson, of Philadelphia, and commenced its practice with great success in his native county. In 1781, he was a member of the House of Dele gates of Virginia. He afterwards removed to Alexandria, and thence to Richmond, where he published two volumes of the decisions of the Supreme Court of Virginia. In 1798, he was appointed an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and continued to hold this situation till his death, in November, 1829. He was the favorite nephew of President Washington, and was the devisee of Mount Vernon. WINDER, WILLIAM H., an officer in the American army, was born in Maryland, in 1775, was educated for the bar, and pursued his profession in Baltimore with great success. In 1812, he received a colonel s commission, was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general, and served with LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 507 reputation during the war with Great Britain. He com manded the troops at the battle of Bladensburg. On the declaration of peace, he resumed the practice of his pro fession. He died in 1824. WAYNE, ANTHONY, major-general in the army of the United States, was born, in 1745, in Chester county, Pennsylvania. He entered the army as colonel in 1775, served under Gates at Ticonderoga, and was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general. He was engaged in the battles of Brandywine, Germantovvn, and Morimouth, in 1779 captured the fortress at Stony Point, and rendered other important services during the war. In 1787, he was a member of the Pennsylvania!! Convention which ratified the constitution of the United States. In 1792, he suc ceeded St. Clair in the command of the western army, and gained a complete victory at the battle of the Miamis, in 1794. He died at Presque Isle, in 1796. LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. GEORGE WASHINGTON. GEORGE WASHINGTON, the illustrious founder of Amer ican independence, was born in 1732, in the county of Fairfax, in Virginia, where his father was possessed of great landed property. He was educated under the care of a private tutor, and paid much attention to the study of mathematics and engineering. He was first employed officially by General Dinwiddie, in 1753, in remonstrating to the French commander on the Ohio for the infraction of the treaty between the two nations. He subsequently negotiated a treaty of amity with the Indians of the back settlements, and for his honorable services received the thanks of the British government. In the unfortunate ex pedition of General Braddock, he served as aid-de-camp; 508 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and, on the fall of that brave but rash commander, he con ducted the retreat to the corps under Colonel Dunbar, in a manner that displayed great military talent. He retired from the service with the rank of colonel ; but, while en gaged in agriculture at his favorite seat of Mount Vernon, he was elected senator in the national council for Freder ick county, and afterwards for Fairfax. At the commence ment of the revolutionary war, he was selected as the most proper person to take the chief command of the provincial troops. From the moment of taking upon himself this important office, (in June, 1775,) he employed the great powers of his mind to his favorite object ; and, by his prudence, his valor, and presence of mind, he deserved and obtained the confidence and gratitude of his country, and finally triumphed over all opposition. The record of his services is the history of the whole war. He joined the army at Cambridge, in July, 1775. On the evacuation of Boston, in March, 1776, he proceeded to New York. The battle of Long Island was fought on the 27th of Au gust, and the battle of White Plains on the 28th of Octo ber. On the 25th of December, he crossed the Delaware, and soon gained the victories at Trenton and Princeton. The battle of Brandywine was fought on September llth, 1777; of Germantown, October 4th; of Monmouth, February 28th, 1778. In 1779 and 1780, he continued in the vicinity of New York, and closed the important military operations of the war by the capture of Corn- wallis, at York town, in 1781. When the independence of his country was established by the treaty of peace, Washington resigned his high office to the Congress, and, followed by the applause and the grateful admiration of his fellow-citizens, retired into private life. His high charac ter and services naturally entitled him to the highest gifts his country could bestow; and, on the organization of the government, he was called upon to be the first president of the states which he had preserved and established. It was a period of great difficulty and danger. The unsub dued spirit of liberty had been roused and kindled by the revolution of France; and many Americans were eager that the freedom and equality, which they themselves en joyed, should be extended to the subjects of the French LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 509 monarch. Washington anticipated the plans of the fac tious, and, by prudence and firmness, subdued insurrec tion, and silenced discontent, till the parties, which the intrigues of Genet, the French envoy, had roused to rebel lion, were convinced of the wildness of their measures, and of the wisdom of their governor. The president completed, in 1796, the business of his office by signing a commercial treaty with Great Britain, and then voluntarily resigned his power, at a moment when all hands and all hearts were united again to confer upon him the sove reignty of the country. Restored to the peaceful retire ment of Mount Vernon, he devoted himself to the pursuits of agriculture; arid, though he accepted the command of the army in 1798, it was merely to unite the affections of his fellow-citizens to the general good, and was one more sacrifice to his high sense of duty. General Washington was six feet in height; he appeared taller, as his shoulders rose a little higher than the true proportion. His eyes were of a gray, and his hair of a brown, color ; his limbs were well formed, and indicated strength; his complexion was light, and his countenance serene and thoughtful ; his manners were graceful, manly, and dignified ; his general appearance never failed to en gage the respect and esteem of all who approached him. Reserved, but not haughty, in his disposition, he was ac cessible to all, in concerns of business; but he opened himself only to his confidential friends, and no art or ad dress could draw from him an opinion which he thought prudent to conceal. He was not so much distinguished for brilliancy of genius as for solidity of judgment, and consummate pru dence of conduct. He was not so eminent for any one quality of greatness and worth, as for the union of those great, amiable, and good qualities, which are very rarely combined in the same character. In domestic and private life, he blended the authority of the master with the care and kindness of the guardian and friend. Solicitous for the welfare of his slaves, while at Mount Vernon, he every morning rode round his estates to examine their condition ; for the sick, physicians were provided, and to the weak and infirm every necessary comfort was administered, 43* 510 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. The servitude of the negroes lay with weight upon his mind ; he often made it the subject of conversation, and revolved several plans for their general emancipation. His industry was uuremitted, and his method so exact, that all the complicated business of his military command and civil administration was managed without confusion and without hurry. Not feeling the lust of power, and ambitious only for honorable fame, he devoted himself to his country upon the most disinterested principles, and his .actions wore not the semblance, but the reality, of virtue: the purity of his motives was accredited, and absolute con fidence placed in his patriotism. While filling a public station, the performance of his duty took the place of pleasure, emolument, and every pri vate consideration. During the more critical years of the war, a smile was scarcely seen upon his countenance ; he gave himself no moments of relaxation, but his whole mind was engrossed to execute successfully his trust. He was as eminent for piety as for patriotism ; his public and private conduct evince, that he impressively felt a sense of the superintendence of God, and of the dependence of man. In his addresses, while at the head of the army and of the national government, he gratefully noticed the sig nal blessings of Providence, and fervently commended his country to divine benediction. In private, he was known to have been habitually devout. In the establishment of his presidential household, he reserved to himself the Sab bath, free from the interruptions of private visits or public business ; and, throughout the eight years of his civil ad ministration, he gave to the institutions of Christianity the influence of his example. Uniting the talents of the sol dier with the qualifications of the statesman, and pursuing, unmoved by difficulties, the noblest end by the purest means, he had the supreme satisfaction of beholding the complete success of his great military and civil services, in the independence and happiness of his country. He died, after a short illness, on the 14th of December, 1799. He was buried with the honors due to the noble founde^ of a happy and prosperous republic. History furnishes no parallel to the character of Washington. He stands on an unapproached eminence distinguished almost beyond hu- LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 511 inanity for self-command, intrepidity, soundness of judg ment, rectitude of purpose, and deep, ever-active piety. JOHN ADAMS. JOHN ADAMS, a distinguished patriot of the American revolution, was born in 1735, at Braintree, Massachusetts. He was educated at the University of Cambridge, and re ceived the degree of master of arts, in 1758. At this time he entered the office of Jeremiah Gridley, a lawyer of the highest eminence, to complete his legal studies ; and in the next year he was admitted to the bar of Suffolk. Mr. Adams at an early age espoused the cause of his coun try, and received numerous marks of the public confidence and respect. He took a prominent part in every leading measure, and served on several committees which reported some of the most important state papers of the time. He was elected a member of the Congress, and was among the foremost in recommending the adoption of an independent government. It has been affirmed by Mr. Jefferson him self, " that the great pillar of support to the declaration of independence, and its ablest advocate and champion on the floor of the house, was John Adams." In 1777, he was chosen commissioner to the court of Versailles, in the place of Mr. Deane, who was recalled. On his return, about a year afterwards, he was elected a member of the Convention to prepare a form of government for the state of Massachusetts, and placed on the sub-committee chosen to draught the project of a constitution. Three months after his return, Congress sent him abroad with two com missions, one as minister plenipotentiary to negotiate a peace, the other to form a commercial treaty with Great Britain. In June, 1789, he was appointed, in the place of Mr. Laurens, ambassador to Holland, and in 1782, he re paired to Paris, to commence the negotiation for peace, having previously obtained assurance that Great Britain would recognize the independence of the United States. At the close of the war, Mr. Adams was appointed the first minister to London. In 1789, he was elected vice-president of the United States, and, on the resignation of Washington, succeeded 512 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to the presidency, in 1797. After his term of four years had expired, it was found, on the new election, that his adversary, Mr. Jefferson, had succeeded by the majority of one vote. On retiring to his farm in Quincy, Mr. Adams occupied himself with agriculture, obtaining amusement from the literature and politics of the day. The remaining years of his life were passed in almost un interrupted tranquillity. The account that Mr. Adams gives, in a letter to a friend, of his introduction to George III., at the court of St. James, as the first minister from the rebel colonies, is very interesting. The scene would form a noble picture, highly honorable both to his majesty and the republican minister. Here stood the stern monarch, who had ex pended more than six hundred millions of dollars, and the lives of two hundred thousand of his subjects, in a vain attempt to subjugate freemen ; and by his side stood the mnn who, in the language of Jefferson, " was the great pillar of support to the declaration of independence, and its ablest advocate and champion on the floor of Congress." Mr. Adams says, " At one o clock, on Wednesday, the first of June, 1785, the master of ceremonies called at my house, and went with me to the secretary of state s office, in Cleaveland Row, where the marquis of Caermarthen re ceived and introduced me to Mr. Frazier, his under sec retary, who had been, as his lordship said, uninterruptedly in that office through all the changes in administration for thirty years. After a short conversation, Lord Caermar then invited me to go with him in his coach to court. When we arrived in the ante-chamber, the master of the ceremonies introduced him, and attended me, while the secretary of state went to take the commands of the king. While I stood in this place, where, it seems, all ministers stand upon such occasions, always attended by the master of ceremonies, the room was very full of ministers of state, bishops, and all other sorts of courtiers, as well as the next room, which is the king s bed-chamber. You may well suppose I was the focus of all eyes. I was relieved, however, from the embarrassment of it, by the Swedish and Dutch ministers, who came to me, and enter tained me with a very agreeable conversation during the LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 513 whole time. Some other gentlemen, whom I had seen be fore, came to make their compliments to me, until the mar quis of Caermarthen returned, and desired me to go with him to his majesty. I went with his lordship through the levee room into the king s closet. The door was shut, and I was left with his majesty and the secretary of state alone. I made the three reverences one at the door, another about half way, and another before the presence, accord ing to the usage established at this and all the northern courts of Europe ; and then I addressed myself to his ma jesty, in the following words : Sire : The United States have appointed me minister plenipotentiary to your ma jesty, and have directed me to deliver to your majesty this letter, which contains the evidence of it. It is in obe dience to their express commands, that I have the honor to assure your majesty of their unanimous disposition and desire to cultivate the most friendly and liberal intercourse between your majesty s subjects and their citizens, and of their best wishes for your majesty s health and happiness, and for that of your family. The appointment of a minis ter from the United States to your majesty s court, will form an epoch in the history of England and America. I think myself more fortunate than all my fellow-citizens, in having the distinguished honor to be the first to stand in your majesty s royal presence in a diplomatic character; and I shall esteem myself the happiest of men, if I can be instrumental in recommending my country more and more to your majesty s royal benevolence, and of restoring an entire esteem, confidence, and affection ; or, in better words, the old good nature and the good old humor, be tween people who, though separated by an ocean, and under different governments, have the same language, a similar religion, a kindred blood. I beg your majesty s permission to add, that, although I have sometimes before been instructed by my country, it was never, in my whole life, in a manner so agreeable to myself " The king listened to every word I said, with dignity, it is true, but with apparent emotion. Whether it was my visible agitation for I felt more than I could express that touched him, I cannot say ; but he was much affected, and answered me with more tremor than I had spoken with, 514 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and said : Sir : The circumstances of this audience are so extraordinary, the language you have now held is so extremely proper, and the feelings you have discovered so justly adapted to the occasion, that I not only receive with pleasure the assurance of the friendly disposition of the United States, but I am glad the choice has fallen upon you to be their minister. I wish you, sir, to believe, and that it may be understood in America, that I have done nothing in the late contest but what I thought myself in dispensably bound to do, by the duty which I owed my people. I will be frank with you. I was the last to conform to the separation ; but the separation having be come inevitable, I have always said, as I now sny, that I would be the first to meet the friendship cf the United States as an independent power. The moment I see such sentiments and language as yours prevail, and a disposition to give this country the preference, that moment I shall say, "Let the circumstances of language, religion, and blood, have their natural, full effect." 