E 331 B7S 33 EXAMINATION THE PRESIDENT'S REPLT TO THE NEW-HAVEN REMONSTRANCE ; WITH APPENDIX, CONTAINING THE PRESIDENT'S INAUGURAL SPEECH, THE REMONSTRANCE AND REPLY; TOGETHER WITH A LIST OF REMOVALS FROM OFFICE, AND NEW APPOINTMENTS, MADE SINCE THE FOURTH OF MARCH, 1801. NEW-YORK : PRINTED AND SOLD BY GEORGE F. HOPKINS, \T WASHINGTON'S HF.AD. 1801. E sfe. Published according to Act of Congress. A N EXAMINATION, &c WHEN the first Magistrate of a great and free Peo- ple, so far forgets the respect due to his exalted station as to make himself a party to an altercation respect- ing his official acts, the novelty of the spectacle naturally attracts an unusual share of attention. However the friends of Mr. JEFFERSON may attempt to ascribe this measure to a becoming condescension, men of com.v.1 minds cannot but perceive in it a mischievous tendency to lower the appropriate dignity of official character. IN the organization of a Government, there must al- ways be lodged in the Executive a sound and legal dis- cretionary power, to remove from office for inability or delinquency, without being obliged to explain to the Pub- lic the reasons of his conduct. For him to make it the subject of controversy, implies a right to demand, and a correspondent obligation to furnish, proof; a proceed- ing which would unavoidably lead to difficulties incon- sistent with the free and proper exercise of the power. It is easy to trace this indiscreet measure in Mr. JEFFER- SON to those levelling principles, which it is so much the fashionable philosophy of the day to inculcate ; but against which it is the duty of all good men every where, and upon all occasions, to bear their unequivocal testimony. . RESPECT is due to office; but I hold it important to this community, that the character, views, and talents of Mr. JEFFERSON, should neither be over-rated nor misunder- stood. It is a sacred duty, which every man owes his country, to place before his fellow-citizens the conduct of those who preside over our public affairs, and of none more so than of the present Executive, whom his friends spare no pains to extol, and whom they have emphatically stiled THE MAN OF THE PEOPLE. WHILE, therefore, candor and decency guide the way, I shall not shrink from the investigation, however pain- ful the task to myself, or however humiliating and dis- graceful in its result to him. WITH the deepest anxiety, then, I turn to the Reply before us ; fearful that it is here we are to look for the real sentiments of the President, and not to the delusive Address by which, on the threshold of office, he sought to lull the fears, and win the confidence of the people. His conduct, since that period, has not ceased to vary from the professions he then made. Finding reproaches for his shameful inconsistency to thicken upon him from all parts of the union, he seems to have thought it necessary, by some bold act, to tear off the mask, and at once acknow- ledge his duplicity. In so short a time, has he reduced himself to the unhappy dilemma, of either thwarting the [ 5 ] views of his party, or of disavowing his own sentiments itlready committed to the world. Instead of pursuing that mild and conciliatory system of conduct, tending to restore harmony to social intercourse^ for which he had pledged himself, and thus gradually to wear off the asperities of party, he has suddenly, and unexpectedly, departed from this just and honorable policy ; divided the people into two distinct classes ; branded one as an odious SECT ; and in the true spirit of a bigot, he now wages a war of exter- mination against all who are not within the pale of his es- tablished Church. BUT waving further preliminary remarks, I come to the Reply itself. Unless I am greatly mistaken, it will be found to afford sufficient cause for the most serious reflec- tion. I solicit, therefore, the patient attention of mode- rate and thinking men, of whatever party, whilst I enter upon its examination. MR. JEFFERSON begins with observing, that " of all " the various executive duties, no one excites more anx- a ious concern, than that of placing the interest of his 44 fellow-citizens in the hands of honest men, with undcr- u standing sufficient for their station." Perhaps he could not have blundered upon a more unlucky introduction. The justness of the remark is not to be questioned ; but its application to the case before him cannot easily be per- ceived. Does he mean, that honesty and a good under- standing are, of themselves, sufficient recommendations to office ? This, though at direct variance with what he says in the conclusion of the Reply, is the only meaning of [ 6 ] which this part of it is susceptible. If this be so, I a?k, why is it, that when the public interest has already bee*->. placed in the hands of an honest man, with understand- ing sufficient for his station, time is taken, inforr- is sought, merely for the purpose of removing him. and placing another in his stead? That Mr. GOODRICH pos- sessed these qualifications in an eminent degree, Mr. JEF- FERSON dare not deny. Where> then, was the necessity for the exercise of this Executive duty, in searching for another person on whom to bestow the like confidence ? Well may he say, "no duty js more difficult to fulfil:" Hapless man ! judging from the sample before us, he seems to have found the justification of it equally difficult with the exercise. THE various offices which Mr. BISHOP holds within his own state, are detailed as public evidences of his fitness for additional and new employments. There is not a Jacobin in the country, who, previous to the 4th of March last, would not have reprobated such logic in the Executive ; with one voice, they would all have exclaimed against accumulation of offices in an individual, and produced the very facts which Mr. JEFFERSON has resorted to in support of this appointment, as affording the best reasons why it should not have been made. I THINK it will not be a little difficult to reconcile it with their pure republicanism, that because a man already holds five offices, it is a sufficient inducement to con- fer on him a sixth: especially, when it is remem- bered, that he has nearly attained to the age of seven- C f ] ty- eight years, u is laboring under a full portion of those u infirmities which are incident to that advanced period of u life," and particularly is so much afflicted with the loss of eye sight, that he can " with difficulty even write his AFTER enumerating the offices which Mr. BISHOP al- ready fills, Mr. JEFFERSON triumphantly asks, " if it is u possible that such a man can be unfit to be Collector of " the District of New^Haven ?" I BELIEVE I do not hazard too much in saying, that no man at the age of seventy-eight, is fit to enter up- on the duties of an office, which requires unremitted activity, industry, and vigilance. He may possibly be adequate to those stations in which nothing is required but the exercise of judgment ; for this faculty may remain unimpaired long after the more active ener- gies of character have been chilled by age. He may also be able to discharge with tolerable ability, duties which, by long custom, have become halitual ; yet it will by no means follow, that he is capable of undertaking an entire new employment, requiring the acquisition of anew species of knowledge, as well as certain habits totally dif- ferent from those of his past life. The office of Collector demands, in a particular manner, from the person who fills it, the most unremitting personal care and attention, which, in the case of Mr. BISHOP, it would be idle to look for. It would be unreasonable to expect from a poor, old, blind man, in the last stages of bodily infirmity, that Watchfulness, which Mr. JEFFF.KSON himself admits to be f 8 1 necessary. This new office requires talents and informa- tion entirely dissimilar from any which he can be sup- posed to be possessed of : an acquaintance with our reve- nue laws ; a knowledge of accounts ; and a certain readi- ness in transacting mercantile business All these are in- dispensably requisite, and must now be acquired by a man bending beneath a weight of years, which demands re- pose from all further toil. Labors, which youth and per- severance could alone accomplish, are to be undertaken by him, when his dissolution is to be hourly expected, and the yawning grave seems ready to close upon the rash attempt. BUT in answer to all this it is said, that at a much more advanced age our FRANKLIN was the ornament of human nature. WE shall have more occasions than this to admire the logical powers of our President. The extraordinary instance of Dr. FRANKLIN'S retaining to a very old age the full possession of his faculties, is considered by this gen- tleman as conclusive proof, that a man at seventy-seven must be equal to all the active duties of life. Mr. BISHOP, say the New-Haven merchants, is almost blind. How is that possible, replies Mr. JEFFERSON,, when Dr. FRANKLIN, who lived much longer, had the perfect use of his eyes ? Mr. BISHOP, say they again, is sinking under the pressure of those bodily infirmities generally incident to his age. Impossible, replies the Sage, our FRANKLIN