1 dare not say that these were the king s precise words ; and it is even possible that I may have, in some particulars, mistaken his meaning; for, although his pronunciation is as distinct as I ever heard, he hesitated sometimes between members of the same period. He was, indeed, much affected, and I was not less so ; and therefore I cannot be certain that I was so attentive, heard so clearly, and understood so perfectly, as to be confident of all his words, or sense. This I do say, that the foregoing is his majesty s meaning, as I then un derstood it, and his own words, as nearly as I cun recol lect them. The king then asked me whether I came last from France ; and, upon my answering in the affirmative, he put on an air of familiarity, and smiling, or rather laugh ing, said, There is an opinion among some people that you are not the most attached of all your countrymen to the manners of France. I was surprised at this, because I thought it an indiscretion, and a descent from his dignity. I was a little embarrassed ; but, determined not to deny truth, on the one hand, nor lead him to infer from it any attachment to England, on the other, I threw off as much gravity as I could, and assumed an air of gayety, and a tone of decision, as far as was decent, and said, That opinion, LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 515 sir, is not mistaken ; I must avow to your majesty, I have no attachment but to my own country. The king replied, as quick as lightning, An honest man will never have any other. The king then said a word or two to the secre tary of state, which, being between them, I did not hear, and then turned round and bowed to me, as is customary with all kings and princes when they give the signal to retire. I retreated, stepping backwards, as is the etiquette; and making my last reverence, at the door of the chamber, I went to my carriage." He died on the 4th of July, 1826, with the same words on his lips, which, fifty years before, on that glorious day, he had uttered on the floor of Congress " Independence forever." Mr. Adams is the author of an Essay on Canon and Feudal Law ; a series of Letters, published under the signature of Novariglus ; and Discourses on Davila. THOMAS JEFFERSON. THOMAS JEFFERSON, the third president of the United States, was born at Shadwell Farm, near Monticello, April 2, 1743. It is a little remarkable that the date of his birth could never be accurately determined, till it was discov ered after his de-ith. He invariably resisted all attempts made by his enthusiastic friends to obtain knowledge of it, who wished th it the anniversary of his birth might be come a day of jubilee to our nation. His youth was not squandered in pleasure which brings no return, but was faithfully and diligently devoted to the improvement of his mind. When he was yet quite young, he was one day present while Patrick Henry was pouring forth a flood of eloquence, carrying away the sentiments of all before it; Jefferson felt within hi nself the mighty struggles of a great spirit, which only demanded for its exhibition a theatre adequate to its powers. He re flected seriously whether he should spend his time in the fashionable amusements of the young men of his age, or mike the glory of Patrick Henry the pole-star of his thoughts and aspirations. He decided on the latter course, and commenced the study of law, to which he assiduously devoted himself, and, 516 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. after admission to the bar, engaged for a time in the practice of it. But he was early called to take a seat in the council of his native state, where he advanced at once to the very front rank. He took his stand on the part of the people, and, through the whole course of his subse quent career, was faithful to the generous spirit of his youth. Though himself a slaveholder, one of his first efforts at legislation was the introduction of a bill entitled " per mission for the emancipation of slaves," which was de feated by a large majority; yet it served to exhibit the un compromising hostility of Jefferson to oppression in all its forms. It was while he was a member of the Virginia legislature, that the resolutions of the British parliament, directed against Massachusetts, were received, and, at the instance of Jefferson, were met by counter resolutions. For this offence, the legislature was dissolved by the royal governor. Jefferson, Wythe, the two Lees, and Carr, ad journed to a tavern, where they conceived and perfected the non-importation act, which, more than any other meas ure, crippled the commerce of England, and revealed to her, and to the colonies themselves, the importance of the colonial trade. At a subsequent meeting, they discussed and settled a plan of operations for the committees of cor respondence in the different colonies, through whom every important act, that transpired in one, was immediately communicated to the sister colonies. Thus the slow and cautious step of tyranny in any colony was de tected, and the whole policy of England unfolded to the view of all. But the public mind was still too sluggish for the im petuous feelings of Jefferson, and he had recourse to the press, and to private correspondence, to breathe into the people the breath of life. He even proposed, and caused to be proclaimed, a religious fast on the day appointed for the Boston Port Bill to go into operation. For this ap pointment, the legislature was dissolved by Lord Dunmore, the royal governor. At this time, as after the former dis solution of the assembly, Jefferson and his patriotic as sociates retired to a tavern, where they digested other schemes to excite the indignation of the colonies against LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 517 England. To effect this design, they resorted to every means that offered the pulpit, the pen, the press, and political harangues. At length, Jefferson had the satisfac tion of taking part in the democratic Convention at Wil- liamsburg, in Virginia, the first ever assembled in Amer ica, where he wrote and presented instructions for the congressional delegates, entitled " A Summary View of the Rights of British America," which was republished by the whigs in the British Parliament. The bold stand taken in this pamphlet, brought down on Jefferson the vengeance of the British ministers, and a bill of attainder for high treason was commenced against him in the British Par liament, which, however, was never brought to maturity ; and had it been so, it could never have been served upon him, without a posse comitatus of one hundred thousand soldiers. In the year 1774, the royal government in the colonies may be said to have ceased, and the American assemblies to have succeeded to the inheritance of power, of which they had hitherto been unjustly deprived. Since she could no longer hope for success in overt acts of tyranny, Eng land had recourse to the arts of finesse and diplomatic skill. The conciliatory proposition of Lord North was now sent to each colony, allowing the Americans the privi lege of taxing themselves, provided that the amount of their contributions was satisfictory to England. So shallow a device could not have been supposed, by candid and sensi ble men, to have the most distant prospect of success with the majority of the people, but was probably intended merely to create a division, and overthrow the confedera tion. On this ground Jefferson took his stand ; and in the answer which he was appointed to prepare, he clearly and decidedly announced the determination of Virginia to ac cept no proposition which was not made to the General Congress. But now the hour of trial had come. September 5, 1774, Congress had assembled in Philadelphia. A resolu tion, moved by Patrick Henry, declaring the expediency of pitting the colonies in a state of defence, was before them. The wary arid the prudent shrank from the dre idful leap; the bold and f.ir-sinrhted rushed at once into the Rubicon. 41 518 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Long and vehement was the contest ; but nothing could resist the power of Henry, Jefferson, the Lees, the Pages, and Mason. The Rubicon was passed the resolution was adopted. And now the principle that sustained America in the shock with Britain s power, was pointedly displayed; the minority, to a man, united with the majority, and boldly put their names to the resolution. Jefferson was appointed to draw the Declaration of In dependence. The draught was reported June 28th, or dered to lie on the table till July 2, when it was subjected to a most tremendous ordeal in the debate that followed ; but after many alterations it passed. Thirty-seven years after wards, Mr. Jefferson declared that Mr. Adams was the pil lar of its support on the floor of Congress, its ablest advo cate and defender against the multifarious assaults it encountered. In a memorandum made by Jefferson relative to the alterations and omissions, he says, " The clause reproba ting the enslaving the inhabitants of Africa, was struck out in complaisance to South Carolina and Georgia, who had never attempted to restrain the importation of slaves, and who, on the contrary, still wished to continue it. Our northern brethren, also, I believe, felt a little tender under those censures ; for, though the people had very few slaves themselves, yet they had been pretty considerable carriers of them to others." The congressional term for which Jefferson was elected, expired in August, 1776, and he was reelected, but soon resigned his seat to take a place in the legislature of Virginia, where he believed that he could be more use ful. He was here the author of a bill abolishing entail- merits, and of one securing religious liberty ; a bill for emancipating slaves born after its enactment, which was defeated in his absence , a bill to abolish capital punishment, except in extreme cases ; and a bill establishing literary in stitutions. In 1779, Jefferson was chosen governor of Virginia, where he was distinguished for his firmness in opposition to the cruelty practised by the British on the Americans who fell into their power. To repress these cruelties, he had recourse to retaliation upon a man named Hamilton, and LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 519 on his associates, who had exercised great enormities, and were therefore deemed proper objects of retaliation. This measure was believed to have been advantageous to Amer ican prisoners in the power of the British, and accordingly severities were soon relaxed. In 1781, Mr. Jefferson, from a belief that the interests of the states required a governor whose military experience would enable him to lead the forces of the state, resigned in favor of Governor Nelson. Shortly after his resignation, Cornwallis, having learned that the Assembly was in session at Charlottesville, detached Colonel Tarleton at the head of his corps, to seize Mr. Jefferson. When about ten miles from Charlottesville, Tarleton sent a small troop to Monticello, and with the rest of his corps rode to Charlottesville. The alarm was given about sunrise ; the speakers of the two houses hast ened from Monticello, where they had slept the previous night, hastily rode to Charlottesville, adjourned the Assem bly, and made their escape. Jefferson placed his wife and children in a carriage, arid sent them to the house of Colo nel Carter, on a neighboring mountain, and remained at his own house, waiting until his horse should be shod, when word was brought that the British troops were already at the foot of the hill on which his mansion stood. Upon hearing this, he mounted his horse, and fled into the woods, with whose avenues he was perfectly acquainted, and soon afterwards joined his family. Tarleton, chagrined at his disappoint ment, burned all the barns of Jefferson, containing his last year s crop, carried off all the cattle, sheep, swine, &>c., and some of his horses, cut the throats of the rest, and burned all the fences on his plantation, reducing it to a barren waste. In 1783, Mr. Jefferson was elected to Congress, where, as in former times, he was to be found on those commit tees that particularly required ability, integrity, and patriot ism. He proposed and carried the measure effecting a change in the denomination of the currency, and intro ducing the decimal system. He opposed the formation of the Society of the Cincinnati, and the multiplication of ambassadors to foreign powers, in order to contract with them entingling alliances. In 1789, he was appointed minister plenipotentiary to 520 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. France, to succeed Dr. Franklin. About this time, the claims of the Barbary pirates, to which the greater part of the European powers had acceded, were firmly resisted by Mr. Jefferson, in the spirit of the maxim uttered by hirn on that occasion "Millions for defence, but not one cent for tribute." He opposed the formation of a treaty of commerce with Spain, requiring us to surrender to that power, for twenty or thirty years, the navigation of the Mississippi. While he was in France, besides attending to the ordinary duties of his embassy, his active mind was continually employed in devising plans for the improve ment of the condition of the human species. From Nice, he thus writes to Lafayette : "I am constantly roving about to see what I have never seen before, and shall never see again. In the great cities, I go to see what travellers think alone worthy of being seen ; but I make a job of it, and generally gulp it all down in a day. On the other hand, I am never satiated with rambling through the fields and farms, examining the culture and cultivators with a de gree of curiosity which makes some take me to be a fool, and others to be much wiser than I am. From the first olive fields of Pierrelatte, to the orangeries of Hieres, it has been continued rapture to me. I have often wished for you. I think you have not made this journey. It is a pleasure you have to come, and an improvement to be added to the many you have already made. It will be a great comfort to you to know, from your own inspection, the condition of all the provinces of your own country, and it will be interesting to them, at some future day, to be known to you. This is, perhaps, the only moment of your life, in which you can acquire that knowledge. And to do it most effectually, you must be absolutely incognito; you must ferret the people out of their hovels, as I have done, look into their kettles, eat their bread, loll on their beds under pretence of resting yourself, but in fact to find if they are soft. You will feel a sublime pleasure, in the course of this investigation, and a sublime one hereafter, when you shall be able to apply your knowledge to the soft ening of their beds, or the throwing a morsel of meat into their kettle of vegetables." Mr. Jefferson introduced into the south the cultivation LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 521 of upland rice, which enables the planter to dispense with the Mowings of land, so destructive to human life. He negotiated for the introduction of our whale oil and tobacco into French ports; recommended the culture of the fig, olive, and mulberry, in the United States; communica ted the art of stereotyping, then recently invented, and strove to introduce a taste for sculpture, music, and archi tecture. In the progress and success of the French revolution he took a deep interest, and was often consulted by Lafayette and the other lenders in their most difficult emergencies. He one day received a note from Lafayette, informing him that the latter, with six or seven other persons, would dine with him on a certain day. Accordingly, on the day ap pointed, Lafayette arrived with six or seven of the principal leaders of the different parties, that were then contending for the supremacy. After the cloth was removed, they calmly entered upon the discussion of the most important principles of government, established certain points, on which they might all agree, and thus, in some degree, softened the asperity of party feeling which had before prevailed. The next day, Mr. Jefferson sent to the minister, Montmorin, a full explanation of the occur rence, with which, however, the latter was fully ac quainted. In 1789, soon after his return from Paris, he received from Washington the appointment of secretary of state. In the performance of the duties of his office, he con ducted the controversy with Spain to a successful termina tion ; in a correspondence relating to our difference with England on the subject of impressment, he drove Mr. Hammond, the English minister, from the field by the force of his argument ; repressed the violation of our neutrality, committed by Genet, the French minister, and obtained his recall by the French government. In 1793, he re signed his office, and retired to Monticello, with the in tention of entering no more into public life. But in 1797, he was chosen vice-president, in which capacity he served until 1891, when he became president of the United States. On his induction into office, he sedulously avoided all 44* 522 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. external pomp, banished the machinery designed to elicit popular applause, walked from his boarding-house to . the Capitol, with six or seven members of Congress, without marshals, without the white wands emblematic of power, simply took the oath prescribed by the constitution, and entered on the performance of duty. Instead of a speech, he sent a message to the house, requesting that no answer should be returned. He favored the acquisition of Louisiana at the cost of 15,000,000 of dollars, by which 100,000,000 of acres were added to our territory. He recommended the building of gun-boats to take the place of the larger ships of war, believing that they would be less expensive, and more manageable ; he favored the building of dry docks for the reception of our vessels of war during peace. He never ceased to regret that the tenure of office of the federal judges, during good be havior, almost entirely removes them from the wholesome restraints that would be imposed by the popular will. The veto power, which renders the president almost a despot for the term of his election, Mr. Jefferson desired to see restricted. But so jealous was he of the rights of the peo ple, and so desirous that the liberty of speech and of the press should be unrestrained, that he never noticed the political slanders that were aimed at himself, save by a calm and temperate denial of their truth, in his private communications with his friends. The Baron Humboldt, one day, took from a table in Jefferson s library a news paper teeming with the most violent attacks on Mr. Jef ferson s private character, and with great indignation in- . quired why the power of the law was not brought upon the authors of such abominable lies. Jefferson, with a smile, replied, "What! hang the guardians of the public morals? No, rather would I protect the spirit of freedom, which dictates even that degree of abuse. Put that paper in your pocket, my good friend, carry it with you to Europe, and when you hear any one doubt the reality of American freedom, show them that paper, and tell them where you found it, Let the actions of virtuous characters refute such libels. When a man assumes a public trust, he should consider himself as public property." In conform- LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 523 ity with these sentiments were his actions ; for he released all those who had been imprisoned for opinion s sake, under the sedition law. He not only acknowledged him self the servant of the people, but he acted as such. No man applied to him in vain for aid or advice. In one of his eq lestrian excursions, he came to a ford in a river, by the side of which sat a beggar unable to cross. He boldly asked the assistance of Mr. Jefferson, whom he did not know, who allowed him to mount behind, and conveyed him across the stream, and afterwards returned for his wallet, and restored it to him. Mr. Jefferson was often seen returning from his excur sions with some flower or shrub, with which he ornamented the garden of the Capitol; and the beautiful rows of trees extending from the Capitol to the president s house were planted by his hands, or under his directions. He steadily refused to appoint any of his relations to office, since he always found some one else better qualified. He retired from the presidency in 1839, and joyfully resumed his philosophical and agricultural employments at Monticeilo, at the age of sixty-six, the same age at which the first five presidents left, the presidential chair. His re ligious opinions were the subject of vehement controversy, one party reproaching him with atheism, and the other stoutly denying the truth of the allegation. His state papers, contrary to the custom of the times, did not usually contain any appeal to the Supreme Being. His mind was not of a religious cast, though he considered " the Christian religion the most perfect system that the world ever saw." He devoted the last years of his life to the welfare of the University of Virginia, established under his auspices, and sustained by his more than pa ternal care. By the pecuniary sacrifices, and other losses which he had sustained, his affairs became embarrassed. Several state legislatures passed acts appropriating money for his relief. But before the consummation of their project, the object of their gratitude was no more. In consequence of a too free indulgence in the hot spring bath, his health had been failing for seven or eight years, and in the spring of 1826, it became evi- 524 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. dent to himself and his friends, that his frame was fast sinking with debility. A few d;iys before his death, a friend called to see him on business, and describes his interview in the following terms : " There he was extended, feeble, prostrate; but the fine and clear expression of his countenance not at all obscured. At the first glance he recognized me, arid his hand arid voice saluted me. He regretted that T should find him so helpless, talked of the freshet then prevailing in James River, and said he had never known a more destructive one. He soon, however, passed to the uni versity, expatiated on its future ability, commended the professors, and expressed satisfaction at the progress of the students. A sword was suspended at the foot of his bed, which he told me was presented to him by an Arabian chief, and that the blade was a true Damascus. At this time, he became so cheerful as to smile, even to laughing, at a remark I made. He alluded to the probability of his death as a man would to the prospect of being caught in a shower, as an event not to be desired, but not to be feared. " Upon proposing to withdraw, I observed that I would call to see him again. He said, Well, do; but you must dine here to-day. To this I replied, I proposed delay ing that pleasure till he got better. He waved his hand, and shook his head with some impatience, saying emphat ically, You must dine here to-day; my sickness makes no difference. I consented, left him, and never saw him more." On the 3d of July, he expressed his desire to live for one day more, that he might breathe the air of the fiftieth anniversary of American independence, when he would joyfully sing with old Simeon, " Nunc dimittas, Domine," " Now let me depart, O Lord." In the intervals of delirium, his mind reverted again to the scenes in which he had been a chief actor. Once he exclaimed, " Warn the committees to be on their guard," and instantly rose up in his bed, and went through the act of writing a hurried note. His last words were, "I have done for my country, and for all mankind, all that I could do, and I now resign my soul without fear to my God, my daughter to my country." He quietly passed away about LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 525 ten minutes before one o clock, on the 4th of July, 1826, at the very hour in which, fifty years before, the Declaration of Independence was signed. On the same day, about five hours later, died John Ad ims, the great coadjutor of Jefferson, in passing the Declaration of Independence. As Ms great spirit took its flight, it left its footprint on earth in these his last words, " Independence forever ; Jefferson survives." ty JAMES MADISON. JAMES MADISON, the fourth president of the United States, was born in Virginia, in 1750. Of his early life but little is known. In 1794, he was married to Mrs. Todd, widow of John Todd, Esq., a practitioner of the Pennsylvania bar. To the praise of his accomplished lady, it is known that, in her highest fortune, she did not neglect her early friends, but extended to all who approached her, those attentions which please the ex alted, and inspire the humble with becoming confidence. The first knowledge we have of Mr. Madison, is as an active member of the Continental Congress, at an early age. To him, more than any one else, perhaps, the people of the United States are indebted for the constitution under which they live. He was a leader in the Conven tion that framed it, and the most influential of its sup porters in the Virginia Convention that adopted it. An interesting sumrmry of Mr. Madison s opinions on the subject of confederation, will be found in the twenty- fifth volume of the North American Review. These opinions were addressed to General Washington, in a letter previous to the Convention in Philadelphia. At the outset of the federal government, Mr. Madison proposed a tax upon imported goods and tonnage. Much opposition was excited, but finally overcome by his argu ments, and the measure agreed to. His plan favored the commerce of France, rather than that of Great Britain. This proposition was in 1789. In 1794, he submitted to the house his fimous commercial resolutions. The sub stance of thsse resolutions was, that the interest of the United States would be promoted by further restrictions 526 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. and higher duties, and that provision ought to be made for ascertaining the losses sustained by American citizens, from the operation of particular regulations of any country contravening the law of nations; and that these losses be reimbursed, in the first instance, out of the additional duties on the manufactures and vessels of countries es tablishing such regulations. These were brought for ward during Washington s administration. A correct estimate of Mr. Madison s worth as a public servant, induced Jefferson, when entering upon his duties as president, to appoint him to the office of secretary of state. At the expiration of Mr. Jefferson s second term, Mr. Madison was elected to the presidential chair; and on the 4th of March, 1809, he was inducted into the office of chief magistrate, with the usual formalities. If we may judge from the expressions of his inaugural address, the weighty responsibilities of the office now ten dered him by the suffrages of a free people, were duly ap preciated. But he shrunk not. With a steady hand, and an honest heart, he entered upon the discharge of his duties. The " orders in council " of the British government were in full force. Their effect upon this country was felt severely. Non-intercourse on our part was enforced. Various efforts were made on the part of each government for an adjustment, but ineffectually. The alienation of feeling, and real injury inflicted by commercial prohibi tions, were perhaps greater than could have come of actual war. After frequent collisions, and protracted delays be tween the two governments, President Madison sent, a message to Congress, recapitulating causes of complaint against Brit-iin, and recommending a formal declaration of war, which was made June 18, 1812. During tliis year, at the commencement of the war, the president had a "talk" with the Indians, which may be considered as the manifesto of the American government, establishing the principles of its intercourse with them. It contained sentiments honorable to himself and country, and beautifully and appropriately expressed. About the same time, in view of a strong feeling of dis sent to the war, shown by the Eastern States, the governor of Canada had the audacity to send an agent to New Eng- LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 527 land, to propose measures dishonorable and schismatic. Mr. Madison brought this thing at once before Congress, without preferring any complaint to the British govern ment. The effect was to inflame the American people against England, and to screw up the public mind to th.it pitch requisite to overlook the risk and expenses of the war. During the invasion of the capital by the British, the president retired into Virginia, and, for the time, estab lished the government at Fredericktown, when he issued a proclamation calling upon all to unite their energies, in giving effect to the ample means possessed for " chastising and expelling the invader." On the 17th of February, 1815, the president and Senate ratified the treaty of Ghent, and thus were freed from the horrors of a war declared just two years and eight months before. This event was followed by com mercial treaties between the two countries on equitable terms. But English commodities were thus brought into successful competition with American manufactures. These demanded protection, and the president, jealous of the decline of manufactures, through British rivalry, soon recommended in his messages prohibitory measures and conservative duties. The expiration of his second term in the office of pres ident now arrived, and Mr. Madison retired altogether from public life, and passed the remainder of his days in a dignified and honorable retirement, living in the strictest privacy at his seat in Montpelier, Virginia. In August, 1830, he wrote an admirable and conclusive letter on the agitated topic of nullification. It was ad dressed to Mr. Edward Everett, of Massachusetts. It indicates a familiarity with the constitution peculiar to him, and is worthy to be impressed upon the mind and heart of every citizen. During the Litter part of his life, Mr. Madison was asso ciated with Mr. Jefferson in the institution of the University of Virginia, and, after his decease, was placed at its head, with the title of rector. lie was also president of an agri cultural society in the county of his residence. Thus did he occupy his declining years. And on the 528 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. anniversary of the day on which the Virginia Convention ratified the adoption of the constitution, of which JAMES MADISON was the father, this philosopher, statesman, and patriot, sunk without a struggle to the grave, and his sou] became a resident in the " spirit land." He died at his seat in Montpelier, Virginia, on the 21st day of June, 1836, at the advanced age of eighty-six years. Peace to his memory ! JAMES MONROE. JAMES MONROE, the fifth president of the United States, was born in Westmoreland county, Virginia, September, 1759. His ancestors had for many years resided in the province where he was born. When the colonies declared themselves a free and inde pendent nation, James Monroe, now in his seventeenth year, was completing his classical education at the College of William and Mary. His youth precluded him from an active participation in the controversies which agitated the country. But upon the first formation of the American army, young Monroe, then only eighteen years of age, left college, repaired to General Washington s head-quarters at New York, and enrolled himself as a cadet in the regiment commanded by Colonel Mercer. The young cadet es poused the cause of his injured country with a firm de termination to live or die with her simple for liberty. He shared all the defeats and privations which attended the footsteps of the army of Washington, through the dis astrous battles of Flatbush, Haerlem Heights, and White Plains. He was present at the subsequent evacuation of New York and Long Island, at the surrender of Fort Washington, and the retreat through the Jerseys. After having participated in the adversities of the gallant defend ers of his country, he rejoiced with them in great and un expected success. At the battle of Trenton, he led the vanguard, and in the act of charging upon the enemy, he received a wound in his left shoulder, the scar of which remained until