braved the ravages of time much longer, and died the ornament of human nature. SUCH reasoning would serve equally well to prove, that every man necessarily must live as long as FRANKLIN did, or that because Dr. FRANKLIN discovered electricity, old BISHOP ought to be converted into a lightning rod. THE contemptible sophistry to which the President has had recourse on this occasion, tends to show the miserable shifts to which a man will resort, who acts from motives which he is either afraid or ashamed to avow. The "plain unvarnished tale" is simply this ; the appoint- ment was virtually intended for the seditious, unprincipled demagogue, ABRAHAM BISHOP; a man too infamous for direct notice, but who, under the protection of his fa- ther's name, is to receive the emoluments of the office. MR. JEFFERSON complains, that declarations made by him, have on certain occasions been misconstrued into as- surances, u that the tenure of offices was not to be clis- turbed." MOST certainly, if there be any force or meaning in words, such is the only construction that could have been put upon the declarations contained in the Inaugural Speech. There appeared a display of uncommon solicitude, to con- vey assurances to the people, that he meant to pursue a system moderate, liberal, and conciliatory. Terms more expressive of this resolution could not easily have been employed. To what other purpose were we invited to unite with one heart and one mind to restore to social intercourse that B t 10 ] harmony and affection, without which liberty, and even life Itself, are dreary things? To what other purpose were we told, that we have yet gained little, if we coun- tenance a political intolerance as despotic as wicked, and capable of as bitter and bloody persecutions ? To what other purpose were we called by the affectionate appella- tions of brethren of the same principle, all republicans, all federalists ; and only distinguished from each other by unessential differences in opinion ? To what other purpose did he promise equal and exact justice to all men, of what- ever state or persuasion, religious or political? To what other purpose indeed did he declare these to be among the essential principles of our Government, and those which ought to shape its administration ? To what purpose did he then plight his word, that Yns future solicitude would be, to retain the good opinion of those who had bestowed it in ad- vance, to conciliate that of others, by doing them all the good in his power, and to be instrumental to the happiness and freedom of all ? AFTER such and so many soothing expressions, calcu- lated to betray us into a reliance on his justice and mode- ration, are we now to be reproached with, a want of can- dor, because we were weak enough to yield a ready and generous credit to such multiplied professions ? because we thought him incapable of this insult and mockery, by which he has added another, and a sharper thong to the lash of cruelty and oppression ? BUT the rules by which Mr. JEFFERSON informs us he shall be guided in his career of displacements, ought to af- [ 11 ] ford abundant cause of consolation. He assures us that he shall pr occed in the operation, so that it m&j injure the best men least, and effect the purposes of justice with the least private distress, and that it shall fall as much as possible on delinquency, on oppression, on Intolerance, and on anti- revolutionary adherence to our enemies. i HERE, then, we find In the first place, that though the best men are to be injured, yet at the same instant he adds something to mitigate the smart of the wound ; provided they can, like the spirits of the damned T take delight in another's anguish, for he informs us he shall injure others still more than he shall them, AGAIN we may observe, that though no consideration for the private distress he may occasion, is to restrain him from bringing down ruin upon the head of an individual and his innocent family, yet, that in the inflicting such punishment he shall proceed so as to effect the purposes of justice. MAY that Merciful Being " who* tempers the wind to " the shorn lamb" protect us from further marks of what a modern philosopher may deem justice! BUT the weight of Exec.utive vengeance seems to be re- served to crush all those who six and twenty years ago dif- fered from him in their political opinions. This last senti- ment of keeping alive a rancorous revenge festering for- ever in the bosom, must command the united approbation of every man of decency, benevolence, morality, and re- ligion. [ 12 ] LEST any one, however, should be so far infatuated as to believe that the conduct of Mr. JEFFERSON may be reconciled with the professions of which he made such a parade on the 4th of March, I shall now examine this system of removal with which he has begun, and show that it necessarily militates with every principle which he there affects to consider essential to our Government ; nay, I shall take a bolder ground, and contend that his duty, independent of any declarations to that effect, re- quired of him, that the tenure of all subordinate offices should remain undisturbed. EVERY man who accepts an office, takes it under an implied contract with Government, that he shall be con- tinued in it, as long as he executes it with fidelity and ca- pacity. On thi reliance, he relinquishes his regular busi- ness, quits those pursuits on which he has heretofore de- pended, and devotes his time and talents to his public em- ployment. Unless, therefore, he can feel a confidence that such employment will be permanent, the situation of a public officer will, of all others, be the most precarious und painful. To suppose that a man of a liberal and inde- pendent mind, will submit to fill an office, from which he is liable to be removed whenever it may suit the caprice or gratify the resentment of those in power, would be deroga- tory to that high and virtuous spirit, which should ever characterise a freeman. THIS plan of sweeping from office every man of adverse politics, and proscribing him as unworthy of confidence, necessarily widens the breach between parties, and sets in [ 13 ] hostile array, one half of the community against the other. THE individual, who thus feels himself aggrieved and insulted, must possess great patriotism and fortitude not to find his affections completely estranged from a Govern- ment which has treated him so unworthily. It can indeed hardly be expected that he will altogether restrain his re- sentment ; his friends and connections will participate in his feelings ; the party to which he is attached, will not long remain insensible of the injustice done to him ; and when at length instances of oppression have multiplied to a certain extent, a generous sympathy will pervade the community, and produce a sentiment of indignation which shall level the proud oppressor in the dust. IT would be difficult to contrive a plan more completely calculated to produce irritation and hatred against Govern- ment, than that which Mr. JEFFERSON has adapted; one which opposes more serious obstacles to harmony of inter- course ; one which more effectually tramples upon every thing like equal and exact justice, and which partakes more of a political intolerance no less despotic than rvicked. THE whole host of presidential sycophants are chal- lenged to justify him by the example of any nation in any age, not under the influence of Jacobin councils In the annals of Jacobinism alone, could a precedent be found so totally subversive of every principle of justice, as well gs of sound policy. INDEPENDENT of the injury done to the' individual, so- ciety itself materially suffers by the operation of such a system. There are few offices, with the duties of which a a person can, till after a considerable length of time, so far familiarise himself, as to perform with accuracy all the ne- cessary details. An intelligent and active man grows daily more useful in the employments to which he devotes his attention ; he acquires a knowledge of business, and a promptness, which are of the highest service. But if eve- ry change of a chief Magistrate is to produce an entire change of subordinate officers, what is to be the conse- quence r Their places are to be supplied by a new set of men who have eveiy thing to learn, and who, by the time they have acquired the proper information, and have fitted themselves for their stations, must, in consequence of a new election, which changes the state of affairs, be swept off in their turn to make room for others equally ignorant, and unskilful with themselves at the time of their appointment, THE means of improvement being thus rejected, Govern- ment will be entirely deprived of all the benefits of expe- rience, and the management of public affairs, perpetually shifting from one tyro ia office to another, will forever be kept in infancy and weakness. ANOTHER mischievous tendency flowing from the same source, is the exclusion from office of all such men, as from their talents and probity, are best qualified to be placed there. [ 15 ] THERE are few men in this country of such indepen- dent fortunes, as to live upon certain fixed revenues The