his death. He was promoted a captain of infantry, served, during the campaigns of 1777 and 1778, as aid-de-camp in LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 529 the sta F of Lord Stirling, and endeavored to collect a regi ment for the Virginia line, which was recommended by Washington, and authorized by the state legislature. This did not succeed. He then entered the office of Mr. Jef ferson, at that time governor of Virginia, and pursued the study of the common law. He served as a volunteer dur ing the two years of his legal pursuits. In 1782, he entered upon a different field of action, as the supporter of a system of laws in a government he had fought and bled to establish. During this year, he was elected, by King George county, a member of the legisla ture of Virginia, and by that body elevated to a seat in the executive council. On the 9th of June, 1783, he was chosen a member of Congress, and on the 13th of December took his seat at Annapolis; the same day on which, at the same place, the illustrious leader of the victorious revolutionary army resigned his commission. For three years he was a useful member of the confederate Congress, and retired from Congress at the expiration of this term, as, by the articles of confederation, no one was allowed to serve more than three years in six. About this time, he formed a matrimo nial alliance with Miss Kortwright, of New York city, a lady celebrated for her beauty arid conversational powers, whose external accomplishments, however, were surpassed by those of her mind, and those endearing qualities of the heart which cheer the gloom of existence. In 1787, he established himself in Fredericksburg, Vir ginia, and, in 1788, he was chosen a member of the Virginia Convention to decide upon the federal constitu tion. He opposed its adoption in the form presented, pro posing sundry amendments. Upon the death of the Hon orable William Grayson, in December, 1789, Mr. Monroe was chosen to fill the vacancy thus occasioned in the Senate of the United States, which he filled until 1794. He fivored the objects of the French revolution, and violently opposed President Washington s proclamation of neutrality. At the expiration of his senatorial office, he was appointed minister plenipotentiary to France. lie was received in that country with splendid cere mony by the N itional Convention, as one who strongly 45 530 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. favored the revolution. At the close of Washington s administration lie was recalled On his return to the United States, he published a work, in explanation of his own opinions and proceedings, in an octavo volume of four hundred and seven pages. At a subsequent period, with the true nobility of a mind which disdains to cherish preconceived opinions if errcne- ous, he cast off all remembrance of past animosity, and harmonized in an entire and perfect veneration of the character and policy of Washington. In 1799, Mr. Monroe was elected governor of Virginia, which office he filled three years. He was appointed, on the Mth of January, 1803, envoy extraordinary to France, and in April of the same year minister plenipotentiary to England. The next year, he was appointed minister to Spain, in connection with Mr. William Pinckney, for the purpose of settling a disputed question of boundary. He remained at Madrid five months. From thence he re turned to London, where, in 1806, he was joined by Mr. Pinckney. Their mission ended in 1807, when they re turned home. For a little while he enjoyed uninterrupted quiet, but, in 1808, was again elected to the ofiice of gov ernor of Virginia, served three years, and, in 181 1, was appointed, by President Madison, secretary of state. Upon the resignation of the secretary of war, Mr. Monroe dis charged voluntarily all the duties of the war department, beside his own. He was regularly appointed secretary cf war in 1814. He devoted his energies to that exclusive department until the return of peace, then reassumed the office of secretary of state, by appointment, and continued therein until the close of M;idison s administration. On the 5th of March. 1817, Mr. Monroe was inaugurated president of the United States. Among the early appoint ments of the president, was Mr. John Quincy Adams, as secretary of state. About the 1st of June, the president left Washington on a tour through the states, which elicit ed a most general expression of kindness, respect, and courtesy. After the session of Congress held 1817-18, the president left Washington, accompanied by the secre taries of war and the navy, to survey the Chesapeake Bay, and the country lying on its extensive shores, most exposed LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 531 to the invasions of an enemy. At the close of his first term, President Monroe was reflected by a unanimous vote, with the single exception of one electoral vote in New Hampshire, which was for J. Q,. Adams. This indi cated the confidence of a free people in their president. The administration of Mr. Monroe closed on the 3d of March, 1825. He retired to his residence in Loudon county, Virginia, where he discharged the ordinary judi cial functions of a magistrate, and also of the curator of the University of Virginia. In the winter of 1829-30, he served as a member of the Convention called to revise the constitution of Virginia. He was unanimously chosen to preside; but, before the close of the labors of the Conven tion, he was compelled to retire, because of severe illness. The ensuing summer, he was bereaved by death of his be loved partner. Soon after this, he removed to New York city, where the flickering lamp of life held out its linger ing flame, until the dawning of the glorious day of a nation s birth and glory, when the soldier and the states man was folded in .the embrace of death, on the 4th of July, 1831, aged seventy-two years. " Such was the man who presents the only example of one whose public life commenced with the war of inde pendence, and is identified with all the important events of our history, for a full half century." JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, the sixth president, was born 1767. His ancestors resided in America from 1630, near a century and a half before the revolution. Thus early rooted in the soil, a warm attachment to the cause and rights of America has been, from generation to generation, the birthright of the family. The principles of American independence and freedom were instilled into the mind of John Q,uincy in the very da\fn of his existence. From the eleventh year of his acre, until the eighteenth, he resided for the most part in Europe, having accom panied his fither when appointed as a joint commissioner to France, with Franklin and Lee. When only fourteen 53*2 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. years of age, he was selected by Mr. F. Dana, minister to Russia, as the private secretary of that mission. After remaining in Europe seven years, and being a visitant, for a longer or shorter time, of France, Spain, Holland, Rus sia, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, and England, he so licited permission of his father to return to his native country, which was granted. On his return to America, he entered Cambridge College. In 1767, he left college, and commenced the study of law, at Newburypcrt, in the office of Mr. Theophilus Parsons; whence, after com pleting his law studies, he became a resident at the capital of Massachusetts. In April, 1793, Mr. Adams published a short series of papers, to prove that the duty and interest of the United States required neutrality, in the contest between England and France. These were published before President Wash ington s proclamation of neutrality. He was the first to express publicly the views on the difficult topic cf inter national law, respecting our treaty of alliance with France, which were confirmed by the proclamation of the presi dent. Mr. Adams s essays in support of the administra tion were read and admired throughout the country ; and his reputation was now established as an American states man, patriot, and political writer of the first order t at the early age of twenty-seven. In 1794, President Washington appointed Mr. Adams to the office of minister resident to the Netherlands ; and near the close of Washington s administration, Mr. Adams was appointed minister plenipotentiary to Portugal, but, by the advice of Washington, and the appointment of his fa ther, John Adams, then president, his destination was changed to Prussia; whence he was recalled in 1801. During this last year of his residence in Germany, he made an excursion into the province of Silesia, describing it in a series of letters, that have been collected and published in a volume, and have been translated into French and German, and extensively circulated in Europe. In 1802, Mr. Adams was elected to the Senate of Mas sachusetts, from Boston district; and, in 1803, he was, by the legislature, elected to the Senate of the United States, for six years, from March 4th, 1SC3. During the LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 533 time he filled this office, he was an efficient supporter of Mr. Jefferson s administration, although he bore the name of the opposite party in politics. In pursuing this inde pendent, course, Mr. Adams incurred the disapprobation of the legislature of Massachusetts, who, by a small majority of votes, in 1899, elected another person as senator from the expiration of his term, and passed resolutions of in struction to their senators, containing principles which Mr. Adams disapproved. Not willing to conform to these in structions, nor misrepresent his constituents, he resigned his place in the United States Senate. In 1809, President Madison appointed him minister to Russia. Through his influence with the Emperor Alex ander, the mediation of Russia was tendered between England and the United States. He was placed by Madi son at the head of the commission of five, by which the treaty of peace between the two countries was negotiated. The cogency and skill manifested by that commission drew from the marquis of Wellesley, in the British House of Lords, the declaration, that, in his opinion, "the Ameri can commissioners had shown the most astonishing supe riority over the British, during the whole of the corre spondence." After the war was thus closed by an honorable treaty, being appointed minister at London, he remained there untif 1817; when he was recalled, and, by President Mon roe, appointed secretary of state. Of this appointment, General Jackson said, in a letter to the president, dated March 18th, " I have no hesitation in saying you have made the best selection to fill the department of state, and I am convinced that his appointment will afford general satisfaction." Mr. Adams is mostly entitled to the credit of the measures adopted during Monroe s administration, in reference to the foreign policy of the government, the successful termination of our difficulties with Spain, the indemnity of our merchants, and the addition of East and West Florida to our republic. Such are specimens of his claims to the highest gift which the people can bestow on a long-tried and faithful servant. Various circumstances conspired to strengthen his claims, in the presidential canvass, for the term begin- 45* 534 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. ning in 1825. Of the several candidates presented to the people at this election, Mr. Adams was the only one repre senting the non-si avehold ing states. Had the choice been between him and any other candidate singly, Mr. Adams would probably have been chosen by the votes of the peo ple. In consequence of the number of votes, no choice by the people was effected. The election devolved upon the House of Representatives, and Mr. Adams was chosen. On the 4th of March, 1825, President Adams was inaugurated. During his administration, GENERAL LA FAYETTE took leave of the people, on his return to France. [t was thought proper that his departure should be from the Capitol. On this occasion, the farewell address was delivered by President Adams, which is one of the most favorable specimens of his eloquence. The administration of President Adams was without regard to the distinctions of party. In the distribution of offices, he asked merely as to the qualifications of the can didates. In a word, he acted with that stern and fearless integrity which has marked the whole course of his politi cal life. Notwithstanding the integrity of his course, a deep- rooted hostility was manifested, in efforts to embarrass his administration. But still the country progressed rapidly in wealth and prosperity. The great works of internal improvements were prosecuted with much spirit and vigor. During his continuance in office, new and increased activity was imparted to those powers invested in the fed eral government, for the development of the resources of the country. Indeed, more had been directly effected in this respect, than during the administration of all his pred ecessors. About fourteen million dollars were expended for the permanent benefit of the country during the four years he was chief magistrate. In this condition was the country when his administra tion ended an administration marked by definite and consistent policy and energetic councils, and governed by upright motives, but from the beginning devoted to the most violent opposition. Since he was succeeded in the presidency by General Jackson, Mr. Adams has still taken an active part in LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 535 public affairs, and represented his native district in Con gress. He occupies the position in that body to which his eminent talents and distinguished services fully en title him. His speeches are marked with the stern and singular independence which has characterized his whole life, and comin.ind the respect and attention which must always be awarded to a man of fearless and uncompromis ing integrity. Long may he be spared to the councils of the nation long enough to witness the demolition of party prejudices, and to enjoy the fruition of that fame, which has been purchased by the devotion of a life to the service of his country ! ANDREW JACKSON. ANDREW JACKSON was born at W.axsaw, about forty-five miles above Carnden, South Carolina, on the fifteenth of March, 1767, He was placed at school at the academy in his native town, where he remained until the British made irruptions into that region, and compelled the inhabitants to join either the American or British standard, or to for sake their country. Andrew arid his brother Robert hast ened to join the American army. The corps to which they belonged was surprised, and eleven of them taken prisoners, while the rest fled into the woods for conceal ment. Andrew and his brother escaped, by entering the bend of a creek, where they remained through the night But, on the next day, they entered a house at hand, to procure food, where they were taken prisoners by a party of dragoons. The British officers determined to employ them in menial occupations, and thus to quench their bold spirits. An officer ordered our hero to clean his boots, and, on his refusing to do so, struck at him with a sword, by which he w is wounded in the left arm. For a refusal to obey a similar command, his brother was severely wounded on the head, and probably his death hastened thereby. His mother died soon after his brother Robert, leaving Andrew the sole remaining member of the family. He soon after entered on the study of the law with Judge McCay and Col. John Stokes, of Salisbury, North Carolina. In 1786, he obtained a license to practise law, and soon 536 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. after removed to Nashville, Tennessee, where he entered on an extensive and profitable practice. He was appointed to the office of attorney-general, which he held for several years. Even at. this early period of his life, he manifested the military genius that in after years gave him an elevated rank among the defenders of his country. In the year 1796, he was appointed a member of the Con vention for framing a state constitution, and the same year elected a member of the House of Representatives in Congress. The next year, he was elected to the Senate ; but, finding his situation disagreeable, he resigned his seat, and was chosen to succeed General Conway in the com mand of the militia of Tennessee. In 1812, he raised a corps of two thousand five hundred volunteers, joined the United States army, and was ordered to Natchez, Mississippi, a distance of about six hundred miles. After a long and toilsome march through the for est, he reached his destination, encamped his army on an elevated position, and awaited further orders. The danger of invasion having in some degree subsided, he received orders from the secretary of war to disband his trocps, and transfer his stores to General Wilkinson. An order so manifestly unjust he hesitated not to disobey. His army, with tears in their eyes, implored him not to leave them to the alternative of enlisting in the United States army, or of begging their way to their homes in Tennes see. General Wilkinson had given orders for his officers to enlist men from Jackson s division : but, the latter hav ing threatened to punish any man that should dare to enter his camp with such a design, the attempt was abandoned. Having made the necessary preparations, he commenced his march homeward. The roads were almost impassable from the recent rains, and the swamps and streams which they were compelled to cross were full. But the spirits and fortitude of their general inspired the soldiers with confidence in him and in themselves, and his participation in their severest trials he having given up his horses for the transportation of the sick repressed every inclination to murmur. His whole division at length arrived at the place of their departure, and were disbanded. LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 537 About this time, the bold Tecumseh, and his crafty brother, the prophet, were busily engaged in the execution of a scheme, which would have been worthy of the admi ration and respect even of those who were their destined victims, had not the traces of British influence been mani fest in all their operations. Their design contemplated the array in deadly hostility of all the Indians on our northern and western frontiers, and the massacre, on a day ap pointed, of all the frontier inhabitants. To effect their design, it was necessary to arouse all the fierce arid vindic tive passions of the savages. This was without difficulty effected ; but it was impossible to restrain them till the appointed time. Parties of the northern tribes were con tinually making depredations on the frontiers. At Fort Mimms, Mississippi, about one hundred and fifty men, with a large number of women and children, were assembled. The Indians, to the number of six or seven hundred, car ried the fort by assault, and put to death about three hun dred persons. When news of this outrage arrived in Ten nessee, the whole slate was ready to march and avenge its slaughtered, hapless children. An expedition into the heart of the Creek country was immediately planned. Volunteers were called into the field, at whose head Gen eral Jackson was placed, though he was laboring under the effects of a broken limb. He promptly assumed the command, issued the necessary camp orders, and pro ceeded to obtain the requisite supplies. In effecting this purpose, he met with unexpected difficulties : the contract ors found themselves unable to fulfil their engagements, and Jackson was compelled to have recourse to other means of supply ; but, after all his exertions, he found his army but ill provided with the stores necessary to carry on a vigorous campaign. Learning from the Indian runners, whom he employed to obtain information, that the enemy were collected in force on the south side of the River Coosa, General Jackson det iched General Coffee, with nine hundred men, to attack them. On their arrival in the vicinity of the enemy, two companies were sent forward to draw them from their camp, who, after a few shots, commenced a re- 538 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. treat, followed by the Indians, yelling and fighting as they came on : on reaching the main body of the Americans, they were received with a tremendous discharge of mus ketry, and, fighting desperately, and contesting the ground inch by inch, were driven back to their encampment, which was taken, the enemy completely routed, and a large number of them were killed or taken prisoners. For sev eral months General Jackson continued to attack the enemy, having to contend with the machinations of jeal ous rivals, and with the discontents of his soldiers, arising from an almost entire destitution of provisions. Seated one day at the root of a tree, making a repast en acorns, the general saw a soldier approach, who complained that he was nearly starved, and was destitute of the means of procuring any food. " I make it a point," said the gen eral, " never to turn away a hungry man, when it is in my power to relieve him, and will most cheerfully divide with you whatever I have," at the same time offering him a handful of acorns. The soldier returned to his company, and reported that the general lived on acorns, and that they ought no more to complain. The militia, however, who had little experience in the sufferings of the soldier s life, were the first to revolt and abandon the camp. The general ordered the volunteers, who still remained faithful, to form in front of the muti neers, and prevent their farther progress. The militia, fearful of the result if they persisted, yielded and returned to their camp. The next day, the general found the volun teers in the condition of the militia the day before. But a short time elapsed before the militia were drawn up in arms to reduce to obedience the very men who had a few hours before conferred on them a similar benefit; the vol unteers returned, much mortified, to their duty. But the discontent was not yet arrested. General Jackson had promised to accompany them in their departure, unless re lief should arrive in two days. The time having elapsed without the expected arrival, the militia claimed the fulfil ment of his pledge ; he began, accordingly, to make prepara tions for their departure. They had marched but a few miles before they met a hundred and fifty beeves, and the LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 339 general determined to return to the post they had just left ; the troops rjfased obedience, and began to move off in a body. Alone, surrounded by discontented and angry men, deprived of the use of his left arm, he met the crisis with a mind th it was never known to quail in the presence of daogKf ; he seized a musket, arid, renting it on the neck of his horse, cast himself in front of the column, threatening to shoot the first man that, attempted to advance. Here he w.isfouiid by Major Reid and General Coffee, who awaited the result by his side. The whole column, for several minutes, preserved a sul len silence, while two companies, that had remained faith ful, formed behind the general, with orders to fire as soon as he should give the example. The contagion of fear was soon communicated from one to the other, and one by one the whole column turned and marched back. The ensuing campaign began under the same disadvan tages that had nearly defeated the former. General Jack son determined no longer to submit to the delay of con tractors, sent agents to the nearest settlements to make purchnses, at any price, on the credit of the contractors, which immediately brought them to terms, and insured a plentiful supply during the rest of the campaign. After several successive defeats, having even been driven from the Hickory Ground, which, from its sacred character, they be lieved would never be pressed by the foot of a white man, the Indians sued for and obtained peace. On the resigna tion of Gener d Harrison, General Jackson received the appointment of major-general in the army of the United St ites. His attention was immediately directed to the conduct of the Spanish authorities of Florida, where he learned that three hundred English soldiers had been suf fered to land, and that they were engaged in exciting the Indians t^ hostilities. He demanded of the Spanish governor of Pensacola the observance of his neutrality. An acrimonious correspond ence ensued between them, which had no other result than to inflirne still more the indignation of General Jackson. Colonel Nichols, a British officer, now arrived at Pensa- coli, with a small squadron, and took his head-quarters with Governor Maurequez. He issued a proclamation to 540 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. the southern inhabitants of the United States, informing them of his desire of delivering them from bondage, prom ising them relief and protection, and pledging the honor of a British officer, that he would perform all he had prom ised. He awaited for a short time the effect of his proc lamation, and then advanced to the attack of Fort Bovv- yer, from which lie was driven with the loss of a ship of war and one eye. General Jackson now prepared to take possession of Pensacola, intending to hold possession of its forts and arsenals until Spain could send thither a sufficient force to preserve her neutrality. He first sent a flag of truce, which was fired on. He then sent a letter to the governor by a Spaniard, who had been taken prisoner. The gov ernor rejected his proposals, and General Jackson attacked the town, which in a short time surrendered. The forts were blown up, and the British retired to their shipping in the bay. Every movement of the enemy now proved to General Jackson, that New Orleans was their principal object. He therefore urged the governors of the different Southern States to send in, with all speed, men and supplies, with which he determined to defend the city or perish in the attempt. His call was not neglected. The governors of Tennessee and Kentucky made great exertions to comply with the demands of Jackson ; and, although the troops thus obtained did not increase his forces sufficiently to banish his fears as to the result, General Jackson never despaired of being able to meet the enemy at all points. He now stationed a force at every inlet or creek, where he be lieved there was the smallest chance for the enemy to approach. The American flotilla, of five gun-boats and two hundred and eighty-two men, was captured by that of the enemy, consisting of forty-three boits and twelve hun dred men. The next day, Mr. Shields, purser of the navy, with Dr. Murrell, was despatched with a flag of truce to Cat Island, to relieve the wounded Americans who were there prisoners. The British admiral, believing their visit to have been intended for the purpose of observation, de tained them, and endeavored to learn from them the situa tion and number of the forces of General Jackson. LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 54l Mr. Shields, from the moment he was taken, became very deaf, and the British officer, failing to elicit from them the least information, determined to put them in a room together, and place some one at hand, to listen to their conversation. Suspecting something of the kind, they framed their discourse to suit their own purposes. After speaking of their condition and prospects, and their defeat of all attempts of the British to obtain information from them, Shields continued, "But how greatly these gen tlemen will be disappointed in their expectations ! for Jackson, with the twenty thousand men he now has, and the reinforcements from Kentucky which must speedily reach him, will be able to destroy any force that can be landed from these ships." All this was heard by the Brit ish, and no doubt contributed to the abandonment of their design so soon after their defeat. General Jackson continued his preparations for resist ance. Patroles were stationed through the country to convey to him whatever information they could obtain. The legislature of the state laid an embargo on all vessels in the port, that their crews might be placed in the navy, and that the enemy might not be supplied thereby with provisions. Surrounded with spies and disaffected per sons, General Jackson suggested to the legislature the necessity of suspending the execution of the writ of habeas corpus. But they moved so slowly, and entered the work with so much reluctance, that he assumed the responsibil ity, -and at once declared martial law. With all the vigi lance he had exercised, he had the mortification to learn that the British had landed unobserved through an ob scure bayou, and had made prisoners of a company of militia, on the Mississippi. He ordered the signal guns for battle to be fired, marched through the streets of the city to meet the enemy below, surrounded on all sides with screaming women and children. Compassionating their distress, he requested an aid-de-camp to tell them, in French, that the enemy should never reach the city. The effect was immediate, Quiet and confidence were re stored. Under cover of night, General Coffee advanced towards the British lines. The ship of war Caroline was directed to fall down the river, and open a fire on the 46 542 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. British camp, which was to be the signal of attack by land. As the Caroline floated slowly down the river, she was hailed, by the first picket, in a low voice ; but, no answer being returned, she was supposed to be a vessel sent by the disaffected in New Orleans, loaded with provisions, for the British, and permitted to anchor in a place opposite to the very middle of the encampment ; where suddenly she opened a most destructive fire, and compelled the British to leave their camp, and take refuge in the surrounding darkness. General Coffee had not yet reached the British, and, pressing on as fast as possible for that purpose, unexpect edly received the fire of their whole line. He charged them in turn, and drove them from ditch to ditch, whenever they made a stand, until they reached a branch of the levee, behind which they were sheltered from the Ameri can fire, and from which it was believed to be too dangerous to attempt to dislodge them. Meanwhile, on the right, where General Jackson commanded, the Americans were equal ly successful, and the British were thrice beaten, and had retreated for nearly a mile. Learning the strong position taken by the British on the left, General Jackson found it necessary to relinquish the idea, which he had hitherto entertained, of capturing the army, and concluded to re main in the defensive. He strengthened his defences by every means in his power, filling the breastwork with bags of cotton, and felt fully prepared to give the enemy a reception which would banish all desire of further ac quaintance. On the morning of the 8th of January, information was brought to the lines, that the enemy, in full force, were ad vancing rapidly to the attack. The outposts had hardly time to come in before the British came in sight. A rocket from each end of their line was the signal to commence their fire. They filled the air with rockets, shells, and cannon balls, and approached with a confidence and stead iness which seemed to insure victory. But now the Ameri cans poured in upon them, from every part of their line, a most tremendous fire of musketry, cannon, and grape shot, which annihilated the front of the column, and piled a rampart of dead bodies in front of the British line ; they LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 543 wavered for a moment, and, with the exception of a few braver than the rest, retreated before the range of the American guns. General Packenham, on the first appear ance of hesitation in his advancing columns, placed him self at their head, and urged them on ; but it was but for a moment; he immediately fell, pierced with bullets. Gen erals Gibbs and Keene were carried, wounded, from the field. Almost maddened with desperation, General Lambert, and the surviving officers, again urged the army to the con flict, and again the brave fellows advanced, to become vic tims for the American riflemen, who never desired a larger mark than a squirrel or a tree-top. Again the roll of the American musketry began, and continued without one moment s intermission, sounding not like a discharge of fire-arms, but like a peal of thunder, of which the sound died not away. It was too much even for the flower of Wellington s army, the bravest soldiers in Europe, to with stand ; they rushed in confusion from the field, leaving it, for the space of three hundred yards, along the whole front of the American line, covered with the dead and wounded, over whom they were compelled to leap, in ef fecting their retreat, often slipping down upon the field, in the blood of their slaughtered comrades. The British retired within their lines ; and, despairing, with their weak ened and dispirited forces, of success in attempting to dis lodge the Americans, they retreated to their shipping, Gen eral Lambert having written a request to the conqueror that their wounded should be