great portion of the people gain a livelihood by regu- lar pursuits, and are dependent for support upon their per- sonal industry : whenever therefore, persons of the latter description, accept a public trust, they must give up the profits of their busines, and depend upon the emoluments of their office. It would seem then that there ought to be some stability in this dependence, some certainty of its continuance, some reliance on the part of the individual, that the Government which first required his services; which first called upon him to leave his former engage- ments ; should retain him in its employment as long as he should continue to exercise the same virtues and talents that first recommended him to its notice. AFTER having relinquished any particular business for a length of time, it is not very easy to resume it. This re- mark applies with peculiar force to professional men. Those on whom they formerly depended for business, have in the mean time, resorted to others, with whom they have formed a kind of connection, not always convenient, and never pleasant to dissolve. A man, thus obliged to re- turn to his profession, has, in a great measure, again to surmount all the difficulties which attended his earliest practice ; and this too, perhaps, at an advanced period oi" life, with an increased family solely dependent upon his personal exertions and success. TAKE from office, then, the stability of its tenure, and you at once destroy a great inducement to enter into pub- lic service. [ 16 ] THE man of wealth will not submit to the toils and re- proaches incident to an office whose emoluments he does not want, and from which he may at any moment be ca- priciously removed. The man of moderate fortune, whose industry is necessary for his support, would surely be weak indeed to throw away the profits of his private busi- ness, for a temporary employment, which may be resum- ed at the lawless pleasure of every petty tyrant, whom par- ty zeal may exalt to the place of chief Magistrate. IN reply to this, I am aware it may be said, that fit men have always been found, in sufficient numbers, to fill new and vacant offices, and that this will therefore continue to be the case. I MIGHT indeed deny the correctness of this assertion, for instances have sometimes occurred, where, from the uncertainty of their tenure, offices have with much diffi- culty been filled by proper characters. BUT, admitting it to be wholly true, the conclusion drawn from it does by no means follow ; for it may be safe- ly asserted, that no opportunity has yet occurred to afford a fair experiment. Till this day, an accidental change of those in power, has not been followed by a correspondent change in every inferior officer, and it therefore yet re- mains to be seen, whether virtue and talents will volunta- rily accept of office, when it may subject them to the evils I have already mentioned Till this day a mere difference in shades of political opinion, has not been deemed sufficient to hurl a man from a post which he was occupying with honor a.nd fidelitv. ONCE establish this as a principle of practice, and I pronounce, without hesitation, that respectability, talents, and virtue, will be found only in private life, while the gifts of Government will be monopolized by needy adventur- ers, men of desperate fortunes and abandoned principles, with whom immediate support and the chance of pecula- tion are sufficient motives to enter into any service which affords them the best prospect of success. IT is also worthy of particular notice, that this system of dismissal from office for a difference in politics merely, is a direct and formidable attack upon all independence of mind, and a violation of the sacred right of opinion. It is a species of mental tyranny, which till lately has never made its appearance in our country. It is an attempt to controul the judgment, render it subservient to the views of the ruling party, and induce a man, from a base attachment to office, to sacrifice his real sentiments. Can any thing be more degrading to a Government than thus holding out a lure to lead men astray from their conscientious duty? It is tampering with their integrity it is poisoning their morals. VIEW this system in whatever light it can be placed, and it will be found equally pregnant with mischief. It is calculated to involve the country in the keenest animosity, to increase the intolerance of party, and to excite a spirit of persecution which may finally be resisted with other weapons than the pen. Let those who raise the storm, take care that they perish not by its violence, C C 18 ] IT has always been regarded as an established rule of decorum, that no principal officer should ever officially attack the character of his predecessor. The dignity of Government itself has been supposed to be materially in- terested in the rigid observance of this maxim. To hear a Chief Magistrate publicly censure and revile his pre- decessor, must tend directly to degrade office itself; to render it cheap in the eyes of the community, and deprive it of that respectability so essential to its very existence. YET, in violation of this salutary rule, Mr. JEFFERSON charges the late administration with having "proscribed " and excluded from office all those who were not of a par- " ticular SECT of politics." DOES Mr. JEFFERSON mean to include the whole ad- ministration since the first establishment of the govern- ment ? or does he mean to confine himself to that of Mr. ADAMS ? It might seem indeed, that by the " late adminis- " tration" that of General WASHINGTON was not intend- ed ; yet the expression, taken in connection with the rest of the Reply, and explained by Mr. JEFFERSON'S con- duct, must be regarded as extending to every preceding administration. It may, however, be confidently asserted, that the position is untrue in either sense. THE party in power endeavor to justify the violence of their own proceedings, by affirming, that the federalists have set them the example. A very slight examination of the charge will be sufficient to prove it groundless. [ 19 ] FOR the existing administration of every Government to select, in general, from its friends, fit persons to {ill vacant offices, has always been considered a fair and proper prac- tice. Whenever the Democratic party have possessed the ascendancy in the State Governments, they have acted upon this principle to a much more rigorous extent than their political opponents have ever done. The truth of this might be clearly illustrated by a comparison of even the former ad- ministration of Governor CLINTON in this State, with that of his successor Mr. JAY. And this kind of preference, when confined within proper bounds, may undoubtedly be justified by very strong reasons ; in this opinion both par- ties have concurred. BUT there is a very wide and essential difference be- tween neglecting to appoint to office and indiscriminately removing from it all who differ in their political opin- ions from the governing party. In the first case, there being two competitors for a new employment, neither can have any rightful claim, to the exclusion of the other; and consequently no injury can be done by a preference. In the latter case, the person already in office, who has ably performed its duties, has an equitable claim, from that circumstance, to be continued against every new can- didate. This is a reward due to faithful and able service, which every ^entiment of natural justice will enforce. Besides, in th~ first instance, the choice being made from persons equally inexperienced, the presumption is, that no inconvenience will result to the community, which ever way the preference is decided ; not so in the latter, which must always be productive of private injustice, and often- times of public injury. It is dangerous to hazard the ex- [ 20 ] periment of introducing new characters, when it can only be made by discarding those of tried fidelity. GENERAL WASHINGTON began his administration with the evident design of reconciling all parties. To act as the common father of his people, and to endeavor to bury the unhappy distinctions of party, became the moderation of that illustrious man. Numerous instances of this dis- position might be produced, but to detail them all would lead to unnecessary prolixity : of those which occur to im- mediate recollection, a sufficient number shall be adduced to satisfy candid men Amongthese Mr. JEFFERSON him- self makes a conspicuous figure. THIS gentleman long filled the office of Secretary of State, one of the most dignified and important in the gift of Government. Yet was he among the most formidable opposers of the Constitution. Did he not take consider- able pains whilst he was in France, to prevent its ratifica- tion by the Virginia Convention ? Did he not send over to this country written objections against it, and strenuously urge his influential friends to persist in their opposition at any hazard, short of endangering the existence of the Union ? Did he not, even whilst he was a member of the cabinet, oppose the measures of the administration, and make every use of the influence which his official station