provided with assistance. In a few days, news of peace arrived, arid filled every heart with unmingled joy. A treaty with Spain having been effected, by which that power consented to cede Florida to the United States, General Jackson, with a salary of $5000, was appointed governor, and fulfilled the duties of his office until Sep tember, when, having effected his object in gaining com plete possession of Florida, he returned to Tennessee. He was next appointed minister to Mexico, but declined to serve in that capacity, since he could not consistently recognize the claims of the emperor. He was then elected to the United States Senate, where he displayed the same zeal and activity in the ser- 544 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. vice of his country, which had characterized his military career. Li the mean time, having been selected as a candidate for the presidency, he resigned his seat, and returned to his family in Tennessee. He was elected president of the United States, and was inaugurated on the fourth of March, 1629. Among the measures adopted during his adminis tration, were the modification of the tariff, the veto of the Maysville road bill, the removal of the Georgia Indians, the veto of the bill rechartering the United States Bank, the defeat of nullification, the removal of the depos its in the United States Bank, and the recovery of indem nity for the aggressions of Brazil, Denmark, and France. He was elected for a second term to the presidency, and, at the close of his administration, retired from public life, to enjoy the pleasures afforded by agricultural pursuits, and the quiet essential to the comfort of his declining age. MARTIN VAN BUREN. MARTIN VAN BUREN, the eighth president of the United States, was born at Kinderhook, New York state, De cember 5th, 1782. His parents were of Dutch descent, and in humble circumstances. The elements of his education were received at an academy in his native village, which he left at the age of fourteen, and com menced the study of the law, in the office of Francis Syl vester, Esq., which study he finished in the city of New York, with Mr. William P. Van Ness. He was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court in 1803, and commenced practice at Kinderhook. He removed to Hudson in 1809 ; was elected a member of the state Senate, 1812 ; and, in 1815, was appointed attorney-general of the state, from which office he was removed, by a revolution in politics, 1819, which elevated another party. From 1811 to 1813, Mr. Van Buren was identified with that class of politicians opposed to the war with England, but subsequently advocated the propriety of the war, and was an efficient supporter of President Madison. On the 6th February, 1821, he was appointed by the New York legislature a member of the United States Senate. In LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 545 August following, he was a member of the Convention called to revise the constitution of the state of New York. In December, 1821, he took his seat in the United States Senate. During the presidential canvass, which resulted in the election of John Quincy Adams, Van Buren was a zealous supporter of Mr. Crawford, and distinguished for his zeal and activity against Adams s administration. In November, 1828, Mr. Van Buren was elected gov ernor of New York state. Though his gubernatorial career was brief, it was signalized by the adoption of the safety fund system, which combined the moneyed interests of the empire state in an indissoluble league of mutual de pendence. On the 12th of March, he resigned the office of governor, being appointed by President Jackson to the office of secretary of state. In April, 1831, he resigned this station, assigning various reasons satisfactory to the president, who appointed him the same year to succeed Mr. McLane as minister to St. James. This appointment was not confirmed by the Senate. His rejection by this body was deemed by his friends a " prescriptive act," but was more than made amends for by his election, in 1833, to the office of v ^e-president, by virtue of which he presided over the same body that so recently rejected him as min ister to England. More through the influence of party feeling and the ap proval of President Jackson, than from personal popu larity, he was elected to the office of president of the United States, and was inaugurated March 4, 1837. His presidential career was one of difficulty, doubt, and peril, owing to the unfortunate derangement of our fiscal affairs, and the generally embarrassed state of the country. His administration was far from being a popular one; and he had to contend with a violent opposition. No pains were spared to prevent his reelection ; and in this success was realized. He was succeeded by General William H. Harrison in the presidency, and retired to his native place in New York state, where he now is residing. What subsequent changes may occur in the political world, to bring him out again into public life, is not known ; but, from the counter current now set in, there is a probability that the next change in the administration 46* 546 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. will see the party that elevated Mr. Van Buren to the presidency again in power. Whether or not his age or inclination will again favor active participation in public life, or continued retirement for the future, remains to be seen. The latter would prob ably be in accordance with the dignity or an ex-president of the United States. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON was born at Berkley, in Charles county, Virginia, on the 9th of February, 1773, and was educated at Hampden Sidney College. He lost his father in 1791, and found himself poor in the gifts of fortune, but rich in the lessons of liberty and patriotism, derived from his noble father. He commenced the study of medicine, and pursued it with earnest devotion, until the war-whoop of the Indians, in the north-west, aroused in his mind an ardent desire to distinguish himself among the defenders of his country. Though this incli nation was opposed by his guardian, Robert Morris, yet he could not divest himself of it ; and when he found his wish approved by General Washington, he gave to it the energies of his whole being, and, with the liveliest grat itude, received from him an ensign s commission in a company of artillery destined to be stationed on the Ohio. At the age of eighteen, he entered a field of toil and strife, that many a veteran would gladly avoid. The deep and deadly hatred of the north-western In dians against us had been sedulously fostered by Britain through the whole course of the revolutionary war, and never ceased with her acknowledgment of our inde pendence. Though the brightest jewel had fallen from her crown, she was determined at least to mar its beauty, and, if possible, to shatter and destroy it. Large amounts of presents had been annually lavished on the Indians, who were thus induced to believe in the sincerity of Brit ish professions of friendship, and to give them aid in all their machinations against the people of the United States. During the six years following the peace of 1783, it is estimated that 1500 defenceless inhabitants became vie- LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 547 tims of savage ferocity. In 1794, Wayne advanced into the heart of the Indian country, and on the 20th of August he gained a complete victory over the combined forces of 2000 Indians and Canadians. In the despatch to the president, the name of Harrison is honorably mentioned. In 1794, when he was but twenty-one years of age, Har rison received a captain s commission, and was placed in command of Fort Washington, with extensive powers and heavy responsibilities, which would have been intrusted to none but a man of tried integrity and sterling ability. He married the daughter of John Cleves Symmes, distin guished as the founder of the Miami settlements. In 1797, Harrison resigned his commission, and re ceived the appointment of secretary of the North-west Territory. Two years after, at the age of twenty-six, he was elected delegate to the House of Representatives of the United States. The absorbing question of legislation for his constituents, was the disposal of the public lands. Hitherto, the lands had been sold only in large parcels, not less than 4000 acres. Of course, very few could pur chase from government, but were compelled to obtain it from the extensive dealers at a considerable advance in price. Harrison, from his extensive acquaintance with the wants and wishes of the actual settlers, was appointed chairman of a committee to inquire into the expediency of making sales of smaller parcels, in order that the settler might obtain it at the minimum price, and the exorbitant exactions of monopolizers be thereby repressed. Through his exertions, the bill granting the sale of sections of 320 acres was passed ; subsequently it was sold in still smaller parcels. In 1800, Harrison was appointed governor of Indiana. Through the whole course of his administration, his per fect integrity shone conspicuous. Though he possessed the power of confirming or of rejecting certain grants to individuals, the stain of a bribe never rested on his hand. But one heart fraught with malice was found to harbor a wish to tarnish the unsullied integrity of Harrison. One Mclntosh ventured to accuse him of defrauding the In dians in the treaty of Fort Wayne. An action for slander 548 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. was brought against him, which resulted in a fine of 4000 dollars, of which Harrison gave one third to the orphans of some of those who had perished in the field, and re stored the remainder to the culprit himself. As commissioner and superintendent of Indian affairs, his correspondence with Congress exhibits him in the most favorable light. The government of the United States was particularly anxious, at this time, to avoid a collision with the Indians, while the inclinations of the Indians, whetted by the false representations of the British, all urged them to war. The treaty of Fort Wayne was made in the absence of Tecumseh; and, on his return, he threatened with death some of the chiefs who had executed it. Harrison invited him to a conference. Tecumseh approached the conference with four hundred warriors, whose appearance indicated deep and determined hostility. Tecumseh urged his argument against the right of one tribe to sell land without the consent of all. Harrison replied, that the Miamis, with whom he had formed a treaty, were the original possessors of the lands they had transferred, and the Shawnese, who had been driven by the Creeks from Georgia, had no right to attempt to control them in any thing relating to their territory. This roused the ire of Tecumseh. He sprang to his feet, exclaiming, "It is false ! " and, calling on his warriors, they gathered around him, with war-clubs in their hands, raised to begin the bat tle. General Harrison calmly drew his sword, repressed the ardor of his men to punish their insolence, and, with a resolute brow and appearance, his keen eye resting on that of the fierce Tecumseh, told him that he was a bad man ; and that he would have no further talk with him ; that he must return to his camp, and leave the settlements im mediately. The bold warrior found that he had mistaken his man. From the mildness and urbanity of his general bearing, he evidently believed that he had only to make demonstrations of hostility, to obtain from him whatever he desired ; but when he saw the same calm, but resolute exterior, differ ing in nothing save in the additional keenness of his flash ing eye, and the more erect and lofty bearing of his person, LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 549 he paused for a moment, then departed from the council, followed by his braves. The next day, Tecumseh apolo gized for his violence, and solicited another interview, which terminated in Tecumseh s declaration, that he still adhered to his opinion of the preceding day. The danger of war with England every day becoming more imminent, the Indians became more daring. A large body of them had collected at Prophet s Town ; and now General Harri son prepared to repress their hostilities, either by negotia ting a peace or by chastising them. The Indians desired a conference for the purpose of assassinating him in council, as it was afterwards ascertained; but he knew too well the Indian character to be thrown off his guard, and immediately requested two of his officers to choose a place for a camp. They selected an elevated spot, surrounded with low, moist ground, acknowledged by all to be well adapted to their purpose. On this ground the army en camped in order of battle, ready to engage at a moment s warning. The next morning, General Harrison arose be fore the dawn, and sat with his aids by the fire, when the alarm was given by a musket-shot from one of the senti nels, succeeded by the war-whoop, and a fierce attack by the Indians. The general mounted his horse, and hast ened to the point of attack ; where finding his men hard pressed, he ordered up two companies to their support. Major Davis and Colonel White fell in attempting to dis lodge some Indians from a clump of trees near at hand. In the act of leading a company to reenforce the right flank, the general s aid, Colonel Owen, of Kentucky, fell at his side. The battle continued for some hours, when the Indians were completely routed, though the solemn chant of the prophet was heard in the intervals of the battle, mingling with the rattling of deer s hoofs, invoking the aid of the Great Spirit. A short time previous to the declaration of war with Great Britain, Governor Harrison was constituted a major- general in the militia of Kentucky. But the government of the United States, ignorant of the circumstances connected with his appointment, ordered General Winchester, of the regular army, to take the command. General Harrison consequently retired to resume his duties as governor of 550 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. Indiana. But as soon as the president learned the actual situation of affairs, and that Harrison was the favorite of the west, the chief command in the north-west was given him. He received orders to retake Detroit, to penetrate Canada as far as events would justify, and, in fine, to act in all cases according to his own judgment. The order of government was obeyed to the letter. Detroit was re captured. Canada was penetrated far enough to allow the British to feel the pressure of the iron hand of war. The campaign opened under the most discouraging auspices. General Winchester, with a considerable force, had encamped at the Rapids, where messengers arrived informing him that the carnp of Frenchtowri was hourly threatened with an attack from the Indians. He sent six hundred men to support its soldiers, who, arriving unex pectedly, gained a complete victory over the British and Indians. They resolved to maintain their position, and General Winchester, with his whole force, advanced to their support; but, omitting to fortify his position, it was attacked by a large force under Colonel Proctor, and car ried, with great loss to the Americans. All the wounded Americans, with the consent of Proctor, were inhumanly butchered. But even under these deep provocations the noble Harrison never retaliated. " Let an account of murdered innocence be opened in heaven against our enemies alone," says he, in an order issued after learning the tragical result of Winchester s expedition. The army now fortified Fort Meigs in expectation of an attack. General Harrison himself was in the fort. On the 26th of April, Colonel Proctor, with a large force of British and Indians, approached it, and commenced a severe cannon ade, which continued with intervals for several days. On the 4th of May, General Harrison received intelligence of the approach of the Kentucky militia, under General Clay. He determined to raise the siege. He ordered General Clay to detach eight hundred men to seize the batteries on the opposite side of the river, spike the guns, and return at once to their boats, and with his main body to fight his way to the camp. The whole was successful ; but the division of eight hundred men remained in the batteries, instead of retiring according to orders, and were almost LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS. 551 totally annihilated, about two thirds being killed and taken prisoners. The prisoners, according to Proctor s usual policy, were given over to the Indians for their amusement, and numbers massacred in cold blood under the eye of Proctor, till Tecumseh came up from the batteries, and ex claiming, " For shame! it is a disgrace to kill defenceless prisoners ! " put an end to the slaughter. On the 10th of September, Perry gained his brilliant victory over the British squadron on Lake Erie, and on the 27th, General Harrison entered and encamped on the ruins of Maiden, which the British had dismantled and forsaken. The necessary preparations completed, General Harrison started in pursuit of Proctor. On the 5th of October, encamped on a narrow strip of land between the River Thames on the left, and a swamp on the right, where lay Tecumseh and his warriors, Colonel Johnson, with his mounted men, was ordered to break the British line, and to form in their rear. This movement was executed with perfect success, and, after an obstinate resistance from the Indians, he retained possession of the ground. The cap ture of nearly the whole British army was the result. Proctor, however, haunted by fears of punishment should he fall into the hands of the Americans, left the field be fore the battle was ended. Afterwards, Harrison was appointed Indian commissioner, was elected member of the U. S. House of Representatives, of the Senate of Ohio, and of that of the United States, and finally minister to Colombia. In every capacity in which he was called to act, he was never false to his noble char acter ; he evinced the same stern, uncompromising integrity, the same republican simplicity, the same regard for the rights of those with whom he was associated in command. These were the characteristics which drew upon him the eyes of his country, when seeking among her sons for an honest man to fill the presidential chair. It was this, his almost perfect character, that, on his nomination for the presidency, drew from the sagacious Adams the exclama tion, " He will go in like a whirlwind." Men have doubted, and justly too, whether to call him Great. He was not " The Great." This name has been too long as sociated with Alexander, and men of his class, to allow it 552 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. to sully the fair fame of our Harrison. None, but a few misguided men, have attempted to affix it to the name of Washington himself. Harrison loved his species too much to become Great. He knew that, to become so, the souls of one hundred thousand men must be his, to control, di rect, and sacrifice, as he chose ; the rights of millions must be sacrificed to his ambition and vanity; the tears and groans of the oppressed, the widow, and the fatherless, must rise, and would rise, to Heaven, and yet be unheard by him. The man, who, like Harrison, reads his order for the day from the " Book of Life," can never become Great. He finds there too much true democracy, too much value at tached to a human soul, to allow him to launch his barque for greatness on the tide of human blood. It is true, the structure was not finished ; the last touch stone of virtue was not applied to his well-tried soul ; he died as the mantle of power descended on him, ere the strong temptations it presents had time to assault the well- built fabric of his glory, cemented by goodness. He died on the 4th of April, 1841, just one month after he had been inaugurated as president of the United States. APPENDIX. Date of the. Formation of the State Constitutions, Sfc. MAINE. The constitution of this state was formed in 1819, but did not go into operation until 1820. NEW HAMPSHIRE. Constitution established in 1784 ; altered and amended in 1792. VERMONT. The first constitution of Vermont was framed in 1777. The present constitution was adopted in 1793, and amended in 1836. MASSACHUSETTS. The constitution of this state was formed in 1780, and altered and amended in 1821. CONNECTICUT. The colonial charter granted by Charles II., in 1662, was the basis of the government till the year 1818, when the present constitution was adopted. RHODE ISLAND. This state, in 1842, was without a written constitution, and in this respect forms an exception to the other states of the Union. The government of this state is adminis tered according to the charter granted to the colony by Charles II., in 1663. NEW YORK. This state adopted a constitution in 1777, which was amended in 1801. A new constitution was framed in 1821. NEW JERSEY. The constitution of New Jersey was formed in the year 1776, since which it has continued without alteration to the present time, except that the word colony has been changed to state ; but the legislature has, at various times, explained its provisions in relation to particular parts. PENNSYLVANIA. The first constitution of Pennsylvania was adopted in 1776 ; the present was adopted in 1790, and amended in 1838. DELAWARE. The first constitution of this state was adopted in 1776. A new one was adopted in 1792, and amended in 1831. MARYLAND. The constitution of this state was adopted in 1776. It has undergone various amendments. It* grants the singular power of amending the constitution to the legislature, independently of the express vote of the people. VIRGINIA. The first constitution of this state was formed in 47 554 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. 1776, and an amended constitution was adopted by a Convention, on the 14th of January, 1830, and went into operation in the year 1831. NORTH CAROLINA. The constitution of North Carolina was framed in 1776, and was amended in 1835. SOUTH CAROLINA. A constitution was adopted by this state in 1775. The present constitution was adopted in 1790. The latter has been twice amended, first in 1808, and again in 1816. GEORGIA. Georgia first formed a constitution in 1777; a second, in 1785 ; and a third, which is now in operation, in 1798. This last has been amended in respect to one judicial provision. KENTUCKY. The constitution of Kentucky was first formed in 1790. A new one was framed- in 1799. TENNESSEE. The constitution of Tennessee was adopted in 1796; amended in 1834. OHIO. The constitution of this state was adopted in 1802. It may be amended by a convention, but, as yet, has experienced no change. INDIANA. The constitution of Indiana was adopted in 1816; may be amended by convention, but has not yet been altered. LOUISIANA. The constitution of this state was formed in 1812. Provision is made for its amendment by a convention, chosen by the people. MISSISSIPPI. Constitution adopted in 1817, with provisions for its being amended by convention. It was amended in 1 832. ILLINOIS. From the North-west territory ; admitted in 1818. ALABAMA. From part of Georgia ; admitted in 1818. MISSOURI. Formed from a part of the Louisiana purchase ; admitted in 1820. ARKANSAS. From a portion of the Louisiana purchase ; ad mitted in 1836. MICHIGAN, which was constituted a territory in 1805 ; admitted in 1837. Qualifications of Foters, or Right of Suffrage, in each State. MAINE. The right of suffrage is nearly universal, being grant ed to all male citizens of twenty-one years of age and upwards, who have resided in the state for three months, next preceding the election. Paupers, persons under guardianship, and Indians not taxed, are excepted. NEW HAMPSHIRE. Right of suffrage granted to all males of APPENDIX. 555 twenty-one years of age and upwards, excepting paupers, and persons excused from paying taxes at their special request VERMONT. Right of suffrage extends to all males of twenty- one years of age and upwards, who have resided one year in the state, next preceding the election, and are of a quiet and peaceable behavior. MASSACHUSETTS. Right of suffrage extends to all males of twenty-one years of age and upwards, (paupers and persons under guardianship excepted,) who have resided within the common wealth one year, and within the town or district in which they may claim a right to vote, six calendar months next preceding any election, and who have paid a state or county tax assessed upon them within two years next preceding such election, and also to every citizen who may be by law exempted from taxa tion, and who may be, in all other respects, qualified as above mentioned. CONNECTICUT. Must have gained a settlement in the state six months, done military duty, paid a state tax, and taken the prescribed oaths. RHODE ISLAND. Three months residence, and own a freehold of one hundred and thirty-four dollars. NEW YORK. Right of suffrage extends to all males of twenty- one years of age, inhabitants of the state for the last year, and residents of the county for the last six months. A colored man must have resided in the state three years, and hold a freehold of two hundred and fifty dollars, free of all encumbrance. NEW JERSEY. The language of the constitution on this point is, that all persons of full age shall have a right to vote, who are worth fifty pounds, proclamation money, clear estate in the same, and have resided in the county in which they claim to vote, for twelve months immediately preceding the election. By a special act of the legislature, every white male inhabitant, of lawful age, and who has paid a tax, is considered worth fifty pounds, and therefore entitled to vote. PENNSYLVANIA. A citizen of the state two years, and paid a state and county tax. Persons qualified, between the ages of twenty-one and two, may vote, although they have paid no taxes. DELAWARE. The right of suffrage the same as in Pennsyl vania, MARYLAND. One year in the state, and six months in the county, preceding the election at which he offers to vote. VIRGINIA. Right of suffrage extends to every white male citizen of the commonwealth, of the age of twenty-one years, or who has a joint interest to the amount of twenty-five dollars, and 556 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. having been a housekeeper one year, and been assessed with a part of the revenue of the commonwealth, within the preceding year, and actually paid the same. NORTH CAROLINA. A citizen of the state one year, who has paid taxes, may vote for members of the house of commons, but must own fifty acres of land to vote for senators. SOUTH CAROLINA. Right of suffrage is granted to every free white male citizen, of the age of twenty-one years, resident two years, a freeholder of fifty acres of land, or has paid a tax the preceding year, of three shillings sterling, towards the support of government. GEORGIA. The right of suffrage extends to all citizens who have attained the age of twenty-one years, and six months resi dence in the county where he offers his vote, and must have paid all taxes imposed on him. ALABAMA. A citizen of the United States, one year in the state, and three months residence hi the county where he offers his vote. MISSISSIPPI. A citizen of the United States, residence in this state one year, and in the county six months, and having done military duty or paid taxes. LOUISIANA. Residence in the county where he offers his vote one year, and having paid taxes within the last six months. TENNESSEE. A citizen of the United States, and six months residence in the county where he offers his vote. KENTUCKY. The right of suffrage extends to every free male white citizen of the age of twenty-one years, who has resided in the state two years, or in the county where he votes, one year next preceding. OHIO. Right of suffrage extends to white male inhabitants, above twenty-one years, who have resided in the state one year immediately preceding the election, and who have paid a state or county tax. INDIANA. Right of suffrage is granted to all male citizens of the age of twenty-one years and upwards, who have resided in the state a year immediately preceding an election. ILLINOIS. Residence in the state six months, but can only vote in the county where he actually resides. MISSOURI. A citizen of the United States, and one year s residence in the state next preceding the election, and three months in the county. MICHIGAN. Twenty-one years of age, and six months resi dence next preceding election. ARKANSAS. Same as in Michigan. APPENDIX. 557 Qualifications for Governors, Senators, and Representatives in the different States. MAINE. Governor. A native citizen of the United States, five years a citizen of the state, and thirty years of age. Sena tors. Five years a citizen of the United States, one year of the state, and twenty-five years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States five years, an inhabitant of the state one year, and twenty-one years of age. NEW HAMPSHIRE. Governor. A citizen of the United States seven years, an estate of 500, (one half a freehold,) and thirty years of age. Senators. Residence in the state seven years, a freehold estate of 200, and thirty years of age. Representa tives. Two years an inhabitant of the state, and an estate of 100, one half a freehold. VERMONT. Governor. A citizen of the state four years. Senators. A qualified voter, and thirty years of age. Repre sentatives. Persons most noted for wisdom and virtue, and who have resided in the state two years. MASSACHUSETTS. Governor. A citizen of the state seven years, an estate of 1000, and of the Christian religion. Sena tors. Five years a citizen of the state, a freehold of 300, or ratable estate of 600. Representatives. A citizen of the state one year, and a freehold of 100, or ratable estate of 200. RHODE ISLAND. Governor. A native citizen, and a freeman. Senators. A native citizen, resident of the district where he is chosen, and a freeman. CONNECTICUT. Governor. A voter, and thirty years of age. Senators. A qualified voter. Representatives. A quali fied voter. NEW YORK. Governor. A native citizen of the United States, five years a citizen of the state, a freeholder, and thir ty years of age. Senators. A qualified voter, and a freeholder. Representatives. No qualifications. NEW JERSEY. Governor. A resident of the state. Senators. No senate ; the duties performed by the legislative council. Representatives. A citizen of the state one year, and real or per sonal estate of 500, proclamation money. PENNSYLVANIA. Governor. A citizen of the state seven years, and thirty years of age. Senators. A citizen of the state four years, and of the district where chosen the last year, and twenty-five years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the state three years, and for the last year a citizen of the city or county where chosen. 47* 558 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. DELAWARE. Governor. A citizen of the United States twelve years, of the state the last six years, and thirty-six years of age. Senators. Citizen of the state three years, a freehold of two hundred acres, or 1000, and twenty-seven years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the state three years, and twenty- four years of age. MARYLAND. Governor. A resident of the state above five years, and twenty- five years of age. Senators. A resident of the state three years, and twenty-five years of age. Represen tatives. Resident in the county where chosen one year. VIRGINIA. Governor. A native citizen of the United States, citizen of the state five years, and thirty years of age; ineligible for three years after the first term. Senators. A resident and freeholder in the district where chosen, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A resident and freeholder in the county where chosen, and twenty-five years of age. NORTH CAROLINA. Governor. A resident in the state five years, freehold in the state of more than 1000, and thirty years of age. Senators. A citizen of the county where chosen one year, and three hundred acres of land. Representatives. A citi zen of the county where chosen one year, one hundred acres of land in fee or for the term of his life. SOUTH CAROLINA. Governor. A citizen of the state ten years, an estate of 1500 sterling, clear of debt, and thirty years of age. Senators. A citizen of the state five years, a resident of the district where chosen, and an estate of 300 sterling ; or, not being a resident, an estate of 1000, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the state three years, a resident, and an estate of five hundred acres of land and ten negroes, or 150 sterling in real estate ; or, not being a resident, an estate of 500 sterling. GEORGIA. Governor. A citizen of the United States twelve years, and of the state six years, an estate of five hundred acres of land, and other property amounting to $4000 more than debts due, and thirty years of age. Senators. A citizen of the United States nine years, and of the state three years, a freehold of $500, or taxable property of $1000 more than debts due, all legal taxes paid, and twenty-five years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States seven years, and of the state three years, a freehold of $250, or taxable property of $500 more than debts due, and all legal taxes paid. ALABAMA. Governor. A native citizen of the United States, and a citizen of the state four years, thirty years of age, and in eligible for more than four successive years. Senators. A citi zen of the United States, of the state two years, and of the district APPENDIX. 