gave him to counteract its views ? WELL-INFORMED Federal men have not yet forgotten the implacable and incendiary opposition made by the National Gazette to every part of the administration, except that in the hands of Mr. JEFFERSON himself. [ 21 ] THERE are a variety of facts tend ing conclusively to show that this paper was established and continued under the patronage of Mr. JEFFERSON. THE editor, Mr. FRENEAU, enjoyed the salary of a no- minal clerkship, to enable him to pursue at leisure his work of mischief, until popular clamor compelled Mr. JEFFERSON to discontinue it. This Printer received from him 40O dollars yearly, as interpreter of foreign languages, without any pretence that he ever perform- ed the duties of the office. They were executed in part by Mr. JEFFERSON himself, and partly by Mr. TAYLOR, his chief clerk. Can we hesitate as to the inference to be drawn from this fact alone ? When it is known farther, that a confidential friend of the SECRETARY managed the negociation for the institution of this paper, we cannot fail to ascribe the polluted sheet to its real author. THIS conduct of Mr. JEFFERSON ought to have made a deep impression on the mind of this community. It exhibits such a breach of official propriety, as well as mis- application of public money, as ought ever after to have deprived him of the confidence of the people. Yet he was continued in office until he thought fit to resign, under the hypocritical pretence of withdrawing forever from public life.* * At the time of Mr. JEFFERSON'S resignation, he avowed his inten- tion of quitting forever all public employment that he was tired of party strife, and meant to devote the remainder of his days to a philosophical retirement so sick of politics, that he intended even to banish news- papers from his house. [ 22 ] MR. RANDOLPH was one of the three members of the General Convention, who persisted in refusing to sign the Constitution. He did indeed afterwards, when a delegate to the Virginia Convention, support the ratification of it, as a less evil, in the then state of affairs, than was to be apprehended from its rejection ; but he never gave up his objections to the Constitution itself. Without any regard to his political sentiments, however, he was first appointed Attorney General, and afterwards promoted to the De- partment of State. What return he made for this liberality, we well remember The name of FAUCHET, and the story of the FLOUR MERCHANTS, cannot yet be forgotten. Here are two signal instances, where those of Mr. JEFFERSON'S .political SECT were placed in the Administration itself. CHANCELLOR LIVINGSTON, after he apostatized from the Federal cause, was offered the place of Minister to France, which he then saw fit to decline, but which he has recently accepted from the present Executive. MR. MUNROE, who has always been one of the bitterest opposers of the Constitution, and among the most malignant enemies of its administration, was appointed to the place which had been refused by Mr. LIVINGSTON. This man's Embassy to France must ever remain a stain upon our national character. He basely prostrated the honor and dignity of his country before the bloody footstool of a French Directory. PATRICK HENRY, the great leader of the opposition in the Virginia Convention j the most virtuous, able, and [ 23 ] candid adversary the Constitution ever had, was offered the place of Chief Justice, and several other of the first offices in the Government. He declined all these from a real and unaffected preference of private life to public station Not -from those v'mus of inordinate ambition, which^ with a deep and dangerous cunning ^ only sought retirement to be courted from its retreat at a more favorable moment. MR. PACA, a decided opponent to the Constitution, was promoted to the Judiciary Department. THESE are instances, from among the higher appoint- ments in the Government, which occur at once to the re- collection of the writer. I SHALL, however, conclude with the mention of an entire class of cases, of less consequence, though of real importance ; and which presents the matter in a strong point of view. PREVIOUS to the adoption of the Federal Constitution, most of the individual States had their own particular laws of impost and excise, and consequently their several officers of the customs. These officers, deriving their au- thority from the respective States, lost of course their pub- lic characters, by the transfer to the general Government of the power under which they had acted It must be evident, therefore, that they could not expect, as a mat- ter of right, to be appointed to office under the revenue laws of the United States, because these were of a different and distinct nature, under a different and distinct Govern-, [ 24 ] ment. President WASHINGTON, however, did appoint all those officers who held analogous stations in the several States, and who were properly qualified, without any re- ference to their political opinions. Many persons, under this system, were, therefore, appointed to the most profit- able offices, who were the zealous and violent enemies of the Constitution. Among this number the inhabitants of New- York will long remember the late General LAMB, who was made Collector of the Customs, and who dis- tinguished himself on all occasions by his violent and in- discriminate opposition. YET it must be acknowledged, that this wise and liberal policy of President WASHINGTON, was afterwards in some measure checked, though not relinquished, from the discouraging experience, that the adversaries of the Constitution made use of their official influence against the administration itself. MR. ADAMS, having had the fullest opportunities of ob- serving the ill success of General WASHINGTON'S concilia- tory plan, it ought not to occasion surprize, should he have hesitated about continuing the experiment. But, whatever might have been his inclination in this particu- lar, he had but few opportunities of showing it ; for, on his succeeding to the Government, he found all the offices already filled. So that in his appointments, he was confined either to those cases where offices became vacant, or where new ones were created. He could not, therefore, establish any very extensive system of practice, or mate- rially deviate from the one pursued by his predecessor. [ 25 ] It is true, that the increase of our military force, and the establishment of a navy, occasioned a number of new ap- pointments ; these were by far the most numerous por- tion of those made during his administration : and if the sectarian principles of exclusion which Mr. JEFFERSON has so indecently ascribed at least to him, did invariably govern his conduct, how is it that we find any of his political op- ponents among those appointments ? yet it cannot be de- nied, that men decidedly hostile to the Government, did receive military and naval commissions ; some of them highly important and responsible. On the civil list also may be found the names of persons promoted by Mr. ADAMS to offices of dignity and trust, who were distin- guished for their opposition both to the Constitution and its Administration. BUT if it were even true, that Mr. ADAMS had really acted upon the excluding system which has been attributed to him, it is capable of a defence, that ought to be satis- factory to all sensible and moderate men. IT ought to be recollected, that during the greater part of the last administration, this country was in a situation of peculiar difficulty and danger. GOADED on to a war with France, by a repetition of in- sults and injuries from that nation, which cannot be recol- lected without indignation : endangered at home by a se- cond rebellion; opposed and perplexed in all its mea- sures by that party which has lately triumphed ; it is D [ 26 ] not to be wondered at, that in this crisis of affairs our Government, in filling up new and vacant offices, should appoint those from whom, in that trying period, it might derive advice and assistance. AT such a time it was surely justifiable to reject the claims of men who were avowedly hostile to the measures of administration. To have admitted them to a participa- tion, would have been lessening the chance of unanimity and energy, if not furnishing the means of entire defeat. But in times of peace and tranquillity, few occasions occur to embarrass the ordinary proceedings of Government, or which present points of controversy calculated to excite any dangerous collision of opinion : there is not, therefore, the same necessity at present for this extraordinary care in the distribution of office, as there was at that time. But there is no state of affairs which can warrant the violent proceedings with which Mr. JEFFERSON has commenced his career* ADMITTING, however, that the late administration did " monopolize nearly the whole offices of the United States," is not this made by Mr. JEFFERSON a subject of heavy com- plaint? Does he not consider it a procedure, as he calls it, which he is determined to correct I BUT in what manner does he propose to correct it I No otherwise than by, not only adopting the very same con- duct against which he clamors as an injustice, but by carry- ing it to an extent which never had precedent in this coun- try, until the Jacobin M'KEAN gave the lead, which the [ 27 ] President of the United States has humbly and faithfully condescended to follow. Not only does he refuse to ap- point to office any one not of his own SECT, but he ac- tually turns out those who do not implicitly follow his own tenets, or are not ready to make a slavish surrender of the right of opinion. It is of no consequence, in his view, that the officer is filling his station with competent ability, and perfectly to the satisfaction of the public. A man removed under such circumstances, has surely more reason to complain than that he was not at first appointed. THE present Administration, therefore, go beyond their predecessors in those very steps* which they have pronounc- ed odious ; though in the same breath, they declare their intention of following them. CAN that, then, which was wrong in Mr. ADAMS, be right in Mr. JEFFERSON? Is there a magic in the name of the latter, that can render proper in him what was con- demned as a fault in the former ; that can make the same thing praise-worthy in one, which was thought deserving of execration in the other ? But alas ! to what extremes of inconsistency and absurdity will not men be driven who feel "power and forget right ?" MUCH sophistry is employed in this reply, to prove that though Mr. GOODRICH was displaced, yet it could not candidly be called a removal: This may be produced as an un- rivalled specimen of the logical powers of the Philosopher of Monticello. [ 28 ] MR. GOODRICH was appointed Collector for the Dis* trict of New-Haven, on the 19th day of February last, and continued in the exercise of the duties of that office until the appointment of Mr. BISHOP, which took place about the first of June. Thus, for the space of more than three months, Mr. GOODRICH transacted the busi- ness of Collector, under a constitutional appointment; and yet Mr. JEFFERSON affects to consider the office du- ring all this time as either vacant or usurped. He very gravely asks, " Was it proper for him to place himself in " office without knowing whether those whose agent he was " to be could have confidence in his agency ? Can the prefer - " ence of another, as the successor of Mr. AUSTIN, be can- " didly called a removal of Mr. GOODRICH ?" S6, then, Mr. GOODRICH has placed himself in office , but has never been in office : here is a displacement^ but not a removal; and SAMUEL BISHOP does not fill the place of Mr. GOODRICH, but is the immediate successor of Mr. AUSTIN, who died in February last. REALLY I know not whether such disgraceful absurdi- ties ought most to excite contempt, or whether, consider- ing the occasion, every other emotion ought not to give place to unrestrained indignation. Is it then possible, that the President of the United States could seriously treat a numerous and respectable body of our citizens in so inde- corous a manner ? It is insulting to the good sense of the community to attempt to impose such arrant nonsense up- on them, as the homage of his highest respect. Profound, indeed, must his respect be 1 Truly flattering to the mer- [ 29 ] chants of New-Haven 1 The President evinces the high estimation in which he holds them, by treating them as, weaker than children ; more insignificant than idiots. MR. JEFFERSON seems to insinuate, that his removal!} from office have hitherto been confined to those persons who were appointed in the last moments of the preceding administration. The case before him was, it is true, of that description ; but it is almost a solitary one. Removals are numerous, of men who had long held their offices, some as early as the very organization of the Government, and most of them under appointments of the wise and sagacious WASHINGTON: Yet, because Mr. GOODRICH was appointed only a fortnight before the close of the last administration, the circumstance is eagerly seized upon to gloss over with the semblance of plausibility those bane- ful measures which have already fixed the indelible stamp of folly and oppression upon the present administration. NoTHiNGless, in my judgment, is intended by the manner in which Mr. JEFFERSON speaks of Mr. GOODRICH'S ap- pointment, than a gross and studied insult on the late Pre- sident, and on the Senate. He has unequivocally accused them of imposing agents upon him, in whom he could have no confidence ; and he insinuates too plainly to be misun- derstood, that the appointment was made with a direct view to thwart and embarrass him in his measures, ancj perplex him in his administration. " WAS it proper for Mr. GOODRICH to place himself in < 4 office ?" [ 30 ] THE mode of appointment is well known, and in this instance was regularly and rightfully pursued. The collectorship of New-Haven, having become vacant by the death of Mr. AUSTIN, the public interest required that it should be filled as soon as practicable, since greater or less inconvenience must necessarily have resulted from any delay: Mr. ADAMS, therefore, very properly proceeded, u by and with the advice and consent of the Senate," to supply the vacancy. The circumstance of its being two weeks or two years previous to the expiration of his Presi- dency, could make no possible difference : it is riot pre- tended it could. The right was vested in him, it became his bounden duty to exercise it ; and the only question with his successor ought to have been, whether the per- son appointed possessed talents and integrity equal to the station. BUT it is made a matter of complaint by Mr. JEFFERSON, that he was not consulted on the occasion, as Mr. GOOD- RICH was soo7i to become his agent. EVIDENTLY there is no propriety in this, because, as the responsibility of the appointment rested exclusively upon Mr. ADAMS, he surely was not bound to take Mr. JEF- FERSON into his councils, nor was he subjecttobe controul- ed by his advice. It is to Mr. ADAMS that the public will look for whatever was done during his administration, and not to Mr. JEFFERSON: if any blame, therefore, ought to be attached to this, or to any other act, it will be charge- able upon its real author, and not on Mr. JEFFERSON. To have admitted him to this participation of power, might [ 31 ] have been making Mr. ADAMS answerable for the indis- cretions of Mr. JEFFERSON, and presenting an opportunity that might have been seized upon to cast an unmerited odium on the man who ought not to be liable to it. FOR the sake of illustration, we will suppose that Mr. ADAMS had consulted Mr. JEFFERSON on this very ap- pointment. What would have been the result ? To have been consistent, Mr. JEFFERSON must have disapproved of Mr. GOODRICH as a man not worthy of his confidence, and have recommended SAMUEL BISHOP. Either Mr. ADAMS, from a false complaisance to Mr. JEFFERSON, must have made an appointment which he could neither approve of nor justify, and incurred the deserved unpo- pularity of such a measure, or the consultation would have been worse than nothing. IT cannot, therefore, be conceded, that the circumstance of lateness of appointment affords any reason for removal. Those who had been appointed for years, had no more been approved of by Mr. JEFFERSON, than those who were to " commence their career at the same time " with himself. How, then, was he to expect from the old offi- cers a more cordial co-operation than from the new, since he says that the whole offices of the United States were monopolized by an adverse SECT of politics ? If the principles and habits of this SECT are so much at variance with those which govern that of which Mr. JEFFERSON has become the head, then surely the officers selected from the former, whether that selection has been of recent or of long standing, are equally and indiscriminately fit subjects [ 32 ] for the exercise of Mr. JEFFERSON'S power of removal. That he thinks so himself, is indeed evident from his conduct, for his " displacements " did not begin with the appointments last made, nor have they in any manner been confined to them. THERE remains another, and more important point of view in which this power of removal and appointment deserves consideration, as it involves in it a constitutional question of the greatest moment to the community. How far the President had in any case the sole right of removal from office, was early drawn into controversy, and made a subject of serious debate in the House of Repre- sentatives during the first session of Congress. On that occasion, Mr. MADDISON, then a zealous and able federalist, contended that the unqualified right to re- move did exist in the Executive alone. This power was considered of so very high and confidential a nature, that it was not yielded without much objection and difficulty : but at length the construction advocated by Mr. MADDISON was adopted, and has ever since prevailed. NOT so the power of appointment to office : The consti- tution has not left that a constructive power. THE second article of the constitution vests in the Pre- sident the right of appointing "officers of the United States, 41 by and -with the advice and consent of the Senate" Had the article stopped here, there could be no pretence that the President alone could in any case appoint to office. It was [ 33 ] however foreseen, that vacancies might happen in the recess of the Senate, which the exigencies of the public would demand to be filled before that body could be convened, and consulted Therefore in the same section it is provi- ded, that " Tile President shall have power to fill up vacan- cies that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions which shall expire at the end of their next session." THE evident intent of this provision in the Constitution is, that appointment to office shall be the joint act of the President and Senate ; with the single exception, that in case of vacancies happening during the recess, the Presi- dent alone may appoint. To provide for this casualty, so that the public service should noc suffer, the clause was added, empowering the President alone to fill such vacancy. The ttrms employed in the Constitution import casuaiti And it is observa- ble, that such a jealous solicitude was entertained respect- ing the exercise of this power ; such apprehension, that it might possibly be made use of to create Executive influ- ence, that it is immediately added, that all u commissions thus granted should expire at the end of the next session." APPOINTMENTS by the President alone, being thus pre- dicated on casualty, and by way of exception to a gene- ral rule, it may be taken as a sound position, that the general rule should never give way but in cases which come fairly within the exception stated. E E S4 ] DESIGNATION and death are each plain instances of casualty; delinquency may also, without a forced con- struction, be added. These are the cases, in which public convenience requires the exercise of this extraordinary power by the President. ' BtJT for the Executive to undertake voluntarily and- deliberately, to create vacancies in the recess of the Senate, for the express purpose of filling them himself > for him thus to displace entire classes of officers \vithout any charge of delinquency, and without even a shadow of pretence that the public service required it -, merely on the vague, speculative notion of balancing the emolu- ments of office between two contending political SECTS, is not only a striking deviation from good sense and propri- ety, but a material departure both from the letter and spirit of the Constitution. It is nothing short of converting the exception into the general rule. To justify this exer- cise of power, will drive him to a solecism it Is to create casualty. IT is, therefore, emphatically an abuse of power ; and inasmuch as it is also attended with individual injury, it is TYRANNY.* BUT if the manner in which this power has lately been employed, be justifiable, then so far from its being made * Besides it may be observed, that, evea admitting the principle adopt- ed by Mr. JEFFERSON to be correct, the practice upon it, as it respected the public service, might, without materially affecting the end intended, 'have been delayed till the next regular meeting of the Senate, to be ex- ercised according to the design and provision of the Constitution. C 23 ] subservient to the public weal, it becomes an active instru- ment of political intolerance in the hands of the Execu- tive, whenever he may be unprincipled enough to devote himself to the views of a faction. It will only be for the President either to wait for a recess of the Senate before he thus creates a vacancy for the purpose of filling it up more to his satisfaction : or when circumstances will not admit of this delay, he may proceed to nominate, and, "by and with the advice and consent of the Senate," to appoint the officer they approve of, and in the first moments of the recess dismiss him, merely to substitute his favorite. Thus the controul which the Constitution intended the Se- nate should have over appointments, would be in a great measure, if not entirely, lost. IT is true, all appointments made by him, are to be sub- mitted to that Honorable Body for their approbation ; but should they exercise their constitutional right, and refuse their sanction, would not our public "functionary" have pla- ced himself and his friends in a very aukward dilemma ? Is it dignified in a Chief Magistrate of a nation to sub- ject himself to the hazard of so humiliating an event ? Is it decent in him to usurp the sole excercise of rights which are confided to him jointly with others ? Is it res- pectful to the Senate to bring them into a situation where they might hesitate between expedience and duty ; where they must either submit to Executive influence, or ex- pose the country to all the mischiefs of unsettled policy? [ 36 ] It may be added, that the consequence of yielding to this exercise of power, is to establish a precedent which will indirectly give the Executive a dangerous controul over that equal and distinct right of examining and decid- ing upon appointments, which the Constitution plainly in- tended to vest in the Senate. IT is wrong to say, that the Senate would not withhold their assent, from an apprehension of the consequences upon the stability of office. This would be to pursue the shadow, and lose sight of the substance It would be to reduce the Senate to a mere cypher, nay, worse ; for it would involve them in a heavy and extensive responsibil- ity, while the whole power of appointment is left in the hands of the President. This would at once enable him to indulge his partialities, his prejudices, and his resent- ments, at the expense of the dearest rights of the commu- nity. Remove the constitutional check which the Senate holds over him, and he becomes absolute. * IT is not, then, merely the right, but it is the strict duty of the Senate to examine into the removals and appoint- ments which have been made during their recess ; and should it appear to them, that they have been the result of * But while I condemn that conduct in others, which arises from suf- fering duty to be blinded by passion, le, me not betray a lii,e disposition in myself. I admit, tha: in the highest offices of State, where there is nothing personally objectionable, the President should be gratified in the choice of his officers ; and a disposition - o acquiesce should prevail even in the subordinate appointments, when there is no material obejectjon on the ground of PRINCIPLE. [ 37 ] an oppressive system ; should they find that whole classes of men have been arbitrarily removed from office because they would not fall down and worship the Idol which had been set up ; and that their places have been supplied by a set of people not recommended by their talents or quali- fications, but promoted from nitre party attachment, and a pernicious spirit of favoritism ; they ought boldly to cor- rect the evil, and teach a President so disregardful of his duty, that the office he holds, is for the salutary pur- poses of public good, and not for the gratification of his private passions. No discreet man, who calmly considers this conduct of the President, so different from that moderation and jus- tice which should never forsake the ruler of a free people, but must see in it consequences to excite the most alarm- ing apprehensions, Is it in the spirit of the Constitution and Laws which he has sworn to support ? With plain men, unaccustomed to the subtilties taught in the school of modern Philosophy, it cannot fail of being considered a palpable violation of both. IF such practice may be tolerated, it is in vain to attempt to guard against the encroachments of power by any form of language. Utterly in vain is it to attempt to frame written constitutions They will only serve to conceal the chains with which an ambitious despot may manacle our liberties whenever it suits his humor. a [ 33 ] IT is easy to resist the open force of an enemy, but igainst those insidious attacks, where the hand is conceaU ed while it strikes, neither prudence or courage can avail* WHILST measures are taken under the imposing pre- tence of rightful authority, we are too apt to relax our caution, and submit without examination. There are times, however, when public vigilance will be roused to a narrow inspection of the conduct of those whom we have exalted into the highest places of honor and trust : when the Chief Magistrate will be reminded, that his pleasure is to be bounded by a regard for the true interests of the peo- ple j and that whatever extent of power they have delegated to him, it is a fund on which they have a right to draw for their own use, and their own happiness, and is not to be misapplied by him to answer the purposes of party rancor or personal aggrandizement. We hold it to be essential to the due exercise of authority, that to be rightful it must be reasonable. A contrary doctrine would be unworthy of freemen. THOSE who have placed Mr. JEFFERSON in office, have been uniformly clamorous against ideal innovations upon the Constitution. Scarcely an act of the Government out of the ordinary course of business, that has not been de- clared by them to be unconstitutional. But on a sudden they make a bountiful display of regard and veneration for ^an instrument, which, before its adoption, they did every thing in their power to vilify, and the administration of which they have left no effort untried to calumniate. The moment they fancy themselves masters of the " honors [ 39 ] fend confidence" of the people, all is safe and secure; power in their hands loses its terrors, and the apprehen- sion of its abuse is lulled to sleep. THE MAN OF TH& PEOPLE may trample upon private rights at pleasure ; in- vade the sacred provisions of the Constitution ; insult and disfranchise one half of the community ; yet all this can be endured without a single murmur from these ferce Republicans. WE have also of late years been often entertained with invectives against Executive patronage ; it has been a theme on which the patriotic orators of the day have ex- ultingly declaimed. How much is it to be lamented, that they have already exhausted their rhetoric on an imagina- ry grievance, whilst the reality is suffered quietly to pass without notice or observation ! If they could have res- trained their declamatory fervor to the present period, they would have found in a few short months abundant mate- rials on which to employ their eloquence, strengthened and supported by truth. But this is not the purpose for which their talents are called into action : they startle at its approach they vanish at its touch. - MR. JEFFERSON seems determined, in order to intro- duce his own SECT to " a due participation" of favor, that every Federal man who holds an office of any value, shall be compelled to surrender it ; that thus the doors of honor and confidence may be burst open to all those whose tried republicanism has merited the gracious smiles of their master. IT would afford us no little amusement to hear the pre- tensions of some of these candidates, and to know ho\r their various claims have been appreciated and rewarded. [Let us suppose ourselves then in the audience chamber.] ^Mr. . " HAVE not /, after lending the utmost of tc my abilities to frame the Constitution, and after employ- " ing my voice and my pen with effect to recommend it ' to the people for their adoption, very early apostatized " from my party, and entered into the designs of yours ? " Have I not from that time been incessantly engaged in " disseminating prejudices against the views of the consti- " tuted authorities ? Did I not write a Defence of the Vir- " ginia Resolutions, when I knew they tended directly " to subvert the authority of the general Government ? " Have I not been principally instrumental in producing " the change which has lately taken place, and am I not " your chosen friend, next to the favored Genevois ?" President. " Be then my " $fr. . " HAVE / not done my utmost to impede c< the collection of the Revenue ? Have not I signalized . 44 HOWBEIT I have humbly to acknowledge 44 my manifold transgressions, in that I was formerly, a * frail and offending creature, and sojourned with federal- F [ 42 ] " ists, and did * persecute men for conscience sake; yet " as I did soon repent me of these evil deeds, and lay in u sackcloth and ashes, and put ropes upon my head, and " went softly, peradventure thou wilt hear my prayer. u / humbly beseech thee that I may find grace in thy sight, 44 my lord, king. Bless me, my father, even me also" President. " ENTER thou into the S-p-rv-sh-p of N-w- BUT to delineate the merits of each successful candi- date, would lead me beyond my limits, and extend a pam- phlet to a volume. PANDEMONIUM itself could not furnish stronger claims than are daily offering up by the hungry herd of Jacobins, who surround the throne of Presidential favor. That Mr. JEFFERSON proceeds with deliberation and inquiry, and knows how to apportion his rewards, cannot be doubted, when we see rebellion and apostacy first in " honor" first -in u confidence" FROM this painful scene, where the figures which have been made to pass in review, serve only to increase our dis- gust and abhorrence, let us now turn to characters which real virtue and genuine patriotism will delight to contemplate. * The name of the late Abraham Yates, formerly Commissioner of Loans, will at once suggest to Mr. what is meant. [ 43 ] THE old and experienced officers of the Government, whose fidelity has never been questioned, demand the sin- cere tribute of our sympathy. While with pride we con- template their great and meritorious services, can we re- fuse to reprobate that accursed system of persecution which has brought down affliction upon their heads, and deprived our country of their usefulness ? This respecta- ble body of men had a right to expect from Mr. JEFFER- SON some little courtesy, at least in the mode of their dis- missal, instead of being rudely thrust from their places under insinuations tending to excite cruel and odious sus- picions, more piercing to a generous mind than the loss of property, or even life itself. He has endeavored to fix upon those who have been the victims of his displeasure, imputations which he knew to be false, and which, as a private individual, he would not dare to make. HE has rated the disbanded group under four descrip- tions delinquency, oppression, intolerance, and anti-revo- lutionary adherence to our enemies. Let us then examine the characters of some of those men whom the President has thought unworthy of his confidence, and see with what justice he has placed them on his proscription list. IN the case of Mr. GOODRICH, who originally gave occa- sion to this Examination, no man will assert that he can be included in either of these classes. That he has never been either oppressive, or intolerant in his politics, all who know him will testify ; that he was a delinquent, or an anti-revo- lutionist, is not pretended ; and his townsmen and neigh- bors bear honorable testimony, that "his office was con- " ducted with a promptness, integrity, and ability, satis- " factory to the mercantile interest of the district." ALTHOUGH Mr. HARRISON was an anti-revolutionist, yet, when it is recollected that General WASHINGTON, whom Mr. JEFFERSON has on o?ie occasion called "our u first and greatest revolutionary character," saw fit to take him to his confidence, and invest him with office, 'is it for Mr. JEFFERSON to rise up at this distant period of time, and punish him for his anti-revolutionary adher- ence ? When it is remembered that his fellow-citizens, who may be presumed to be best acquainted with him, have bestowed on him such unequivocal marks of their esteem and respect, as to choose him one of their Delegates to the State Convention, to deliberate for them on the adop- tion of our Federal Constitution; is it for the Pre- sident at this day to single him out as a man unde- serving of trust? Jt surely little becomes one who makes such everlasting professions of his respect for the people, to pay so little regard to their opinions, as to turn his back without ceremony upon them whenever they in- terfere with his sovereign will and pleasure. MR. HARRISON holds a high place in the estimation of his fellow-citizens. His virtues and his talents will long- be held by them in pleasing remembrance ; and whatever Mr. JEFFERSON may think, they will make a wide dis- tinction between dismissal and disgrace. COLONEL GILES served with reputation in the war, and fp.ught for our Independence. It surely will not be said of him, that he was either delinquent, oppressive, or in- [ 45 ] tolerant. From the hands of our beloved WASHINGTON he also received that commission which Mr. JEFFERSON has now torn from him. WILL it be attempted to bring Mr. SANDS within th6 President's list ? A more intelligent and faithful officer, a more upright and amiable man in private life, one less " oppressive' 7 and less u intolerant" in his political senti- ments, it would be difficult to find. Possessed of a sound judgment, and a disposition mild and conciliatory,, Mr. SANDS has at all times had the confidence and esteem of considerate men of all parties, GENERAL MILLER, of Pennsylvania, a veteran of seventy-six, and whom no one will presume to rank under any of Mr. JEFFERSON'S causes of dismissal, is stript oi ; an office which was conferred upon him by the distinguish- ing WASHINGTON. It was bestowed for the purpose of enabling him to spend the evening of his days in ease and competence ; as a small reward to a man who had devoted the best part of his life to his country, and exposed him n self to death in numerous engagements. Yet, with so many claims to the gratitude of his fellow-citizens, he i$ one of the first victims who grace the triumph of republi- canism. As an American, my blood boils in my veins when I see this brave man, this aged and war-worn soldier, thus turned adrift in the evening of his days, after having wasted his youth, and employed his substance in the ser-i vice of his countiy. " No American was the author of u this shameful measure ; it bears a foreign stamp, and " smells strong of that resentment and hatred which the ?' wicked must always feel for the goocf^ who would frustrate [ 46 ] " his rebellious machinations. GALLATIN, a foreigner, u with impunity can foment an insurrection against the u laws of our country GALLATIN, a foreigner, can be u raised to the highest honors of our country, without 4t rousing a spirit of scrutiny. A MILLER, a brave and " deserving soldier, can be dismissed from the office which " gave him bread, and the most submissive conduct is *' observed by our citizens. Tracing to a corrupt source " this one act of individual oppression, the mind is natur- " ally led to a contemplation of the extensive mischiefs to 4t whicji our country is exposed by the introduction of " this noxious Exotic." COLONEL FISH is likewise found on the list of dis- placements. This gentleman also served with credit in the American army, and was among the first appoint- ments made under the Federal Government. In the com- mencement of our contest with Great-Britain, he separat- ed himself from his own family, whose politics were ad- verse to the Revolution, and volunteered his services in the cause of our Independence. He derives from this cir~ cumstance the merit of acting upon pure and disinterest- ed principles. During the war he supported the character of an active and intelligent officer ; since which period he has sustained an unblemished reputation, and was by General WASHINGTON placed in the office which is now taken from him. THE last case I shall mention is that of Mr. WATSOX ; a man of unquestionable probity, and of so much public consideration, that at the last Election in this State, he was held up for Lieutenant-Governor. Mr. WATSON bore his share in our revolutionary struggle. He was an officer in the army, and served with usefulness to the cause, and credit to himself. It may be safely asserted, that he dis- charged the duties of the office from which he has been re- moved, with ability, industry, fidelity, and economy. BUT what shall we think of the crime of anti^r evolution- ary adherence to our enemies^ when the character of DANIEL LUDLOW, his successor, is known? Who was Mr. LUD- LOW in the year seventy-six ? What was he, and where, from that period to the year eighty-three ? A loyal subject of George the Third ; within the enemies lines, and of his own accord. He is emphatically, one of those persons whom the Jacobins of this country are forever reproaching with the name of Old Tory. THIS man, who had never before received any mark of public confidence from his fellow-citizens, is now se- lected by the President to fill the place of a worthy old Continental Officer ; and, as if expressly to add insult to injustice, this is done under the profession, that his ob- ject is to punish those who have been guilty of " anti-revo- w lutionary adherence to our enemies.* THE list of Removals and Appointments contained in the Appendix, will furnish the reader with an ample text to pursue at his leisure the comments that I have begun* * Whoever is acquainted with the origin and progress of the Man- hattan Bank, will be at no loss to account for thU appointment. For tfec t 48 ] tlE will find those cases as little within the rules by which the President professes to be governed, as these which I have particularly noticed- They will all equally serve to show, that Mr. JEFFERSON is pursuing a sys* tern of policy no less degrading to the Chief Magistrate, than dangerous to the liberties of our country. With this object steadily in view, every obstacle must be removed? and it is impiously made a subject of complaint, that Heaven will not assist in the scheme, by taking from the world every person he wishes to be removed from office* " for having passed thrpugh this '* .Inaugural Speech. G t 50 ] 44 tempestuous sea of li&ertof"* he promises to "return u with joy to that state of things, when the only questions " concerning a candidate shall be, is he honest? is he capa- " ble ? is he faithful to the Constitution ?" Return to that state of things ! How significant and ex- pressive are these words, that such inquiries are not now connected with the plans of Mr. JEFFERSON. Far other recommendations must support the claims to Executive favor. "Has he been an enemy to the Constitution, or a " foe to its Administration ? Is he ready to yield a blind " support to all my measures, without examining for him- " self whether they are right or wrong ?" This is the ortho- dox catechism of the day, and he who can answer loudest, and produce the best proofs of his conformity, is sure of being made one of the chosen servants of the people. DEPLORABLE indeed must be the situation of a coun- try, when the administration of its public affairs is com- mitted to a man who openly avows himself to be so strictly/ devoted to a party, that honesty, capacity, and allegiance are not of themselves sufficient recommendations to public employment. With Mr. JEFFERSON this is not the " touchstone" by which to try the " services of those who " are trusted," unless, with the commencement of a new administration, our language itself is to undergo a change which shall render knavery and probity, ignorance and knowledge, synonimous terms ; and which shall make Jacobinism to mean an attachment to morals and good government. * Letter to MazzL [ 51 ] BEHOLD then the picture of our Chief Magistrate. After having long since incautiously exposed his real sen- timents to the world,* he has made two formal addresses to his fellow-citizens, for the purpose of informing them what he deemed to be " the essential principles of our "government" and there is a violent collision between the two, followed by a practice approaching indeed to the last, but consistent with neither. The first administration he asserted was the " calm of despotism .-" * when he came to the government he acknowledged that it had been so. administered, that it " was then in the full-tide of success- " fill experiment ;" \ yet he immediately commenced his career with abandoning the course it was pursuing. The first u Executive " he reprobated as belonging to an " Anglo-monarchic-aristocratic party ;" then admitted that the principles by which the former administrations had been guided, were just, and "formed the bright constel- " lation which had gone before him /"-j* and he has finished by charging them with monopoly and unjust exclusion from office^, and by meanly endeavoring to fix upon their friends an odious appellation. WASHINGTON he first slandered as an " apostate who -would -wrest from us our liberties ;" '# then assigned to him " the Jirst place in his country's love, t, and effect the purposes of justice and public utility with the least private distress; that it may be thrown a> much as possible on delinquency, on oppression, on intolerance, on anti-revolutionary adherence to our enemies. THE Remonstrance laments, " that a change in the adminh- " tration must produce a change in the subordinate officers;" in other words, that it should be deemed necessary for all officers to think with their principal. But on whom does this imj)ir.i j tion bear ? On those who have excluded from office every shade of opinion which was not theirs ? or on those who have been so excluded? I lament sincerely, that unessential differences in opinion should have been deemed sufficient to interdict half the society from the right and the blessings of self-government ; to I t 66 ] proscribe them as unworthy of every trust. It would have been to me a circumstance of great relief, had I found a moderate participation of office in the hands of the majority ; I would gladly have left to time and accident to raise them to thek just share. But their total exclusion calls for prompter correctives. I shall correct the procedure ; but that done, return with joy to that state of things, when the only questions concerning a candi- date shall be, is he honest ? is he capable ? is he faithful to the Constitution ? I tender you the homage of my highest respect, THOMAS JEFFERSON. To ELIAS SHIPMAN, Esq. and others^ Members of a Committee of the Mer- chants of New-Haven. \ REMOVALS AND APPOINTMENTS. The subsequent LIST contains the Names of the FEDERAL RE-. PUBLICANS who have been dismissed from office, by the Pre- sident of the United States, on account of their political opin- ions ; together with the names of the Persons ivho have been ap- pointed in their places, since the 4th of March, 1801. 1. John Wilkes Kittera, Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, dismissed; Alexander James Dallas appointed in his room. 2. John Hall, Marshal of the same District, dismissed; John Smith appointed in his room. 3. Samuel Hodgdon, Superintendent of Public Stores at Phi- ladelphia, dismissed; William Irvine appointed in his room. 4. John Harris, Store-keeper at the same place, dismissed;. Robert Jones, appointed in his room. 5. Henry Miller, Supervisor of the Revenue of the District of Pennsylvania, dismissed; Peter Muhlenberg appointed in his room. 6. J. M. Lingan, Attorney for the District of Columbia, dis- missed; Daniel Carrol Brent appointed in his room. 7. Thomas Swann, Attorney, dismissed; John Thompson Ma- son appointed in his room. % 8. John Pierce, Commissioner of Loans for the State of New- Hampshire, dismissed ; William Gardiner appointed in his room. 9. Thomas Martin, Collector of the District of Portsmouth, in the same State, dismissed; Joseph Whipple appointed in his room.