559 where chosen one year, and twenty-seven years of age. Repre sentatives. A citizen of the United States, of the state two years, and of the county where chosen one year, and twenty-one years of age. MISSISSIPPI. Governor. A citizen of the United States twenty years, and of the state five years, a freehold estate of $2000, and thirty years of age ; ineligible for more than four successive years. Senators. A citizen of the United States, and of the state four years, the last year residing in the district where chosen, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A citi zen of the United States, and of the state two years, the last year residing in the county where chosen, a freehold estate of $500, and twenty-one years of age. LOUISIANA. Governor. A citizen of the United States, and of the state six years, an estate of $5000, and thirty-five years of age. Senators. A citizen of the United States, of this st,;ite four years, and in the district where chosen one year, an estate of $1000, and twenty-seven years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, of the state two years, and of the county where chosen one year, an estate in land of $500, and twenty-one years of age. TENNESSEE. Governor. A citizen of the United States, arid of the state seven years, and thirty years of age. Senators. A citizen of the United States, three years residence in the state, and in the county where chosen one year, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, and of the state three years, residence in the county where chosen one year, and twenty-one years of age. KENTUCKY. Governor. A citizen of the United States, and of the state six years, thirty-five years of age, and ineligible for more than one term in seven years. Senators. A citizen of the United States, of the state six years, and of the district where chosen the last year, and thirty-five years of age. Representa tives. A citizen of the United States, of the state two year.^, and of the county where chosen the last year, and twenty-four years of age. OHIO. Governor. A citizen of the United States twelve years, an inhabitant of the state four years, and thirty-five years of age. Senators. A citizen of the United States, and of the district where chosen two years, having paid a state and county tax, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, an inhabitant of the state, and a resident in the county where chosen one year, having paid a state or county tax, and twenty-five years of age. INDIANA. Governor. A citizen of the United States ten 560 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. years, and of the state five years, and thirty years of age. Sena tors. A citizen of the United States, of the state two years, and of the district where chosen the last year, having paid a state or county tax, and twenty-five years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, and of the state and county where chosen one year, having paid a state or county tax, and twenty- one years of age. ILLINOIS. Governor. A citizen of the United States thirty years, and of the state two years, thirty years of age, and ineli gible for two successive terms. Senators. A citizen of the United States, and of the district where chosen the last year, having paid a state or county tax, and twenty-five years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, and an in habitant of the state and county where chosen, having paid a state or county tax, and twenty-one years of age. MISSOURI. Governor. A native citizen of the United States, a resident of the state four years, and thirty-five years of age. Senators. A citizen of the United States, of the state four vears, and of the district where chosen one year, having paid a state or county tax, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, of the state two years, and of the county where chosen one year, having paid a state or county tax, and twenty-four years of age. MICHIGAN. Governor. A citizen of the United States five years, and a resident of the state the last two years. Senators. A citizen of the United States, and a qualified voter in the county where chosen. Representatives. Same as the senators. ARKANSAS. Governor. A native citizen of the United States, or a resident of the state ten years previous to the adoption of the constitution, and four years preceding the election. Sena tors. A citizen of the United States, a resident of the state one year, and thirty years of age. Representatives. A citizen of the United States, a resident of the county where chosen, and twen ty-five years of age. APPENDIX. 561 = _ JCTBi * . \B. : z g=r - THE CAPITOL. The Capitol of the United States, at Washington, is situated on an area including thirty acres. The building stands on the western portion of the ground, and commands a beautiful and extensive view of the city, the surrounding country, and the wind ings of the Potomac. The entire space is enclosed by an iron railing of substantial workmanship. The building itself is three stories in height The first is a rusticated basement, crowned by two others, comprised within an elevation of pillars and pilasters of the Corinthian order. These columns are thirty feet in height, forming a noble portico on the eastern side, of one hundred and sixty feet in extent. The whole building is surrounded by a balustrade of stone, and crowned by a lofty dome in the centre, and a flat one upon each wing. The representatives hall is situated in the second story of the south wing. Its form is semicircular ; the chord of the long est dimension being ninety-six feet, and the height of the ceiling at the most elevated point, sixty feet. The room is surrounded by twenty-four columns of variegated native marble, from the banks of the Potomac, with capitals of white Italian marble, which stand on freestone bases, and support a magnificent dome, painted in a style designed to represent that of the Pantheon at Rome. The speaker s chair is situated at one side of the hall, elevated to a level with a broad promenade, which extends about the sides of the room, and is bounded by pillars and pilasters of stone. The hall is ornamented with a chandelier in the centre, a colossal figure of Liberty, in plaster; the American eagle, in stone ; a statue, in marble, representing History ; a magnificent 562 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. portrait of Lafayette ; and various other works of art from native and foreign hands. The senate chamber is situated in the north wing. Its form is semicircular. Its greatest length is seventy-two feet, and its greatest height forty-two. A series of Ionic columns support a gallery on the eastern side, and form a sort of promenade below, while a new gallery of iron pillars and railing projects from the circular wall. The room is ornamented by elegant tapestry, the richest stucco work, and a great variety of marble columns of the finest workmanship. The rotunda occupies the centre of the building, and is ninety- six feet in diameter, and ninety-six feet high. This is the great thoroughfare of the building, and leads to the halls of legislation and the library. The circumference of this room is divided into panels by lofty Grecian pilasters, which support an entablature ornamented by wreaths of olives, the whole crowned with a hemispherical dome, resembling the dome of the Pantheon at Rome. These panels are ornamented with four historical paint ings of great value, commemorating some of the most important scenes of the revolution. These paintings were executed by order of the United States government, by Col. Trumbull, an officer of the revolution, and for several years an aid to the commander-in-chief. The pictures themselves are grand in the extreme, and are calculated to produce a powerful effect on the mind of every man who has any proper sense of the difficulties of those times, and the grandeur of the prize for which so many millions were contending. These paintings are considered of great value. The first represents the signing of the Declaration of Independ ence, with portraits of the signers, their dress corresponding with the fashion of the times, tapestry of the room, taken from that in which congress assembled at the time, with a back ground representing military flags, and other trophies, which had been taken from the enemy. The second painting is the surrender of Gen. Burgoyne. It represents Gen. Burgoyne, at tended by several officers, arriving near the marquee of Gen. Gates. Gen. Gates has advanced a few steps to meet his pris oner, who has dismounted, and is in the act of offering his sword. Gen. Gates declines to receive the sword, and invites them to enter his tent and partake of refreshments. In the back ground are seen troops crossing the country, companies making their appearance behind the woods, and a great variety of both American and British officers performing each his part of the ever-memorable scene. The third painting is the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown. It represents the scene at the moment when the principal officers of the British army are passing between two APPENDIX. 563 groups of French and American generals to the place where their arms were to be surrendered. The principal officers of the three nations are therefore brought near together, and admit of distinct and separate portraits. In the distance is seen the entrance of the town, a glimpse of York River, and the entrance of Chesa peake Bay. In the last painting, Gen. Washington is repre sented as resigning his commission as cornmander-in-cliief of the American army. After leaving the rotunda, we pass westerly along the gallery of the principal stairway, to the library-room. This room is ninety-two feet long, thirty-four feet wide, and thirty-six feet high. It is divided into twelve arched alcoves, ornamented with fluted pilasters, resembling the Octagon tower at Athens. With in the room are four pillars of stone, which support the galleries extending nearly the whole length of the room on both sides, and divided into the same number of shelved recesses as the lower apartment. The arched roof corresponds with the alcoved form of the room, and is ornamented with the richest stucco work, wreaths of flowers, &c. The whole room is handsomely fur nished with sofas, tables, desks, and carpeting. The library, at present, comprises about fourteen thousand volumes. The Supreme Court room is on the basement story of the north wing, immediately under the senate room. Its form is semi circular, with an arched ceiling diverging, like the radii of a cir cle, from the central point over the bench of the judges. Besides the rooms already mentioned, are twenty-seven others, appropriated to different purposes, for the officers of the two houses of congress and the Supreme Court, and forty-five to the use of committees. The building having been situated, origi nally, on the declivity of a hill, the west front showed an eleva tion one story of rooms below the level of the east front and ends. To remedy this defect, a range of casement arches has been pro jected, in a semicircular form, on the west, and a paved terrace formed over them, which, at a short distance, gives the building the appearance of resting on a uniform level. The dimensions of the grounds and building are the fol lowing. Ground within the railing, thirty acres ; length of the foot- walk outside the railing, one thousand five hundred and five feet; length of the building, three hundred and fifty-two feet and four inches ; depth of wings, one hundred and twenty-one feet and six inches ; east projection and steps, sixty-five feet ; west projec tion and steps, eighty-three feet ; area of building, one and a half acres and one thousand eight hundred and twenty feet ; height of the wings, seventy feet j height of centre dome, one hundred and forty-five feet. 564 THE AMERICAN POLITICIAN. The following is the cost of the building, with the time of erection. North wing, commenced in 1793, finished in 1800, cost, $480,262 57 South wing, commenced in 1803, finished in 1808, 308,808 41 Centre building, commenced in 1818, finished in 1827 957,647 35 Total, . . . $1,746,718 33 The seat of government was removed to Washington in 1800, during the administration of John Adams, and the city was in corporated in 1802. In 1814, congress determined by vote that the government should remain permanently at this place. From that time the most liberal appropriations were made for complet ing the necessary buildings, and for the general prosperity of the city. There is, perhaps, no city in the Union that has so many pleas ant heights surrounding it as Washington. The line of high lands in the vicinity presents to the eye the form of a horse-shoe ; the Potomac, more than a mile in width, forming the opening at the south. The heights afford the most delightful country seats, which present from the metropolis a splendid appearance. The city itself is situated at the head of tide-water navigation, near the centre of the seaboard line, and has a ready communication with the ocean. Springs of pure water are in abundance ; the territoiy and the convenience of intercourse with every part of the republic is surpassed by that of no point in the Union. BELA MARSH, Bookseller and Stationer, No. 25 Cornhill, Boston, Keeps constantly for sale, a general assortment of School, Classical and Miscellaneous Books. Also STATIONERY & BLANK BOOKS, on liberal terms. [E?For sale as above, PHYSIOLOGICAL, PHRENOLOGICAL, SOCIAL REFORM, and other valuable Books, viz. : Graham s large work, in 2 vols., containing his Lectures on the Science of Human Life, do. Lecture to Young Men. do. Philosophy of Sacred History, with particular reference to the authority of the Bible for man s eating Flesh, drinking Wine, &tc. &c. do. Treatise on Bread and Bread-Making, do. do. on Epidemic Diseases. Alcott s Young Wife, or Duties of Woman in the Mar riage Relation, do. Young Housekeeper, or Thoughts on Food and Cookery, do. Young Mother, or the Physical Education of Children, do. House I Live in, or the Human Body, for the use of Families and Schools, do. Young Woman s Guide to Excellence, do. Young Husband, or Duties of Man in the Mar riage Relation, do. Vegetable Diet ; as sanctioned by Medical Men and by experience in all ages, do. Treatise on Tea and Coffee On Tobacco, do. Library of Health, in 6 vols. Alcott s Moral Reformer, and Teacher on the Human Constitution, in 2 vols. HEALTH TRACTS, by Dr. AlcotU These are sold either separate or bound together. No. 1. Dosing and Drugging. No. 2. On Consumption. No. 3. City and Country. No. 4. The Right Use of Fruits. No. 5. Thoughts on Bathing. No. 6. Breathing Bad Air. No. 7. Clothing and Temperature. No. 8. Domestic Poisons. No. 9. Tight Lacing. No. 10. Abuses of the Eye. No. 11. Health in Common Schools. No. 12. The Right Use of Physicians. Armstrong s Art of Preserving Health. Fowler s large work on Practical Phrenology. do. Principles of Phrenology and Physiology ap plied to Marriage, or Man s Social Relations, do. Hereditary Descent, do. On Education and Self-Improvement, do. On Memory Tight Lacing -Temperance, do- Phrenological Journal. HYDROPATHY ; or the Water Cure : its Principles, Modes of Treatment, &c., illustrated with many cases. Compiled from the most eminent English authors on the subject. By Joel Shew, M. D. A Concise Exposition of the Doctrine of Association, OF Plan for a Reorganization of Society, which will se cure to the Human Race, individually and collec tively, their Happiness and Elevation. (Based on Fourier s Theory of Domestic and Industrial Associa tion.) By Albert Brisbane. A Popular View of the Doctrines of Charles Fourier. By Parke Godwin. Association in connection with Education and Religion 9 two Lectures delivered before the N. England Fourier Society, in Boston, Feb. 29th and March 7th, 1844. SOCIAL REFORM ; or an Appeal in behalf of Association, based upon the principles of a Pure Christianity. By James Boyle, a member of the Northampton As sociation of Education and Industry. THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS WILL. BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH DAY AND TO $1.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY OVERDUE. i:..( . ! <"> JUN 10 1! LD 21-95m-7, 37 THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY