iliiliiitt
THE LIBRARY
OF
THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES
GIFT OF
Charles Ulrioh
This a pact t reserved
for the el certificate
A COMPILATION
OF THE
MESSAGES AND PAPERS
PRESIDENTS
Prepared Under the Direction of the Joint Committee
on Printing, of the House and Senate,
Pursuant to an Act of the Fifty-Second Congress
of the United States
(With Additions and Encyclopedic Index
by Private Enterprise)
VOLUME I
PUBLISHED BY
BUREAU OF NATIONAL LITERATURE, Inc.
NEW YORK
Copyright, 1897
BY
JAMES D. RICHARDSON
31
397
V. /
Resolution Authorizing the Compilation
JOINT COMMITTEE ON PRINTING,
UNITED STATES SENATE,
Washington, D. ., August 20,
Hon. JAMES D. RICHARDSON,
House of Representatives.
SIR: I am directed by Senator GORMAN, the Chairman of the Joint
Committee on Printing, to transmit to you the accompanying resolution,
adopted by the Joint Committee this day and entered upon its journal.
Very respectfully,
F. M. Cox,
Clerk Joint Committee on Printing.
Whereas Congress has passed the following re3olution, to wit:
Resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring, That there be
printed and bound in cloth six thousand copies of the complete compilation of all
the annual, special, and veto messages, proclamations, and inaugural addresses of
the Presidents of the United States from 1789 to 1894, inclusive, two thousand copies
for the use of the Senate and four thousand copies for the use of the House. The
work shall be performed under the direction of the Joint Committee on Printing:
Therefore, resolved by the Joint Committee on Printing, That Hon. JAMES
D. RICHARDSON be, and he is hereby, authorized and requested to take
charge of the work contemplated in said resolution, and prepare, compile,
and edit same. He is given full power and discretion to do this work for
and on behalf of this Committee.
Ill
V
O
ol
Prefatory Note
In compliance with the authorization of the Joint Committee on
Printing, I have undertaken this compilation.
The messages of the several Presidents of the United States annual,
veto, and special are among the most interesting, instructive and val-
uable contributions to the public literature of our Republic. They
discuss from the loftiest standpoint nearly all the great questions of
national policy and many subjects of minor interest which have en-
gaged the attention of the people from the beginning of our history,
and so constitute important and often vital links in their progressive
development. The proclamations, also, contain matter and sentiment
no less elevating, interesting and important. They inspire to the high-
est and most exalted degree the patriotic fervor and love of country
in the hearts of the people.
It is believed that legislators and other public men, students of our
national history, and many others will hail with satisfaction the com-
pilation and publication of these messages and proclamations in such
compact form as will render them easily accessible and of ready refer-
ence. The work can not fail to be exceedingly convenient and useful
to all who have occasion to consult these documents. The Government
has never heretofore authorized a like publication.
In executing the commission with which I have been charged I have
sought to bring together in several volumes of the series all Presi-
dential proclamations, addresses, messages and communications to Con-
gress excepting those nominating- persons to office and those which
simply transmit treaties, and reports of heads of Departments which
contain no recommendation from the Executive. The utmost effort
has been made to render the compilation accurate and exhaustive.
Although not required by the terms of the resolution authorizing
the compilation, it has been deemed wise and wholly consistent with
its purpose to incorporate authentic copies of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution of the
United States, together with engravings of the Capitol, the Executive
Mansion, and of the historical painting the "Signing of the Declaration
of Independence."
The compilation has not been brought even to its present stage with-
out much labor and close application, and the end is far from view ;
VI Messages and Papers of the Presidents
but if it shall prove satisfactory to Congress and the country, I will
feel compensated for my time and effort.
The first volume of this compilation was given to Congress and the
public about May I, 1896. I believe I am warranted in saying here
that it met with much favor by all who examined it. The press of the
country was unsparing in its praise.
The resolution authorizing this work required the publication of the
annual, special, and veto messages, inaugural addresses, and proclama-
tions of the Presidents. I have found in addition to these documents
others which emanated from the Chief Magistrates, called Executive
Orders ; they are in the nature of proclamations, and have like force
and effect. I have therefore included all such Executive Orders as
may appear to have national importance or to possess more than ordi-
nary interest.
The controversy over the United States Bank, including President
Jackson's reasons for the removal of the deposits from that bank ; his
Farewell Address, and other important papers, all of which are charac-
teristic of the man, are subjects of never failing interest to American
bankers, business men and publicists. It was during the second Ad-
ministration of President Jackson that the act changing the ratio
between the gold and silver dollar was passed.
President Van Buren's message recommending the independent
treasury or subtreasury, and the discussion of that subject, which ter-
minated in what has been termed "the divorce of the bank and state
in the fiscal affairs of the Federal Government," and which President
Van Buren considered a second Declaration of Independence, continue
the discussion so vigorously begun by Jackson. The controversy with
Great Britain in relation to the northeastern boundary of the United
States is also included in Van Buren's Administration, and will prove
highly interesting.
The eight years of our history from March 4, 1841, to March 4, 1849,
include the four years' term of Harrison and Tyler and also the term
of James K. Polk. During the first half of this period the death of
President Harrison occurred, when for the first time under the Con-
stitution the Vice-President succeeded to the office of President. As a
matter of public interest, several papers relating to the death of Presi-
dent Harrison are inserted.
A number of highly interesting vetoes of President Tyler appear,
among which are two vetoing bills chartering a United States bank and
two vetoing tariff measures. During President Tyler's Administra-
tion the protective tariff act of 1842 was passed; the subtreasury law
was repealed; the treaty with Great Britain of August 9, 1842, was
negotiated, settling the northeastern-boundary controversy, and provid-
ing for the final suppression of the African slave trade and for the
surrender of fugitive criminals ; and acts establishing a uniform system
Prefatory Note VII
of bankruptcy and providing for the distribution of the sales of the
public lands were passed. The treaty of annexation between the
United States and the Republic of Texas was negotiated, but was
rejected by the Senate.
During the Administration of President Polk Texas was finally an-
nexed to the United States; Texas, Iowa, and Wisconsin were ad-
mitted into the Union ; the Oregon boundary was settled ; the independ-
ent-treasury system was reenacted ; the Naval Academy was established ;
acts were passed establishing the Smithsonian Institution and creating
the Department of the Interior ; the war with Mexico was successfully
fought, and the territory known as New Mexico and Upper California
was acquired. The acquisition of territory by Mr. Folk's Administra-
tion added to the United States California and New Mexico and por-
tions of Colorado, Utah, and Nevada, a territory containing in all
1,193,061 square miles or over 763,000,000 acres, and constituting a
country more than half as large as all that held by the Republic before
he became President. This addition to our domain was the next
largest in area ever made. It was exceeded only by the purchase by
President Jefferson of the Louisiana Territory, in which was laid so
deep the foundation of the country's growth and grandeur. If our
country had not already attained that rank by the acquisition of the
Louisiana Territory, the further additions made by Mr. Polk's Admin-
istration advanced it at once to a continental power of assured strength
and boundless promise.
The next twelve years include the four years' term of the Taylor-
Fillmore Administration and the full terms of Presidents Pierce and
Buchanan. This brings the history down to March 4, 1861, the be-
ginning of the late war between the States. These twelve years form
an important and eventful epoch in the affairs of our country, as they
immediately precede the war and cover the official utterances of the
Executives during this period. Some of the more important events
and incidents of these twelve years are the Bulwer-Clayton treaty with
Great Britain for a joint occupancy of the proposed ship canal through
Central America; the compromise measures of 1850; the admission
of California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Kansas as States ; the Gadsden
purchase, by which the United States acquired 45,535 square miles of
territory, being portions of Arizona and New Mexico; the Kansas-
Nebraska legislation ; the famous Dred Scott decision ; the John Brown
insurrection, and the disruption of the Democratic party in the national
campaign of 1860.
Vetoes by President Pierce of "An act making a grant of public
lands to the several States for the benefit of indigent insane persons";
of six acts relating to internal improvements ; of an act for a subsidy
for ocean mails, and of an act for the ascertainment and allowance
of French spoliation claims; vetoes by President Buchanan of an act
vin Messages and Papers of the Presidents
granting lands for agricultural purposes ; of two acts relating to internal
improvements, and of a homestead act, mark the antagonism of these
Presidents to Congress during the period.
Interesting reading is furnished in the protests of President Buchanan
against the action of the House of Representatives in ordering the ap-
pointment of a committee to investigate the conduct of the President.
The Presidential papers during the period from March 4, 1861, to
March 4, 1869, relate the history of the Civil War and the reconstruc-
tion of the Union. No other period of American history since the
Revolution comprises so many events of surpassing importance. The
Administrations of Presidents Lincoln and Johnson represent two
distinct epochs. That of Abraham Lincoln was dedicated to the suc-
cessful prosecution of the most stupendous war of modern times, while
that of Andrew Johnson was dedicated to the reestablishment of peace
and the restoration of the Union as it had existed prior to the war.
Strange to say, it fell to the lot of the kind-hearted humanitarian, who
loved peace and his fellow-man, to wage the bloody conflict of civil
war, and the more aggressive, combative character directed the affairs
of the Government while the land took upon itself the conditions of
peace. Yet who can say that each was not best suited for his particular
sphere of action ! A greater lover of his kind has not filled the office
of President since Thomas Jefferson, and no public servant ever left
with the people a gentler memory than Abraham Lincoln. A more
self-willed and determined Chief Executive has not held that office
since Andrew Johnson, and no public servant ever left with the people
a higher character for honesty, integrity, and sincerity of purpose
and action than Andrew Johnson. The life of each of these two great
men had been a series of obscure but heroic struggles ; each had experi-
enced a varied and checkered career ; each reached the highest political
station of earth. Their official state papers are of supreme interest,
and comprise the utterances of President Lincoln while he in four
years placed in the field nearly three millions of soldiers; what he
said when victories were won or when his armies went down in de-
feat ; what treasures of blood and money it cost to triumph ; also, the
utterances of President Johnson as he through his eventful term waged
the fiercest political battle of our country's history in his efforts, along
his own lines, for the restoration of peace and the reunion of the
States.
Interesting papers relating to the death and funeral obsequies of
President Lincoln have been inserted, as also the more important
papers and proceedings connected with the impeachment of President
Johnson.
The perusal of these papers should enkindle within the heart of every
citizen of the American Republic, whether he fought on the one side
or the other in that unparalleled struggle, or whether he has come
Prefatory Note DC
upon the scene since its closing, a greater love of country, a greater
devotion to the cause of true liberty, and an undying resolve that all
the blessings of a free government and the fullest liberty of the in-
dividual shall be perpetuated.
The election of General Grant to the Presidency by the people of the
United States was another instance illustrating the gratitude of a re-
public to a successful soldier. But for the great civil war no one
supposes he would ever have been elevated to this exalted post. His
services in that heroic struggle were such as to win the highest encomi-
ums from his countrymen, and naturally at the first opportunity after
the closing of the war when a Chief Executive was to be chosen they
turned their eyes to the most conspicuous figure in that war and made
him President of the United States. During this period of twelve
years that is, from March 4, 1869, to March 4, 1881 the legislation
for the restoration of the Southern States to their original positions
in the Union was enacted, the reunion of the States was perfected, and
all sections of the land again given full and free representation in
Congress. Much of the bitterness engendered by the war, and which
had been left alive at its closing, and which was not diminished to any
appreciable extent during President Johnson's term, was largely as-
suaged during President Grant's administration, and under that of
President Hayes was further softened and almost entirely dissipated.
It will be seen that President Grant in his papers dwelt especially
upon the duty of paying the national debt in gold and returning to
specie payments ; that he urged upon Congress a proposition to annex
Santo Domingo; that during his Administration the "Quaker Peace
Commission" was appointed to deal with the Indians, the fifteenth
amendment to the Constitution of the United States was proclaimed,
the treaty of Washington was negotiated, and, with a subsequent arbi-
tration at Geneva, a settlement was provided of the difficulties relating
to the Alabama claims and the fisheries ; that in 1870 and frequently
afterwards he urged upon Congress the need of reform in the civil
service. His appeals secured the passage of the law of March 3, 1871,
under which he appointed a civil service commission. This commis-
sion framed rules, which were approved by the President. They
provided for open competitive examination, and went into effect Janu-
ary i, 1872; and out of these grew the present civil-service rules. One
of his most important papers was the message vetoing the "inflation
bill." The closing months of his public life covered the stormy and ex-
citing period following the Presidential election of 1876, when the
result as between Mr. Tilden and Mr. Hayes was so long in doubt.
There is very little, however, in any Presidential paper of that period
to indicate the great peril to the country and the severe strain to which
our institutions were subjected in that memorable contest.
The Administration of Mr. Hayes, though it began amid exciting
x Messages and Papers of the Presidents
scenes and an unprecedented situation which threatened disasters, was
rather marked by moderation and a sympathy with what he considered
true reform. Some of his vetoes are highly interesting, and indicate
independence of character and that he was not always controlled by
mere party politics. One of the most famous and best remembered
of his messages is that vetoing the Bland-Allison Act, which restored
the legal-tender quality to the silver dollar and provided for its limited
coinage. Other papers of interest are his message recommending the
resumption of specie payments ; vetoes of a bill to restrict Chinese
immigration, of an Army appropriation bill, of a legislative, executive,
and judicial appropriation bill, and of the act known as the "funding
act of 1881." It was during Mr. Hayes's Administration (when the
Forty-fifth Congress met in extraordinary session on March 18, 1879),
that for the first time since the Congress that was chosen with Mr.
Buchanan in 1856 the Democratic party was in control of both Houses.
The death of President Garfield at the hand of an assassin early
in his Administration created a vacancy in the office of the Chief
Executive, and for the fourth time in our history the Vice-President
succeeded to that office. The intense excitement throughout the land
brought about by the tragic death of the President, and the succession
of the Vice-President, caused no dangerous strain upon our institutions,
and once more proof was given, if, indeed, further evidence was re-
quired, that our Government was strong enough to quietly and peace-
fully endure a sudden change of rulers and of administration, no mat-
ter how distressing and odious the cause.
During the Administration of President Arthur a treaty between the
United States and the Republic of Nicaragua was signed, providing for
an interoceanic canal across the territory of that State. An able and
learned discussion of this proposition will be found among his papers.
This treaty was pending when he retired from office, and was promptly
withdrawn by President Cleveland. The act to regulate and improve
the civil service of the United States was approved by President Arthur,
and he put into operation rules and regulations wide in their scope and
far-reaching for the enforcement of the measure. In his papers will
be found frequent and interesting discussions of this question. His
vetoes of "An act to execute certain treaty stipulations relating to
Chinese" and of "An act making appropriations for the construction,
repair, and preservation of certain works on rivers and harbors, and
for other purposes," are interesting and effective papers.
Cleveland's accession to the Presidency marked the return of the
Democratic party to power. No Democrat who had been chosen by
his party had held the office since the retirement of Buchanan, in
1861. At an early date after Mr. Cleveland's inauguration he became
mvnlved in an important and rather acrimonious discussiqn with the
Senate on the subject of suspensions from office. The Senate de-
Prefatory Note XI
manded of him and of the heads of some of the Executive Depart-
ments the reasons for the suspension of certain officials, and the
papers and correspondence incident thereto. In an exhaustive and
interesting paper he declined to comply with the demand. His annual
message of December, 1887, was devoted exclusively to a discussion
of the tariff. It is conceded by all to be an able document, and is
the only instance where a President in his annual message made refer-
ence to only one question. His vetoes are more numerous than those
of any other Chief Executive, amounting within the four years to
over three hundred, or more than twice the number in the aggregate
of all his predecessors: These vetoes relate to almost all subjects of
legislation, but mainly to pension cases and bills providing for the
erection of public buildings throughout the country.
The work of compiling was begun by me in April, 1895, just after
the expiration of the Fifty-third Congress. I then anticipated that I
could complete the work easily within a year. Though I have given
my entire time to the undertaking when not engaged in my official
duties as a Representative, instead of completing it within the time
mentioned it has occupied me for nearly four years. The labor has
been far greater than the Joint Committee on Printing or I supposed it
would be. I had no idea of the difficulties to overcome in obtaining
the Presidential papers, especially the proclamations and Executive
orders. In this Prefatory Note I said above : "I have sought to bring
together in the several volumes of the series all Presidential procla-
mations, addresses, messages, and communications to Congress ex-
cepting those nominating persons to office and those which simply
transmit treaties, and reports of heads of Departments which contain
no recommendation from the Executive." But after the appearance
of Volume I, and while preparing the contents of Volume II, I be-
came convinced that I had made a mistake and that the work to be
exhaustive should comprise every message of the Presidents transmit-
ting reports of heads of Departments and other communications, no
matter how brief or unintelligible the papers were in themselves, and
that to make them intelligible I should insert editorial notes explaining
them. Having acted upon the other idea in making up Volume I
and a portion of Volume II, quite a number of such brief papers were
intentionally omitted. Being convinced that all the papers of the
Executives should be inserted, the plan was modified accordingly, and
the endeavor was thereafter made to publish all of them.
In order, however, that the compilation may be "accurate and ex-
haustive," I have gone back and collected all the papers those which
should have appeared in Volumes I and II, as well as such as were
unintentionally omitted from the succeeding volumes. While this may
occasion some little annoyance to the reader who seeks such papers in
chronological order, yet, inasmuch as they all appear at their proper
XK Messages and Papers of the Presidents
places in the Encyclopedic Index, it is not believed that any serious
inconvenience will result.
The editor and compiler has resorted to every possible avenue and
has spared no effort to procure all public Presidential papers from
the beginning of the Government to March 4, 1897. He has looked
out for every reference to the work in the public prints, has endeavored
to read all the criticisms made because of omissions, and has availed
himself of all the papers to which his attention has been called by
anyone; has diligently and earnestly sought for same himself, so that
he feels warranted in saying that if he has given to the country all he
could find and all any critic or reviewer has been able to find he has
done his whole duty, and reasonable complaint can not be made if any
paper is still omitted. In view of the inaccessibility of many of the
messages by reason of their not having been entered on the journals of
either House of Congress, and of the fact that the Government itself
does not possess many of the proclamations and Executive orders, it
may be that there yet can be found a few papers omitted from this
work; but with much confidence, amounting to a positive conviction,
I feel that assurance may be safely given that only a few, if any at all,
have been overlooked.
Congress in June, 1897, by law requested me to prepare an index to
the entire compilation. In addition to making the Index simply an
index to the various messages and other papers I have added to it the
encyclopedic feature. There will therefore be found in the Index, in
alphabetical order, a large number of encyclopedic definitions of words
and phrases used by the Chief Executives, and of other politico-histori-
cal subjects. It is believed that this feature will not detract in any
manner from the Index, but, on the other hand, will add largely to
its value and to the value of the entire compilation and develop more
fully questions or subjects to which only indirect reference is made
or which are but briefly discussed by them. There will also be found
short accounts of several hundred battles in which the armies of the
United States have been engaged ; also descriptions of all the States of
the Union and of many foreign countries. We have striven earnestly
to make these encyclopedic articles historically correct, and to this end
have carefully compared them with the most eminent authorities.
This feature was not within the scope of the work as contemplated
when the resolution authorizing the compilation was passed, nor when
the act was passed requiring the preparation of the Index ; but with
the approval of the Joint Committee on Printing I have inserted the
articles, believing that they would be of interest. They contain facts
and valuable information not always easily accessible, and it is hoped
that they will serve to familiarize the young men of the country who
read them with its history and its trials and make of them better citi-
zens and more devoted lovers of our free institutions. There has
Prefatory Note xni
been no effort or inclination on my part to give partisan bias or political
coloring of any nature to these articles. On the other hand, I have
sought only to furnish reliable historical data and well-authenticated
definitions and to avoid even the appearance of an expression of my
own opinion. It is proper to add that these articles have all been
read and approved by Mr. A. R. Spofford, Chief Assistant Librarian
of Congress, to whom I now make acknowledgment of my indebted-
ness.
The work has met with public favor far beyond all expectations,
and words of praise for it have come from all classes and callings.
Those who possess it may be assured that they have in their libraries
all the official utterances of the Presidents of the United States from
1789 to the present time that could possibly be found after the most
diligent search, and that these utterances are not to be found complete
in any other publication.
JAMES D. RICHARDSON.
r
NOTE. The pages of "The Messages and Papers of the Presidents" have
been renumbered from page one to the end, and the division into volumes has
been altered. This plan is required by the addition of new matter and the
desirability of keeping the volumes as nearly uniform in size as possible.
ILLUSTRATIONS IN VOLUME ONE
PAGE
James D. Richardson (portrait) . . . .Frontispiece
The Signing of the Declaration of Independence, by Trumbull I
Facsimile of Jefferson's Draft of the Declaration of Independ-
ence ^ 4
Washington Resigns His Commission 14
George Washington (portrait) 32
(Sketch of his Mt. Vernon home on tissue)
Martha Washington (portrait) 33
Inauguration of Washington at New York 50
The First Cabinet 58
(Washington, Hamilton, Randolph, Jefferson and Knox)
Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation 66
Benjamin Franklin Being Received at the French Court . . 98
White House The East Entrance 130
Mob of Whiskey Insurrectionists Maltreating Excise Officer 162
Bethlehem, Pa., in- 1798 163
The Battle of Miami 194
John Adams (portrait) 216 B
(Sketch of Quincy home on tissue)
Abigail Adams (portrait) 2i6D
White House Green Room 240
Facsimile of Coinage Proclamation by John Adams . . . 256
White House The President's Office 288
Thomas Jefferson (portrait) . . 306 B
(Sketch of his Monticello home on tissue)
Martha Jefferson Randolph (portrait) 306 D
Imperator Replicas of Clermont and Half Moon . . . 350
Paul Jones Captures the Serapis 366
Barbary Pirates at Tripoli 382
Facsimile of Jefferson's Neutrality Proclamation . . . 414
Duel Between Burr and Hamilton 430
Declaration of Independence
July 4, 1776
QJ
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D< f Independence
>RESS, JULY 4, 1776.
fe uaantauro* itritaratian *f UK titbit* mbA States of ^\ mrri
dationo z -a o'l
human event >mes necessary for one
o the political bands which have connected them with
and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and
J I S* f 'ire's God entitle
decent resp< I ~ -o ~l cs that they
^ o'~ to the -:.-- We
? O i ;
^5 * "C
^ f --hot
;ig these are Life, L,iberU * -o .to
111" ~c 'a -c
secure these rights, z f i tituted a
u - m _5
.versfrom th; | | j >verned, TV jver any
\ of Government become& ~ | ^ jf these ends, it is the Right
e to alter or -. - | s ? stitute new Government,
* -3 a L
i and organizing its powers in such
jr to effect their Safety and Happi-
rnments long established
causes; and accordingly
icwn, i^ | -5 ~. are more disposed to suffer,
<o ~o
z I | j T - abolishing the
*2 ^ !l lone train of abuses
m t M
^>ations, pursuing " " "" ~ " he same Object evinces a design
e them under absolute D it is their right, it is their
Urow off such Go , and to provide new Guards for t?v
Such has been the patient sufferance of these Col v
now the necessity which constrains them to a!^> ir
us of Go\ 7 ernment. The history of the presc-
is a history of repeated injuries and ir-.;
iviv"; j r:t the establishment of an ah* '-i- y. t ;t;r-y over
"a O *
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0058
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Declaration of Independence
IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776.
,1 A dfc
e Utt8ttim0u0 If ectaratiim d % tftfotett troted stateia of Jftmerica,
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, That whenever any
Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right
of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government,
laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such
form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happi-
ness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established
should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly
all experience hath shewn, 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, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design
to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their
duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their
future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of these 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
NOTE. Tbe words " Declaration of Independence " do not appear on the original.
2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
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
immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation
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 accommodation 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 unusual, uncomfortable, and distant
from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of
fatiguing them into compliance with his measures. He has dissolved
en
Represtative 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 Legis-
lative 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 endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that
purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refus-
ing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising
the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands. He has obstructed
the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for estab-
lishing Judiciary powers. 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 harrass our people, and eat out their sub-
stance. He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies
without the Consent of our legislatures. He has affected to render the
Military independent of and superior to the Civil power. He has com-
bined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our consti-
tution, 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 punish-
ment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants 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 benefits of Trial by Jury : For transporting us beyond
Seas to be tried for pretended offences: For abolishing the free System
Declaration of Independence 3
of English Laws in a neighbouring 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 valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Gov-
ernments: For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring them-
selves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection
and 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 compleat
the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circum-
stances of Cruelty & 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 endeavoured to bring on the
inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known
rule of warfare, 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 Petitions have been
only
answered .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 Brittish
brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by
their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We
have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settle-
ment here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity,
and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to
disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our con-
nections and correspondence They too have been deaf to the voice
of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the
necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold
the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
< 53U, ihzvzfBiCZ, the Representatives of the united jitates 0t
^me^ica, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme
Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name,
and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly pub-
4 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Hsh and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to
be &VZR and Ittdepmdjent 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 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 Independent States
may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm
reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to
each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
JOSIAH BARTLETT
W M WHIPPLE
SAM 1 * ADAMS
JOHN ADAMS
ROB T TREAT PAINE
ELBRIDGE GERRY
STEP. HOPKINS
WILLIAM ELLERY
ROGER SHERMAN
SAM EI< HUNTINGTON
W M WILLIAMS
OLIVER WOLCOTT
MATTHEW THORNTON
W M FLOYD
PHIL. LIVINGSTON
FRAN S LEWIS
LEWIS MORRIS
RICH D STOCKTON
JN WITHERSPOON
FRA S HOPKINSON
JOHN HART
ABRA CLARK
ROB T MORRIS
BENJAMIN RUSH
BENJ A FRANKLIN
JOHN MORTON
GEO CLYMER
JA S SMITH.
JOHN HANCOCK
GEO. TAYLOR
JAMES WILSON
GEO. Ross
C&SAR RODNEY
GEO READ
THO M:KEAN
SAMUEL CHASB
W M PACA
THO S STONE
CHARLES CARROLL of Carrolltoo
GEORGE WYTHE
RICHARD HENRY LEE.
TH JEFFERSON
BENJ A HARRISON
THO S NELSON jr.
FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT
CARTER BRAXTON
W M HOOPER
JOSEPH HEWES,
JOHN PENN
EDWARD RUTLEDGB.
THO S HEYWARD Jun r
THOMAS LYNCH Jun r
ARTHUR MIDDLETON
BUTTON
LYMAN HALL
GEO WALTON.
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THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.
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Articles of Confederation
Articles of Confederation
gu att t0 ixrftjcmt these Presents shall come, we the undersigned Dele-
gates of the States affixed to our Names send greeting. Whereas the
Delegates of the United States of America in Congress assembled did on
the fifteenth day of November in the Year of our Lord One Thousand
Seven Hundred and Seventy seven, and in the Second Year of the Inde-
pendence of America agree to certain articles of Confederation and per-
petual Union between the States of Newhampshire, Massachusetts-bay,
Rhodeisland and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North-Carolina,
South-Carolina and Georgia in the Words following, viz. "Articles of
Confederation and perpetual Union between the states of Newhamp-
shire, Massachusetts-bay, Rhodeisland and Providence Plantations, Con-
necticut, New- York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland,
Virginia, North-Carolina, South-Carolina and Georgia.
Article I. The Stile of this confederacy shall be " The United States
of America."
Article II. Each state retains its sovereignty, freedom and independ-
ence, and every Power, Jurisdiction and right, which is not by this
confederation expressly delegated to the United States, in Congress
assembled.
Article III. The said states hereby severally enter into a firm league
of friendship with each other, for their common defence, the security of
their Liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves
to assist each other, against all force offered to, or attacks made upon
them, or any of them, on account of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any
other pretence whatsoever.
NOTE. The original is indorsed: Act of Confederation of The United States of America.
5
6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Article IV. The better to secure and perpetuate mutual friendship
and intercourse among the people of the different states in this union,
the free inhabitants of each of these states, paupers, vagabonds and fugi-
tives from Justice excepted, shall be entitled to all privileges and immu-
nities of free citizens in the several states; and the people of each state
shall have free ingress and regress to and from any other state, and shall
enjoy therein all the privileges of trade and commerce, subject to the
same duties, impositions and restrictions as the inhabitants thereof
respectively, provided that such restriction shall not extend so far as to
prevent the removal of property imported into any state, to any other
state of which the Owner is an inhabitant; provided also that no impo-
sition, duties or restriction shall be laid by any state, on the property
of the united states, or either of them.
If any Person guilty of, or charged with treason, felony, or other high
misdemeanor in any state, shall flee from Justice, and be found in any of
the united states, he shall upon demand of the Governor or executive
power, of the state from which he fled, be delivered up and removed to
the state having jurisdiction of his offence.
Full faith and credit shall be given in each of these states to the
records, acts and judicial proceedings of the courts and magistrates of
every other state.
Article V. For the more convenient management of the general inter-
ests of the united states, delegates shall be annually appointed in such
manner as the legislature of each state shall direct, to meet in Congress
on the first Monday in November, in every year, with a power reserved
to each state, to recal its delegates, or any of them, at any time within
the year, and to send others in their stead, for the remainder of the
Year.
No state shall be represented in Congress by less than two, nor by
more than seven Members; and no person shall be capable of being a
delegate for more than three years in any term of six years; nor shall
any person, being a delegate, be capable of holding any office under the
united states, for which he, or another for his benefit receives any salary,
fees or emolument of any kind.
Each state shall maintain its own delegates in a meeting of the states,
and while they act as members of the committee of the states.
In determining questions in the united states, in Congress assembled,
each state shall have one vote.
Articles of Confederation 7
Freedom of speech and debate in Congress shall not be impeached or
questioned in any Court, or place out of Congress, and the members of
congress shall be protected in their persons from arrests and imprison-
ments, during the time of their going to and from, and attendance on
congress, except for treason, felony, or breach of the peace.
Article VI. No state without the Consent of the united states in
congress assembled, shall send any embassy to, or receive any embassy
from, or enter into any conferrence, agreement, alliance or treaty with
any King prince or state; nor shall any person holding any office of
profit or trust under the united states, or any of them, accept of any
present, emolument, office or title of any kind whatever from any king,
prince or foreign state; nor shall the united states in congress assem-
bled, or any of them, grant any title of nobility.
No two or more states shall enter into any treaty, confederation or
alliance whatever between them, without the consent of the united
.states in congress assembled, specifying accurately the purposes for
which the same is to be entered into, and how long it shall continue.
No state shall lay any imposts or duties, which may interfere with
any stipulations in treaties, entered into by the united states in congress
assembled, with any king, prince or state, in pursuance of any treaties
already proposed by congress, to the courts of France and Spain.
No vessels of war shall be kept up in time of peace by any state, except
such number only, as shall be deemed necessary by the united states
in congress assembled, for the defence of such state, or its trade; nor
shall any body of forces be kept up by any state, in time of peace, except
such number only, as in the judgment of the united states, in congress
assembled, shall be deemed requisite to garrison the forts necessary for
the defence of such state; but every state shall always keep up a well
regulated and disciplined militia, sufficiently armed and accoutred, and
shall provide and constantly have ready for use, in public stores, a due
number of field pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, ammu-
nition and camp equipage.
No state shall engage in any war without the consent of the united
states in congress assembled, unless such state be actually invaded by
enemies, or shall have received certain advice of a resolution being
formed by some nation of Indians to invade such state, and the danger
is so imminent as not to admit of a delay, till the united states in con-
gress assembled can be consulted: nor shall any state grant commis-
2
8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
sions to any ships or vessels of war, nor letters of marque or reprisal,
except it be after a declaration of war by the united states in congress
assembled, and then only against the kingdom or state and the subjects
thereof, against which war has been so declared, and under such regula-
tions as shall be established by the united states in congress assembled,
unless such state be infested by pirates, in which case vessels of war
may be fitted out for that occasion, and kept so long as the danger shall
continue, or until the united states in congress assembled shall deter-
mine otherwise.
Article VII. When land-forces are raised by any state for the
common defence, all officers of or under the rank of colonel, shall be
appointed by the legislature of each state respectively by whom such
forces shall be raised, or in such manner as such state shall direct, and
all vacancies shall be filled up by the state which first made the
appointment.
Article VIII. All charges of war, and all other expences that shall
be incurred for the common defence or general welfare, and allowed by
the united states in congress assembled, shall be defrayed out of a com-
mon treasury, which shall be supplied by the several states, in proportion
to the value of all land within each state, granted to or surveyed for any
Person, as such land and the buildings and improvements thereon shall
be estimated according to such mode as the united states in congress
assembled, shall from time to time direct and appoint. The taxes for
paying that proportion shall be laid and levied by the authority and
direction of the legislatures of the several states within the time agreed
upon by the united states in congress assembled.
Article IX. The united states in congress assembled, shall have the
sole and exclusive right and power of determining on peace and war,
except in the cases mentioned in the sixth article of sending and
receiving ambassadors entering into treaties and alliances, provided
that no treaty of commerce shall be made whereby the legislative power
of the respective states shall be restrained from imposing such imposts
and duties on foreigners, as their own people are subjected to, or from
prohibiting the exportation or importation of any species of goods or
commodities whatsoever of establishing rules for deciding in all cases,
what captures on land or water shall be legal, and in what manner
prizes taken by land or naval forces in the service of the united states
shall be divided or appropriated. of granting letters of marque and
reprisal in times of peace appointing courts for the trial of piracies
, Articles of Confederation g
and felonies committed on the high seas and establishing courts for
receiving and determining finally appeals in all cases of captures, pro-
vided that no member of congress shall be appointed a judge of any of
the said courts.
The united states in congress assembled shall also be the last resort
on appeal in all disputes and differences now subsisting or that hereafter
may arise between two or more states concerning boundary, jurisdiction
or any other cause whatever; which authority shall always be exercised
in the manner following. Whenever the legislative or executive authority
or lawful agent of any state in controversy with another shall present a
petition to congress, stating the matter in question and praying for a
hearing, notice thereof shall be given by order of congress to the legis-
lative or executive authority of the other state in controversy, and a
day assigned for the appearance of the parties by their lawful agents,
who shall then be directed to appoint by joint consent, commissioners or
judges to constitute a court for hearing and determining the matter in
question: but if they cannot agree, congress shall name three persons
out of each of the united states, and from the list of such persons each
party shall alternately strike out one, the petitioners beginning, until the
number shall be reduced to thirteen; and from that number not less
than seven, nor more than nine names as congress shall direct, shall in
the presence of congress be drawn out by lot, and the persons whose
names shall be so drawn or any five of them, shall be commissioners or
judges, to hear and finally determine the controversy, so always as a
major part of the judges who shall hear the cause shall agree in the
determination: and if either party shall neglect to attend at the day
appointed, without shewing reasons, which congress shall judge sufficient,
or being present shall refuse to strike, the congress shall proceed to
nominate three persons out of each state, and the secretary of congress
shall strike in behalf of such party absent or refusing; and the judgment
and sentence of the court to be appointed, in the manner before prescribed,
shall be final and conclusive; and if any of the parties shall refuse to
submit to the authority of such court, or to appear or defend their claim
or cause, the court shall nevertheless proceed to pronounce sentence, or
judgment, which shall in like manner be final and decisive, the judgment
or sentence and other proceedings being in either case transmitted to
congress, and lodged among the acts of congress for the security of the
parties concerned: provided that every commissioner, before he sits in
judgment, shall take an oath to be administred by one of the judges of
io Afessagcs and Papers of the Presidents
the supreme or superior court of the state, where the cause shall be tried,
" well and truly to hear and determine the matter in question, according
to the best of his judgment, without favour, affection or hope of reward:"
provided also that no state shall be deprived of territory for the benefit
of the united states.
All controversies concerning the private right of soil claimed under
different grants of two or more states, whose jurisdictions as they may
respect such lands, and the states which passed such grants are adjusted,
the said grants or either of them being at the same time claimed to have
originated antecedent to such settlement of jurisdiction, shall on the
petition of either party to the congress of the united states, be finally
determined as near as may be in the same manner as is before prescribed
for deciding disputes respecting territorial jurisdiction between different
states.
The united states in congress assembled shall also have the sole and
exclusive right and power of regulating the alloy and value of coin struck
by their own authority, or by that of the respective states fixing the
standard of weights and measures throughout the united states. regu-
lating the trade and managing all affairs with the Indians, not members
of any of the states, provided that the legislative right of any state within
its own limits be not infringed or violated establishing and regulating
post-offices from one state to another, throughout all the united states,
and exacting such postage on the papers passing thro' the same as may
be requisite to defray the expences of the said office appointing all
officers of the land forces, in the service of the united states, excepting
regimental officers. appointing all the officers of the naval forces, and
commissioning all officers whatever in the service of the united states
making rules for the government and regulation of the said land and
naval forces, and directing th'eir operations.
The united states in congress assembled shall have authority to
appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of congress, to be denominated
"A Committee of the States," and to consist of one delegate from each
state; and to appoint such other committees and civil officers as may be
necessary for managing the general affairs of the united states under
their direction to appoint one of their number to preside, provided that
no person be allowed to serve in the office of president more than one
year in any term of three years; to ascertain the necessary sums of
Money to be raised for the service of the united states, and to appro-
priate and apply the same for defraying the public expenses to borrow
Articles of Confederation n
money, or emit bills on the credit of the united states, transmitting
every half year to the respective states an account of the sums of money
so borrowed or emitted, to build and equip a navy to agree upon the
number of land forces, and to make requisitions from each state for its
quota, in proportion to the number of white inhabitants in such state;
which requisition shall be binding, and thereupon the legislature of each
state shall appoint the regimental officers, raise the men and cloath, arm
and equip them in a soldier like manner, at the expence of the united
states, and the officers and men so cloathed, armed and equipped shall
march to the place appointed, and within the time agreed on by the
united states in congress assembled: But if the united states in congress
assembled shall, on consideration of circumstances judge proper that
any state should not raise men, or should raise a smaller number than
its quota, and that any other state should raise a greater number of men
than the quota thereof, such extra number shall be raised, officered,
cloathed, armed and equipped in the same manner as the quota of such
state, unless the legislature of such state shall judge that such extra
number cannot be safely spared out of the same, in which case they
shall raise officer, cloath, arm and equip as many of such extra num-
ber as they judge can be safely spared. And the officers and men so
cloathed, armed and equipped, shall march to the place appointed, and
within the time agreed on by the united states in congress assembled.
The united states in congress assembled shall never engage in a war,
nor grant letters of marque and reprisal in time of peace, nor enter into
any treaties or alliances, nor coin money, nor regulate the value thereof,
nor ascertain the sums and expences necessary for the defence and
welfare of the united states, or any of them, nor emit bills, nor borrow
money on the credit of the united states, nor appropriate money, nor
agree upon the number of vessels of war, to be built or purchased, or the
number of land or sea forces to be raised, nor appoint a commander in
chief of the army or navy, unless nine states assent to the same: nor
shall a question on any other point, except for adjourning from day to
day be determined, unless by the votes of a majority of the united states
in congress assembled.
The congress of the united states shall have power to adjourn to any
time within the year, and to any place within the united states, so that
no period of adjournment be for a longer duration than the space of six
Months, and shall publish the Journal of their proceedings monthly,
except such parts thereof relating to treaties, alliances or military
12 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
operations, as in their judgment require secresy; and the yeas and nays
of the delegates of each state on any question shall be entered on the
Journal, when it is desired by any delegate; and the delegates of a state,
or any of them, at his or their request shall be furnished with a tran-
script of the said Journal, except such parts as are above excepted, to
lay before the legislatures of the several states.
Article X. The committee of the states, or any nine of them, shall
be authorised to execute, in the recess of congress, such of the powers
of congress as the united states in congress assembled, by the consent
of nine states, shall from time to time think expedient to vest them
with; provided that no power be delegated to the said committee, for the
exercise of which, by the articles of confederation, the voice of nine states
in the congress of the united states assembled is requisite.
Article XI. Canada acceding to this confederation, and joining in the
measures of the united states, shall be admitted into, and entitled to all
the advantages of this union: but no other colony shall be admitted
into the same, unless such admission be agreed to by nine states.
Article XII. All bills of credit emitted, monies borrowed and debts
contracted by, or under the authority of congress, before the assembling
of the united states, in pursuance of the present confederation, shall
be deemed and considered as a charge against the united states, for
payment and satisfaction whereof the said united states, and the public
faith are hereby solemnly pledged.
Article XIII. Every state shall abide by the determinations of the
united states in congress assembled, on all questions which by this con-
federation are submitted to them. And the Articles of this confederation
shall be inviolably observed by every state, and the union shall be per-
petual; nor shall any alteration at any time hereafter be made in any
of them; unless such alteration be agreed to in a congress of the united
states, and be afterwards confirmed by the legislatures of every state.
&t&tt 'SStfejOUeas it hath pleased the Great Governor of the World to
incline the hearts of the legislatures we respectively represent in con-
gress, to approve of, and to authorize us to ratify the said articles of
confederation and perpetual union. |ttmxr ^c that we the under-signed
delegates, by virtue of the power and authority to us given for that pur-
pose, do by these presents, in the name and in behalf of our respective
constituents, fully and entirely ratify and confirm each and every of the
said articles of confederation and perpetual union, and all and singular
the matters and things therein contained: And we do further solemnly
Articles of Confederation
plight and engage the faith of our respective constituents, that they shall
abide by the determinations of the united states in congress assembled,
on all questions, which by the said confederation are submitted to them.
And that the articles thereof shall be inviolably observed by the states
we repectively represent, and that the union shall be perpetual. In Wit-
ness whereof we have hereunto set our hands in Congress. Done at
Philadelphia in the state of Pennsylvania the ninth Day of July in the
Year of our Lord one Thousand seven Hundred and Seventy-eight, and
in the third year of the independence of America.
JOSIAH BARTLETT
JOHN WENTWORTH Jun r
August 8 th 1778
JOHN HANCOCK
SAMUEL ADAMS
ELBRIDGE GERRY
FRANCIS DANA
JAMES LOVELL
SAMUEL HOI/TEN
WILLIAM ELLERY
HENRY MARCHANT
JOHN COLLINS
ROGER SHERMAN
SAMUEL HUNTINGTON
OLIVER WOLCOTT
TITUS HOSMER
ANDREW ADAMS
JAS DUANB
FRA S LEWIS
W M DUER.
Gouv MORRIS
JNO WlTHERSPOON
NATH L SCUDDER
ROB T MORRIS
DANIEL ROBERDEAU
JON A BAYARD SMITH.
WILLIAM CLINGAN
JOSEPH REED 22 d July 1778
On the part & behalf of the State of
New Hampshire
On the part and behalf of The State
of Massachusetts Bay
iOn the part and behalf of the State
of Rhode-Island and Providence
Plantations
on the part and behalf of the State
of Connecticut
1 0n the Part and in Behalf of the State
I of New Jersey. Nov r 26, 1778.
On the part and behalf of the State
of Pennsylvania
Messages and Papers of the Presidents
THO M:KBAN Feby 12 1779
JOHN DICKINSON May 5 th 1779
NICHOLAS VAN DYKE,
JOHN HANSON March i 1781
DANIEL CARROLL, d
RICHARD HENRY L,EE
JOHN BANISTER
THOMAS ADAMS
JN HARVIE
FRANCIS LJGHTFOOT LEE
JOHN PENN July 2i st 1778
CORN S HARNETT
JN WILLIAMS
HENRY L,AURENS.
WILLIAM HENRY DRAYTON
JN MATHEWS
RICH U HUTSON.
THO S HEYWARD Jun r
JN WALTON 2| th July 1778
EDW D TELKAIR.
EDW U LANGWORTHY.
.On the part & behalf of the State of
Delaware
1 on the part and behalf of the State
/ of Maryland
On the Part and Behalf of the State
of Virginia
On the part and Behalf of the State
of N Carolina
On the part & behalf of the State of
South-Carolina
On the part & behalf of the State of
Georgia
WASHINGTON RESIGNS HIS COMMISSION.
It was i)ii June 15. 1775, that Congress determined to Iia\e a com-
mander-in-chief of the United States Army, and it was John Addams who
suggested that the post be given to Colonel Washington, who at that time
was present in his uniform in the Congress chamber. Washington was selecte;!,
not only because the appointment of a Virginian would help to bind the
South and New England more closely together in the approaching con-
Ilict, but also because his military reputation was unchallenged among Amer-
ican soldiers. The calibre of the man had been revealed in his experiences
as a youth with the French and Indians, in his practical but disregarded
advice to Braddock, in his skill in redeeming what was left of Braddock's
forces from complete annihilation after their defeat by the British, and by
(he brilliancy of his management in the successful expedition against Fort
I)ii(|uesne. Although Washington's patience and foresight finally compelled
the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, it was not
until September 3, 1783. that the final treaty of peace with England was
signed: and it was on December 23, 1783, that Washington appeared before
Congress to lay down the commission of commander-in-chief of the Amer-
ican Army which he had so nobly and so efficiently borne.
The Constitution
The Constitution
llSljfc tfX ^0plj of the United States, in Order to form a
more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, pro-
vide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure
the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and
establish this Constitution for the United States of America,
Jktfticlje. I.
Section, l. 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.
Section. 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members
chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the
the
Electors in each State shall have A Qualifications requisite for Electors of
the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.
No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to
the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the
United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that
State in which he shall be chosen.
Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the
several States which may be included within this Union, according to
their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the
whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to 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
NOTE. The words " The Constitution " do not appear on the original.
15
1 6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for
every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Repre-
sentative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New
Hampshire shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-
Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New- York six,
New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Vir-
ginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.
When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the
Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such
Vacancies.
The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other
Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.
Section. 3. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two
Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six
Years; and each Senator shall have one Vote.
Immediately after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first
Election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three Classes.
The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expi-
ration of the second Year, of the second Class at the Expiration of the
fourth Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of the sixth Year,
so that one third may be chosen every second Year; and if Vacancies
happen by Resignation, or othenvise, during the Recess of the Legislature
of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary Appointments
until the next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such
Vacancies.
No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age
of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and
who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he
shall be chosen.
The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the
Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.
The Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and also a President pro
tempore, in the Absence of the Vice President, or when he shall exercise
the Office of President of the United States.
The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When
sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the
is tried.
President of the United States A the Chief Justice shall preside: And no
Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the
Members present
The Constitution 17
Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to
removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of
honor, Trust or Profit under the United States : but the Party convicted
shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment
and Punishment, according to Law.
Section. 4. T^he Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for
Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the
Legislature thereof ; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or
ak^r such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing Senators.
The Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such
Meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall
by Law appoint a different Day.
Section. 5. Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns
and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall
constitute a Quorum to do Business ; but a smaller Number may 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.
Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its
Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two
thirds, expel a Member.
Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time
to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judg-
ment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either
House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present,
be entered on the Journal.
Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the
Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any
other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.
Section. 6. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compen-
sation 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 of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their
Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to
and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either
House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.
No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was
elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United
States which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall
i8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
have been encreased during such time; and no Person holding any Office
tinder the United States, shall be a Member of either House during his
Continuance in Office.
Section. 7. All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House
of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with Amend-
ments as on other Bills.
Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and
the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President
of the United States; If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall
return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have origi-
nated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and pro-
ceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that
House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the
Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsid-
ered, 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 Journal of each House respectively. If
any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sun-
days excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall
be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress
by their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be
a Law.
Svery Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the Concurrence of the
Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a
question of Adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the
United States; and before the Same shall take Effect, shall be approved
by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds
of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the Rules and
Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.
Section. 8. The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes,
Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the com-
mon Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties,
Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;
To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several
States, and with the Indian Tribes;
To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on
the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;
The Constitution ig
To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and
fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;
To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and
current Coin of the United States;
To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for
limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their
respective Writings and Discoveries;
To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;
To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high
Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make
Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that
Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;
To provide and maintain a Navy;
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and
naval Forces;
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the
Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and
for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of
the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment
of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to
the discipline prescribed by Congress;
To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such
District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular
States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Gov-
ernment 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 Buildings; And
To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying
into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by
this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any
Department or Officer thereof.
Section. 9. The Migration or Importation of such Persons as any
of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be
20 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hun-
dred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation,
not exceeding ten dollars for each Person.
The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended,
unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may
require it.
No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.
No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion
to the Census or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.
No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.
No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Reve-
nue to the Ports of one State over those of another: nor shall Vessels
bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in
another.
No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of
Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account
of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published
from time to time.
No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no
Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without
the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or
Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.
Section. 10. No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confed-
eration; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills
of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Pay-
ment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law
impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.
the
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 it's inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties
and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the
Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be
the
subject to the Revision and Controul of A Congress.
No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Ton-
nage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agree-
ment or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage
in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not
admit of delay.
The Constitution 21
Article. II.
Section, i. The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the
United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of
four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same
Term, be elected, as follows
Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof
may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Sena-
tors and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Con-
gress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of
Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.
The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot
for two Persons, of whom one at least shall not be an Inhabitant of the
same State with themselves. And they shall make a List of all the
Persons voted for, and of the Number of Votes for each; which List
they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the Seat of the Gov-
ernment 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
shall be the President, if such Number be a Majority of the whole
Number of Electors appointed ; and if there be more than one who have
such Majority, and have an equal Number of Votes, then the House
of Representatives shall immediately chuse by Ballot one of them for
President ; and if no Person have a Majority, then from the five highest
on the List the said House shall in like Manner chuse the President.
But in chusing the President, the Votes shall be taken by States, the
Representation from each State having one Vote ; A quorum for this
Purpose shall consist of a Member or Members from two thirds of the
States, and a Majority of all the States shall be necessary to a Choice.
In every Case, after the Choice of the President, the Person having the
greatest Number of Votes of the Electors shall be the Vice President.
But if there should remain two or more who have equal Votes, the
Senate shall chuse from them by Ballot the Vice President.
The Congress may determine the Time of chusing the Electors, and
the Day 011 which they shall give their Votes; which Day shall be the
same throughout the United States.
22 \* Messages and Papers of the Presidents
JJo-Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United
States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible
to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that
Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and
been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.
In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death,
Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said
Office, the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress
may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or
Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what
Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act accord-
ingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.
The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Com-
pensation, which shall neither be encreased nor diminished during the
Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive
within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any
of them.
Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the
following Oath or Affirmation: " I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that
I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States,
and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the
Constitution of the United States."
Section. 2. The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army
and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States,
when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require
the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive
Departments, upon any Subject 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.
He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the
Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present
concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent
of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public 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 Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think
proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads
of Departments.
The Constitution 23
The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may
happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which
shall expire at the End of their next Session.
Section. 3. He shall from time to time give to the Congress Informa-
tion of the State of the Union, and recommend 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 Commis-
sion all the Officers of the United States.
Section. 4. The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the
United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and
Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
IE.
Section. I. The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested In
one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from
time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and
inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall,
at stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall
not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.
Section. 2. The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and
Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States,
and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority; to
all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;
to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction; to Controversies to
which the United States shall be a Party; to Controversies between
two or more States; between a State and Citizens of another State;
between Citizens of different States, between Citizens of the same State
claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or
the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects.
In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Con-
suls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall
have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the
supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and
24 Afcssagcs and Papers of the Presidents
Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress
shall make.
The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by
Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes
shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State,
the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law
have directed.
Section. 3. Treason against the United States, shall consist only in
levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them
Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on
the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession
in open Court.
The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason,
but no Attainder of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfei-
ture except during the Life of the Person attainted.
. IV.
Section, 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.
Section. 2. The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges
and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.
A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime,
who shall flee from Justice, and be found in another State, shall on
Demand of the executive Authority of the State from which he fled,
be delivered up, to be removed to the State having Jurisdiction of the
Crime.
No Person held to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws
thereof, escaping into another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regu-
lation therein, be discharged from such Service or Labour, but shall be
delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such Service or Labour may
be due.
Section. 3. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this
Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction
of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or
more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures
of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.
TJic Constitution 25
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.
Section. 4. The United States shall guarantee to every State in this
Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of
them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the
Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic
Violence.
Jurticlje. 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 Constitution,
when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States,
or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode
of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no
Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight
hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth
Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State,
without its Consent, shall be deprived of it's equal Suffrage in the
Senate.
^Kticle. VI.
All Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adop-
tion of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States
under this Constitution, as under the Confederation.
This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall
be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which 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.
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
26 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test
shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust
under the United States.
guetictje. VII.
The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall be sufficient
for the Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying
the Same.
The Word, "the," being inter-
lined between the seventh and
eighth Lines of the first Page,
The Word "Thirty" being
partly written on an Erazure in
the fifteenth Line of the first
Page, The Words "is tried"
being interlined between the
thirty second and thirty third
Lines of the first Page and the
Word "the" being interlined
between the forty third and
forty fourth Lines of the second
Page.
Attest WILLIAM JACKSON Secretary
in Convention by the Unanimous Con-
sent 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 Independance of the United States
of America the Twelfth fjtx witness whereof
We have hereunto subscribed our Names,
New Hampshire
Massachusetts
Connecticut
New York . .
New Jersey
Pensylvania
G9 WASHINGTON Presid 1
and deputy from Virginia
f JOHN LANGDON |
1 NICHOLAS GILMANJ
j NATHANIEL GORHAM
IRuFus KING
fW M SAM L JOHNSON
I ROGER SHERMAN
ALEXANDER HAMILTON
WIL: LIVINGSTON
DAVID BREARLEY.
W M PATERSON.
JONA: DAYTON
B FRANKLIN
THOMAS MIFFLIN
ROB T MORRIS
GEO. CLYMER
THO S FlTzSlMONS
JARED INGERSOLI*
JAMES WILSON
Gouv MORRIS
The Constitution
27
Delaware
Maryland
Virginia
North Carolina
South Carolina
Georgia
GEO: READ
GUNNING BEDFORD jun
JOHN DICKINSON
RICHARD BASSETT
JACO: BROOM
I JAMES M C HENRY
DAN OF S T THO S JENIFER
DAN 1 * CARROLL
JJOHN BLAIR
I JAMES MADISON Jr.
rW M BLOUNT
|RICH D DOBBS SPAIGHT.
(Hu WILLIAMSON
J. RUTLEDGB
CHARLES COTESWORTH PINCKNEY
CHARLES PINCKNEY
PIERCE BUTLER.
i WILLIAM FEW
\ABR BALDWIN
Jtt <&8WVentWn Monday September 17 th 1787.
Present
The States of
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, M r Hamilton from New
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.
That the preceeding Constitution be laid before the United States
in Congress assembled, and that it is the Opinion of this Convention,
that it should afterwards be submitted to a Convention of Delegates,
chosen in each State by the People thereof, under the Recommendation
of its Legislature, for their Assent and Ratification; and that each Con-
vention assenting to, and ratifying the Same, should give Notice thereof
to the United States in Congress assembled.
28 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Resolved, That it is the Opinion of this Convention, that as soon as
the Conventions of nine States shall have ratified this Constitution, the
United States in Congress assembled should fix a Day on which Electors
should be appointed by the States which shall have ratified the same,
and a Day on which the Electors should assemble to vote for the Presi-
dent, and the Time and Place for commencing Proceedings under this
Constitution. That after such Publication the Electors should be ap-
pointed, and the Senators and Representatives elected: That the Elect-
ors should meet on the Day fixed for the Election of the President, and
should transmit their Votes certified, signed, sealed and directed, as the
Constitution requires, to the Secretary of the United States in Congress
assembled, that the Senators and Representatives should convene at the
Time and Place assigned; that the Senators should appoint a President
of the Senate, for the sole Purpose of receiving, opening and counting
the Votes for President; and, that after he shall be chosen, the Congress,
together with the President, should, without Delay, proceed to execute
this Constitution.
By the Unanimous Order of the Convention
G9 WASHINGTON Presid 1
W. JACKSON Secretary.
Articles in addition to, and Amendment of the Constitution of the
United States of America, proposed by Congress, and ratified by
the Legislatures of the several States, pursuant to the fifth Article
of the original Constitution.
L]
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment 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 assemble,
and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
H.J
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.
The Constitution 89
[Article m.J
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without
the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be v
prescribed by law.
[Jucticlje IV.]
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers,
and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be vio-
lated, 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.
V.J
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous
crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in
cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in
actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be
subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb;
nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against
himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process
of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just
compensation.
VL]
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 for obtaining witnesses in his favor,
and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.
VII.]
In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed
twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact
tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-ex~aniined in any Court of the United
States, than according to the rules of the common law.
30 Messages and Papers of tfie Presidents
VIIL]
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
[Article IX.]
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be
construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
[&*ticlje X.J
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,
[Article XL]
The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to
extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against
one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or
Subjects of any Foreign State,
[Jirtijcle xn.J
The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot
for President and Vice- President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an
inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their
ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the per-
son voted for as Vice- President, and they shall make distinct lists of all
persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-
President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall
sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the
United States, directed to the President of the Senate; The President of
the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representa-
tives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then 'be counted; The
person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the
President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors
appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons
having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those
The Constitution 31
voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose imme-
diately, 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 mem-
bers from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall
be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not
choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon
them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-
President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or other
constitutional disability of the President. The person having the great-
est number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if
such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed,
and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on
the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the
purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and
a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But
no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be
eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.
Section i. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a pun-
ishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted,
shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their juris-
diction.
Section. 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appro-
priate legislation.
&vticXje XIV.
Section i. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and
subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and
of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any
law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the
United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or
property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Section 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the several
States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number
of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the
32 Afessagcs and Papers of the Presidents
right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and
Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the
Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legis-
lature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State,
being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in
any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime,
the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion
which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number
of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.
Section 3. No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Con-
gress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil
or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having
previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of
the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an exec-
utive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the
United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against
the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress
may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Section 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, author-
ized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and
bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not
be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume
or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion
against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of
any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal
and void.
Section 5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate
legislation, the provisions of this article.
Article XV.
Section i. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not
be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account
of race, color, or previous condition of servitude
Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by
appropriate legislation
NOTK. For the XVIth and XVIIth Amendments see Encyclopedic
Index article entitled Amendments.
George Washington
April SO, 1789, to March 4, 1797
SEE ENCYCLOPEDIC INDEX.
The Encyclopedic Index is not only an index to the other volumes, not only a key that
unlocks the treasures of the entire publication, but it is in itself an alphabetically arranged
brief history or story of the great controlling events constituting the History of the United
States.
Under its proper alphabetical classification the story is told of every great subject
referred to by any of the Presidents in their official Messages, and at the end of each article
the official utterances of the Presidents themselves are cited upon the subject, so that you
may readily turn to the page in the body of the work itself for this original information.
Next to the possession of knowledge is the ability to turn at will to where knowledge
is to be found.
-.'
MOUNT VERNON, THE HOME OF GEORGE WASHINGTON
With reproduction of official portrait, by Stuart, from the White House Collection
WASHINGTON
It is thirty years since I was named as the junior member of a com-
mittee of a Historical Society which had voted to print all the Washing-
ton letters in its collection. I showed the audacity of youth, by saying
squarely, that we must print the MSS. just as we found them, "swear-
words," bad spelling, and all. A dear old saint, the chairman, said,
after an awful pause, "I think Mr. Hale is right. I think the time has
come when we can tell the truth about Washington." He was quite
right. And the last forty years have been bravely telling the truth about
Washington, as they learned it more and more certainly. As things
have now turned, it proves that the study of Washington the man proves
much more interesting than that of Washington the hero or the demigod.
As to education, one could hardly invent a better training than he had
for the work of his life. Trained as a boy, to read and write well, and
to use figures well, he falls, happily, into the constant company of his
older brother, an officer in the English army and of Lord Fairfax, self-
exiled from the best literary training of his time. Fairfax had been the
friend of Steele and Addison, and had been favored with, himself, of
writing for the "Spectator," when, to this hour, most of us would be
glad to have had a stray article. In the summer the boy and his noble
teacher are out in the Valley of Virginia; soon the boy is acting as
surveyor, sleeping at night in a log cabin or wigwam, and from the very
beginning learning to know men the characteristic of most help to him
in his eventful life.
Till he comes to manhood, this sort of life seemed to open his career
for him. And then, of a sudden, he becomes a rich man, with the respon-
sibilities and anxieties which belong to the owner of a large estate. It
was said, when the war began, that as John Hancock was the richest
merchant in New England, George Washington was the richest citizen of
the country, a remark to be studied by people who fear the dangers of
wealth. The happy adventures of the Monongahela River, of his deal-
ings with the French, give just the openings for such a youngster.
The "rub-a-dub" carries us away so far that we recall a dozen stories
of war for one of home life. But, we must remember how much of his
life was spent at home. He died in his seventieth year. Between sixteen
years and seventy, we have fifty-four years of singularly active life.
Of these fourteen are spent in war, and forty in the varied occupations
of a gentleman of large fortune.
He was always a leading citizen. Before he met Congress in the
Continental Congress he was already known, as "The Virginia Patriot."
From the time of the peace of 1763 he was almost every year, the lead-
ing member of the Virginian House of Burgesses. Here he was a
leader. When he spoke, he spoke with a purpose. Patrick Henry said
of his speeches in the meeting of Congress in 1774: "If you speak of
solid information and sound judgment, Colonel Washington is unques-
tionably the greatest man on that floor." He could have had no better
school for studying men than such leadership of a Legislature implies.
In his after-life his accurate knowledge of men was of the greatest
service to him.
His home life at Mount Vernon was generous, even lavish, in the
largeness of its hospitalities, and in the completeness with which "He
did the thing that he was set to do." The Mount Vernon flour com-
manded the highest prices in the West Indies. The barges on the river
were manned by uniformed crews of his own people, the horses in the
stable were of the best blood, and when in the autumn the hounds were
called, he could mount as many guests as Mount Vernon had welcomed.
Vulcan, Sweetlips, Forester, Truelove are the names of some of the
hounds. Ajax, Blue Skin, Valiant are the names of some of the horses.
Virginia hospitality showed itself at its very best at Mount Vernon.
If an English cruiser found her way so far up the river, the officers
found themselves guests at the mansion house.
There is a curious passage in a letter to a London friend, in which he
says, practically, that America will never again have any news to send
to England. If it had not been for the double-distilled madness of such
people as Lord North and Lord George Germain, and, most of all, of
the young King, who shall say that things might not have worried on in
a decorous fashion for a generation more, with no conflict between
Colonies virtually independent and a king who knew his place ?
But this was not to be, and when the Continental Congress met at
Philadelphia it was a matter of course that "the Virginia Patriot" should
be the head of the Virginia delegation.
Observe, now, that this was an assembly of civilians. They had really
supposed that their petition to the King might break through the minis-
terial hedges. In fact it was "spurned from the foot of the throne." It
remained in Franklin's possession till he died. At this civilian assembly
appeared Colonel George Washington, dressed in military uniform, the
blue and buff, be it remembered, of old English whiggery. By an indi-
cation so simple did Colonel Washington show that this business was
to be settled.
The world remembers him as the man who saved what could be saved
after Braddock's defeat the man who drove General Howe from Bos-
ton, who kept the Army of America in existence for six years, who saw
five English Generals withdraw from America. The same man brought
together the convention which made the Constitution, and, to crown his
career, was the first President under its articles. So often was he in
his place, and did what was to be done, as no other man could do it.
MARTHA WASHINGTON
MARTHA DANDRiDcn-:, of Yirginia, was married
at nineteen years of age to Daniel Parke Custis.
At an early age she was left a widow with two
children, Martha and John Parke Custis. Jn
i/5'J she married Oeorge Washington, thus be-
coming the wife of the man who was to he chosen
first President of the United States. Accom-
plished, wealthy and fascinating, fond of cere-
mony, yet hospitable, her entertainments at Mt.
Yernon were world-famous. The White House
was not erected until after Washington's death,
hence she never presided there; but. Xew York
being the Capital of the country during Wash-
ington's administration, her court was held in
that city, refined taste and abundant wealth ad-
mitting of appropriate display. Her patriotism
was equal to that of her husband and led her
through many trying scenes and privations dur-
ing the Revolution. She died in her seventy-first
year, having gradually failed in health since her
husband's death, nearly three years previous.
George Washington
GEORGE WASHINGTON was born at Bridges Creek, on the Potomac
River, in Westmoreland County, Va., on the 22d day of February (or
nth, old style), 1732. Augustine Washington, his father, was a son
of Lawrence Washington, whose father, John Washington, came to
Virginia from England in 1657, and settled at Bridges Creek. Augus-
tine Washington died in 1743, leaving several children, George being
the eldest by his second wife, Mary Ball. At the early age of 19 years
he was appointed adjutant-general of one of the districts of Virginia,
with the rank of major. In November, 1753, he was sent by Lieutenant-
Governor Dinwiddie, of Virginia, to visit the French army in the Ohio
Valley on important business. War followed, and in 1754 he was pro-
moted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and engaged in the war. In
1755 he acted as aid-de-camp to General Braddock. Soon after this he
was appointed by the legislature commander in chief of all the forces of
the Colony, and for three years devoted himself to recruiting and organ-
izing troops for her defense. In 1758 he commanded a successful expe-
dition to Fort Du Quesne. He then left the Army, and was married to
Mrs. Martha Custis, a widow lady of Virginia. For sixteen years he
resided at Mount Vernon, occasionally acting as a magistrate or as a
member of the legislature. He was a delegate to the Williamsburg
convention, August, 1773, which resolved that taxation and representa-
tion were inseparable. In 1774 he was sent to the Continental Congress
as a delegate from Virginia. The following year he was unanimously
chosen commander in chief, and assumed the command of the Conti-
nental Army July 2, 1775. He commanded the armies throughout the
War for Independence. At the close he resigned his commission, De-
cember 23, 1783, and retired to private life. He was a delegate to, and
president of, the National Convention which met in Philadelphia, Pa.,
in May, 1787, and adopted a new Constitution, that greatly increased
the power of the Federal Government. He was unanimously elected the
first President of the United States, and was inaugurated on the 3Oth
of April, 1789, in New York City, and at the end of his first term was
unanimously reelected. He retired March 4, 1797, having declined a
third term. In September, 1796, he issued his Farewell Address to
the people. July 3, 1798, he was again appointed to the command of the
armies of the United States, with the rank of lieutenant-general. He
was a Freemason, and served as master of his lodge. He died at Mount
Vernon, Va., after a short illness, December 14, 1799, and was buried
there.
33
34 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
PROCEEDINGS INITIATORY TO THE FIRST
PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION.
[From the Washington Papers (Executive Proceedings, vol. 17), Department of State.]
Charles Thomson, esq. , Secretary of the late Congress, being appointed
by the Senate of the United States to carry to General Washington the
official information of his unanimous election to the office of President
of the United States of America, arrived at Mount Vernon on the i4th
day of April, A. D. 1789, when he communicated to General Washing-
ton the purport of his mission in the following words :
SIR: The President of the Senate chosen for the special purpose,
having opened and counted the votes of the electors in presence of the
Senate and House of Representatives, I was honored with the commands
of the Senate to wait upon Your Excellency with the information of your
being elected to the office of President of the United States of America.
This commission was intrusted to me on account of my having been long
in the confidence of the late Congress, and charged with the duties of
one of the principal civil departments of Government.
I have now, sir, to inform you that the proofs you have given of your
patriotism, and of your readiness to sacrifice domestic ease and private
enjoyments to preserve the happiness of your country, did not permit the
two Houses to harbor a doubt of your undertaking this great and impor-
tant office, to which you are called, not only by the unanimous vote of
the electors, but by the voice of America.
I have it, therefore, in command to accompany you to New Ycrk,
where the Senate and House of Representatives are convened for the
dispatch of public business.
To which General Washington replied :
SIR: I have been accustomed to pay so much respect to the opinion of
my fellow-citizens that the knowledge of their having given their unan-
imous suffrages in my favor scarcely leaves me the alternative for an
option. I can not, I believe, give a greater evidence of my sensibility of
the honor which they have done me than by accepting the appointment.
I am so much affected by this fresh proof of my country's esteem and
confidence that silence can best explain my gratitude. While I realize
the arduous nature of the task which is imposed upon me, and feel my
own inability to perform it, I wish, however, that there may not be
reason for regretting the choice, for, indeed, all I can promise is only to
accomplish that which can be done by an honest zeal.
Upon considering how long time some of the gentlemen of both Houses
of Congress have been at New York, how anxiously desirous they must
George Washington 35
be to proceed to business, and how deeply the public mind appears to be
impressed with the necessity of doing it speedily, I can not find myself
at liberty to delay my journey. I shall therefore be in readiness to set
out the clay after to-morrow, and shall be happy in the pleasure of your
company, for you will permit me to say that it is a peculiar gratification
to have received the communication from you.
OFFICIAL INFORMATION OF THE ELECTION OF THE PRESIDENT OP
THE UNITED STATES, APRIL 6, 1789.
Be it known that the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America, being convened in the city and State of New York,
this 6th day of April, A. D. 1789, the underwritten, appointed President
of the Senate for the sole purpose of receiving, opening, and counting the
votes of the electors, did, in the presence of the said Senate and House
of Representatives, open all the certificates and count all the votes of the
electors for a President and Vice- President, by which it appears that
His Excellency George Washington, esq. , was unanimously elected, agree-
ably to the Constitution, to the office of President of the said United
States of America.
In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal.
JOHN LANGDON.
MOUNT VERNON, April 14., 1789.
To the Honorable JOHN LANGDON,
President pro tempore of the Senate of the United States.
SIR: I had the honor to receive your official communication, by the
hand of Mr. Secretary Thomson, about i o'clock this day. Having
concluded to obey the important and flattering call of my country, and
having been impressed with an idea of the expediency of my being with
Congress at as early a period as possible, I propose to commence my
journey on Thursday morning, which will be the day after to-morrow.
I have the honor to be, with sentiments of esteem, sir, your most
obedient servant,
G9 WASHINGTON.
RESOLVE OF THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES RESPECTING
MR. OSGOOD'S PREPARING HIS HOUSE FOR THE RECEPTION OF
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
In Senate, April 15, 1789.
The committee to whom it was referred to consider of and report to
the House respecting the ceremonial of receiving the President, and to
whom also was referred a letter from the chairman of a committee of the
36 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Senate to the Speaker, communicating an instruction from that House
to a committee thereof to report if any and what arrangements are
necessary for the reception of the Vice- President, have agreed to the
following report :
That Mr. Osgood, the proprietor of the house lately occupied by the
President of Congress, be requested to put the same and the furniture
thereof in proper condition for the residence and use of the President of
the United States, and otherwise, at the expense of the United States,
to provide for his temporary accommodation.
That it will be more eligible, in the first instance, that a committee
of three members from the Senate and five members from the House of
Representatives, to be appointed by the two Houses respectively, attend
to receive the President at such place as he shall embark from New
Jersey for this city, and conduct him without form to the house lately
occupied by the President of Congress, and at such time thereafter as
the President shall signify it will be most convenient for him, lie be
formally received by both Houses.
Read and accepted.
IN SENATE, April 16,
The Senate proceeded by ballot to the choice of a committee, agreeably
to the report of the committee of both Houses agreed to the i5th instant,
when the Honorable Mr. Langdon, the Honorable Mr, Carroll, and the
Honorable Mr. Johnson were chosen.
A true copy from the Journals of the Senate.
Attest:
SAM. A. OTIS, Secretary.
RESOLVE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED
STATES RESPECTING MR. OSGOOD'S PREPARING HIS HOUSE FOR
THE RECEPTION OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE UNITED STATES,
Wednesday, April 15, 1789.
Mr. Benson reported from the committee to whom it was referred to
consider of and report to the House respecting the ceremonial of receiv-
ing the President, and to whom was also referred a letter from the
chairman of a committee of the Senate to the Speaker, communicating
an instruction from that House to a committee thereof to report if any
and what arrangements are necessary for the reception of the Vice-
President, that the committee had, according to order, considered of the
same, and had agreed to a report thereupon, which he delivered in at
George Washington 37
the Clerk's table, and where the same was thrice read, and the question
put thereupon agreed to by the House as followeth :
That Mr. Osgood, the proprietor of the house lately occupied by the
President of Congress, be requested to put the same and the furniture
'therein in proper order for the residence and use of the President of the
United States, and otherwise, at the expense of the United States, to
provide for his temporary accommodation.
That it will be most eligible, in the first instance, that a committee of
three members from the Senate and five members from the House of
Representatives, to be appointed by the Houses respectively, attend to
receive the President at such place as he shall embark from New Jersey
for this city, and conduct him without form to the house lately occupied
by the President of Congress, and that at such time thereafter as the
President shall signify it will be most convenient for him, he be formally
received by both Houses.
Extract from the Journal.
JOHN BECKLEY, Clerk.
RESOLVE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES RESPECTING A
COMMITTEE TO MEET THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
IN THE HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE UNITED STATES,
Wednesday, April 15, 1789.
Resolved, That it will be most eligible, in the first instance, that a com-
mittee of three members from the Senate and five members from the
House of Representatives, to be appointed by the Houses respectively,
attend to receive the President at such place as he shall embark from
New Jersey for this city, and conduct him without form to the house
lately occupied by the President of Congress, and that at such time
thereafter as the President shall signify, he be formally received by both
Houses.
THURSDAY, April 16, 1789.
The committee elected on the part of this House, Mr. Boudinot, Mr.
Bland, Mr. Tucker, Mr. Benson, and Mr. L/awrance.
Extract from the Journal.
JOHN BECKLEY, Clerk.
REQUEST OF THE COMMITTEE APPOINTED BY CONGRESS TO KNOW
WHEN THEY SHOULD MEET THE PRESIDENT.
The committee appointed in consequence of the resolutions of both
Houses of Congress, and which accompany this note, most respectfully
communicate their appointment to the President of the United States,
with a request that he will please to have it signified to them when they
3& Messages and Papers of the Presidents
shall attend, with a barge which has been prepared for that purpose, to
receive him at Elizabeth Town, or at such other place as he shall choose
to embark from New Jersey for this city.
NEW YORK, April 77, 1789.
JOHN LANGDON.
CHARLES CARROLL, of Carrollton.
WM. SAMUEL JOHNSON.
ELIAS BOUDINOT.
THEODORICK BLAND.
THOS. TUDR. TUCKER.
EGBT. BENSON.
JOHN LAWRANCE.
TO THE COMMITTEE OF CONGRESS RESPECTING THE TIME OF THE
PRESIDENT MEETING THEM AT ELIZABETH TOWN.
PHILADELPHIA, April 20, 1789.
GENTLEMEN : Upon my arrival in this city I received your note, with
the resolutions of the two Houses which accompanied it, and in answer
thereto beg leave to inform you that, knowing how anxious both Houses
must be to proceed to business, I shall continue my journey dispatch as
possible. To-morrow evening I purpose to be at Trenton, the night
following at Brunswick, and hope to have the pleasure of meeting you
at Elizabeth Town point on Thursday at 12 o'clock.
G9 WASHINGTON.
LETTER FROM THE HONORABLE ELIAS BOUDINOT.
NEW YORK, April 21, 1789.
His Excellency GEORGE WASHINGTON, Esq.
SIR: The committee have just received Your Excellency's letter of the
2oth, and will be at Elizabeth Town on Thursday morning.
I must beg Your Excellency will alight at my house, where the com-
mittee will attend, and where it will give me (in a particular manner)
the utmost pleasure to receive you.
I have the honor to be, with the most profound respect, sir, your most
obedient and very humble servant,
ELIAS BOUDINOT.
LETTER FROM THE HONORABLE ELIAS BOUDINOT, APRIL 23, 1789.
ELIZABETH TOWN, Wednesday Evening.
His Excellency GEORGE WASHINGTON, Esq.
SIR : I have the honor of informing Your Excellency that the commit-
tees of both Houses arrived here this afternoon, and will be ready to
George Washington 39
receive Your Excellency at my house as soon as you can arrive here
to-morrow morning.
If you, sir, will honor us with your company at breakfast, it will give
us great pleasure. We shall wait Your Excellency's arrival in hopes of
that gratification. You can have a room to dress in, if you should think
it necessary, as convenient as you can have it in town.
I have the honor to be Your Excellency's most obedient humble
servant,
ELI AS BOUDINOT
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF CONGRESS RESPECTING THE TIME
* OF THE INAUGURATION OF THE PRESIDENT.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE UNITED STATES,
Saturday, April 25, 1789.
Mr. Benson, from the committee appointed to consider of the time,
place, and manner in which, and of the person by whom, the oath pre-
scribed by the Constitution shall be administered to the President of the
United States, and to confer with a committee of the Senate, appointed
for the purpose, reported as followeth:
That the President hath been pleased to signify to them that any time
or place which both Houses may think proper to appoint and any man-
ner which shall appear most eligible to them will be convenient and
acceptable to him.
That requisite preparations can not probably be made before Thursday
next; that the President be on that day formally received in the Senate
Chamber; that the Representatives' Chamber being capable of receiving
the greater number of persons, that therefore the President do take the
oath in that place and in the presence of both Houses; that after the
formal reception of the President in the Senate Chamber he be attended
by both Houses to the Representatives' Chamber, and that the oath be
administered by the chancellor of this State.
The committee further report it as their opinion that it will be proper
that a committee of both Houses be appointed to take order for further
conducting the ceremonial.
The said report was twice read, and on the question put thereupon
was agreed to by the House.
Ordered, That Mr. Benson, Mr. Ames, and Mr. Carroll be a committee
on the part of this House pursuant to the said report.
Extract from the Journal.
JOHN BECKLEY, Clerk.
40 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OP CONGRESS TO THE SENATE
RESPECTING THE TIME OF THE INAUGURATION OF THE PRESI-
DENT.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
In Senate, April 25, 1789.
The committee appointed to consider of the time, place, and manner
in which and of the person by whom the oath prescribed by the Consti-
tution shall be administered to the President of the United States, and
to confer with a committee of the House appointed for that purpose,
report:
That the President hath been pleased to signify to them that any time
or place which both Houses may think proper to appoint and any manner
which shall appear most eligible to them will be convenient and accept-
able to him; that requisite preparations can not probably be made before
Thursday next; that the President be on that day formally received in
the Senate Chamber by both Houses; that the Representatives' Chamber
being capable of receiving the greater number of persons, that therefore
the President do take the oath in that place in presence of both Houses;
that after the formal reception of the President in the Senate Chamber
he be attended by both Houses to the Representatives' Chamber, and
that the oath be administered by the chancellor of this State.
The committee further report it as their opinion that it will be proper
that a committee of both Houses be appointed to take order for conduct-
ing the ceremonial.
Read and accepted.
And Mr. lyee, Mr. Izard, and Mr. Dalton, on the part of the Senate,
together with the committee that may be appointed on the part of the
House, are empowered to take order for conducting the business.
A true copy from the Journals of Senate.
IN SENATE, April 27,
The committees appointed to take order for conducting the ceremonial
of the formal reception, etc. , of the President report that it appears to
them more eligible that the oath should be administered to the President
in the outer gallery adjoining the Senate Chamber than in the Repre-
sentatives' Chamber, and therefore submit to the respective Houses the
propriety of authorizing their committees to take order as to the place
where the oath shall be administered to the President, the resolutions
of Saturday assigning the Representatives' Chamber as the place not-
withstanding.
Read and accepted.
A true copy from the Journals of the Senate.
SAM. A. OTIS, Secretary.
George Washington 41
ORDER FOR CONDUCTING THE CEREMONIAL FOR THE INAUGURA-
TION OF THE PRESIDENT.
The committees of both Houses of Congress appointed to take order
for conducting the ceremonial for the formal reception, etc. , of the Presi-
dent of the United States on Thursday next have agreed to the following
order thereon, viz :
That General Webb, Colonel Smith, Lieutenant-Colonel Fish, Major
Franks, Major L' Enfant, Major Bleeker, and Mr. John R. Livingston be
requested to serve as assistants on the occasion.
That a chair be placed in the Senate Chamber for the President.
That a chair be placed in the Senate Chamber for the Vice- President,
to the right of the President's chair, and that the Senators take their
seats on that side of the Chamber on which the Vice- President's chair
shall be placed. That a chair be placed in the Senate Chamber for the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the left of the President's
chair, and that the Representatives take their seats on that side of the
Chamber on which the Speaker's chair shall be placed.
That seats be provided in the Senate Chamber sufficient to accommo-
date the late President of Congress, the governor of the Western Terri-
tory, the five persons being the heads of the great Departments, the
minister plenipotentiary of France, the encargado de negocios of Spain,
the chaplains of Congress, the persons in the suite of the President, and
also to accommodate the following public officers of the State, viz: The
governor, lieutenant-governor, the chancellor, the chief justice of the
supreme court and other judges thereof, and the mayor of the city.
That one of the assistants wait on these gentlemen and inform them
that seats are provided for their accommodation, and also to signify to
them that no precedence of seats is intended, and that no salutation is
expected from them on their entrance into or their departure from the
Senate Chamber.
That the members of both Houses assemble in their respective cham-
bers precisely at 12 o'clock, and that the Representatives, preceded by
their Speaker and attended by their Clerk and other officers, proceed
to the Senate Chamber, there to be received by the Vice-President and
Senators rising.
That the committees attend the President from his residence to the
Senate Chamber, and that he be there received by the Vice-President,
the Senators and Representatives rising, and by the Vice-President con-
ducted to his chair.
That after the President shall be seated in his chair and the Vice-
President, Senators, and Representatives shall be again seated, the
Vice-President shall announce to the President that the members of
both Houses will attend him to be present at his taking the oath of
office required by the Constitution.
42 Messages and Papers of tlie Presidents
To the end that the oath of office may be administered to the Presi-
dent in the most public manner and that the greatest number of the
people of the United States, and without distinction, may be witnesses to
the solemnity, that therefore the oath be administered in the outer gal-
lery adjoining to the Senate Chamber.
That when the President shall proceed to the gallery to take the oath
he be attended by the Vice- President, and be followed by the chancellor
of the State, and pass through the middle door; that the Senators pass
through the door on the right, and the Representatives pass through the
door on the left, and such of the persons who may have been admitted
into the Senate Chamber and may be desirous to go into the gallery are
then also to pass through the door on the right.
That when the President shall have taken the oath and returned into
the Senate Chamber, attended by the Vice- President, and shall be seated
in his chair, that Senators and Representatives also return into the
Senate Chamber, and that the Vice- President and they resume their
respective seats.
That when the President retire from the Senate Chamber he be con
ducted by the Vice- President to the door, the members of both Houses
rising, and that he be there received by the committees and attended to
his residence.
That immediately as the President shall retire the Representatives do
also return from the Senate Chamber to their own.
That it be intrusted to the assistants to take proper precautions for
keeping the avenues to the hall open, and for that purpose they wait on
his excellency the governor of this State, and in the name of the com-
mittees request his aid by an order or recommendation to the civil officers
or militia of the city to attend and serve on the occasion as he shall
judge most proper.
RESOLVE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES UPON THE REPORT
OF THE COMMITTEE RESPECTING THE INAUGURATION OF THE
PRESIDENT.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE UNITED STATES,
Monday, April 2j, 1789.
Mr. Benson, from the committee of both Houses appointed to take
order for conducting the ceremonial of the formal reception of the Presi-
dent of the United States, reported as followeth:
That it appears to the committee more eligible that the oath should be
administered to the President in the outer gallery adjoining the Senate
Chamber than in the Representatives' Chamber, and therefore submits
to the respective Houses the propriety of authori/ing their committees
to take order as to the place where the oath shall be administered to the
George Washington 43
President, the resolutions of Saturday assigning the Representatives'
Chamber as the place notwithstanding.
The said report being twice read,
Resolved, That this House doth concur in the said report and author-
ize the committee to take order for the change of place thereby proposed.
Extract from the Journal.
JOHN BECKLEY, Clerk.
FIRST INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
APRIL 30, 1789.
Fdlou>- Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Among the vicissitudes incident to life no event could have filled
me with greater anxieties than that of which the notification was
transmitted by your order, and received on the i4th 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 rendered every day more necessary as well as mote
dear to me by the addition of habit to inclination, and of frequent inter-
ruptions in my health to the gradual waste committed 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 despondence one who
(inheriting inferior endowments from nature and unpracticed in the
duties of civil administration) ought to be peculiarly conscious of his
own deficiencies. In this conflict of emotions all 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 sensi-
bility to this transcendent proof of the confidence of my fellow-citizens,
and have thence too little consulted my incapacity as well as disincli-
nation for the weighty and untried cares before me, my error will be
palliated by the motives which mislead me, and its consequences be
judged by my country with some share of the partiality in which they
originated.
44 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
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 supply every human defect,
that His benediction may consecrate 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 functions allotted to
his charge. In tendering this homage 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 those 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 consent of so many distinct communities from which the event
has resulted can not be compared with the means by which most govern-
ments have been established without some return of pious gratitude,
along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past
seem to presage. These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have
forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed. You will
join with me, I trust, in thinking that there are none under the influence
of which the proceedings of a new and free government can more auspi-
ciously commence.
By the article establishing the executive department it is made the
duty of the President ' ' to recommend to your consideration such meas-
ures 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 defining your powers, designates
the objects to which your attention is to be given. It will be more con-
sistent with those circumstances, and far more congenial with the feelings
which actuate me, to substitute, in place of a recommendation of par-
ticular 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 separate views nor
party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which
ought to watch over this great assemblage of communities and interests,
so, on another, that the foundation of our national policy will be laid
in the pure and immutable principles of private morality, and the pre-
eminence of free government be exemplified by all the attributes which
George Washington 45
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
advantage; between the genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous
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 preservation
of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of
government are justly considered, perhaps, as deeply, zs> finally, staked on
the experiment intrusted 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 objections which have been
urged against the system, or by the degree of inquietude which has
given birth to them. Instead of undertaking particular recommenda-
tions on this subject, in which I could be guided by no lights derived
from official opportunities, I shall again give way to my entire con-
fidence in your discernment and pursuit of the public good; for I assure
myself that whilst you carefully avoid every alteration which might
endanger the benefits of an united and effective government, or which
ought to await the future lessons of experience, a reverence for the
characteristic rights of freemen and a regard for the public harmony
will sufficiently influence your deliberations on the question how far the
former can be impregnably fortified or the latter be safely and advanta-
geously promoted.
To the foregoing observations I have one to add, which will be most
properly addressed to the House of Representatives. 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 indispensably
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 expenditures 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
46 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
of the Human Race in humble supplication that, since He has been
pleased to favor the American people with opportunities for deliberating
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 happiness, 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.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: We, the Senate of the United States, return you our sincere
thanks for your excellent speech delivered to both Houses of Congress,
congratulate you on the complete organization of the Federal Govern-
ment, and felicitate ourselves and our fellow-citizens on your elevation
to the office of President, an office highly important by the powers con-
stitutionally annexed to it and extremely honorable from the manner
in which the appointment is made. The unanimous suffrage of the
elective body in your favor is peculiarly expressive of the gratitude,
confidence, and affection of the citizens of America, and is the highest
testimonial at once of your merit and their esteem. We are sensible,
sir, that nothing but the voice of your fellow-citizens could have called
you from a retreat chosen with the fondest predilection, endeared by
habit, and consecrated to the repose of declining years. We rejoice,
and with us all America, that in obedience to the call of our common
country you have returned once more to public life. In you all parties
confide; in you all interests unite; and we have no doubt that your past
services, great as they have been, will be equaled by your future exer-
tions, and that your prudence and sagacity as a statesman will tend to
avert the dangers to which we were exposed, to give stability to the
present Government and dignity and splendor to that country which
your skill and valor as a soldier so eminently contributed to raise to
independence and empire.
When we contemplate the coincidence of circumstances and wonder-
ful combination of causes which gradually prepared the people of this
country for independence; when we contemplate the rise, progress, and
termination of the late war, which gave them a name among the nations
of the earth, we are with you unavoidably led to acknowledge and adore
the Great Arbiter of the Universe, by whom empires rise and fall. A
review of the many signal instances of divine interposition in favor of
this country claims our most pious gratitude; and permit us, sir, to
observe that among the great events which have led to the formation
and establishment of a Federal Government we esteem your acceptance
of the office of President as one of the most propitious and important.
George Washington 47
In the execution of the trust reposed in us we shall endeavor to
pursue that enlarged and liberal policy to which your speech so happily
directs. We are conscious that the prosperity of each State is insep-
arably connected with the welfare of all, and that in promoting the
latter we shall effectually advance the former. In full persuasion of
tliis truth, it shall be our invariable aim to divest ourselves of local
prejudices and attachments, and to view the great assemblage of com-
munities and interests committed to our charge with an equal eye. We
feel, sir, the force and acknowledge the justness of the observation that
the foundation of our national policy should be laid in private morality.
If individuals be not influenced by moral principles, it is in vain to
look for public virtue. It is therefore the duty of legislators to enforce,
both by precept and example, the utility as well as the necessity of a
strict adherence to the rules of distributive justice. We beg you to be
assured that the Senate will at all times cheerfully cooperate in every
measure which may strengthen the Union, conduce to the happiness or
secure and perpetuate the liberties of this great confederated Republic.
We commend you, sir, to the protection of Almighty God, earnestly
beseeching Him long to preserve a life so valuable and dear to the people
of the United States, and that your Administration may be prosperous
to the nation and glorious to yourself.
MAY 7, 1789.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: I thank you for your address, in which the most affec-
tionate sentiments are expressed in the most obliging terms. The
coincidence of circumstances which led to this auspicious crisis, the con-
fidence reposed in me by my fellow-citizens, and the assistance I may
expect from counsels which will be dictated by an enlarged and liberal
policy seem to presage a more prosperous issue to my Administration
than a diffidence of my abilities had taught me to anticipate. I now feel
myself inexpressibly happy in a belief that Heaven, which has done so
jnuch for our infant nation, will not withdraw its providential influence
before our political felicity shall have been completed, and in a conviction
that the Senate will at all times cooperate in every measure \vhich may
tend to promote the welfare of this confederated Republic. Thus sup-
ported by a firm trust in the Great Arbiter of the Universe, aided by the
collected wisdom of the Union, and imploring the divine benediction on
our joint exertions in the service of our country, I readily engage with
you in the arduous but pleasing task of attempting to make a nation
happy.
G? WASHINGTON.
MAY 18, 1789.
48 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Representatives of the people of the United States present
their congratulations on the event by which your fellow-citizens have
attested the preeminence of your merit. You have long held the first
place in their esteem. You have often received tokens of their affection.
You now possess the only proof that remained of their gratitude for your
services, of their reverence for your wisdom, and of their confidence in
your virtues. You enjoy the highest, because the truest, honor of being
the first Magistrate by the unanimous choice of the freest people on the
face of the earth.
We well know the anxieties with which you must have obeyed a sum-
mons from the repose reserved for your declining years into public scenes,
of which you had taken your leave forever. But the obedience was due
to the occasion. It is already applauded by the universal joy which wel-
comes you to your station. And we can not doubt that it will be rewarded
with all the satisfaction with which an ardent love for your fellow-citizens
must review successful efforts to promote their happiness.
This anticipation is not justified merely by the past experience of your
signal services. It is particularly suggested by the pious impressions
under which you commence your Administration and the enlightened
maxims by which you mean to conduct it. We feel with you the strong-
est obligations to adore the Invisible Hand which has led the American
people through so many difficulties, to cherish a conscious responsibility
for the destiny of republican liberty, and to seek the only sure means of
preserving and recommending the precious deposit in a system of legisla-
tion founded on the principles of an honest policy and directed by the
spirit of a diffusive patriotism.
The question arising out of the fifth article of the Constitution will
receive all the attention demanded by its importance, and will, we trust,
be decided under the influence of all the considerations to which you
allude.
In forming the pecuniary provisions for the executive department
we shall not lose sight of a wish resulting from motives which give it a
peculiar claim to our regard. Your resolution, in a moment critical to the
liberties of your country, to renounce all personal emolument, was among
the many presages of your patriotic services which have been amply ful-
filled; and your scrupulous adherence now to the law then imposed on
yourself can not fail to demonstrate the purity, whilst it increases the
luster, of a character which has so many titles to admiration.
Such are the sentiments which we have thought fit to address to you.
They flow from our own hearts, and we verily believe that among the
millions we represent there is not a virtuous citizen whose heart will
disown them.
George Washington 49
All that remains is that we join in our fervent supplications for the
blessings of Heaven on our country, and that we add our own for the
choicest of these blessings on the most beloved of her citizens.
MAY 5, 1789.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: Your very affectionate address produces emotions which
I know not how to express. I feel that my past endeavors in the service
of my country are far overpaid by its goodness, and I fear much that my
future ones may not fulfill your kind anticipation. All that I can prom-
ise is that they will be invariably directed by an honest and an ardent
zeal. Of this resource my heart assures me. For all beyond I rely on
the wisdom and patriotism of those with whom I am to cooperate and
a continuance of the blessings of Heaven on our beloved country.
G9 WASHINGTON.
MAY 8, 1789,
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
NEW YORK, May 25, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In pursuance of the order of the late Congress, treaties between the
United States and several nations of Indians have been negotiated and
signed. These treaties, with sundry papers respecting them, I now lay
before you, for your consideration and advice, by the hands of General
Knox, under whose official superintendence the business was transacted,
and who will be ready to communicate to you any information on such
points as may appear to require it.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NEW YORK, June IT,
Gentlemen of the Senate:
A convention between His Most Christian Majesty and the United
States, for the purposes of determining and fixing the functions and
prerogatives of their respective consuls, vice-consuls, agents, and com-
missaries, was signed by their respective plenipotentiaries on the agth of
July, 1784.
It appearing to the late Congress that certain alterations in that con-
vention ought to be made, they instructed their minister at the Court of
France to endeavor to obtain them.
5 Messages and Papers of 'the Presidents
It has accordingly been altered in several respects, and as amended
was signed by the plenipotentiaries of the contracting powers on the
I4th of November, 1788.
The sixteenth article provides that it shall be in force during the term
of twelve years, to be counted from the day of the exchange of ratifica-
tions, which shall be given in proper form, and exchanged on both sides
within the space of one year, or sooner if possible.
I now lay before you the original by the hands of Mr. Jay for your
consideration and advice. The papers relative to this negotiation are in
his custody, and he has my orders to communicate to you whatever
official papers and information on the subject he may possess and you
may require.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NEW YORK, June 15, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Mr. Jefferson, the present minister of the United States at the Court
of France, having applied for permission to return home for a few
months, and it appearing to me proper to comply with his request, it
becomes necessary that some person be appointed to take charge of GUI
affairs at that Court during his absence.
For this purpose I nominate William Short, esq. , and request your
advice on the propriety of appointing him.
There are in the Office for Foreign Affairs papers which will acquaint
you with his character, and which Mr. Jay has my directions to lay
before you at such time as you may thiuk proper to assign.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NEW YORE, August 6, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
My nomination of Benjamin Fishbourn for the place of naval officer
of the port of Savannah not having met with your concurrence, I now
nominate Lachlau Mclntosh for that office.
Whatever may have been the reasons which induced your dissent, I am
persuaded they were such as you deemed sufficient. Permit me to sub-
mit to your consideration whether on occasions where the propriety of
nominations appear questionable to you it would not be expedient to com-
municate that circumstance to me, and thereby avail yourselves of the
information which led me to make them, and which I would with pleasure
lay before you. Probably my reasons for nominating Mr. Fishbourn
may tend to show that such a mode of proceeding in such cases might
be useful. I will therefore detail them.
First. While Colonel Fishbourn was an officer in actual service and
chiefly under iny own eye, his conduct appeared to me irreproachable;
INAUGURATION OF WASHINGTON.
The first inauguration of a President of the United States took place in
New York on April 30, 1789. A general holiday had been proclaimed, and
amid scenes of jubilation, the inhabitants of Manhattan Island turned out in
great numbers to witness the spectacle. Shortly after noon, on the balcony
of Federal Hall in front of the Senate Chamber, the oath of office was
administered to the Father of His Country by the chancellor of the state of
New York. With John Adams, who had just previously been inaugurated
Vice-President, standing on his right, and Robert R. Livingston on his left,
Washington laid his hand reverently on the large open Bible placed on a table
before him, and at the conclusion of the oath, responded in a tone of vibrant
solemnity. "I swear, so help me God." The Chancellor then stepped forward,
and called out to the enormous crowd in the street below, "Long live George
Washington, President of the United States!" while children shouted for joy
and old men wept at the significance of the occasion.
George Washington 5 1
nor did I ever hear anything injurious to his reputation as an officer or a
gentleman. At the storm of Stony Point his behavior was represented
to have been active and brave, and he was charged by his general to
bring the account of that success to the headquarters of the Army.
Secondly. Since his residence in Georgia he has been repeatedly elected
to the assembly as a representative of the county of Chatham, in which
the port of Savannah is situated, and sometimes of the counties of Glynn
and Camden ; he has been chosen a member of the executive council
of the State and has lately been president of the same ; he has been
elected by the officers of the militia in the county of Chatham lieutenant-
colonel of the militia in that district, and on a very recent occasion,
to wit, in the month of May last, he has been appointed by the council
(on the suspension of the late collector) to an office in the port of Savan-
nah nearly similar to that for wliich I nominated him, which office he
actually holds at this tinie. To these reasons for nominating Mr. Fish-
bourn I might add that I received private letters of recommendation and
oral testimonials in his favor from some of the most respectable char-
acters in that State ; but as they were secondary considerations with
me, I do not think it necessary to communicate them to you.
It appeared, therefore, to me that Mr. Fishbouru must have enjoyed
the confidence of the militia officers in order to have been elected to a
military rank; the confidence of the freemen to have been elected to the
assembly; the confidence of the assembly to have been selected for the
council, and the confidence of the council to have been appointed col-
lector of the port of Savannah.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NEW YORK, August 7, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The business which has hitherto been under the consideration of Con-
gress has been of so much importance that I was unwilling to draw
their attention from it to any other subject ; but the disputes which
exist between some of the United States and several powerful tribes of
Indians within the limits of the Union, and the hostilities which have
in several instances been committed on the frontiers, seem to require the
immediate interposition of the General Government.
I have therefore directed the several statements and papers which
have been submitted to me on this subject by General Knox to be laid
before you for your information.
While the measures of Government ought to be calculated to protect
its citizens from all injury and violence, a due regard should be extended
to those Indian tribes whose happiness in the course of events so mate-
rially depends on the national justice and humanity of the United States.
If it should be the judgment of Congress that it would be most expe-
dient to terminate all differences in the Southern district, and to lay the
52 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
foundation for future confidence by an amicable treaty with the Indian
tribes in that quarter, I think proper to suggest the consideration of the
expediency of instituting a temporary commission for that purpose, to
consist of three persons, whose authority should expire with the occasion.
How far such a measure, unassisted by posts, would be competent to the
establishment and preservation of peace and tranquillity on the frontiers
is also a matter which merits your serious consideration.
Along with this object I am induced to suggest another, with the '
national importance and necessity of which I am deeply impressed; I
mean some uniform and effective system for the militia of the United
States. It is unnecessary to offer arguments in recommendation of a
measure on which the honor, safety, and well-being of our country so
evidently and so essentially depend; but it may not be amiss to observe
that I am particularly anxious it should receive as early attention as cir-
cumstances will admit, because it is now in our power to avail ourselves
of the military knowledge disseminated throughout the several States by
means of the many well-instructed officers and soldiers of the late Army,
a resource which is daily diminishing by death and other causes. To
suffer this peculiar advantage to pass away unimproved would be to
neglect an opportunity which will never again occur, unless, unfortu-
nately, we should again be involved in a long and arduous war.
G9 WASHINGTON
NEW YORK, August 10, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I have directed a statement of the troops in the service of the United
States to be laid before you for your information.
These troops were raised by virtue of the resolves of Congress of the
soth October, 1786, and the 3d of October, 1787, in order to protect the
frontiers from the depredations of the hostile Indians, to prevent all
intrusions on the public lands, and to facilitate the surveying and selling
of the same for the purpose of reducing the public debt.
As these important objects continue to require the aid of the troops, it
is necessary that the establishment thereof .should in all respects be con-
formed by law to the Constitution of the United States.
GO WASHINGTON.
NEW YORK, August 20, 1789.
Gentlemen of .the Senate*
In consequence of an act providing for the expenses which may attend
negotiations or treaties with the Indian tribes and the appointment of
commissioners for managing the same, I nominate Benjamin Lincoln as
one of three commissioners whom I shall propose to be employed to
negotiate a treaty with the Southern Indians. My reason for nominating
George Washington 53
him at this early moment is that it will not be possible for the public to
avail itself of his services on this occasion unless his appointment can
be forwarded to him by the mail which will leave this place to-morrow
morning.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NEW YORK, August 21, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The President of the United States will meet the Senate in the Senate
Chamber at half past 1 1 o'clock to-morrow, to advise with them on the
terms of the treaty to be negotiated with the Southern Indians. ,
G9 WASHINGTON.
SEPTEMBER 16, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The governor of the Western territory has made a statement to me
of the reciprocal hostilities of the Wabash Indians and the people inhab-
iting the frontiers bordering on the river Ohio, which I herewith lay
before Congress.
The United States in Congress assembled, by their acts of the 2ist
day of July, 1787, and of the i2th August, 1788, made a provisional
arrangement for calling forth the militia of Virginia and Pennsylvania
in the proportions therein specified.
As the circumstances which occasioned the said arrangement continue
nearly the same, I think proper to suggest to your consideration the
expediency of making some temporary provision for calling forth the
militia of the United States for the purposes stated in the Constitution,
which would embrace the cases apprehended by the governor of the
Western territory.
G9 WASHINGTON.
SEPTEMBER 17, 1789.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
It doubtless is important that all treaties and compacts formed by the
United States with other nations, whether civilized or not, should be
made with caution and executed with fidelity.
It is said to be the general understanding and practice of nations, as a
check on the mistakes and indiscretions of ministers or commissioners,
not to consider any treaty negotiated and signed by such officers as final
and conclusive until ratified by the sovereign or government from whom
they derive their powers. This practice has been adopted by the United
States respecting their treaties with European nations, and I am inclined
to think it would be advisable to observe it in the conduct of our treaties
with the Indians; for though such treaties, being 011 their part made by
54 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
their chiefs or rulers, need not be ratified by them, yet, being formed on
our part by the agency of subordinate officers, it seems to be both prudent
and reasonable that their acts should not be binding on the nation until
approved and ratified by the Government. It strikes me that this point
should be well considered and settled, so that our national proceedings
in this respect may become uniform and be directed by fixed and stable
principles.
The treaties with certain Indian nations, which were laid before you
with my message of the 25th May last, suggested two questions to my
mind, viz : First, whether those treaties were to be considered as per-
fected and consequently as obligatory without being ratified. If not,
then secondly, whether both or either, and which, of them ought to be
ratified. On these questions I request your opinion and advice.
You have, indeed, advised me "to execute and enjoin an observance
of" the treaty with the Wyandottes, etc. You, gentlemen, doubtless
intended to be clear and explicit, and yet, without further explanation, I
fear I may misunderstand your meaning, for if by my executing that
treaty you mean that I should make it (in a more particular and imme-
diate manner than it now is) the act of Government, then it follows that
I am to ratify it. If you mean by my executing it that I am to see that
it be carried into effect and operation, then I am led to conclude either
that you consider it as being perfect and obligatory in its present state,
and therefore to be executed and observed, or that you consider it as to
derive its completion and obligation from the silent approbation and rati-
fication which my proclamation may be construed to imply. Although
I am inclined to think that the latter is your intention, yet it certainly
is best that all doubts respecting it be removed.
Permit me to observe that it will be proper for me to be informed of
your sentiments relative to the treaty with the Six Nations previous to
the departure of the governor of the Western territory, and therefore
I recommend it to your early consideration.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, September 29, /7<9p.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
His Most Christian Majesty, by a letter dated the 7th of June last,
addressed to the President and members of the General Congress of the
United States of North America, announces the much lamented death of
his son, the Dauphin. The generous conduct of the French monarch
and nation toward this country renders every event that may affect his
or their prosperity interesting to us, and I shall take care to assure him
of the sensibility with which the United States participate in the affliction
which a loss so much to be regretted must have occasioned both to him
and to them.
G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 55
UNITED STATES, September 29,
Gentlemen of the Senate :
Agreeably to the act of Congress for adapting the establishment of the
troops in public service to the Constitution of the United States, I nomi-
nate the persons specified in the inclosed list to be the commissioned
officers thereof.
This nomination differs from the existing arrangement only in the
following cases, to wit : Lieutenant Erkuries Beatty, promoted to a
vacant captaincy in the infantry ; Ensign Edward Spear, promoted to
a vacant lieutenancy of artillery ; Jacob Melcher, who has been serving
as a volunteer, to be an ensign, vice Benjamin Lawrence, who was
appointed nearly three years past and has never been mustered or joined
the troops.
It is to be observed that the order in which the captains and subalterns
are named is not to affect their relative rank, which has been hitherto
but imperfectly settled owing to the perplexity of promotions in the
State quotas conformably to the late Confederation.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, September 29,
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Having been yesterday informed by a joint committee of both Housea
of Congress that they had agreed to a recess to commence this day and
to continue until the first Monday of January next, I take the earliest
opportunity of acquainting you that, considering how long and laborious
this session has been and the reasons which I presume have produced
this resolution, it does not appear to me expedient to recommend any
measures to their consideration at present, or now to call your attention,
gentlemen, to any of those matters in my department which require your
advice and consent and yet remain to be dispatched.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, September 29,
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Having been yesterday informed by a joint committee of both Houses
of Congress that they had agreed to a recess to commence this day and
to continue until the first Monday of January next, I take the earliest
opportunity of acquainting you that, considering how long and laborious
this session has been and the reasons which I presume have produced
this resolution, it does not appear to me expedient to recommend any
measures to their consideration at present.
G9 WASHINGTON.
56 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
PROCLAMATION.
A NATIONAL THANKSGIVING.
[From Sparks's Washington, Vol. XII, p. 119.]
Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence
of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and
humbly to implore His protection and favor; and
Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee,
requested me ' ' to recommend to the people of the United States a day
of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging
with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God,
especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a
form of government for their safety and happiness:"
Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day
of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the
service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author
of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all
unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His
kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their
becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favor,
able interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of tht
late war; for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty which
we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which
we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our
safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately insti-
tuted; for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and
the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and,
in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased
to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our pray-
ers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech
Him to pardon our national and other trangressions; to enable us all,
whether hi public or private stations, to perform our several and rela-
tive duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government
a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise,
just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and
obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such
as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good govern-
ments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of
true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us;
and, generally, to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal
prosperity as He alone knows to be best.
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October,
A. D. 1789. G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 57
FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, January <?, 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 accession of the important State of North
Carolina to the Constitution of the United States (of which official infor-
mation has been received), the rising credit and respectability of our
country, the general and increasing good will toward the Government
of the Union, and the concord, peace, and plenty with which we are
blessed are circumstances auspicious in an eminent degree to our national
prosperity.
In resuming your consultations for the general good you can not but
derive encouragement from the reflection that the measures of the last
session have been as satisfactory to your constituents as the novelty and
difficulty 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 defense 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 disciplined; to which
end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite ; and their safety and
interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend
to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military,
supplies.
The proper establishment of the troops which may be deemed indis-
pensable will be entitled to mature consideration. 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.
The interests of the United States require that our intercourse with
58 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
other nations should be facilitated by such provisions as will enable me
to fulfill 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 appointments, be defined by law, and a
competent fund designated for defraying the expenses incident to the
conduct of our foreign affairs.
Various considerations also render ic 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 manufactures by all
proper means will not, I trust, need recommendation; but I can not
forbear intimating to you the expediency of giving effectual encourage-
ment 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 pro-
motion of science and literature. 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 contributes in various ways by convincing those
who are intrusted with the public administration that every valuable 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 discern and provide against invasions of them; to distin-
guish between oppression and the necessary exercise of lawful authority;
between burthens proceeding from a disregard to their convenience and
those resulting from the inevitable 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 respect 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 deliberations 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 ade-
THE FIRST CABINET
Knox and Randolph obeyed orders; Jefferson and Hamilton alone coun-
seled. Judging by his later greatness, one would presume that Jefferson
dominated in the first cabinet. Not so; there was a stronger, clearer, more
energetic character there, in the person of Hamilton. The financial policy
of the country, the funding of the State debts, the machinery of the executive
departments, the suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion, in a word, all
those positive and far-reaching measures that make the first Administration
so great in our annals, were achieved by Washington and Hamilton. Jef-
ferson's constitutional scruples were uncontrollable ; in his eyes the Federal
Government had no powers but those specifically conferred by the States;
even the founding of a military academy was unconstitutional ; but Hamilton,
the man of action, chose to consider that the Federal Government had, either
by express declaration or implication, been given sufficient power to be respect-
able in the eyes of men.
These two gathered about themselves partisans, Hamilton's being called
Federalists and Jefferson's Republicans. Washington espoused neither
party, but relied chiefly on Hamilton for counsel, merely using Jefferson's
facile pen when he desired to put a handsome dress on his thoughts.
Hamilton's genius glows in the words of the Farewell Address, he having
elaborated and revised Washington's first draft of that immortal utterance.
See the articles entitled " Assumption of State Debts," " Federalist Party,"
"Whiskey Insurrection," and "Republican Party," in the Encyclopedic Index.
George Washington 59
cuiate 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 endeavors to
devise such a provision as will be truly consistent with the end I add an
equal reliance on the cheerful cooperation of the other branch of the
Legislature. It would be superfluous to specify inducements to a meas-
ure in which the character and permanent interests 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 necessary 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.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: We, the Senate of the United States, return you our thanks for
your speech delivered to both Houses of Congress. The accession of the
State of North Carolina to the Constitution of the United States gives
us much pleasure, and we offer you our congratulations on that event,
which at the same time adds strength to our Union and affords a proof
that the more the Constitution has been considered the more the good-
ness of it has appeared. The information which we have received, that
the measures of the last session have been as satisfactory to our constitu-
ents as we had reason to expect from the difficulty of the work in which
we were engaged, will afford us much consolation and encouragement in
resuming our deliberations in the present session for the public good,
and every exertion on our part shall be made to realize and secure to our
country those blessings which a gracious Providence has placed within
her reach. We are persuaded that one of the most effectual means of
preserving peace is to be prepared for war, and our attention shall be
directed to the objects of common defense and to the adoption of such
plans as shall appear the most likely to prevent our dependence on other
60 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
countries ror essential supplies. In the arrangements to be made respect-
ing the establishment of such troops as may be deemed indispensable we
shall with pleasure provide for the comfortable support of the officers
and soldiers, with a due regard to economy. We regret that the pacific
measures adopted by Government with regard to certain hostile tribes of
Indians have not been attended with the beneficial effects toward the
inhabitants of our Southern and Western frontiers which we had reason
to hope; and we shall cheerfully cooperate in providing the most effectual
means for their protection, and, if necessary, for the punishment of
aggressors. The uniformity of the currency and of weights and meas-
ures, the introduction of new and useful inventions from abroad and
the exertions of skill and genius in producing them at home, the facili-
tating the communication between the distant parts of our country by
means of the post-office and post-roads, a provision for the support of
the Department of Foreign Affairs, and a uniform rule of naturalization,
by which foreigners may be admitted to the rights of citizens, are objects
which shall receive such early attention as their respective importance
requires. Literature and science are essential to the preservation of a
free constitution; the measures of Government should therefore be cal-
culated to strengthen the confidence that is due to that important truth.
Agriculture, commerce, and manufactures, forming the basis of the
wealth and strength of our confederated Republic, must be the frequent
subject of our deliberation, and shall be advanced by all proper means in
our power. Public credit being an object of great importance, we shall
cheerfully cooperate in all proper measures for its support. Proper
attention shall be given to such papers and estimates as you may be
pleased to lay before us. Our cares and efforts shall be directed to the
welfare of our country, and we have the most perfect dependence upon
your cooperating with us on all occasions in such measures as will
insure to our fellow-citizens the blessings which they have a right to
expect from a free, efficient, and equal government.
JANUARY n, 1790.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: I thank you for your address, and for the assurances
which it contains of attention to the several matters suggested by me to
your consideration.
Relying on the continuance of your exertions for the public good, I
anticipate for our country the salutary effects of upright and prudent
counsels.
G9 WASHINGTON.
JANUARY 14, 1790.
George Washington 61
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Representatives of the people of the United States have
taken into consideration your speech to both Houses of Congress at the
opening of the present session.
We reciprocate your congratulations on the accession of the State of
North Carolina, an event which, while it is a testimony of the increasing
good will toward the Government of the Union, can not fail to give
additional dignity and strength to the American Republic, already rising
in the estimation of the world in national character and respectability.
The information that our measures of the last session have not proved
dissatisfactory to our constituents affords us much encouragement at
this juncture, when we are resuming the arduous task of legislating for
so extensive an empire.
Nothing can be more gratifying to the Representatives of a free people
than the reflection that their labors are rewarded by the approbation of
their fellow-citizens. Under this impression we shall make every exer-
tion to realize their expectations, and to secure to them those blessings
which Providence has placed within their reach. Still prompted by the
same desire to promote their interests which then actuated us, we shall
in the present session diligently and anxiously pursue those measures
which shall appear to us conducive to that end.
We concur with you in the sentiment that agriculture, commerce, and
manufactures are entitled to legislative protection, and that the promo-
tion of science and literature will contribute to the security of a free
Government; in the progress of our deliberations we shall not lose sight
of objects so worthy of our regard.
The various and weighty matters which you have judged necessary to
recommend to our attention appear to us essential to the tranquillity and
welfare of the Union, and claim our early and most serious consideration.
We shall proceed without delay to bestow on them that calm discussion
which their importance requires.
We regret that the pacific arrangements pursued with regard to certain
hostile tribes of Indians have not been attended with that success which
we had reason to expect from them. We shall not hesitate to concur in
such further measures as may best obviate any ill effects which might be
apprehended from the failure of those negotiations.
Your approbation of the vote of this House at the last session respect-
ing the provision for the public creditors is very acceptable to us. The
proper mode of carrying that resolution into effect, being a subject in
which the future character and happiness of these States are deeply
involved, will be among the first to deserve our attention.
The prosperity of the United States is the primary object of all our
deliberations, atid we cherish the reflection that every measure which we
62 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
may adopt for its advancement will not only receive your cheerful con-
currence, but will at the same time derive from your cooperation addi-
tional efficacy, in insuring to our fellow-citizens the blessings of a free,
efficient, and equal government.
JANUARY 12, 1790.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: I receive with pleasure the assurances you give me that
you will diligently and anxiously pursue such measures as shall appear
to you conducive to the interest of your constituents, and that an early
and serious consideration will be given to the various and weighty matters
recommended by me to your attention.
I have full confidence that your deliberations will continue to be directed
by an enlightened and virtaous zeal for the happiness of our country.
G9 WASHINGTON.
JANUARY 14, 1790.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, January n, i?po.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Having advised with you upon the terms of a treaty to be offered to
the Creek Nation of Indians, I think it proper ycu should be informed
of the result of that business previous to its coming before you in your
legislative capacity. I have therefore directed the Secretary for the
Department of War to lay before you my instructions to the commis-
sioners and their report in consequence thereof.
The apparently critical state of the Southern frontier will render it
expedient for me to communicate to both Houses of Congress, with other
papers, the whole of the transactions relative to the Creeks, in order that
they may be enabled to form a judgment of the measures which the case
may require.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January if, 1790.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have directed Mr. Lear, my private secretary, to lay before you a
copy of the adoption and ratification of the Constitution of the United
States by the State of North Carolina, together with a copy of a letter
from His Excellency Samuel Johnston, president of the convention of
said State, to the President of the United States.
George Washington 63
The originals of the papers which are herewith transmitted to you
will be lodged ill the office of the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 12, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives :
I lay before you a statement of the Southwestern frontiers and of the
Indian Department, which have been submitted to me by the Secretary
for the Department of War.
I conceive that an unreserved but confidential communication of all the
papers relative to the recent negotiations with some of the Southern
tribes of Indians is indispensably requisite for the information of Con-
gress. I am persuaded that they will effectually prevent either transcripts
or publications of all such circumstances as might be injurious to the
public interests.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 21, 1790.
Gentlemen of 'the Senate and House of Representatives:
The Secretary for the Department of War has submitted to me certain
principles to serve as a plan for the general arrangement of the militia
of the United States.
Conceiving the subject to be of the highest importance to the welfare
of our country and liable to be placed in various points of view, I have
directed him to lay the plan before Congress for their information, in
ordei that they may make such use thereof as they may judge proper.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, Jan uary 25, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have received from His Excellency John E. Howard, governor of the
State of Maryland, an act of the legislature of Maryland to ratify certain
articles in addition to and amendment of the Constitution of the United
States of America, proposed by Congress to the legislatures of the several
States, and have directed my secretary to lay a copy of the same before
you, together with the copy of a letter, accompanying the above act, from
his excellency the governor of Maryland to the President of the United
States.
The originals will be deposited in the office of the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
64 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, January 28, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my secretary to lay before you the copy of an act of
the legislature of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations entitled "An
act for calling a convention to take into consideration the Constitution
proposed for the United States, passed on the ijth day of September,
A. D. 1787, by the General Convention held at Philadelphia," together
with the copy of a letter, accompanying said act, from His Excellency
John Collins, governor of the State of Rhode Island and Providence
Plantations, to the President of the United States.
The originals of the foregoing act and letter will be deposited in the
office of the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February z, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have received from His Excellency Alexander Martin, governor of
the State of North Carolina, an act of the general assembly of that State
entitled ' 'An act for the purpose of ceding to the United States of America
certain western lands therein described, ' ' and have directed my secretary
to lay a copy of the same before you, together with a copy of a letter,
accompanying said act, from His Excellency Governor Martin to the
President of the United States.
The originals of the foregoing act and letter will be deposited in the
office of the Secretary of State.
GP WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February p, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate. 1
You will perceive from the papers herewith delivered, and which are
enumerated in the annexed list, that a difference subsists between Great
Britain and the United States relative to the boundary line between our
eastern and their territories. A plan for deciding this difference was
laid before the late Congress, and whether that or some other plan of a
like kind would not now be eligible is submitted to your consideration.
In my opinion, it is desirable that all questions between this and other
nations be speedily and amicably settled, and in this instance I think it
advisable to postpone any negotiations on the subject until I shall be
informed of the result of your deliberations and receive your advice as
to the propositions most proper to be offered on the part of the United
States.
As I am taking measures for learning the intentions of Great Britain
respecting the further detention of our posts, etc., I am the more solicit-
George Washington 65
DOS that the business now submitted to you may be prepared for negotia-
tion as soon as the other important affairs which engage your attention
will permit.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 15, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my secretary to lay before you the copy of a vote of
the legislature of the State of New Hampshire, to accept the articles
proposed in addition to and amendment of the Constitution of the
United States of America, except the second article. At the same time
will be delivered to you the copy of a letter from his excellency the
president of the State of New Hampshire to the President of the United
States.
The originals of the above-mentioned vote and letter will be lodged in
the office of the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 18, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
By the mail of last evening I received a letter from His Excellency
John Hancock, governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, inclos-
ing a resolve of the senate and house of representatives of that Common-
wealth and sundry documents relative to the eastern boundary of the
United States.
I have directed a copy of the letter and resolve to be laid before you.
The documents which accompanied them being but copies of some of
the papers which were delivered to you with my communication of the
9th of this mouth, I have thought it unnecessary to lay them before you
at this time. They will be deposited in the office of the Secretary of
State, together with the originals of the above-mentioned letters and
resolve.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 8, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have received from His Excellency Joshua Clayton, president of the
State of Delaware, the articles proposed by Congress to the legislatures
of the several States as amendments to the Constitution of the United
States, which articles were transmitted to him for the consideration of
the legislature of Delaware, and are now returned with the following
^solutions annexed to them, viz :
Tbe general assembly of Delaware having taken into their consideration the above
66 Messages and Papers of tJie Presidents
amendments, proposed by Congress to the respective legislatures of the aereral
States,
Resolved, That the first article be postponed;
Resolved, That the general assembly do agree to the second, third, fourth, fifth,
sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth articles, and we do hereby
assent to, ratify, and confirm the same as part of the Constitution of the United
States.
In testimony whereof we have caused the great seal of the State to be hereunto
affixed this zSth day of January, A. D. 1790, and in the fourteenth year of the inde-
pendence of the Delaware State.
Signed by order of council.
GEORGE MITCHELL, Speaker.
Signed by order of the house of assembly.
JEHU DAVIS, Speaker.
I have directed a copy of the letter which accompanied the said articles,
from His Excellency Joshua Clayton to the President of the United States,
to be laid before you.
The before-mentioned articles and the original of the letter will be
lodged in the office of the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 76, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my secretary to lay before you the copy of an act and
the form of ratification of certain articles of amendment to the Constitu-
tion of the United States by the legislature of the State of Pennsylvania,
together with the copy of a letter which accompanied the said act, from
the speaker of the house of assembly of Pennsylvania to the President
of the United States.
The originals of the above will be lodged in the office of the Secretary
of State.
G9 WASHINGTON,
UNITED STATES, April /, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my private secretary to lay before you a copy of the
adoption by the legislature of South Carolina of the articles proposed by
Congress to the legislatures of the several States as amendments to the
Constitution of the United States, together with the copy of a letter from
the governor of the State of South Carolina to the President of the United
States, which have lately come to my hands.
The originals of the foregoing will be lodged in the office of the
Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
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WASHINGTON'S THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION.
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&
SIGNATURES OF WASHINGTON AND EDMUND RANDOLPH.
George Washington 67
UNITED STATES, Aprils, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my private secretary to lay before you copies of three
acts of the legislature of the State of New York, which have been trans-
mitted to me by the governor thereof, viz:
' 'An act declaring it to be the duty of the sheriffs of the several counties
within this State to receive and safe keep such prisoners as shall be
committed under the authority of the United States."
1 'An act for vesting in the United States of America the light-house and
the lands thereunto belonging at Sandy Hook."
' 'An act ratifying certain articles in addition to and amendment of the
Constitution of the United States of America, proposed by Congress."
A copy of a letter accompanying said acts, from the governor of the
State of New York to the President of the United States, will at the
same time be laid before you, and the originals be deposited in the office
of the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 31, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate.'
Mr. de Poiery served in the American Army for several of the last
years of the late war as secretary to Major-General the Marquis de
Lafayette, and might probably at that time have obtained the commis-
sion of captain from Congress upon application to that body. At present
he is an officer in the French national guards, and solicits a brevet com-
mission from the United States of America. I am authorized to add,
that while the compliance will involve no expense on our part, it will be
particularly grateful to that friend of America, the Marquis de Lafayette.
I therefore nominate M, de Poiery to be a captain by brevet.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, June i t 1790.
Gentleman of the Senate and House of Representatives:
Having received official information of the accession of the State of
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations to the Constitution of the
United States, I take the earliest opportunity of communicating the same
to you, with my congratulations on this happy event,which unites under
the General Government all the States which were originally confeder-
ated, and have directed my secretary to lay before you a copy of the
letter from the president of the convention of the State of Rhode Island
to the President of the United States.
G WASHINGTON
4
68 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, June if, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my secretary to lay before you a copy of the ratification
of the amendments to the Constitution of the United States by the State
of North Carolina, together with an extract from a letter, accompanying
said ratification, from the governor of the State of North Carolina to the
President of the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, June 16, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
The ratification of the Constitution of the United States of America by
the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was received by me
last night, together with a letter to the President of the United States
from the president of the convention. I have directed my secretary to lay
before you a copy of each.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, June 30, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
An act of the legislature of the State of Rhode Island and Providence
Plantations, for ratifying certain articles as amendments to the Consti-
tution of the United States, was yesterday put into my hands, and I have
directed my secretary to lay a copy of the same before you.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, August /, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate.'
In consequence of the general principles agreed to by the Senate in
August, 1789, the adjustment of the terms of a treaty is far advanced
between the United States and the chiefs of the Creek Indians, now in
this city, in behalf of themselves and the whole Creek Nation.
In preparing the articles of this treaty the present arrangements of the
trade with the Creeks have caused much embarrassment. It seems to
be well ascertained that the said trade is almost exclusively in the hands
of a company of British merchants, who by agreement make their impor-
tations of goods from England into the Spanish ports.
As the trade of the Indians is a main mean of their political manage-
ment, it is therefore obvious that the United States can not possess any
security for the performance of treaties with the Creeks while their trade
is liable to be interrupted or withheld at the caprice of two foreign
powers.
George Washington 69
Hence it becomes an object of real importance to form new channels
tor the commerce of the Creeks through the United States. But this
operation will require time, as the present arrangements can not be
suddenly broken without the greatest violation of faith and morals.
It therefore appears to be important to form a secret article of a treaty
similar to the one which accompanies this message.
If the Senate should require any further explanation, the Secretary o?
War will attend them for that purpose.
G9 WASHINGTON.
The President of the United States states the following question for
the consideration and advice of the Senate: If it should be found essen-
tial to a treaty for the firm establishment of peace with the Creek Nation
of Indians that an article to the following effect should be inserted
therein, will such an article be proper? viz :
SECRET ARTICLE;.
The commerce necessary for the Creek Nation shall be carried on
through the ports and by the citizens of the United States if substantial
and effectual arrangements shall be made for that purpose by the United
States on or before the ist day of August, 1792. In the meantime the
said commerce may be carried on through its present channels and
according to its present regulations.
And whereas the trade of the said Creek Nation is now carried on
wholly or principally through the territories of Spain, and obstructions
thereto may happen by war or prohibitions of the Spanish Government,
it is therefore agreed between the said parties that in the event of any
such obstructions happening it shall be lawful for such persons as
shall designate to introduce into and transport through
the territories of the United States to the country of the said Creek
Nation any quantity of goods, wares, and merchandise not exceeding in
value in any one year $60,000, and that free from any duties or imposi-
tions whatsoever, but subject to such regulations for guarding against
abuse as the United States shall judge necessary, which privilege shall
continue as long as such obstruction shall continue.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, August 6, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Considering the circumstances which prevented the late commissioners
from concluding a peace with the Creek Nation of Indians, it appeared
to me most prudent that all subsequent measures for disposing them tc
a treaty should in the first instance be informal.
I informed you on the 4th instant that the adjustment of the terms of
a treaty with their chiefs, now here, was far advanced. Such further
7c Messages and Papers of the Presidents
progress has since been made that I think measures may at present be
taken for conducting and concluding that business in form. It there-
fore becomes necessary that a proper person be appointed and authorized
to treat with these chiefs and to conclude a treaty with them. For this
purpose I nominate to you Henry Kiiox.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, August 6, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have directed my secretary to lay before you a copy of an exemplified
copy of a law to ratify on the part of the State of New Jersey certain
amendments to the Constitution of the United States, together with a
copy of a letter, which accompanied said ratification, from Hon. Elisha
L,awrence, esq., vice-president of the State of New Jersey, to the Presi-
dent of the United States,
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, August 7, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you a treaty between the United States and the chiefs of
the Creek Nation, now in this city, in behalf of themselves and the whole
Creek Nation, subject to the ratification of the President of the United
States with the advice and consent of the Senate.
While I flatter myself that this treaty will be productive of present
peace and prosperity to our Southern frontier, it is to be expected that it
will also in its consequences be the means of firmly attaching the Creeks
and the neighboring tribes to the interests of the United States.
At the same time it is to be hoped that it will afford solid grounds of
satisfaction to the State of Georgia, as it contains a regular, full, and
definitive relinquishment on the part of the Creek Nation of the Oconee
land in the utmost extent in which it has been claimed by that State,
and thus extinguishes the principal cause of those hostilities from which
it has more than once experienced such severe calamities.
But although the most valuable of the disputed land is included, yet
there is a certain claim of Georgia, arising out of the treaty made by that
State at Galphinstou in November, 1785, of land to the eastward of a
new temporary line from the forks of the Oconee and Oakmulgee in a
southwest direction to the St. Marys River, which tract of land the
Creeks in this city absolutely refuse to yield.
This land is reported to be generally barren, sunken, and unfit for
cultivation, except in some instances on the margin of the rivers, on
which by improvement rice might be cultivated, its chief value depend-
ing on the timber fit for the building of ships, with which it is repre-
sented as abounding.
George Washington 71
While it is thus circumstanced on the one hand, it is stated by the
Creeks on the other to be of the highest importance to them as consti-
tuting some of their most valuable winter hunting ground.
I have directed the commissioner to whom the charge of adjusting this
treaty has been committed to lay before you such papers and documents
and to communicate to you such information relatively to it as you may
require.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, August H, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Although the treaty with the Creeks may be regarded as the main
foundation of the future peace and prosperity of the Southwestern
frontier of the United States, yet in order fully to effect so desirable an
object the treaties which have been entered into with the other tribes in
that quartet must be faithfully performed on our parts.
During the last year I laid before the Senate a particular statement of
the case of the Cherokees. By a reference to that paper it will appear
that the United States formed a treaty with the Cherokees in November,
1785 ; that the said Cherokees thereby placed themselves under the pro-
tection of the United States and had a boundary assigned them ; that
the white people settled on the frontiers had openly violated the said
boundary by intruding on the Indian lands ; that the United States in
Congress assembled did, on the ist day of September, 1788, issue their
proclamation forbidding all such unwarrantable intrusions, and enjoined
all those who had settled upon the hunting grounds of the Cherokees
to depart with their families and effects without loss of time, as they
would answer their disobedience to the injunctions and prohibitions
expressed at their peril.
But information has been received that notwithstanding the said treaty
and proclamation upward of 500 families have settled on the Cherokee
lands exclusively of those settled between the fork of French Broad and
Holstein rivers, mentioned in the said treaty.
As the obstructions to a proper conduct on this matter have been
removed since it was mentioned to the Senate on the 22d of August,
1789, by the accession of North Carolina to the present Union and the
cessions of the land in question, I shall conceive myself bound to exert the
powers intrusted to me by the Constitution in order to carry into faithful
execution the treaty of Hopewell, unless it shall be thought proper to
attempt to arrange a new boundary with the Cherokees, embracing the
settlements, and compensating the Cherokees for the cessions they shall
make on the occasion. On this point, therefore, I state the following
questions and request the advice of the Senate thereon:
First. Is it the judgment of the Senate that overtures shall be made
to the Cherokees to arrange a new boundary so as to embrace the
72 Messages and Paper's of the Presidents
settlements made by the white people since the treaty of Hopewell, in
November, 1785?
Second. If so, shall compensation to the amount of dollars
annually, or of dollars in gross, be made to the Cherokees for
the land they shall relinquish, holding the occupiers of the land account-
able to the United States for its value?
Third. Shall the United States stipulate solemnly to guarantee the
new boundary which may be arranged?
G9 WASHINGTON
PROCLAMATIONS.
[From the Gazette of the United States (New York), September 15, 1790, in the Library of Congress.]
i
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas a treaty of peace and friendship between the United States
and the Creek Nation was made and concluded on the 7th day of the
present month of August; and
Whereas I have, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, in
due form ratified the said treaty:
Now, therefore, to the end that the same may be observed and per-
formed with good faith on the part of the United States, I have ordered
the said treaty to be herewith published; and I do hereby enjoin and
require all officers of the United States, civil and military, and all other
citizens and inhabitants thereof, faithfully to observe and fulfill the
same.
Given under my hand and the seal of the United States, in the city of
New York, the i4th day of August, A. D. 1790, and in the
[SEAL.] fifteenth year of the Sovereignty and Independence of the
United States. O9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
TH; JEFFERSON.
[From Miscellaneous letters, Department of State, vol. 3.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas it hath at this time become peculiarly necessary to warn the
citizens of the United States against a violation of the treaties made at
Hopewell, on the Keowee, on the 28th day of November, 1785, and on
the 3d and loth days of January, 1786, between the United States and
the Cherokee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw nations of Indians, and to enforce
George Washington 73
an act entitled "An act to regulate trade and intercourse with the Indian
tribes," copies of which treaties and act are hereunto annexed, I have
therefore thought fit to require, and I do by these presents require, all
officers of the United States, as well civil as military, and all other citi-
zens and inhabitants thereof, to govern themselves according to the trea-
ties and act aforesaid, as they will answer the contrary at their peril.
Given under my hand and the seal of the United States, in the city of
New York, the 26th day of August, A. D. 1790, and in the
[SEAL.] fifteenth year of the Sovereignty and Independence of the
United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
TH: JEFFERSON.
SECOND ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, December 8, 1790.
FelloW'Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives:
In meeting you again I feel much satisfaction in being able to repeat
my congratulations on the favorable prospects which continue to distin-
guish our public affairs. The abundant fruits of another year have
blessed our country with plenty and with the means of a flourishing
commerce. The progress of public credit is witnessed by a considerable
rise of American stock abroad as well as at home, and the revenues
allotted for this and other national purposes have been productive beyond
the calculations by which they were regulated. This latter circumstance
is the more pleasing, as it is not only a proof of the fertility of our
resources, but as it assures us of a further increase of the national
respectability and credit, and, let me add, as it bears an honorable testi-
mony to the patriotism and integrity of the mercantile and marine part
of our citizens. The punctuality of the- former in discharging their
engagements has been exemplary.
In conformity to the powers vested in me by acts of the last session,
a loan of 3,000,000 florins, toward which some provisional measures
had previously taken place, has been completed in Holland. As well
the celerity with which it has been filled as the nature of the terms
(considering the more than ordinary demand for borrowing created by
the situation of Europe) give a reasonable hope that the further execu-
tion of those powers may proceed with advantage and success. The
Secretary of the Treasury has my directions to communicate such further
particulars as may be requisite for more precise information.
Since your last sessions I have received communications by which it
appears that the district of Kentucky, at present a part of Virginia, has
74 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
concurred in certain propositions contained in a law of that State, in
consequence of which the district is to become a distinct member of the
Union, in case the requisite sanction of Congress be added. For this
sanction application is now made. I shall cause the papers on this very
important transaction to be laid before you. The liberality and harmony
with which it has been conducted will be found to do great honor to both
the parties, and the sentiments of warm attachment to the Union and its
present Government expressed by our fellow-citizens of Kentucky can
not fail to add an affectionate concern for their particular welfare to the
great national impressions under which you will decide on the case
submitted to you.
It has been heretofore known to Congress that frequent incursions have
been made on our frontier settlements by certain banditti of Indians from
the northwest side of the Ohio. These, with some of the tribes dwelling
on and near the Wabash, have of late been particularly active in their
depredations, and being emboldened by the impunity of their crimes and
aided by such parts of the neighboring tribes as could be seduced to join
in their hostilities or afford them a retreat for their prisoners and plunder,
they have, instead of listening to the humane invitations and overtures
made on the part of the United States, renewed their violences with
fresh alacrity and greater effect. The lives of a number of valuable
citizens have thus been sacrificed, and some of them under circumstances
peculiarly shocking, whilst others have been carried into a deplorable
captivity.
These aggravated provocations rendered it essential to the safety of the
Western settlements that the aggressors should be made sensible that the
Government of the Union is not less capable of punishing their crimes
than it is disposed to respect their rights and reward their attachments.
As this object could not be effected by defensive measures, it became
necessary to put in force the act which empowers the President to call
out the militia for the protection of the frontiers, and I have accord-
ingly authorized an expedition in which the regular troops in that quar-
ter are combined with such drafts of militia as were deemed sufficient.
The event of the measure is yet unknown to me. The Secretary of War
is directed to lay before you a statement of the information on which it
is founded, as well as an estimate of the expense with which it will be
attended.
The disturbed situation of Europe, and particularly the critical posture
of the great maritime powers, whilst it ought to make us the more
that.kful for the general peace and security enjoyed by the United States,
reminds us at the same time of the circumspection with which it becomes
us to preserve these blessings. It requires also that we should not over-
look the tendency of a war, and even of preparations for a war, among
the nations most concerned in active commerce with this country to
abridge the means, and thereby at least enhance the price, of transport-
George Washington 75
ing its valuable productions to their proper markets I recommend it to
your serious reflections how far and in what mode it may be expedient
to guard against embarrassments from these contingencies by such
encouragements to our own navigation as will render our commerce and
agriculture less dependent on. foreign bottoms, which may fail us in the
very moments most interesting to both of these great objects. Our fish-
eries and the transportation of our own produce offer us abundant means
for guarding ourselves against this evil.
Your attention seems to be not less due to that particular branch of
our trade which belongs to the Mediterranean. So many circumstances
unite in rendering the present state of it distressful to us that you will
not think any deliberations misemployed which may lead to its relief
and protection.
The laws you have already passed for the establishment of a judiciary
system have opened the doors of justice to all descriptions of persons.
You will consider in your wisdom whether improvements in that system
may yet be made, and particularly whether an uniform process of execu-
tion on sentences issuing from the Federal courts be not desirable through
all the States.
The patronage of our commerce, of our merchants and seamen, has
called for the appointment of consuls in foreign countries. It seems
expedient to regulate by law the exercise of that jurisdiction and those
functions which are permitted them, either by express convention or by
a friendly indulgence, in the places of their residence. The consular
convention, too, with His Most Christian Majesty has stipulated in
certain cases the aid of the national authority to his consuls established
here. Some legislative provision is requisite to carry these stipulations
into full effect.
The establishment of the militia, of a mint, of standards of weights and
measures, of the post-office and post-roads are subjects which I presume
you will resume of course, and which are abundantly urged by then* own
importance.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The sufficiency of the revenues you have established for the objects to
which they are appropriated leaves no doubt that the residuary provisions
will be commensurate to the other objects for which the public faith
stands now pledged. Allow me, moreover, to hope that it will be a
favorite policy with you, not merely to secure a payment of the interest
of the debt funded, but as far and as fast as the growing resources of the
country will permit to exonerate it of the principal itself. The appro-
priation you have made of the Western land explains your dispositions
on this subject, and I am persuaded that the sooner that valuable fund can
be made to contribute, along with other means, to the actual reduction
of the public debt the more salutary will the measure be to every public
interest, as well as the more satisfactory to our constituents.
76 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
In pursuing the various and weighty business of the present session
I indulge the fullest persuasion that your consultations will be equally
marked with wisdom and animated by the love of your country. In
whatever belongs to my duty you shall have all the cooperation which
an undiminished zeal for its welfare can inspire. It will be happy for
us both, and our best reward, if, by a successful administration of our
respective trusts, we can make the established Government more and
more instrumental in promoting the good of our fellow-citizens, and more
and more the object of their attachment and confidence.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
We receive, sir, with particular satisfaction the communications con-
tained in your speech, which confirm to us the progressive state of the
public credit and afford at the same time a new proof of the solidity of
the foundation on which it rests; and we cheerfully join in the acknowl-
edgment which is due to the probity and patriotism of the mercantile
and marine part of our fellow-citizens, whose enlightened attachment to
the principles of good government is not less conspicuous in this than it
has been in other important respects.
In confidence that every constitutional preliminary has been observed,
we assure you of our disposition to concur in giving the requisite sanc-
tion to the admission of Kentucky as a distinct member of the Union;
in doing which we shall anticipate the happy effects to be expected from
the sentiments of attachment toward the Union and its present Govern-
ment which have been expressed by the patriotic inhabitants of that
district.
While we regret that the continuance and increase of the hostilities
and depredations which have distressed our Northwestern frontiers should
have rendered offensive measures necessary, we feel an entire confidence
in the sufficiency of the motives which have produced them and in the
wisdom of the dispositions which have been concerted in pursuance of
the powers vested in you, and whatever may have been the event, we
shall cheerfully concur in the provisions which the expedition that has
been undertaken may require on the part of the Legislature, and in any
other which the future peace and safety of our frontier settlements may
call for.
The critical posture of the European powers will engage a due portion
of our attention, and we shall be ready to adopt any measures which a
prudent circumspection may suggest for the preservation of the blessings
George Washington 77
of peace. The navigation and the fisheries of the United States are
objects too interesting not to inspire a disposition to promote them by
all the means which shall appear to us consistent with their natural
progress and permanent prosperity.
Impressed with the importance of a free intercourse with the Mediter-
ranean, we shall not think any deliberations misemployed which may
conduce to the adoption of proper measures for removing the impedi-
ments that obstruct it.
The improvement of the judiciary system and the other important
objects to which you have pointed our attention will not fail to engage
the consideration they respectively merit.
In the course of our deliberations upon every subject we shall rely
upon that cooperation which an undiminished zeal and incessant anxiety
for the public welfare on your part so thoroughly insure; and as it is
our anxious desire so it shall be our constant endeavor to render the
established Government more and more instrumental in promoting the
good of our fellow-citizens, and more and more the object of their attach-
ment and confidence.
DECEMBER 10, 1790.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: These assurances of favorable attention to the subjects
I have recommended and of entire confidence in my views make the
impression on me which I ought to feel. I thank you for them both,
and shall continue to rely much for the success of all our measures for
the public good on the aid they will receive from the wisdom and integ-
rity of your councils.
GP WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 13, 1790.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Representatives of the people of the United States have taken
into consideration your address to the two Houses at the opening of the
present session of Congress.
We share in the satisfaction inspired by the prospects which continue
to be so auspicious to our public affairs. The blessings resulting from
the smiles of Heaven on our agriculture, the rise of public credit, with
the further advantages promised by it, and the fertility of resources which
are found so little burdensome to the community, fully authorize our
mutual congratulations on the present occasion. Nor can we learn with-
out an additional gratification that the energy of the laws for providing
adequate revenues have been so honorably seconded by those classes of
citizens whose patriotism and probity were more immediately concerned.
78 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
The success of the loan opened in Holland, under the disadvantages of
the present moment, is the more important, as it not only denotes the
confidence already placed in the United States, but as the effect of a
judicious application of that aid will still further illustrate the solidity of
the foundation on which the public credit rests.
The preparatory steps taken by the State of Virginia, in concert with
the district of Kentucky, toward the erection of the latter into a distinct
member of the Union exhibit a liberality mutually honorable to the
parties. We shall bestow on this important subject the favorable consid-
eration which it merits, and, with the national policy which ought to
govern our decision, shall not fail to mingle the affectionate sentiments
which are awakened by those expressed on behalf of our fellow-citizens
of Kentucky.
Whilst we regret the necessity which has produced offensive hostili-
ties against some of the Indian tribes northwest of the Ohio, we sympa-
thize too much with our Western brethren not to behold with approbation
the watchfulness and vigor which have been exerted by the executive
authority for their protection, and which we trust will make the aggres-
sors sensible that it is their interest to merit by a peaceable behavior the
friendship and humanity which the United States are always ready to
extend to them.
The encouragement of our own navigation has at all times appeared to
us highly important. The point of view under which you have recom-
mended it to us is strongly enforced by the actual state of things in
Europe. It will be incumbent on us to consider in what mode our com-
merce and agriculture can be best relieved from an injurious dependence
on the navigation of other nations, which the frequency of their wars
renders a too precarious resource for conveying the productions of our
country to market.
The present state of our trade to the Mediterranean seems not less
to demand, and will accordingly receive, the attention which you have
recommended.
Having already concurred in establishing a judiciary system which
opens the doors of justice to all, without distinction of persons, it will be
our disposition to incorporate every improvement which experience may
suggest. And we shall consider in particular how far the uniformity
which in other cases is found convenient in the administration of the
General Government through all the States may be introduced into the
forms and rules of executing sentences issuing from the Federal courts.
The proper regulation of the jurisdiction and functions which may be
exercised by consuls of the United States in foreign countries, with the
provisions stipulated to those of His Most Christian Majesty established
here, are subjects of too much consequence to the public interest and
honor not to partake of our deliberations.
We shall renew our attention to the establishment of the militia and
George Washington 79
the other subjects unfinished at the last session, and shall proceed in
them with all the dispatch which the magnitude of all and the difficulty
of some of them will allow.
Nothing has given us more satisfaction than to find that the revenues
heretofore established have proved adequate to the purposes to which
they were allotted. I:i extending the provision to the residuary objects
it will be equally our care to secure sufficiency and punctuality in the
payments due from the Treasury of the United States. We shall also
never lose sight of the policy of diminishing the public debt as fast as
the increase of the public resources will permit, and are particularly
sensible of the many considerations which press a resort to the auxiliary
resource furnished by the public lands.
In pursuing every branch of the weighty business of the present ses-
sion it will be our constant study to direct our deliberations to the public
welfare. Whatever our success may be, we can at least answer for the
fervent love of our country, which ought to animate our endeavors. In
your cooperation we are sure of a resource which fortifies our hopes that
the fruits of the established Government will justify the confidence which
has been placed in it, and recommend it more and more to the affection
and attachment of our fellow-citizens.
DECEMBER n, 1790.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: The sentiments expressed in your address are entitled
to my particular acknowledgment.
Having no object but the good of our country, this testimony of appro-
bation and confidence from its immediate Representatives must be among
my best rewards, as the support of your enlightened patriotism has been
among my greatest encouragements. Being persuaded that you will
continue to be actuated by the same auspicious principle, I look forward
to the happiest consequences from your deliberations during the present
session.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 13, 1790.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, December 23, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
It appearing by the report of the secretary of the government north-
west of the Ohio that there are certain cases respecting grants of land
within that territory which require the interference of the Legislature of
8o Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the United States, I have directed a copy of said report and the papers
therein referred to to be laid before you, together with a copy of the
report of the Secretary of State upon the same subject.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 30, 1790.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I lay before you a report of the Secretary of State on the subject of
the citizens of the United States in captivity at Algiers, that you may
provide on their behalf what to you shall seem most expedient.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 3,
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of an exemplified copy of an act passed by the
legislature of the State of New Jersey for vesting in the United States
of America the jurisdiction of a lot of land at Sandy Hook, in the county
of Monmouth, and a copy of a letter which accompanied said act, from
the governor of the State of New Jersey to the President of the United
States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 77,
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I lay before you an official statement of the appropriation of $10,000,
granted to defray the contingent expenses of Government by an act of
the 26th March, 1790.
A copy of two resolutions of the legislature of Virginia, and a petition
of sundry officers and assignees of officers and soldiers of the Virginia
line on continental establishment, on the subject of bounty lands allotted
to them on the northwest side of the Ohio; and
A copy of an act of the legislature of Maryland to empower the
wardens of the port of Baltimore to levy and collect the duty therein
mentioned.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 17, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you a letter from His Most Christian Majesty, addressed
to the President and Members of Congress of the United States of
America.
G? WASHINGTON.
George Washington 81
To our very dear friends and allies, the President and Members of the General Con-
gress of the United States of North America.
VERY DEAR GREAT FRIENDS AND ALLIES : We have received the letter by which
you inform us of the new mark of confidence that you have shown to Mr. Jefferson,
and which puts a period to his appointment of minister plenipotentiary at our
Court.
The manner in which he conducted during his residence with us has merited our
esteem and entire approbation, and it is with pleasure that we now give him this
testimony of it.
It is with the most sincere pleasure that we embrace this opportunity of renewing
these assurances of regard and friendship which we feel for the United States in
general and for each of them in particular. Under their influence we pray God that
He will keep you, very dear friends and allies, under His holy and beneficent
protection.
Done at Paris this nth September, 1790.
Your good friend and ally,
LOUIS.
MONTMORIN. [SEAL.]
The UNITED STATES OP NORTH AMERICA.
UNITED STATES, January 19, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you a representation of the charg d'affaires of France,
made by order of his Court, on the acts of Congress of the 2oth of July,
1789 and 1790, imposing an extra tonnage on foreign vessels, not except-
ing those of that country, together with the report of the Secretary of
State thereon, and I recommend the same to your consideration, that I
may be enabled to give to it such answer as may best comport with the
justice and the interests of the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DOCUMENTS.
JANUARY 18, 1791.
The Secretary of State having received from the charge 1 d'affaires of France a
note on the tonnage payable by French vessels in the ports of the United States, has
had the same under his consideration, and thereupon makes the following report to
the President of the United States :
The chargd d'affaires of France, by a note of the i3th of December, represents,
by order of his Court, that they consider so much of the acts of Congress of July
20, 1789 and 1790, as imposes an extraordinary tonnage on foreign vessels without
excepting those of France, to be in contravention of the fifth article of the treaty of
amity and commerce between the two nations ; that this would have authorized on
their part a proportional modification in the favors granted to the American naviga-
tion, but that his Sovereign had thought it more conformable to his principles of
friendship and attachment to the United States to order him to make representations
thereon, and to ask in favor of French vessels a modification of the acts which
impose an extraordinary tonnage on foreign vessels.
The Secretary of State, in giving in this paper to the President of the United
States, thinks it his duty to accompany it with the following observations :
The third and fourth articles of the treaty of amity and commerce between France
and the United States subject the vessels of each nation to pay in the ports of
the other only such duties as are paid by the most favored nation, and give them
82 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
reciprocally all the privileges and exemptions in navigation and commerce which
are given by either to the most favored nations. Had the contracting parties
stopped here, they would have been free to raise or lower their tonnage as they
should find it expedient, only taking care to keep the other on the footing of the
most favored nation. The question, then, is -whether the fifth article cited in the note
is anything more than an application of the principle comprised in the third and
fourth to a particular object, or whether it is an additional stipulation of something
not so comprised.
I. That it is merely an application of a principle comprised in the preceding
articles is declared by the express words of the article, to wit: "Dans V exemption
ci-dessus est nommement comprise etc., "in the above exemption is particularly
comprised, the imposition of 100 sols per ton established in France on foreign vessels."
Here, then, is at once an express declaration that the exemption from the duty of
loo sols is comprised in the third and fourth articles; that is to say, it was one
of the exemptions enjoyed by the most favored nations, and as such extended to us
by those articles. If the exemption spoken of in this first member of the fifth
article was comprised in the third and fourth articles, as is expressly declared, then
the reservation by France out of that exemption (which makes the second member
of the same article) was also comprised; that is to say, if the whole was comprised,
the part was comprised. And if this reservation of France in the second member
was comprised in the third and fourth articles, then the counter reservation by the
United States (which constitutes the third and last member of the same article) was
also comprised, because it is but a corresponding portion of a similar whole on our
part, which had been comprised by the same terms with theirs.
In short, the whole article relates to a particular duty of 100 sols, laid by some
antecedent law of France on the vessels of foreign nations, relinquished as to the most
favored, and consequently to us. It is not a new and additional stipulation, then,
but a declared application of the stipulations comprised in the preceding articles to
a particular case by way of greater caution.
The doctrine laid down generally in the third and fourth articles, and exemplified
specially in the fifth, amounts to this: "The vessels of the most favored nations
coming from foreign ports are exempted from the duty of 100 sols; therefore you
are exempted from it by the third and fourth articles. The vessels of the most
favored nations coming coastwise pay that duty; therefore you are to pay it by the
third and fourth articles. We shall not think it unfriendly in you to lay a like duty
on coasters, because it will be no more than we have done ourselves. You are free
also to lay that or any other duty on vessels coming from foreign ports, provided
they apply to all other nations, even the most favored. We are free to do the same
under the same restriction. Our exempting you from a duty which the most favored
nations do not pay does not exempt you from one which they do pay. ' '
In this view, it is evident that the fifth article neither enlarges nor abridges the
stipulations of the third and fourth. The effect of the treaty would have been
precisely the same had it been omitted altogether ; consequently it may be truly
said that the reservation by the United States in this article is completely useless.
And it may be added with equal truth that the equivalent reservation by France
is completely useless, as well as her previous abandonment of the same duty, and, in
short, the whole article. Each party, then, remains fre to raise or lower its tonnage,
provided the change operates on all nations, even the most favored.
Without undertaking to affirm, we may obviously Conjecture that this article has
been inserted on the part of the United States from an overcaution to guard, nom-
mement, by name, against a particular aggrievance, which they thought they could
never be too well secured against ; and that has happened which generally hap-
pens doubts have been produced by the too great number of words used to pre-
vent doubt
George Washington 83
II. The Court of France, however, understands this article as intended to intro-
duce something to which the preceding articles had not reached, and not merely as
an application of them to a particular case. Their opinion seems to be founded on
the general rule in the construction of instruments, to leave no words merely useless
for wnich any rational meaning can be found. They say that the reservation by the
United States of a right to lay a duty equivalent to that of the 100 :;ols, reserved by
France, would have been completely useless if they were left free by the preceding
articles to lay a tonnage to any extent whatever ; consequently, that the reservation
cf a part proves a relinquishment of the residue.
If some meaning, and such a one, is to be given to the last member of the article,
some meaning, and a similar one, must be given to the corresponding member. If
the reservation by the United States of a right to lay an equivalent duty implies a
relinquishment of their right to lay any other, the reservation by France of a ngnt xo
continue the specified duty to which it is an equivalent must imply a relinquishment
of the right on her part to lay or continue any other. Equivalent reservations by
both must imply equivalent restrictions on both. The exact reciprocity stipulated
in the preceding articles, and which pervades every part of the treaty, insures a
counter right to each party for every right ceded to the other.
Let it be further considered that the duty called tonnage in the United States is
in lieu of the duties for anchorage, for the support of buoys, beacons, and light-houses,
to guide Hie mariner into harbor and along the coast, which are provided and
supported at the expense of the United States, and for fees to measurers, weighers,
gangers, etc. , who are paid by the United States, for which articles, among many
others (light-house money excepted), duties are paid by us in the ports of France
under their specific names. That Government has hitherto thought these duties
consistent with the treaty, and consequently the same duties under a general instead
of specific names, with us, must be equally consistent with it. It is not the name,
but the thing, which is essential. If we have renounced the right to lay any port
duties, they must be understood to have equally renounced that of either laying new
or continuing the old. If we ought to refund the port duties received from their
vessels since the date of the act of Congress, they should refund the port duties they
have received from our vessels since the date of the treaty, for nothing short of this
is the reciprocity of the treaty.
If this construction be adopted, then each party has forever renounced the right
of laying any duties on the vessels of the other coming from any foreign port, or
more than 100 sols on those coming coastwise. Could this relinquishment be confined
to the two contracting parties alone, the United States would be the gainers, for it
is well known that a much greater number of American than of French vessels are
employed in the commerce between the two countries; but the exemption once
conceded by the one nation to the other becomes immediately the property of all
c there who are on the footing of the most favored nations. It is true that those
others would be obliged to yield the same compensation, that is to say, to receive
our vessels duty free. Whether we should gain or lose in the exchange of the
measure with them is not easy to say.
Another consequence of this construction will be that the vessels of the most
favored nations paying no duties will be on a better footing than those of natives
which pay a moderate duty; consequently either the duty on these also must be given
up or they will be supplanted by foreign vessels in our own ports.
The resource, then, of duty on vessels for the purposes either of revenue or regula-
tion will be forever lost to both. It is hardly conceivable that either party looking
forward to all these consequences would see their interest in them.
III. But if France persists in claiming this exemption, what is to be done? The
claim, indeed, is couched in mild and friendly terms; but the idea leaks out that a
refusal would authorize them to modify proportionally the favors granted by the
84 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
same article to our navigation. Perhaps they may do what we should feel much
more severely, they may turn their eyes to the favors granted us by their arrets of
December 29, 1787, and December 7, 1788, which hang on their will alone, unconnected
with the treaty. Those arrets, among other advantages, admit our whale oils to the
exclusion of that of all other foreigners. And this monopoly procures a vent for
seven-twelfths of the produce of that fishery, which experience has taught us could
find no other market. Near two-thirds of the produce of our cod fisheries, too, have
lately found a free vent in the colonies of France. This, indeed, has been an irreg-
ularity growing out of the anarchy reigning in those colonies. Yet the demands of
the colonists, even of the Government party among them ( if an auxiliary dis-
position can be excited by some marks of friendship and distinction on our part), may
perhaps produce a constitutional concession to them to procure their provisions at
the cheapest market ; that is to say, at ours.
Considering the value of the interests we have at stake and considering the small-
ness of difference between foreign and native tonnage on French vessels alone, it
might perhaps be thought advisable to make the sacrifice asked, and especially
if it can be so done as to give no title to other the most favored nations to claim it.
If the act should put French vessels on the footing of those of natives, and declare
it to be in consideration of the favors granted us by the arrets of December 29,
1787, and December 7, 1788 (and perhaps this would satisfy them), no nation could
then demand the same favor without offering an equivalent compensation. It might
strengthen, too, the tenure by which those arrets are held, which must be precarious
so long as they are gratuitous.
It is desirable in many instances to exchange mutual advantages by legislative acts
rather than by treaty, because the former, though understood to be in consideration
of each other, and therefore greatly respected, yet when they become too incon-
venient can be dropped at the will of either party; whereas stipulations by treaty
are forever irrevocable but by joint consent, let a change of circumstances render
them ever so burdensome.
On the whole, if it be the opinion that the first construction is to be insisted on as
ours, in opposition to the second urged by the Court of France, and that no relaxation
is to be admitted, an answer shall be given to that Court defending that construction,
and explaining in as friendly terms as possible the difficulties opposed to the exemp-
tion they claim.
2. If it be the opinion that it is advantageous for us to close with France in her
interpretation of a reciprocal and perpetual exemption from tonnage, a repeal of so
much of the tonnage law will be the answer.
3. If it be thought better to waive rigorous and nice discussions of right and to
make the modification an act of friendship and of compensation for favors received,
the passage of such a bill will then be the answer.
TH: JEFFERSON.
[Translation.]
L. G. Otto to the Secretary of State.
PHILADELPHIA, December /?, 7790.
SIR: During the long stay you made in France you had opportunities of being
satisfied of the favorable dispositions of His Majesty to render permanent the ties
that united the two nations and to give stability to the treaties of alliance and of
commerce which form the basis of this union. These treaties were so well main-
tained by the Congress formed under the ancient Confederation that they thought it
their duty to interpose their authority whenever any laws made by individual States
appeared to infringe their stipulations, and particulary in 1785, when the States of
New Hampshire and of Massachusetts had imposed an extraordinary tonnage on
George Washington 85
foreign vessels without exempting those of the French nation. The reflections that
I have the honor to address to you in the subjoined note being founded on the same
principles, I flatter myself that they will merit on the part of the Government of the
United States the most serious attention.
I am, with respect, etc,,
L. G. OTTO.
[Translation.]
L. G. Otto to the Secretary of State.
PHILADELPHIA, December fj, 1790.
NOTE. The underwritten, charge" d'affaires of France, has received the express
order of his Court to represent to the United States that the act passed by Congress
the 2oth July, 1789, and renewed the 2Oth July of the present year, which imposes
an extraordinary tonnage on foreign vessels without excepting French vessels, is
directly contrary to the spirit and to the object of the treaty of commerce which
unites the two nations, and of which His Majesty has not only scrupulously observed
the tenor, but of which he has extended the advantages by many regulations very
favorable to the commerce and navigation of the United States.
By the fifth article of this treaty the citizens of these States are declared exempt
from the tonnage duty imposed in France on foreign vessels, and they are not subject
to that duty but in the coasting business. Congress has reserved the privilege of
establishing a duty equivalent to this last, a stipulation founded on the state in which
matters were in America at the time of the signature of the treaty. There did not
exist at that epoch any duty on tonnage in the United States.
It is evident that it was the nonexistence of this duty and the motive of a perfect
reciprocity stipulated in the preamble of the treaty that had determined the King to
grant the exemption contained in the article fifth; and a proof that Congress had no
intention to contravene this reciprocity is that it only reserves a privilege of estab-
lishing on the coasting business a duty equivalent to that which is levied in France.
This reservation would have been completely useless if by the words of the treaty
Congress thought themselves at liberty to lay any tonnage they should think proper
on French vessels.
The undersigned has the honor to observe that this contravention of the fifth
article of the treaty of commerce might have authorized His Majesty to modify
proportionately the favors granted by the same article to the American navigation ;
but the King, always faithful to the principles of friendship and attachment to the
United States, and desirous of strengthening more and more the ties which subsist
so happily between the French nation and these States, thinks it more conformable
to these views to order the undersigned to make representations on this subject, and
to ask in favor of French vessels a modification of the act which imposes an extra-
ordinary tonnage on foreign vessels. His Majesty does not doubt but that the
United States will acknowledge the justice of this claim, and will be disposed to
restore things to the footing on which they were at the signature of the treaty of
the 6th February, 1778.
L. G, OTTO.
[Translation.}
L. G. Otto to the Secretary of State.
NEW YORK, January 8, 1791.
His Excellency M. JEFFERSON,
Secretary of State.
SIR: I have the honor herewith to send you a letter from the King to Congress,
and one which M. de Montmorin has written to yourself. You will find therein the
86 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
sincere sentiments with which you have inspired our Government, and the regret ol
the minister in not having a more near relation of correspondence with you. In
these every person who has had the advantage of knowing you in France participates.
At the same time, it gives me pain, sir, to be obliged to announce to you that the
complaints of our merchants on the subject of the tonnage duty increase, and that
they have excited not only the attention of the King but that of several depart-
ments of the Kingdom. I have received new orders to request of the United States
a decision on this matter and to solicit in favor of the aggrieved merchants the
restitution of the duties which have already been paid. I earnestly beg of you, sir,
not to lose sight of an object which, as I have already had the honor to tell you
verbally, is of the greatest importance for cementing the future commercial con-
nections between the two nations.
In more particularly examining this question you will perhaps find that motives
of convenience are as powerful as those of justice to engage the United States to
give to His Majesty the satisfaction which he requires. At least twice as many
American vessels enter the ports of France as do those of France the ports of
America. The exemption of the tonnage of duty, then, is evidently less advanta-
geous for the French than for the navigators of the United States. Be this as it may,
I can assure you, sir, that the delay of a decision in this respect by augmenting the
just complaints of the French merchants will only augment the difficulties.
I therefore beg of you to enable me before the sailing of the packet, which will
take place toward the last of this mouth, to give to my Court a satisfactory answer.
I have the houor to be, etc.,
L. G. OTTO.
UNITED STATES, January 24, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I lay before you a statement relative to the frontiers of the United
States, which has been submitted to me by the Secretary for the Depart-
ment of War.
I rely upon your wisdom to make such arrangements as may be essen-
tial for the preservation of good order and the effectual protection of the
frontiers.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 24, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Hoiise of Representatives :
In execution of the powers with which Congress were pleased to invest
me by their act entitled "An act for establishing the temporary and
permanent seat of Government of the United States, ' ' and on mature
consideration of the advantages and disadvantages of the several posi-
tions within the limits prescribed by the said act, I have by a proclama-
tion bearing date this day (a copy of which is herewith transmitted)
directed commissioners, appointed in pursuance of the act, to survey and
limit a part of the territory of 10 miles square on both sides of the river
Potomac, so as to comprehend Georgetown, in Maryland, and extend to
the Eastern Branch.
George Washington 87
I have not by this first act given to the said territory the whole
extent of which it is susceptible in the direction of the river, because I
thought, it important that Congress should have an opportunity of con-
sidering whether by an amendatory law they would authorize the location
of the residue at the lower end of the present, so as to comprehend the
Eastern Branch itself and some of the country on its lower side, in
the State of- Maryland, and the town of Alexandria, in Virginia. If,
however, they are of opinion that the Federal territory should be bounded
by the water edge of the Eastern Branch, the location of the residue will
be to be made at the upper end of what is now directed.
I have thought best to await a survey of the territory before it is decided
on what particular spot on the northeastern side of the river the public
buildings shall be erected,
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITKD STATES, January 26, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I lay before you the copy of a letter from the President of the National
Assembly of France to the President of the United States, and of a decree
of that Assembly, which was transmitted with the above-mentioned
letter.
/ G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 27,
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
In order that you may be fully informed of the situation of the fron-
tiers and the prospect -of hostility in that quarter, I lay before you the
intelligence of some recent depredations, received since my message to
you upon this subject of the 24th instant.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February p, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I have received from the governor of Vermont authentic documents,
expressing the consent of the legislatures of New York and of the Terri-
tory of Vermont that the said Territory shall be admitted to be a distinct
member of our Union; and a memorial of Nathaniel Chipman and Lewis
R. Morris, commissioners from the said Territory, praying the consent
of Congress to that admission, by the name and style of the State of
Vermont, copies of which I now lay before Congress, with whom the
Constitution has vested the object of these proceedings.
G? WASHINGTON.
88 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, February 14., 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
Soon after I was called to the administration of the Government I
found it important to come to an understanding with the Court of London
on several points interesting to the United States, and particularly to
know whether they were disposed to enter into arrangements by mutual
consent which might fix the commerce between the two nations on prin-
ciples of reciprocal advantage. For this purpose I authorized informal
conferences with their ministers, and from these I do not infer any dispo-
sition on their part to enter into any arrangements merely commercial.
I have thought it proper to give you this information, as it might at
some time have influence on matters under your consideration.
G9 WASHINGTON,
UNITED STATES, February 14., 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Conceiving that in the possible event of a refusal of justice on the part
of Great Britain we should stand less committed should it be made to
a private rather than to a public person, I employed Mr. Gouverneur
Morris, who was on the spot, and without giving him any definite char-
acter, to enter informally into the conferences before mentioned. For
your more particular information I lay before you the instructions I
gave him and those parts of his communications wherein the British
ministers appear either in conversation or by letter. These are two
letters from the Duke of Leeds to Mr. Morris, and three letters of Mr.
Morris giving an account of two conferences with the Duke of Leeds
and one with him and Mr. Pitt. The sum of these is that they declare
without scruple they do not mean to fulfill what remains of the treaty of
peace to be fulfilled on their part (by which we are to understand th
delivery of the posts and payment for property carried off) till perform -
ance on our part, and compensation where the delay has rendered the
performance now impracticable; that on the subject of a treaty of con>
merce they avoided direct answers, so as to satisfy Mr. Morris they did
not mean to enter into one unless it could be extended to a treaty of
alliance offensive and defensive, or unless in the event of a rupture with
Spain.
As to the sending a minister here, they made excuses at the first con-
ference, seemed disposed to it in the second, and in the last express an
intention of so doing.
Their views being thus sufficiently ascertained, I have directed Mr,
Morris to discontinue his communications with them.
G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 89
UNITED STATES, February 18, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The aspect of affairs in Europe during the last summer, and especially
between Spain and England, gave reason to expect a favorable occasion
for pressing to accommodation the unsettled matters between them and
us. Mr. Carmichael, our charge^ d'affaires at Madrid, having been long
absent from his country, great changes having taken place in our circum-
stances and sentiments during that interval, it was thought expedient
to send some person, in a private character, fully acquainted with the
present state of things here, to be the bearer of written and confidential
instructions to him, and at the same time to possess him in full and
frequent conversations of all those details of facts and topics of argument
which could not be conveyed in writing, but which would be necessary
to enable him to meet the reasonings of that Court with advantage.
Colonel David Humphreys was therefore sent for these purposes.
An additional motive for this confidential mission arose in the same
quarter. The Court of Lisbon had on several occasions made the most
amicable advances for cultivating friendship and intercourse with the
United States. The exchange of a diplomatic character had been inform-
ally, but repeatedly, suggested on their part. It was our interest to meet
this nation in its friendly dispositions and to concur in the exchange
proposed. But my wish was at the same time that the character to be
exchanged should be of the lowest and most economical grade. To this
it was known that certain rules of long standing at that Court would pro-
duce obstacles. Colonel Humphreys was charged with dispatches to the
prime minister of Portugal and with instructions to endeavor to arrange
this to our views. It happened, however, that previous to his arrival at
Lisbon the Queen had appointed a minister resident to the United States.
This embarrassment seems to have rendered the difficulty completely
insurmountable. The minister of that Court in his conferences with
Colonel Humphreys, professing every wish to accommodate, yet expresses
his regrets that circumstances do not permit them to concur in the grade
of charge d'affaires, a grade of little privilege or respectability by the
rules of their Court and held in so low estimation with them that no
proper character would accept it to go abroad. In a letter to the Sec-
retary of State he expresses the same sentiments, and announces the
appointment on their part of a minister resident to the United States,
and the pleasure with which the Queen will receive one from us at her
Court. A copy of his letter, and also of Colonel Humphreys' s giving the
details of this transaction, will be delivered to you.
On consideration of all circumstances I have determined to accede to the
desire of the Court of Lisbon in the article of grade. I am aware that
the consequences will not end here, and that this is not the only instance
in which a like change may be pressed. But should it be necessary
go Messages and Papers of the Presidents
to yield elsewhere also, I shall think it a less evil than to disgust a
government so friendly and so interesting to us as that of Portugal.
I do not mean that the change of grade shall render the mission more
expensive.
I have therefore nominated David Humphreys minister resident from
the United States to Her Most Faithful Majesty the Queen of Portugal.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 22, 1791^
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I will proceed to take measures for the ransom of our citizens in
captivity at Algiers, in conformity with your resolution of advice of the
ist instant, so soon as the moneys necessary shall be appropriated by
the Legislature and shall be in readiness.
The recognition of our treaty with the new Emperor of Morocco
requires also previous appropriation and provision. The importance of
this last to the liberty and property of our citizens induces me to urge it
on your earliest attention.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 23, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Information having been received from Thomas Auldjo, who was
appointed vice-consul of the United States at Cowes, in Great Britain,
that his commission has not been recognized by that Government because
it is a port at which no foreign consul has yet been received, and that it
has been intimated to him that his appointment to the port of Poole and
parts nearer to that than to the residence of any other consul of the United
States would be recognized and his residence at Cowes not noticed, I
have therefore thought it expedient to nominate Thomas Auldjo to be
vice-consul for the United States at the port of Poole, in Great Britain,
and such parts within the allegiance of His Britannic Majesty as shall
be nearer thereto than to the residence of any other consul or vice-consul
of the United States within the same allegiance.
I also nominate James Yard, of Pennsylvania, to be consul for the
United States in the island of Santa Cruz and such other parts within
the allegiance of His Danish Majesty as shall be nearer thereto than to
the residence of any other consul or vice-consul of the United States
within the same allegiance.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March #, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate :
The act for the admission of the State of Vermont into this Union
having fixed on this as the day of its admission, it was thought that this
would also be the first day on which any officer of the Union might
George Washington 9 1
legally perform any act of authority relating to that State. I therefore
required your attendance to receive nominations of the several officers
necessary to put the Federal Government into motion in that State.*
For this purpose I nominate Nathaniel Chipman to be judge of the dis-
trict of Vermont; Stephen Jacobs to be attorney for the United States in
the district of Vermont; Lewis R. Morris to be marshal of the district
of Vermont, and Stephen Keyes to be collector of the port of Allburgh,
in the State of Vermont. ^ WASHINGTON
UNITED STATES, March 4, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Pursuant to the powers vested in me by the act entitled ' ' An act
repealing after the last day of June next the duties heretofore laid upon
distilled spirits imported from abroad and laying others in their stead,
and also upon spirits distilled within the United States, and for appro-
priating the same," I have thought fit to divide the United States into
the following districts, namely:
The district of New Hampshire, to consist of the State of New Hamp-
shire; the district of Massachusetts, to consist of the State of Massachu-
setts; the district of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, to consist
of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations; the district of
Connecticut, to consist of the State of Connecticut; the district of Ver-
mont, to consist of the State of Vermont; the district of New York, to
consist of the State of New York; the district of New Jersey, to consist
of the State of New Jersey; the district of Pennsylvania, to consist of
the State of Pennsylvania; the district of Delaware, to consist of the State
of Delaware; the district of Maryland, to consist of the State of Maryland;
the district of Virginia, to consist of the State of Virginia; the district of
North Carolina, to consist of the State of North Carolina; the district
of South Carolina, to consist of the State of South Carolina; and the dis-
trict of Georgia, to consist of the State of Georgia.
And I hereby nominate as supervisors of the said districts, respectively,
the following persons, viz:
For the district of New Hampshire, Joshua Wentworth; for the dis-
trict of Massachusetts, Nathaniel Gorham; for the district of Rhode
Island and Providence Plantations, John S. Dexter; for the district of
Connecticut, John Chester; for the district of Vermont, Noah Smith;
for the district of New York, William S. Smith; for the district of New
Jersey, Aaron Dunham; for the district of Pennsylvania, George Clymer;
for the district of Delaware, Henry L,atimer; for the district of Maryland,
George Gale; for the district of Virginia, Edward Carrington; for the
district of North Carolina, William Polk; for the district of South Caro-
lina, Daniel Stevens; for the district of Georgia, John Mathews.
G9 WASHINGTON.
* For proclamation convening- Senate in extraordinary session see p. 571.
92 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
PROCLAMATIONS.
[From a broadside in the archives of the Department of State.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas the general assembly of the State of Maryland, by an act
passed on the 23d day of December, A. D. 1788, intituled "An act to cede
to Congress a district of 10 miles square in this State for the seat of the
Government of the United States, ' ' did enact that the Representatives of
the said State in the House of Representatives of the Congress of the
United States, appointed to assemble at New York on the first Wednes-
day of March then next ensuing, should be, and they were thereby,
authorized and required on the behalf of the said State to cede to the
Congress of the United States any district in the said State not exceeding
10 miles square which the Congress might fix upon and accept for the
seat of Government of the United States;
And the general assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia, by an
act passed on the 3d day of December, 1789, and intituled "An act for
the cession of 10 miles square, or any lesser quantity, of territory within
this State to the United States in Congress assembled, for the permanent
seat of the General Government," did enact that a tract of country not
exceeding 10 miles square, or any lesser quantity, to be located within
the limits of the said State, and in any part thereof, as Congress might by
law direct, should be, and the same was thereby, forever ceded and relin-
quished to the Congress and Government of the United States, in full
and absolute right and exclusive jurisdiction, as well of soil as of per-
sons residing or to reside thereon, pursuant to the tenor and effect of the
eighth section of the first article of the Constitution of Government of
the United States;
And the Congress of the United States, by their act passed the i6th
day of July, 1790, and intituled "An act for establishing the temporary
and permanent seat of the Government of the United States, ' ' authorized
the President of the United States to appoint three commissioners to
survey under his direction and by proper metes and bounds to limit a
district of territory, not exceeding 10 miles square, on the river Potomac,
at some place between the mouths of the Eastern Branch and Connogo-
cheque, which district, so t.o be located and limited, was accepted by the
said act of Congress as the district for the permanent seat of the Gov-
ernment of the United States:
Now, therefore, in pursuance of the powers to me confided, and after
duly examining and weighing the advantages and disadvantages of the
several situations within the limits aforesaid, I do hereby declare and
make known that the location of one part of the said district of 10
miles square shall be found by running four lines of experiment in the
George Washington 93
following manner, that is to say: Running from the court-house of Alex-
andria, in Virginia, due southwest half a mile, and thence a due south-
east course till it shall strike Hunting Creek, to fix the beginning of the
said four lines of experiment.
Then beginning the first of the said four lines of experiment at the
point on Hunting Creek where the said southeast course shall have
struck the same, and running the said first line due northwest 10 miles;
thence the second line into Maryland due northeast 10 miles; thence the
third line due southeast 10 miles, and thence the fourth line due south-
west 10 miles to the beginning on Hunting Creek.
And the said four lines of experiment being so run, I do hereby
declare and make known that all that part within the said four lines of
experiment which shall be within the State of Maryland and above the
Eastern Branch, and all that part within the same four lines of experi-
ment which shall be within the Commonwealth of Virginia and above a
line to be run from the point of land forming the upper cape of the
mouth of the Eastern Branch due southwest, and no more, is now fixed
upon and directed to be surveyed, defined, limited, and located for a part
of the said district accepted by the said act of Congress for the permanent
seat of the Government of the United States (hereby expressly reserv-
ing the direction of the survey and location of the remaining part of the
said district to be made hereafter contiguous to such part or parts of the
present location as is or shall be agreeable to law).
And I do accordingly direct the said commissioners, appointed agree-
ably to the tenor of the said act, to proceed forthwith to run the said
lines of experiment, and the same being run, to survey and by proper
metes and bounds to define and limit the part within the same which is
hereinbefore directed for immediate location and acceptance, and thereof
to make due report to me under their hands and seals.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to
be affixed to these presents and signed the same with my hand.
r -i Done at the city of Philadelphia, the 24th day of January,
A. D. 1791, and of the Independence of the United States th
fifteenth - G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
TH; JEFFERSON.
[From a broadside In the archives of the Department of State.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas it hath been represented to me that James O'Fallon is levy-
ing an armed force in that part of the State of Virginia which is called
Kentucky, disturbs the public peace, and sets at defiance the treaties of
the United States with the Indian tribes, the act of Congress intituled
94 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
1 'An act to regulate trade and intercourse with the Indian tribes, v ' and
my proclamations of the I4th and 26th days of August last founded
thereon; and it is iny earnest desire that those who have incautiously
associated themselves with the said James O' Fallen may be warned of
their danger, I have therefore thought ^L to puDiish this proclamation,
hereby declaring that all persons violating the treaties and act aforesaid
shall be prosecuted with the utmost rigor of the law.
And I do, moreover, require all officers of the United States whom it
may concern to use their best exertions to bring to justice any persons
offending in the premises.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to
be affixed to these presents and signed the same with my hand. /
r -i Done at the city of Philadelphia, the igth day of March,
A. D. 1791, and of the Independence of the United States th
fifteenth. QQ WASHINGTON.
By the President:
TH: JEFFERSON.
[From the Washington Papers (Executive Proceedings), vol. 20, p. 191.!
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
WTiereas by a proclamation bearing date the 24th day of January of
this present year, and in pursuance of certain acts of the States of Mary-
land and Virginia and of the Congress of the United States, therein
mentioned, certain lines of experiment were directed to be run in the
neighborhood of Georgetown, in Maryland, for the purpose of determin-
ing the location of a part of the territory of 10 miles square for the per-
manent seat of the Government of the United States, and a certain part
was directed to be located within the said lines of experiment on both
sides of the Potomac and above the limit of the Eastern Branch pre-
scribed by the said act of Congress;
And Congress by an amendatory act passed on the 3d day of the
present month of March have given further authority to the President
of the United States "to make any part of the territory below the said
limit and above the mouth of Hunting Creek a part of the said district,
so as to include a convenient part of the Eastern Branch and of the
lands lying on the lower side thereof, and also the town of Alexandria' ' :
Now, therefore, for the purpose of amending and completing the loca-
tion of the whole of the said territory of 10 miles square in conformity
with the said amendatory act of Congress, I do hereby declare and make
known that the whole of the said territory shall be located and included
within the four lines following, that is to say:
Beginning at Jones's Point, being the upper cape of Hunting Creek, in
Virginia, and at an angle in the outset of 45 degrees west of the north,
George Washington 95
and running in a direct line 10 miles for the first line ; then beginning
again at the same Jones's Point and running another direct line at a
right angle with the first across the Potomac 10 miles for the second
line; then from the termination of the said first and second lines run-
ning two other direct lines of ic miles each, the one crossing the Eastern
Branch aforesaid and the other the Potomac, and meeting each other in
a point.
And I do accordingly direct the commissioners named under the
authority of the said first-mentioned act of Congress to proceed forth-
with to have the said four lines run, and by proper metes and bounds
defined and limited, and thereof to make due report tinder their hands
and seals; and the territory so to be located, defined, and limited shall be
the whole territory accepted by the said acts of Congress as the district
for the permanent seat of the Government of the United States.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to
be affixed to these presents and signed the same with my hand.
r n Done at Georgetown aforesaid, the 3oth day of March,
A. D. 1791, and of the Independence of the United States the
fifteenth.
G9 WASHINGTON.
THIRD ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, October 25,
Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I meet you upon the present occasion with the feelings which are
naturally inspired by a strong impression of the prosperous situation of
our common country, and by a persuasion equally strong that the labors
of the session which has just commenced will, under the guidance of a
spirit no less prudent than patriotic, issue in measures conducive to the
stability and increase of national prosperity.
Numerous as are the providential blessings which demand our grateful
acknowledgments, the abundance with which another year has again
rewarded the industry of the husbandman is too important to escape
recollection.
Your own observations in your respective situations will have satisfied
you of the progressive state of agriculture, manufactures, commerce,
and navigation. In tracing their causes you will have remarked with
particular pleasure the happy effects of that revival of confidence, public
as well as private, to which the Constitution and laws of the United
States have so eminently contributed ; and you will have observed with
no less interest new and decisive proofs of the increasing reputation and
96 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
credit of the nation. But you nevertheless can not fail to derive satis-
faction from the confirmation of these circumstances which will be dis-
closed in the several official communications that will be made to you in
the course of your deliberations.
The rapid subscriptions to the Bank of the United States, which com-
pleted the sum allowed to be subscribed in a single day, is among the
striking and pleasing evidences which present themselves, not only of
confidence in the Government, but of resource in the community.
In the interval of your recess due attention has been paid to the execu-
tion of the different objects which were specially provided for by the laws
and resolutions of the last session.
Among the most important of these is the defense and security of the
Western frontiers. To accomplish it on the most humane principles
was a primary wish.
Accordingly, at the same time that treaties have been provisionally
concluded and other proper means used to attach the wavering and to
confirm in their friendship the well-disposed tribes of Indians, effectual
measures have been adopted to make those of a hostile description sensi-
ble that a pacification was desired upon terms of moderation and justice.
Those measures having proved unsuccessful, it became necessary to
convince the refractory of the power of the United States to punish their
depredations. Offensive operations have therefore been directed, to
be conducted, however, as consistently as possible with the dictates of
humanity. Some of these have been crowned with full success and others
are yet depending. The expeditions which have been completed were
carried on under the authority and at the expense of the United States by
the militia of Kentucky, whose enterprise, intrepidity, and good conduct
are entitled to peculiar commendation.
Overtures of peace are still continued to the deluded tribes, and con-
siderable numbers of individuals belonging to them have lately renounced
all further opposition, removed from their former situations, and placed
themselves under the immediate protection of the United States.
It is sincerely to be desired that all need of coercion in future may
cease and that an intimate intercourse may succeed, calculated to
advance the happiness of the Indians and to attach them firmly to the
United States.
In order to this it seems necessary
That they should experience the benefits of an impartial dispensation
of justice.
That the mode of alienating their lands, the main source of discontent
and war, should be so defined and regulated as to obviate imposition
and as far as may be practicable controversy concerning the reality and
extent of the alienations which are made.
That commerce with them should be promoted under regulations
tending to secure an equitable deportment toward them, and that such
George Washington 97
/
rational experiments should be made for imparting to them the blessings
of civilization as may from time to time suit their condition.
That the Executive of the United States should be enabled to employ
the means to which the Indians have been long accustomed for uniting
their immediate interests with the preservation of peace.
And that efficacious provision should be made for inflicting adequate
penalties upon all those who, by violating their rights, shall infringe the
treaties and endanger the peace of the Union.
A system corresponding with the mild principles of religion and
philanthropy toward an unenlightened race of men, whose happiness
materially depends on the conduct of the United States, would be as
honorable to the national character as conformable to the dictates of
sound policy.
The powers specially vested in me by the act laying certain duties on
distilled spirits, which respect the subdivisions of the districts into sur-
veys, the appointment of officers, and the assignment of compensations,
have likewise been carried into effect. In a matter in which both mate-
rials and experience were wanting to guide the calculation it will be
readily conceived that there must have been difficulty in such an adjust-
ment of the rates of compensation as would conciliate a reasonable
competency with a proper regard to the limits prescribed by the law. It
is hoped that the circumspection which has been used will be found in
the result to have secured the last of the two objects; but it is proba-
ble that with a view to the first in some instances a revision of the
provision will be found advisable.
The impressions with which this law has been received by the com-
munity have been upon the whole such as were to be expected among
enlightened and well-disposed citizens from the propriety and necessity
of the measure. The novelty, however, of the tax in a considerable
part of the United States and a misconception of some of its provisions
have given occasion in particular places to some degree of discontent;
but it is satisfactory to know that this disposition yields to proper
explanations and more just apprehensions of the true nature of the law,
and I entertain a full confidence that it will in all give way to motives
which arise out of a just sense of duty and a virtuous regard to the
public welfare.
If there are any circumstances in the law which consistently with its
main design may be so varied as to remove any well-intentioned objec-
tions that may happen to exist, it will consist with a wise moderation to
make the proper variations. It is desirable on all occasions to unite
with a steady and firm adherence to constitutional and necessary acts of
Government the fullest evidence of a disposition as far as may be practi-
cable to consult the wishes of every part of the community and to lay
the foundations of the public administration in the affections of the
people.
98 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Pursuant to the authority contained in the several acts on that subject,
a district of 10 miles square for the permanent seat of the Government
of the United States has been fixed and announced by proclamation,
which district will comprehend lands on both sides of the river Potomac
and the towns of Alexandria and Georgetown. A city has also been laid
out agreeably to a plan which will be placed before Congress, and as
there is a prospect, favored by the rate of sales which have already
taken place, of ample funds for carrying on the necessary public build-
ings, there is every expectation of their due progress.
The completion of the census of the inhabitants, for which provision
was made by law, has been duly notified (excepting one instance in
which the return has been informal, and another in which it has been
omitted or miscarried) , and the returns of the officers who were charged
with this duty, which will be laid before you, will give you the pleasing
assurance that the present population of the United States borders on
4,000,000 persons.
It is proper also to inform you that a further loan of 2,500,000 florins
has been completed in Holland, the terms of which are similar to those
of the one last announced, except as to a small reduction of charges.
Another, on like terms, for 6,000,000 florins, had been set on foot under
circumstances that assured an immediate completion.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Two treaties which have been provisionally concluded with the Chero-
kees and Six Nations of Indians will be laid before you for your con-
sideration and ratification.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives!
In entering upon the discharge of your legislative trust you must
anticipate with pleasure that many of the difficulties necessarily incident
to the first arrangements of a new government for an extensive country
have been happily surmounted by the zealous and judicious exertions of
your predecessors in cooperation with the other branch of the Legisla-
ture. The important objects which remain to be accomplished will, I
am persuaded, be conducted upon principles equally comprehensive and
equally well calculated for the' advancement of the general weal.
The time limited for receiving subscriptions to the loans proposed
by the act making provision for the debt of the United States having
expired, statements from the proper department will as soon as possible
apprise you of the exact result. Enough, however, is known already
to afford an assurance that the views of that act have been substantially
fulfilled. The subscription in the domestic debt of the United States
has embraced by far the greatest proportion of that debt, affording at
the same time proof of the general satisfaction of the public creditors
FRAXKT.TX BEING RECEIVED AT THE FRENCH COURT.
The greatest single factor in enlisting the aid of France for the American
colonies in the Revolution was Benjamin Franklin. The American philosopher
and statesman arrived in Paris on December 18, 1777, as American commis-
sioner, to seek recognition and assistance from the French At his arrival, he
found both the Court and the people lukewarm towards his cause, but the charm
and common-sense of the American soon won the hearts of all who came into
contact with him. The illustration shows Franklin being lionized at a court
reception. The wreath is being placed on his head by the Countess Polignac,
to whose right stands the Count de Vergennes. Louis XVI and Marie
Antoinette are shown seated at the right of the picture.
George Washington 99
with the system which has been proposed to their acceptance and of the
spirit of accommodation to the convenience of the Government with
which they are actuated. The subscriptions in the debts of the respec-
tive States as far as the provisions of the law have permitted may
be said to be yet more general. The part of the debt of the United
States which remains unsubscribed will naturally engage your further
deliberations.
It is particularly pleasing to me to be able to announce to you that
the revenues which have been established promise to be adequate to
their objects, and may be permitted, if no unforeseen exigency occurs,
to supersede for the present the necessity of any new burthens upon
our constituents.
An object which will claim your early attention is a provision for the
current service of the ensuing year, together with such ascertained
demands upon the Treasury as require to be immediately discharged,
and such casualties as may have arisen in the execution of the public
business, for which no specific appropriation may have yet been made;
of all which a proper estimate will be laid before you.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I shall content myself with a general reference to former communica-
tions for several objects upon which the urgency of other affairs has
hitherto postponed any definitive resolution. Their importance will
recall them to your attention, and I trust that the progress already made
in the most arduous arrangements of the Government will afford you
leisure to resume them with advantage.
There are, however, some of them of which I can not forbear a more
particular mention. These are the militia, the post-office and post-roads,
the mint, weights and measures, a provision for the sale of the vacant
lands of the United States.
The first is certainly an object of primary importance whether viewed
in reference to the national security to the satisfaction of the community
or to the preservation of order. In connection with this the establishment
of competent magazines and arsenals and the fortification of such places
as are peculiarly important and vulnerable naturally present themselves
to consideration. The safety of the United States under divine protec-
tion ought to rest on the basis of systematic and solid arrangements,
exposed as little as possible to the hazards of fortuitous circumstances.
The importance of the post-office and post-roads on a plan sufficiently
liberal and comprehensive, as they respect the expedition, safety, and
facility of communication, is increased by their instrumentality in diffus-
ing a knowledge of the laws and proceedings of the Government, which,
while it contributes to the security of the people, serves also to guard
them against the effects of misrepresentation and misconception. The
establishment of additional cross posts, especially to some of the important
5
ioo Messages and Papers of the Presidents
points in the Western and Northern parts of the Union, can not fail to
be of material utility.
The disorders in the existing currency, and especially the scarcity of
small change, a scarcity so peculiarly distressing to the poorer classes,
strongly recommend the carrying into immediate effect the resolution
already entered into concerning the establishment of a mint. Measures
have been taken pursuant to that resolution for procuring some of the
most necessary artists, together with the requisite apparatus.
An uniformity in the weights and measures of the country is among
the important objects submitted to you by the Constitution, and if it
can be derived from a standard at once invariable and universal, must
be no less honorable to the public councils than conducive to the public
convenience.
A provision for the sale of the vacant lands of the United States is
particularly urged, among other reasons, by the important considerations
that they are pledged as a fund for reimbursing the public debt; that if
timely and judiciously applied they may save the necessity of burthen-
ing our citizens with new taxes for the extinguishment of the principal;
and that being free to discharge the principal but in a limited proportion,
no opportunity ought to be lost for availing the public of its right.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Senate of the United States have received with the highest
satisfaction the assurances of public prosperity contained in your speech
to both Houses. The multiplied blessings of Providence have not escaped
our notice or failed to excite our gratitude.
The benefits which flow from the restoration of public and private
confidence are conspicuous and important, and the pleasure with which
we contemplate them is heightened by your assurance of those further
communications which shall confirm their existence and indicate their
source.
While we rejoice in the success of those military operations which
have been directed against the hostile Indians, we lament with you the
necessity that has produced them, and we participate the hope that the
present prospect of a general peace on terms of moderation and justice
may be wrought into complete and permanent effect, and that the meas-
ures of Government may equally embrace the security of our frontiers
and the general interests of humanity, our solicitude to obtain which will
insure our zealous attention to an object so warmly espoused by the prin-
ciples of benevolence and so highly interesting to the honor and welfare
of the nation.
George Washington 101
The several subjects which you have particularly recommended and
those which remain of former sessions will engage our early considera-
tion. We are encouraged to prosecute them with alacrity and steadiness
by the belief that they will interest no passion but that for the general
welfare, by the assurance of concert, and by a view of those arduous and
important arrangements which have been already accomplished.
We observe, sir, the constancy and activity of your zeal for the public
good. The example will animate our efforts to promote the happiness
of our country.
OCTOBER 28, '.791.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: This manifestation of your zeal for the honor and the
happiness of our country derives its full value from the share which
your deliberations have already had in promoting both.
I thank you for the favorable sentiments with which you view the
part I have borne in the arduous trust committed to the Government
of the United States, and desire you to be assured that all my zeal will
continue to second those further efforts for the public good which are
insured by the spirit in which you are entering on the present session.
G9 WASHINGTON.
OCTOBER 31, 1791.
ADDRESS OP THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: In receiving your address at the opening of the present session
the House of Representatives have taken an ample share in the feelings
inspired by the actual prosperity and flattering prospects of our country,
and whilst with becoming gratitude to Heaven we ascribe this happi-
ness to the true source from which it flows, we behold with an animating
pleasure the degree in which the Constitution and laws of the United
States have been instrumental in dispensing it.
It yields us particular satisfaction to learn the s.uccess with which the
different important measures of the Government have proceeded, as well
those specially provided for at the last session as those of preceding
date. The safety of our Western frontier, in which the lives and repose
of so many of our fellow-citizens are involved, being peculiarly interest-
ing, your communications on that subject are proportionally grateful to
us. The gallantry and good conduct of the militia, whose services were
called for, is an honorable confirmation of the efficacy of that precious
resource of a free state, and we anxiously wish that the consequences
of their successful enterprises and of the other proceedings to which
you have referred may leave the United States free to pursue the most
io2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
benevolent policy toward the unhappy and deluded race of people in our
neighborhood.
The amount of the population of the United States, determined by the
returns of the census, is a source of the most pleasing reflections whether
it be viewed in relation to our national safety and respectability or as
a proof of that felicity in the situation of our country which favors so
unexampled a rapidity in its growth. Nor ought any to be insensible
to the additional motive suggested by this important fact to perpetuate
the free Government established, with a wise administration of it, to a
portion of the earth which promises such an increase of the number
which is to enjoy those blessings within the limits of the United States.
We shall proceed with all the respect due to your patriotic recommen-
dations and with a deep sense of the trust committed to us by our
fellow-citizens to take into consideration the various and important
matters falling within the present session; and in discussing and decid-
ing each we shall feel every disposition whilst we are pursuing the public
welfare, which must be the supreme object with all our constituents, to
accommodate as far as possible the means of attaining it to the senti-
ments and wishes of every part of them.
OCTOBER 27, 1791.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: The pleasure I derive from an assurance of your attention
to the objects I have recommended to you is doubled by your concurrence
in the testimony I have borne to the prosperous condition of our public
affairs.
Relying on the sanctions of your enlightened judgment and on your
patriotic aid, I shall be the more encouraged in all my endeavors for
the public weal, and particularly in those which may be required on my
part for executing the salutary measures I anticipate from your present
deliberations.
G9 WASHINGTON.
OCTOBER 28, 1791.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, October 26,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives :
I lay before you copies of the following acts, which have been trans-
mitted to me during the recess of Congress, viz:
An act passed by the legislature of New Hampshire for ceding to the
United States the fort and light-house belonging to the said State.
An act of the legislature of Pennsylvania ratifying on behalf of said
George Washington 103
State the first article of amendment to the Constitution of the United
States as proposed by Congress; and
An act of the legislature of North Carolina granting the use of the
jails within that State to the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, October 26, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I have directed the Secretary of War to lay before you for your consid-
eration all the papers relative to the late negotiations with the Cherokee
Indians, and the treaty concluded with that tribe on the 2d day of July
last by the superintendent of the southern district, and I request your
advice whether I shall ratify the same.
I also lay before you the instructions to Colonel Pickering and his
conferences with the Six Nations of Indians. These conferences were for
the purpose of conciliation, and at a critical period, to withdraw those
Indians to a greater distance from the theater of war, in order to prevent
their being involved therein.
It might not have been necessary to have requested your opinion on
this business had not the commissioner, with good intentions, but incau-
tiously, made certain ratifications of lands unauthorized by his instruc-
tions and unsupported by the Constitution.
It therefore became necessary to disavow the transaction explicitly in
a letter written by my orders to the governor of New York on the 1 7th
of August last.
The speeches to the Cornplanter and other Seneca chiefs, the instruc-
tions to Colonel Proctor, and his report, and other messages and directions
are laid before you for your information and as evidences that all proper
lenient measures preceded the exercise of coercion.
The letters to the chief of the Creeks are also laid before you, to evince
that the requisite steps have been taken to produce a full compliance
with the treaty made with that nation on the yth of August, 1790.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, October 27,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of a letter and of sundry documents which I
have received from the governor of Pennsylvania, respecting certain
persons who are said to have fled from justice out of the State of Penn-
sylvania into that of Virginia, together with a report of the Attorney-
General of the United States upon the same subject.
I have received from the governor of North Carolina a copy of an act
of the general assembly of that State, authorizing him to convey to the
United States the right and jurisdiction of the said State over i acre of
104 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
land in Occacock Island and 10 acres on the Cape Island, within the said
State, for the purpose of erecting light-houses thereon, together with the
deed of the governor in pursuance thereof and the original conveyances
made to the State by the individual proprietors, which original convey-
ances contain conditions that the light-house on Occacock shall be built
before the ist day of January, 1801, and that on the Cape Island before
the 8th day of October, 1800. And I have caused these several papers
to be deposited in the office of the Secretary of State.
A statement of the returns of the enumeration of the inhabitants of
the United States which have been received will at this time be laid
before you.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, October 27,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I have directed the Secretary of War to lay before you, for your infor-
mation, the reports of Brigadier- General Scott and Lieutenant- Colonel
Commandant Wilkinson, the officers who commanded the two expedi-
tions against the Wabash Indians in the months of June and August
last, together with the instructions by virtue of which the said expedi-
tions were undertaken. When the operations now depending shall be
terminated, the reports relative thereto shall also be laid before you.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, October 31, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I send you herewith the arrangement which has been made by me,
pursuant to the act entitled "An act repealing after the last day of June
next the duties heretofore laid upon distilled spirits imported from
abroad and laying others in their stead, and also upon spirits distilled
within the United States, and for appropriating the same, ' ' in respect
to the subdivision of the several districts created by the said act into
surveys of inspection, the appointment of officers for the same, and the
assignment of compensations.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, November i,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I received yesterday from the judge of the district of South Carolina a
letter, inclosing the presentments of the grand jury to him, and stating
the causes which have prevented the return of the census from that
district, copies of which are now laid before you.
G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 105
UNITED STATES, November TO, /7p/.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The resolution passed at the last session of Congress, requesting the
President of the United States to cause an estimate to be laid before
Congress at their next session of the quantity and situation of the lands
not claimed by the Indians nor granted to nor claimed by any of the
citizens of the United States within the territory ceded to the United
States by the State of North Carolina and within the territory of the
United States northwest of the river Ohio, has been referred to the
Secretary of State, a copy of whose report on that subject I now lay
before you, together with the copy of a letter accompanying it.
GO WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, November n,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I have received from the governor of Virginia a resolution of the
general assembly of that Commonwealth, ratifying the first article of
the amendments proposed by Congress to the Constitution of the United
States, a copy of which and of the letter accompanying it I now lay
before you.
Sundry papers relating to the purchase by Judge Symmes of the lands
on the Great Miami having been communicated to me, I have thought it
proper to lay the same before you for your information on that subject.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 12, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
It is with great concern that I communicate to you the information
received from Major-General St. Clair of the misfortune which hat
befallen the troops under his command.
Although the national loss is considerable according to the scale of
the event, yet it may be repaired without great difficulty, excepting as to
the brave men who have fallen on the occasion, and who are a subject
of public as well as private regret.
A further communication will shortly be made of all such matters as
shall be necessary to enable the Legislature to judge of the future
measures which it may be proper to pursue.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December /j, 1791-
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I place before you the plan of a city that has been laid out within the
district of 10 miles square, which was fixed upon for the permanent seat
of the Government of the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
io6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, December 20, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you the copy of a letter which I have received from the
governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and of sundry documents
which accompanied it, relative tc a contract for the purchase of a certain
tract of land bounding on Lake Erie, together with a copy of a report
of tlie Secretary of State on the same subject.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 30, 1791.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of the ratification by the Commonwealth of
Virginia of the articles of amendment proposed by Congress to the
Constitution of the United States, and a copy of a letter which accom-
panied said ratification from the governor of Virginia.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January ri, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you the following report, which has been made to me by
the Secretary of State :
DECEMBER 22, 1791.
The Secretary of State reports to the President of the United States that one oi
the commissioners of Spain, in the name of both, has lately communicated to him
verbally, by order of his Court, that His Catholic Majesty, apprised of our solicitude
to have some arrangements made respecting our free navigation of the river Missis-
sippi and the use of a port thereon, is ready to enter into treaty thereon at Madrid.
The Secretary of State is of opinion that this overture should be attended to
without delay, and that the proposal of treating at Madrid, though not what might
have been desired, should yet be accepted, and a commission plenipotentiary made
out for the purpose.
That Mr. Carmichael, the present charge" d'affaires of the United States at Madrid,
from the local acquaintance which he must have acquired with persons and circum-
stances, would be an useful and proper member of the commission, but that it would
be useful also to join with him some person more particularly acquainted with the
circumstances of the navigation to be treated of.
That the fund appropriated by the act providing the means of intercourse between
the United States and foreign nations will insufficiently furnish the ordinary and
regular demands on it, and is consequently inadequate to the mission of an additional
commissioner express from hence.
That therefore it will be advisable on this account, as well as for the sake of
dispatch, to constitute some one of the ministers of the United States in Europe,
jointly with Mr. Cannichael, commissioners plenipotentiary for the special purpose
of negotiating and concluding with any person or persons duly authorized by His
Catholic Majesty a convention or treaty for the free navigation of the river Missis-
sippi by the citizens of the United States under such accommodations with respect
to a port and other circumstances as may render the said navigation practicable,
George Washington 107
useful, and free from dispute, saving to the President and Senate their respective
rights as to the ratification of the same, and that the said negotiation be at Madrid,
or such other place in Spain as shall be desired by His Catholic Majesty.
TH: JEFFERSON.
In consequence of the communication from the Court of Spain, as
stated in the preceding report, I nominate William Carmichael, present
charge 1 d'affaires of the United States at Madrid, and William Short,
present charg6 d'affaires of the United States at Paris, to be commis-
sioners plenipotentiary for negotiating and concluding with any person
or persons who shall be duly authorized by His Catholic Majesty a con-
vention or treaty concerning the navigation of the river Mississippi by
the citizens of the United States, saving to the President and Senate
their respective rights as to the ratification of the same.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 11, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you, in confidence, two reports, made to me by the Secre-
tary for the Department of War, relatively to the present state of affairs
on the Western frontiers of the United States.
In these reports the causes of the present war with the Indians, the
measures taken by the Executive to terminate it amicably, and the mili-
tary preparations for the late campaign are stated and explained, and also
a plan suggested of such further measures on the occasion as appear just
and expedient.
I am persuaded, gentlemen, that you will take this important subject
into your immediate and serious consideration, and that the result of your
deliberations will be the adoption of such wise and efficient measures as
will reflect honor on our national councils and promote the welfare of our
country.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 18, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of an exemplified copy of an act of the legisla-
ture of Vermont, ratifying on behalf of that State the articles of amend-
ment proposed by Congress to the Constitution of the United States
together with a copy of a letter which accompanied said ratification.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 18, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you the communications of a deputation from the Chero-
kee Nation of Indians now in this city, and I request your advice whether
loS Messages and Papers of the Presidents
an additional article shall be made to the Cherokee treaty to the follow'
ing effect, to wit :
That the sum to be paid annually by the United States to the Cher-
okee Nation of Indians in consideration of the relinquishmeut of lands as
stated in the treaty made with them on the 2d day of July, 1791, shall
be $1,500 instead of $1,000 mentioned in the said treaty.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 23, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Having received from the governor of Virginia a letter, inclosing a
resolution of the general assembly of that State and a report of a com-
mittee of the House of Delegates respecting certain lauds located by the
officers and soldiers of the Virginia line under the laws of that State, and
since ceded to the Chickasaw Indians, I lay copies of the same before you,
together with a report of the Secretary of State on this subject.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February <?, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
An article of expense having occurred in the Department of Foreign
Affairs for which no provision has been made by law, I lay before you a
letter from the Secretary of State explaining the same, in order that you
may do thereon what you shall find to be right.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 3, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of a return of the number of inhabitants in the
district of South Carolina as made to me by the marshal thereof, and a
copy of a letter which accompanied said return.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 5, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Knowing the friendly interest you take in whatever may promote the
happiness and prosperity of the French nation, it is with pleasure that I
lay before you the translation of a letter which I have received from His
Most Christian Majesty, announcing to the United States of America
his acceptance of the constitution presented to him by his nation.
G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 109
Very Dear Great Friends and Allies:
We make it our duty to inform you that we have accepted the constitution which
has been presented to us in the name of the nation, and according to which France
will be henceforth governed.
We do not doubt that you take an interest in an event so important to our Kingdom
<md to us, and it is with real pleasure we take this occasion to renew to you assur-
ances of the sincere friendship we bear you. Whereupon we pray God to have you,
very dear great friends and allies, in His just and holy keeping.
Written at Paris the igth of September, 1791.
Your good friend and ally,
LOUIS.
MONTMORIN.
The UNITED STATES OF NORTH AMERICA.
UNITED STATES, March <5, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you the following report, which has been submitted to me
by the Secretary of State:
JANUARY 10, 1792.
The Secretary of State having received information that the merchants and mer-
chandise of the United States are subject in Copenhagen and other ports of Denmark
to considerable extra duties, from which they might probably be relieved by the
presence of a consul there
Reports to the President of the United States that it would be expedient to name
a consul to be resident in the port of Copenhagen; that he has not been able to find
that there is any citizen of the United States residing there; that there is a certain
Hans Rudolph Saaby, a Danish subject and merchant of that place, of good character,
of wealth and distinction, and well qualified and disposed to act there for the United
States, who would probably accept the commission of consul; but that that of vice-
consul, hitherto given by the President to foreigners in ports where there was no
proper American citizen, would probably not be accepted because in this, as in some
other ports of Europe, usage has established it as a subordinate grade.
And that he is therefore of the opinion that the said Hans Rudolph Saaby should
be nominated consul of the United States of America for the port of Copenhagen
and such other places within the allegiance of His Danish Majesty as shall be nearer
to the said port than to the residence of any other consul or vice-consul of the
United States within the same allegiance.
TH: JEFFERSON.
With a view to relieve the merchants and merchandise of the United
States from the extra duties to which they are or may be subjected in
the ports of Denmark, I have thought it for the interest of the United
States that a consul be appointed to reside at Copenhagen. I therefore
nominate Hans Rudolph Saaby, a Danish subject and merchant of
Copenhagen, to be consul for the United States of America at the port
of Copenhagen and for such other places within the allegiance of His
Danish Majesty as shall be nearer to the said port than to the residence
of any other consul or vice-consul of the United States within the same
allegiance.
G9 WASHINGTON.
no Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, March 7, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I submit to your consideration the report of the Secretary of State,
which accompanies this, stating the reasons for extending the negotia-
tion proposed at Madrid to the subject of commerce, and explaining,
under the form of instructions to the commissioners lately appointed to
that Court, the principles on which commercial arrangements with Spain
might, if desired on her part, be acceded to on ours ; and I have to request
your decision whether you will advise and consent to the extension of
the powers of the commissioners as proposed, and to the ratification of a
treaty which shall conform to those instructions should they enter into
such a one with that Court.
G9 WASHINGTON.
MARCH 7, 1792.
The Secretary of State having understood from communications with the commit
sioners of His Catholic Majesty, subsequent to that which he reported to the President
on the 22d of December last, that though they considered the navigation of the
Mississippi as the principal object of negotiation between the two countries, yet
it was expected by their Court that the conferences would extend to all the mat-
ters which were under negotiation on the former occasion with Mr. Gardoqui, and
particularly to some arrangements of commerce, is of opinion that to renew the
conferences on this subject also, since they desire it, will be but friendly and respect-
ful, and can lead to nothing without our own consent, and that to refuse it might
obstruct the settlement of the questions of navigation and boundary; snd therefore
reports to the President of the United States the following observations and instruc-
tions to the commissioners of the United States appointed to negotiate with the
Court of Spain a treaty or convention relative to the navigation of the Mississippi,
which observations and instructions he is of opinion should be laid before the Senate
of the United States, and their decision be desired whether they will advise and
consent that a treaty be entered into by the commissioners of the United States with
Spain conformably thereto.
After stating to our commissioners the foundation of our rights to navigate the
Mississippi and to hold our southern boundary at the thirty-first degree of latitude,
and that each of these is to be a sine qua non, it is proposed to add as follows:
On the former conferences on the navigation of the Mississippi, Spain chose to
blend with it the subject of commerce, and accordingly specific propositions thereon
passed between the negotiators. Her object then was to obtain our renunciation of
the navigation and to hold out commercial arrangements perhaps as a lure to us.
Perhaps, however, she might then, and may now, really set a value on commercial
arrangements with us, and may receive them as a consideration for accommodating
us in the navigation, or may wish for them to have the appearance of receiving a
consideration. Commercial arrangements, if acceptable in themselves, will not be
the less so if coupled with those relating to navigation and boundary. We have only
to take care that they be acceptable in themselves.
There are two principles which may be proposed as the basis of a commercial
treaty: First, that of exchanging the privileges of native citizens, or, second, those of
the most favored nation.
First. With the nations holding important possessions in America we are ready to
exchange the rights of native citizens, provided they be extended through the whole
possessions of both parties; but the propositions of Spain made on the former occa-
George Washington in
sion (a copy of which accompanies this) were that we should give their merchants,
vessels, and productions the privileges of native merchants, vessels, and productions
through the whole of our possessions, and they give the same to ours only in Spain
and the Canaries. This is inadmissible, because unequal; and as we believe that
Spain is not ripe for an equal exchange on this basis, we avoid proposing it.
Second. Though treaties which merely exchange the rights of the most favored
nations are not without all inconvenience, yet they have their conveniences also. It
is an important one that they leave each party free to make what internal regulations
they please, and to give what preferences they find expedient to native merchants,
vessels, and productions ; and as we already have treaties on this basis with France,
Holland, Sweden, and Prussia, the two former of which are perpetual, it will be
but small additional embarrassment to extend it to Spain. On the contrary, we are
sensible it is right to place that nation on the most favored footing, whether we have a
treaty with them or not, and it can do us no harm to secure by treaty a reciprocation
of the right.
Of the four treaties before mentioned, either the French or the Prussian might be
taken as a model ; but it would be useless to propose the Prussian, because we have
already supposed that Spain would never consent to those articles which give to
each party access to all the dominions of the other ; and without this equivalent
we would not agree to tie our own hands so materially in war as would be done by
the twenty-third article, which renounces the right of fitting out privateers or of
capturing merchant vessels. The French treaty, therefore, is proposed as the model.
In this, however, the following changes are to be made :
We should be admitted to all the dominions of Spain to which any other foreign
nation is or may be admitted.
Article 5, being an exemption from a particular duty in France, will of course be
omitted as inapplicable to Spain.
Article 8 to be omitted as unnecessary with Morocco, and inefficacious and little
honorable with any of the Barbary powers ; but it may furnish occasion to sound
Spain on the project of a convention of the powers at war with the Barbary States
to keep up by rotation a constant cruise of a given force on their coasts till they
shall be compelled to renounce forever and against all nations their predatory
practices. Perhaps the infidelities of the Algerines to their treaty of peace with
Spain, though the latter does not choose to break openly, may induce her to subsidize
us to cruise against them with a given force.
Articles 9 and 10, concerning fisheries, to be omitted as inapplicable.
Article ii. The first paragraph of this article respecting the droit d'aubaine to
be omitted, that law being supposed peculiar to France.
Article 17, giving asylum in the ports of either to the armed vessels of the other
with the prizes taken from the enemies of that other, must be qualified as it is in
the nineteenth article of the Prussian treaty, as the stipulation in the latter part
of the article that " no shelter or refuge shall be given in the ports of the one to such
as shall have made prize on the subjects of the other of the parties" would forbid
us, in case of a war between France and Spain, to give shelter in our ports to prizes
made by the latter on the former, while the first part of the article would oblige us
to shelter those made by the former on the latter a very dangerous covenant, and
which ought never to be repeated in any other instance.
Article 29. Consuls should be received at all the ports at which the vessels of
either party may be received.
Article 30, concerning free ports in Europe and America, free ports in the Spanish
possessions in America, and particularly at The Havannah, are more to be desired
than expected. It can therefore only be recommended to the best endeavors of the
commissioners to obtain them. It will be something to obtain for our vessels, flour,
etc., admission to those ports during their pleasure. In like manner, if they could
112
Messages and Papers of the Presidents
be prevailed on to reestablish our right of cutting logwood in the Bay of Campeachy
on the footing on which it stood before the treaty of 1763, it would be desirable and
not endanger to us any contest with the English, who by the revolution treaty
are restrained to the southeastern parts of Yucatan.
Article 31. The act of ratification on our part may require a twelvemonth from
the date of the treaty, as the Senate meets regularly but once a year; and to return
it to Madrid for exchange may require four months more.
The treaty must not exceed years' duration, except the clauses relating to
boundary and the navigation of the Mississippi, which must be perpetual and final.
Indeed, these two subjects had better be in a separate instrument.
There might have been mentioned a third species of arrangement that of making
special agreements on every special subject of commerce, and of settling a tariff of
duty to be paid on each side on every particular article; but this would require in
our commissioners a very minute knowledge of our commerce, as it is impossible to
foresee every proposition of this kind which might be brought into discussion and to
prepare them for it by information and instruction from hence. Our commerce, too,
is as yet rather in a course of experiment, and the channels in which it will ultimately
flow are not sufficiently known to enable us to provide for it by special agreement;
nor have the exigencies of our new Government as yet so far developed themselves
as that we can know to what degree we may or must have recourse to commerce for
the purposes of revenue. No common consideration, therefore, ought to induce us
as yet to arrangements of this kind. Perhaps nothing should do it with any nation
short of the privileges of natives in all their possessions, foreign and domestic.
It were to be wished, indeed, that some positively favorable stipulations respecting
our grain, flour, and fish could be obtained, even on our giving reciprocal advantages
to some of the commodities of Spain, say her wines and brandies ; but,
First. If we quit the ground of the most favored nation as to certain articles for
our convenience, Spain may insist on doing the same for other articles for her con-
venience, and thus our commissioners will get themselves on the ground of a treaty
of detail, for which they will not be prepared.
Second. If we grant favor to the wines and brandies of Spain, then Portugal and
France will demand the same; and in order to create an equivalent Portugal may lay
a duty on our fish and grain, and France a prohibition on our whale oils, the removal
of which will be proposed as an equivalent.
Thus much, however, as to grain and flour may be attempted. There has not long
since been a considerable duty laid on them in Spain. This was while a treaty on
the subject of commerce was pending between us and Spain, as that Court ccnsiders
the matter. It is not generally thought right to change the state of things pending a
treaty concerning them. On this consideration and on the motive of cultivating our
friendship, perhaps the commissioners may induce them to restore this commodity to
the footing on which it was on opening the conferences with Mr. Gardoqui, on the
26th day of July, 1785. If Spain says, ' ' Do the same by your tonnage on our vesecls,"
the answer may be that "Our foreign tonnage affects Spain very little and other
nations very much; whereas the duty on flour in Spain affects us very much and
other nations very little; consequently there would be no equality in reciprocal
relinquishment, as there had been none in the reciprocal innovation; and Spain, by
insisting on this, would in fact only be aiding the interests of her rival nations, to
whom we should be forced to extend the same indulgence. ' ' At the time of opening
the conferences, too, we had as yet not erected any system, our Government itself
being not yet erected. Innovation then was unavoidable on our part, if it be inno-
vation to establish a system. We did it on fair and general ground, on ground
favorable to Spain ; but they had a system, and therefore innovation was avoidable
on their part
TH: JEFFERSON.
George Washington 113
ARTICLES PROPOSED BY DON DIKGO GARDOQUI TO BE INSERTED IN THE TREATY
WITH THE UNITED STATES.
First. That all commercial regulations affecting each other shall be founded in
perfect reciprocity. Spanish merchants shall enjoy all the commercial privileges of
native merchants in the United States, and American merchants shall enjoy all the
commercial privileges of native merchants in the Kingdom of Spain and in the
Canaries and other islands belonging to and adjacent thereto. The same privileges
shall extend to their respective vessels and merchandise consisting of the manufac-
tures and products of their respective countries.
Second. Each party may establish consuls in the countries of the other (excepting
such provinces in Spain into which none have heretofore been admitted, viz, Bilboa
and Guipusca), with such powers and privileges as shall be ascertained by a par-
ticular convention.
Third. That the bona fide manufactures and productions of the United States
(tobacco only excepted, which shall continue under its present regulation) may be
imported in American or Spanish vessels into any parts of His Majesty's European
dominions and islands aforesaid in like manner as if they were the productions of
Spain, and, on the other hand, that the bona fide manufactures and productions of
His Majesty's dominions may be imported into the United States in Spanish or
American vessels in like manner as if they were the manufactures and productions
of the said States. And further, that all such duties and imposts as may mutually
be thought necessary to lay on them by either party shall be ascertained and regulated
on principles of exact reciprocity by a tariff, to be formed by a convention for that
purpose, to be negotiated and made within one year after the exchange of the rati-
fication of this treaty ; and in the meantime that no other duties or imposts shall be
exacted from each other's merchants and ships than such as may be payable by
natives in like cases.
Fourth. That inasmuch as the United States, from not having mines of gold and
silver, may often want supplies of specie for a circulating medium, His Catholic
Majesty, as a proof of his good will, agrees to order the masts and timber which may
from time to time be wanted for his royal navy to be purchased and paid for in
specie in the United States, provided the said masts and timber shall be of equal quality
and when brought to Spain shall not cost more than the like may there be had for
from other countries.
Fifth. It is agreed that the articles commonly inserted in other treaties of com-
merce for mutual and reciprocal convenience shall be inserted in this, and that this
treaty and every article and stipulation therein shall continue in full force for
years, to be computed from the day of the date hereof.
UNITED STATES, March $>, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now lay before you a general account rendered by the bankers of the
United States at Amsterdam of the payments they had made between
the ist of July, 1790 and 1791, from the fund deposited in their hands
for the purposes of the act providing the means of intercourse between
the United States and foreign nations, and of the balance remaining in
their hands, together with a letter from the Secretary of State on the
subject.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ii4 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, March 20,
Gentlemen jfthe Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The several acts which have been passed relatively to the military
establishment of the United States and the protection of the frontiers
do not appear to have made provision for more than one brigadier-general.
It is incumbent upon me to observe that, with a view merely to the,
organization of the troops designated by those acts, a greater number of
officers of that grade would, in my opinion, be conducive to the good of
the public service. But an increase of the number becomes still more
desirable in reference to a different organization which is contemplated,
pursuant to the authority vested in me for that purpose, and which,
besides other advantages expected from it, is recommended by considera-
tions of economy. I, therefore request that you will be pleased to take
this subject into your early consideration and to adopt such measures
thereon as you shall judge proper.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 23, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
At the conferences which Colonel Pickering had with the Five Nations
at the Painted Post the last year ideas were then held out of introducing
among them some of the primary principles of civilization, in conse-
quence of which, as well as more firmly to attach them to the interests
of the United States, they have been invited to the seat of the General
Government.
As the representation now here is respectable for its character and
influence, it is of some importance that the chiefs should be well satisfied
of the entire good faith and liberality of the United States.
In managing the affairs of the Indian tribes generally it appears
proper to teach them to expect annual presents, conditioned on the
evidence of their attachment to the interests of the United States. The
situation of the Five Nations and the present crisis of affairs would
seem to render the extension of this measure to them highly judicious.
I therefore request the advice of the Senate whether an article shall be
stipulated with the Five Nations to the following purport , to wit:
The United States, in order to promote the happiness of the Five Nations of
Indians, will cause to be expended annually the amount of $1,500 in purchasing for
them clothing, domestic animals, and implements of husbandry, and for encouraging
useful artificers to reside iu their villages,
G9 WASHINGTON.
APRIL 13, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I have thought it proper to lay before you a communication of the nth
instant from the minister plenipotentiary of Great Britain to the Secre-
George Washington 115
tary of State, relative to the commerce of the two countries, together
with their explanatory correspondence and the Secretary of State's letter
to me on the subject,
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, April 16,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of a letter from the judges of the circuit court
of the United States held for the New York district, and of their opinion
and agreement respecting the "Act to provide for the settlement of the
claims of widows and orphans barred by the limitations heretofore estab-
lished, and to regulate the claims to invalid pensions. ' '
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, April 21, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you the copy of a letter which I have received from the
judges of the circuit court of the United States held for the Pennsylvania
district relatively to the ' 'Act to provide for the settlement of the claims
of widows and orphans barred by the limitations heretofore established,
and to regulate the claims to invalid pensions. ' '
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 8, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
If the President of the United States should conclude a convention or
treaty with the Government of Algiers for the ransom of the thirteen
Americans in captivity there for a sum not exceeding $40,000, all
expenses included, will the Senate approve the same? Or is there any,
and what, greater or lesser sum which they would fix on as the limit
beyond which they would not approve the ransom?
If the President of the United States should conclude a treaty with the
Government of Algiers for the establishment of peace with them, at an
expense not exceeding $25,000, paid at the signature, and a like sum to
be paid annually afterwards during the continuance of the treaty, would
the Senate approve the same? Or are there any greater or lesser sums
which they would fix on as the limits beyond which they would not
approve of such treaty?
G9 WASHINGTON.
n6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
VETO MESSAGE.
UNITED STATES, April 5, 1792.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have maturely considered the act passed by the two Houses entitled
"An act for an apportionment of Representatives among the several
States according to the first enumeration," and I return it to your
House, wherein it originated, with the following objections:
First. The Constitution has prescribed that Representatives shall be
apportioned among the several States according to their respective
numbers, and there is no one proportion or divisor which, applied to
the respective numbers of the States, will yield the number and allotment
of Representatives proposed by the bill.
Second. The Constitution has also provided that the number of Repre-
sentatives shall not exceed i for every 30,000, which restriction is by
the context and by fair and obvious construction to be applied to the
separate and respective numbers of the States; and the bill has allotted to
eight of the States more than i for every 30,000.
G9 WASHINGTON.
[From Sparks's Washington, Vol. X, p. 53*.]
PROCLAMATION.
Whereas certain violent and unwarrantable proceedings have lately
taken place tending to obstruct the operation of the laws of the United
States for raising a revenue upon spirits distilled within the same,
enacted pursuant to express authority delegated in the Constitution of
the United States, which proceedings are subversive of good order, con-
trary to the duty that every citizen owes to his country and to the laws,
and of a nature dangerous to the very being of a government; and
Whereas such proceedings are the more unwarrantable by reason of
the moderation which has been heretofore shown on the part of the
Government and of the disposition which has been manifested by the
Legislature (who alone have authority to suspend the operation of laws)
to obviate causes of objection and to render the laws as acceptable as
possible; and
Whereas it is the particular duty of the Executive "to take care that
the laws be faithfully executed," and not only that duty but the per-
manent interests and happiness of the people require that every legal
and necessary step should be pursued as well to prevent such violent and
George Washington 117
unwarrantable proceedings as to bring to justice the infractors of the
laws and secure obedience thereto:
Now, therefore, I, George Washington, President of the United States,
do by these presents most earnestly admonish and exhort all persons
whom it may concern to refrain and desist from all unlawful combina-
tions and proceedings whatsoever having for object or tending to obstruct
the operation of the laws aforesaid, inasmuch as all lawful ways and
means will be strictly put in execution for bringing to justice the infract-
ors thereof and securing obedience thereto.
And I do moreover charge and require all courts, magistrates, and
officers whom it may concern, according to the duties of their several
offices, to exert the powers in them respectively vested by law for the
purposes aforesaid, hereby also enjoining and requiring all persons
whomsoever, as they tender the welfare of their country, the just and
due authority of Government, and the preservation of the public peace,
to be aiding and assisting therein according to law.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to be
affixed to these presents, and signed the same with my hand.
[SEAL.] Done this i5th of September, A. D. 1792, and of the Inde-
pendence of the United States the seventeenth.
G9 WASHINGTON.
FOURTH ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, November 6, 1792.
- Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
It is some abatement of the satisfaction with which I meet you on
the present occasion that, in felicitating you on a continuance of the
national prosperity generally, I am not able to add to it information
that the Indian hostilities which have for some time past distressed
our Northwestern frontier have terminated.
You will, I am persuaded, learn with no less concern than I com-
municate it that reiterated endeavors toward effecting a pacification
have hitherto issued only in new and outrageous proofs of persevering
hostility on the part of the tribes with whom we are in contest. An
earnest desire to procure tranquillity to the frontier, to stop the further
effusion of blood, to arrest the progress of expense, to forward the preva-
lent wish of the nation for peace has led to strenuous efforts through
various channels to accomplish these desirable purposes; in making
which efforts I consulted less my own anticipations of the event, or
the scruples which some considerations were calculated to inspire, than
n8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the wish to find the object attainable, or if not attainable, to ascertain
unequivocally that such is the case.
A detail of the measures which have been pursued and of their conse-
quences, which will be laid before you, while it will confirm to you the
want of success thus far, will, I trust, evince that means as proper and
as efficacious as could have been devised have been employed. The
issue of some of them, indeed, is still depending, but a favorable one,
though not to be despaired of, is not promised by anything that has
yet happened.
In the course of the attempts which have been made some valuable
citizens have fallen victims to their zeal for the public service. A sanc-
tion commonly respected even among savages has been found in this
instance insufficient to protect from massacre the emissaries of peace.
It will, I presume, be duly considered whether the occasion does not call
for an exercise of liberality toward the families of the deceased.
It must add to your concern to be informed that, besides the continua-
tion of hostile appearances among the tribes north of the Ohio, some
threatening symptoms have of late been revived among some of those
south of it.
A part of the Cherokees, known by the name of Chickamaugas, inhab-
iting five villages on the Tennessee River, have long been in the practice
of committing depredations on the neighboring settlements.
It was hoped that the treaty of Holston, made with the Cherokee
Nation in July, 1791, would have prevented a repetition of such depre-
dations; but the event has not answered this hope. The Chickamaugas,
aided by some banditti of another tribe in their vicinity, have recently
perpetrated wanton and unprovoked hostilities upon the citizens of the
United States in that quarter. The information which has been received
on this subject will be laid before you. Hitherto defensive precautions
only have been strictly enjoined and observed.
It is not understood that any breach of treaty or aggression what-
soever on the part of the United States or their citizens is even alleged
as a pretext for the spirit of hostility in this quarter.
I have reason to believe that every practicable exertion has been made
(pursuant to the provision by law for that purpose) to be prepared for the
alternative of a prosecution of the war in the event of a failure of pacific
overtures. A large proportion of the troops authorized to be raised have
been recruited, though the number is still incomplete, and pains have
been taken to discipline and put them in condition for the particular kind
of service to be performed. A delay of operations (besides being dictated
by the measures which were pursuing toward a pacific termination of the
war) has been in itself deemed preferable to immature efforts. A state-
ment from the proper department with regard to the number of troops
raised, and some other points which have been suggested, will afford more
precise information as a guide to the legislative consultations, and among
George Washington 119
other things will enable Congress to judge whether some additional
stimulus to the recruiting service may not be advisable.
In looking forward to the future expense of the operations which may
be found inevitable I derive consolation from the information I receive
that the product of the revenues for the present year is likely to super-
ede the necessity of additional burthens on the community for the service
of the ensuing year. This, however, will be better ascertained in the
course of the session, and it is proper to add that the information alluded
to proceeds upon the supposition of no material extension of the spirit of
hostility.
I can not dismiss the subject of Indian affairs without again recom-
mending to your consideration the expediency of more adequate provision
for giving energy to the laws throughout our interior frontier and for
restraining the commission of outrages upon the Indians, without which
all pacific plans must prove nugatory. To enable, by competent rewards,
the employment of qualified and trusty persons to reside among them
as agents would also contribute to the preservation of peace and good
neighborhood. If in addition to these expedients an eligible plan could
be devised for promoting civilization among the friendly tribes and for
carrying on trade with them upon a scale equal to their wants and under
regulations calculated to protect them from imposition and extortion,
its influence in cementing their interest with ours could not but be
considerable.
The prosperous state of our revenue has been intimated. This would
be still more the case were it not for the impediments which in some places
continue to embarrass the collection of the duties on spirits distilled
within the United States. These impediments have lessened and are
lessening in local extent, and, as applied to the community at large, the
contentment with the law appears to be progressive.
But symptoms of increased opposition having lately manifested them-
selves in certain quarters, I judged a special interposition on my part
proper and advisable, and under this impression have issued a proclama-
tion warning against all unlawful combinations and proceedings having
for their object or tending to obstruct the operation of the law in ques-
tion, and announcing that all lawful ways and means would be strictly
put in execution for bringing to justice the infractors thereof and securing
obedience thereto.
Measures have also been taken for the prosecution of offenders, and
Congress may be assured that nothing within constitutional and legal
limits which may depend upon me shall be wanting to assert and main-
tain the just authority of the laws. In fulfilling this trust I shall count
entirely upon the full cooperation of the other departments of the Gov-
ernment and upon the zealous support of all good citizens.
I can not forbear to bring again into the view of the Legislature the
subject of a revision of the judiciary system. A representation from
120 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the judges of the Supreme Court, which will be laid before you, points
out some of the inconveniences that are experienced. In the course of
the execution of the laws considerations arise out of the structure of
that system which in some cases tend to relax their efficacy. As con-
nected with this subject, provisions to facilitate the taking of bail upon
processes out of the courts of the United States and a supplementary
definition of offenses against the Constitution and laws of the Union and
of the punishment for such offenses will, it is presumed, be found worthy
of particular attention.
Observations on the value of peace with other nations are unnecessary.
It would be wise, however, by timely provisions to guard against those
acts of our own citizens which might tend to disturb it, and to put our-
selves in a condition to give that satisfaction to foreign nations which we
may sometimes have occasion to require from them. I particularly recom-
mend to your consideration the means of preventing those aggressions by
our citizens on the territory of other nations, and other infractions of the
law of nations, which, furnishing just subject of complaint, might endan-
ger our peace with them; and, in general, the maintenance of a friendly
intercourse with foreign powers will be presented to your attention by
the expiration of the law for that purpose, which takes place, if not
renewed, at the close of the present session.
In execution of the authority given by the Legislature measures have
been taken for engaging some artists from abroad to aid in the establish-
ment of our mint. Others have been employed at home. Provision
has been made of the requisite buildings, and these are now putting
into proper condition for the purposes of the establishment. There has
also been a small beginning in the coinage of half dimes, the want of
small coins in circulation calling the first attention to them.
The regulation of foreign coins in correspondency with the princi-
ples of our national coinage, as being essential to their due operation
and to order in our money concerns, will, I doubt not, be resumed and
completed.
It is represented that some provisions' in the law which establishes the
post-office operate, in experiment, against the transmission of newspapers
to distant parts of the country. Should this, upon due inquiry, be found
to be the fact, a full conviction of the importance of facilitating the cir-
culation of political intelligence and information will, I doubt not, lead
to the application of a remedy.
The adoption of a constitution for the State of Kentucky has been
notified to me. The Legislature will share with me in the satisfaction
which arises from an event interesting to the happiness of the part of the
nation to which it relates and conducive to the general order.
It is proper likewise to inform you that since my last communication
on the subject, and in further execution of the acts severally making pro-
vision for the public debt and for the reduction thereof, three new loans
George Washington 121
have been effected, each for 3,000,000 florins one at Antwerp, at the
annual interest of 4^ per cent, with an allowance of 4 per cent in lieu
of all charges, and the other two at Amsterdam, at the annual interest
of 4 per cent, with an allowance of 5^ per cent in one case and of 5 per
cent in the other in lieu of all charges. The rates of these loans and
the circumstances under which they have been made are confirmations
of the high state of our credit abroad.
Among the objects to which these funds. have been directed to be
applied, the payment of the debts due to certain foreign officers, accord-
ing to the provision made during the last session, has been embraced.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I entertain a strong hope that the state of the national finances is now
sufficiently matured to enable you to enter upon a systematic and effectual
arrangement for the regular redemption and discharge of the public debt,
according to the right which has been reserved to the Government. No
measure can be more desirable, whether viewed with an eye to its intrinsic
importance or to the general sentiment and wish of the nation.
Provision is likewise requisite for the reimbursement of the loan which
has been made of the Bank of the United States, pursuant to the eleventh
section of the act by which it is incorporated. In fulfilling the public
stipulations in this particular it is expected a valuable saving will be
made.
Appropriations for the current service of the ensuing year and for
such extraordinaries as may require provision will demand, and I doubt
not will engage, your early attention.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I content myself with recalling your attention generally to such
objects, not particularized in my present, as have been suggested in my
former communications to you.
Various temporary laws will expire during the present session. Among
these, that which regulates trade and intercourse with the Indian tribes
will merit particular notice.
The results of your common deliberations hitherto will, I trust, be
productive of solid and durable advantages to our constituents, such
as, by conciliating more and more their ultimate suffrage, will tend to
strengthen and confirm their attachment to that Constitution of Govern-
ment upon which, under Divine Providence, materially depend their
union, their safety, and their happiness.
Still further to promote and secure these inestimable ends there is
nothing which can have a more powerful tendency than the careful culti-
vation of harmony, combined with a due regard to stability, in the public
councils.
G9 WASHINGTON.
122 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OP THE UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES :
Accept, sir, our grateful acknowledgments for your address at the
opening of the present session. We participate with you in the satisfac-
tion arising from the continuance of the general prosperity of the nation,
but it is not without the most sincere concern that we are informed that
the reiterated efforts which have been made to establish peace with the
hostile Indians have hitherto failed to accomplish that desired object.
Hoping that the measures still depending may prove more successful
than those which have preceded them, we shall nevertheless concur in
every necessary preparation for the alternative, and should the Indians
on either side of the Ohio persist in their hostilities, fidelity to the Union,
as well as affection for our fellow-citizens on the frontiers, will insure our
decided cooperation in every measure which shall be deemed requisite
for their protection and safety.
At the same time that we avow the obligation of the Government to
afford its protection to every part of the Union, we can not refrain from
expressing our regret that even a small portion of our fellow-citizens in
any quarter of it should have combined to oppose the operation of the
law for the collection of duties on spirits distilled within the United
States, a law repeatedly sanctioned by the authority of the nation, and
at this juncture materially connected with the safety and protection of
those who oppose it. Should the means already adopted fail in securing
obedience to this law, such further measures as may be thought necessary
to carry the same into complete operation can not fail to receive the
approbation of the Legislature and the support of every patriotic citizen.
It yields us particular pleasure to learn that the productiveness of the
revenue of the present j^ear will probably supersede the necessity of any
additional tax for the service of the next.
The organization of the government of the State of Kentucky being
an event peculiarly interesting to a part of our fellow-citizens and con-
ducive to the general order, affords us particular satisfaction.
We are happy to learn that the high state of our credit abroad has
l>een evinced by the terms on which the new loans have been negotiated.
In the course of the session we shall proceed to take into consideration
the several objects which you have been pleased to recommend to our
attention, and keeping in view the importance of union and stability in
the public councils, we shall labor to render our decisions conducive to
the safety and happiness of our country.
We repeat with pleasure our assurances of confidence in your Admin-
istration and our ardent wish that your unabated zeal for the public
good may be rewarded by the durable prosperity of the nation, and every
ingredient of personal happiness.
JOHN LANGDON,
NOVEMBER 9, 1792. President pro tcmporc.
George Washington 123
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
I derive much pleasure, gentlemen, from your very satisfactory address.
The renewed assurances of your confidence in my Administration and the
expression of your wish for my personal happiness claim and receive my
particular acknowledgments. In my future endeavor for the public
welfare, to which my duty may call me, I shall not cease to count upon
the firm, enlightened, and patriotic support of the Senate.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NOVEMBER 9, 1792.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The House of Representatives, who always feel a satisfaction in
meeting you, are much concerned that the occasion for mutual felicita-
tion afforded by the circumstances favorable to the national prosperity
should be abated by a continuance of the hostile spirit of many of the
Indian tribes, and particularly that the reiterated efforts for effecting a
general pacification with them should have issued in new proofs of their
persevering enmity and the barbarous sacrifice of citizens who, as the
messengers of peace, were distinguishing themselves by their zeal for the
public service. In our deliberations on this important department of our
affairs we shall be disposed to pursue every measure that may be dictated
by the sincerest desire, on one hand, of cultivating peace and manifest-
ing by every practicable regulation our benevolent regard for the welfare
of those misguided people, and by the duty we feel, on the other, to pro-
vide effectually for the safety and protection of our fellow-citizens.
While with regret we learn that symptoms of opposition to the law
imposing duties on spirits distilled within the United States have mani-
fested themselves, we reflect with consolation that they are confined to
a small portion of our fellow-citizens. It is not more essential to the
preservation of true libertv that a government should be always ready
to listen to the representations of its constituents and to accommodate
its measures to the sentiments and wishes of every part of them, as far as
will consist with the good of the whole, than it is that the just authority
of the laws should be steadfastly maintained. Under this impression
every department of the Government and all good citizens must approve
the measures you have taken and the purpose you have formed to exe-
cute this part of your trust with firmness and energy; and be assured,
sir, of every constitutional aid and cooperation which may become
requisite on our part. And we hope that, while the progress of con-
tentment under the law in question is as obvious as it is rational, no
particular part of the community may be permitted to withdraw from the
general burthens of the country by a conduct as irreconcilable to national
justice as it is inconsistent with public decency.
124 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
The productive state of the public revenue and the confirmation of
the credit of the United States abroad, evinced by the loans at Antwerp
and Amsterdam, are communications the more gratifying as they enforce
the obligation to enter on systematic and effectual arrangements for dis-
charging the public debt as fast as the conditions of it will permit, and
we take pleasure in the opportunity to assure you of our entire concur-
rence in the opinion that no measure can be more desirable, whether
viewed with an eye to the urgent wish of the community or the intrinsic
importance of promoting so happy a change in our situation.
The adoption of a constitution for the State of Kentucky is an event
on which we join in all the satisfaction you have expressed. It may be
considered as particularly interesting since, besides the immediate bene-
fits resulting from it, it is another auspicious demonstration of the facility
and success with which an enlightened people is capable of providing,
by free and deliberate plans of government, for their own safety and
happiness.
The operation of the law establishing the post-office, as it relates to
the transmission of newspapers, will merit our particular inquiry and
attention, the circulation of political intelligence through these vehicles
being justly reckoned among the surest means of preventing the degen-
eracy of a free government, as well as of recommending every salutary
public measure to the confidence and cooperation of all virtuous citizens.
The several other matters which you have communicated and recom-
mended will in their order receive the attention due to them, and our
discussions will in all cases, we trust, be guided by a proper respect for
harmony and stability in the public councils and a desire to conciliate
more and more the attachment of our constituents to the Constitution,
by measures accommodated to the true ends for which it was established.
NOVEMBER 10, 1792.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: It gives me pleasure to express to you the satisfaction
which your address affords me. I feel, as I ought, the approbation you
manifest of the measures I have taken and the purpose I have formed
to maintain, pursuant to the trust reposed in me by the Constitution, the
respect which is due to the laws, and the assurance which you at the
same time give me of every constitutional aid and cooperation that may
become requisite on your part.
This is a new proof of that enlightened solicitude for the establishment
and confirmation of public order which, embracing a zealous regard for
the principles of true liberty, has guided the deliberations of the House
of Representatives, a perseverance in which can alone secure, under the
divine blessing, the real and permanent felicity of our common country.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NOVEMBER 12, 1792.
George Washington 125
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, November 7, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives :
111 pursuance of the law, I now lay before you a statement of the admin-
istration of the funds appropriated to certain foreign purposes, together
with a letter from the Secretary of State explaining the same.
I also lay before you a copy of a letter and representation from the
Chief Justice and associate judges of the Supreme Court of the United
States, stating the difficulties and inconveniences which attend the dis-
charge of their duties according to the present judiciary system.
A copy of a letter from the judges attending the circuit court of the
United States for the North Carolina district in June last, containing
their observations on an act, passed during the last session of Congress,
entitled ' 'An act to provide for the settlement of the claims of widows
and orphans barred by the limitations heretofore established, and to
regulate the claims to invalid pensions; " and
A copy of the constitution formed for the State of Kentucky.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, November p, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now lay before you a letter from the Secretary of State, covering the
copy of one from the governor of Virginia, with the several papers
therein referred to, on the subject of the boundary between that State
and the territory of the United States south of the Ohio. It will remain
with the Legislature to take such measures as it shall think best for
settling the said boundary with that State, and at the same time, if it
thinks proper, for extending the settlement to the State of Kentucky,
between which and the same territory the boundary is as yet unde-
termined.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, November 22, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I send you herewith the abstract of a supplementary arrangement
which has been made by me, pursuant to the acts of the 3d day of March,
1791, and the 8th day of May, 1792, for raising a revenue upon foreign
and domestic distilled spirits, in respect to the subdivisions and officers
which have appeared to me necessary and to the allowances for their
respective services to the supervisors, inspectors, and other officers of
inspection, together with the estimates of the amount of compensations
and charges.
G WASHINGTON.
126 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, December 6, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The several measures which have been pursued to induce the hostile
Indian tribes north of the Ohio to enter into a conference or treaty with
the United States at which all causes of difference might be fully under-
stood and justly and amicably arranged have already been submitted to
both Houses of Congress.
Tlie papers herewith sent will inform you of the result.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 7, 1792.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you two letters, with their iuclosures, from the governor
of the Southwestern territory, and an extract of a letter to him from
the Department of War.
These and a letter of the 9th of October last, which has been already
communicated to you, from the same Department to the governor, will
shew in what manner the first section of the act of the last session which
provides for calling out the militia for the repelling of Indian invasions
has been executed. It remains to be considered by Congress whether
in the present situation of the United States it be advisable or not to
pursue any further or other measures than those which have been already
adopted. The nature of the subject does of itself call for your immediate
attention to it, and I must add that upon the result of your delibera-
tions the future conduct of the Executive will on this occasion materially
depend.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 23, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Since my last communication to you on the subject of the revenue on
distilled spirits it has been found necessary, on experience, to revise and
amend the arrangements relative thereto in regard to certain surveys
and the officers thereof in the district of North Carolina, which I have
done accordingly in the manner following:
First. The several counties of the said district originally and hereto-
fore contained within the first, second, and third surveys have been
allotted into and are now contained in two surveys, one of which (to
be hereafter denominated the first) comprehends the town of Wilming-
ton and the counties of Onslow, New Hanover, Brunswick, Robertson,
Sampson, Craven, Jones, Lenox, Glascow, Johnston, and Wayne, and the
other of which (to be hereafter denominated the second) comprehends
the counties of Kurrituck, Camden, Pasquotaiik, Perquimans, Chowan,
Gates, Hartford, Tyrrel, Bertie, Carteret, Hyde, Beaufort, and Pitt.
George Washington 127
Secondly. The several counties of the said district originally and here-
tofore contained within the fifth survey of the district aforesaid has been
allotted into and is contained in two surveys, one of which (to be here-
after denominated the third) comprehends the counties of Mecklenburg,
Rowan, Iredell, Montgomery, Guilford, Rockingham, Stokes, and Surrey,
and the other of which (to be hereafter denominated the fifth) compre-
hends the counties of Lincoln, Rutherford, Burke, Buncombe, and Wilkes.
Thirdly. The duties of the inspector of the revenue in and for the
third survey as constituted above is to be performed for the present by
the supervisor.
Fourthly. The compensations of the inspector of the revenue for the
first survey as above constituted are to be a salary of $250 per annum
and commissions and other emoluments similar to those heretofore
allowed to the inspector of the late first survey as it was originally
constituted.
Fifthly. The compensations of the inspector of the revenue for the
second survey as above constituted are to be a salary of $100 per annum
and the commissions and other emoluments heretofore allowed to the
inspector of the late third survey as it was originally constituted.
Sixthly. The compensations of the inspector of the revenue for the
fifth survey as above constituted are to be a salary of $120 per annum
and the commissions and other emoluments similar to those heretofore
allowed to the inspector of the late fifth survey as it was originally
constituted.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 25, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you an official statement of the expenditure to the year
1792 from the sum of $10,000, granted to defray the contingent expenses
of Government by an act passed on the 26th of March, 1790.
Also an abstract of a supplementary arrangement made in the district
of North Carolina in regard to certain surveys to facilitate the execu-
tion of the law laying a duty on distilled spirits.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 13, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you for your consideration and advice a treaty of peace
and friendship made and concluded on the 27th day of September, 1792,
by Brigadier- General Rufus Putnam, in behalf of the United States,
with the Wabash and Illinois tribes of Indians, and also the proceedings
attending the said treaty, the explanation of the fourth article thereof,
and a map explanatory of the reservation to the French inhabitants and
the general claim of the said Indians.
128 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
In connection \vith this subject I also lay before the Senate the copy
of a paper which has been delivered by a man by the name of John Bap-
tiste Mayee" , who has accompanied the Wabash Indians at present in this
city.
It will appear by the certificate of Brigadier-General Putnam that the
Wabash Indians disclaimed the validity of the said paper, excepting a
certain tract upon the Wabash, as mentioned in the proceedings.
The instructions to Brigadier- General Putnam of the 226. of May,
together with a letter to him of the yth of August, 1792, were laid before
the Senate on the 7th of November, 1792.
After the Senate shall have considered this treaty, I request that they
would give me their advice whether the same shall be ratified and con-
firmed ; and if to be ratified and confirmed, whether it would not be
proper, in order to prevent any misconception hereafter of the fourth
article, to guard in the ratification the exclusive preemption of the
United States to the lands of the said Indians.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 18, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now lay before you a report and plat of the territory of the United
States on the Potomac as given in by the commissioners of that territory,
together with a letter from the Secretary of State which accompanied
them. These papers, being original, are to be again deposited with the
records of the Department of State after having answered the purpose of
your information.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 19, 1793.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
It has been agreed on the part of the United States that a treaty or
conference shall be held at the ensuing season with the hostile Indians
northwest of the Ohio, in order to remove, if possible, all causes of differ-
ence and to establish a solid peace with them.
As the estimates heretofore presented to the House for the current
year did not contemplate this object, it will be proper that an express
provision be made by law as well for the general expenses of the treaty
as to establish the compensation to be allowed the commissioners who
shall be appointed for the purpose.
1 shall therefore direct the Secretary of War to lay before you an
estimate of the expenses which may probably attend this measure.
G9 WASHINGTON.
, George Washington IZQ
UNITED STATES, February zj, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a copy of an exemplification of an act of the legislature
of New York ceding to the United States the jurisdiction of certain lands
on Montauk Point for the purpose mentioned in said act, and the copy
of a letter from the governor of New York to the Secretary of State,
which accompanied said exemplification.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 28,
Gmtlemen of the Senate:
I was led by a consideration of the qualifications of William Patterson,
of New Jersey, to nominate him an associate justice of the Supreme
Court of the United States. It has since occurred that he was a member
of the Senate when the law creating that office was passed, and that the
time for which he was elected is not yet expired. I think it my duty,
therefore, to declare that I deem the nomination to have been null by
the. Constitution.
G9 WASHINGTON.
PROCLAMATIONS.
[From Freneau's National Gazette of December 15, 1792.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
Whereas I have received authentic information that certain lawless
and wicked persons of the western frontier in the State of Georgia did
lately invade, burn, and destroy a town belonging to the Cherokee Nation,
although in amity with the United States, and put to death several
Indians of that nation; and
Whereas such outrageous conduct not only violates the rights of
humanity, but also endangers the public peace, and it highly becomes
the honor and good faith of the United States to pursue all legal means
for the punishment of those atrocious offenders:
I have therefore thought fit to issue this my proclamation, hereby
exhorting all the citizens of the United States and requiring all the
officers thereof, according to their respective stations, to use their utmost
endeavors to apprehend and bring those offenders to justice. And I do
moreover offer a reward of $500 for each and every cf the above-named
persons who shall be so apprehended and brought to justice and shall be
proved to have assumed or exercised any command or authority among
the perpetrators of the crimes aforesaid at the time of committing the
same.
130 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to
be affixed to these presents, and signed the same with my hand.
FSFA 1 Done at the city of Philadelphia, the I2th day of December,
A. D. 1792, and of the Independence of the United States the
seventeenth. G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
TH: JEFFERSON.
[From Annals of Congress, Second Congress, 666.]
MARCH i, 1793.
The President of the United States to the President of the Senate:
Certain matters touching the public good requiring that the Senate
shall be convened on Monday, the 4th instant, I have desired their
attendance, as I do yours, by these presents, at the Senate Chamber, in
Philadelphia, on that day, then and there to receive and deliberate on
such communications as shall be made to you on my part.
GQ WASHINGTON.
SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
IN THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, PA.
FELLOW-CITIZENS: I am again called upon by the voice of my country
to execute the functions of its Chief Magistrate. When the occasion
proper for it shall arrive, I shall endeavor to express the high sense I
entertain of this distinguished honor, and of the confidence which has
been reposed in me by the people of united America.
Previous to the execution of any official act of the President the Con-
stitution requires an oath of office. This oath I am now about to take, and
in your presence : That if it shall be found during my administration of
the Government I have in any instance violated willingly or knowingly
the injunctions thereof, I may (besides incurring constitutional punish-
ment) be subject to the upbraidings of all who are now witnesses of the
present solemn ceremony.
MARCH 4, 1793.
FIFTH ANNUAL ADDRESS.
PHILADELPHIA, December j, 1793.
Fellow- Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Since the commencement of the term for which I have been again
called into office no fit occasion has arisen for expressing to my fellow-
citizens at large the deep and respectful sense which I feel of the renewed
George Washington 131
testimony of public approbation. While on the one hand it awakened
my gratitude for all those instances of affectionate partiality with which
I have been honored by my country, on the other it could not prevent
an earnest wish for that retirement from which no private consideration
should ever have torn me. But influenced by the belief that my conduct
would be estimated according to its real motives, and that the people,
and the authorities derived from them, would support exertions having
nothing personal for their object, I have obeyed the suffrage which com-
manded me to resume the Executive power; and I humbly implore that
Being on whose will the fate of nations depends to crown with success
our mutual endeavors for the general happiness.
As soon as the war in Europe had embraced those powers with whom
the United States have the most extensive relations there was reason to
apprehend that our intercourse with them might be interrupted and our
disposition for peace drawn into question by the suspicions too often
entertained by belligerent nations. It seemed, therefore, to be my duty
to admonish our citizens of the consequences of a contraband trade and
of hostile acts to any of the parties, and to obtain by a declaration of
the existing legal state of things an easier admission of our right to
the immunities belonging to our situation. Under these impressions
the proclamation which will be laid before you was issued.
In this posture of affairs, both new and delicate, I resolved to adopt
general rules which should conform to the treaties and assert the privi-
leges of the United States. These were reduced into a system, which
will be communicated to you. Although I have not thought myself at
liberty to forbid the sale of the prizes permitted by our treaty of com-
merce with France to be bi ought into our ports, I have not refused to
cause them to be restored when they were taken within the protection
of our territory, or by vessels commissioned or equipped in a warlike
form within the limits of the United States.
It rests with the wisdom of Congress to correct, improve, or enforce
this plan of procedure; and it will probably be found expedient to extend
the legal code and the jurisdiction of the courts of the United States to
many cases which, though dependent on principles already recognized,
demand some further provisions.
Where individuals shall, within the United States, array themselves in
hostility against any of the powers at war, or enter upon military expedi-
tions or enterprises within the jurisdiction of the United States, or usurp
and exercise judicial authority within the United States, or where the
penalties on violations of the law of nations may have been indistinctly
marked, or are inadequate these offenses can not receive too early and
close an attention, and require prompt and decisive remedies.
Whatsoever those remedies may be, they will be well administered
by the judiciary, who possess a long-established course of investigation,
effectual process, and officers in the habit of executing it.
6
132 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
In like manner, as several of the courts have doubted, under particular
circumstances, their power to liberate the vessels of a nation at peace,
and even of a citizen of the United States, although seized under a false
color of being hostile property, and have denied their power to liberate
certain captures within the protection of our territory, it would seem
proper to regulate their jurisdiction in these points. But if the Executive
is to be the resort in either of the two last-mentioned cases, it is hoped
that he will be authorized by law to have facts ascertained by the courts
when for his own information he shall request it.
I can not recommend to your notice measures for the fulfillment of our
duties to the rest of the world without again pressing upon you the
necessity of placing ourselves in a condition of complete defense and of
exacting from them the fulfillment of their duties toward us. The United
States ought not to indulge a persuasion that, contrary to the order of
human events, they will forever keep at a distance those painful appeals
to arms with which the history of every other nation abounds. There is
a rank due to the United States among nations which will be withheld,
if not absolutely lost, by the reputation of weakness. If we desire to
avoid insult, we must be able to repel it ; if we desire to secure peace,
one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must
be known that we are at all times ready for war. The documents which
will be presented to you will shew the amount and kinds of arms and
military stores now in our magazines and arsenals ; and yet an addition
even to these supplies can not with prudence be neglected, as it would
leave nothing to the uncertainty of procuring of warlike apparatus in
the moment of public danger.
Nor can such arrangements, with such objects, be exposed to the cen-
sure or jealousy of the warmest friends of republican government. They
are incapable of abuse in the hands of the militia, who ought to possess
a pride in being the depository of the force of the Republic, and may
be trained to a degree of energy equal to every military exigency of the
United States. But it is an inquiry which can not be too solemnly
pursued, whether the act "more effectually to provide for the national
defense by establishing an uniform militia throughout the United States "
has organized them so as to produce their full effect ; whether your own
experience in the several States has not detected some imperfections
in the scheme, and whether a material feature in an improvement of
Jt ought not to be to afford an opportunity for the study of those
branches of the military art which can scarcely ever be attained by prac-
tice alone.
The connection of the United States with Europe has become extremely
interesting. The occurrences which relate to it and have passed under
the knowledge of the Executive will be exhibited to Congress in a sub-
sequent communication.
When we contemplate the war on our frontiers, it may be truly affirmed
George Washington 133
that every reasonable effort has been made to adjust the causes of dissen-
sion with the Indians north of the Ohio. The instructions given to the
commissioners evince a moderation and equity proceeding from a sincere
love of peace, and a liberality having no restriction but the essential inter-
ests and dignity of the United States. The attempt, however, of an ami-
cable negotiation having been frustrated, the troops have marched to act
offensively. Although the proposed treaty did not arrest the progress
of military preparation, it is doubtful how far the advance of the season,
before good faith justified active movements, may retard them during the
remainder of the year. From the papers and intelligence which relate
to this important subject you will determine whether the deficiency in
the number of troops granted by law shall be compensated by succors of
militia, or additional encouragements shall be proposed to recruits.
An anxiety has been also demonstrated by the Executive for peace
with the Creeks and the Cherokees. The former have been relieved with
corn and with clothing, and offensive measures against them prohibited
during the recess of Congress. To satisfy the complaints of the latter,
prosecutions have been instituted for the violences committed upon them.
But the papers which will be delivered to you disclose the critical footing
on which we stand in regard to both those tribes, and it is with Congress
to pronounce what shall be done.
After they shall have provided for the present emergency, it will merit
their most serious labors to render tranquillity with the savages permanent
by creating ties of interest. Next to a rigorous execution of justice on
the violators of peace, the establishment of commerce with the Indian
nations in behalf of the United States is most likely to conciliate their
attachment. But it ought to be conducted without fraud, without extor-
tion, with constant and plentiful supplies, with a ready market for the
commodities of the Indians and a stated price for what they give in
payment and receive in exchange. Individuals will not pursue such
a traffic unless they be allured by the hope of profit; but it will be
enough for the United States to be reimbursed only. Should this rec-
ommendation accord with the opinion of Congress, they will recollect
that it can not be accomplished by any means yet in the hands of the
Executive.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The commissioners charged with the settlement of accounts between
the United States and individual States concluded their important func-
tions within the time limited by law, and the balances struck in their
report, which will be laid before Congress, have been placed on the books
of the Treasury.
On the ist day of June last an installment of 1,000,000 florins became
payable on the loans of the United States in Holland. This was adjusted
by a prolongation of the period of reimbursement in nature of a new
134 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
loan at an interest of 5 per cent for the term of ten years, and the
expenses of this operation were a commission of 3 per cent.
The first installment of the loan of $2,000,000 from the Bank of the
United States has been paid, as was directed by law. For the second it
is necessary that provision should be made.
No pecuniary consideration is more urgent tlian the regular redemption
and discharge of the public debt. On none can delay be more injurious
or an economy of time more valuable.
The productiveness of the public revenues hitherto has continued to
equal the anticipations which were formed of it, but it is not expected
to prove commensurate with all the objects which have been suggested.
Some auxiliary provisions will therefore, it is presumed, be requisite,
and it is hoped that these may be made consistently with a due regard to
the convenience of our citizens, who can not but be sensible of the true
wisdom of encountering a small present addition to their contributions
to obviate a future accumulation of burthens.
But here I can not forbear to recommend a repeal of the tax on the
transportation of public prints. There is no resource so firm for the
Government of the United States as the affections of the people, guided
by an enlightened policy ; and to this primary good nothing can conduce
more than a faithful representation of public proceedings, diffused without
restraint throughout the United States.
An estimate of the appropriations necessary for the current service of
the ensuing year and a statement of a purchase of arms and military
stores made during the recess will be presented to Congress.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The several subjects to which I have now referred open a wide range
to your deliberations and involve some of the choicest interests of our
common country. Permit me to bring to your remembrance the magni-
tude of your task. Without an unprejudiced coolness the welfare of the
Government may be hazarded ; without harmony as far as consists with
freedom of sentiment its dignity may be lost. But as the legislative
proceedings of the United States will never, I trust, be reproached for
the want of temper or of candor, so shall not the public happiness languish
from the want of my strenuous and warmest cooperation.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:
Accept, sir, the thanks of the Senate for your speech delivered to both
Houses of Congress at the opening of the session. Your reelection to the
Chief Magistracy of the United States gives us sincere pleasure. We
George Washington 135
consider it as an event every way propitious to the happiness of our
country, and your compliance with the call as a fresh instance of the
patriotism which has so repeatedly led you to sacrifice private inclination
to the public good. In the unanimity which a second time marks this
important national act we trace with particular satisfaction, besides the
distinguished tribute paid to the virtues and abilities which it recog-
nizes, another proof of that just discernment and constancy of sentiments
and views which have hitherto characterized the citizens of the United
States.
As the European powers with whom the United States have the most
extensive relations were involved in war, in which we had taken no
part, it seemed necessary that the disposition of the nation for peace
should be promulgated to the world, as well for the purpose of admon-
ishing our citizens of the consequences of a contraband trade and of acts
hostile to any of the belligerent parties as to obtain by a declaration of
the existing legal state of things an easier admission of our right to the
immunities of our situation. We therefore contemplate with pleasure the
proclamation by you issued, and give it our hearty approbation. We
deem it a measure well timed and wise, manifesting a watchful solicitude
for the welfare of the nation and calculated to promote it.
The several important matters presented to our consideration will, in
the course of the session, engage all the attention to which they are
respectively entitled, and as the public happiness will be the sole guide
of our deliberations, we are perfectly assured of receiving your strenuous
and most zealous cooperation.
JOHN ADAMS,
Vice- President of the United States and President of the Senate. .
DECEMBER 9, 1793.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: The pleasure expressed by the Senate on my reelection
to the station which I fill commands my sincere and warmest acknowl-
edgments. If this be an event which promises the smallest addition to
the happiness of our country, as it is my duty so shall it be my study
to realize the expectation.
The decided approbation which the proclamation now receives from
your House, by completing the proofs that this measure is considered as
manifesting a vigilant attention to the welfare of the United States,
brings with it a peculiar gratification to my mind.
The other important subjects which have been communicated to you
will, I am confident, receive a due discussion, and the result will, I trust,
prove fortunate to the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 10, 1793.
136 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Representatives of the people of the United States, in meet-
ing you for the first time since you have been again called by an unani-
mous suffrage to your present station, find an occasion which they embrace
with no less sincerity than promptitude for expressing to you their con-
gratulations on so distinguished a testimony of public approbation, and
their entire confidence in the purity and patriotism of the motives which
have produced this obedience to the voice of your country. It is to
virtues which have commanded long and universal reverence and serv-
ices from which have flowed great and lasting benefits that the tribute
of praise may be paid without the reproach of flattery, and it is from
the same sources that the fairest anticipations may be derived in favor
of the public happiness.
The United States having taken no part in the war which had em-
braced in Europe the powers with whom they have the most extensive
relations, the maintenance of peace was justly to be regarded as one of the
most important duties of the Magistrate charged with the faithful execu-
tion of the laws. We accordingly witness with approbation and pleasure
the vigilance with which you have guarded against an interruption of that
blessing by your proclamation admonishing our citizens of the conse-
quences of illicit or hostile acts toward the belligerent parties, and pro-
moting by a declaration of the existing legal state of things an easier
admission of our right to the immunities belonging to our situation.
The connection of the United States with Europe has evidently become
extremely interesting. The communications which remain to be exhib-
ited to us will no doubt assist in giving us a fuller view of the subject
and in guiding our deliberations to such results as may comport with
the rights and true interests of our country.
We learn with deep regret that the measures, dictated by love of peace,
for obtaining an amicable termination of the afflicting war on our frontiers
have been frustrated, and that a resort to offensive measures should have
again become necessary. As the latter, however, must be rendered more
satisfactory in proportion to the solicitude for peace manifested by the
former, it is to be hoped they will be pursued under the better auspices
on that account, and be finally crowned with more happy success.
In relation to the particular tribes of Indians against whom offensive
measures have been prohibited, as well as on all the other important
subjects which you have presented to our view, we shall bestow the
attention which they claim. We can not, however, refrain at this time
from particularly expressing our concurrence in your anxiety for the
regular discharge of the public debts as fast as circumstances and events
will permit and in the policy of removing any impediments that may
be found in the way of a faithful representation of public proceedings
George Washington 137
throughout the United States, being persuaded with you that on no sub-
ject more than the former can delay be more injurious or an economy of
time more valuable, and that with respect to the latter no resource is
so firm for the Government of the United States as the affections of the
people, guided by an enlightened policy.
Throughout our deliberations we shall endeavor to cherish every senti-
ment which may contribute to render them conducive to the dignity as
well as to the welfare of the United States ; and we join with you in
imploring that Being on whose will the fate of nations depends to crown
with success our mutual endeavors.
DECEMBER 6, 1793.
REPLY OP THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: I shall not affect to conceal the cordial satisfaction
which I derive from the address of the House of Representatives.
Whatsoever those services may be which you have sanctioned by your
favor, it is a sufficient reward that they have been accepted as they were
meant. For the fulfillment of your anticipations of the future I can
give no other assurance than that the motives which you approve shall
continue unchanged.
It is truly gratifying to me to learn that the proclamation has been
considered as a seasonable guard against the interruption of the public
peace. Nor can I doubt that the subjects which I have recommended
to your attention as depending on legislative provisions will receive a
discussion suited to their importance. With every reason, then, it may
be expected that your deliberations, under the divine blessing, will be
matured to the honor and happiness of the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 7, 1793.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, December 5, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
As the present situation of the several nations of Europe, and espe-
cially of those with which the United States have important relations,
can not but render the state of things between them and us matter of
interesting inquiry to the Legislature, and may indeed give rise to delib-
erations to which they alone are competent, I have thought it my duty
to communicate to them certain correspondences which have takfen place.
The representative and executive bodies of France have manifested
generally a friendly attachment to this country ; have given advantages to
138 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
our commerce and navigation, and have made overtures for placing these
advantages on permanent ground. A decree, however, of the National
Assembly subjecting vessels laden with provisions to be carried into their
ports and making enemy goods lawful prize in the vessel of a friend,
contrary to our treaty, though revoked at one time as to the United
States, has been since extended to their vessels also, as has been recently
stated to us. Representations on this subject will be immediately given
in charge to our minister there, and the result shall be communicated to
the Legislature.
It is with extreme concern I have to inform you that the proceedings
of the person whom they have unfortunately appointed their minister
plenipotentiary here have breathed nothing of the friendly spirit of the
nation which sent him. Their tendency, on the contrary, has been to
involve us in war abroad and discord and anarchy at home. So far as
his acts or those of his agents have threatened our immediate commit -
ment in the war, or flagrant insult to the authority of the laws, their
effect has been counteracted by the ordinary cognizance of the laws and
by an exertion of the powers confided to me. Where their danger was
not imminent they have been borne with from sentiments of regard to
his nation, from a sense of their friendship toward us, from a conviction
that they would not suffer us to remain long exposed to the action of a
person who has so little respected our mutual dispositions, and, I will
add, from a reliance on the firmness of my fellow-citizens in their prin-
ciples of peace and order. In the meantime I have respected and pursued
the stipulations of our treaties according to what I judged their tine
sense, and have withheld no act of friendship which their affairs have
called for from us, and which justice to others left us free to perform.
I have gone farther. Rather than employ force for the restitution of
certain vessels which I deemed the United States bound to restore, I
thought it more advisable to satisfy the parties by avowing it to be my
opinion that if restitution were not made it would be incumbent on the
United States to make compensation. The papers now communicated
will more particularly apprise you of these transactions.
The vexations and spoliation understood to have been committed on
our vessels and commerce by the cruisers and officers of some of the bellig-
erent powers appear to require attention. The proofs of these, however,
not having been brought forward, the descriptions of citizens supposed
to have suffered were notified that, on furnishing them to the Executive,
due measures would be taken to obtain redress of the past and more effec-
tual previsions against the future. Should such documents be furnished,
proper representations will be made thereon, with a just reliance on a
redress proportioned to the exigency of the case.
The British Government having undertaken, by orders to the com-
inaiiders of their armed vessels, to restrain generally our commerce in
corn and other provisions to their own ports and those of their friends,
George Washington 139
the instructions now communicated were immediately forwarded to our
minister at that Court. In the meantime some discussions on the sub-
ject took place between him and them. These are also laid before you,
and I may expect to learn the result of his special instructions in time to
make it known to the Legislature during their present session.
Very early after the arrival of a British minister here mutual explana
tions on the inexecution of the treaty of peace were entered into with
that minister. These are now laid before you for your information.
On the subjects of mutual interest between this country and Spain
negotiations and conferences are now depending. The public good
requiring that the present state of these should be made known to the
Legislature in confidence only, they shall be the subject of a separate
and subsequent communication.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 16, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The situation of affairs in Europe in the course of the year 1790 hav-
ing rendered it possible that a moment might arrive favorable for the
arrangement of our unsettled matters with Spain, it was thought proper
to prepare our representative at that Court to avail us of it. A confiden-
tial person was therefore dispatched to be the bearer of instructions to
him, and to supply, by verbal communications, any additional information
of which he might find himself in need. The Government of France
was at the same time applied to for its aid and influence in this nego-
tiation. Events, however, took a turn which did not present the occasion
hoped for.
About the close of the ensuing year I was informed through the rep-
resentatives of Spain here that their Government would be willing to
renew at Madrid the former conferences on these subjects. Though the
transfer of scene was not what would have been desired, yet I did not
think it important enough to reject the proposition, and therefore, with
the advice and consent of the Senate, I appointed commissioners pleni-
potentiary for negotiating and concluding a treaty with that country on
the several subjects of boundary, navigation, and commerce, and gave
them the instructions now communicated. Before these negotiations,
however, could be got into train the new troubles which had arisen in
Europe had produced new combinations among the powers there, the
effects of which are but too visible in the proceedings now laid before
you.
In the meantime some other points of discussion had arisen with that
country, to wit, the restitution of property escaping into the territories of
each other, the mutual exchange of fugitives from justice, and, above
all, the mutual interferences with the Indians lying- between us. I had
140 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the best reason to believe that the hostilities threatened and exercised
by the Southern Indians on our border were excited by the agents of
that Government. Representations were thereon directed to be made by
our commissioners to the Spanish Government, and a proposal to culti-
vate with good faith the peace of each other with those people. In the
meantime corresponding suspicions were entertained, or pretended to
be entertained, on their part of like hostile excitements by our agents
to disturb their peace with the same nations. These were brought
forward by the representatives of Spain here in a style which could not
fail to produce attention. A claim of patronage and protection of those
Indians was asserted; a mediation between them and us by that sovereign
assumed; their boundaries with us made a subject of his interference, and
at length, at the very moment when these savages were committing
daily inroads upon our frontier, we were informed by them that ' ' the
continuation of the peace, good harmony, and perfect friendship of the
two nations was very problematical for the future, unless the United
States should take more convenient measures and of greater energy
than those adopted for a long time past."
If their previous correspondence had worn the appearance of a desire
to urge on a disagreement, this last declaration left no room to evade it,
since it could not be conceived we would submit to the scalping knife
and tomahawk of the savage without any resistance. I thought it time,
therefore, to know if these were the views of their sovereign, and dis-
patched a special messenger with instructions to our commissioners, which
are among the papers now communicated. Their last letter gives us
reason to expect very shortly to know the result. I must add that the
Spanish representatives here, perceiving that their last communication
had made considerable impression, endeavored to abate this by some sub-
sequent professions, which, being also among the communications to the
Legislature, they will be able to form their own conclusions.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 16, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a report of the Secretary of State on the measures
which have been taken on behalf of the United States for the purpose of
obtaining a recognition of our treaty with Morocco and for the ransom
of our citizens and establishment of peace with Algiers.
While it is proper our citizens should know that subjects which so
much concern their interest and their feelings have duly engaged the
attention of their Legislature and Executive, it would still be improper
that some particulars of this communication should be made known.
The confidential conversation stated in one of the last letters sent here-
with is one of these. Both justice and policy require that the source
George Washington 141
of that information should remain secret. So a knowledge of the sums
meant to have been given for peace and ransom might have a disadvan-
tageous influence on future proceedings for the same objects.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 23, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Since the communications which were made to you on the affairs of
the United States with Spain and on the truce between Portugal and
Algiers some other papers have been received, which, making a part of
the same subjects, are now communicated for your information.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 30, 1793.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you, for your consideration, a letter from the Secretary of
State, informing me of certain impediments which have arisen to the
coinage of the precious metals at the Mint, as also a letter from the
same officer relative to certain advances of money which have been
made on public account. Should you think proper to sanction what has
been done, or be of opinion that anything more shall be done in the
same way, you will judge whether there are not circumstances which
would render secrecy expedient,
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, Jan uary 7, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Experience has shewn that it would be useful to have an officer par-
ticularly charged, under the direction of the Department of War, with
the duties of receiving, safe-keeping, and distributing the public supplies
in all cases in which the laws and the course of service do not devolve
them upon other officers, and also with that of superintending in all
cases the issues in detail of supplies, with power for that purpose to
bring to account all persons intrusted to make such issues in relation
thereto.
An establishment of this nature, by securing a regular and punctual
accountability for the issues of public supplies, would be a great guard
against abuse, would tend to insure their due application and to give
public satisfaction on that point.
I therefore recommend to the consideration of Congress the expediency
of an establishment of this nature, under such regulations as shall appear
to them advisable.
G9 WASHINGTON.
142 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, January 20,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Having already laid before you a letter of the i6th of August, 1793,
from the Secretary of State to our minister at Paris, stating the conduct
and urging the recall of the minister plenipotentiary of the Republic of
France, I now communicate to you that his conduct has been unequivo-
cally disapproved, and that the strongest assurances have been given
that his recall should be expedited without delay.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, Jan uary 21, 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
It is with satisfaction I announce to you that the alterations which
have been made by law in the original plan for raising a duty on spirits
distilled within the United States, and on stills, cooperating with better
information, have had a considerable influence in obviating the difficul-
ties which have embarrassed that branch of the public revenue. But
the obstacles which have been experienced, though lessened, are not yet
entirely surmounted, and it would seem that some further legislative
provisions may usefully be superadded, which leads me to recall the
attention of Congress to the subject. Among the matters which may
demand regulation is the effect, in point of organization, produced by the
separation of Kentucky from the State of Virginia, and the situation with
regard to the law of the territories northwest and southwest of the Ohio.
The laws respecting light-house establishments require, as a condition
of their permanent maintenance at the expense of the United States, a
complete cession of soil and jurisdiction. The cessions of different States
having been qualified with a reservation of the right of serving legal
process within the ceded jurisdiction are understood to be inconclusive
as annexing a qualification not consonant with the terms of the law. I
present this circumstance to the view of Congress, that they may judge
whether any alteration ought to be made.
As it appears to be conformable with the intention of the ' ' ordinance
for the government of the territory of the United States northwest of the
river Ohio," although it is not expressly directed that the laws of that
territory should be laid before Congress, I now transmit to you a copy
of such as have been passed from July to December, 1792, inclusive,
being the last which have been received by the Secretary of State.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 30, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Communications have been made to Congress during the present
session with the intention of affording a full view of the posture of affairs
George Washington 143
on the Southwestern frontiers. By the information which has lately been
laid before Congress it appeared that the difficulties with the Creeks had
been amicably and happily terminated ; but it will be perceived with
regret by the papers herewith transmitted that the tranquillity has, unfor-
tunately, been of short duration, owing to the murder of several friendly
Indians by some lawless white men.
The condition of things in that quarter requires the serious and imme-
diate consideration of Congress, and the adoption of such wise and
vigorous laws as will be competent to the preservation of the national
character and of the peace made under the authority of the United States
with the several Indian tribes. Experience demonstrates that the existing
legal provisions are entirely inadequate to those great objects.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 7, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to you an act and three ordinances passed by the government
of the territory of the United States south of the river Ohio on the i3th
and 2ist of March and the yth of May, 1793, and also certain letters from
the minister plenipotentiary of the French Republic to the Secretary of
State, inclosing dispatches from the general and extraordinary commission
of Guadaloupe.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 19, 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you the copy of a letter which I have received from the
Chief Justice and associate justices of the Supreme Court of the United
States, and, at their desire, the representation mentioned in the said
letter, pointing out certain defects in the judiciary system.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 24., 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The extracts which I now lay before you, from a letter of our min-
ister at London, are supplementary to some of my past communications,
and will appear to be of a confidential nature.
I also transmit to you copies of a letter from the Secretary of State to
the minister plenipotentiary of His Britannic Majesty, and of the answer
thereto, upon the subject of the treaty between the United States and
Great Britain, together with the copy of a letter from Messrs. Carmichael
and Short, relative to our affairs with Spain, which letter is connected
with a former confidential message.
G9 WASHINGTON.
144 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, February 26, 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I have caused the correspondence which is the subject of your reso-
lution of the 24th day of January last to be laid before me. After an
examination of it I directed copies and translations to be made, except
in those particulars which, in my judgment, for public considerations,
ought not to be communicated.
These copies and translations are now transmitted to the Senate; but
the nature of them manifests the propriety of their being received as
confidential.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March j, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to you an extract from a letter of Mr. Short, relative to our
affairs with Spain, and copies of two letters from our minister at Lisbon,
with their inclosures, containing intelligence from Algiers. The whole
of these communications are made in confidence, except the passage in
Mr. Short's letter which respects the Spanish convoy.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 5, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The Secretary of State having reported to me upon the several
complaints which have been lodged in his office against the vexations
and spoliations on our commerce since the commencement of the Euro-
pean war, I transmit to you a copy of his statement, together with the
documents upon which it is founded.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 18, 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The minister plenipotentiary of the French Republic having requested
an advance of money, I transmit to Congress certain documents relative
to that subject,
GP WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 28, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
n the execution of the resolution of Congress bearing date the 26th
of March, 1794, and imposing an embargo, I have requested the governors
of the several States to call forth the force of their militia, if it should be
necessary, for the detention of vessels. This power is conceived to be
incidental to an embargo.
George Washington 145
It also deserves the attention of Congress how far the clearances from
one district to another, under the law as it now stands, may give rise
to evasions of the embargo. As one security the collectors have been
instructed to refuse to receive the surrender of coasting licenses for the
purpose of taking out registers, and to require bond from registered
vessels bound from one district to another, for the delivery of the cargo
within the United States.
It is not understood that the resolution applies to fishing vessels,
although their occupations lie generally in parts beyond the United States.
But without further restrictions there is an opportunity of their privileges
being used as means of eluding the embargo.
All armed vessels possessing public commissions from any foreign
power (letters of marque excepted) are considered as not liable to the
embargo.
These circumstances are transmitted to Congress for their consideration.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, April 4, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you three letters from our minister in London, advices
concerning the Algerine mission from our minister at Lisbon and others,
and a letter from the minister plenipotentiary of the French Republic to
the Secretary of State, with his answer.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, April 15, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a letter from the minister plenipotentiary of His
Britannic Majesty to the Secretary of State; a letter from the secretary
of the territory south of the river Ohio, inclosing an ordinance and proc-
lamation of the governor thereof; the translation of so much of a peti-
tion of the inhabitants of Post Vincennes, addressed to the President, as
relates to Congress, and certain dispatches lately received from our com-
missioners at Madrid. These dispatches from Madrid being a part of the
business which has been hitherto deemed confidential, they are forwarded
tinder that view.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, April 16, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The communications which I have made to you during your present
session from the dispatches of our minister in London contain a serious
aspect of our affairs with Great Britain. But as peace ought to be pur-
sued with unremitted zeal before the last resource, which has so often
146 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
been the scourge of nations, and can not fail to check the advanced pros-
perity of the United States, is contemplated, I have thought proper to
nominate, and do hereby nominate, John Jay as envoy extraordinary of
the United States to His Britannic Majesty.
My confidence in our minister plenipotentiary in Ixmdon continues
undiminished. But a mission like this, while it corresponds with the
solemnity of the occasion, will announce to the world a solicitude for a.
friendly adjustment of our complaints and a reluctance to hostility.
Going immediately from the United States, such an envoy will carry
with him a full knowledge of the existing temper and sensibility of our
country, and will thus be taught to vindicate our rights with firmness
*nd to cultivate peace with sincerity.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 12, 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
As the letter which I forwarded to Congress on the I5th day of April
last, from the minister plenipotentiary of His Britannic Majesty to the
Secretary of State, in answer to a memorial of our minister in London,
related to a very interesting subject, I thought it proper not to delay its
communication. But since that time the memorial itself has been
received in a letter from our minister, and a reply has been made to that
answer by the Secretary of State. Copies of them are therefore now
transmitted.
I also send the copy of a letter from the governor of Rhode Island,
inclosing an act of the legislature of that State empowering the United
States to hold lands within the same for the purpose of erecting fortifica-
tions, and certain papers concerning patents for the donation lands to
the ancient settlers of Vincennes upon the Wabash.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 20, 1794..
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In the communications which I have made to Congress during the
present session relative to foreign nations I have omitted no opportunity
of testifying my anxiety to preserve the United States in peace. It is
peculiarly, therefore, my duty at this time to lay before you the present
state of certain hostile threats against the territories of Spain in our
neighborhood.
The documents which accompany this message develop the measures
which I have taken to suppress them, and the intelligence which has
been lately received.
It will be seen from thence that the subject has not been neglected ;
that every power vested in the Executive on such occasions has been
George Washington 14 7
exerted, and that there was reason to believe that the enterprise pro-
jected against the Spanish dominions was relinquished.
But it appears to have been revived upon principles which set public
order at defiance and place the peace of the United States in the discre-
tion of unauthorized individuals. The means already deposited in the
different departments of Government are shewn by experience not to be
adequate to these high exigencies, although such of them as are lodged
in the hands of the Executive shall continue to be used with promptness,
energy, and decision proportioned to the case. But I am impelled by the
position of our public affairs to recommend that provision be made for
a stronger and more vigorous opposition than can be given to such hostile
movements under the laws as they now stand.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 21, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you in confidence sundry papers, by which you will per-
ceive the state of affairs between us and the Six Nations, and the proba-
ble cause to which it is owing, and also certain information whereby
it would appear that some encroachment was about to be made on our
territory by an officer and party of British troops. Proceeding upon a
supposition of the authenticity of this information, although of a private
nature, I have caused the representation to be made to the British min-
ister a copy of which accompanies this message.
It can not be necessary to comment upon the very serious nature of
such an encroachment, nor to urge that this new state of things suggests
the propriety of placing the United States in a posture of effectual
preparation for an event which, notwithstanding the endeavors making
to avert it, may by circumstances beyond our control be forced upon us.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 26, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The commissioners of His Catholic Majesty having communicated to
the Secretary of State the form of a certificate without which the vessels
of the United States can not be admitted into the ports of Spain, I think
it proper to lay it before Congress.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 27, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate :
The Executive Provisory Council of the French Republic having
requested me to recall Gouverneur Morris, our minister plenipotentiary
in France, I have thought proper, in pursuance of that request, to recall
148 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
him. I therefore nominate James Monroe, of Virginia, as minister
plenipotentiary of the United States to the said Republic.
I also nominate William Short, now minister resident for the United
States with Their High Mightinesses the States- General of the United
Netherlands, to be minister resident for the United States to His Catholic
Majesty, in the room of William Carmichael, who is recalled.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, June 2,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I send you certain communications, recently received from Georgia,
which materially change the prospect of affairs in that quarter, and seem
to render a war with the Creek Nations more probable than it has been
at any antecedent period. While the attention of Congress will be
directed to the consideration of measures suited to the exigency, it can
not escape their observation that this intelligence brings a fresh proof
of the insufficiency of the existing provisions of the laws toward the
effectual cultivation and preservation of peace with our Indian neighbors.
G9 WASHING/TON.
PROCLAMATIONS. '
[From a broadside in the archives of the Department of State.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas it appears that a state of war exists between Austria, Prus-
sia, Sardinia, Great Britain, and the United Netherlands of the one part
and France on the other, and the duty and interest of the United States
require that they should with sincerity and good faith adopt and pursue
a conduct friendly and impartial toward the belligerent powers:
I have therefore thought fit by these presents to declare the dispo-
sition of the United States to observe the conduct aforesaid toward those
powers respectively, and to exhort and warn the citizens of the United
States carefully to avoid all acts and proceedings whatsoever which may
in any manner tend to contravene such disposition.
And I do hereby also make known that whosoever of the citizens of
the United States shall render himself liable to punishment or forfeiture
under the law of nations by committing, aiding, or abetting hostilities
against any of the said powers, or by carrying to any of them those arti-
cles which are deemed contraband by the modern usage of nations, will
not receive the protection of the United States against such punishment
George Washington 149
or forfeiture; and further, that I have given instructions to those officers
to whom it belongs to cause prosecutions to be instituted against all per-
sons who shall, within the cognizance of the courts of the United States,
violate the law of nations with respect to the powers at war, or any of
them.
In' testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with my hand.
[SEAL.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the 22d day of April, 1793,
and of the Independence of the United States of America the
seventeenth.
G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
TH: JEFFERSON.
^iBv THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas I have received information that certain persons, in violation
of the laws, have presumed, under color of a foreign authority, to enlist
citizens of the United States and others within the State of Kentucky,
and have there assembled an armed force for the purpose of invading
and plundering the territories of a nation at peace with the said United
States; and
Whereas such unwarrantable measures, being contrary to the laws
of nations and to the duties incumbent on every citizen of the United
States, tend to disturb the tranquillity of the same, and to involve them
in the calamities of war; and
Whereas it is the duty of the Executive to take care that such crimi-
nal proceedings should be suppressed, the offenders brought to justice,
and all good citizens cautioned against measures likely to prove so per-
nicious to their country and themselves, should they be seduced into
similar infractions of the laws:
I have therefore thought proper to issue this proclamation, hereby
solemnly warning every person, not authorized by the laws, against
enlisting any citizen or citizens of the United States, or levying troops,
or assembling any persons within the United States for the purposes
aforesaid, or proceeding in any manner to the execution thereof, as they
will answer for the same at their peril; and I do also admonish and
require all citizens to refrain from enlisting, enrolling, or assembling
themselves for such unlawful purposes and from being in anywise con-
cerned, aiding, or abetting therein, as they tender their own welfare,
inasmuch as all lawful means will be strictly put in execution for secur-
ing obedience to the laws and for punishing such dangerous and daring
violations thereof.
150 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
And I do moreover charge and require all courts, magistrates, and
other officers whom it may conceni, according to their respective duties,
to exert the powers in them severally vested to prevent and suppress all
such unlawful assemblages and proceedings, and to bring to condign
punishment those who may have been guilty thereof, as they regard the
due authority of Government and the peace and welfare of the United
States.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with my hand.
[SEAI,.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the 24th day of March, 1 794,
and of the Independence of the United States of America the
eighteenth.
G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
EDM: RANDOLPH.
[From Annals of Congress, Fourth Congress, second session, 2796.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas combinations to defeat the execution of the laws laying
duties upon spirits distilled within the United States and upon stills have
from the time of the commencement of those laws existed in some of the
western parts of Pennsylvania; and
Whereas the said combinations, proceeding in a manner subversive
equally of the just authority of government and of the rights of individ-
uals, have hitherto effected their dangerous and criminal purpose by the
influence of certain irregular meetings whose proceedings have tended to
encourage and uphold the spirit of opposition by misrepresentations of
the laws calculated to render them odious; by endeavors to deter those
who might be so disposed from accepting offices under them through
fear of public resentment and of injury to person and property, and to
compel those who had accepted such offices by actual violence to sur-
render or forbear the execution of them; by circulating vindictive men'
aces against all those who should otherwise, directly or indirectly, aid
in the execution of the said laws, or who, yielding to the dictates of con-
science and to a sense of obligation, should themselves comply therewith;
by actually injuring and destroying the property of persons who were
understood to have so complied; by inflicting cruel and humiliating pun-
ishments upon private citizens for no other cause than that of appear-
ing to be the friends of the laws; by intercepting the public officers on
the highways, abusing, assaulting, and otherwise ill treating them; by
going to their houses in the night, gaining admittance by force, taking
away their papers, and committing other outrages, employing for these
George Washington 151
unwarrantable purposes the agency of armed banditti disguised in such
manner as for the most part to escape discovery; and
Whereas the endeavors of the Legislature to obviate objections to the
said laws by lowering the duties and by other alterations conducive to
the convenience of those whom they immediately affect (though they
have given satisfaction in other quarters), and the endeavors of the
executive officers to conciliate a compliance with the laws by explana-
tions, by forbearance, and even by particular accommodations founded
on the suggestion of local considerations, have been disappointed of their
effect by the machinations of persons whose industry to excite resistance
has increased with every appearance of a disposition among the people
to relax in their opposition and to acquiesce in the laws, insomuch that
many persons in the said western parts of Pennsylvania have at length
been hardy enough to perpetrate acts which I am advised amount to
treason, being overt acts of levying war against the United States, the
said persons having on the i6th and lyth July last past proceeded in
arms (on the second day amounting to several hundreds) to the house
of John Neville, inspector of the revenue for the fourth survey of the
district of Pennsylvania; having repeatedly attacked the said house with
the persons therein, wounding some of them; having seized David Lenox,
marshal of the district of Pennsylvania, who previous thereto had been
fired upon while in the execution of his duty by a party of armed men,
detaining him for some time prisoner, till for the preservation of his life
and the obtaining of his liberty he found it necessary to enter into stipula-
tions to forbear the execution of certain official duties touching processes
issuing out of a court of the United States; and having finally obliged
the said inspector of the said revenue and the said marshal from consider-
ations of personal safety to fly from that part of the country, in order,
by a circuitous route, to proceed to the seat of Government, avowing as the
motives of these outrageous proceedings an intention to prevent by force
of arms the execution of the said laws, to oblige the said inspector of the
revenue to renounce his said office, to withstand by open violence the
lawful authority of the Government of the United States, and to compel
thereby an alteration in the measures of the Legislature and a repeal of
the laws aforesaid; and
Whereas by a law of the United States entitled ' 'An act to provide for
calling forth the militia to execute the la\vs of the Union, suppress insur-
rections, and repel invasions," it is enacted "that whenever the laws of
the United States shall be opposed or the execution thereof obstructed
in any State by combinations too powerful to be suppressed by the ordi-
nary course of judicial proceedings or by the powers vested in the marshals
by that act, the same being notified by an associate justice or the district
judge, it shall be lawful for the President of the United States to call
forth the militia of such State to suppress such combinations and to cause
the laws to be duly executed. And if the militia of a State where such
152 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
combinations may happen shall refuse or be insufficient to suppress the
same, it shall be lawful for the President, if the Legislature of the United
States shall not be in session, to call forth and employ such numbers of
the militia of any other State or States most convenient thereto as may
be necessary; and the use of the militia so to be called forth may be
continued, if necessary, until the expiration of thirty days after the com-
mencement of the ensuing session: Provided always, That whenever it
may be necessary in the judgment of the President to use the military
force hereby directed to be called forth, the President shall forthwith, and
previous thereto, by proclamation, command such insurgents to disperse
and retire peaceably to their respective abodes within a limited time;" and
Whereas James Wilson, an associate justice, on the 4th instant, by
writing under his hand, did from evidence which had been laid before
him notify to me that ' ' in the counties of Washington and Allegany, in
Pennsylvania, laws of the United States are opposed and the execution
thereof obstructed by combinations too powerful to be suppressed by the
ordinary course of judicial proceedings or by the powers vested in the
marshal of that district; " and
Whereas it is in my judgment necessary under the circumstances of
the case to take measures for calling forth the militia in order to suppress
the combinations aforesaid, and to cause the laws to be duly executed;
and I have accordingly determined so to do, feeling the deepest regret
for the occasion, but withal the most solemn conviction that the essential
interests of the Union demand it, that the very existence of Government
and the fundamental principles of social order are materially involved in
the issue, and that the patriotism and firmness of all good citizens are
seriously called upon, as occasions may require, to aid in the effectual
suppression of so fatal a spirit:
Wherefore, and in pursuance of the proviso above recited, I, George
Washington, President of the United States, do hereby command all per-
sons being insurgents as aforesaid, and all others whom it may concern,
on or before the ist day of September next to disperse and retire peace-
ably to their respective abodes. And I do moreover warn all persons
whomsoever against aiding, abetting, or comforting the perpetrators of
the aforesaid treasonable acts, and do require all officers and other citi-
zens, according to their respective duties and the laws of the land, to
exert their utmost endeavors to prevent and suppress such dangerous
proceedings.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with my hand.
[SEAl,.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the 7th day of August,
1 794, and of the Independence of the United States of America
the nineteenth. G9 WASHINGTON .
By the President:
EDM: RANDOLPH.
George Washington 153
[From Annals of Congress, Third Congress, 1413.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OP AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas from a hope that the combinations against the Constitution
and laws of the United States in certain of the western counties of Penn-
sylvania would yield to time and reflection I thought it sufficient in the
first instance rather to take measures for calling forth the militia than
immediately to embody them, but the moment is now come when the
overtures of forgiveness, with no other condition than a submission to
law, have been only partially accepted; when every form of conciliation
not inconsistent with the being of Government has been adopted without
effect; when the well-disposed in those counties are unable by their
influence and example to reclaim the wicked from their fury, and are
compelled to associate in their own defense; when the proffered lenity
has been perversely misinterpreted into an apprehension that the citizens
will march with reluctance; when the opportunity of examining the
serious consequences of a treasonable opposition has been employed in
propagating principles of anarchy, endeavoring through emissaries to
alienate the friends of order from its support, and inviting its enemies
to perpetrate similar acts of insurrection; when it is manifest that vio-
lence would continue to be exercised upon every attempt to enforce the
laws; when, therefore, Government is set at defiance, the contest being
whether a small portion of the United States shall dictate to the whole
Union, and, at the expense of those who desire peace, indulge a desperate
ambition:
Now, therefore, I, George Washington, President of the United States,
in obedience to that high and irresistible duty consigned to me by the
Constitution ' ' to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, ' ' deplor-
ing that the American name should be sullied by the outrages of citizens
on their own Government, commiserating such as remain obstinate from
delusion, but resolved, in perfect reliance on that gracious Providence
which so signally displays its goodness towards this country, to reduce
the refractory to a due subordination to the law, do hereby declare
and make known that, with a satisfaction which can be equaled only
by the merits of the militia summoned into service from the States
of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, I have received
intelligence of their patriotic alacrity in obeying the call of the present,
though painful, yet commanding necessity; that a force which, according
to every reasonable expectation, is adequate to the exigency is already
in motion to the scene of disaffection; that those who have confided or
shall confide in the protection of Government shall meet full succor
under the standard and from the arms of the United States ; that those
who, having offended against the laws, have since entitled themselves
154 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
to indemnity will be treated with the most liberal good faith if they
shall not have forfeited their claim by any subsequent conduct, and
that instructions are given accordingly.
And I do moreover exhort all individuals, officers, and bodies of men
to contemplate with abhorrence the measures leading directly or indi-
rectly to those crimes which produce this resort to military coercion; to
check in their respective spheres the efforts of misguided or designing
men to substitute their misrepresentation in the place of truth and their
discontents in the place of stable government, and to call to mind that,
as the people of the United States have been permitted, under the Divine
favor, in perfect freedom, after solemn deliberation, and in an enlight-
ened age, to elect their own government, so will their gratitude for this
inestimable blessing be best distinguished by firm exertions to maintain
the Constitution and the laws.
And, lastly, I again warn all persons whomsoever and wheresoever not
to abet, aid, or comfort the insurgents aforesaid, as they will answer the
contrary at their peril; and I do also require all officers and other citi-
zens, according to their several duties, as far as may be in their power, to
bring under the cognizance of the laws all offenders in the premises.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with my hand.
[SEAL.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the 25th day of Septem-
ber, 1794, and of the Independence of the United States of
America the nineteenth.
G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President:
EDM: RANDOLPH.
SIXTH ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, November ip, 1794..
Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives;
When we call to mind the gracious indulgence of Heaven by which
the American people became a nation; when we survey the general pros-
perity of our country, and look forward to the riches, power, and happi-
ness to which it seems destined, with the deepest regret do I announce
to you that during your recess some of the citizens of the United States
have been found capable of an insurrection. It is due, however, to the
character of our Government and to its stability, which can not be shaken
by the enemies of order, freely to unfold the course of this event.
During the session of the year 1790 it was expedient to exercise the
legislative power granted by the Constitution of the United States "to
George Washington 155
lay and collect excises." In a majority of the States scarcely an objec-
tion was heard to this mode of taxation. In some, indeed, alarms were
at first conceived, until they were banished by reason and patriotism.
In the four western counties of Pennsylvania a prejudice, fostered and
imbittered by the artifice of men who labored for an ascendency over the
will of others by the guidance of their passions, produced symptoms of
riot and violence. It is well known that Congress did not hesitate to
examine the complaints which were presented, and to relieve them as far
as justice dictated or general convenience would permit. But the impres-
sion which this moderation made on the discontented did not correspond
with what it deserved. The arts of delusion were no longer confined
to the efforts of designing individuals. The veiy forbearance to press
prosecutions was misinterpreted into a fear of urging the execution of
the laws, and associations of men began to denounce threats against the
officers employed. From a belief that by a more formal concert their
operation might be defeated, certain self -created societies assumed the
tone of condemnation. Hence, while the greater part of Pennsylvania
itself were conforming themselves to the acts of excise, a few counties
were resolved to frustrate them. It was now perceived that every expec-
tation from the tenderness which had been hitherto pursued was unavail-
ing, and that further delay could only create an opinion of impotency or
irresolution in the Government. Legal process was therefore delivered
to the marshal against the rioters and delinquent distillers,
No sooner was he understood to be engaged in this duty than the
vengeance of armed men was aimed at his person and the person and
property of the inspector of the revenue. They fired upon the marshal,
arrested him, and detained him for some time as a prisoner. He was
obliged, by the jeopardy of his life, to renounce the service of other
process on the west side of the Allegheny Mountain, and a deputation
was afterwards sent to him to demand a surrender of that which he had
served. A numerous body repeatedly attacked the house of the inspector,
seized his papers of office, and finally destroyed by fire his buildings and
whatsoever they contained. Both of these officers, from a just regard to
their safety, fled to the seat of Government, it being avowed that the
motives to such outrages were to compel the resignation of the inspector,
to withstand by force of arms the authority of the United States, and
thereby to extort a repeal of the laws of excise and an alteration in the
conduct of Government.
Upon the testimony of these facts an associate justice of the Supreme
Court of the United States notified to me that "in the counties of Wash-
ington and Allegheny, in Pennsylvania, laws of the United States were
opposed, and the execution thereof obstructed, by combinations too pow-
erful to be suppressed by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings or
by the powers vested in the marshal of that district." On this call,
momentous in the extreme, I sought and weighed what might best
156 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
subdue the crisis. On the one hand the judiciary was pronounced to be
stripped of its capacity to enforce the laws; crimes which reached the very
existence of social order were perpetrated without control ; the friends
of Government were insulted, abused, and overawed into silence or an
apparent acquiescence ; and to yield to the treasonable fury of so small a
portion of the United States would be to violate the fundamental principle
of our Constitution, which enjoins that the will of the majority shall
prevail. On the other, to array citizen against citizen, to publish the
dishonor of such excesses, to encounter the expense and other embar-
rassments of so distant an expedition, were steps too delicate, too closely
interwoven with many affecting considerations, to be lightly adopted.
I postponed, therefore, the summoning the militia immediately into the
field, but I required them to be held in readiness, that if my anxious
endeavors to reclaim the deluded and to convince the malignant of their
danger should be fruitless, military force might be prepared to act before
the season should be too far advanced.
My proclamation of the yth of August last was accordingly issued,
and accompanied by the appointment of commissioners, who were
charged to repair to the scene of insurrection. They were authorized
to confer with any bodies of men or individuals. They were instructed to
be candid and explicit in stating the sensations which had been excited
in the Executive, and his earnest wish to avoid a resort to coercion ; to
represent, however, that, without submission, coercion must be the
resort ; but to invite them, at the same time, to return to the demeanor
of faithful citizens, by such accommodations as lay within the sphere of
Executive power. Pardon, too, was tendered to them by the Govern-
ment of the United States and that of Pennsylvania, upon no other
condition than a satisfactory assurance of obedience to the laws.
Although the report of the commissioners marks their firmness and
abilities, and must unite all virtuous men, by shewing that the means of
conciliation have been exhausted, all of those who had committed or
abetted the tumults did not subscribe the mild form which was proposed
as the atonement, and the indications of a peaceable temper were neither
sufficiently general nor conclusive to recommend or warrant the further
suspension of the march of the militia.
Thus the painful alternative could not be discarded. I ordered the
militia to march, after once more admonishing the insurgents in my
proclamation of the 2 5th of September last.
It was a task too difficult to ascertain with precision the lowest degree
of force competent to the quelling of the insurrection. From a respect,
indeed, to economy and the ease of my fellow-citizens belonging to the
militia, it would have gratified me to accomplish such an estimate. My
very reluctance to ascribe too much importance to the opposition, had
its extent been accurately seen, would have been a decided inducement to
the smallest efficient numbers. In this uncertainty, therefore, I put into
George Washington 157
motion 15,000 men, as being an army which, according to all human
calculation, would be prompt and adequate in every view, and might,
perhaps, by rendering resistance desperate, prevent the effusion of blood.
Quotas had been assigned to the States of New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Maryland, and Virginia, the governor of Pennsylvania having declared
on this occasion an opinion which justified a requisition to the other
States.
As commander in chief of the militia when called into the actual serv-
ice of the United States, I have visited the places of general rendezvous
to obtain more exact information and to direct a plan for ulterior move-
ments. Had there been room for a persuasion that the laws were secure
from obstruction; that the civil magistrate was able to bring to justice
such of the most culpable as have not embraced the proffered terms of
amnesty, and may be deemed fit objects of example; that the friends to
peace and good government were not in need of that aid and countenance
which they ought always to receive, and, I trust, ever will receive,
against the vicious and turbulent, I should have -caught with avidity the
opportunity of restoring the militia to their families and homes. But
succeeding intelligence has tended to manifest the necessity of what has
been done, it being now confessed by those who were not inclined to
exaggerate the ill conduct of the insurgents that their malevolence was
not pointed merely to a particular law, but that a spirit inimical to all
order has actuated many of the offenders. If the state of things had
afforded reason for the continuance of my presence with the army, it
would not have been withholden. But every appearance assuring such
an issue as will redound to the reputation and strength of the United
States, I have judged it most proper to resume my duties at the seat of
Government, leaving the chief command with the governor of Virginia.
Still, however, as it is probable that in a commotion like the present,
whatsoever may be the pretense, the purposes of mischief and revenge
may not be laid aside, the stationing of a small force for a certain period
in the four western countiesof Pennsylvania will be indispensable, whether
we contemplate the situation of those who are connected with the execu-
tion of the laws or of others who may have exposed themselves by an
honorable attachment to them. Thirty days from the commencement of
this session being the legal limitation of the employment of the militia,
Congress can not be too early occupied with this subject.
Among the discussions which may arise from this aspect of our affairs,
and from the documents which will be submitted to Congress, it will not
escape their observation that not only the inspector of the revenue, but
other officers of the United States in Pennsylvania have, from their
fidelity in the discharge of their functions, sustained material injuries to
their property. The obligation and policy of idemnifying them are
strong and obvious. It may also merit attention whether policy will not
enlarge this provision to the retribution of other citizens who, though not
158 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
under the ties o f office, may have suffered damage by their generous
exertions for upholding the Constitution and the laws. The amount,
even if all the injured were included, would not be great, and on future
emergencies the Government would be amply repaid by the influence of
an example that he who incurs a loss in its defense shall find a recom-
pense in its liberality.
While there is cause to lament that occurrences of this nature should
have disgraced the name or interrupted the tranquillity of any part of
our community, or should have diverted to a new application any portion
of the public resources, there are not wanting real and substantial conso-
lations for the misfortune. It has demonstrated that our prosperity rests
m solid foundations, by furnishing an additional proof that my fellow-
citizens understand the true principles of government and liberty; that
they feel their inseparable union; that notwithstanding all the devices
which have been used to sway them from their interest and duty, they
are now as ready to maintain the authority of the laws against licentious
invasions as they were to defend their rights against usurpation. It has
been a spectacle displaying to the highest advantage the value of repub-
lican government to behold the most and the least wealthy of our citizens
standing in the same ranks as private soldiers, preeminently distinguished
by being the army of the Constitution undeterred by a march of 300
miles over rugged mountains, by the approach of an inclement season,
or by any other discouragement. Nor ought I to omit to acknowledge
the efficacious and patriotic cooperation which I have experienced from
the chief magistrates of the States to which my requisitions have been
addressed.
To every description of citizens, indeed, let praise be given. But let
them persevere in their affectionate vigilance over that precious depository
of American happiness, the Constitution of the United States. Let them
cherish it, too, for the sake of those who, from every clime, are daily
seeking a dwelling in our land. And when in the calm moments of
reflection they shall have retraced the origin and progress of the insur-
rection, let them determine whether it has not been fomented by com-
binations of men who, careless of consequences and disregarding the
unerring truth that those who rouse can not always appease a civil con^
vulsion, have disseminated, from an ignorance or perversion of facts,
suspicions, jealousies, and accusations of the whole Government.
Having thus fulfilled the engagement which I took when I entered
into office, ' ' to the best of my ability to preserve, protect, and defend
the Constitution of the United States," on you, gentlemen, and the
people by whom you are deputed, I rely for support.
In the arrangements to which the possibility of a similar contingency
will naturally draw your attention it ought not to be forgotten that
the militia laws have exhibited such striking defects as could not have
been supplied but by the zeal of our citizens. Besides the extraordinary
George Washington 259
expense and W3.=te. which are not the least of the defects., every appeal
to those laws is attended with a doubt on its success.
The devising and establishing of a well-regulated militia would be a
genuine source of legislative honor and a perfect title to public grati-
tude. I therefore entertain a hope that the present session will not pass
without carrying to its full energy the power of organizing, arming, and
disciplining the militia, and thus providing, in the language of the Con-
stitution, for calling them forth to execute the laws of the Union, sup-
press insurrections, and repel invasions.
As auxiliary to the state of our defense, to which Congress can never
too frequently recur, they will not omit to inquire whether the fortifica-
tions which have been already licensed by law be commensurate with
our exigencies.
The intelligence from the army under the command of General Wayne
is a happy presage to our military operations against the hostile Indians
north of the Ohio. From the advices which have been forwarded, the
advance which he has made must have damped the ardor of the savages
and weakened their obstinacy in waging war against the United States.
And yet, even at this late hour, when our power to punish them can not
be questioned, we shall not be unwilling to cement a lasting peace upon
terms of candor, equity, and good neighborhood.
Toward none of the Indian tribes have overtures of friendship been
spared. The Creeks in particular are covered from encroachment by
the interposition of the General Government and that of Georgia. From
a desire also to remove the discontents of the Six Nations, a settlement
meditated at Presque Isle, on Lake Erie, has been suspended, and an
agent is now endeavoring to rectify any misconception into which they
may have fallen. But I can not refrain from again pressing upon your
deliberations the plan which I recommended at the last session for the
improvement of harmony with all the Indians within our limits by the
fixing and conducting of trading houses upon the principles then
expressed.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The time which has elapsed since the commencement of our fiscal
measures has developed our pecuniary resources so as to open the way
for a definite plan for the redemption of the public debt. It is believed
that the result is such as to encourage Congress to consummate this work
without delay. Nothing can more promote the permanent welfare of the
nation and nothing would be more grateful \o our constituents. Indeed,
whatsoever is unfinished of our system of public credit can not be bene-
fited by procrastination; and as far as may be practicable we ought to
place that credit on grounds which can not be disturbed, and to prevent
that progressive accumulation of debt which must ultimately endanger
all governments.
160 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
An estimate of the necessary appropriations, including the expenditures
into which we have been driven by the insurrection, will be submitted to
Congress.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives.
The Mint of the United States has entered upon the coinage of the
precious metals, and considerable sums of defective coins and bullion
have been lodged with the Director by individuals. There is a pleasing
prospect that the institution will at no remote day realize the expectation
which was originally formed of its utility.
In subsequent communications certain circumstances of our intercourse
with foreign nations will be transmitted to Congress. However, it may
not be unseasonable to announce that my policy in our foreign transac-
tions has been to cultivate peace with all the world ; to observe treaties
with pure and absolute faith ; to check every deviation from the line
of impartiality; to explain what may have been misapprehended and
correct what may have been injurious to any nation, and having thus
acquired the right, to lose no time in acquiring the ability to insist upon
justice being done to ourselves.
Let us unite, therefore, in imploring the Supreme Ruler of Nations to
spread his holy protection over these United States ; to turn the machina-
tions of the wicked to the confirming of our Constitution ; to enable us
at all times to root out internal sedition and put invasion to flight ; to
perpetuate to our country that prosperity which His goodness has already
conferred, and to verify the anticipations of this Government being a
safeguard to human rights.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: We receive with pleasure your speech to the two Houses of Con-
gress. In it we perceive renewed proofs of that vigilant and paternal
concern for the prosperity, honor, and happiness of our country which
has uniformly distinguished your past Administration.
Our anxiety arising from the licentious and open resistance to the laws
in the western counties of Pennsylvania has been increased by the pro-
ceedings of certain self-created societies relative to the laws and adminis-
tration of the Government; proceedings, in our apprehension, founded in
political error, calculated, if not intended, to disorganize our Government,
and which, by inspiring delusive hopes of support, have been influential
in misleading our fellow-citizens in the scene of insurrection.
In a situation so delicate and important the lenient and persuasive
measures which you adopted merit and receive our affectionate approba-
tion. These failing to procure their proper effect, and coercion having
George Washington 161
become inevitable, we have derived the highest satisfaction from the
enlightened patriotism and animating zeal with which the citizens of
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia have rallied around
the standard of Government in opposition to anarchy and insurrection.
Our warm and cordial acknowledgments are due to you, sir, for the
wisdom and decision with which you arrayed the militia to execute the
public will, and to them for the disinterestedness and alacrity with which
they obeyed your summons.
The example is precious to the theory of our Government, and confers
the brightest honor upon the patriots who have given it.
We shall readily concur in such further provisions for the security of
internal peace and a due obedience to the laws as the occasion manifestly
requires.
The effectual organization of the militia and a prudent attention to
the fortifications of our ports and harbors are subjects of great national
importance, and, together with the other measures you have been pleased
to recommend, will receive our deliberate consideration.
The success of the troops under the command of General Wayne can
not fail to produce essential advantages. The pleasure with which we
acknowledge the merits of that gallant general and army is enhanced by
the hope that their victories will lay the foundation of a just and durable
peace with the Indian tribes.
At a period so momentous in the affairs of nations the temperate, just,
and firm policy that you have pursued in respect to foreign powers has
been eminently calculated to promote the great and essential interest of
our country, and has created the fairest title to the public gratitude and
thanks.
JOHN ADAMS,
Vice- President of the United States and President of the Senate.
NOVEMBER 21, 1794,
REPLY OP THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: Among the occasions which have been afforded for
expressing my sense of the zealous and steadfast cooperation of the
Senate in the maintenance of Government, none has yet occurred more
forcibly demanding my unqualified acknowledgments than the present.
Next to the consciousness of upright intentions, it is the highest pleas-
ure to be approved by the enlightened representatives of a free nation.
With the satisfaction, therefore, which arises from an unalterable attach-
ment to public order do I learn that the Senate discountenance those
proceedings which would arrogate the direction of our affairs without
any degree of authority derived from the people.
It has been more than once the lot of our Government to be thrown
into new and delicate situations, and of these the insurrection has not
1 62 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
been the least important. Having been compelled at length to lay aside
my repugnance to resort to arms, I derive much happiness from being
confirmed by your judgment in the necessity of decisive measures, and
from the support of my fellow-citizens of the niilitia, who were the patri-
otic instruments of that necessity.
With such demonstrations of affection for our Constitution; with an
adequate organization of the militia; with the establishment of necessary
fortifications; with a continuance of those judicious and spirited exer-
tions which have brought victory to our Western army; with a due atten-
tion to public credit, and an unsullied honor toward all nations, we may
meet, under every assurance of success, our enemies from within and
from without.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NOVEMBER 22, 1794.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR : The House of Representatives, calling to mind the blessings
enjoyed by the people of the United States, and especially the happiness
of living under constitutions and laws which rest on their authority alone,
could not learn with other emotions than those you have expressed that
any part of our fellow-citizens should have shewn themselves capable of
an insurrection. And we learn with the greatest concern that any mis-
representations whatever of the Government and its proceedings, either
by individuals or combinations of men, should have been made and so far
credited as to foment the flagrant outrage which has been committed on
the laws. We feel with you the deepest regret at so painful an occur-
rence in the annals of our country. As men regardful of the tender inter-
ests of humanity, we look with grief at scenes which might have stained
our land with civil blood ; as lovers of public order, we lament that it
has suffered so flagrant a violation ; as zealous friends of republican gov-
ernment, we deplore every occasion which in the hands of its enemies
may be turned into a calumny against it.
This aspect of the crisis, however, is happily not the only one which
it presents. There is another, which yields all the consolations which
you have drawn from it. It has demonstrated to the candid world, as
well as to the American people themselves, that the great body of them
everywhere are equally attached to the luminous and vital principle of
our Constitution, which enjoins that the will of the majority shall
prevail ; that they understand the indissoluble union between true liberty
and regular government; that they feel their duties no less than they
are watchful over their rights; that they will be as ready at all times
to crush licentiousness as they have been to defeat usurpation. In a
word, that they are capable of carrying into execution that noble plan of
self-government which they have chosen as the guaranty of their own
BETHLEHEM, PA., IN 1798
THE WHISKEY REBELLION, 1791-4
The story of the first rebellion against the Federal Government is told
in the article entitled " Whiskey Insurrection," in the Encyclopedic In-
dex, and if the reader so desires he may read the history of that occur-
rence, as written by the pen of George Washington, on the pages cited
beneath the above-mentioned article.
The crushing of this revolt was a crisis in our national life. If any sec-
tion or class could, with impunity, defy the will of the majority as expressed
in the Acts of Congress, the new Government would disintegrate as did the
Confederation. For three years Washington temporized with the Pennsyl-
vanians, because he feared that a call upon the militia to uphold the Govern-
ment would be repudiated, and that the Constitution, thus shown to have no
hold upon the people's affections, would perish in mockery and derision.
But when the new Government had established its credit by Hamilton's
financial plans, the number of colonists who imbibed their principles and
fashions from Europe decreased in proportion as the number of Americans
who were proud of the Republic increased. Then came Washington's call
for volunteers, the ready answer of the militia and the suppression of the
rebellion.
George Washington 163
happiness and the asylum for that of all, from every clime, who may
wish to unite their destiny with ours.
These are the just inferences flowing fi om the promptitude with which
the summons to the standard of the law? has been obeyed, and from the
sentiments which have been witnessed in every description of citizens
in every quarter of the Union. The spectacle, therefore, when viewed
in its true light, may well be affirmed to display in equal luster the vir-
tues of the American character and the value of republican government.
All must particularly acknowledge and applaud the patriotism of that
portion of citizens who have freely sacrificed everything less dear than the
love of their country to the meritorious task of defending its happiness.
In the part which you have yourself borne through this delicate and
distressing period we trace the additional proofs it has afforded of your
solicitude for the public good. Your laudable and successful endeavors
to render lenity in executing the laws conducive to their real energy, and
to convert tumult into order without the effusion of blood, form a par-
ticular title to the confidence and praise of your constituents. In all that
may be found necessary on our part to complete this benevolent purpose,
and to secure the ministers and friends of the laws against the remains of
danger, our due cooperation will be afforded.
The other subjects which you have recommended or communicated,
and of which several are peculiarly interesting, will all receive the atten-
tion which they demand. We are deeply impressed with the importance
of an effectual organization of the militia. We rejoice at the intelligence
of the advance and success of the army under the command of General
Wayne, whether we regard it as a proof of the perseverance, prowess, and
superiority of our troops, or as a happy presage to our military operations
against the hostile Indians, and as a probable prelude to the establish-
ment of a lasting peace upon terms of candor, equity, and good neigh-
borhood. We receive it with the greater pleasure as it increases the
probabilit} of sooner restoring a part of the public resources to the desir-
able object of reducing the public debt.
We shall on this, as on all occasions, be disposed to adopt any meas-
ures which may advance the safety and prosperity of our country. In
nothing can we more cordially unite with you than in imploring the
Supreme Ruler of Nations to multiply his blessings on these United
States; to guard our free and happy Constitution against every machina-
tion and danger, and to make it the best source of public happiness, by
verifying its character of being the best safeguard of hurnau rights.
NOVEMBER 28, 1794.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: I anticipated with confidence the concurrence of the
House of Representatives in the regret produced by the insurrection.
Every effort ought to be used to discountenance what has contributed to
164 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
foment it, and thus discourage a repetition of like attempts; for notwith-
standing the consolations which may be drawn from the issue of this
event, it is far better that the artful approaches to such a situation of
things should be checked by the vigilant and duly admonished patri-
otism of our fellow-citizens than that the evil should increase until it
becomes necessary to crush it by the strength of their arm.
I am happy that the part which I have myself borne on this occasior
receives the approbation of your House. For the discharge of a consti-
tutional duty it is a sufficient reward to me to be assured that you will
unite in consummating what remains to be done.
I feel also great satisfaction in learning that the other subjects which
I have communicated or recommended will meet with due attention;
that you are deeply impressed with the importance of an effectual organ-
ization of the militia, and that the advance and success of the army
under the command of General Wayne is regarded by you, no less than
myself, as a proof of the perseverance, prowess, and superiority of our
troops.
G9 WASHINGTON.
NOVEMBER 29, 1794.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, November 21, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before Congress copies of a letter from the governor of the State
of New York and of the exemplification of an act of the legislature
thereof ratifying the amendment of the Constitution of the United
States proposed by the Senate and House of Representatives at their
last session, respecting the judicial power.
GO WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, November 21, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In the negotiation between the United States and His Catholic Majesty
I have received satisfactory proofs of attention and ability exerted in
behalf of the United States to bring it to a happy and speedy issue.
But it is probable that by complying with an intimation made to the
Secretary of State by the commissioners of His Catholic Majesty much
further delay in concluding it may be prevented. Notwithstanding,
therefore, I retain full confidence in our minister resident at Madrid, who
is charged with powers as commissioner plenipotentiary, I nominate
Thomas Pinckney to be envoy extraordinary of the United States to
George Washington 165
Ills Catholic Majesty, for the purpose of negotiating of and concerning
the navigation of the river Mississippi, and such other matters relative to
the confines of their territories, and the intercourse to be had thereon,
as the mutual interests and general harmony of neighboring and friendly
nations require should be precisely adjusted and regulated, and of and
concerning the general commerce between the United States and the
kingdoms and dominions of his said Catholic Majesty.
It is believed that by his temporary absence from London in the dis-
charge of these new functions no injury will arise to the United States.
I also nominate :
John Miller Russell, of Massachusetts, to be consul of the United States
of America for the port of St. Petersburg, in Russia, and for such other
places as shall be nearer to the said port than to the residence of any
other consul or vice-consul of the United States within the same alle-
giance ;
Joseph Pitcairn, of New York, to be vice-consul of the United States of
America at Paris, vice Alexander Duvernet, superseded ; and
Nathaniel Brush, of Vermont, to be supervisor for the United States in
the district of Vermont, vice Noah Smith, who has resigned.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, November 25, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a statement of the troops in the service of the United
States, which has been submitted to me by the Secretary of War. It will
rest with Congress to consider and determine whether further induce-
ments shall be held out for entering into the military service of the United
States in order to complete the establishment authorized by law.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 17, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before Congress copies of the journal of the proceedings of the
executive department of the government of the United States south of
the river Ohio to the ist of September, 1794.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December jo, 1794.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before you a report, made to me by the Secretary of War, respect-
ing the frontiers of the United States. The disorders and the great
expenses which incessantly arise upon the frontiers are of a nature and
magnitude to excite the most serious considerations.
1 66 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
I feel a confidence that Congress will devise such constitutional and
efficient measures as shall be equal to the great objects of preserving our
treaties with the Indian tribes and of affording an adequate protection to
our frontiers,
G9 WASHINGTON
UNITED STATES, January 2, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
A spirit of discontent, from several causes, arose in the early part of
the present year among the Six Nations of Indians, and particularly on
the ground of a projected settlement by Pennsylvania, at Presque Isle,
upon Lake Erie. The papers upon this point have already been laid
before Congress. It was deemed proper on my part to endeavor to
tranquillize the Indians by pacific measures. Accordingly a time and
place was appointed at which a free conference should be had upon all
the causes of discontent, and an agent was appointed with the instruc-
tions of which No. i , herewith transmitted, is a copy.
A numerous assembly of Indians was held in Canandaigua, in the
State of New York the proceedings whereof accompany this message,
marked No. 2.
The two treaties, the one with the Six Nations and the other with the
Oneida, Tuscorora, and Stockbridge Indians dwelling in the country of
the Oneidas, which have resulted from the mission of the agent, are
herewith laid before the Senate for their consideration and advice.
The original engagement of the United States to the Oneidas is also
sent herewith.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 8,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before Congress copies of acts passed by the legislatures of the
States of Vermont, Massachusetts, and New York, ratifying the amend-
ment proposed by the Senate and House of Representatives at their last
session to the Constitution of the United States respecting the judicial
power thereof.
The minister of the French Republic having communicated to the
Secretary of State certain proceedings of the committee of public safety
respecting weights and measures, I lay these also before Congress.
The letter from the governor of the Western territory, copies of which
are now transmitted, refers to a- defect in the judicial system of that
territory deserving the attention of Congress.
The necessary absence of the judge of the district of Pennsylvania
upon business connected with the late insurrection is stated by him in
George Washington 167
a letter of which I forward copies to have produced certain interrup-
tions in the judicial proceedings of that district which can not be removed
without the interposition of Congress.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 4, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I lay before Congress, for their consideration, a letter from the Secre-
tary of State upon the subject of a loan which is extremely interesting
and urgent.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 77, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to Congress copies of a letter from the governor of the
State of New Hampshire and of an act of the legislature thereof ' ' rati-
fying the article proposed in amendment to the Constitution of the United
States respecting the judicial power."
I also lay before Congress copies of a letter from the governor of the
State of North Carolina and of an act of the legislature thereof ceding
to the United States certain lands upon the conditions therein mentioned.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 17, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I have received copies of two acts of the legislature of Georgia, one
passed on the 28th day of December and the other on the yth day of
January last, for appropriating and selling the Indian lands within the
territorial limits claimed 'by that State. These copies, though not offi-
cially certified, have been transmitted to me in such a manner as to leave
no room to doubt their authenticity. These acts embrace an object of
such magnitude, and in their consequences may so deeply affect the peace
and welfare of the United States, that I have thought it necessary now
to lay them before Congress.
In confidence, I also forward copies of several documents and papers
received from the governor of the Southwestern territory. By these it
seems that hostilities with the Cherokees have ceased, and that there is
a pleasing prospect of a permanent peace with that nation ; but from all
the communications of the governor it appears that the Creeks, in small
parties, continue their depredations, and it is uncertain to what they may
finally lead.
The several papers now communicated deserve the immediate attention
of Congress, who will consider how far the subjects of them may require
their cooperation.
G9 WASHINGTON.
1 68 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, February 25, 179*.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I communicate to Congress copies of a letter from the governor of the
State of Georgia and of an act of the legislature thereof ' ' to ratify the
resolution of Congress explanatory of the judicial power of the United
States."
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 28, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In my first communication to Congress during their present session I
gave them reason to expect that ' ' certain circumstances of our intercourse
with foreign nations ' ' would be transmitted to them. There was at that
time every assurance for believing that some of the most important of
our foreign affairs would have been concluded and others considerably
matured before they should rise. But notwithstanding I have waited
until this moment, it has so happened that, either from causes unknown
to me or from events which could not be controlled, I am yet unable to
execute my original intention. That I may, however, fulfill the expecta-
tion given as far as the actual situation of things will in my judgment
permit, I now, in confidence, lay before Congress the following general
statement:
Our minister near the French Republic has urged compensation for
the injuries which our commerce has sustained from captures by French
cruisers, from the nonfulfillment of the contracts of the agents of that
Republic with our citizens, and from the embargo at Bordeaux. He has
also pressed an allowance for the money voted by Congress for relieving
the inhabitants of St. Domingo. It affords me the highest pleasure to
inform Congress that perfect harmony reigns between the two Republics,
and that those claims are in a train of being discussed with candor and
of being amicably adjusted.
So much of our relation to Great Britain may depend upon the result
of our late negotiations in London that until that result shall arrive I
can not undertake to make any communication upon this subject.
After the negotiation with Spain had been long depending unusual
and unexpected embarrassments were raised to interrupt its progress.
But the commissioner of His Catholic Majesty near the United States
having declared to the Secretary of State that if a particular accommoda-
tion should be made in the conducting of the business no further delay
would ensue, I thought proper, under all circumstances, to send to His
Catholic Majesty an envoy extraordinary specially charged to bring to
a conclusion the discussions which have been formerly announced to
Congress.
The friendship of Her Most Faithful Majesty has been often manifested
George Washington 169
In checking the passage of the Algerine corsairs into the Atlantic Ocean.
She has also furnished occasional convoys to the vessels of the United
States, even when bound to other ports than her own. We may there-
fore promise ourselves that, as in the ordinary course of things few
causes can exist for dissatisfaction between the United States and Portu-
gal, so the temper with which accidental difficulties will be met on each
side will speedily remove them.
Between the Executive of the United States and the Government of
the United Netherlands but little intercourse has taken place during the
last year. It may be acceptable to Congress to learn that our credit in
Holland is represented as standing upon the most respectable footing.
Upon the death of the late Emperor of Morocco an agent was dis-
patched to renew with his successor the treaty which the United States
had made with him. The agent, unfortunately, died after he had reached
Europe in the prosecution of his mission. But until lately it was impossi-
ble to determine with any degree of probability who of the competitors for
that Empire would be ultimately fixed in the supreme power. Although
the measures which have been since adopted for the renewal of the treaty
have been obstructed by the disturbed situation of Amsterdam, there are
good grounds for presuming as yet upon the pacific disposition of the
Emperor, in fact, toward the United States, and that the past miscarriage
will be shortly remedied.
Congress are already acquainted with the failure of the loan attempted
in Holland for the relief of our unhappy fellow-citizens in Algiers. This
subject, than which none deserves a more affectionate zeal, has constantly
commanded my best exertions. I am happy, therefore, in being able to
say that from the last authentic accounts the Dey was disposed to treat
for a peace and ransom, and that both would in all probability have been
accomplished had we not been disappointed in the means. Nothing
which depends upon the Executive shall be left undone for carrying into
immediate effect the supplementary act of Congress.
O9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 2,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
It appears from the information which I have lately received that it
may be probably necessary to the more successful conduct of our affairs
on the coast of Barbary that one consul should reside in Morocco,
another in Algiers, and a third in Tunis or Tripoli. As no appointment
for these offices will be accepted without some emolument annexed, I
submit to the consideration of Congress whether it may not be advisable
to authorize a stipend to be allowed to two consuls for that coast in
addition to the one already existing.
G9 WASHINGTON.
170 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, March 2, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to you copies of a letter fro m the governor of the State of
Delaware and of an act inclosed "declaring the assent of that State to an
amendment therein mentioned to the Constitution of the United States. '
G<? WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, June S, 1795.*
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In pursuance of my nomination of John Jay as envoy extraordinary to
His Britannic Majesty on the i6th day of April, 1794, and of the advice
and consent of the Senate thereto on the igth, a negotiation was opened
in London. On the 7th of March, 1795, the treaty resulting therefrom
was delivered to the Secretary of State. I now transmit to the Senate
that treaty and other documents connected with it. They will, therefore,
in their wisdom decide whether they will advise and consent that the said
treaty be made between the United States and His Britannic Majesty.
GO WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, June 25 ', 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
It has been represented by our minister plenipotentiary near the
French Republic that such of our commercial relations with France as
may require the support of the United States in detail can not be well
executed without a consul-general. Of this I am satisfied when I
consider the extent of the mercantile claims now depending before the
French Government, the necessity of bringing into the hands of one
agent the various applications to the several committees of administration
residing at Paris, the attention which must be paid to the conduct of
consuls and vice-consuls, and the nature of the services which are the
peculiar objects of a minister's care, and leave no leisure for his inter-
vention in business to which consular functions are competent. I
therefore nominate Fulwar Skipwith to be consul-general of the United
States in France. GQ WASHINGTON>
UNITED STATES, June 23, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Just at the close of the last session of Congress I received from one
of the Senator" and one of the Representatives of the State of Georgia an
applicar reaty to be held with the tribes or nations of Indians
claiming the right of soil to certain lands lying beyond the present
temporary boundary line of that State, and which were described in an
act of the legislature of Georgia passed on the 28th of December last,
For proclamation convening Senate in extraordinary session see p. S7i-
George Washington 171
which has already been laid before the Senate. This application and the
subsequent correspondence with the governor of Georgia are herewith
transmitted. The subject being very important, I thought proper to
postpone a decision upon that application. The views I have since taken
of the matter, with the information received of a more pacific disposition
on the part of the Creeks, have induced me now to accede to the request,
but with this explicit declaration, that neither my assent nor the treaty
which may be made shall be considered as affecting any question which
may arise upon the supplementary act passed by the legislature of the
State of Georgia on the yth of January last, upon which inquiries have
been instituted in pursuance of a resolution of the Senate and House of
Representatives, and that any cession or relinquishment of the Indian
claims shall be made in the general terms of the treaty of New York, which
are contemplated as the form proper to be generally used on such occa-
sions, and on the condition that one-half of the expense of the supplies
of provisions for the Indians assembled at the treaty be borne by the
State of Georgia.
Having concluded to hold the treaty requested by that State, I was
willing to embrace the opportunity it would present of inquiring into the
causes of the dissatisfaction of the Creeks which has been manifested
since the treaty of New York by their numerous and distressing depre-
dations on our Southwestern frontiers. Their depredations on the Cum-
berland have been so frequent and so peculiarly destructive as to lead
me to think they must originate in some claim to the lands upon that
river. But whatever may have been the cause, it is important to trace it
to its source; for, independent of the destruction of lives and property,
it occasions a very serious annual expense to the United States. The
commissioners for holding the proposed treaty will, therefore, be instructed
to inquire into the causes of the hostilities to which I have referred, and
to enter into such reasonable stipulations as will remove them and give
permanent peace to those parts of the United States.
I now nominate Benjamin Hawkins, of North Carolina ; George Clymer,
of Pennsylvania, and Andrew Pickens, of South Carolina, to be commis-
sioners to hold a treaty with the Creek Nation of Indians, for the purposes
hereinbefore expressed,
G9 WASHINGTON.
PROCLAMATIONS.
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OP AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
When we review the calamities which afflict so many other nations,
the present condition of the United States affords much matter of conso-
lation and satisfaction. Our exemption hitherto from foreign war, an
172 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
increasing prospect of the continuance of that exemption, the great
degree of internal tranquillity we have enjoyed, the recent confirmation
of that tranquillity by the suppression of an insurrection which so wan-
tonly threatened it, the happy course of our public affairs in general, the
unexampled prosperity of all classes of our citizens, are circumstances
which peculiarly mark our situation with indications of the Divine
beneficence toward us. In such a state of things it is in an especial
manner our duty as a people, with devout reverence and affectionate
gratitude, to acknowledge our many and great obligations to Almighty
God and to implore Him to continue and confirm the blessings we
experience.
Deeply penetrated with this sentiment, I, George Washington, Presi-
dent of the United States, do recommend to all religious societies and
denominations, and to all persons whomsoever, within the United States
to set apart and observe Thursday, the igth day of February next,
as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, and on that day to meet
together and render their sincere and hearty thanks to the Great Ruler
of Nations for the manifold and signal mercies which distinguish our lot
as a nation, particularly for the possession of constitutions of govern-
ment which unite and by their union establish liberty with order; for
the preservation of our peace, foreign and domestic; for the seasonable
control which has been given to a spirit of disorder in the suppression of
the late insurrection, and generally, for the prosperous course of our
affairs, public and private; and at the same time humbly and fervently
to beseech the kind Author of these blessings graciously to prolong them
to us; to imprint on our hearts a deep and solemn sense of our obliga-
*ions to Him for them; to teach us rightly to estimate their immense
value; to preserve us from the arrogance of prosperity, and from hazard-
ing the advantages we enjoy by delusive pursuits; to dispose us to merit
the continuance of His favors by not abusing them; by our gratitude for
them, and by a correspondent conduct as citizens and men; to render
this country more and more a safe and propitious asylum for the unfortu-
nate of other countries; to extend among us true and useful knowledge;
to diffuse and establish habits of sobriety, order, morality, and piety, and
finally, to impart all the blessings we possess, or ask for ourselves, to
the whole family of mankind.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with my hand.
[SEAl,.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the ist day of January,
1 795, and of the Independence of the United States of America
the nineteenth.
G9 WASHINGTON.
By the President :
EDM: RANDOLPH.
George Washington 173
[From Sparks's Washington, Vol. XII, p. 134.]
PROCLAMATION.
Whereas the commissioners appointed by the President of the United
States to confer with the citizens in the western counties of Pennsylvania
during the late insurrection which prevailed therein, by their act and
agreement bearing date the 2d day of September last, in pursuance of
the powers in them vested, did promise and engage that, if assurances
of submission to the laws of the United States should be bona fide given
by the citizens resident in the fourth survey of Pennsylvania^ in the
manner and within the time in the said act and agreement specified, a
general pardon should be granted on the loth day of July then next
ensuing of all treasons and other indictable offenses against the United
States committed within the said survey before the 226. day of August
last, excluding therefrom, nevertheless, every person who should refuse
or neglect to subscribe such assurance and engagement in manner afore-
said, or who should after such subscription violate the same, or willfully
obstruct or attempt to obstruct the execution of the acts for raising a
revenue on distilled spirits and stills, or be aiding or abetting therein;
and
Whereas I have since thought proper to extend the said pardon to
all persons guilty of the said treasons, misprisions of treasons, or other-
wise concerned in the late insurrection within the survey aforesaid who
have not since been indicted or convicted thereof, or of any other offense
against the United States:
Therefore be it known that I, George Washington, President of the
said United States, have granted, and by these presents do grant, a full,
free, and entire pardon to all persons (excepting as is hereinafter
excepted) of all treasons, misprisions of treason, and other indictable
offenses against the United States committed within the fourth survey
of Pennsylvania before the said 226. day of August last past, excepting
and excluding therefrom, nevertheless, every person who refused or
neglected to give and subscribe the said assurances in the manner afore-
said (or having subscribed hath violated the same) and now standeth
indicted or convicted of any treason, misprision of treason, or other
offense against the said United States, hereby remitting and releasing
unto all persons, except as before excepted, all penalties incurred, or sup-
posed to be incurred, for or on account of the premises.
In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the
seal of the United States to be affixed, this loth day of July,
[SEAL.] A. D. 1795, and the twentieth year of the Independence of the
said United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
174 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
SEVENTH ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, Decembers, 1795.
Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives :
I trust I do not deceive myself when I indulge the persuasion that
I have never met you at any period when more than at the present the
situation of our public affairs has afforded just cause for mutual congrat-
ulation, and for inviting you to join with me in profound gratitude to
the Author of all Good for the numerous and extraordinary blessings we
enjoy.
The termination of the long, expensive, and distressing war in which
we have been engaged with certain Indians northwest of the Ohio is
placed in the option of the United States by a treaty which the com-
mander of our army has concluded provisionally with the hostile tribes
in that region.
In the adjustment of the terms the satisfaction of the Indians was
deemed an object worthy no less of the policy than of the liberality of
the United States as the necessary basis of durable tranquillity. The
object, it is believed, has been fully attained. The articles agreed upon
will immediately be laid before the Senate for their consideration.
The Creek and Cherokee Indians, who alone of the Southern tribes
had annoyed our frontiers, have lately confirmed their preexisting trea-
ties with us, and were giving evidence of a sincere disposition to carry
them into effect by the surrender of the prisoners and property they had
taken. But we have to lament that the fair prospect in this quarter
has been once more clouded by wanton murders, which some citizens of
Georgia are represented to have recently perpetrated on hunting parties
of the Creeks, which have again subjected that frontier to disquietude
and danger, which will be productive of further expense, and may occa-
sion more effusion of blood. Measures are pursuing to prevent or miti-
gate the usual consequences of such outrages, and with the hope of their
succeeding at least to avert general hostility.
A letter from the Emperor of Morocco announces to me his recognition
of our treaty made with his father, the late Emperor, and consequently
the continuance of peace with that power. With peculiar satisfaction I
add that information has been received from an agent deputed on our part
to Algiers importing that the terms of the treaty with the Dey and Regency
of that country had been adjusted in such a manner as to authorize the
expectation of a speedy peace and the restoration of our unfortunate
fellow-citizens from a grievous captivity.
The latest advices from our envoy at the Court of Madrid give, more-
over, the pleasing information that he had received assurances of a speedy
and satisfactory conclusion of his negotiation. While the event depend-
George Washington 175
ing- upon unadjusted particulars can not be regarded as ascertained, it is
agreeable to cherish the expectation of an issue which, securing amicably
very essential interests of the United States, will at the same time lay
the foundation of lasting harmony with a power whose friendship we
have uniformly and sincerely desired to cultivate.
Though not before officially disclosed to the House of Representatives,
you, gentlemen, are all apprised that a treaty of amity, commerce, and
navigation has been negotiated with Great Britain, and that the Senate
have advised and consented to its ratification upon a condition which
excepts part of one article. Agreeably thereto, and to the best judgment
I was able to form of the public interest after full and mature delibera-
tion, I have added my sanction. The result on the part of His Britannic
Majesty is unknown. When received, the subject will without delay be
placed before Congress.
This interesting summary of our affairs with regard to the foreign
powers between whom and the United States controversies have sub-
sisted, and with regard also to those of our Indian neighbors with whom
we have been in a state of enmity or misunderstanding, opens a wide
field for consoling and gratifying reflections. If by prudence and mod-
eration on every side the extinguishment of all the causes of external
discord which have heretofore menaced our tranquillity, on terms com-
patible with our national rights and honor, shall be the happy result,
how firm and how precious a foundation will have been laid for acceler-
ating, maturing, and establishing the prosperity of our country.
Contemplating the internal situation as well as the external relations
of the United States, we discover equal cause for contentment and satis-
faction. While many of the nations of Europe, with their American
dependencies, have been involved in a contest unusually bloody, exhaust-
ing, and calamitous, in which the evils of foreign war have been aggra-
vated by domestic convulsion and insurrection; in which many of the
arts most useful to society have been exposed to discouragement and
decay; in which scarcity of subsistence has imbittered other sufferings;
while even the anticipations of a return of the blessings of peace and
repose are alloyed by the sense of heavy and accumulating burthens,
which press upon all the departments of industry and threaten to clog the
future springs of government, our favored country, happy in a striking
contrast, has enjoyed general tranquillity a tranquillity the more sat-
isfactory because maintained at the expense of no duty. Faithful to
ourselves, we have violated no obligation to others. Our agriculture,
commerce, and manufactures prosper beyond former example, the moles-
tations of our trade (to prevent a continuance of which, however, very
pointed remonstrances have been made) being overbalanced by the aggre-
gate benefits which it derives from a neutral position. Our population
advances with a celerity which, exceeding the most sanguine calculations,
proportionally augments our strength and resources, and guarantees our
176 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
future security. Every part of the Union displays indications of rapid
and various improvement; and with burthens so light as scarcely to be
perceived, with resources fully adequate to our present exigencies, with
governments founded on the genuine principles of rational liberty, and
with mild and wholesome laws, is it too much to say that our country
exhibits a spectacle of national happiness never surpassed, if ever before
equaled ?
Placed in a situation every way so auspicious, motives of commanding
force impel us, with sincere acknowledgment to Heaven and pure love to
our country, to unite our efforts to preserve, prolong, and improve our
immense advantages. To cooperate with you in this desirable work is a
fervent and favorite wish of my heart.
It is a valuable ingredient in the general estimate of our welfare that
the part of our country which was lately the scene of disorder and insur-
rection now enjoys the blessings of quiet and order. The misled have
abandoned their errors, and pay the respect to our Constitution and laws
which is due from good citizens to the public authorities of the society.
These circumstances have induced me to pardon generally the offenders
here referred to, and to extend forgiveness to those who had been adjudged
to capital punishment. For though I shall always think it a sacred duty
to exercise with firmness and energy the constitutional powers with which
I am vested, yet it appears to me no less consistent with the public good
than it is with my personal feelings to mingle in the operations of Gov-
ernment every degree of moderation and tenderness which the national
justice, dignity, and safety may permit.
GENTLEMEN: Among the objects which will claim your attention in
the course of the session, a review of our military establishment is not the
least important. It is called for by the events which have changed, and
may be expected still further to change, the relative situation of our fron-
tiers. In this review you will doubtless allow due weight to the consid-
erations that the questions between us and certain foreign powers are not
yet finally adjusted, that the war in Europe is not yet terminated, and that
our Western posts, when recovered, will demand provision for garrisoning
and securing them. A statement of our present military force will be laid
before you by the Department of War.
With the review of our Army establishment is naturally connected that
of the militia. It will merit inquiry what imperfections 'n the existing
plan further experience may have unfolded. The subject is of so much
moment in my estimation as to excite a constant solicitude that the con-
sideration of it may be renewed until the greatest attainable perfection
shall be accomplished. Time is wearing away some advantages for
forwarding the object, while none better deserves the persevering atten-
tion of the public councils.
While we indulge the satisfaction which the actual condition of our
George Washington 177
Western borders so well authorizes, it is necessary that we should not lose
sight of an important truth which continually receives new confirmations,
namely, that the provisions heretofore made with a view to the protec-
tion of the Indians from the violences of the lawless part of our frontier
inhabitants are insufficient. It is demonstrated that these violences can
now be perpetrated with impunity, and it can need no argument to prove
that unless the murdering of Indians can be restrained by bringing the
murderers to condign punishment, all the exertions of the Government
to prevent destructive retaliations by the Indians will prove fruitless and
all our present agreeable prospects illusory. The frequent destruction
of innocent women and children, who are chiefly the victims of retalia-
tion, must continue to shock humanity, and an enormous expense to drain
the Treasury of the Union.
To enforce upon the Indians the observance of justice it is indispensable
that there shall be competent means of rendering justice to them. If
these means can be devised by the wisdom of Congress, and especially if
there can be added an adequate provision for supplying the necessities
of the Indians on reasonable terms (a measure the mention of which I
the more readily repeat, as in all the conferences with them they urge
it with solicitude), I should not hesitate to entertain a strong hope
of rendering our tranquillity permanent. I add with pleasure that the
probability even of their civilization is not diminished by the experiments
which have been thus far made under the auspices of Government. The
accomplishment of this work, if practicable, will reflect undecaying luster
on our national character and administer the most grateful consolations
that virtuous minds can know.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The state of our revenue, with the sums which have been borrowed
and reimbursed pursuant to different acts of Congress, will be submitted
from the proper Department, together with an estimate of the appropria-
tions necessary to be made for the service of the ensuing year.
Whether measures may not be advisable to reenforce the provision for
the redemption of the public debt will naturally engage your examination.
Congress have demonstrated their sense to be, and it were superfluous
to repeat mine, that whatsoever will tend to accelerate the honorable
extinction of our public debt accords as much with the true interest of
our country as with the general sense of our constituents.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The statements which will be laid before you relative to the Mint will
shew the situation of that institution and the necessity of some further
legislative provisions for carrying the business of it more completely into
effect, and for checking abuses which appear to be arising in particular
quarters.
178 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
The progress in providing materials for the frigates and in building
them, the state of the fortifications of our harbors, the measures which
have been pursued for obtaining proper sites for arsenals and for replen-
ishing our magazines with military stores, and the steps which have
been taken toward the execution of the law for opening a trade with the
Indians will likewise be presented for the information of Congress.
Temperate discussion of the important subjects which may arise in the
course of the session and mutual forbearance where there is a difference
of opinion are too obvious and necessary for the peace, happiness, and
welfare of our country to need any recommendation of mine.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: It is with peculiar satisfaction that we are informed by your
speech to the two Houses of Congress that the long and expensive war
in which we have been engaged with the Indians northwest of the Ohio
is in a situation to be finally terminated; and though we view with con-
cern the danger of an interruption of the peace so recently confirmed
with the Creeks, we indulge the hope that the measures that you have
adopted to prevent the same, if followed by those legislative provisions
that justice and humanity equally demand, will succeed in laying th<?
foundation of a lasting peace with the Indian tribes on the Southern as
well as on the Western frontiers.
The confirmation of our treaty with Morocco, and the adjustment of
a treaty of peace with Algiers, in consequence of which our captive fel-
low-citizens shall be delivered from slavery, are events that will prove no
less interesting to the public humanity than they will be important in
extending and securing the navigation and commerce of our country.
As a just and equitable conclusion of our depending negotiations with
Spain will essentially advance the interest of both nations, and thereby
cherish and confirm the good understanding and friendship which we
have at all times desired to maintain, it will afford us real pleasure to
receive an early confirmation of our expectations on this subject.
The interesting prospect of our affairs with regard to the foreign
powers between whom and the United States controversies have sub-
sisted is not more satisfactory than the review of our internal situation.
If from the former we derive an expectation of the extinguishment of
all the causes of external discord that have heretofore endangered our
tranquillity, and on terms consistent with our national honor and safety,
in the latter we discover those numerous and widespread tokens of
prosperity which in so peculiar a manner distinguish our happy country.
Circumstances thus every way auspicious demand our gratitude and
sincere acknowledgments to Almighty God, and require that we should
George Washington 179
Unite our efforts in imitation of your enlightened, firm, and persevering
example to establish and preserve the peace, freedom, and prosperity of
our country.
The objects wliich you have recommended to the notice of the Legisla-
ture will in the course of the session receive our careful attention, and
with a true zeal for the public welfare we shall cheerfully cooperate in
every measure that shall appear to us best calculated to promote the same.
JOHN ADAMS,
Vice- President of the United States and President of the Senate.
DECEMBER xi, 1795.
REPLY OP THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN : With real pleasure I receive your address, recognizing
the prosperous situation of our public affairs, and giving assurances of
your careful attention to the objects demanding legislative considera-
tion, and that with a true zeal for the public welfare you will cheerfully
cooperate in every measure which shall appear to you best calculated
to promote the same.
But I derive peculiar satisfaction from your concurrence with me in the
expressions of gratitude to Almighty God, which a review of the auspi-
cious circumstances that distinguish our happy country have excited, and
I trust the sincerity of our acknowledgments will be evinced by a union
of efforts to establish and preserve its peace, freedom, and prosperity.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 12, 1795.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: As the Representatives of the people of the United States, we can
not but participate in the strongest sensibility to every blessing which
they enjoy, and cheerfully join with you in profound gratitude to the
Author of all Good for the numerous and extraordinary blessings which
He has conferred on our favored country.
A final and formal termination of the distressing war which has rav-
aged our Northwestern frontier will be an event which must afford a
satisfaction proportionate to the anxiety with which it has long been
sought, and in the adjustment of the terms we perceive the true policy
of making- them satisfactory to the Indians as well as to the United States
as the best basis of a durable tranquillity. The disposition of such of the
Southern tribes as had also heretofore annoyed our frontier is another
prospect in our situation so important to the interest and happiness of
the United States that it is much to be lamented that any clouds should
180 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
be thrown over it, more especially by excesses on the part of our own
citizens.
While our population is advancing with a celerity which exceeds the
most sanguine calculations; while every part of the United States displays
indications of rapid and various improvement; while we are in the enjoy-
ment of protection and security by mild and wholesome laws, admin-
istered by governments founded on the genuine principles of rational
liberty, a secure foundation will be laid for accelerating, maturing, and
establishing the prosperity of our country if, by treaty and amicable
negotiation, all those causes of external discord which heretofore men-
aced our tranquillity shall be extinguished on terms compatible with our
national rights and honor and with our Constitution and great commer-
cial interests.
Among the various circumstances in our internal situation none can
be viewed with more satisfaction and exultation than that the late scene
of disorder and insurrection has been completely restored to the enjoy-
ment of order and repose. Such a triumph of reason and of law is worthy
of the free Government under which it happened, and was justly to be
hoped from the enlightened and patriotic spirit which pervades and
actuates the people of the United States.
In contemplating that spectacle of national happiness which our country
exhibits, and of which you, sir, have been pleased to make an interesting
summary, permit us to acknowledge and declare the very great share
which your zealous and faithful services have contributed to it, and to
express the affectionate attachment which we feel for your character.
The several interesting subjects which you recommend to our consid-
eration will receive every degree of attention which is due to them; and
whilst we feel the obligation of temperance and mutual indulgence in all
our discussions, we trust and pray that the result to the happiness and
welfare of our country may correspond with the pure affection we bear
to it.
DECEMBER 16, 1795.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN : Coming as you do from all parts of the United States,
I receive great satisfaction from the concurrence of your testimony in the
justness of the interesting summary of our national happiness which, as
the result of my inquiries, I presented to your view. The sentiments we
have mutually expressed of profound gratitude to the source of those
numerous blessings, the Author of all Good, are pledges of our obligations
to unite our sincere and zealous endeavors, as the instruments of Divine
Providence, to preserve and perpetuate them.
Accept gentlemen, my thanks for your declaration that to my agency
you ascribe the enjoyment of a great share of these benefits. So far as my
George Washington 181
services contribute to the happiness of my country, the acknowledgment
thereof by my fellow-citizens and their affectionate attachment will ever
prove an abundant reward.
O9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 17, 1795.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, December 9,
Gentlemen oftke Senate:
I lay before you, for your consideration, a treaty of peace which has
been negotiated by General Wayne, on behalf of the United States, with
all the late hostile tribes of Indians northwest of the river Ohio, together
with the instructions which were given to General Wayne and the pro-
ceedings at the place of treaty.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, December 21, 1795.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Herewith I transmit, for your information and consideration, the origi-
nal letter from the Emperor of Morocco, recognizing the treaty of peace
and friendship between the United States and his father, the late Emperor,
accompanied with a translation thereof, and various documents relating
to the negotiation by which the recognition was effected.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 4, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
A letter from the minister plenipotentiary of the French Republic,
received on the 22d of the last month, covered an address, dated the
2ist of October, 1794, from the committee of public safety to the Repre-
sentatives of the United States in Congress, and also informed me that
he was instructed by the committee to present to the United States
the colors of France. I thereupon proposed to receive them last Friday,
the first day of the new year, a day of general joy and congratulation.
On that day the minister of the French Republic delivered the colors,
with an address, to which I returned an answer. By the latter Congress
will see that I have informed the minister that the colors will be
deposited with the archives of the United States. But it seemed to
me proper previously to exhibit to the two Houses of Congress these
1 82 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
evidences of the continued friendship of the French Republic, together
with the sentiments expressed by me on the occasion iu behalf of the
United States. They are herewith communicated.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January <?, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to you a memorial of the commissioners appointed by virtue
of an act entitled "An act for establishing the temporary and perma-
nent seat of the Government of the United States," on the subject of the
public buildings under their direction.
Since locating a district for the permanent seat of the Government of
the United States, as heretofore announced to both Houses of Congress,
I have accepted the grants of money and of laud stated in the memorial
of the commissioners. I have directed the buildings therein mentioned
to be commenced on plans which I deemed consistent with the liberality
of the grants and proper for the purposes intended.
I have not been inattentive to this important business intrusted by
the Legislature to niy care. I have viewed the resources placed in my
hands, and observed the manner in which they have been applied. The
progress is pretty fully detailed in the memorial from the commissioners,
and one of them attends to give further information if required. In a
case new and arduous, like the present, difficulties might naturally be
expected. Some have occurred, but they are in a great degree sur-
mounted, and I have no doubt, if the remaining resources are properly
cherished, so as to prevent the loss of property by hasty and numerous
sales, that all the buildings required for the accommodation of the Gov-
ernment of the United States may be completed in season without aid
from the Federal Treasury. The subject is therefore recommended to
the consideration of Congress, and the result will determine the measures
which I shall cause to be pursued with respect to the property remaining
unsold.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 29, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I send herewith for the information of Congress:
First. An act of the legislature of the State of Rhode Island, ratifying
an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to prevent suits
in certain cases against a State.
Second. An act of the State of North Carolina making the like rati-
fication.
Third. An act of the State of North Carolina, assenting to the purchase
by the United States of a sufficient quantity of land 011 Shell Castle
George Washington 183
Island for the purpose of erecting a beacon thereon, and ceding the juris-
diction thereof to the United States.
Fourth. A copy from the journal of proceedings of the governor in
his executive department of the territory of the United States northwest
of the river Ohio from July i to December 31, 1794.
Fifth. A copy from the records of the executive proceedings of the
same governor from January i to June 30, 1795; and
Sixth and seventh. A copy of the journal of the proceedings of the
governor in his executive department of the territory of the United
States south of the river Ohio from September i, 1794, to September i,
I795-
Eighth. The acts of the first and second sessions of the general
assembly of the same territory.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 29, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In pursuance of the authority vested in the President of the United
States by an act of Congress passed the 3d of March last, to reduce the
weights of the copper coin of the United States whenever he should
think it for the benefit of the United States, provided that the reduction
should not exceed 2 pennyweights in each cent, and in the like propor-
tion in a half cent, I have caused the same to be reduced since the 2jth
of last December, to wit, i pennyweight and 16 grains in each cent, and
in the like proportion in a half cent; and I have given notice thereof
by proclamation.
By the letter of the judges of the circuit court of the United States,
held at Boston in June last, and the inclosed application of the under-
keeper of the jail at that place, of which copies are herewith transmitted,
Congress will perceive the necessity of making a suitable provision for
the maintenance of prisoners committed to the jails of the several States
under the authority of the United States.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, February 2, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit herewith the copy of a letter, dated the igth of December
last, from Governor Blount to the Secretary of War, stating the avowed
and daring designs of certain persons to take possession of the lands
belonging to the Cherokees, and which the United States have by treaty
solemnly guaranteed to that nation. The injustice of such intrusions
and the mischievous consequences which must necessarily result there-
from demand that effectual provision be made to prevent them.
G9 WASHINGTON.
184 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, February 75, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Herewith I transmit, for your consideration and advice, a treaty of
peace and amity, concluded on the 5th day of last September by Joseph
Donaldson, jr., on the part of the United States, with the Dey of Algiers,
for himself, his Divan, and his subjects.
The instructions and other necessary papers relative to this negotia-
tion are also sent herewith, for the information of the Senate.
G9 WASHINGTON,
UNITED STATES, February 26, 2796.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I send herewith the treaty concluded on the 2jth of October last
between the United States and Spain by their respective plenipoten-
tiaries.
The communications to the Senate referred to in my message of the
1 6th of December, 1793, contain the instructions to the commissioners
of the United States, Messrs. Carmichael and Short, and various details
relative to the negotiations with Spain. Herewith I transmit copies of
the documents authorizing Mr. Pinckney, the envoy extraordinary from
the United States to the Court of Spain, to conclude the negotiation
agreeably to the original instructions above mentioned, and to adjust the
claims of the United States for the spoliations committed by the armed
vessels of His Catholic Majesty on the commerce of our citizens.
The numerous papers exhibiting the progress of the negotiation under
the conduct of Mr. Pinckney, being in the French and Spanish lan-
guages, will be communicated to the Senate as soon as the translations
which appear necessary shall be completed.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March i, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation concluded between
-the United States of America and His Britannic Majesty having been
duly ratified, and the ratifications having been exchanged at I^ondon
on the 28th day of October, 1795, I have directed the same to be pro-
mulgated, and herewith transmit a copy thereof for the information of
Congress.
GQ WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 8, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives?
I send herewith, for the information of Congress, the treaty concluded
btween the United States and the Dey and Regency of Algiers.
G? WASHINGTON.
George Washington 185
UNITED STATES, March 15, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
By the ninth section of the act entitled "An act to provide a naval
armament' ' it is enacted ' ' that if a peace shall take place between the
United States and the Regency of Algiers, that no further proceedings
be had under this act. ' '
The peace which is here contemplated having taken place, it is incum-
bent upon the Executive to suspend all orders respecting the building of
the frigates, procuring materials for them, or preparing materials already
obtained, which may be done without intrenching upon contracts or agree-
ments made and entered into before this event.
But inasmuch as the loss which the public would incur might be consid-
erable from dissipation of workmen, from certain works or operations
being suddenly dropped or left unfinished, and from the derangement
in the whole system consequent upon an immediate suspension of all
proceedings under it, I have therefore thought advisable, before taking
such a step, to submit the subject to the Senate and House of Representa-
tives, that such measures may be adopted in the premises as may best
comport with the public interest.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, Mzrch 25, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I send herewith, for your information, the translation of a letter from
the minister plenipotentiary of the French Republic to the Secretary
of State, announcing the peace made by the Republic with the Kings
of Prussia and Spain, the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and the Landgrave
of Hesse Cassel, and that the republican constitution decreed by the
National Convention had been accepted by the people of France and was
in operation. I also send you a copy of the answer given by my direc-
tion to this communication from the French minister. My sentiments
therein expressed I am persuaded will harmonize with yours and with
those of all my fellow-citizens.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 29, 1796.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I send herewith a copy of the treaty of friendship, limits, and navi-
gation, concluded on the 2yth of October last, between the United
States and His Catholic Majesty. This treaty has been ratified by me
agreeably to the Constitution, and the ratification has been dispatched for
Spain, where it will doubtless be immediately ratified by His Catholic
Majesty.
1 86 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
This early communication of the treaty with Spain has become neces-
sary because it is stipulated in the third article that commissioners for
running the boundary line between the territory of the United States and
the Spanish colonies of East and West Florida shall meet at the Natchez
before the expiration of six months from the ratification; and as that
period will undoubtedly arrive before the next meeting of Congress, the
House will see the necessity of making provision in their present session
for the object here mentioned. It will also be necessary to provide for
the expense to be incurred in executing the twenty-first article of the
treaty, to enable our fellow-citizens to obtain with as little delay as
possible compensation for the losses they have sustained by the capture
of their vessels and cargoes by the subjects of His Catholic Majesty
during the late war between France and Spain.
Estimates of the moneys necessary to be provided for the purposes of
this and several other treaties with foreign nations and the Indian tribes
will be laid before you by the proper Department.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 30, 1796.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
With the utmost attention I have considered your resolution of the 24th
instant, requesting me to lay before your House a copy of the instructions
to the minister of the United States who negotiated the treaty with the
King of Great Britain, together with the correspondence and other docu-
ments relative to that treaty, excepting such of the said papers as any
existing negotiation may render improper to be disclosed.
In deliberating upon this subject it was impossible for me to lose sight
of the principle which some have avowed in its discussion, or to avoid
extending my views to the consequences which must flow from the
admission of that principle.
I trust that no part of my conduct has ever indicated a disposition to
^rithhold any information which the Constitution has enjoined upon the
President as a duty to give, or which could be required of him by either
House of Congress as a right; and with truth I affirm that it has been,
as it will continue to be while I have the honor to preside in the Gov-
ernment, my constant endeavor to harmonize with the other branches
thereof so far as the trust delegated to me by the people of the United
States and my sense of the obligation it imposes to ' ' preserve, protect,
and defend the Constitution ' ' will permit.
The nature of foreign negotiations requires caution, and their success
must often depend on secrecy; and even when brought to a conclusion
a full disclosure of all the measures, demands, or eventual concessions
which may have been proposed or contemplated would be extremely
impolitic ; for this might have a pernicious influence on future
George Washington 187
tions, or produce immediate inconveniences, perhaps danger and mischief,
in relation to other powers. The necessity of such caution and secrecy
was one cogent reason for vesting the power of making treaties in the
President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, the principle on
which that body was formed confining it to a small number of members.
To admit, then, a right in the House of Representatives to demand and
to have as a matter of course all the papers respecting a negotiation
with a foreign power would be to establish a dangerous precedent.
It does not occur that the inspection of the papers asked for can be
relative to any purpose under the cognizance of the House of Repre-
sentatives, except that of an impeachment, which the resolution has not
expressed. I repeat that I have no disposition to withhold any infor-
mation which the duty of my station will permit or the public good
shall require to be disclosed; and, in fact, all the papers affecting the
negotiation with Great Britain were laid before the Senate when the
treaty itself was communicated for their consideration and advice.
The course which the debate has taken on the resolution of the House
leads to some observations on the mode of making treaties under the
Constitution of the United States.
Having been a member of the General Convention, and knowing the
principles on which the Constitution was formed, I have ever entertained
but one opinion on this subject; and from the first establishment of the
Government to this moment my conduct has exemplified that opinion
that the power of making treaties is exclusively vested in the President,
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, provided two-thirds of
the Senators present concur; and that every treaty so made and promul-
gated thenceforward became the law of the land. It is thus that the
treaty-making power has been understood by foreign nations, and in all the
treaties made with them we have declared and they have believed that,
when ratified by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate,
they became obligatory. In this construction of the Constitution every
House of Representatives has heretofore acquiesced, and until the pres-
ent time not a doubt or suspicion has appeared, to my knowledge, that
this construction was not the true one. Nay, they have more than acqui-
esced; for till now, without controverting the obligation of such treaties,
they have made all the requisite provisions for carrying them into effect.
There is also reason to believe that this construction agrees with the
opinions entertained by the State conventions when they were deliber-
ating on the Constitution, especially by those who objected to it because
there was not required in commercial treaties the consent of two-thirds
of the whole number of the members of the Senate instead of two-thirds
of the Senators present, and because in treaties respecting territorial
and certain other rights and claims the concurrence of three-fourths of
the whole number of the members of both Houses, respectively, was not
made necessary.
1 88 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
It is a fact declared by the General Convention and universally tinder-
stood that the Constitution of the United States was the result of a spirit
of amity and mutual concession; and it is well known that under this
influence the smaller States were admitted to an equal representation in
the Senate with the larger States, and that this branch of the Govern-
ment was invested with great powers, for on the equal participation of
those powers the sovereignty and political safety of the smaller States
were deemed essentially to depend.
If other proofs than these and the plain letter of the Constitution
itself be necessary to ascertain the point under consideration, they may
be found in the journals of the General Convention, which I have
deposited in the office of the Department of State. In those journals
it will appear that a proposition was made ' ' that no treaty should be
binding on the United States which was not ratified by a law," and
that the proposition was explicitly rejected.
As, therefore, it is perfectly clear to my understanding that the assent
of the House of Representatives is not necessary to the validity of a
treaty; as the treaty with Great Britain exhibits in itself all the objects
requiring legislative provision, and on these the papers called for can
throw no light, and as it is essential to the due administration of the
Government that the boundaries fixed by the Constitution between the
different departments should be preserved, a just regard to the Consti-
tution and to the duty of my office, under all the circumstances of this
case, forbids a compliance with your request.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March j/, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate.'
The treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation between the United
States and Great Britain requiring that commissioners should be appointed
to fix certain boundaries between the territories of the contracting par-
ties, and to ascertain the losses and damages represented to have been
sustained by their respective citizens and subjects, as set forth in the
fifth, sixth, and seventh articles of the treaty, in order to carry those
articles into execution I nominate as commissioners on the part of the
United States:
For the purpose mentioned in the fifth article, Henry Knox, of Massa-
chusetts;
For the purpose mentioned in the sixth article, Thomas Fitzsimons,
of Pennsylvania, and James Innes, of Virginia; and
For the purposes mentioned in the seventh article, Christopher Gore, of
Massachusetts, and William Piiickney, of Maryland.
G WASHINGTON.
George Washington 189
UNITED STATES, April <?, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
By an act of Congress passed on the 26th of May, 1790, it was declared
that the inhabitants of the territory of the United States south of the
river Ohio should enjoy all the privileges, benefits, and advantages set
forth in the ordinance of Congress for the government of the territory of
the United States northwest of the river Ohio, and that the government
of the said territory south of the Ohio should be similar to that which
was then exercised in the territory northwest of the Ohio, except so far
as was otherwise provided in the conditions expressed in an act of Con-
gress passed the 2d of April, 1790, entitled "An act to accept a cession
of the claims of the State of North Carolina to a certain district of
western territory."
Among the privileges, benefits, and advantages thus secured to the
inhabitants of the territory south of the river Ohio appear to "be the right
of forming a permanent constitution and State government, and of admis-
sion as a State, by its Delegates, into the Congress of the United States,
on an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever,
when it should have therein 60,000 free inhabitants; provided the con-
stitution and government so to be formed should be republican, and in
conformity to the principles contained in the articles of the said ordinance.
As proofs of the several requisites to entitle the territory south of the
river Ohio to be admitted as a State into the Union, Governor Blount
has transmitted a return of the enumeration of its inhabitants and a
printed copy of the constitution and form of government on which they
have agreed, which, with his letters accompanying the same, are here-
with laid before Congress,
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, April 28, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Herewith I lay before you a letter from the Attorney- General of the
United States, relative to compensation to the attorneys of the United
States in the several districts, which is recommended to your consider-
ation.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 2, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate :
Some time last year Jeremiah Wadsworth was authorized to hold a
treaty with the Cohnawaga Indians, styling themselves the Seven Nations
of Canada, to enable the State of New York to extinguish, by purchase,
a claim which the said Indians had set up to a parcel of land lying within
that State. The negotiation having issued without effecting its object,
i go Messages and Papers of the Presidents
and the State of New York having requested a renewal of the negotiation,
and the Indians having come forward with an application on the same
subject, I now nominate Jeremiah Wadsworth to be a commissioner to
hold a treaty with the Cohnawaga Indians, styling themselves the Seven
Nations of Canada, for the purpose of enabling the State of New York
to extinguish the aforesaid claim.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 5, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you, for your consideration and advice, an explanatory
article proposed to be added to the treaty of amity, commerce, and navi-
gation between the United States and Great Britain, together with a copy
of the full power to the Secretary of State to negotiate the same.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 25, 1796.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The measures now in operation for taking possession of the posts of
Detroit and Michilimackinac render it proper that provision should be
made for extending to these places and any others alike circumstanced
the civil authority of the Northwestern Territory. To do this will require
an expense to defray which the ordinary salaries of the governor and
secretary of that Territory appear to be incompetent.
The forming of a new county, or new counties, and the appointment of
the various officers, which the just exercise of government must require,
will oblige the governor and secretary to visit those places, and to spend
considerable time in making the arrangements necessary for introducing
and establishing the Government of the United States. Congress will
consider what provision will in this case be proper.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, May 28, //p<5.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The extraordinary expenses to be incurred in the present year in sup-
porting our foreign intercourse I find will require a provision beyond
the ordinary appropriation and the additional $20,000 already granted.
I have directed an estimate to be made, which is sent herewith, and
will exhibit the deficiency for which an appropriation appears to be
necessary.
G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 191
EIGHTH ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, December 7, 1796.
Fellow- Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In recurring to the internal situation of our country since I had last
the pleasure to address you, I find ample reason for a renewed expression
of that gratitude to the Ruler of the Universe which a continued series
of prosperity has so often and so justly called forth.
The acts of the last session which required special arrangements have
been as far as circumstances would admit carried into operation.
Measures calculated to insure a continuance of the friendship of the
Indians and to preserve peace along the extent of our interior frontier
have been digested and adopted. In the framing of these care has been
taken to guard on the one hand our advanced settlements from the preda-
tory incursions of those unruly individuals who can not be restrained by
their tribes, and on the other hand to protect the rights secured to the
Indians by treaty to draw them nearer to the civilized state and inspire
them with correct conceptions of the power as well as justice of the
Government.
The meeting of the deputies from the Creek Nation at Colerain, in the
State of Georgia, which had for a principal object the purchase of a par-
cel of their land by that State, broke up without its being accomplished,
the nation having previous to their departure instructed them against
making any sale. The occasion, however, has been improved to confirm
by a new treaty with the Creeks their preexisting engagements with the
United States, and to obtain their consent to the establishment of trading
houses and military posts within their boundary, by means of which their
friendship and the general peace may be more effectually secured.
The period during the late session at which the appropriation was
passed for carrying into effect the treaty of amity, commerce, and naviga-
tion between the United States and His Britannic Majesty necessarily pro-
crastinated the reception of the posts stipulated to be delivered beyond the
date assigned for that event. As soon, however, as the Governor- General
of Canada could be addressed with propriety on the subject, arrangements
were cordially and promptly concluded for their evacuation, and the United
States took possession of the principal of them, comprehending Oswego,
Niagara, Detroit, Michilimackinac, and Fort Miami, where such repairs and
additions have been ordered to be made as appeared indispensable.
The commissioners appointed on the part of the United States and of
Great Britain to determine which is the river St. Croix mentioned in the
treaty of peace of 1783, agreed in the choice of Egbert Benson, esq., of
New York, for the third commissioner. The whole met at St. Andrew's,
in Passamaquoddy Bay, in the beginning of October, and directed surveys
i ga Messages and Papers of the Presidents
to be made of the rivers in dispute; but deeming it impracticable to have
these surveys completed before the next year, they adjourned to meet at
Boston in August, 1797, for the final decision of the question.
Other commissioners appointed on the part of the United States,
agreeably to the seventh article of the treaty with Great Britain, relative
to captures and condemnation of vessels and other property, met the com-
missioners of His Britannic Majesty in London in August last, when
John Trumbull, esq., was chosen by lot for the fifth commissioner. In
October following the board were to proceed to business. As yet there h?
been no communication of commissioners on the part of Great Britain to
unite with those who have been appointed on the part of the United States
for carrying into effect the sixth article of the treaty.
The treaty with Spain required that the commissioners for running the
boundary line between the territory of the United States and His Catholic
Majesty's provinces of East and West Florida should meet at the Natchez
before the expiration of six months after the exchange of the ratifica-
tions, which was effected at Aranjuez on the 25th day of April; and the
troops of His Catholic Majesty occupying any posts within the limits of the
United States were within the same period to be withdrawn. The com-
missioner of the United States therefore commenced his journey for the
Natchez in September, and troops were ordered to occupy the posts from
which the Spanish garrisons should be withdrawn. Information has
been recently received of the appointment of a commissioner on the part
of His Catholic Majesty for running the boundary line, but none of any
appointment for the adjustment of the claims of our citizens whose ves-
sels were captured by the armed vessels of Spain.
In pursuance of the act of Congress passed in the last session for the
protection and relief of American seamen, agents were appointed, one to
reside in Great Britain and the other in the West Indies. The effects
of the agency in the West Indies are not yet fully ascertained, but those
which have been communicated afford grounds to believe the measure
will be beneficial. The agent destined to reside in Great Britain declin-
ing to accept the appointment, the business has consequently devolved
on the minister of the United States in London, and will command his
attention until a new agent shall be appointed.
After many delays and disappointments arising out of the European
war, the final arrangements for fulfilling the engagements made to the
Dey and Regency of Algiers will in all present appearance be crowned
with success, but under great, though inevitable, disadvantages in the
pecuniary transactions occasioned by that war, which will render further
provision necessary. The actual liberation of all our citizens who were
prisoners in Algiers, while it gratifies every feeling heart, is itself an
earnest of a satisfactory termination of the whole negotiation. Measures
are in operation for effecting treaties with the Regencies of Tunis and
Tripoli.
George Washington 193
To an active external commerce the protection of a naval force is
indispensable. This is manifest with regard to wars in which a State
is itself a party. But besides this, it is in our own experience that the
most sincere neutrality is not a sufficient guard against the depredations
bf nations at war. To secure respect to a neutral flag requires a naval
force organized and ready to vindicate it from insult or aggression. This
may even prevent the necessity of going to war by discouraging bellig-
erent powers from committing such violations of the rights of the neutral
party as may, first or last, leave no other option. From the best infor-
mation I have been able to obtain it would seem as if our trade to the
Mediterranean without a protecting force will always be insecure and
our citizens exposed to the calamities from which numbers of them have
but just been relieved.
These considerations invite the United States to look to the means,
and to set about the gradual creation of a navy. The increasing progress
of their navigation promises them at no distant period the requisite sup-
ply of seamen, and their means in other respects favor the undertaking.
It is an encouragement, likewise, that their particular situation will give
weight and influence to a moderate naval force in their hands. Will it
not, then, be advisable to begin without delay to provide and lay up the
materials for the building and equipping of ships of war, and to proceed
in the work by degrees, in proportion as our resources shall render it
practicable without inconvenience, so that a future war of Europe may
not find our commerce in the same unprotected state in which it was
found by the present ?
Congress have repeatedly, and not without success, directed their atten-
tion to the encouragement of manufactures. The object is of too much
consequence not to insure a continuance of their efforts in every way
which shall appear eligible. As a general rule, manufactures on public ac-
count are inexpedient; but where the state of things in a country leaves
little hope that certain branches of manufacture will for a great length
of time obtain, when these are of a nature essential to the furnishing and
equipping of the public force in time of war, are not establishments for
procuring them on public account to the extent of the ordinary demand
for the public service recommended by strong considerations of national
policy as an exception to the general rule ? Ought our country to remain
in such cases dependent on foreign supply, precarious because liable to be
interrupted? If the necessary article should in this mode cost more in
time of peace, will not the security and independence thence arising form
an ample compensation ? Establishments of this sort , commensurate only
with the calls of the public service in time of peace, will in time of war
easily be extended in proportion to the exigencies of the Government,
and may even perhaps be made to yield a surplus for the supply of our
citizens at large, so as to mitigate the privations from the interruption oi
their trade. If adopted, the plan ought to exclude all those branches
1 94 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
which are already, or likely soon to be, established in the country, In
order that there may be no danger of interference with pursuits of indi-
vidual industry.
It will not be doubted that with reference either to individual or
national welfare agriculture is of primary importance. In proportion
as nations advance in population and other circumstances of maturity
this truth becomes more apparent, and renders the cultivation of the soil
more and more an object of public patronage. Institutions for promoting
it grow up, supported by the public purse; and to what object can it be
dedicated with greater propriety ? Among the means which have been
employed to this end none have been attended with greater success than
the establishment of boards (composed of proper characters) charged with
collecting and diffusing information, and enabled by premiums and small
pecuniary aids to encourage and assist a spirit of discovery and improve-
ment. This species of establishment contributes doubly to the increase
of improvement by stimulating to enterprise and experiment, and by draw-
ing to a common center the results everywhere of individual skill and
observation, and spreading them thence over the whole nation. Expe-
rience accordingly has shewn that they are very cheap instruments of
immense national benefits.
I have heretofore proposed to the consideration of Congress the expe-
diency of establishing a national university and also a military academy.
The desirableness of both these institutions has so constantly increased
with every new view I have taken of the subject that I can not omit the
opportunity of once for all recalling your attention to them.
The assembly to which I address myself is too enlightened not to be-
fully sensible how much a flourishing state of the arts and sciences con-
tributes to national prosperity and reputation.
True it is that our country, much to its honor, contains many semi-
naries of learning highly respectable and useful; but the funds upon which
they rest are too narrow to command the ablest professors in the different
departments of liberal knowledge for the institution contemplated,
though they would be excellent auxiliaries.
Amongst the motives to such an institution, the assimilation of the
principles, opinions, and manners of our countrymen by the common
education of a portion of our youth from every quarter well deserves
attention. The more homogeneous our citizens can be made in these
particulars the greater will be our prospect of permanent union ; and a
primary object of such a national institution should be the education of
our youth in the science of government. In a republic what species of
knowledge can be equally important and what duty more pressing on its
legislature than to patronize a plan for communicating it to those who
are to be the future guardians of the liberties of the country?
The institution of a military academy is also recommended by cogent
reasons. However pacific the general policy of a nation may be, it
George Washington 195
ought never to be without an adequate stock of military knowledge for
emergencies. The first would impair the energy of its character, and
both would hazard its safety or expose it to greater evils when war could
not be avoided ; besides that, war might often not depend upon its own
choice. In proportion as the observance of pacific maxims might exempt
a nation from the necessity of practicing the rules of the military art
ought to be its care in preserving and transmitting, by proper establish-
ments, the knowledge of that art. Whatever argument may be drawn
from particular examples superficially viewed, a thorough examination
of the subject will evince that the art of war is at once comprehensive
and complicated, that it demands much previous study, and that the
possession of it in its most improved and perfect state is always of great
moment to the security of a nation. This, therefore, ought to be a serious
care of every government, and for this purpose an academy where a regular
course of instruction is given is an obviour expedient which different
nations have successfully employed.
The compensations to the officers of the United-. States in various
instances, and in none more than in respect to the most important stations,
appear to call for legislative revision. The consequences of a defective
provision are of serious import to the Government. If private wealth is
to supply the defect of public retribution, it will greatly contract the
sphere within which the selection of character for office is to be made,
and will proportionally diminish the probability of a choice of men able
as well as upright. Besides that, it would be repugnant to the vital
principles of our Government virtually to exclude from public trusts
talents and virtue unless accompanied by wealth.
While in our external relations some serious inconvenience? and embar-
rassments have been overcome and others lessened, it is with much pain
and deep regret I mention that circumstances of a very unwelcome
nature have latety occurred. Our trade has suffered and is suffering
extensive injuries in the West Indies from the cruisers and agents of
the French Republic, and communications have been received from its
minister here which indicate the danger of a further disturbance of our
commerce by its authority, and which are in other respects far from
agreeable.
It has been my constant, sincere, and earnest wish, in conformity with
that of our nation, to maintain cordial harmony and a perfectly friendly
understanding with that Republic. This wish remains unabated, and I
shall persevere in the endeavor to fulfill it to the utmost extent of what
shall be consistent with a just and indispensable regard to the rights and
honor of our country ; nor will I easily cease to cherish the expectation
that a spirit of justice, candor, and friendship on the part of the Republic
will eventually insure success,
In pursuing this course, however, I can not forget what is due to
the cnaracter of our Government and nation, or to a full and entire
8
196 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
confidence in the good sense, patriotism, self-respect, and fortitude of
my countrymen.
I reserve for a special message a more particular communication on
this interesting subject.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have directed an estimate of the appropriations necessary for the serv-
ice of the ensuing year to be submitted from the proper Department ,
with a view of the public receipts and expenditures to the latest period
to which an account can be prepared.
It is with satisfaction I am able to inform you that the revenues of the
United States continue in a state of progressive improvement.
A reenforcement of the existing provisions for discharging our public
debt was mentioned in my address at the opening of the last session.
Some preliminary steps were taken toward it, the maturing of which
will no doubt engage your zealous attention during the present. I will
only add that it will afford me a heartfelt satisfaction to concur in such
further measures as will ascertain to our country the prospect of a speedy
extinguishment of the debt. Posterity may have cause to regret if from
any motive intervals of tranquillity are left unimproved for accelerating
this valuable end.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
My solicitude to see the militia of the United States placed on an
efficient establishment has been so often and so ardently expressed that
I shall but barely recall the subject to your view on the present occasion,
at the same time that I shall submit to your inquiry whether our harbors
are yet sufficiently secured.
The situation in which I now stand for the last time, in the midst of
the representatives of the people of the United States, naturally recalls
the period when the administration of the present form of government
commenced, and I can not omit the occasion to congratulate you and my
country on the success of the experiment, nor to repeat my fervent sup-
plications to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe and Sovereign Arbiter of
Nations that His providential care may still be extended to the United
States, that the virtue and happiness of the people may be preserved, and
that the Government which they have instituted for the protection of
their liberties may be perpetual.
G9 WASHINGTON.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
We thank you, sir, for your faithful and detailed exposure of the
existing situation of our country, and we sincerely join in sentiments of
gratitude to an overruling Providence for the distinguished share of
George Washington 197
public prosperity and private happiness which the people of the United
States so peculiarly enjoy.
We are fully sensible of the advantages that have resulted from the
adoption of measures (which you have successfully carried into effect)
to preserve peace, cultivate friendship, and promote civilization amongst
the Indian tribes on the Western frontiers. Feelings of humanity and
the most solid political interests equally encourage the continuance of
this system.
We observe with pleasure that the delivery cu" the military posts lately
occupied by the British forces within the territory of the United States
was made with cordiality and promptitude as soon as circumstances
would admit, and that the other provisions of our treaties with Great
Britain and Spain that were objects of eventual arrangement are about
being carried into effect with entire harmony and good faith.
The unfortunate but unavoidable difficulties that opposed a timely
compliance with the terms of the Algerine treaty are much to be lamented,
as they may occasion a temporary suspension of the advantages to be
derived from a solid peace with that power and a perfect security from
its predatory warfare. At the same time, the lively impressions that
affected the public mind on the redemption of our captive fellow-citizens
afford the most laudable incentive to our exertions to remove the remain-
ing obstacles.
We perfectly coincide with you in opinion that the importance of our
commerce demands a naval force for its protection against foreign insult
and depredation, and our solicitude to attain that object will be always
proportionate to its magnitude.
The necessity of accelerating the establishment of certain useful
manufactures by the intervention of legislative aid and protection and
the encouragement due to agriculture by the creation of boards (composed
of intelligent individuals) to patronize this primary pursuit of society
are subjects which will readily engage our most serious attention.
A national university may be converted to the most useful purposes.
The science of legislation being so' essentially dependent on the endow-
ments of the mind, the public interests must receive effectual aid from the
general diffusion of knowledge, and the United States will assume a more
dignified station among the nations of the earth by the successful culti-
vation of the higher branches of literature.
A military academy may be likewise rendered equally important. To
aid and direct the physical force of the nation by cherishing a military
spirit, enforcing a proper sense of discipline, and inculcating a scientific
system of tactics is consonant to the soundest maxims of public policy.
Connected with and supported by such an establishment a well-regulated
militia, constituting the natural defense of the country, would prove the
most effectual as well as economical preservative of peace.
We can not but consider with serious apprehensions the inadequate
198 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
compensations of the public officers, especially of those in the more impor-
tant stations. It is not only a violation of the spirit of a public contract,
but is an evil so extensive in its operation and so destructive in its conse-
quences that we trust it will receive the most pointed legislative attention.
We sincerely lament that, whilst the conduct of the United States has
been uniformly impressed with the character of equity, moderation, and
love of peace in the maintenance of all their foreign relationships, our
trade should be so harassed by the cruisers and agents of the Republic
of France throughout the extensive departments of the West Indies.
Whilst we are confident that no cause of complaint exists that could
authorize an interruption of our tranquillity or disengage that Republic
from the bonds of amity, cemented by the faith of treaties, we can not
but express our deepest regrets that official communications have been
made to you indicating a more serious disturbance of our commerce.
Although we cherish the expectation that a sense of justice and a con-
sideration of our mutual interests will moderate their councils, we are
not unmindful of the situation in which events may place us, nor unpre-
pared to adopt that system of conduct which, compatible with the dignity
of a respectable nation, necessity may compel us to pursue.
We cordially acquiesce in the reflection that the United States, under
the operation of the Federal Government, have experienced a most rapid
aggrandizement and prosperity as well political as commercial.
Whilst contemplating the causes that produce this auspicious result,
we must acknowledge the excellence of the constitutional system and
the wisdom of the legislative provisions; but we should be deficient in
gratitude and justice did we not attribute a great portion of these advan-
tages to the virtue, firmness, and talents of your Administration, which
have been conspicuously displayed in the most trying time and on the
most critical occasions. It is therefore with the sincerest regret that
we now receive an official notification of your intentions to retire from
the public employments of your country.
When we review the various scenes of your public life, so long and so suc-
cessfully devoted to the most arduous services, civil and military, as well
during the struggles of the American Revolution as the convulsive periods
of a recent date, we can not look forward to your retirement without our
warmest affections and most anxious regards accompanying you, and
without mingling with our fellow-citizens at large in the sincerest wishes
for your personal happiness that sensibility and attachment can express.
The most effectual consolation that can offer for the loss we are about
to sustain arises from the animating reflection that the influence of your
example will extend to your successors, and the United States thus
continue to enjoy an able, upright, and energetic administration.
JOHN ADAMS,
Vice- President of the United Slates and President of the Senate.
DECEMBER 10, 1796.
George Washington 190
REPIvY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN: It affords me great satisfaction to find in your address a
concurrence in sentiment with me on the various topics which I presented
for your information and deliberation, and that the latter will receive
from you an attention proportioned to their respective importance.
For the notice you take* of my public services, civil and military, and
your kind wishes for my personal happiness, I beg you to accept my
cordial thanks. Those services, and greater had I possessed ability to
render them, were due to the unanimous calls of my country, and its
approbation is my abundant reward.
When contemplating the period of my retirement, I saw virtuous and
enlightened men among whom I relied on the discernment and patriotism
of my fellow-citizens to make the proper choice of a successor men who
would require no influential example to insure to the United States ' ' an
able, upright, and energetic administration." To such men I shall
cheerfully yield the palm of genius and talents to serve our common
country ; but at the same time I hope I may be indulged in expressing
the consoling reflection (which consciousness suggests), and to bear it
with me to my grave, that none can serve it with purer intentions than
I have done or with a more disinterested zeal.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 12, 1796.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO GEORGE
WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR : The House of Representatives have attended to your communi-
cation respecting the state of our country with all the sensibility that
the contemplation of the subject and a sense of duty can inspire.
We are gratified by the information that measures calculated to insure
a continuance of the friendship of the Indians and to maintain the
tranquillity of the Western frontier have been adopted, and we indulge
the hope that these, by impressing the Indian tribes with more correct
conceptions of the justice as well as power of the United States, will be
attended with success.
While we notice with satisfaction the steps that you have taken in
pursuance of the late treaties with several foreign nations, the liberation
of our citizens who were prisoners at Algiers is a subject of peculiar
felicitation. We shall cheerfully cooperate in any further measures that
shall appear on consideration to be requisite,
We have ever concurred with you in the most sincere and uniform
disposition to preserve our neutral relations inviolate, and it is of course
with anxiety and deep regret we hear that any interruption of our har-
mony with the French Republic has occurred, for we feel with you and
2OO Messages and Papers of the Presidents
with our constituents the cordial and unabated wish to maintain a per-
fectly friendly understanding with that nation. Your endeavors to fulfill
that wish, and by all honorable means to preserve peace, and to restore
that harmony and affection which have heretofore so happily subsisted
between the French Republic and the United States, can net fail, there-
fore, to interest our attention. And while we participate in the full
reliance you have expressed 011 the patriotism, self-respect, and fortitude
of our countrymen, we cherish the pleasing hope that a mutual spirit of
justice and moderation will insure the success of your perseverance.
The various subjects of your communication will respectively meet
with the attention that is due to their importance.
When we advert to the internal situation of the United States, we
deem it equally natural and becoming to compare the present period with
that immediately antecedent to the operation of the Government, and to
contrast it with the calamities in which the state of war still involves
several of the European nations, as the reflections deduced from both
tend to justify as well as to excite a warmer admiration of our free Con-
stitution, and to exalt our minds to a more fervent and grateful sense of
piety toward Almighty God for the beneficence of His providence, by
which its administration has been hitherto so remarkably distinguished.
And while we entertain a grateful conviction that your wise, firm, and
patriotic Administration has been signally conducive to the success of the
present form of government, we can not forbear to express the deep sen-
sations of regret with which we contemplate your intended retirement
from office.
As no other suitable occasion may occur, we can not suffer the present
to pass without attempting to disclose some of the emotions which it
can not fail to awaken.
The gratitude and admiration of your countrymen are still drawn to
the recollection of those resplendent virtues and talents which were so
eminently instrumental to the achievement of the Revolution, and of
which that glorious event will ever be the memorial. Your obedience to
the voice of duty and your country when you quitted reluctantly a second
time the retreat you had chosen and first accepted the Presidency afforded
a new proof of the devotedness of your zeal in its service and an earnest
of the patriotism and success which have characterized your Administra-
tion. As the grateful confidence of the citizens in the virtues of their
Chief Magistrate has essentially contributed to that success, we persuade
ourselves that the millions whom we represent participate with us in the
anxious solicitude of the present occasion.
Yet we can not be unmindful that your moderation and magnanimity,
twice displayed by retiring from your exalted stations, afford examples no
less rare and instructive to mankind than valuable to a republic.
Although we are sensible that this event of itself completes the luster
of a character already conspicuously unrivaled by the coincidence of
George Washington 201
virtue, talents, success, and public estimation, yet we conceive we owe it
to you, sir, and still more emphatically to ourselves and to our nation
(of the language of whose hearts we presume to think ourselves at this
moment the faithful interpreters) , to express the sentiments with which
it is contemplated.
The spectacle of a free and enlightened nation offering, by its Repre-
sentatives, the tribute of unfeigned approbation to its first citizen, how-
ever novel and interesting it may be, derives all its luster (a luster which
accident or enthusiasm could not bestow, and which adulation would tar-
nish) from the transcendent merit of which it is the voluntary testimony.
May you long enjoy that liberty which is so dear to you, and to which
your name will ever be so dear. May your own virtues and a nation's
prayers obtain the happiest sunshine for the decline of your days and
the choicest of future blessings. For our country's sake, for the sake of
republican liberty, it is our earnest wish that your example may be the
guide of your successors, and thus, after being the ornament and safeguard
of the present age, become the patrimony of our descendants.
DECEMBER 15, 1796.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
GENTLEMEN : To a citizen whose views were unambitious, who pre-
ferred the shade and tranquillity of private life to the splendor and solici-
tude of elevated stations, and whom the voice of duty and his country
could alone have drawn from his chosen retreat, no reward for his public
services can be so grateful as public approbation, accompanied by a con-
sciousness that to render those services useful to that country has been his
single aim; and when this approbation is expressed by the Representa-
tives of a free and enlightened nation, the reward will admit of no addition.
Receive, gentlemen, my sincere and affectionate thanks for this signal testi-
mony that my services have been acceptable and useful to my country.
The strong confidence of my fellow-citizens, while it animated all my
actions, insured their zealous cooperation, which rendered those services
successful . The virtue and wisdom of my successors, j oined with the patri-
otism and intelligence of the citizens who compose the other branches of
Government, I firmly trust will lead them to the adoption of measures
which, by the beneficence of Providence, will give stability to our system
of government, add to its success, and secure to ourselves and to posterity
that liberty which is to all of us so dear.
While I acknowledge with pleasure the sincere and uniform disposition
of the House of Representatives to preserve our neutral relations invio-
late, and with them deeply regret any degree of interruption of our good
understanding with the French Republic, I beg you, gentlemen, to rest
assured that my endeavors will be earnest and unceasing by all honor-
able means to preserve peace and to restore that harmony and affection
202 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
which have heretofore so happily subsisted between our two nations;
and with you I cherish the pleasing hope that a mutual spirit of justice
and moderation will crown those endeavors with success.
I shall cheerfully concur in the beneficial measures which your delib-
erations shall mature on the various subjects demanding your attention;
and while directing your labors to advance the real interests of our
country, you receive its blessings. With perfect sincerity my individual
wishes will be offered for your present and future felicity.
G9 WASHINGTON.
DECEMBER 16. 1796.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, Jamtary /, 1797,
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you for your consideration a treaty which has been
negotiated and concluded on the 2Qth day of June last by Benjamin
Hawkins, Andrew Pickens, and George Clymer, commissioners on behalf
of the United States, with the Creek Indians, together with the instruc-
tions which were given to the said commissioners and the proceedings at
the place of treaty.
I submit also the proceedings and result of a treaty, held at the city of
New York, on behalf of the State of New York, with certain nations or
tribes of Indians denominating themselves the Seven Nations of Canada.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 9, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Herewith I lay before you in confidence reports from the Departments
of State and the Treasury, by which you will see the present situation of
our affairs with the Dey and Regency of Algiers.
GP WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January 19, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
At the opening of the present session of Congress I mentioned that
some circumstances of an unwelcome nature had lately occurred in rela-
tion to France; that our trade had suffered, and was suffering, extensive
injuries in the West Indies from the cruisers and agents of the French
Republic, and that communications had been received from its minister
George Washington 203
here which indicated danger of a further disturbance of our commerce by
its authority, and that were in other respects far from agreeable, but
that I reserved for a special message a more particular communication
on this interesting subject. This communication I now make.
The complaints of the French minister embraced most of the transac-
tions of our Government in relation to France from an early period of
the present war, which, therefore, it was necessary carefully to review.
A collection has been formed of letters and papers relating to those
transactions, which I now lay before you, with a letter to Mr. Pinckney,
our minister at Paris, containing an examination of the notes of the
French minister and such information as I thought might be useful to
Mr. Pinckney in any further representations he might find necessary to
be made to the French Government. The immediate object of his mis-
sion was to make to that Government such explanations of the principles
and conduct of our own as, by manifesting our good faith, might remove
all jealousy and discontent and maintain that harmony and good under-
standing with the French Repubh'c which it has been my constant solici-
tude to preserve. A government which required only a knowledge of
the truth to justify its measures could not but be anxious to have this
fully and frankly displayed.
G9 WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, March 2, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Application having been made to me to permit a treaty to be held with
the Seneca Nation of Indians to effect the purchase of a parcel of their
land under a preemption right derived from the State of Massachusetts
and situated within the State of New York, and it appearing to me
reasonable that such opportunity should be afforded, provided the nego-
tiation shall be conducted at the expense of the applicant, and at the
desire and with the consent of the Indians, always considering these as
prerequisites, I now nominate Isaac Smith to be a commissioner to hold
a treaty with the Seneca Nation for the aforesaid purpose.
G9 WASHINGTON.
VETO MESSAGE.
UNITED STATES, February 28, 1797.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Having maturely considered the bill to alter and amend an act entitled
"An act to ascertain and fix the military establishment of the United
States, " which was presented to me on the 22d day of this month, I now
204 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
return it to the House of Representatives, in which it originated, with
my objections :
First. If the bill passes into a law, the two companies of light dragoons
will be from that moment legally out of service, though they will after-
wards continue actually in service; and for their services during this
interval, namely, from the time of legal to the time of actual discharge,
it will not be lawful to pay them, unless some future provision be made
by law. Though they may be discharged at the pleasure of Congress,
in justice they ought to receive their pay, not only to the time of passing
the law, but at least to the time of their actual discharge.
Secondly. It will be inconvenient and injurious to the public to dis-
miss the light dragoons as soon as notice of f he law can be conveyed to
them, one of the companies having been lately destined to a necessary
and important service.
Thirdly. The companies of light dragoons consist of 126 noncommis-
sioned officers and privates, who are bound to serve as dismounted dra-
goons when ordered so to do. They have received in bounties about
$2,000. One of them is completely equipped, and above half of the non-
commissioned officers and privates have yet to serve more than one-third
of the time of their enlistment; and besides, there will in the course of the
year be a considerable deficiency in the complement of infantry intended
to be continued. Under these circumstances, to discharge the dragoons
does not seem to comport with economy.
Fourthly. It is generally agreed that some cavalry, either militia or
regular, will be necessary; and according to the best information I have
been able to obtain, it is my opinion that the latter will be less expensive
and more useful than the former in preserving peace between the frontier
settlers and the Indians, and therefore a part of the military establish'
ment should consist of cavalry.
G9 WASHINGTON.
PROCLAMATION.
[From Senate Journal, vol. 2, p. 397.]
MARCH i, 1797.
To the Vice- President and Senators of the United States ', respectively.
SIR: It appearing to me proper that the Senate of the United States
should be convened on Saturday, the 4th of March instant, you are desired
to attend in the Chamber of the Senate on that day, at 10 o'clock in
the forenoon, to receive any communications which the President of the
United States may then lay before you touching their interests.
G9 WASHINGTON.
George Washington 205
FAREWELL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, September 17, 1796.
Friends and Fellow- Citizens:
The period for a new election of a citizen to administer 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 expression of
the public voice, that I should now apprise you of the resolution I have
formed to decline being considered among the number of those out of
whom a choice is to be made.
I beg you at the same time to do me the justice to be assured that
this resolution has not been taken without a strict regard to all the con-
siderations 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 diminution 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 compati-
ble 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 desire. 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 reluc-
tantly 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 our 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 sentiment of duty
or propriety, and am persuaded, whatever partiality may be retained for
my services, that in the present circumstances of our country you will not
disapprove my determination to retire.
The impressions with which I first undertook the arduous trust were
explained on the proper occasion. In the discharge of this trust I
will only say that I have, with good intentions, contributed toward the
organization and administration of the Government the best exertions of
which a very fallible judgment was capable. Not unconscious 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
2o6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
admonishes me more and more that the shade of retirement is as neces-
sary 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 intended 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 steadfast confidence with which it has supported me, and for the
opportunities I have thence enjoyed of manifesting my inviolable attach-
ment 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 example
in our annals that under circumstances in which the passions, agitated
in every direction, were liable to mislead; amidst appearances sometimes
dubious; vicissitudes 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. Pro-
foundly penetrated with this idea, I shall carry it with me to my grave
as a strong incitement to unceasing vows that Heaven may 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 administration in
every department may be stamped with wisdom and virtue; that, in fine,
the happiness of the people of these States, under the auspices 6f 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 adoption of every nation which is yet a
stranger to it.
Here, perhaps, I ought to stop. But a solicitude for your welfare
which can not 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 motive to
bias his counsel. Nor can I forget as an encouragement to it your indul-
gent reception of my sentiments on a former and not dissimilar occasion.
Interwoven as is the love of liberty with every ligament of your hearts,
no recommendation of mine is necessary to fortify or confirm the attach-
ment.
George Washington 207
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 the immense value of your national
union to your collective and individual happiness ; that you should
cherish a cordial, habitual, and immovable attachment to it ; accustoming
yourselves to think and speak of it as of the 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 dawn-
ing 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 country, that country has a right to con-
centrate 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 principles. 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 successes.
But these considerations, however powerfully they address 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 commanding 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 government, finds in the productions of the
latter great additional 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 maritime strength to which itself is unequally adapted.
The East, in a like intercourse with the West, already finds, and in the
2o8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
progressive improvement of interior communications by land and watei
will more and more find, a valuable vent for the commodities which it
brings from abroad or manufactures at home. The West derives from
the East supplies requisite to its growth and comfort, and what is per-
haps 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, directed by an indissoluble community of interest as one nation.
Any other tenure by which the West 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 pre-
carious.
While, then, every part of our country thus feels an immediate and
particular interest in union, all the parts combined can not fail to find in
the united mass of means and efforts greater strength, greater resource,
proportionably greater security from external danger, a less frequent
interruption 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 governments, which their own rivalships
alone would be sufficient to produce, but which opposite foreign alli-
ances, attachments, and intrigues would stimulate and imbitter. Hence,
likewise, they will avoid the necessity of those overgrown military estab-
lishments which, under any form of government, are inauspicious to
liberty, and which are to be regarded as particularly hostile to repub-
lican 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 preservation of the other.
These considerations speak a persuasive language to every reflecting
and virtuous mind, and exhibit the continuance of the union as a primary
object of patriotic desire. Is there a doubt whether a common govern-
ment can embrace so large a sphere? Let experience solve it. To listen
to mere speculation in such a case were criminal. 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
to the experiment. It is well worth a fair and full experiment. With
such powerful and obvious motives to union affecting all parts of our
country, while experience shall not have demonstrated its impractica-
bility, 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 difference of local interests and views.
George Washington 209
One of the expedients of party to acquire influence within particular dis
tricts is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other districts. You
can not shield yourselves too much against the jealousies and heartburn-
ings which spring from these misrepresentations; 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 negotiation 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
propagated 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 everything
they could desire in respect to our foreign relations toward confirming
their prosperity. Will it not be their wisdom to rely for the preserva-
tion 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?
To the efficacy and permanency of your union a government for the
whole is indispensable. No alliances, however strict, between the parts
can be an adequate substitute. They must inevitably experience the
infractions and interruptions which all alliances in all times have experi-
enced. Sensible of this momentous truth, you have improved upon your
first essay by the adoption of a Constitution of Government better calcu-
lated than your former for an intimate union and for the efficacious man-
agement of your common concerns. This Government, the offspring
of our own choice, uninfluenced and unawed, adopted upon full inves-
tigation and mature deliberation, completely free in its principles, in the
distribution of its powers, uniting security with energy, and containing
within itself a 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 enjoined by the funda-
mental maxims of true liberty. The basis of our political systems is the
right of the people to make and to alter their constitutions of govern-
ment. But the constitution which at any time exists till 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 estab-
lish government presupposes the duty of every individual to obey the
established government.
All obstructions to the execution of the laws, all combinations and
associations, under whatever plausible character, with the real design to
direct, control, counteract, or awe the regular deliberation 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
210 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
artificial and extraordinary force; to put in the place of the delegated will
of the nation the will of a 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 mutual interests.
However combinations or associations of the above description 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
unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people,
and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying after-
wards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.
Toward the preservation of your Government and the permanency of
your present happy state, it is requisite not only that you steadily dis-
countenance irregular oppositions to its acknowledged authority, but also
that you resist with care the spirit of innovation upon its principles,
however specious the pretexts. 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 can not be directly over-
thrown. 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
governments as of other human institutions; that experience is the surest
standard by which to test the real tendency of the existing constitution
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 government,
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 enterprises of faction, to confine each member of the
society withiu 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 on geographical dis-
criminations. 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.
This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its
root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under differ-
ent 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.
George Was king tort
211
The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by
the spirit of revenge natural to party dissension, 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 per-
manent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually
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 dis-
position to the purposes of his own elevation on the ruins of public liberty.
Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind (which never-
theless 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 enfeeble the public
administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies
and false alarms ; kindles the animosity of one part against another ;
foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign
influence and corruption, which find a facilitated access to the govern-
ment itself through the channels of party passion. Thus the policy and
the will of one country are subjected 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 gov-
ernments of a monarchical cast patriotism may look with indulgence, if not
with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those of the popular char-
acter, in governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged.
From their natural tendency it is certain there will always be enough of that
spirit for every salutary purpose; and there being constant danger of excess,
the effort ought to be by force of public opinion 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 con-
fine themselves within their respective constitutional spheres, avoiding
in the exercise 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 proneness to abuse it which predominates in the human heart is
sufficient to satisfy us of the truth of this position. The necessity of
reciprocal checks in the exercise of political power, by dividing and dis-
tributing it into different depositories, and constituting each the guardian
of the public weal against invasions by the others, 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
212 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
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 Constitu-
tion 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
connections with private and public felicity. I^et it simply be asked,
Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of
religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of inves-
tigation in courts of justice? And let us with caution indulge the
supposition that morality can be maintained 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 principle.
It is substantially true that virtue or morality is a necessary 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? Promote, then, as an object of primary importance, institutions
for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion 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 expense by cultivating peace, but remembering
also that timely disbursements to prepare for danger frequently prevent
much greater disbursements to repel it; avoiding likewise the accumula-
tion 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 posterity the burthen
which we ourselves ought to bear. The execution of these maxims
belongs to your representatives; but it is necessary that public opinion
should cooperate. To facilitate to them the performance of their duty it
is essential that you should practically bear in mind that toward the pay-
ment 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
George Washington 213
frcm the selection of the proper objects (which is always a choice of
difficulties), ought to be a decisive motive for a candid construction of the
conduct of the Government in making it, and for a spirit of acquiescence
in the measures for obtaining revenue which the public exigencies may
at any time dictate.
Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace
and harmony with all. Religion and morality 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 benevolence. Who can doubt 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 not connected the permanent felicity of
a nation with its virtue? The experiment, at least, is recommended by
every sentiment which ennobles human nature. Alas ! is it rendered
impossible by its vices ?
In the execution of such a plan nothing is more essential than that
permanent, inveterate antipathies against p& ticular nations and passion-
ate attachments for others should be excluded, and that in place of them
just and amicable feelings toward all should be cultivated. The nation
which indulges toward another an habitual hatred or an habitual fond-
ness 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 gov-
ernment sometimes participates in the national propensity, and adopts
through passion what reason would reject. At other times it makes the
animosity of the nation subservient to projects of hostility, instigated by
pride, ambition, 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 pro-
duces 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 wars of the
latter without adequate inducement or justification. It leads also to con-
cessions to the favorite nation of privileges denied to others, which is apt
doubly to injure the nation making- the concessions by unnessarily
parting with what ought to have been retained, and by exciting jealousy,
214 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
ill will, and a disposition to retaliate in the parties from whom equal
privileges are withheld; and it gives to ambitious, corrupted, 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 the appearances of a virtuous sense
of obligation, a commendable deference for public opinion, or a laudable
zeal for public good the base or foolish compliances of auibitiou, corrup-
tion, or infatuation.
As avenues to foreign influence in innumerable ways, such attach-
ments are particularly alarming to the truly enlightened and independ-
ent patriot. How many opportunities do they afford to tamper with
domestic factions, to practice the arts of seduction, to mislead public
opinion, to influence or awe the public councils! Such an attachment of
a small or weak toward a great and powerful nation dooms the former
to be the satellite of the latter. Against the insidious wiles of foreign
influence ( I conjure 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, to be useful, must be impartial, else it
becomes the instrument of the very influence to be avoided, instead of a
defense against it. Excessive partiality for one foreign nation and exces-
sive dislike of another cause those whom they actuate to see danger only
on one side, and serve to veil and even second the arts of influence on the
other. Real patriots who may resist the intrigues 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 engaged 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 artificial ties
in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics or the ordinary combinations
and collisions of her friendships or enmities.
Our detached and distant situation invites and enables us to pursue a
different course. If we remain one people, under an efficient government,
the period is not far off when we may defy material injury from external
annoyance ; when we may take such an attitude as will cause the neu-
trality we may at any time resolve upon to be scrupulously respected ;
when belligerent nations, under 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 justice, shall counsel.
Why forego the advantages of so peculiar a situation? Why quit our
George Washington 215
own to stand upon foreign ground? Why, by interweaving our destiny
with that of any part of Europe, entangle our peace and 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 understood as capable of patronizing infidelity to
existing engagements. I hold the maxim no less applicable to public
than to private affairs that honesty is always the best policy. I repeat,
therefore, let those engagements be observed 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 establishments on a
respectable defensive posture, we may safely trust to temporary alliances
for extraordinary emergencies.
Harmony, 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 exclu-
sive favors or preferences ; consulting the natural course of things ; dif-
fusing and diversifying by gentle means the streams 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 enable
the Government to support them, conventional rules of intercourse, the
best that present circumstances and mutual opinion will permit, but tem-
porary and liable to be from time to time abandoned or varied as expe-
rience and circumstances shall dictate ; constantly keeping in view that it
is folly in one nation to look for disinterested 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 country men, these counsels of an old and affec-
tionate friend I dare not hope they will make the strong and lasting impres-
sion 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 benefit, 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 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
216 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
myself, the assurance 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 x unin-
fluenced by any attempts to deter or divert me from it-
After deliberate examination, with the aid of the best lights I could
obtain, I was well satisfied that our country, 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 moderation, 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 understanding 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 toward other nations.
The inducements of interest for observing that conduct will best be
referred to your own reflections and experience. With me a predomi-
nant motive has been to endeavor to gain time to our country to settle
and mature its yet recent institutions, and to progress without interrup-
tion to that degree of strength and consistency which is necessary to
give it, humanly speaking, the command of its own fortunes.
Though in reviewing the incidents of my Administration I am uncon-
scious of intentional error, I am nevertheless too sensible of my defects
not to think it probable that I may have committed many errors. What-
ever 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 toward it which is so natural 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.
G9 WASHINGTON.
QUESTIONS.
1. Who painted the famous oil canvas of the Declaration of In-
dependence, reproduced in colors? Opposite page i.
2. What were the unalienable rights claimed in the Declaration
of Independence? Page i.
3. How could war be declared under the Articles of Confed-
eration? Page ii.
4. How can war be declared under the Constitution? Page 19.
5. What prevents the United States from granting titles of
nobility ? Page 20.
6. How may the Constitution be amended? Page 25.
7. Why did Washington refuse a salary? Page 45.
8. What was Washington's argument for independent manu-
facturing of military supplies? Page 57.
9. What was Washington's theory about the value of knowl-
edge? Page 58.
10. When was the establishment of a national university rec-
ommended? Pages 58, 194.
11. What state's militia was employed by the Federal Govern-
ment in operations against Indians? Page 96.
12. When was the first enumeration of inhabitants of the United
States laid before Congress? Page 104.
13. To what foreign power did America pay tribute, and why?
Page 115.
14. What was the relation of "preparedness" to "peace" as
stated by Washington? Page 132.
15. On what occasion were the colors of France presented to the
United States? Page 181.
16. Why did Washington recommend the establishment of a
Department of Agriculture? Page 194.
17. When did the President recommend the establishment of a
military academy? Page 194.
216-A
SUGGESTIONS.
It is worth while to read all of George Washington's messages
for the viewpoint of the beginnings of our Government.
It is especially important to read more than once Washington's
Farewell Address. Pages 205 to 216.
On February 18, 1862, the House and Senate passed a concur-
rent resolution that this Farewell Address be read in joint session
of Congress. The provision was further made for reading the
Farewell Address, or parts thereof, to the Army and Navy.
Page 3306.
On February 19, 1862, Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation
recommending that the people all over the country celebrate
Washington's birthday by causing his Farewell Address to be
read to them. Page 3289.
Read Washington's Foreign Policy. Pages 120, 213.
NOTE.
For further suggestions on Washington's administration see
Washington, George, Encyclopedic Index.
By reading the Foreign Policy of each President and by scan-
ning the messages as to the state of the nation, a thorough knowl-
edge of the history of the United States will be acquired from the
most authentic sources; because, as has been said, "Each Presi-
dent reviews the past, depicts the present and forecasts the
future of the nation."
216-B
John Adams
March 4, 1797, to March 4, 18O1
SEE ENCYCLOPEDIC INDEX.
The Encyclopedic Index is not only an index to the other volumes, not only a key that
unlocks the treasures of the entire publication, but it is in itself an alphabetically arranged
brief history or story of the great controlling events constituting the History of the United
States.
Under its proper alphabetical classification the story is told of every great subject
referred to by any of the Presidents in their official Messages, and at the end of each article
the official utterances of the Presidents themselves are cited upon the subject, so that you
may readily turn to the page in the body of the work itself for this original information.
Next to the possession of knowledge is the ability to turn at will to where knowledge
is to be found.
HOME AT QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS, OF JOHN ADAMS
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The proclamation of John Adams, as President, with reference to the
coins of the United States is interesting, but in itself it initiated no
policy. It was issued July 22, 1797, to carry out the provisions of the
act of Congress, passed February 9, 1793, which allowed foreign gold
and silver coins to pass current as legal tender for three years after the
mint of the United States should commence coinage under the act "estab-
lishing a mint and regulating the coins of the United States." This
proclamation gave notice that the mint commenced the coinage of silver
on the 1 5th of October, 1794, and of gold on the 3ist of July, 1795, and
that foreign coins would cease to be legal tender in three years from
those respective dates. Exception was made in favor of Spanish milled
dollars. Such a notice was simple compliance with the act cited, and
marks the progress of the policy of Hamilton, approved by Congress
under Washington.
Mr. Adams, according to his grandson, Charles Francis Adams, al-
ways regarded his mission to Holland and its results, "as the greatest
success of his life." It is impossible to exaggerate the value of his
services in that country in their bearing on the finances and the political
standing of the young republic. He went to Holland with a commission
to borrow not more than $10,000,000 on the credit of the United States.
The bills of our infant government had been protested in France, and
our poverty was well known in Holland. English emissaries were busy
in arousing suspicion and extending distrust of our solvency. Even the
French minister of foreign affairs devised obstructions to American
plans. The treaty of peace with Great Britain was not to be made until
September 3, 1783, and, therefore, the United States stood before Europe
only as a congeries of rebellious colonies.
The task before Mr. Adams called for the exercise of all his powers,
and they were well adapted for the emergency. The self-assertion, the
confidence in himself, his haughty and aggressive bearing, not always
helpful to the cause of which he was the champion, now were serviceable
in the highest degree. The presentation of his memorial for recognition
as minister plenipotentiary, prepared as it was with energy and persist-
ence, marked the turning of the tide. First by Friesland, as a separate
State, and then by the States General at the end of a year recognition
was granted, and Mr. Adams rejoiced in a welcome among the repre-
sentatives of the European powers at The Hague, as minister from the
new power beyond the seas.
As a recognized nation engaged in negotiating a treaty of commerce
with Holland, the position of the United States as borrower in the
Dutch money markets became at once more favorable. On July 28, 1783,
he was able to write to Secretary Livingston : "I have great pleasure in
assuring you that there is not one foreign loan open in this republic,
which is as good credit and goes as quick as mine," although Russia,
Spain and France were borrowers. Mr. Adams resisted the bankers
in the rate of charges on the loan, and entered on an arrangement with
leading houses who for forty years continued as financial agents of the
United States in Holland. The loan of 1782 was for $2,000,000, at 5
per cent, interest, with charges of 4^ per cent, and I per cent, for
paying out the interest.
But halcyon days were not yet assured to Mr. Adams as a borrower.
January 24, 1784, he wrote to Franklin from The Hague: "I am here
only to be a witness that American credit in this republic is dead, never
to rise again, at least until the United States shall all agree upon some
plan of revenue, and make it certain that interest and principal will be
paid." And yet before the year by a sort of lottery a loan for 2,000,000
guilders was consummated.
Although in the mean time the negotiations relating to the treaty of
peace with Great Britain, with which he was in part charged, had called
Mr. Adams from The Hague to Paris and London, Mr. Adams was an
important factor in securing additional loans in Holland in 1787 and
1788. The loan of 1787 was for $10,000,000, at 5 per cent, interest,
with 8 per cent, charges. That of 1788 was for only 1,000,000 guilders
at 5 per cent. With subsequent loans in Holland Mr. Adams was not
directly connected, but his efforts to establish the national credit abroad
had set on foot influences which did not cease when he was called home
to become at first Vice-President and in due course President of the
United States.
In his later life, in 1815, Mr. Adams wrote : "I desire no other inscrip-
tion over my gravestone than : 'Here lies John Adams who took upon
himself the responsibility of the peace with France in the year iSoo.' "
High courage, strong purpose, noble patriotism were involved in that
difficult service. But his labors and achievements in Holland for the
young republic in securing moneys for its empty treasury and recogni-
tion before the world, do not suffer in comparison.
After all and above all, history will give him unique place, in spite of
his vanity and his prejudices and his quarrels, as among the architects
of the republic, the chief organizer of the movement for American inde-
2i6-D
ABIGAIL ADAMS
ABIGAIL SMITH, of Weymouth, Mass., at
twenty became the wife of John Adams. 11!
health during her early years retarded her educa-
tion, but her strong mind overcame this difficulty.
Her letters to her husband and to her son prove
her mental powers and strong character, and
many of them have been published on account of
their literary and historical value. During her
husband's term the Capital was removed to
Washington, and, though the White House was
not yet completed, and the city was only a strag-
gling town, the ceremony of Washington's time
was resumed there during her short reign of only
half a year. In private life she was her husband's
constant companion, until, at the age of seventy-
four, eight years prior to her husband's death,
she died, leaving the record of a unique life. She
stands alone as the mother, as well as the wife,
of a President. John Ouincy Adams being the
eldest of her three sons.
John Adams
JOHN ADAMS was born on October 19 (old style), 1735, near Boston,
Mass., ill the portion of the town of Braintree which has since been incor-
porated as Quincy. He was fourth in descent from Henry Adams, who
fled from persecution in Devonshire, England, and settled in Massachu-
setts about 1630. Another of his ancestors was John Adams, a founder of
the Plymouth Colony in 1620. Entered Harvard College in 1751, and
graduated therefrom four years later. Studied the law and taught school
at Worcester; was admitted to the bar of Suffolk County in 1758. In 1768
removed to Boston, where he won distinction at the bar. In 1764 mar-
ried Abigail Smith, whose father was Rev. William Smith and whose
grandfather was Colonel Quincy. In 1770 was chosen a representative
from Boston in the legislature of Massachusetts. In 1774 was a mem-
ber of the Continental Congress, and in 1776 was the adviser and great
supporter of the Declaration of Independence. The same year was a
deputy to treat with Lord Howe for the pacification of the Colonies. He
declined the offer of chief justice of Massachusetts. In December, 17 77,
was appointed a commissioner to France, and returned home in the sum-
mer of 1779. He was then chosen a member of the Massachusetts con-
vention for framing a State constitution. On September 29, 1779, was
appointed by Congress minister plenipotentiary to negotiate a peace treaty
with Great Britain. In 1781 was a commissioner to conclude treaties
of peace with European powers. In 1783 negotiated with others a com-
mercial treaty with Great Britain. Was one of the commissioners to
sign the provisional treaty of peace with that nation November 30, 1782,
and the definite treaty September 3, 1783. In 1784 remained in Hol-
land, and in 1785 was by Congress appointed minister of the United
States at the Court of Great Britain. He returned to his home in June,
1788. Was chosen Vice-President on the ticket with Washington, and
on the assembling of the Senate took his seat as President of that body,
at New York in April, 1789. Was reelected Vice-Presideut in 1792.
On the retirement of Washington in 1796 he was elected President, and
was inaugurated March 4,1797. He retired March 4, 1801, to his home
at Quincy, Mass. In 1816 was chosen to head the list of Presidential
electors of his party in the State. Was a member of the State con-
vention to revise the constitution of Massachusetts; was unanimously
elected president of that convention, but declined it 011 account of his
age. His wife died in 1818. On July 4, 1826, he died, and was buried
at Quincy.
217
2i8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
IN THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, PA
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 independence of its claims, men of reflection were less appre-
hensive 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 concerning the forms of government to be instituted
over the whole and over the parts of this extensive country. Relying,
however, on the purity of their intentions, the justice of their cause, and
the integrity and intelligence of the people, under an overruling Provi-
dence which had so signally protected this country from the first, the
representatives 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 Revolutionary war, sup-
plying the place of government, commanded 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 precision 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 recommendations, 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 commerce,
discouragement of necessary manufactures, universal fall in the value of
lands and their produce, contempt of public and private faith, loss of con-
sideration and credit with foreign nations, and at length in discontents,
animosities, combinations, partial conventions, and insurrection, threat-
ening 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. Meas-
ures were pursued to concert a plan to form a more perfect union, estab-
lish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense,
promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty. The
John Adams 219
public disquisitions, discussions, and deliberations issued in the present
happy Constitution of Government.
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 sat
isf action, as the result of good heads prompted by good hearts, as an
experiment better adapted to the genius, character, situation, and rela-
tions of this nation and country than any which had ever been proposed
or suggested. In its general principles and great outlines it was con-
formable to such a system of government as I had ever most esteemed,
and in 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 occasions, 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 alteration 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
obligations to support the Constitution. The operation of it has equaled
the most sanguine expectations of its friends, and from an habitual atten-
tion to it, satisfaction in its administration, 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 congregations of
men into cities and nations are the most 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 Chamber of Congress, of a Gov-
ernment in which the Executive authority, as well as that of all the
branches of the Legislature, are exercised by citizens selected at regular
periods by their neighbors to make and execute laws for the general good.
Can anything essential, anything more than mere ornament and deco-
ration, be added to this by robes and diamonds? Can authority be more
amiable and respectable when it descends from accidents or institutions
220 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
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 whatever form it may appear. The existence of such a govern-
ment as ours for any length of time is a full proof of a general dissemi-
nation of knowledge and virtue throughout the whole body of the people.
And what object or consideration more pleasing than this can be pre-
sented 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 benev-
olence.
In the midst of these pleasing ideas we should be unfaithful to ourselves
if we should ever lose sight of the danger to our liberties if anything par-
tial 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 Government may not be the choice of
the American people, but of foreign nations. It may be foreign nations
who govern us, and not we, the people, who govern ourselves; and can-
did 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 government (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 citi-
zen who, by a long course of great actions, regulated by prudence, justice,
temperance, and fortitude, conducting a people inspired with the same
virtues and animated with the same ardent patriotism and love of liberty
to independence and peace, to increasing wealth and unexampled pros-
perity, 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, and 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 recom-
mended to the imitation of his successors by both Houses of Congress
and by the voice of the legislatures and the people throughout the nation.
John Adams 221
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 conscientious deter-
mination 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 respect-
ful attention to the constitutions of the individual States and a constant
caution and delicacy toward the State governments; if an equal and
impartial regard to the rights, interest, honor, and happiness of all the
States in the Union, without preference or regard to a northern or south-
ern, an eastern or western, position, their various political opinions on
unessential 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 effort 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 Con-
stitution from its natural enemies, the spirit of sophistry, the spirit of
party, the spirit of intrigue, the profligacy of corruption, and the pesti-
lence 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 administration; if an inclination to improve agriculture, com-
merce, and manufactures for necessity, convenience, and defense; if a
spirit of equity and humanity toward 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 te more friendly to them; if an inflex-
ible 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
legislatures 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 sentiment of their own power and energies
must be preserved, an earnest endeavor to investigate every just cause
and remove every colorable pretense of complaint; if an intention to
pursue by amicable negotiation a reparation for the injuries that have
beeu committed on the commerce of our fellow-citizens by whatever
nation, and if success can not be obtained, to lay the facts before the
Legislature, that they may consider what further measures the honor and
222 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
interest of the Government and its constituents demand; 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 Amer-
ican people, on which I have so often hazarded my all and never been
deceived; if elevated ideas of the high desrinies of this country and of my
own duties toward it, founded on a knowledge of the moral principles
and intellectual 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 injunction 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 continuance in all its energy, and my mind is prepared without hesi-
tation 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 possible success and duration consistent with the ends of His
providence.
MARCH 4, 1797.
PROCLAMATION.
[Prom Annals of Congress, Fifth Congress, Vol. I, 49.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas the Constitution of the United States of America provides
that the President may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses
of Congress; and
Whereas an extraordinary occasion exists for convening Congress, and
divers weighty matters claim their consideration :
I have therefore thought it necessary to convene, and I do by these
presents convene, the Congress of the United States of America at the
city of Philadelphia, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, on Monday,
John Adams 223
the 1 5th day of May next, hereby requiring the Senators and Represent-
atives in the Congress of the United States of America, and every of them,
that, laying aside all other matters and cares, they then and there meet
and assemble in Congress in order to consult and determine on such
measures as in their wisdom shall be deemed meet for the safety and
welfare of the said United States.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with niy hand.
[SEAL.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the 25th day of March,
A. D. 1797, and of the Independence of the United States of
America the twenty-first.
JOHN ADAMS.
By the President:
TIMOTHY PICKERING,
Secretary of State.
SPECIAL SESSION MESSAGE.
UNITED STATES, May 16, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The personal inconveniences to the members of the Senate and of the
House of Representatives in leaving their families and private affairs at
this season of the year are so obvious that I the more regret the extra-
ordinary occasion which has rendered the convention of Congress indis-
pensable.
It would have afforded me the highest satisfaction to have been able
to congratulate you on a restoration of peace to the nations of Europe
whose animosities have endangered our tranquillity; but we have still
abundant cause of gratitude to the Supreme Dispenser of National Bless-
ings for general health and promising seasons, for domestic and social hap-
piness, for the rapid progress and ample acquisitions of industry through
extensive territories, for civil, political, and religious liberty. While other
states are desolated with foreign war or convulsed with intestine divisions,
the United States present the pleasing prospect of a nation governed by
mild and equal laws, generally satisfied with the possession of their rights,
neither envying the advantages nor fearing the power of other nations,
solicitous only for the maintenance of order and justice and the preserva-
tion of liberty, increasing daily in their attachment to a system of gov-
ernment in proportion to their experience of its utility, yielding a ready
and general obedience to laws flowing from the reason and resting on the
only solid foundation the affections of the people.
224 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
It is with extreme regret that I shall be obliged to turn your thoughts
to other circumstances, which admonish us that some of these felicities
may not be lasting. But if the tide of our prosperity is full and a reflux
commencing, a vigilant circumspection becomes us, that we may meet our
reverses with fortitude and extricate ourselves from their consequences
with all the skill we possess and all the efforts in our power.
In giving to Congress information of the state of the Union and recom-
mending to their consideration such measures as appear to me to be nec-
essary or expedient, according to my constitutional duty, the causes and
the objects of the present extraordinary session will be explained.
After the President of the United States received information that the
French Government had expressed serious discontents at some proceed-
ings of the Government of these States said to affect the interests of
France, he thought it expedient to send to that country a new minister,
fully instructed to enter on such amicable discussions and to give such
candid explanations as might happily remove the discontents and suspi-
cions of the French Government and vindicate the conduct of the United
States. For this purpose he selected from among his fellow-citizens a
character whose integrity, talents, experience, and services had placed
him in the rank of the most esteemed and respected in the nation. The
direct object of his mission was expressed in his letter of credence to the
French Republic, being "to maintain that good understanding which
from the commencement of the alliance had subsisted between the two
nations, and to efface unfavorable impressions, banish suspicions, and
restore that cordiality which was at once the evidence and pledge of a
friendly union." And his instructions were to the same effect, "faith-
fully to represent the disposition of the Government and people of the
United States (their disposition being one), to remove jealousies and obvi-
ate complaints by shewing that they were groundless, to restore that
mutual confidence which had been so unfortunately and injuriously
impaired, and to explain the relative interests of both countries and the
real sentiments of his own."
A minister thus specially commissioned it was expected would have
proved the instrument of restoring mutual confidence between the two
Republics. The first step of the French Government corresponded with
that expectation. A few days before his arrival at Paris the French
minister of foreign relations informed the American minister then resident
at Paris of the formalities to be observed by himself in taking leave, and
by his successor preparatory to his reception. These formalities they
observed, and on the Qth of December presented officially to the minister
of foreign relations, the one a copy of his letters of recall, the other a
copy of his letters of credence.
These were laid before the Executive Directory. Two days afterwards
the minister of foreign relations informed the recalled American minister
that the Executive Directory had determined not to receive another min-
John Adams 225
ister plenipotentiary from the United States until after the redress of
grievances demanded of the American Government, and which the French
Republic had a right to expect from it. The American minister imme-
diately endeavored to ascertain whether by refusing to receive him it
was intended that he should retire from the territories of the French
Republic, and verbal answers were given that such was the intention of
the Directory. For his own justification he desired a written answer,
but obtained none until toward the last of January, when, receiving
notice in writing to quit the territories of the Republic, he proceeded to
Amsterdam, where he proposed to wait for instruction from this Gov-
ernment. During his residence at Paris cards of hospitality were refused
him, and he was threatened with being subjected to the jurisdiction of
the minister of police; but with becoming firmness he insisted on the
protection of the law of nations due to him as the known minister of a
foreign power. You will derive further information from his dispatches,
which will be laid before you.
As it is often necessary that nations should treat for the mutual advan-
tage of their affairs, and especially to accommodate and terminate differ-
ences, and as they can treat wnly by ministers, the right of embassy is
well known and established by the law and usage of nations. The refusal
on the part of France to receive our minister is, then, the denial of a
right; but the refusal to receive him until we have acceded to their
demands without discussion and without investigation is to treat us
neither as allies nor as friends, nor as a sovereign state.
With this conduct of the French Government it will be proper to take
into view the public audience giver to the late minister of the United
States on his taking leave of the Executive Directory. The speech of the
President discloses sentiments more alarming than the refusal of a min-
ister, because more dangerous to our independence and union, and at the
same time studiously marked with indignities toward the Government of
the United States. It evinces a disposition to separate the people of the
United States from the Government, to persuade them that they have
different affections, principles, and interests from those of their fellow-
citizens whom they themselves have chosen to manage their common
concerns, and thus to produce divisions fatal to our peace. Such
attempts ought to be repelled with a decision which shall convince France
and the world that we are not a degraded people, humiliated under a
colonial spirit of fear and sense of inferiority, fitted to be the miserable
instruments of foreign influence, and regardless of national honor, char-
acter, and interest.
I should have been happy to have thrown a veil over these transactions
if it had been possible to conceal them; but they have passed on the great
theater of the world, in the face of all Europe and America, and with
such circumstances of publicity and solemnity that they can not be dis-
guised and will not soon be forgotten. They have inflicted a wound in
9
2 26 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the American breast. It is my sincere desire, however, that it may be
healed. . .
It is my sincere desire, and in this I presume I concur with you and
with our constituents, to preserve peace and friendship with all nations;
and believing that neither the honor nor the interest of the United States
absolutely forbid the repetition of advances for securing these desirable
objects with France, I shall institute a fresh attempt at negotiation, and
shall not fail to promote and accelerate an accommodation on terms com-
patible with the rights, duties, interests, and honor of the nation. If we
have committed errors, and these can be demonstrated, we shall be willing
to correct them; if we have done injuries, we shall be willing on conviction
to redress them; and equal measures of justice we have a right to expect
from France and every other nation.
The diplomatic intercourse between the United States and France being
at present suspended, the Government has no means of obtaining official
information from that country. Nevertheless, there is reason to believe
that the Executive Directory passed a decree on the 2d of March last con-
travening in part the treaty of amity and commerce of 1778, injurious to
our lawful commerce and endangering the lives of our citizens. A copy
of this decree will be laid before you.
While we are endeavoring to adjust all our differences with France by
amicable negotiation, the progress of the war in Europe, the depredations
on our commerce, the personal injuries to our citizens, and the general
complexion of affairs render it my indispensable duty to recommend to
your consideration effectual measures of defense.
The commerce of the United States has become an interesting object of
attention, whether we consider it in relation to the wealth and finances
or the strength and resources of the nation. With a seacoast of near
2,000 miles in extent, opening a wide field for fisheries, navigation, and
commerce, a great portion of our citizens naturally apply their industry
and enterprise to these objects. Any serious and permanent injury to
commerce would not -fail to produce the most embarrassing disorders.
To prevent it from being undermined and destroyed it is essential that
it receive an adequate protection.
The naval establishment must occur to every man who considers the
injuries committed on our commerce, the insults offered to our citizens,
and the description of vessels by which these abuses have been practiced.
As the sufferings of our mercantile and seafaring citizens can not be
ascribed to the omission of duties demandable, considering the neutral
situation of our country, they are to be attributed to the hope, of impu-
nity arising from a s upposed inability on our part to afford protection.
To resist the consequences of such impressions on the minds of foreign
nations and to guard against the degradation and servility which they
must finally stamp on the American character is an important duty of
Government.
John Adams 227
A naval power, next to the militia, is the natural defense of the United
States. The experience of the last war would be sufficient to shew that
a moderate naval force, such as would be easily within the present ?.bili-
ties of the Union, would have been sufficient to have baffled many for-
midable transportations of troops from one State to another, which were
then practiced. Our seacoasts, from their great extent, are more easily
annoyed and more easily defended by a naval force than any other.
With all the materials our country abounds; in skill our naval architects
and navigators are equal to any, and commanders and seamen will not be
wanting.
But although the establishment of a permanent system of naval
defense appears to be requisite, I am sensible it can not be formed so
speedily and extensively as the present crisis demands. Hitherto I have
thought proper to prevent the sailing of armed vessels except on voy-
ages to the East Indies, where general usage and the danger from pirates
appeared to render the permission proper. Yet the restriction has origi-
nated solely from a wish to prevent collisions with the powers at war,
contravening the act of Congress of June, 1794, and not from any doubt
entertained by me of the policy and propriety of permitting our vessels
to employ means of defense while engaged in a lawful foreign commerce.
It remains for Congress to prescribe such regulations as will enable our
seafaring citizens to defend themselves against violations of the law of
nations, and at the same time restrain them from committing acts of
hostility against the powers at war. In addition to this voluntary pro-
vision for defense by individual citizens, it appears to me necessary to
equip the frigates, and provide other vessels of inferior force, to take
under convoy such merchant vessels as shall remain unarmed.
The greater part of the cruisers whose depredations have been most
injurious have been built and some of them partially equipped in the
United States. Although an effectual remedy may be attended with
difficulty, yet I have thought it my duty to present the subject gener-
ally to your consideration. If a mode can be devised by the wisdom of
Congress to prevent the resources of the United States from being con-
verted into the means of annoying our trade, a great evil will be prevented.
With the same view, I think it proper to mention that some of our citi-
zens resident abroad have fitted out privateers, and others have volun-
tarily taken the command, or entered on board of them, and committed
spoliations on the commerce of the United States. Such unnatural and
iniquitous practices can be restrained only by severe punishments.
But besides a protection of our commerce on the seas, I think it highly
necessary to protect it at home, where it is collected in our most impor-
tant ports. The distance of the United States from Europe and the
well-known promptitude, ardor, and courage of the people in defense of
their country happily diminish the probability of invasion. Neverthe-
less, to guard against sudden and predatory incursions the situation of
228 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
some of our principal seaports demands your consideration. And as our
country is vulnerable in other interests besides those of its commerce, you
will seriously deliberate whether the means of general defense ought not
to be increased by an addition to the regular artillery and cavalry, and
by arrangements for forming a provisional army.
With the same view, and as a measure which, even in a time of univer-
sal peace, ought not to be neglected, I recommend to your consideration
a revisica of the laws for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia,
to render that natural and safe defense of the country efficacious.
Although it is very true that we ought not to involve ourselves in the
political system of Europe, but to keep ourselves always distinct and
separate from it if we can, yet to effect this separation, early, punctual,
and continual information of the current chain of events and of the
political projects in contemplation is no less necessary than if we were
directly concerned in them. It is necessary, in order to the discovery of
the efforts made to draw us into the vortex, in season to make preparations
against them. However we may consider ourselves, the maritime and
commercial powers of the world will consider the United States of
America as forming a \veight in that balance of power in Europe which
never can be forgotten or neglected. It would not only be against our
interest, but it would be doing wrong to one-half of Europe, at least, if we
should voluntarily throw ourselves into either scale. It is a natural
policy for a nation that studies to be neutral to consult with other nations
engaged in the same studies and pursuits. At the same time that measures
might be pursued with this view, our treaties with Prussia and Sweden,
one of which is expired and the other near expiring, might be renewed.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
It is particularly your province to consider the state of the public
finances, and to adopt such measures respecting them as exigencies shall
be found to require. The preservation of public credit, the regular extin-
guishment of the public debt, and a provision of funds to defray any
extraordinary expenses will of course call for your serious attention.
Although the imposition of new burthens can not be in itself agreeable,
yet there is no ground to doubt that the American people will expect
from you such measures as their actual engagements, their present secu-
rity, and future interests demand.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The present situation of our country imposes an obligation on all the
departments of Government to adopt an explicit and decided conduct.
In my situation an exposition of the principles by which my Administra-
tion will be governed ought not to be omitted.
It is impossible to conceal from ourselves or the world what has been
before observed, that endeavors have been employed to foster and estab-
John Adams 229
lish a division between the Government and people of the United States.
To investigate the causes which have encouraged this attempt is not neces-
sary ; but to repel, by decided and united councils, insinuations so derog-
atory to the honor and aggressions so dangerous to the Constitution,
union, and even independence of the nation is an indispensable duty.
It must not be permitted to be doubted whether the people of the
United States will support the Government established by their volun-
tary consent and appointed by their free choice, or whether, by surren-
dering themselves to the direction of foreign and domestic factions, in
opposition to their own Government, they will forfeit the honorable sta-
tion they have hitherto maintained.
For myself, having never been indifferent to what concerned the inter-
ests of my country, devoted the best part of my life to obtain and support
its independence, and constantly witnessed the patriotism, fidelity, and
perseverance of my fellow-citizens on the most trying occasions, it is not
for me to hesitate or abandon a cause in which my heart has been so
long engaged.
Convinced that the conduct of the Government has been just and
impartial to foreign nations, that those internal regulations which have
been established by law for the preservation of peace are in their nature
proper, and that they have been fairly executed, nothing will e^er be
done by me to impair the national engagements, to innovate upon prin-
ciples which have been so deliberately and uprightly established, or to
surrender in any manner the rights of the Government. To enable me
to maintain this declaration I rely, under God, with entire confidence
on the firm and enlightened support of the National Legislature and
upon the virtue and patriotism of my fellow-citizens.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Senate of the United States request you to accept theii
acknowledgments for the comprehensive and interesting detail you have
given in your speech to both Houses of Congress on the existing state
of the Union.
While we regret the necessity of the present meeting of the Legisla-
ture, we wish to express our entire approbation of your conduct in con-
vening it on this momentous occasion.
The superintendence of our national faith, honor, and dignity being
in a great measure constitutionally deposited with the Executive, we
observe with singular satisfaction the vigilance, firmness, and prompti-
tude exhibited by you in this critical state of our public affairs, and from
thence derive an evidence and pledge of the rectitude and integrity of
your Administration. And we are sensible it is an object of primary
230 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
importance that each branch of the Government should adopt a language
and system of conduct which shall be cool, just, and dispassionate, but
firm, explicit, and decided.
We are equally desirous with } r ou to preserve peace and friendship
with all nations, and are happy to be informed that neither the honor
nor interests of the United States forbid advances for securing those
desirable objects by amicable negotiation with the French Republic.
This method of adjusting national differences is not only the most mild,
but the most rational and humane, and with governments disposed to be
just can seldom fail of success when fairly, candidly, and sincerely used.
If we have committed errors and can be made sensible of them, we agree
with you in opinion that we ought to correct them, and compensate the
in j tunes which may have been consequent thereon; and we trust the
French Republic will be actuated by the same just and benevolent prin-
ciples of national policy.
We do therefore most sincerely approve of your determination to pro-
mote and accelerate an accommodation of our existing differences with
that Republic by negotiation, on terms compatible with the rights, duties,
interests, and honor of our nation. And you may rest assured of our
most cordial cooperation so far as it may become necessary in this pursuit.
Peace and harmony with all nations is our sincere wish; but such being
the lot of humanity that nations will not always reciprocate peaceable
dispositions, it is our firm belief that effectual measures of defense will
tend to inspire that national self-respect and confidence at home which
is the unfailing source of respectability abroad, to check aggression and
prevent war.
While we are endeavoring to adjust our differences with the French
Republic by amicable negotiation, the progress of the war in Europe,
the depredations on our commerce, the personal injuries to our citizens,
and the general complexion of affairs prove to us your vigilant care in
recommending to our attention effectual measures of defense.
Those which you recommend, whether they relate to external defense
by permitting our citizens to arm for the purpose of repelling aggressions
on their commercial rights, and by providing sea convoys, or to inter-
nal defense by increasing the establishments of artillery and cavalry, by
forming a provisional army, by revising the militia laws, and fortifying
more completely our ports and harbors, will meet our consideration under
the influence of the same just regard for the security, interest, and honor
of our country which dictated your recommendation.
Practices so unnatural and iniquitous as those you state, of our own
citizens converting their property and personal exertions into the means
of annoying our trade and injuring their fellow-citizens, deserve legal
severity commensurate with their turpitude.
Although the Senate believe that the prosperity and happiness of our
country does not depend on general and extensive political connections
John Adams 231
with European nations, yet we can never lose sight of the propriety as
well as necessity of enabling the Executive, by sufficient and liberal sup-
plies, to maintain and even extend our foreign intercourse as exigencies
may require, reposing full confidence in the Executive, in whom the
Constitution has placed the powers of negotiation.
We learn with sincere concern that attempts are in operation to alienate
the affections of our fellow-citizens from their Government. Attempts
bo wicked, wherever they exist, can not fail to excite our utmost abhor-
rence. A government chosen by the people for their own safety and
happiness, and calculated to secure both, can not lose their affections so
long as its administration pursues the principles upon which it was
erected; and your resolution to observe a conduct just and impartial to
all nations, a sacred regard to our national engagements, and not to impair
the rights of our Government, contains principles which can not fail to
secure to your Administration the support of the National Legislature
to render abortive every attempt to excite dangerous jealousies among
us, and to convince the world that our Government and yovr adminis-
tration of it can not be separated from the affectionate support of every
good citizen. And the Senate can not suffer the present occasion to pass
without thus publicly and solemnly expressing their attachment to the
Constitution and Government of their country; and as they hold them-
selves responsible to their constituents, their consciences, and their God,
it is their determination by all their exertions to repel every attempt to
alienate the affections of the people from the Government, so highly inju-
rious to the honor, safety, and independence of the United States.
We are happy, since our sentiments on the subject are in perfect unison
with yours, in this public manner to declare that we believe the conduct
of the Government has been just and impartial to foreign nations, and
that those internal regulations which have been established for the preser-
vation of peace are in their nature proper and have been fairly executed.
And we are equally happy in possessing an entire confidence in your
abilities and exertions in your station to maintain untarnished the honor,
preserve the peace, and support the independence of our country, to
acquire and establish which, in connection with your fellow-citizens, has
been the virtuous effort of a principal part of your life.
To aid you in these arduous and honorable exertions, as it is our duty
so it shall be our faithful endeavor ; and we flatter ourselves, sir, that
the proceedings of the present session of Congress will manifest to the
world that although the United States love peace, they will be independ-
ent; that they are sincere in their declarations to be just to the French
and all other nations, and expect the same in return.
If a sense of justice, a love of moderation and peace, shall influence
their councils, which we sincerely hope we shall have just grounds to
expect, peace and amity between the United States and all nations will
be preserved.
232 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
But if we are so unfortunate as to experience injuries from any for-
eign power, and the ordinary methods by which differences are amica-
bly adjusted between nations shall be rejected, the determination "not
to surrender in any manner the rights of the Government," being so
inseparably connected with the dignity, interest, and independence of
our country, shall by us be steadily and inviolably supported.
TH: JEFFERSON,
Vice- President of tJie United States and President of the Senate.
MAY 23, 1797.
REPLY OP THE PRESIDENT.
Mr. Vice- President and Gentlemen of the Senate:
It would be an affectation in me to dissemble the pleasure I feel on
receiving this kind address.
My long experience of the wisdom, fortitude, and patriotism of the Sen-
ate of the United States enhances in my estimation the value of those
obliging expressions of your approbation of my conduct, which are a
generous reward for the past and an affecting encouragement to constancy
and perseverance in future.
Our sentiments appear to be so entirely in unison that I can not but
believe them to be the rational result of the understandings and the nat-
ural feelings of the hearts of Americans in general on contemplating the
present state of the nation.
While such principles and affections prevail they will form an indis-
soluble bond of union and a sure pledge that our country has no essen-
tial injury to apprehend from any portentous appearances abroad. In a
humble reliance on Divine Providence we may rest assured that while
we reiterate with sincerity our endeavors to accommodate all our differ-
ences with France, the independence of our country can not be diminished,
its dignity degraded, or its glory tarnished by any nation or combination
of nations, whether friends or enemies,
JOHN ADAMS.
MAY 24, 1797.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO JOHN ADAMS,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR : The interesting details of those events which have rendered the
convention of Congress at this time indispensable (communicated in your
speech to both Houses) has excited in us the strongest emotions. Whilst
we regret the occasion, we can not omit to testify our approbation of the
measure, and pledge ourselves that no considerations of private inconven-
ience shall prevent on our part a faithful discharge of the duties to which
we are called.
John Adams 233
We have constantly hoped that the nations of Europe, whilst desolated
by foreign wars or convulsed by intestine divisions, would have left the
United States to enjoy that peace and tranquillity to which the impartial
conduct of our Government has entitled us, and it is now with extreme
regret we find the measures of the French Republic tending to endanger
a situation so desirable and interesting to our country.
Upon this occasion we feel it our duty to express in the most explicit
manner the sensations which the present crisis has excited, and to assure
you of our zealous cooperation in those measures which may appear nec-
essary for our security or peace.
Although it is the earnest wish of our hearts that peace may be main-
tained with the French Republic and with all the world, yet we never
will surrender those rights which belong to us as a nation; and whilst
we view with satisfaction the wisdom, dignity, and moderation which have
marked the measures of the Supreme Executive of our country in his
attempt to remove by candid explanations the complaints and jealousies
of France, we feel the full force of that indignity which has been offered
our country in the rejection of its minisi^x . No attempts to wound our
rights as a sovereign State will escape the notice of our constituents.
They will be felt with indignation and repelled with that decision which
shall convince the world that we are not a degraded peopls; that we can
never submit to the demands of a foreign power without examination
and without discussion.
Knowing as we do the confidence reposed by the people of the United
States in their Government, we can not hesitate in expressing our indig-
nation at any sentiments tending to derogate from that confidence. Such
sentiments, wherever entertained, serve to evince an imperfect knowl-
edge of the opinions of our constituents. An attempt to separate the
people of the United States from their Government is an attempt to sep
arate them from themselves; and although foreigners who know not
the genius of our country may have conceived the project, and foreign
emissaries may attempt the execution, yet the united efforts of our fellow-
citizens will convince the world of its impracticability.
Sensibly as we feel the wound which has been inflicted by the trans-
actions disclosed in your communications, yet we think with you that
neither the honor nor the interest of the United States forbid the repeti-
tion of advances for preserving peace; we therefore receive with the
utmost satisfaction your information that a fresh attempt at negotiation
will be instituted, and we cherish the hope that a mutual spirit of con-
ciliation, and a disposition on the part of France to compensate for any
injuries which may Lrve been committed upon our neutral rights, and on
the part of the United States to place France on grounds similar to those
of other countries in their relation and connection with us (if any inequali-
ties shall be found to exist), will produce an accommodation compatible
with the engagements, rights, duties, and honor of the United States.
234 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Fully, however, impressed with the uncertainty of the result, we shall
prepare to meet with fortitude any unfavorable events which may occur,
and to extricate ourselves from their consequences with all the skill we
possess and all the efforts in our power. Believing with you that the
conduct of the Government has been just and impartial to foreign nations,
that the laws for the preservation of peace have been proper, and that
they have been fairly executed, the Representatives of the people do not
hesitate to declare that they will give their most cordial support to the
execution of principles so deliberately and uprightly established.
The many interesting subjects which you have recommended to our
consideration, and which are so strongly enforced by this momentous
occasion, will receive every attention which their importance demands,
and we trust that, by the decided and explicit conduct which will govern
our deliberations, every insinuation will be repelled which is derogatory
to the honor and independence of our country.
Permit us in offering this address to express our satisfaction at your
promotion to the first office in the Government and our entire confidence
that the preeminent talents and patriotism which have placed you in
this distinguished situation will enable you to discharge its various duties
with satisfaction to yourself and advantage to our common country.
JUNE 2, 1797.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
Mr. Speaker and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I receive with great satisfaction your candid approbation of the con-
vention of Congress, and thank you for your assurances that the inter-
esting subjects recommended to your consideration shall receive the
attention which their importance demands, and that your cooperation
may be expected in those measures which may appear necessary for our
security or peace.
The declarations of the Representatives of this nation of their satisfac-
tion at my promotion to the first office in this Government and of their
confidence in my sincere endeavors to discharge the various duties of it
with advantage to our common country have excited my most grateful
sensibility.
I pray you, gentlemen, to believe and to communicate such assurance
to our constituents that no event which I can foresee to be attainable by
any exertions in the discharge of my duties can afford me so much cor-
dial satisfaction as to conduct a negotiation with the French Republic to
a removal of prejudices, a correction of errors, a dissipation of umbrages,
an accommodation of all differences, and a restoration of harmony and
affection to the mutual satisfaction of both nations. And whenever the
John Adams 235
legitimate organs of intercourse shall be restored and the real sentiments
of the two Governments can be candidly communicated to each other,
although strongly impressed with the necessity of collecting ourselves
into a manly posture of defense, I nevertheless entertain an encouraging
confidence that a mutual spirit of conciliation, a disposition to compensate
injuries and accommodate each other in all our relations and connections,
will produce an agreement to a treaty consistent with the engagements,
rights, duties, and honor of both nations.
JOHN ADAMS.
JUNE 3, 1797.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, May 26, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you, for your consideration and advice, a treaty of perpetual
peace and friendship between the United States of America and the Bey
and subjects of Tripoli, of Barbary, concluded at Tripoli on the 4th day
of November, 1796.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, May ji, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I nominate General Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, of South Carolina,
Francis Dana, chief justice of the State of Massachusetts, and General
John Marshall, of Virginia, to be jointly and severally envoys extraordi-
nary and ministers plenipotentiary to the French Republic.
After mature deliberation on the critical situation of our relations with
France, which have long engaged my most serious attention, I have
determined on these nominations of persons to negotiate with the French
Republic to dissipate umbrages, to remove prejudices, to rectify errors,
and adjust all differences by a treaty between the two powers.
It is in the present critical and singular circumstances of great impor-
tance to engage the confidence of the great portions of the Union in the
characters employed and the measures which may be adopted. I have
therefore thought it expedient to nominate persons of talents and integ-
rity, long known and intrusted in the three great divisions of the Union,
and at the same time, to provide against the cases of death, absence, indis-
position, or other impediment, to invest any one or more of them with
full powers.
JOHN ADAMS.
236 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, June 12, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have received information from the commissioner appointed on the
part of the United States, pursuant to the third article of our treaty with
Spain, that the running and marking of the boundary line between the
colonies of East and West Florida and the territory of the United States
have been delayed by the officers of His Catholic Majesty, and that they
have declared their intention to maintain his jurisdiction, and to suspend
the withdrawing his troops from the military posts they occupy within
the territory of the United States until the two Governments shall, by
negotiation, have settled the meaning of the second article respecting
the withdrawing of the troops, garrisons, or settlements of either party
in the territory of the other that is, whether, when the Spanish garri-
sons withdraw, they are to leave the works standing or to demolish
them and until, by an additional article to the treaty, the real property
of the inhabitants shall be secured, and, likewise, until the Spanish
officers are sure the Indians will be pacific. The two first questions, if
to be determined by negotiation, might be made subjects of discussion
for years, and as no limitation of time can be prescribed to the other,
a certainty in the opinion of the Spanish officers that the Indians will
be pacific, it will be impossible to suffer it to remain an obstacle to the
fulfillment of the treaty on the part of Spain.
To remove the first difficulty, I have determined to leave it to the
discretion of the officers of His Catholic Majesty when they withdraw
his troops from the forts within the territory of the United States, either
to leave the works standing or to demolish them ; and to remove the
second I shall cause an assurance to be published and to be particularly
communicated to the minister of His Catholic Majesty and to the gov-
ernor of Louisiana that the settlers or occupants of the lands in question
shall not l)e disturbed in their possessions by the troops of the United
States, but, on the contrary, that they shall be protected in all their lawful
claims; and to prevent or remove every doubt on this point it merits the
consideration of Congress whether it will not be expedient immediately
to pass a law giving positive assurances to those inhabitants who, by fair
and regular grants or by occupancy, have obtained legal titles or equi-
table claims to lands in that country prior to the final ratification of the
treaty between the United States and Spain on the 25th of April, 1796.
This country is rendered peculiarly valuable by its inhabitants, who
are represented to amount to nearly 4,000, generally well affected and
much attached to the United States, and zealous for the establishment of
a government under their authority.
I therefore recommend to your consideration the expediency of erecting
a government in the district of the Natchez similar to that established
for the territory northwest of the river Ohio, but with certain modifica-
John Adams 237
tions relative to titles or claims of land, whether of individuals or com-
parties, or to claims of jurisdiction of any individual State.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, June 22, 1797.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Immediately after I had received your resolution of the loth of June,
requesting a report respecting the depredations committed on the com-
merce of the United States since the ist of October, 1796, specifying the
name of the vessel taken, where bound to or from, species of lading, the
value (when it can be ascertained) of the vessel and cargo taken, and by
what power captured, particularizing those which have been actually
condemned, together with the proper documents to ascertain the same, I
directed a collection to be made of all such information as should be found
in the possession of the Government; in consequence of which the Sec-
retary of State has made the report and the collection of documents which
accompany this message, and are now laid before the House of Repre-
sentatives in compliance with then: desire.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, June 23, 1797,
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The Dey of Algiers has manifested a predilection for American-built
vessels, and in consequence has desired that two vessels might be con-
structed and equipped as cruisers according to the choice and taste of
Captain O'Brien. The cost of two such vessels built with live oak and
cedar, and coppered, with guns and all other equipments complete, is
estimated at $45,000. The expense of navigating them to Algiers
may perhaps be compensated by the freight of the stores with which
they may be loaded on account of our stipulations by treaty with the
Dey.
A compliance with the Dey's request appears to me to be of serious
importance. He will repay the whole expense of building and equipping
the two vessels, and as he has advanced the price of our peace with
Tripoli, and become pledged for that of Tunis, the United States seem to
be under peculiar obligations to provide this accommodation, and I trust
that Congress will authorize the advance of money necessary for that
purpose.
It also appears to be of importance to place at Algiers a person as
consul in whose integrity and ability much confidence may be placed, to
whom a considerable latitude of discretion should be allowed, for the
interest of the United States in relation to their commerce. That country
238 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
is so remote as to render it impracticable for the consul to ask and receive
instructions in sudden emergencies. He may sometimes find it necessary
to make instant engagements for money or its equivalent, to prevent
greater expenses or more serious evils. We can hardly hope to escape
occasions of discontent proceeding from the Regency or arising from the
misconduct or even the misfortunes of our commercial vessels navigat-
ing in the Mediterranean Sea, and unless the causes of discontent are
speedily removed the resentment of the Regency may be exerted with
precipitation on our defenseless citizens and their property, and thus
occasion a tenfold expense to the United States. For these reasons it
appears to me to be expedient to vest the consul at Algiers with a degree
of discretionary power which can be requisite in no other situation; and
to encourage a person deserving the public confidence to accept so
expensive and responsible a situation, it appears indispensable to allow
him a handsome salary. I should confer on such a consul a superin-
tending power over the consulates for the States of Tunis and Tripoli,
especially in respect to pecuniary engagements, which should not be
made without his approbation.
While the present salary of $2,000 a year appears adequate to the
consulates of Tunis and Tripoli, twice that sum probably will be requisite
for Algiers.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, July 3, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The whole of the intelligence which has for some time past been
received from abroad, the correspondences between this Government and
the ministers of the belligerent powers residing here, and the advices
from the officers of the United States, civil and military, upon the frontiers
all conspire to shew in a very strong light the critical situation of our
country. That Congress might be enabled to form a more perfect judg-
ment of it and of the measures necessary to be taken, I have directed
the proper officers to prepare such collections of extracts from the public
correspondences as might afford the clearest information. The reports
made to me from the Secretary of State and the Secretary .of War, with
a collection of documents from each of them, are now communicated to
both Houses of Congress. I have desired that the message, reports, and
documents may be considered as confidential merely that the members of
both Houses of Congress may be apprised of their contents before they
should be made public. As soon as the two Houses shall have heard
them, I shall submit to their discretion the publication of the whole, or
any such parts of them as they shall judge necessary or expedient for
the public good.
JOHN ADAMS.
John Adams 239
PROCLAMATION.
BY JOHN ADAMS, THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES as
AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas an act of the Congress of the United States was passed on
the Qth day of February, 1793, entitled "An act regulating foreign
coins, and for other purposes," in which it was enacted "that foreign
gold and silver coins shall pass current as money within the United
States and be a legal tender for the payment of all debts and demands ' '
at the several and respective rates therein stated; and that "at the
expiration of three years next ensuing the time when the coinage of
gold and silver agreeably to the act intituled "An act establishing a
mint and regulating the coins of the United States ' ' shall commence at
the Mint of the United States (which time shall be announced by the
proclamation of the President of the United States), all foreign gold
coins and all foreign silver coins, except Spanish milled dollars and parts
of such dollars, shall cease to be a legal tender as aforesaid:
Now, therefore, I, the said John Adams, President of the United
States, hereby proclaim, announce, and give notice to all whom it may
concern that, agreeably to the act last above mentioned, the coinage of
silver at the Mint of the United States commenced on the I5th day of
October, 1794, and the coinage of gold on the 3ist day of July, 1795;
and that consequently, in conformity to the act first above mentioned,
all foreign silver coins, except Spanish milled dollars and parts of such
dollars, will cease to pass current as money within the United States and
to be a legal tender for the payment of any debts or demands after the
1 5th day of October next, and all foreign gold coins will cease to pass
current as money within the United States and to be a legal tender as
aforesaid for the payment of any debts or demands after the 3ist day of
July, which will be A. D. 1798.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States
to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same with my
hand.
[SEAL.] Done at Philadelphia, the 226. day of July, A. D. 1797, and
of the Independence of the United States the twenty-second.
JOHN ADAMS.
By the President :
TIMOTHY PICKERING,
Secretary of State.
240 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, November 22, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of t lie 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 con-
vene 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 inhab-
itants of this city, whose sufferings must have excited the sympathy of
all their fellow-citizens. Therefore, after taking measures to ascertain
the state and decline of the sickness, I postponed my determination, hav-
ing hopes, now happily realized, that, without hazard to the lives or
health of the members, Congress might assemble at this place, where
it was next by law 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 occasions, would not be
a useful amendment to the law of 1 794.
Although I can not yet congratulate you on the reestablishment of
peace in Europe and the restoration of security to the persons and prop-
erties of our citizens from injustice and violence at sea, we have, never-
theless, abundant cause of gratitude to the source of benevolence and
influence for interior tranquillity and personal security, for propitious
seasons, prosperous agriculture, productive fisheries, and general improve-
ments, and, above all, for a rational spirit of civil and religious liberty
and a calm but steady determination to support our sovereignty, as well
as our moral and our religious principles, against all open and secret
attacks.
Our envoys extraordinary to the French Republic embarked 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 they all proceeded on their journeys to Paris within a few
days of the iQth of September. Whatever may be the result of this mis-
sion, I trust that nothing will have been omitted on my part to conduct
the negotiation to a successful conclusion, on such equitable terms as may
be compatible with the safety, honor, and interest of the United States.
Nothing, in the meantime, will contribute so much to the preservation of
peace and the attainment 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 defense which a beneficent Providence has kindly
placed within their power.
It may be confidently asserted that nothing has occurred since the
John Adams 241
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 depredations strengthen the
reasons for its adoption.
Indeed, whatever may be the issue of the negotiation with France, and
whether the war in Europe is or is not to continue, I hold it most cer-
tain that permanent tranquillity 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 treaties 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 remains no
reasonable ground on which to raise an expectation that a commerce
without protection or defense will not be plundered.
The commerce of the United States is essential, if not to their exist-
ence, 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 country what it is, and it can not
be destroyed or neglected without involving the people in poverty and
distress. Great numbers are directly and solely supported by navigation.
The faith of society is pledged for the preservation of the rights of com-
mercial and seafaring no less than of the other citizens. Under this view
of our affairs, I should hold myself guilty of a neglect of duty if I forbore
to recommend that we should make every exertion to protect our com-
merce and to place our country in a suitable posture of defense as the
only sure means of preserving 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 territory and the
demarcation of the line of limits, but by the latest authentic intelli-
gence Spanish garrisons were still continued within our country, and
the running of the boundary line had not been commenced. These cir-
cumstances are the more to be regretted as they can not fail to affect
the Indians in a manner injurious to the United States. Still, however,
indulging the hope that the answers 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 continue in readi-
ness to receive the posts and to run the line of limits. Further informa-
tion 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
242 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
alienate the affections of the Indian nations and to excite them to actual
hostilities against the United States. Great activity has been exerted
by those persons who have insinuated themselves among the Indian tribes
residing within the territory of the United States ^o influence them to
transfer their affections and force to a foreign nation, to form them into
a confederacy, and prepare them for war against the United States.
Although measures have been taken to counteract these infractions of
our rights, to prevent Indian hostilities, and to preserve entire their attach-
ment 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 providing adequate punishment for such offenses
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, 1 796, and viewed the mouths of the rivers in
question and the adjacent shores and 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
tune than had been supposed, and not being then completed, the com-
missioners 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 prosecuted without interruption.
Several decisions on the claims of 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 commissioners in London comformably 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 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 exam-
ine and decide on the claims of our citizens for losses they have sus-
tained in consequence of their vessels and cargoes having been taken
by the subjects of His Catholic Majesty during the late war between
John Adams 243
Spain and France. Their sittings have been interrupted, but are now
resumed.
The United States being obligated to make compensation for the losses
and damages sustained by British subjects, upon the award of the com-
missioners acting under the sixth article of the treaty with Great Britain,
and for the losses and damages sustained by British subjects by reason
of the capture of their vessels and merchandise 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 by those of Spain have occasioned consid-
erable 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 subsist-
ence, and the sick in particular have been exposed to grievous sufferings.
The consuls have in these cases also advanced moneys 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 then: support in foreign countries and for their return
are found to be inadequate and ineffectual. Another provision seems nec-
essary to be added to the consular act. Some foreign vessels 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 consideration 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 defense 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
sufficient sums for its defense and military operations in time of war,
the sums loaned and debts contracted have necessarily become the sub-
jects 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 defense must be provided for as well as the support of
^44 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Government; 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 Gentlemen of the 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 concur-
rence.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The communications you thought proper to make in your speech
to both Houses of Congress on the opening of their present session afford
additional proofs of the attention, integrity, and firmness which have
always marked your official character.
We can not but approve of the measures you had taken to ascertain
the state and decline of the contagious sickness which has so lately
afflicted the city of Philadelphia, and the pleasing circumstance that Con-
gress is now assembled at that place without hazard to the health of its
members evinces the propriety of your having postponed a determination
to convene the National Legislature at another place. We shall take
into consideration the law of 1794 on this subject, and will readily concur
in any amendment which may be deemed expedient.
It would have given us much pleasure to have received your congratu-
lations on the reestablishment of peace in Europe and the restoration of
security to the persons and property of our citizens from injustice and vio-
lence at sea; but though these events, so desirable to our country and the
world, have not taken place, yet we have abundant cause of gratitude to
the Great Disposer of Human Events for interior tranquillity and personal
security, for propitious seasons, prosperous agriculture, productive fish-
eries, and general improvement, and, above all, for a rational spirit of
civil and religious liberty and a calm but steady determination to support
our sovereignty against all open and secret attacks.
We learn with satisfaction that our envoys extraordinary to the French
John Adams 245
Republic had safely arrived in Europe and were proceeding to the scene
of negotiation, and whatever may be the result of the mission, we are
perfectly satisfied that nothing on your part has been omitted which could
in any way conduce to a successful conclusion of the negotiation upon
terms compatible with the safety, honor, and interest of the United States;
and we are fully convinced that in the meantime a manifestation of that
unanimity and energy of which the people of the United States have
given such memorable proofs and a proper exertion of those resources
of national defense which we possess will essentially contribute to the
preservation of peace and the attainment of justice.
We think, sir, with you that the commerce of the United States is essen-
tial to the growth, comfort, and prosperity of our country, and that the
faith of society is pledged for the preservation of the rights of commercial
and seafaring no less than of other citizens. And even if our negotia-
tion with France should terminate favorably and the war in Europe cease,
yet the state of society which unhappily prevails in so great a portion of
the world and the experience of past times under better circumstances
unite in warning us that a commerce so extensive and which holds out
so many temptations to lawless plunderers can never be .safe without
protection; and we hold ourselves obliged by every tie of duty which
binds us to our constituents to promote and concur in such measures of
marine defense as may convince our merchants and seamen that their
rights are not sacrificed nor their injuries forgotten.
We regret that, notwithstanding the clear and explicit terms of the
treaty between the United States and His Catholic Majesty, the Spanish
garrisons are not yet withdrawn from our territory nor the running of
the boundary line commenced. The United States have been faithful in
the performance of their obligations to Spain, and had reason to expect
a compliance equally prompt on the part of that power. We still, how-
ever, indulge the hope that the convincing answers which have been
given to the objections stated by the Spanish officers to the immediate
execution of the treaty will have their proper effect, and that this treaty,
so mutually beneficial to the contracting parties, will be finally observed
with good faith. We therefore entirely approve of your determination
to continue in readiness to receive the posts and to run the line of parti-
tion between our territory and that of the King of Spain,
Attempts to alienate the affections of the Indians, to form them into a
confederacy, and to excite them to actual hostility against the United
States, whether made by foreign agents or by others, are so injurious to
our interests at large and so inhuman with respect to our citizens inhab-
iting the adjacent territory as to deserve the most exemplary punishment,
and we will cheerfully afford our aid in framing a law which may pre-
scribe a punishment adequate to the commission of crimes so heinous.
The several objects you have pointed out to the attention of the
Legislature, whether they regard our internal or external relations, shall
246 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
receive from us that consideration which they merit, and we will readily
concur in all such measures as may be necessary either to enable us to
fulfill our engagements at home or to cause ourselves to be respected
abroad; and at this portentous period, when the powers of Europe with
whom we are connected by treaty or commerce are in so critical a situa-
tion, and when the conduct of some of those powers toward the United
States is so hostile and menacing, the several branches of the Govern-
ment are, in our opinion, called upon with peculiar importunity to unite,
and by union not only to devise and carry into effect those measures on
which the safety and prosperity of our country depend, but also to unde-
ceive those nations who, regarding us as a weak and divided people, have
pursued systems of aggression inconsistent with a state of peace between
independent nations. And, sir, we beg leave to assure you that we
derive a singular consolation from the reflection that at such a time the
executive part of our Government has been committed to your hands,
fqr in your integrity, talents, and firmness we place the most entire
confidence.
JACOB READ,
President of the Senate pro temport.
NOVEMBER 27, 1797.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
UNITED STATES, November 28, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I thank you for this address.
When, after the most laborious investigation and serious reflection,
without partial considerations or personal motives, measures have been
adopted or recommended, I can receive no higher testimony of their
rectitude than the approbation of an assembly so independent, patriotic,
and enlightened as the Senate of the United States.
Nothing has afforded me more entire satisfaction than the coincidence
of your judgment with mine in the opinion of the essential importance
of our commerce and the absolute necessity of a maritime defense. What
is it that has drawn to Europe the superfluous riches of the three other
quarters of the globe but a marine? What is it that has drained the
wealth of Europe itself into the coffers of two or three of its principal
commercial powers but a marine ?
The world has furnished no example of a flourishing commerce with-
out a maritime protection, and a moderate knowledge of man and his
history will convince anyone that no such prodigy ever can arise. A
mercantile marine and a military marine must grow up together; one
can not long exist without the other.
JOHN ADAMS.
John Adams 247
ADDRESS OP THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO JOHN ADAMS,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: While our sympathy is excited by the recent sufferings of the
citizens of Philadelphia, we participate in the satisfaction which you are
pleased to express that the duration of the late calamity was so limited
as to render unnecessary the expense and inconvenience that would have
been incident to the convention of Congress in another place; and we
shall readily attend to every useful amendment of the law which contem-
plates the event of contagious sickness at the seat of Government.
In lamenting the increase of the injuries offered to the persons and
property of our citizens at sea we gratefully acknowledge the contin-
uance of interior tranquillity and the attendant blessings of which you
remind us as alleviations of these fatal effects of injustice and violence.
Whatever may be the result of the mission to the French Republic,
your early and uniform attachment to the interest of our country, .your
important services in the struggle for its independence, and your unceas-
ing exertions for its welfare afford no room to doubt of the sincerity of
your efforts to conduct the negotiation to a successful conclusion on such
terms as may be compatible with the safety, honor, and interest of the
United States. We have also a firm reliance upon the energy and una-
nimity of the people of these States in the assertion of their rights, and
on their determination to exert upon all proper occasions their ample
resources in providing for the national defense.
The importance of commerce and its beneficial influence upon agricul-
ture, arts, and manufactures have been verified in the growth and pros-
perity of our country. It is essentially connected with the other great
interests of the community; they must flourish and decline together;
and while the extension of our navigation and trade naturally excites
the jealousy and tempts the avarice of other nation % we are firmly per-
suaded that the numerous and deserving class of citizens engaged in
these pursuits and dependent on them for their subsistence has a strong
and indisputable claim to our support and protection.
The delay of the Spanish officers to fulfill the treaty existing with His
Catholic Majesty is a source of deep regret. We learn, however, with
satisfaction that you still indulge hopes of removing the objections which
have been made to its execution, and that you have continued in readi-
ness to receive the posts. Disposed to perform with fidelity our national
engagements, nothing shall be wanting on our part to obtain the same
justice from others which we exercise toward them.
Our abhorrence can not be too strongly expressed of the intrigues of
foreign agents to alienate the affections of the Indians and to rouse
them to acts of hostility against the United States. No means in our
power should be omitted of providing for the suppression of such cruel
practices and for the adequate punishment of their atrocious authors.
248 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Upon the other interesting subjects noticed in your address we shall
bestow the requisite attention. To preserve inviolable the public faith
by providing for the due execution of our treaties, to indemnify those
who may have just claims to retribution upon the United States for
expenses incurred in defending the property and relieving the neces-
sities of our unfortunate fellow-citizens, to guard against evasions of the
laws intended to secure advantages to the navigation of our own vessels,
and especially to prevent by all possible means an unnecessary accumu-
lation of the public debt, are duties which we shall endeavor to keep hi
view and discharge with assiduity.
We regard with great anxiety the singular and portentous situation of
the principal powers of Kurope. It were devoutly to be wished that the
United States, remote from this seat of war and discord, unambitious of
conquests, respecting the rights of other nations, and desirous merely to
avail themselves of their natural resources, might be permitted to behold
the scenes which desolate that quarter of the globe with only those sym-
pathetic emotions which are natural to the lovers of peace and friends of
the human race. But we are led by events to associate with these feel-
ings a sense of the dangers which menace our security and peace. We
rely upon your assurances of a zealous and hearty concurrence in such
measures as may be necessary to avert these dangers, and nothing on our
part shall be wanting to repel them which the honor, safety, and pros-
perity of our country may require.
NOVEMBER 28, 1797.
REPLY OP THE PRESIDENT.
UNITED STATES, November 29, 1797*
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I receive this address from the House of Representatives of the United
States with peculiar pleasure.
Your approbation of the meeting of Congress in this city and of those
other measures of the Executive authority of Government communicated
in my address to both Houses at the opening of the session afford me
great satisfaction, as the strongest desire of my heart is to give satisfac-
tion to the people and their Representatives by a faithful discharge of my
duty.
The confidence you express in the sincerity of my endeavors and in
the unanimity of the people does me much honor and gives me great joy.
I rejoice in that harmony which appears in the sentiments of all the
branches of the Government 011 the importance of our commerce and our
obligations to defend it, as well as in all the other subjects recommended
to your consideration, and sincerely congratulate you and our fellow-
citizens at large on this appearance, so auspicious to the honor, interest,
and happiness of the nation.
John Adams 249
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, December 6, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Isaac Smith, esq., who was appointed, with the advice and consent of
the Senate, to hold a treaty with the Seneca Nation of Indians, to super-
intend the purchase of a parcel of their land under a right of preemption
derived from the State of Massachusetts, and situated within the State
of New York, having declined that service, Jeremiah Wadsworth, esq.,
was appointed during your recess to hold a treaty, which has terminated
in a deed of bargain and sale, herewith submitted to your consideration.
It being represented to me that the immediate investment in bank
stock of the moneys which are to be the consideration of this deed might
be attended with considerable loss to the Indians by raising the market
price of that article, it is suggested whether it would not be expedient
that the ratification should be made conclusive and binding on the par-
ties only after the President shall be satisfied that the investment of the
moneys has been made conformably to the intention of the treaty.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, December jj, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House cf Representatives:
I lay before you the copy of a letter from the judges of the Supreme
Court of the United States, representing the inconvenience arising from
altering the time of holding the circuit court for the State of Delaware
from April to June, and desiring that the existing law may be altered by
restoring the spring session of the circuit court in Delaware to the 27th
of A P riL JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, December 30, 1797.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In compliance with the desire of the two Houses of Congress, expressed
in their resolution of the 2d of March, 1797, that some speedy and effectual
means might be adopted of obtaining information from the States of Con-
necticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, Ten-
nessee, and South Carolina whether they have ratified the amendment
proposed by Congress to the Constitution concerning the suability of
States, and if they have, to obtain proper evidences, measures have been
taken and information and evidences obtained the particulars of which
will appear in the report from the Secretary of State made by my direc-
tion on the 28th day of this month, and now presented to the two Houses
for their consideration.
JOHN ADAMS.
250 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, January 5,
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The Secretary for the Department of War on the 3oth day of Decem-
ber last made a representation to me of the situation of affairs in his
office, which I now transmit to the Senate and House of Representatives,
and recommend to their consideration and decision.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 8, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The situation of affairs between some of the citizens of the United
States and the Cherokee Indians has evinced the propriety of holding a
treaty with that nation to extinguish by purchase their right to certam
parcels of land and to adjust and settle other points relative to the safety
and conveniency of our citizens. With this view I nominate Fisher Ames,
of Dedham, in the State of Massachusetts; Bushrod Washington, of Rich-
mond, in the State of Virginia, and Alfred Moore, of North Carolina, to
be commissioners of the United States with full powers to hold confer-
ences and conclude a treaty with the Cherokee Nation of Indians for the
purposes before mentioned.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 8, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have now an opportunity of transmitting to Congress a report of the
Secretary of State, with a copy of an act of the legislature of the State
of Kentucky consenting to the ratification of the amendment of the Con-
stitution of the United States proposed by Congress in their resolution of
the 2d day of December, 1793, relative to the suability of States. This
amendment, having been adopted by three-fourths of the several States,
may now be declared to be a part of the Constitution of the United
States. JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, Jan uary 77, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The situation of affairs between the United States and the Cherokee
Indians having evinced the expediency of a treaty with that nation for
the promotion of justice to them, as well as of the interests and conven-
ience of our citizens, I have nominated and, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, appointed commissioners to hold conferences and
conclude a treaty as early as the season of the year and the convenience
of the parties will admit.
John Adams 251
As we know very well by experience such negotiations can not be car-
ried on without considerable expenses, I recommend to your consider-
ation the propriety of making an appropriation at this time for defraying
such as may be necessary for holding and concluding a treaty.
That you may form your judgments with greater facility, I shall direct
the proper officer to lay before you an estimate of such articles and
expenses as may be thought indispensable.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 18, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
A representation has been made to me by the judge of the Pennsylva-
nia district of the United States of certain inconveniences and disagreeable
circumstances which have occurred in the execution of the law passed
on the 28th day of May, 1796, entitled "An act for the relief of persons
imprisoned for debt," as well as of certain doubts which have been
raised concerning its construction. This representation, together with
a report of the Attorney- General on the same subject, I now transmit to
Congress for their consideration, that if any amendments or explanations
of that law should be thought advisable they may be adopted.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 23, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
At the commencement of this session of Congress I proposed in the
course of it to communicate to both Houses further information concern-
ing the situa tion of our affairs in the territories of the United States situ-
ated on the Mississippi River and in its neighborhood; our intercourse
with the Indian nations; our relations with the Spanish Government, and
the conduct of their officers and agents. This information will be found
in a report of the Secretary of State and the documents attending it,
which I now present to the Senate and House of Representatives.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 2, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have received from our minister in London two acts of the Parliament
of Great Britain, one passed on the 4th of July, 1797, entitled "An act
for carrying into execution the treaty of amity, commerce, and naviga-
tion concluded between His Majesty and the United States of America,"
the other passed on the iQth day of July, 1797, entitled "An act for
252 Messages and Papers of tJie Presidents
regulating the trade to be carried on with the British possessions in India
by the ships of nations in amity with His Majesty." These acts have
such connections with the commercial and political interests of the United
States that it is proper they should be communicated to Congress. I
have accordingly transmitted copies of them with this message.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 5, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have received a letter from His Excellency Charles Piuckuey, esq. ,
governor of the State of South Carolina, dated the 22d of October, 1797,
inclosing a number of depositions of witnesses to several captures and
outrages committed within and near the limits of the United States by a
French privateer belonging to Cape Francois, or Monte Christo, called
the Vertitude or Fortitude, and commanded by a person of the name of
Jordan or Jourdain, and particularly upon an English merchant ship
named the Oracabissa, which he first plundered and then burned, with the
rest of her cargo, of great value, within the territory of the United States,
in the harbor of Charleston, on the i7th day of October last, copies of
which letter and depositions, and also of several other depositions relative
to the same subject, received from the collector of Charleston, are here-
with communicated.
Whenever the channels of diplomatical communication between the
United States and France shall be opened, I shall demand satisfaction
for the insult and reparation for the injury.
I have transmitted these papers to Congress not so much for the pur-
pose of communicating an account of so daring a violation of the territory
of the United States as to shew the propriety and necessity of enabling
the Executive authority of Government to take measures for protecting
the citizens of the United States and such foreigners as have a right to
enjoy their peace and the protection of their laws within their limits in
that as well as some other harbors which are equally exposed.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 12, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives .-
In obedience to the law, I now present to both Houses of Congress
my annual account of expenditures from the contingent fund during the
year 1797, by which it appears that on the ist day of January last there
remained in the Treasury a balance of $15,494.24 subject to futile dis-
positions of Government.
JOHN ADAMS.
John Adams 253
UNITED STATES, February 18, 1798,
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
111 the report of the Secretary of State and the documents herewith
transmitted will be found such information as is in our possession of
the losses recovered by the citizens of the United States under the treaty
made with Great Britain, which are now presented to the House of Rep-
resentatives in compliance with their request in their resolution of the
ist of this month. JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 20, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In obedience to the law of the United States of the 3d of March, 1797,
entitled "An act authorizing an expenditure and making an appropria-
tion for the prosecution of the claims of certain citizens of the United
States for property captured by the belligerent powers," I submit to
Congress the account exhibited to me by the Secretary of State with his
report of the i7th of this month. JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 21, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Having received the original treaty concluded between the United
States and the Government of Tunis, I lay it before the Senate of the
United States whether they advise and consent to its ratification.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 23, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The inclosed memorial from the commissioners appointed under an act
of the United States entitled "An act for establishing the temporary and
permanent seat of the Government of the United States," representing
the situation and circumstances of the city of Washington, I take this
opportunity to present to both Houses of the Legislature and recommend
to their consideration. Alexander White, esq. , one of those commis-
sioners, is now in this city, and will be able to give to Congress, or any
of their committees, any explanation or further information which the
subject may require. JQHN
UNITED STATES, March 5, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The first dispatches from our envoys extraordinary since their arrival
at Paris were received at the Secretary of State's office at a late hour last
254 Afessages and Papers of the Presidents
evening. They are all in a character which will require some days to be
deciphered, except the last, which is dated the 8th of January, 1798.
The contents of this letter are of so much importance to be immediately
made known to Congress and to the public, especially to the mercantile
part of our fellow-citizens, that I have thought it my duty to communi-
cate them to both Houses without loss of time.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, March 12, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Insinuations having been repeatedly made in the name of the Court of
Sweden of an inclination to renew the connection between the United
States and that power, I sent, in the recess of the Senate, to our minister
at Berlin a full power to negotiate that business, with such alterations as
might be agreeable to both parties; but as that commission, if not renewed
with the advice and consent of the Senate, will expire with the present
session of Congress, I now nominate John Quincy Adams to be a com-
missioner with full powers to negotiate a treaty of amity and commerce
with His Majesty the King of Sweden.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, March 19, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The dispatches from the envoys extraordinary of the United States
to the French Republic, which were mentioned in my message to both
Houses of Congress of the 5th instant, have been examined and maturely
considered.
While I feel a satisfaction in informing you that their exertions for the
adjustment of the differences between the two nations have been sincere
and unremitted, it is incumbent on me to declare that I perceive no ground
of expectation that the objects of their mission can be accomplished on
terms compatible with the safety, the honor, or the essential interests of
the nation.
This result can not with justice be attributed to any want of moderation
on the part of this Government, or to any indisposition to forego second-
ary interests for the preservation of peace. Knowing it to be my duty,
and believing it to be your wish, as well as that of the great body of the
people, to avoid by all reasonable concessions any participation in the
contentions of Europe, the powers vested in our envoys were commen-
surate with a liberal and pacific policy and that high confidence which
might justly be reposed in the abilities, patriotism, and integrity of the
characters to whom the negotiation was committed. After a careful
review of the whole subject, with the aid of all the information I have
received, I can discern nothing which could have insured or contributed
to success that has been omitted on my part, and nothing further which
John Adams 255
can be attempted consistently with maxims for which our country has
contended at every hazard, and which constitute the basis of our national
sovereignty.
Under these circumstances I can not forbear to reiterate the recom-
mendations which have l>een formerly made, and to exhort you to adopt
with promptitude, decision, and unanimity such measures as the ample
resources of the country afford for the protection of our seafaring and
commercial citizens, for the defense of any exposed portions of our terri-
tory, for replenishing our arsenals, establishing foundries and military
manufactures, and to provide such efficient revenue as will be necessary
to defray extraordinary expenses and supply the deficiencies which may
be occasioned by depredations on our commerce.
The present state of things is so essentially different from that in
which instructions were given to the collectors to restrain vessels of the
United States from sailing in an armed condition that the principle on
which those orders were issued has ceased to exist. I therefore deem it
proper to inform Congress that I no longer conceive myself justifiable in
continuing them, unless in particular cases where there may be reason-
able ground of suspicion that such vessels are intended to be employed
contrary to law.
In all your proceedings it will be important to manifest a zeal, vigor,
and concert in defense of the national rights proportioned to the danger
with which they are threatened. TOHN ADAMS
UNITED STATES, April j, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In compliance with the request of the House of Representatives ex-
pressed in their resolution of the 2d of this month, I transmit to both
Houses those instructions to and dispatches from the envoys extraordi-
nary of the United States to the French Republic which were mentioned
in my message of the igth of March last, omitting only some names and
a few expressions descriptive of the persons.
I request that they may be considered in confidence until the members
of Congress are fully possessed of their contents and shall have had
opportunity to deliberate on the consequences of their publication, after
which tune I submit them to your wisdom. TOHN ADAMS
UNITED STATES, April 12, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
A treaty with the Mohawk Nation of Indians has by accident lain long
neglected. It was executed under the authority of the Honorable Isaac
Smith, a commissioner of the United States. I now submit it to the
Senate for their consideration.
JOHN ADAMS.
256 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
UNITED STATES, May j, 1798.
Gentlemen uf the Senate:
His Excellency John Jay, esq. , governor of New York, has informed
me that the Oneida tribe of Indians have proposed to sell a part of their
land to the said State, and that the legislature at their late session author-
ized the purchase, and to accomplish this object the governor has desired
that a commissioner may be appointed to hold a treaty with the Oneida
tribe of Indians, at which the agents of the State of New York may agree
with them on the terms of the purchase. I therefore nominate Joseph
Hopkinson, esq., of Pennsylvania, to be the commissioner to hold a treaty
with the said Oiieida tribe of Indians for the purpose above mentioned.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, June 21, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
While I congratulate you on the arrival of General Marshall, one of
our late envoys extraordinary to the French Republic, at a place of safety,
where he is justly held in honor, I think it my duty to communicate to
you a letter received by him from Mr. Gerry, the only one of the three
who has not received his conge. This letter, together with anothei from
the minister of foreign relations to him of the 3d of April, and his answer
of the 4th, will shew the situation in which he remains his intentions
and prospects.
I presume that before this time he has received fresh instructions (a
copy of which accompanies this message) to consent to no loans, and
therefore the negotiation may be considered at an end.
I will never send another minister to France without assurances that
he will be received, respected, and honored as the representative of a
great, free, powerful, and independent nation.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, June 27, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have received a letter frcm His Excellency Thomas Mifflin, gov-
ernor of Pennsylvania, inclosing some documents which I judge it my
duty to lay before Congress without loss of time.
As my opinion coincides entirely with that of his excellency the gov-
ernor, I recommend the subject to the consideration of both Houses of
Congress, whose authority alone appears to ine adequate to the occasion.
JOHN ADAMS.
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JOHN ADAMS' COINAGE PROCLAMATION WITH SIGNATURE OF
TIMOTHY PICKERING.
John Adams 257
UNITED STATES, July 2, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I nominate George Washington, of Mount Vernon, to be Lieutenant-
General and Commander in Chief of all the armies raised or to be raised
in the United States.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, July 13, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
A resolution of both Houses of Congress authorizing an adjournment
on Monday, the i6th of this month, has been laid before me. Sensible of
the severity of the service in so long a session, it is with great reluctance
that I find myself obliged to offer any consideration which may operate
against the inclinations of the members; but certain measures of Execu-
tive authority which will require the consideration of the Senate, and
which can not be matured, in all probability, before Monday or Tues-
day, oblige me to request of the Senate that they would continue their
session until Wednesday or Thursday,
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATKS, July 17, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Believing that the letter received this morning from General Washing-
ton will give high satisfaction to the Senate, I transmit them a copy of it,
and congratulate them and the public on this great event the General's
acceptance of his appointment as lyieutenant-General and Commander in
Chief of the Army,
JOHN ADAMS.
MOUNT VERNON, July 13, 1798.
JOHN ADAMS,
President of the United States.
DEAR SIR: I had the honor, on the evening of the nth instant, to receive from
the hands of the Secretary of War your favor of the 7th, announcing that you had,
with the advice and consent of the Senate, appointed me " lieutenant-General and
Commander in Chief of all the armies raised or to be raised for the service of the
United States."
I can not express how greatly affected I am at this new proof of public confidence
and the highly flattering manner in which you have been pleased to make the com-
munication. At the same time I must not conceal from you my earnest wish that the
choice had fallen upon a man less declined in years and better qualified to encounter
the usual vicissitudes of war.
You know, sir, what calculation I had made relative to the probable course of
events on my retiring from office, and the determination I had consoled myself with
of closing the remnant of my days in my present peaceful abode. You will therefore
be at no loss to conceive and appreciate the sensations I must have experienced to
bring my mind to any conclusion that would pledge me, at so late a period of life,
to leave scenes I sincerely love to enter upon the boundless field of public action,
incessant trouble, and high responsibility.
10
258 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
It was not possible for me to remain ignorant of or indifferent to recent transac-
tions. The conduct of the Directory of France toward our country, their insidious
hostility to its Government, their various practices to withdraw the affections of the
people from it, the evident tendency of their acts and those of their agents to coun-
tenance and invigorate opposition, their disregard of solemn treaties and the laws of
nations, their war upon our defenseless commerce, their treatment of our ministers
of peace, and their demands amounting to tribute could not fail to excite in me cor-
responding sentiments with those my countrymen have so generally expressed in
their affectionate addresses to you. Believe me, sir, no one can more cordially
approve of the wise and prudent measures of your Administration. They ought to
inspire universal confidence, and will no doubt, combined with the state of things,
call from Congress such laws and means as will enable you to meet the full force and
extent of the crisis.
Satisfied, therefore, that you have sincerely wished and endeavored to avert war,
and exhausted to the last drop the cup of reconciliation, we can with pure hearts
appeal to Heaven for the justice of our cause, and may confidently trust the final
result to that kind Providence who has heretofore and so often signally favored the
people of these United States.
Thinking in this manner, and feeling how incumbent it is upon every person, of
every description, to contribute at all times to his country's welfare, and especially
in a moment like the present, when everything we hold dear and sacred is so seriously
threatened, I have finally determined to accept the commission of Commander in
Chief of the armies of the United States, with the reserve only that I shall not be
called into the field until the Army is in a situation to require my presence or it
becomes indispensable by the urgency of circumstances.
In making this reservation I beg it to be understood that I do not mean to with-
hold any assistance to arrange and organize the Army which you may think I can
afford. I take the liberty also to mention that I must decline having my acceptance
considered as drawing after it any immediate charge upon the public, or that I can
receive any emoluments annexed to the appointment before entering into a situation
to incur expense.
The Secretary of War being anxious to return to the seat of Government, I have
detained him no longer than was necessary to a full communication upon the several
points he had in charge.
With very great respect and consideration, I have the honor to be, dear sir, yout
most obedient and humble servant,
G? WASHINGTON.
PROCLAMATIONS.
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
As the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially
depend on the protection and the blessing of Almighty God, and the
national acknowledgment of this truth is not only an indispensable duty
which the people owe to Him, but a duty whose natural influence is
favorable to the promotion of that morality and piety without which
social happiness can not exist nor the blessings of a free government be
John Adams 259
enjoyed; and as this duty, at all times incumbent, is so especially in sea-
sons of difficulty or of danger, when existing or threatening calamities,
the just judgments of God against prevalent iniquity, are a loud call to
r epentance and reformation; and as the United States of America are at
present placed in a hazardous and afflictive situation by the unfriendly
disposition, conduct, and demands of a foreign power, evinced by repeated
refusals to receive our messengers of reconciliation and peace, by depre-
dations on our commerce, and the infliction of injuries on very many of
our fellow-citizens while engaged in their lawful business on the seas
under these considerations it has appeared to me that the duty of implor-
ing the mercy and benediction of Heaven on our country demands at
this time a special attention from its inhabitants.
I have therefore thought fit to recommend, and I do hereby recom-
mend, that Wednesday, the gth day of May next, be observed throughout
the United States as a day of solemn humiliation, fasting, and prayer;
that the citizens of these States, abstaining on that day from their cus-
tomary worldly occupations, offer their devout addresses to the Father of
Mercies agreeably to those forms or methods which they have severally
adopted as the most suitable and becoming; that all religious congrega-
tions do, with the deepest humility, acknowledge before God the manifold
sins and transgressions with which we are justly chargeable as individ-
uals and as a nation, beseeching Him at the same time, of His infinite
grace, through the Redeemer of the World, freely to remit all our offenses,
and to incline us by His Holy Spirit to that sincere repentance and
reformation which may afford us reason to hope for his inestimable
favor and heavenly benediction; that it be made the subject of particular
and earnest supplication that our country may be protected from all the
dangers which threaten it; that our civil and religious privileges may
be preserved inviolate and perpetuated to the latest generations; that
our public councils and magistrates may be especially enlightened and
directed at this critical period; that the American people may be united
in those bonds of amity and mutual confidence and inspired with that
vigor and fortitude by which they have in times past been so highly
distinguished and by which they have obtained such invaluable advan-
tages; that the health of the inhabitants of our land may be preserved,
and their agriculture, commerce, fisheries, arts, and manufactures be
blessed and prospered; that the principles of genuine piety and sound
morality may influence the minds and govern the lives of every descrip-
tion of our citizens, and that the blessings of peace, freedom, and pure
religion may be speedily extended to all the nations of the earth.
And finally, I recommend that on the said day the duties of humili-
ation and prayer be accompanied by fervent thanksgiving to the Bestower
of Every Good Gift, not only for His having hitherto protected and pre-
served the people of these United States in the independent enjoyment
of their religious and civil freedom, but also for having prospered them
260 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
in a wonderful progress of population, and for conferring on them many
and great favors conducive to the happiness and prosperity of a nation.
Given under my hand and the seal of the United States of America,
at Philadelphia, this 23d day of March, A. D. 1798, and of the
AI "^ Independence of the said States the twenty-second.
JOHN ADAMS.
By the President :
TIMOTHY PICKERING,
Secretary of State.
[From C. F. Adams's Works of John Adams, Vol. IX, p. 170.]
PROCLAMATION.
JULY 13, 1798.
The citizen Joseph Philippe Letombe having heretofore produced to
the President of the United States his commission as consul-general of
the French Republic within the United States of America, and another
commission as consul of the French Republic at Philadelphia; and, in
like manner, the citizen Rosier having produced his commission as vice-
consul of the French Republic at New York ; and the citizen Arcarnbal
having produced his commission as vice-consul of the French Republic
at Newport; and citizen Theodore Charles Mozard having produced
his commission as consul of the French Republic within the States of
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island; and the President
of the United States having thereupon granted an exequatur to each of
the French citizens above named, recognizing them in their respective
consular offices above mentioned, and declaring them respectively free to
exercise and enjoy such functions, powers, and privileges as are allowed
to a consul-general, consuls, and vice-consuls of the French Republic by
their treaties, conventions, and laws in that case made and provided; and
the Congress of the United States, by their act passed the 7th day of
July, 1798, having declared "that the United States are of right freed
and exonerated from the stipulations of the treaties and of the consular
convention heretofore concluded between the United States and France,
and that the same shall not henceforth be regarded as legally obligatory
on the Government or citizens of the United States, ' ' and by a former
act, passed the i3th day of May, 1798, the Congress of the United States
having "suspended the commercial intercourse between the United
States and France and the dependencies thereof," which commercial
intercourse was the direct and chief object of the consular establishment;
and
Whereas actual hostilities have long been practiced on the commerce
of the United States by the cruisers of the French Republic under the
orders of its Government, which orders that Government refuses to
revoke or relax ; and hence it has become improper any longer to allow
the consul-general, consuls, and vice-consuls of the French Republic
John Adams 261
above named, or any of its consular persons or agents heretofore admitted
in these United States, any longer to exercise their consular functions:
These are therefore to declare that I do no longer recognize the said
citizen Letombe as consul-general or consul, nor the said citizens Rosier
and Arcambal as vice-consuls, nor the said citizen Mozard as consul of
the French Republic in any part of these United States, nor permit
them or any other consular persons or agents of the French Republic
heretofore admitted in the United States to exercise their functions as
such; and I do hereby wholly revoke the exequaturs heretofore given to
them respectively, and do declare them absolutely null and void from
this day forward.
In testimony whereof, etc.
JOHN ADAMS.
SECOND ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITSD STATES, Decembers, 1798.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
While with reverence and resignation we contemplate the dispensations
of Divine Providence in the alarming and destructive pestilence with which
several of our cities and towns have been visited, there is cause for grati-
tude and mutual congratulations that the malady has disappeared and
that we are again permitted to assemble in safety at the seat of Govern-
ment for the discharge of our important duties. But when we reflect that
this fatal disorder has within a few years made repeated ravages in some
of our principal seaports, and with increased malignancy, and when we
consider the magnitude of the evils arising from the interruption of pub-
lic and private business, whereby the national interests are deeply affected,
I think it my duty to invite the Legislature of the Union to examine the
expediency of establishing suitable regulations in aid of the health laws
of the respective States; for these being formed on the idea that con-
tagious sickness may be communicated through the channels of commerce,
there seems to be a necessity that Congress, who alone can regulate trade,
should frame a system which, while it may tend to preserve the general
health, may be compatible with the interests of commerce and the safety
of the revenue.
While we think on this calamity and sympathize with the immediate
sufferers, we have abundant reason to present to the Supreme Being our
annual oblations of gratitude for a liberal participation in the ordinary
blessings of His providence. To the usual subjects of gratitude I can not
omit to add one of the first importance to our well-being and safety ; I
mean that spirit which has arisen in our country against the menaces and
aggression of a foreign nation. A manly sense of national honor, dignity,
262 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
and independence has appeared which, if encouraged and invigorated
by every branch of the Government, will enable us to view undismayed
the enterprises of any foreign power and become the sure foundation
of national prosperity and glory.
The course of the transactions in relation to the United States and
France which have come to my knowledge during your recess will be made
the subject of a future communication. That communication will con-
firm the ultimate failure of the measures which have been taken by the
Government of the United States toward an amicable adjustment of dif-
ferences with that power. You will at the same time perceive that the
French Government appears solicitous to impress the opinion that it is
averse to a rupture with this country, and that it has in a qualified man-
ner declared itself willing to receive a minister from the United States
for the purpose of restoring a good understanding. It is unfortunate for
professions of this kind that they should be expressed in terms which
may countenance the inadmissible pretension of a right to prescribe the
qualifications which a minister from the United States should possess,
and that while France is asserting the existence of a disposition on her
part to conciliate with sincerity the differences which have arisen, the
sincerity of a like disposition on the part of the United States, of which
so many demonstrative proofs have been given, should even be indirectly
questioned. It is also worthy of observation that the decree of the
Directory alleged to be intended to restrain the depredations of French
cruisers on our commerce has not given, and can not give, any relief. It
enjoins them to conform to all the laws of France relative to cruising and
prizes, while these laws are themselves the sources of the depredations of
which we have so long, so justly, and so fruitlessly complained.
The law of France enacted in January last, which subjects to capture
and condemnation neutral vessels and their cargoes if any portion of the
latter are of British fabric or produce, although the entire property belong
to neutrals, instead of being rescinded has lately received a confirma-
tion by the failure of a proposition for its repeal. While this law, which
is an unequivocal act of war on the commerce of the nations it attacks,
continues in force those nations can see in the French Government only
a power regardless of their essential rights, of their independence and
sovereignty; and if they possess the means they can reconcile nothing
with then- interest and honor but a firm resistance.
Hitherto, therefore, nothing is discoverable in the conduct of France
which ought to change or relax our measures of defense. On the con-
trary, to extend and invigorate them is our true policy. We have no
reason to regret that these measures have been thus far adopted and
pursued, and hi proportion as we enlarge our view of the portentous and
incalculable situation of Europe we shall discover new and cogent motives
for the full development of our energies and resources.
But in demonstrating by our conduct that we do not fear war in the
John Adams 263
necessary protection of our rights and honor we shall give no room to
infer that we abandon the desire of peace. An efficient preparation for
war can alone insure peace. It is peace that we have uniformly and
perseveringly cultivated, and harmony between us and France may be
restored at her option. But to send another minister without more
determinate assurances that he would be received would be an act of
humiliation to which the United States ought not to submit. It must
therefore be left with France (if she is indeed desirous of accommoda-
tion) to take the requisite steps. The United States will steadily observe
the maxims by which they have hitherto been governed. They will
respect the sacred rights of embassy; and with a sincere disposition on
the part of France to desist from hostility, to make reparation for the
injuries heretofore inflicted on our commerce, and to do justice in future,
there will be no obstacle to the restoration of a friendly intercourse. In
making to you this declaration I give a pledge to France and the world
that the Executive authority of this country still adheres to the humane
and pacific policy which has invariably governed its proceedings, in
conformity with the wishes of the other branches of the Government
and of the people of the United States. But considering the late mani-
festations of her policy toward foreign nations, I deem it a duty deliber-
ately and solemnly to declare my opinion that whether we negotiate with
her or not, vigorous preparations for war will be alike indispensable.
These alone will give to us an equal treaty and insure its observance.
Among the measures of preparation which appear expedient, I take the
liberty to recall your attention to the naval establishment. The beneficial
effects of the small naval armament provided under the acts of the last
session are known and acknowledged. Perhaps no country ever expe-
rienced more sudden and remarkable advantages from any measure of
policy than we have derived from the arming for our maritime protection
and defense. We ought without loss of time to lay the foundation for
an increase of our Navy to a size sufficient to guard our coast and protect
our trade. Such a naval force as it is doubtless in the power of the
United States to create and maintain would also affcrd to them the best
means of general defense by facilitating the safe transportation of troops
and stores to every part of our extensive coast. To accomplish this impor-
tant object, a prudent foresight requires that systematical measures be
adopted for procuring at all times the requisite timber and other supplies.
In what manner this shall be done I leave to your consideration.
I will now advert, gentlemen, to some matters of less moment, but
proper to be communicated to the National Legislature.
After the Spanish garrisons had evacuated the posts they occupied at
the Natchez and Walnut Hills the commissioner of the United States
commenced his observations to ascertain the point near the Mississippi
which terminated the northernmost part of the thirty-first degree of north
latitude. From thence he proceeded to run the boundary line between
264 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the United States and Spain. He was afterwards joined by the Spanish
commissioner, when the work of the former was confirmed, and they pro-
ceeded together to the demarcation of the line. Recent information ren-
ders it probable that the Southern Indians, either instigated to oppose
the demarcation or jealous of the consequences of suffering white people to
run a line over lands to which the Indian title had not been extinguished,
have ere this time stopped the progress of the commissioners; and con-
sidering the mischiefs which may result from continuing the demarcation
in opposition to the will of the Indian tribes, the great expense attending
it, and that the boundaries which the commissioners have actually estab-
lished probably extend at least as far as the Indian title has been extin-
guished, it will perhaps become expedient and necessary to suspend
further proceedings by recalling our commissioner.
The commissioners appointed in pursuance of the fifth article of the
treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation between the United States
and His Britannic Majesty to determine what river was truly intended
under the name of the river St. Croix mentioned in the treaty of peace,
and forming a part of the boundary therein described, have finally decided
that question. On the 25th of October they made their declaration that
a river called Scoodiac, which falls into Passamaquoddy Bay at its north-
western quarter, was the true St. Croix intended in the treaty of peace,
as far as its great fork, where one of its streams comes from the westward
and the other from the northward, and that the latter stream is the con-
tinuation of the St. Croix to its source. This decision, it is understood,
will preclude all contention among individual claimants, as it seems that
the Scoodiac and its northern branch bound the grants of land which
have been made by the respective adjoining Governments. A subordi-
nate question, however, it has been suggested, still remains to be deter-
mined. Between the mouth of the St. Croix as now settled and what is
usually called the Bay of Fundy lie a number of valuable islands. The
commissioners have not continued the boundary line through any channel
of these islands, and unless the bay of Passamaquoddy be a part of the
Bay of Fundy this further adjustment of boundary will be necessary.
But it is apprehended that this will not be a matter of any difficulty.
Such progress has been made in the examination and decision of cases
of captures and condemnations of American vessels which were the sub-
ject of the seventh article of the treaty of amity, commerce, and naviga-
tion between the United States and Great Britain that it is supposed the
commissioners will be able to bring their business to a conclusion in
August of the ensuing year.
The commissioners acting under the twenty-fifth article of the treaty
between the United States and Spain have adjusted most of the claims of
our citizens for losses sustained in consequence of their vessels and car-
goes having been taken by the subjects of His Catholic Majesty during
the late war between France and Spain.
John Adams 265
Various circumstances have concurred to delay the execution of the
law for augmenting the military establishment, among these the desire
of obtaining the fullest information to direct the best selection of officers.
As this object will now be speedily accomplished, it is expected that the
raising and organizing of the troops will proceed without obstacle and
with effect.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have directed an estimate of the appropriations which will be neces-
sary for the service of the ensuing year to be laid before you, accom-
panied with a view of the public receipts and expenditures to a recent
period. It will afford you satisfaction to infer the great extent and
solidity of the public resources from the prosperous state of the finances,
notwithstanding the unexampled embarrassments which have attended
commerce. When you reflect on the conspicuous examples of patriot-
ism and liberality which have been exhibited by our mercantile fellow-
citizens, and how great a proportion of the public resources depends on
their enterprise, you will naturally consider whether their convenience
can not be promoted and reconciled with the security of the revenue ty a
revision of the system by which the collection is at present regulated.
During your recess measures have been steadily pursued for effecting
the valuations and returns directed by the act of the last session, prelim-
inary to the assessment and collection of a direct tax. No other delays
or obstacles have been experienced except such as were expected to
arise from the great extent of our country and the magnitude and novelty
of the operation, and enough has been accomplished to assure a fulfill-
ment of the views of the Legislature.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I can not close this address without once more adverting to our polit-
ical situation and inculcating the essential importance of uniting in the
maintenance of our dearest interests; and I trust that by the temper
and wisdom of your proceedings and by a harmony of measures we
shall secure to our country that weight and respect to which it is so
justly entitled. JOHN ADAM S. ,,
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: The Senate of the United States join you in thanks to Almighty
God for the removal of the late afflicting dispensations of His providence
and for the patriotic spirit and general prosperity of our country. Sympa-
thy for the sufferings of our fellow-citizens from disease and the impor-
tant interests of the Union demand of the National Legislature a ready
266 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
cooperation with the State governments in the use of such means as seem
best calculated to prevent the return of this fatal calamity.
Although we have sincerely wished that an adjustment of our differ-
ences with the Republic of France might be effected on safe and honor-
able terms, yet the information you have given us of the ultimate failure
of the negotiation has not surprised us. In the general conduct of that
Republic we have seen a design of universal influence incompatible with
the self-government and destructive of the independence of other States.
In its conduct toward these United States we have seen a plan of hostility
pursued with unremitted constancy, equally disregarding the obligations
of treaties and the rights of individuals. We have seen two embassies,
formed for the purpose of mutual explanations and clothed with the most
extensive and liberal powers, dismissed without recognition and even
without a hearing. The Government of France has not only refused
to repeal but has recently enjoined the observance of its former edict
respecting merchandise of British fabric or produce the property of neu-
trals, by which the interruption of our lawful commerce and the spolia-
tion of the property of our citizens have again received a public sanction.
These facts indicate no change of system or disposition; they speak a
more intelligible language than professions of solicitude to avoid a rup-
ture, however ardently made. But if, after the repeated proofs we have
given of a sincere desire for peace, these professions should be accompa-
nied by insinuations implicating the integrity with which it has been
pursued; if, neglecting and passing by the constitutional and authorized
agents of the Government, they are made through the medium of indi-
viduals without public character or authority, and, above all, if they carry
with them a claim to prescribe the political qualifications of the minister
of the United States to be employed in the negotiation, they are not enti-
tled to attention or consideration, but ought to be regarded as designed
to separate the people from their Government and to bring about by
intrigue that which open force could not effect.
We are of opinion with you, sir, that there has nothing yet been dis-
covered in the conduct of France which can justify a relaxation of the
means of defense adopted during the last session of Congress, the happy
result of which is so strongly and generally marked. If the force by sea
and land which the existing laws authorize should be judged inadequate
to the public defense, we will perform the indispensable duty of bringing
forward such other acts as will effectually call forth the resources and
force of our country.
A steady adherence to this wise and manly policy, a proper direction
of the noble spirit of patriotism which has arisen in our country, and
which ought to be cherished and invigorated by every branch of the
Government, will secure our liberty and independence against all open
and secret attacks.
We enter on the business of the present session with an anxious solici-
John Adams 267
tude for the public good, and shall bestow that consideration on the
several objects pointed out in your communication which they respec-
tively merit.
Your long and important services, your talents and firmness, so often
displayed in the most trying times and most critical situations, afford a
sure pledge of a zealous cooperation in every measure necessary to secure
us justice and respect,
JOHN LAURANCK,
President of the Senate pro tempore.
DECEMBER n, 1798.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
DECEMBER 12, 1798.
fo the Senate of the United States.
GENTLEMEN: I thank you for this address, so conformable to the
spirit of our Constitution and the established character of the Senate of
the United States for wisdom, honor, and virtue.
I have seen no real evidence of any change of system or disposition in
the French Republic toward the United States. Although the officious
interference of individuals without public character or authority is not
entitled to any credit, yet it deserves to be considered whether that temer-
ity and impertinence of individuals affecting to interfere in public affairs
between France and the United States, whether by their secret corre-
spondence or otherwise, and intended to impose upon the people and
separate them from their Government, ought not to be inquired into and
corrected.
I thank you, gentlemen, for your assurances that you will bestow that
consideration on the several objects pointed out in my communication
which they respectively merit.
If I have participated in that understanding, sincerity, and constancy
which have been displayed by my fellow-citizens and countrymen in the
most trying times and critical situations, and fulfilled my duties to them,
I am happy. The testimony of the Senate of the United States in my
favor is an high and honorable reward, which receives, as it merits, my
grateful acknowledgments. My zealous cooperation in measures neces-
sary to secure us justice and consideration may be always depended on.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO JOHN ADAMS,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
JOHN ADAMS,
President of the United States.
SIR: The House of Representatives unite with you in deploring the
effects of the desolating malady by which the seat of Government and
268 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
other parts of our country have recently been visited. In calling our
attention to the fatality of its repeated ravages and inviting us to consider
the expediency of exercising our constitutional powers in aid of the
health laws of the respective States, your recommendation is sanctioned
by the dictates of humanity and liberal policy. On this interesting sub-
ject we feel the necessity of adopting every wise expedient for preventing
a calamity so distressing to individual sufferers and so prejudicial to our
national commerce.
That our finances are in a prosperous state notwithstanding the com-
mercial derangements resulting from this calamity and from external
embarrassments is a satisfactory manifestation of the great extent and
solidity of the public resources. Connected with this situation of our
fiscal concerns, the assurance that the legal provisions for obtaining
revenue by direct taxation will fulfill the views of the Legislature is
peculiarly acceptable.
Desirous as we are that all causes of hostility may be removed by the
amicable adjustment of national differences, we learn with satisfaction
that in pursuance of our treaties with Spain and with Great Britain
advances have been made for definitively settling the controversies rela-
tive to the southern and northeastern limits of the United States. With
similar sentiments have we received your information that the proceed-
ings under commissions authorized by the same treaties afford to a respect-
able portion of our citizens the prospect of a final decision on their claims
for maritime injuries committed by subjects of those powers.
It would be the theme of mutual felicitation were we assured of expe-
riencing similar moderation and justice from the French Republic, between
which and the United States differences have unhappily arisen; but this
is denied us by the ultimate failure of the measures which have been
taken by this Government toward an amicable adjustment of those differ-
ences and by the various inadmissible pretensions on the part of that
nation.
The continuing in force the decree of January last, to which you have
more particularly pointed our attention, ought of itself to be consid-
ered as demonstrative of the real intentions of the French Government.
That decree proclaims a predatory warfare against the unquestionable
rights of neutral commerce which with our means of defense our inter-
est and our honor command us to repel. It therefore now becomes the
United States to be as determined in resistance as they have been patient
in suffering and condescending in negotiation.
While those who direct the affairs of France persist in the enforcement
of decrees so hostile to our essential rights, their conduct forbids us to
confide in any of their professions of amity.
As, therefore, the conduct of France hitherto exhibits nothing which
ought to change or relax our measures of defense, the policy of extending
and invigorating those measures demands our sedulous attention. The
John Adams 269
sudden and remarkable advantages which this country has experienced
from a small naval armament sufficiently prove the utility of its estab-
lishment. As it respects the guarding of our coast, the protection of our
trade, and the facility of safely transporting the means of territorial
defense to every part of our maritime frontier, an adequate naval force
must be considered as an important object of national policy. Nor do
we hesitate to adopt the opinion that, whether negotiations with France
are resumed or not, vigorous preparations for war will be alike indispen-
sable.
In this conjuncture of affairs, while with you we recognize our abun-
dant cause of gratitude to the Supreme Disposer of Events for the ordi-
nary blessings of Providence, we regard as of high national importance
the manifestation in our country of a magnanimous spirit of resistance to
foreign domination. This spirit merits to be cherished and invigorated
by every branch of Government as the estimable pledge of national pros-
perity and glory.
Disdaining a reliance on foreign protection, wanting no foreign guar-
anty of our liberties, resolving to maintain our national independence
against every attempt to despoil us of this inestimable treasure, we con-
fide under Providence in the patriotism and energies of the people of
these United States for defeating the hostile enterprises of any foreign
power.
To adopt with prudent foresight such systematical measures as may
be expedient for calling forth those energies wherever the national exi-
gencies may require, whether on the ocean or on our own territory, and to
reconcile with the proper security of revenue the convenience of mercan-
tile enterprise, on which so great a proportion of the public resources
depends, are objects of moment which shall be duly regarded in the
course of our deliberations.
Fully as we accord with you in the opinion that the United States
ought not to submit to the humiliation of sending another minister to
France without previous assurances sufficiently determinate that he will
be duly accredited, we have heard with cordial approbation the declara-
tion of your purpose steadily to observe those maxims of humane and
pacific policy by which the United States have hitherto been governed.
While it is left with France to take the requisite steps for accommoda-
tion, it is worthy the Chief Magistrate of a free people to make known to
the world that justice on the part of France will annihilate every obstacle
to the restoration of a friendly intercourse, and that the Executive
authority of this country will respect the sacred rights of embassy. At
the same time, the wisdom and decision which have characterized your
past Administration assure us that no illusory professions will seduce
you into any abandonment of the rights which belong to the United
States as a free and independent nation.
DECEMBER 13, 1798.
270 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
DECEMBER 14, 1798.
To the House of Representatives of the United States of America.
GENTLEMEN : My sincere acknowledgments are due to the House of
Representatives of the United States tor this excellent address so conso-
nant to the character of representatives of a great and free people. The
judgment and feelings of a nation, I believe, were never more truly
expressed by their representatives than those of our constituents by your
decided declaration that with our means of defense our interest and honor
command us to repel a predatory warfare against the unquestionable
rights of neutral commerce; that it becomes the United States to be as
determined in resistance as they have been patient in suffering and con-
descending in negotiation; that while those who direct the affairs of
France persist in the enforcement of decrees so hostile to our essential
rights their conduct forbids us to confide in any of their professions of
amity; that an adequate naval force must be considered as an important
object of national policy, and that, whether negotiations with France are
resumed or not, vigorous preparations for war will be alike indispensable.
The generous disdain you so coolly and deliberately express of a reli-
ance on foreign protection, wanting no foreign guaranty of our liberties,
resolving to maintain our national independence against every attempt to
despoil us of this inestimable treasure, will meet the full approbation
of every sound understanding and exulting applauses from the heart of
every faithful American.
I thank you, gentlemen, for your candid approbation of my sentiments
on the subject of negotiation and for the declaration of your opinion that
the policy of extending and invigorating our measures of defense and the
adoption with prudent foresight of such systematical measures as may
be expedient for calling forth the energies of our country wherever the
national exigencies may require, whether on the ocean or on our own
territory, will demand your sedulous attention.
At the same time, I take the liberty to assure you it shall be my vigilant
endeavor that no illusory professions shall seduce me into any abandon-
ment of the rights which belong to the United States as a free and inde-
pendent nation. JOHN ADAMS.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
JANUARY 8, 1799.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In compliance with your desire expressed in your resolution of the
ad of this month, I lay before you an extract of a letter from George C.
Moreton, acting consul of the United States at The Havannah, dated the
John Adams 271
1 3th of November, 1798, to the Secretary of State, with a copy of a letter
from him to Iy. Tresevant and William Timmons, esquires, with their
answer.
Although your request extends no further than such information as
has been received, yet it may be a satisfaction to you to know that as
soon as this intelligence was communicated to me circular orders were
given by my direction to all the commanders of our vessels of war, a copy
of which is also herewith transmitted. I also directed this intelligence
and these orders to be communicated to His Britannic Majesty's envoy
extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the United States and to
our minister plenipotentiary to the Court of Great Britain, with instruc-
tions to him to make the proper representation to that Government upon
this subject.
It is but justice to say that this is the first instance of misbehavior of
any of the British officers toward our vessels of war that has come to my
knowledge. According to all the representations that I have seen, the
flag of the United States and their officers and men have been treated
by the civil and military authority of the British nation in Nova Scotia,
the West India islands, and on the ocean with uniform civility, polite-
ness, and friendship. I have no doubt that this first instance of miscon-
duct will be readily corrected.
JOHN ADAMS.
JANUARY 15, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I transmit to you the treaty between the United States and the Chero-
kee Indians, signed near Tellico on the 2d day of October, 1798, for your
consideration. I have directed the Secretary of War to lay before you
the journal of the commissioners and a copy of their instructions.
JOHN ADAMS.
JANUARY 18, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate an.' Gentlemen of tJie House of Representatives:
The communication relative to our affairs with France alluded to in
my address to both Houses at the opening of the session is contained in
the sheets which accompany this. A report of the Secretary of State, con-
taining some observations on them, will be sent to Congress on Monday.
JOHN ADAMS.
JANUARY 28, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
An edict of the Executive Directory of the French Republic of the 2Qth
of October, 1 798, inclosed in a letter from our minister plenipotentiary
272 Messages and Papers of Uie Presidents
in London of the i6th of November, is of so much importance that it can
not be too soon communicated to you and the public.
JOHN ADAMS.
FEBRUARY 6, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In consequence of intimations from the Court of Russia to our min-
ister plenipotentiary at the Court of Great Britain of the desire of that
power to have a treaty of amity and commerce with the United States,
and that the negotiation might be conducted in London, I nominate
Rufus King, our minister plenipotentiary at the Court of Great Britain,
to be a minister plenipotentiary for the special purpose of negotiating with
any minister of equal rank and powers a treaty of amity and commerce
between the United States and the Emperor of all the Russias.
JOHN ADAMS,
UNITED STATES, February 13, 1799.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In pursuance of the request in your resolve of 3 r esterday, I lay before
you such information as I have received touching a suspension of the
arret of the French Republic, communicated to your House by my mes-
sage of the 28th of January last. But if the execution of that arret be
suspended, or even if it were repealed, it should be remembered that the
arret of the Executive Directory of the 2d of March, 1797, remains in
force, the third article of which subjects, explicitly and exclusively,
American seamen to be treated as pirates if found on board ships of the
enemies of France.
JOHN ADAMS.
FEBRUARY 18, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate.'
I transmit to you a document which seems to be intended to be a com-
pliance with a condition mentioned at the conclusion of my message to
Congress of the 2ist of June last.
Always disposed and ready to embrace every plausible appearance of
probability of preserving or restoring tranquillity, I nominate William
Vans Murray, our minister resident at The Hague, to be minister pleni-
potentiary Ox the United States to the French Republic.
If the Senate shall advise and consent to his appointment, effectual care
shall be talcen in his instructions that he shall not go to France without
direct and unequivocal assurances from the French Government, signified
by their minister of foreign relations, that he shall be received in charac-
John Adams 273
ter, shall enjoy the privileges attached to his character by the law of
nations, and that a minister of equal rank, title, and powers shall be
appointed to treat with him, to discuss and conclude all controversies
between the two Republics by a new treaty.
JOHN ADAMS.
[Translation.]
PARIS, the 7th Vendhniaire of the jilt Year
of the French Republic, One and Indivisible.
The Minister of Exterior Relations to Citizen Pichon, Secretary of Legation of the
French Republic near the Batavian Republic:
I have received successively, Citizen, your letters of the 226. and 27th Fructidor [8th
and I3th September]. They afford me more and more reason to be pleased with the
measure you have adopted, to detail to me your conversations with Mr. Murray.
These conversations, at first merely friendly, have acquired consistency by the sanc-
tion I have given to them by my letter of the nth Fructidor. I do not regret that
you have trusted to Mr. Murray's honor a copy of my letter. It was intended for
you only, and contains nothing but what is conformable to the intentions of Govern-
ment. I am thoroughly convinced that should explanations take place with confidence
between the two Cabinets, irritation would cease, a crowd of misunderstandings would
disappear, and the ties of friendship would be the more strongly united as each party
would discover the hand which sought to disunite them. But I will not conceal from
you that your letters of the zd and 3d Vende"miaire, just received, surprised me
much. What Mr. Murray is still dubious of has been very explicitly declared, even
before the President's message to Congress of the 3d Messidor [2ist June] last was
known in France. I had written it to Mr. Gerry, namely, on the 24th Messidor and
4th Thermidor; I did repeat it to him before he sat out. A whole paragraph of my
letter to you of the nth Fructidor, of which Mr. Murray has a copy, is devoted to
develop still more the fixed determination of the French Government. According
to these bases, you were right to assert that whatever plenipotentiary the Government
of the United States might send to France to put an end to the existing differences
between the two countries would be undoubtedly received with the respect due to
the representative of a free, independent, and powerful nation.
I can not persuade myself, Citizen, that the American Government need any further
declarations from us to induce them, in order to renew the negotiations, to adopt
such measures as would be suggested to them by their desire to bring the differences to
a peaceable end. If misunderstandings on both sides have prevented former explana-
tions from reaching that end, it is presumable that, those misunderstandings being
done away, nothing henceforth will bring obstacles to the reciprocal dispositions.
The President's instructions to his envoys at Paris, which I have only known by the
copy given you by Mr. Murray, and received by me the 2ist Messidor [gth July],
announce, if they contain the whole of the American Government's intentions, dis-
positions which could only have added to those which the Directory has always
entertained; and, notwithstanding the posterior acts of that Government, notwith-
standing the irritating and almost hostile measures they have adopted, the Directory
has manifested its perseverance in the sentiments which are deposited both in my
correspondence with Mr. Gerry and in my letter to you of the nth Fructidor, and
which I have hereinbefore repeated in the most explicit manner. Carry, therefore,
Citizen, to Mr. Murray those positive expressions in order to convince him of our
sincerity, and prevail upon him to transmit them to his Government.
I presume, Citizen, that this letter will find you at The Hague; if not, I ask it may
be sent back to you at Paris.
Salute and fraternity. CH: MAU: TALLEYRAND.
274 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
FEBRUARY 25, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The proposition of a fresh negotiation with France in consequence of
advances made by the French Government has excited so general an
attention and so much conversation as to have given occasion to many
manifestations of the public opinion, from which it appears to me that a
new modification of the embassy will give more general satisfaction to
the Legislature and to the nation, and perhaps better answer the purposes
we have in view.
It is upon this supposition and with this expectation that I now nomi-
nate Oliver Ellsworth, esq., Chief Justice of the United States; Patrick
Henry, esq., late governor of Virginia, and William Vans Murray, esq.,
our minister resident at The Hague, to be envoys extraordinary and min-
isters plenipotentiary to the French Republic, with full powers to discuss
and settle by a treaty all controversies between the United States and
France.
It is not intended that the two former of these gentlemen shall embark
for Europe until they shall have received from the Executive Directory
assurances, signified by their secretary of foreign relations, that they
shall be received in character, that they shall enjoy all the prerogatives
attached to that character by the law of nations, and that a minister or
ministers of equal powers shall be appointed and commissioned to treat
with them.
JOHN ADAMS.
MARCH 2, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Judging it of importance to the public that the Legislature should be
informed of the gradual progress of their maritime resources, I transmit
to Congress a statement of the vessels, with their tonnage, warlike force,
and complement of men, to which commissions as private armed vessels
have been issued since the gth day of July last.
JOHN ADAMS.
PROCLAMATIONS.
[From C. F. Adams's Works of John Adams, Vol. IX, p. 172.]
PROCLAMATION.
MARCH 6, 1799.
As no truth is more clearly taught in the Volume of Inspiration, nor
any more fully demonstrated by the experience of all ages, than that a
deep sense and a due acknowledgment of the governing providence of a
Supreme Being and of the accountableness of men to Him as the searcher
John Adams 275
of hearts and righteous distributer of rewards and punishments are con-
ducive equally to the happiness and rectitude of individuals and to the
well-being of communities; as it is also most reasonable in itself that
men who are made capable of social acts and relations, who owe their
improvements to the social state, and who derive their enjoyments from
it, should, as a society, make their acknowledgments of dependence and
obligation to Him who hath endowed them with these capacities and
elevated them in the scale of existence by these distinctions; as it is
likewise a plain dictate of duty and a strong sentiment of nature that in
circumstances of great urgency and seasons of imminent danger earnest
and particular supplications should be made to Him who is able to defend
or to destroy; as, moreover, the most precious interests of the people of
the United States are still held in jeopardy by the hostile designs and
insidious acts of a foreign nation, as well as by the dissemination
among them of those principles, subversive of the foundations of all
religious, moral, and social obligations, that have produced incalculable
mischief and misery in other countries; and as, in fine, the observance of
special seasons for public religious solemnities is happily calculated to
avert the evils which we ought to deprecate and to excite to the per-
formance of the duties which we ought to discharge by calling and fix-
ing the attention of the people at large to the momentous truths already
recited, by affording opportunity to teach and inculcate them by animat-
ing devotion and giving to it the character of a national act:
For these reasons I have thought proper to recommend, and I do hereby
recommend accordingly, that Thursday, the 25th day of April next, be
observed throughout the United States of America as a day of solemn
humiliation, fasting, and prayer; that the citizens on that day abstain as
far as may be from their secular occupations, devote the time to the
sacred duties of religion in public and in private; that they call to mind
our numerous offenses against the Most High God, confess them before
Him with the sincerest penitence, implore His pardoning mercy, through
the Great Mediator and Redeemer, for our past transgressions, and tha't
through the grace of His Holy Spirit we may be disposed and enabled
to yield a more suitable obedience to His righteous requisitions in time
to come; that He would interpose to arrest the progress of that impiety
and licentiousness in principle and practice so offensive to Himself and
so ruinous to mankind; that He would make us deeply sensible that
"righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people;"
that He would turn us from our transgressions and turn His displeasure
from us; that He would withhold us from unreasonable discontent, from
disunion, faction, sedition, and insurrection; that He would preserve our
country from the desolating sword; that He would save our cities and
towns from a repetition of those awful pestilential visitations under which
they have lately suffered so severely, and that the health of our inhabit-
ants generally may be precious in His sight; that He would favor us with
276 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
fruitful seasons and so bless the labors of the husbandman as that therc
may be food in abundance for man and beast; that He would prosper our
commerce, manufactures, and fisheries, and give success to the people in
all their lawful industry and enterprise; that He would smile on our col-
leges, academies, schools, and seminaries of learning, and make them
nurseries of sound science, morals, and religion; that He would bless all
magistrates, from the highest to the lowest, give them the true spirit of
their station, make them a terror to evil doers and a praise to them that
do well; that He would preside over the councils of the nation at this
critical period, enlighten them to a just discernment of the public inter-
est, and save them from mistake, division, and discord; that He would
make succeed our preparations for defense and bless our armaments by
land and by sea; that He would put an end to the effusion of human blood
and the accumulation of human misery among the contending nations of
the earth by disposing them to justice, to equity, to benevolence, and to
peace; and that he would extend the blessings of knowledge, of true
liberty, and of pure and undefiled religion throughout the world.
And I do also recommend that with these acts of humiliation, peni-
tence, and prayer fervent thanksgiving to the Author of All Good be
united for the countless favors which He is still continuing to the people
of the United States, and which render their condition as a nation emi-
nently happy when compared with the lot of others.
Given, etc,
JOHN ADAMS.
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas combinations to defeat the execution of the laws for the valu-
ation of lands and dwelling houses within the United States have existed
in the counties of Northampton, Montgomery, and Bucks, in the State
of Pennsylvania, and have proceeded in a manner subversive of the just
authority of the Government, by misrepresentations, to render the laws
odious, by deterring the public officers of the United States to forbear the
execution of their functions, and by openly threatening their lives; and
Whereas the endeavors of the well-affected citizens, as well as of the
executive officers, to conciliate a compliance with those laws have failed
of success, and certain persons in the county of Northampton aforesaid
have been hardy enough to perpetrate certain acts which I am advised
amount to treason, being overt acts of levying war against the United
States, the said persons, exceeding one hundred in number and armed
and arrayed in a warlike manner, having, on the 7th day of this pres-
ent month of March, proceeded to the house of Abraham Levering, in
John Adams 277
the town of Bethlehem, and there compelled William Nichols, marshal
of the United States in and for the district of Pennsylvania, to desist
from the execution of certain legal process in his hands to be executed,
and having compelled him to discharge and set at liberty certain per-
sons whom he had arrested by virtue of criminal process duly issued for
offenses against the United States, and having impeded and prevented
the commissioner and the assessors, appointed in conformity with the
laws aforesaid, in the county of Northampton aforesaid, by threats and
personal injury, from executing the said laws, avowing as the motives
of these illegal and treasonable proceedings an intention to prevent by
force of arms the execution of the said laws and to withstand by open
violence the lawful authority of the Government of the United States;
and
Wherea!s by the Constitution and laws of the United States I am
authorized, whenever the laws of the United States shall be opposed or
the execution thereof obstructed in any State by combinations too pow-
erful to be suppressed by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings or
by the powers vested in the marshals, to call forth military force to sup-
press such combinations and to cause the laws to be duly executed; and
Whereas it is in my judgment necessary to call forth military force in
order to suppress the combinations aforesaid and to cause the laws afore-
said to be duly executed, and I have accordingly determined so to do,
under the solemn conviction that the essential interests of the United
States demand it:
Wherefore I, John Adams, President of the United States, do hereby
command all persons being insurgents as aforesaid, and all others whom
it may concern, on or before Monday next, being the i8th day of this
present month, to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes;
and I do moreover warn all persons whomsoever against aiding, abetting,
or comforting the perpetrators of the aforesaid treasonable acts; and I
do require all officers and others, good and faithful citizens, according
to their respective duties and the laws of the land, to exert their utmost
endeavors to prevent and suppress such dangerous and unlawful pro-
ceedings.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same
with my hand.
[SEAI,.] Done at the city of Philadelphia, the i2th day of March,
A. D. 1799, and of the Independence of the said United States
of America the twenty-third.
JOHN ADAMS.
By the President :
TIMOTHY PICKERING,
Secretary of State.
278 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
[Prom a broadside in the archives of the Department of State.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas by an act of the Congress of the United States passed the
9th day of February last, entitled "An act further to suspend the com-
mercial intercourse between the United States and France and the
dependencies thereof, " it is provided that at any time after the passing
of this act it shall be lawful for the President of the United States, if he
shall deem it expedient and consistent with the interests of the United
States, by his order to remit and discontinue for the time being the
restraints and prohibitions by the said act imposed, either with respect
to the French Republic or to any island, port, or place belonging to
the said Republic with which a commercial intercourse may safely be
renewed, and also to revoke such order whenever, in his opinion, the
interest of the United States shall require; and he is authorized to make
proclamation thereof accordingly; and
Whereas the arrangements which have been made at St. Domingo for
the safety of the commerce of the United States and for the admission
of American vessels into certain ports of that island do, in my opinion,
render it expedient and for the interest of the United States to renew a
commercial intercourse with such ports:
Therefore I, John Adams, President of the United States, by virtue
of the powers vested in me by the above-recited act, do hereby remit and
discontinue the restraints and prohibitions therein contained within the
limits and under the regulations here following, to wit:
1. It shall be lawful for vessels which have departed or may depart
from the United States to enter the ports of Cape Francois and Port
Republicain, formerly called Port-au-Prince, in the said island of St.
Domingo, on and after the ist day of August next.
2. No vessel shall be cleared for any other port in St Domingo than
Cape Francois and Port Republicain.
3. It shall be lawful for vessels which shall enter the said ports of
Cape Francois and Port Republicain after the 3ist day of July next to
depart from thence to any other port in said island between Monte Christi
on the north and Petit Goave on the west; provided it be done with the
consent of the Government of St. Domingo and pursuant to certificates
or passports expressing such consent, signed by the consul-general of the
United States or consul residing at the port of departure.
4. All vessels sailing in contravention of these regulations will be out
of the protection of the United States and be, moreover, liable to capture,
seizure, and confiscation.
John Adams 279
Given under my hand and the seal of the United States, at Philadelphia,
the 26th day of June, A. D. 1799, and of the Independence of
[SEAL.] the ^ States the twenty-third.
JOHN ADAMS.
By the President:
TIMOTHY PICKERING,
Secretary of State.
THIRD ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, December j,
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
It is with peculiar satisfaction that I meet the Sixth Congress of the
United States of America. Coming from all parts of the Union at this
critical and interesting period, the members must be fully possessed of
the sentiments and wishes of our constituents.
The flattering prospects of abundance from the labors of the people by
laud and by sea; the prosperity of our extended commerce, notwithstand-
ing interruptions occasioned by the belligerent state of a great part of the
world; the return of health, industry, and trade to those cities which
have lately been afflicted with disease, and the various and inestimable
advantages, civil and religious, which, secured under our happy frame
of government, are continued to us unimpaired, demand of the whole
American people sincere thanks to a benevolent Deity for the merciful
dispensations of His providence.
But while these numerous blessings are recollected, it is a painful duty
to advert to the ungrateful return which has been made for them by some
of the people in certain counties of Pennsylvania, where, seduced by the
arts and misrepresentations of designing men, they have openly resisted
the law directing the valuation of houses and lands. Such defiance was
given to the civil authority as rendered hopeless all further attempts
by judicial process to enforce the execution of the law, and it became
necessary to direct a military force to be employed, consisting of some
companies of regular troops, volunteers, and militia, by whose zeal and
activity, in cooperation with the judicial power, order and submission
were restored and many of the offenders arrested. Of these, some have
been convicted of misdemeanors, and others, charged with various crimes,
remain to be tried.
To give due effect to the civil administration of Government and to
insure a just execution of the laws, a revision and amendment of the
judiciary system is indispensably necessary. In this extensive country it
can not but happen that numerous questions respecting the interpretation
2&o Messages and Papers of the Presidents,
of the laws and the rights and duties of officers and citizens must arise.
On the one hand, the laws should be executed; on the other, individ-
uals should be guarded from oppression. Neither of these objects is
sufficiently assured under the present organization of the judicial depart-
ment. I therefore earnestly recommend the subject to your serious con-
sideration.
Persevering in the pacific and humane policy which had been inva-
riably professed and sincerely pursued by the Executive authority of the
United States, when indications were made on the part of the French
Republic of a disposition to accommodate the existing differences between
the two countries, I felt it to be my duty to prepare for meeting their
advances by a nomination of ministers upon certain conditions which the
honor of our country dictated, and which its moderation had given it a
right to prescribe. The assurances which were required of the French
Government previous to the departure of our envoys have been given
through their minister of foreign relations, and I have directed them to
proceed on their mission to Paris. They have full power to conclude a
treaty, subject to the constitutional advice and consent of the Senate.
The characters of these gentlemen are sure pledges to their country that
nothing incompatible with its honor or interest, nothing inconsistent
with our obligations of good faith or friendship to any other nation, will
be stipulated.
It appearing probable from the information I received that our com-
mercial intercourse with some ports in the island of St. Domingo might
safely be renewed, I took such steps as seemed to me expedient to ascer-
tain that point. The result being satisfactory, I then, in conformity with
the act of Congress on the subject, directed the restraints and prohibi-
tions of that intercourse to be discontinued on terms which were made
known by proclamation. Since the renewal of this intercourse our citi-
zens trading to those ports, with their property, have been duly respected,
and privateering from those ports has ceased.
In examining the claims of British subjects by the commissioners at
Philadelphia, acting under the sixth article of the treaty of amity, com-
merce, and navigation with Great Britain, a difference of opinion on
points deemed essential in the interpretation of that article has arisen
between the commissioners appointed by the United States and the other
members of that board, from which the former have thought it their duty
to withdraw. It is sincerely to be regretted that the execution of an
article produced by a mutual spirit of amity and justice should have been
thus unavoidably interrupted. It is, however, confidently expected that
the same spirit of amity and the same sense of justice in which it origi-
nated will lead to satisfactory explanations. In consequence of the
obstacles to the progress of the commission in Philadelphia, His Britannic
Majesty has directed the commissioners appointed by him under the sev-
enth article of the treaty relating to the British captures of American ves-
John Adams 281
sels to withdraw from the board sitting in London, but with the express
declaration of his determination to fulfill with punctuality and good faith
the engagements which His Majesty has contracted by his treaty with
the United States, and that they will be. instructed to resume their func-
tions whenever the obstacles which impede the progress of the commission
at Philadelphia shall be removed. It being in like manner my sincere
determination, so far as the same depends on me, that with equal punc-
tuality and good faith the engagements contracted by the United States
in their treaties with His Britannic Majesty shall be fulfilled, I shall
immediately instruct our minister at I/>ndon to endeavor to obtain the
explanations necessary to a just performance of those engagements on the
part of the United States. With such dispositions on both sides, I can
not entertain a doubt that all difficulties will soon be removed and that
the two boards will then proceed and bring the business committed to
them respectively to a satisfactory conclusion.
The act of Congress relative to the seat of the Government of the
United States requiring that on the first Monday of December next it
should be transferred from Philadelphia to the District chosen for its
permanent seat, it is proper for me to inform you that the commissioners
appointed to provide suitable buildings for the accommodation of Congress
and of the President and of the public offices of the Government have
made a report of the state of the buildings designed for those purposes
in the city of Washington, from which they conclude that the removal
of the seat of Government to that place at the time required will be prac-
ticable and the accommodation satisfactory. Their report will be laid
before you.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I shall direct the estimates of the appropriations necessary for the
service of the ensuing year, together with an account of the revenue and
expenditure, to be laid before you. During a period in which a great
portion of the civilized world has been involved in a war unusually calam-
itous and destructive, it was not to be expected that the United States
could be exempted from extraordinary burthens. Although the period
is not arrived when the measures adopted to secure our country against
foreign attacks can be renounced, yet it is alike necessary for the honor
of the Government and the satisfaction of the community that an exact
economy should be maintained. I invite you, gentlemen, to investigate
the different branches of the public expenditure. The examination will
lead to beneficial retrenchments or produce a conviction of the wisdom of
the measures to which the expenditure relates.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
At a period like the present, when momentous changes are occurring
and every hour is preparing new and great events in the political world,
282 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
when a spirit of war is prevalent in almost every nation with whose affairs
the interests of the United States have any connection, unsafe and preca-
rious would be our situation were we to neglect the means of maintaining
our just rights. The result of the mission to France is uncertain; but
however it may terminate, a steady perseverance in a system of national
defense commensurate with our resources and the situation of our country
is an obvious dictate of wisdom; for, remotely as we are placed from the
belligerent nations, and desirous as we are, by doing justice to all, to
avoid offense to any, nothing short of the power of repelling regressions
will secure to our country a rational prospect of escaping the calamities
of war or national degradation. As to myself, it is my anxious desire so
to execute the trust reposed in me as to render the people of the United
States prosperous and happy. I rely with entire confidence on your
cooperation in objects equally your care, and that our mutual labors will
serve to increase and confirm union among our fellow-citizens and an
unshaken attachment to our Government.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:
Accept, sir, the respectful acknowledgments or the Senate of the
United States for your speech delivered to both Houses of Congress at
the opening of the present session.
While we devoutly join you in offering our thanks to Almighty God
for the return of health to our cities and for the general prosperity of the
country, we can not refrain from lamenting that the arts and calumnies
cf factious, designing men have excited open rebellion a second time in
Pennsylvania, and thereby compelled the employment of a military force
to aid the civil authority in the execution of the laws. We rejoice that
your vigilance, energy, and well-timed exertions have crushed so daring
an opposition and prevented the spreading of such treasonable combina-
tions. The promptitude and zeal displayed by the troops called to
suppress this insurrection deserve our highest commendation and praise,
and afford a pleasing proof of the spirit and alacrity with which our
fellow-citizens are ready to maintain the authority of our excellent Gov-
ernment.
Knowing as we do that the United States are sincerely anxious for a
fair and liberal execution of the treaty of amity, commerce, and naviga-
tion entered into with Great Britain, we learn with regret that the prog-
ress of adjustment has been interrupted by a difference of opinion among
the commissioners. We hope, however, that the justice, the modera-
tion, and the obvious interests of both parties will lead to satisfactory
explanations, and that the business will then go forward to an amicable
John Adams 283
close of all differences and demands between the two countries. We are
fully persuaded that the Legislature of the United States will cheerfully
enable you to realize your assurances of performing on our part all
engagements under our treaties with punctuality and the most scrupulous
good faith.
When we reflect upon the uncertainty of the result o'f the late mission
to France and upon the uncommon nature, extent, and aspect of the
war now raging in Europe, which affects materially our relations with
the powers at war, and which has changed the condition of their colonies
in our neighborhood, we are of opinion with you that it would be neither
wise nor safe to relax our measures of defense or to lessen any of our
preparations to repel aggression.
Our inquiries and attention shall be carefully directed to the various
other important subjects which you have recommended to our consider-
ation, and from our experience of your past Administration we anticipate
with the highest confidence your strenuous cooperation in all measures
which have a tendency to promote and extend our national interests and
happiness.
SAMUEL LJVERMORE,
President of the Senate pro tempore.
DECEMBER 9, 1799.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
UNITED STATES, December 10, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I thank you for this address. I wish you all possible success and sat-
isfaction in your deliberations on the means which have a tendency to
promote and extend our national interests and happiness, and I assure
you that in all your measures directed to those great objects you may at
all times rely with the highest confidence on my cordial cooperation.
The praise of the Senate, so judiciously conferred on the promptitude
and zeal of the troops called to suppress the insurrection, as it falls from
so high authority, must make a deep impression, both as a terror to the
disobedient and an encouragement of such as do well.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO JOHN ADAMS,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES-
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: While the House of Representatives contemplate the flattering
prospects of abundance from the labors of the people by land and by sea,
the prosperity of our extended commerce notwithstanding: the interrup-
tions occasioned by the belligerent state of a great part of the world, the
284 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
return of health, industry, and trade to those cities which have lately been
afflicted with disease, and the various and inestimable advantages, civil
and religious, which, secured under our happy frame of Government, are
continued to us unimpaired, we can not fail to offer up to a benevolent
Deity our sincere thanks for these the merciful dispensations of His pro-
tecting providence.
That any portion of the people of America should permit themselv2S,
amid such numerous blessings, to be seduced by the arts and misrepresen-
tations of designing men into an open resistance of a law of the United
States can not be heard without deep and serious regret. Under a Con-
stitution where the public burthens can only be imposed by the people
themselves for their own benefit and to promote their own objects, a
hope might well have been indulged that the general interest would have
been too well understood and the general welfare too highly prized to
have produced in any of our citizens a disposition to hazard so much
felicity by the criminal effort of a part to oppose with lawless violence the
will of the whole. While we lament that depravity which could produce
a defiance of the civil authority and render indispensable the aid of the
military force of the nation, real consolation is to be derived from the
promptness and fidelity with which that aid was afforded. That zealous
and active cooperation with the judicial power of the volunteers and militia
called into service, which has restored order and submission to the laws,
is a pleasing evidence of the attachment of our fellow-citizens to their own
free Government, and of the truly patriotic alacrity with which they will
support it.
To give due effect to the civil administration of Government and to
insure a just execution of the laws are objects of such real magnitude as
to secure a proper attention to your recommendation of a revision and
amendment of the judiciary system.
Highly approving as we do the pacific and humane policy which has been
invariably professed and sincerely pursued by the Executive authority of
the United States, a policy which our best interests enjoined, and of which
honor has permitted the observance, we consider as the most unequiv-
ocal proof of your inflexible perseverance in the same well-chosen system
your preparation to meet the first indications on the part of the French
Republic of a disposition to accommodate the existing differences between
the two countries by a nomination of ministers, on certain conditions
which the honor of our country unquestionably dictated, and which its
moderation had certainly given it a right to prescribe. When the assur-
ances thus required of the French Government, previous to the departure
of our envoys, had been given through their minister of foreign relations,
the direction that they should proceed on their mission was on your part a
completion of the measure, and manifests the sincerity with which it was
commenced. We offer up our fervent prayers to the Supreme Ruler of
the Universe for the success of their embassy, and that it may be pro-
John Adams 285
ductive of peace andt happiness to our common country. The uniform
tenor of your conduct through a life useful to your fellow-citizens and
honorable to yourself gives a sure pledge of the sincerity with which the
avowed objects of the negotiation will be pursued on your part, and we
earnestly pray that similar dispositions may be displayed on the part of
France. The differences which unfortunately subsist between the two
nations can not fail in that event to be happily terminated. To produce
this end, to all so desirable, firmness, moderation, and union at home
constitute, we are persuaded, the surest means. The character of the
gentlemen you have deputed, and still more the character of the Gov-
ernment which deputes them, are safe pledges to their country that
nothing incompatible with its honor or interest, nothing inconsistent
with our obligations of good faith or friendship to any other nation, will
be stipulated.
We learn with pleasure that our citizens, with their property, trading
to those ports of St. Domingo with which commercial intercourse has
been renewed have been duly respected, and that privateering from those
ports has ceased.
With you we sincerely regret that the execution of the sixth article of
the treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation with Great Britain, an arti-
cle produced by a mutual spirit of amity and justice, should have been
unavoidably interrupted. We doubt not that the same spirit of amity and
the same sense of justice in which it originated will lead to satisfactory
explanations, and we hear with approbation that our minister at lyondon
will be immediately instructed to obtain them. While the engagements
which America has contracted by her treaty with Great Britain ought to
be fulfilled with that scrupulous punctuality and good faith to which
our Government has ever so tenaciously adhered, yet no motive exists
to induce, and every principle forbids us to adopt, a construction which
might extend them beyond the instrument by which they are created.
We cherish the hope that the Government of Great Britain will disclaim
such extension, and by cordially uniting with that of the United States
for the removal of all difficulties will soon enable the boards appointed
under the sixth and seventh articles of our treaty with that nation to
proceed and bring the business committed to them respectively to a satis-
factory conclusion.
The buildings for the accommodation of Congress and of the President
and for the public offices of the Government at its permanent seat being
in such a state as to admit of a removal to that District by the time pre-
scribed by the act of Congress, uo obstacle, it is presumed, will exist to
a compliance with the law.
With you, sir, we deem the present period critical and momentous.
The important changes which are occurring, the new and great events
which are every hour preparing in the political world, the spirit of war
which is prevalent in almost every nation with whose affairs the interests
286 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
of the United States have any connection, demonstrate how unsafe and
precarious would be our situation should we neglect the means of main-
taining our just rights. Respecting, as we have ever done, the rights of
others, America estimates too correctly the value of her own and has
received evidence too complete that they are only to be preserved by her
own vigilance ever to permit herself to be seduced by a love of ease or
by other considerations into that deadly disregard of the means of self-
defense which could only result from a carelessness as criminal as it
would be fatal concerning the future destinies of our growing Republic.
The result of the mission to France is indeed, sir, uncertain. It depends
not on America alone. The most pacific temper will not always insure
peace. We should therefore exhibit a system of conduct as indiscreet
as it would be new in the history of the world if we considered the nego-
tiation happily terminated because we have attempted to commence it,
and peace restored because we wish its restoration. But, sir, however
this mission may terminate, a steady perseverance in a system of national
defense commensurate with our resources and the situation of our coun-
try is an obvious dictate of duty. Experience, the parent of wisdom
and the great instructor of nations, has established the truth of your
position, that, remotely as we are placed from the belligerent nations and
desirous as we are, by doing justice to all, to avoid offense to any, yet
nothing short of the power of repelling aggressions will secure to our
country a rational prospect of escaping the calamities of war or national
degradation.
In the progress of the session we shall take into our serious considera-
tion the various and important matters recommended to our attention.
A life devoted to the service of your country, talents and integrity
which have so justly acquired and so long retained the confidence and
affection of your fellow-citizens, attest the sincerity of your declaration
that it is your anxious desire so to execute the trust reposed in you as to
render the people of the United States prosperous and happy.
DECEMBER 9, 1799.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
UNITED STATES, December 10, 1799.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
This very respectful address from the Representatives of the people of
the United States, at their first assembly after a fresh election, under the
strong impression of the public opinion and national sense, at this inter-
esting and singular crisis of our public affairs, has excited my sensibility
and receives my sincere and grateful acknowledgments.
As long as we can maintain with harmony and affection the honor of
our country consistently with its peace, externally and internally, while
that is attainable, or in war when that becomes necessary, assert its real
John Adams 287
independence and sovereignty, and support the constitutional energies
and dignity of its Government, we may be perfectly sure, under the
smiles of Divine Providence, that we shall effectually promote and extend
our national interest and happiness.
The applause of the Senate and House of Representatives, so justly
bestowed upon the volunteers and militia for their zealous and active
cooperation with the judicial power, which has restored order and sub-
mission to the laws, as it comes with peculiar weight and propriety from
the Legislature, can not fail to have an extensive and permanent effect
for the support of Government upon all those ingenuous minds who
receive delight from the approving and animating voice of their country.
JOHN ADAMS.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, December 5 ',
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to Congress certain documents which have relation to the
communications made on Tuesday, on the subjects of the insurrection in
Pennsylvania, the renewal of commerce with St. Domingo, and the mis-
sion to the French Republic.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, December 6, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you, for your consideration, a treaty of amity and com-
merce between the United States and the King of Prussia, signed by
their ministers on the nth of July last.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, December 19, 1799.
Gentleman of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The letter herewith transmitted will inform you that it has pleased
Divine Providence to remove from this life our excellent fellow-citizen,
George Washington, by the purity of his character and a long series of
services to his country rendered illustrious through the world. It
remains for an affectionate and grateful people, in whose hearts he can
never die, to pay suitable honois to his memory.
JOHN ADAMS.
MOUNT VERNON, December 75,
The PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES.
SIR : It is with inexpressible grief that I have to announce to you the death of the
great and good General Washington. He died last evening between 10 and n
288 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
o'clock, after a short illness of about twenty hours. His disorder was an inflam-
matory sore throat, which proceeded from a cold of which he made but little com-
plaint on Friday. On Saturday morning about 3 o'clock he became ill. Dr. Craik
attended him in the morning, and Dr. Dick, of Alexandria, and Dr. Brown, of Port
Tobacco, were soon after called in. Every medical assistance was offered, but with-
out the desired effect. His last scene corresponded with the whole tenor of his life;
not a groan nor a complaint escaped him in extreme distress. With perfect resig-
nation and in full possession of his reason, he closed his well-spent life.
I have the honor to be, with the highest respect, sir, your most obedient and very
humble servant,
TOBIAS LEAR.
The Senate, having resolved to wait on the President of the United
States "to condole with him on the distressing event of the death of
General George Washington," proceeded to the house of the President,
when the President of the Senate, in their name, presented the address
which had previously been agreed to, as follows:
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:
The Senate of the United States respectfully take leave, sir, to express
to you their deep regret for the loss their country sustains in the death
of General George Washington.
This event, so distressing to all our fellow-citizens, must be peculiarly
heavy to you, who have long been associated with him in deeds of patri-
otism. Permit us, sir, to mingle our tears with yours. On this occasion
it is manly to weep. To lose such a man at such a crisis is no common
calamity to the world. Our country mourns her father. The Almighty
Disposer of Human Events has taken from us our greatest benefactor and
ornament. It becomes us to submit with reverence to Him who mak-
eth darkness His pavilion.
With patriotic pride we review the life of our Washington and com-
pare him with those of other countries who have been preeminent in
fame. Ancient and modern names are diminished before him. Great-
ness and guilt have too often been allied, but his fame is whiter than
it is brilliant. The destroyers of nations stood abashed at the majesty
of his virtue. It reproved the intemperance of their ambition and dark-
ened the splendor of victory. The scene is closed, and we are no longer
anxious lest misfortune should sully his glory. He has traveled on to
the end of his journey and carried with him an increasing weight of
honor. He has deposited it safely, where misfortune can not tarnish
it, where malice can not blast it. Favored of Heaven, he departed with-
out exhibiting the weakness of humanity. Magnanimous in death, the
darkness of the grave could not obscure his brightness.
Such was the man whom we deplore. Thanks to God, his glory is
consummated. Washington yet lives on earth in his spotless example;
his spirit is in Heaven.
Let his countrymen consecrate the memory of the heroic general, the
John Adams 289
patriotic statesman, and the virtuous sage. Let them teach their children
never to forget that the fruit of his labors and his example are their
inheritance.
SAMUEL LIVERMORE,
President of the Senate pro tempore.
DECEMBER 23, 1799.
To which the President replied as follows:
UNITED STATES, December 23, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I receive with the most respectful and affectionate sentiments in this
impressive address the obliging expressions of your regard for the loss
our country has sustained in the death of her most esteemed, beloved,
and admired citizen.
In the multitude of my thoughts and recollections on this melancholy
event you will permit me only to say that I have seen him in the days of
adversity, in some of the scenes of his deepest distress and most trying
perplexities; I have also attended him in his highest elevation and most
prosperous felicity, with uniform admiration of his wisdom, moderation,
and constancy.
Among all our original associates in that memorable league of the con-
tinent in 1774, which first expressed the sovereign will of a free nation
in America, he was the only one remaining in the General Government.
Although with a constitution more enfeebled than his at an age when
he thought it necessary to prepare for retirement, I feel myself alone
bereaved of my last brother; yet I derive a strong consolation from the
unanimous disposition which appears in all ages and classes to mingle
their sorrows with mine on this common calamity to the world.
The life of our Washington can not suffer by comparison with those
of other countries who have been most celebrated and exalted by fame.
The attributes and decorations of royalty could have only served to
eclipse the majesty of those virtues which made him, from being a
modest citizen, a more resplendent luminary.
Misfortune, had he lived, could hereafter have sullied his glory only
with those superficial minds who, believing that characters and actions
are marked by success alone, rarely deserve to enjoy it. Malice could
never blast his honor, and envy made him a singular exception to her
universal rule. For himself, he had lived enough to life and to glory.
For his fellow-citizens, if their prayers could have been answered, he
would have been immortal. For me, his departure is at a most unfortu-
nate moment. Trusting, however, in the wise and righteous dominion
of Providence over the passions of men and the results of their councils
and actions, as well as over their lives, nothing remains for me but
humble resignation.
ii
290 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
His example is now complete, and it will teach wisdom and virtue to
magistrates, citizens, and men, not only in the present age, but in future
generations as long as our history shall be read. If a Trajan found a
Pliny, a Marcus Aurelius can never want biographers, eulogists, or his-
torians - JOHN ADAMS.
The House of Representatives having resolved unanimously tt wait on
the President of the United States ' ' in condolence of this national calam-
ity," the Speaker, attended by the House, withdrew to the house of the
President, when the Speaker addressed the President as follows:
SIR: The House of Representatives, penetrated with a sense of the
irreparable loss sustained by the nation in the death of that great and
good man, the illustrious and beloved Washington, wait on you, sir, to
express their condolence on this melancholy and distressing event.
To which the President replied as follows:
UNITED STATES R'cember 19, 1799.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I receive with great respect and affection the condolence of the House
of Representatives on the melancholy and affecting event in the death
of the most illustrious and beloved personage which this country ever
produced. I sympathize with you, with the nation, and with good men
through the world in this irreparable loss sustained by us all.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, December 31, 1799.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I nominate Timothy Pickering, Secretary of State; Oliver Wolcott,
Secretary of the Treasury, and Samuel Sitgreaves, esq., of Pennsylvania,
to be commissioners to adjust and determine, with commissioners appointed
under the legislative authority of the State of Georgia, all interfering claims
of the United States and that State to territories situate west of the river
Chatahouchee, north of the thirty-first degree of north latitude, and south
of the cession made to the United States by South Carolina; and also to
receive any proposals for the relinquishment or cession of the whole or
any part of the other territory claimed by the State of Georgia, and out
of the ordinary jurisdiction thereof, according to the law of the United
States of the 7th of April, 1798.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 8, 1800.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In compliance with the request in one of the resolutions of Congress of
the 2ist of December last, I transmitted a copy of these resolutions, by
John Adams 291
my secretary, Mr. Shaw, to Mrs. Washington, assuring her of the pro-
found respect Congress will ever bear to her person and character, of
their condolence in the late afflicting dispensation of Providence, and
entreating her assent to the interment of the remains of General George
Washington in the manner expressed in the first resolution. As the
sentiments of that virtuous lady, not less beloved by this nation than she
is at present greatly afflicted, can never be so well expressed as in her
own words, I transmit to Congress her original letter.
It would be an attempt of too much delicacy to make any comments
upon it, but there can be no doubt that the nation at large, as well as
all the branches of the Government, will be highly gratified by any
arrangement which may diminish the sacrifice she makes of her individual
feelings.
JOHN ADAMS.
MOUNT VERNON, December j/ , 1799.
The PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: While I feel with keenest anguish the late dispensation of Divine Providence,
I can not be insensible to the mournful tributes of respect and veneration which are
paid to the memory of my dear deceased husband; and as his best services and most
anxious wishes were always devoted to the welfare and happiness of his country, to
know that they were truly appreciated and gratefully remembered affords no incon-
siderable consolation.
Taught by the great example which I have so long had before me never to oppose
my private wishes to the public will, I must consent to the request made by Congress,
which you have had the goodness to transmit to me; and in doing this I need not,
I can not, say what a sacrifice of individual feeling I make to a sense of public duty.
With grateful acknowledgments and unfeigned thanks for the personal respect and
evidences of condolence expressed by Congress and yourself, I remain, very respect-
fully, sir, jour most obedient, humble servant,
MARTHA WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, January ij, 1800.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
A report made to me on the 5th of this month by the Secretary of War
contains various matters in which the honor and safety of the nation are
deeply interested. I transmit it, therefore, to Congress and recommend
it to their serious consideration.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 14., 1800.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
As the inclosed letter from a member of your House received by me in
the night of Saturday, the nth instant, relates to the privileges of the
House, which, in my opinion, ought to be inquired into in the House
itself, if anywhere, I have thought proper to submit the whole letter and
292 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
its tendencies to your consideration without any other comments on its
matter or style; but as no gross impropriety of conduct on the part of
persons holding commissions in the Army or Navy of the United States
ought to pass without due animadversion, I have directed the Secretary
of War and the Secretary of the Navy to investigate the conduct com-
plained of and to report to me without delay such a statement of facts as
will enable me to decide on the course which duty and justice shall appear
to prescribe.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 2j, 1800.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to Congress for the information of the members a report of
the Secretary of State of the gth instant, a letter from Matthew Clarkson,
esq., to him of the 2d, and a list of the claims adjusted by the commis-
sioners under the twenty-first article of our treaty with Spain.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 14., 1800.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit herewith a copy of the laws enacted by the governor and
judges of the Mississippi Territory, for the inspection of Congress. There
being but this one copy, I must request the House, when they have made
the requisite examination, to send it to the Senate.
JOHN ADAMS.
PROCLAMATIONS.
[From C. P. Adams's Works of John Adams, Vol. IX, p. 177.]
PROCLAMATION.
MAY 9, 1800.
Whereas by an act of Congress of the United States passed the 2yth
day of February last, entitled "An acffurther to suspend the commercial
intercourse between the United States and France and the dependencies
thereof," it is enacted that at any time after the passing of the said act
it shall be lawful for the President of the United States, by his order,
to remit and discontinue for the time being, whenever he shall deem
it expedient and for the interest of the United States, all or any of
the restraints and prohibitions imposed by the said act in respect to
the territories of the French Republic, or to any island, port, or place
belonging to the said Republic with which, in his opinion, a commercial
John Adams 293
intercourse may be safely renewed, and to make proclamation thereof
accordingly; and it is also thereby further enacted that the whole of the
island of Hispaniola shall, for the purposes of the said act, be considered
as a dependence of the French Republic; and
Whereas the circumstances of certain ports and places of the said
island not comprised in the proclamation of the 26th day of June, 1799,
are such that I deem it expedient and for the interest of the United
States to remit and discontinue the restraints and prohibitions imposed
by the said act in respect to those ports and places in order that a com-
mercial intercourse with the same may be renewed:
Therefore I, John Adams, President of the United States, by virtue
of the powers vested in me as aforesaid, do hereby remit and discontinue
the restraints and prohibitions imposed by the act aforesaid in respect to
all the ports and places in the said island of Hispaniola from Monte
Christi on the north, round by the eastern end thereof as far as the port
of Jacmel on the south, inclusively. And it shall henceforth be lawful
for vessels of the United States to enter and trade at any of the said ports
and places, provided it be done with the consent of the Government of
St. Domingo. And for this purpose it is hereby required that such
vessels first enter the port of Cape Francois or Port Republicain, in the
said island, and there obtain the passports of the said Government, which
shall also be signed by the consul-general or consul of the United States
residing at Cape Francois or Port Republicain, permitting such vessel to
go thence to the other ports and places of the said island hereinbefore
mentioned and described. Of all which the collectors of the customs
and all other officers and citizens of the United States are to take due
notice and govern themselves.
In testimony, etc.
JOHN ADAMS.
[From Annals of Congress, Seventh Congress, second session, 1552.]
PROCLAMATION.
BY JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
Whereas the late wicked and treasonable insurrection against the just
authority of the United States of sundry persons in the counties of North-
ampton, Montgomery, and Bucks, in the State of Pennsylvania, in the
year 1799, having been speedily suppressed without any of the calamities
usually attending rebellion; whereupon peace, order, and submission to
the laws of the United States were restored in the aforesaid counties, and
the ignorant, misguided, and misinformed in the counties have returned
to a proper sense of their duty, whereby it is become unnecessary for the
public good that any future prosecutions should be commenced or car-
ried on against any person or persons by reason of their being concerned
in the said insurrection :
294 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Wherefore be it known that I, John Adams, President of the United
States of America, have granted, and by these presents do grant, a full,
free, and absolute pardon to all and every person or persons concerned
in the said insurrection, excepting as hereinafter excepted, of all treasons,
misprisions of treason, felonies, misdemeanors, and other crimes by them
respectively done or committed against the United States in either of the
said counties before the i2th day of March, in the year 1799, excepting
and excluding therefrom every person who now standeth indicted or con-
victed of any treason, misprision of treason, or other offense against the
United States, whereby remedying and releasing unto all persons, except
as before excepted, all pains and penalties incurred, or supposed to be
incurred, for or on account of the premises.
Given under my hand and the seal of the United States of America,
at the city of Philadelphia, this 2ist day of May, A. D. 1800,
L E L.J an( j Q t k e independence o f the said States the twenty-fourth.
JOHN ADAMS.
BY JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas by an act of the Congress of the United States passed on
the 2 yth day of February last, entitled "An act further to suspend the
commercial intercourse between the United States and France and the
dependencies thereof, " it is enacted ' ' that at any time after the pass-
ing of the said act it shall be lawful for the President of the United
States, by his order, to remit and discontinue for the time being, when-
ever he shall deem it expedient and for the interest of the United States,
all or any of the restraints and prohibitions imposed by the said act in
respect to the territories of the French Republic, or to any island, port,
or place belonging to the said Republic with which, in his opinion, a
commercial intercourse may be safely renewed, and to make proclama-
tion thereof accordingly; " and it is also thereby further enacted that the
whole of the island of Hispaniola shall, for the purposes of the said act,
be considered as a dependence of the French Republic; and
Whereas the circumstances of the said islanc are such that, in my
opinion, a commercial intercourse may safely be renewed with every part
thereof, under the limitations and restrictions hereinafter mentioned:
Therefore I, John Adams, President of the United States, by virtue of
the powers vested in me as aforesaid, do hereby remit and discontinue
the restraints and prohibitions imposed by the act aforesaid in respect
to every part of the said island, so that it shall be lawful for vessels of
the United States to trade at any of the ports and places thereof, pro-
vided it be done with the consent of the Government of St. Domingo;
and for this purpose it is hereby required that such vessels first clear
John Adams 295
for and enter the port of Cape Francais or Port Republican!, In the said
island, and there obtain the passports of the said Government, which
shall also be signed by the consul-general of the United States, or their
consul residing at Cape Francais, or their consul residing at Port Repub-
licain, permitting such vessels to go thence to the other ports and places
of the said island. Of all which the collectors of the customs and all
other officers and citizens of the United States are to take due notice and
govern themselves accordingly.
Given under my hand and the seal of the United States of America,
at the city of Washington, this 6th day of September, A. D.
[SEAL,.] 1800, and of the Independence of the said States the twenty-
fifth.
JOHN ADAMS.
By the President:
J. MARSHAU,,
Secretary of State.
FOURTH ANNUAL ADDRESS.
UNITED STATES, November 22^ 1800.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Immediately after the adjournment of Congress at their last session
in Philadelphia I gave directions, in compliance with the laws, for the
removal of the public offices, records, and property. These directions
have been executed, and the public officers have since resided and con-
ducted the ordinary business of the Government in this place.
I congratulate the people of the United States on the assembling of
Congress at the permanent seat of their Government, and I congratu-
late you, gentlemen, on the prospect of a residence not to be changed.
Although there is cause to apprehend that accommodations are not now
so complete as might be wished, yet there is great reason to believe that
this inconvenience will cease with the present session.
It would be unbecoming the representatives of this nation to assemble
for the first time in this solemn temple without looking up to the Supreme
Ruler of the Universe and imploring His blessing.
May this territory be the residence of virtue and happiness ! In this
city may that piety and virtue, that wisdom and magnanimity, that con-
stancy and self-government, which adorned the great character whose
name it bears be forever held in veneration ! Here and throughout our
country may simple manners, pure morals, and true religion flourish
forever!
It is with you, gentlemen, to consider whether the local powers over
the District of Columbia vested by the Constitution in the Congress of
296 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the United States shall be immediately exercised. If in your opinion
this important trust ought now to be executed, you can not fail while
performing it to take into view the future probable situation of the terri-
tory for the happiness of which you are about to provide. You will
consider it as the capital of a great nation advancing with unexampled
rapidity in arts, in commerce, in wealth, and in population, and possess-
ing within itself those energies and resources which, if not thrown away
or lamentably misdirected, will secure to it a long course of prosperity
and self-government.
In compliance with a law of the last session of Congress, the officers
and soldiers of the temporary army have been discharged. It affords
real pleasure to recollect the honorable testimony they gave of the patri-
otic motives which brought them into the service of their country, by
the readiness and regularity with which they returned to the station of
private citizens.
It is in every point of view of such primary importance to carry the
laws into prompt and faithful execution, and to render that part of the
administration of justice which the Constitution and laws devolve on the
Federal courts as convenient to the people as may consist with their
present circumstances, that I can not omit once more to recommend to
your serious consideration the judiciary system of the United States.
No subject is more interesting than this to the public happiness, and to
none can those improvements which may have been suggested by expe-
rience be more beneficially applied.
A treaty of amity and commerce with the King of Prussia has been
concluded and ratified. The ratifications have been exchanged, and I
have directed the treaty to be promulgated by proclamation.
The difficulties which suspended the execution of the sixth article of
our treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation with Great Britain have
not yet been removed. The negotiation on this subject is still depending.
As it must be for the interest and honor of both nations to adjust this
difference with good faith, I indulge confidently the expectation that
the sincere endeavors of the Government of the United States to bring it
to an amicable termination will not be disappointed.
The envoys extraordinary and ministers plenipotentiary from the
United States to France were received by the First Consul with the
respect due to their character, and three persons with equal powers were
appointed to treat with them. Although at the date of the last official
intelligence the negotiation had not terminated, yet it is to be hoped that
our efforts to effect an accommodation will at length meet with a success
proportioned to the sincerity with which they have been so often repeated.
While our best endeavors for the preservation of harmony with all
nations will continue to be used, the experience of the world and our own
experience admonish us of the insecurity of trusting too confidently to
their success. We can not, without committing a dangerous irnpru-
John Adams 297
dence, abandon those measures of self -protection which are adapted to our
situation and to which, notwithstanding our pacific policy, the violence
and injustice of others may again compel us to resort While our vast
extent of seacoast, the commercial and agricultural habits of our people,
the great capital they will continue to trust on the ocean, suggest the
system of defense which will be most beneficial to ourselves, our distance
from Europe and our resources for maritime strength will enable us to
employ it with effect. Seasonable and systematic arrangements, so far
as our resources will justify, for a navy adapted to defensive war, and
which may in case of necessity be quickly brought into use, seem to be
as much recommended by a wise and true economy as by a just regard
for our future tranquillity, for the safety of our shores, and for the pro-
tection of our property committed to the ocean.
The present Navy of the United States, called suddenly into existence
by a great national exigency, has raised us in our own esteem, and by the
protection afforded to our commerce has effected to the extent of our
expectations the objects for which it was created.
In connection with a navy ought to be contemplated the fortification
of some of our principal seaports and harbors. A variety of considera-
tions, which will readily suggest themselves, urge an attention to this
measure of precaution. To give security to our principal ports consid-
erable sums have already been expended, but the works remain incomplete.
It is for Congress to determine whether additional appropriations shall
be made in order to render competent to the intended purposes the forti-
fications which have been commenced.
The manufacture of arms within the United States still invites the
attention of the National Legislature. At a considerable expense to the
public this manufacture has been brought to such a state of maturity as,
with continued encouragement, will supersede the necessity of future
importations from foreign countries.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I shall direct the estimates of the appropriations necessary for the
ensuing year, together with an account of the public revenue and expend-
iture to a late period, to be laid before you. I observe with much satis-
faction that the product of the revenue during the present year has been
more considerable than during any former equal period. This result
affords conclusive evidence of the great resources of this country and of
the wisdom and efficiency of the measures which have been adopted by
Congress for the protection of commerce and preservation of public credit.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
As one of the grand community of nations, our attention is irresistibly
drawn to the important scenes which surround us. If they have exhib-
ited an uncommon portion of calamity, it is the province of humanity to
298 Messages and Papers of (he Presidents
deplore and of wisdom to avoid the causes which may have produced
it. If, turning our eyes homeward, we find reason to rejoice at the
prospect which presents itself; if we perceive the interior of our country
prosperous, free, and happy; if all enjoy in safety, under the protection of
laws emanating only from the general will, the fruits of their own labor,
we ought to fortify and cling to those institutions which have been the
source of such real felicity and resist with unabating perseverance the
progress of those dangerous innovations which may diminish their
influence.
T your patriotism, gentlemen, has been confided the honorable duty
of guarding the public interests; and while the past is to your country a
sure pledge that it will be faithfully discharged, permit me to assure you
that your labors to promote the general happiness will receive from me
the most zealous cooperation.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE SENATE TO JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT OP THE
UNITED STATES.
The PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES.
SIR: Impressed with the important truth that the hearts of rulers and
people are in the hand of the Almighty, the Senate of the United States
most cordially join in your invocations for appropriate blessings upon the
Government and people of this Union.
We meet you, sir, and the other branch of the National legislature in
the city which is honored by the name of our late hero and sage, the
illustrious Washington, with sensations and emotions which exceed our
power of description.
While we congratulate ourselves on the convention of the Legislature
at the permanent seat of Government, and ardently hope that permanence
and stability may be communicated as well to the Government itself as
to its seat, our minds are irresistibly led to deplore the death of him who
bore so honorable and efficient a part in the establishment of both. Great
indeed would have been our gratification if his sum of earthly happiness
had been completed by seeing the Government thus peaceably convened
at this place; but we derive consolation from a belief that the moment
in which we were destined to experience the loss we deplore was fixed
by that Being whose counsels can not err, and from a hope that since in
this seat of Government, which bears his name, his earthly remains will
be deposited, the members of Congress, and all who inhabit the city, with
these memorials before them, will retain his virtues in lively recollection,
and make his patriotism, morals, and piety models for imitation. And
permit us to add, sir, that it is not among the least of our consolations
that you, who have been his companion and friend from the dawning of
our national existence, and trained in the same school of exertion to effect
John Adams 299
our independence, are still preserved by a gracious Providence in health
and activity to exercise the functions of Chief Magistrate.
The question whether the local powers over the District of Columbia,
vested by the Constitution in the Congress of the United States, shall be
immediately exercised is of great importance, and in deliberating upon
it we shall naturally be led to weigh the attending circumstances and
every probable consequence of the measures which may be proposed.
The several subjects for legislative consideration contained in your
speech to both Houses of Congress shall receive from tlie Senate all the
attention which they can give, when contemplating those objects, both in
respect to their national importance and the additional weight that is
given them by your recommendation.
We deprecate with you, sir, all spirit of innovation from whatever
quarter it may arise, which may impair the sacred bond that connects
the different parts of this Empire, and we trust that, under the protection
of Divine Providence the wisdom and virtue of the citizens of the United
States will deliver our national compact unimpaired to a grateful pos-
terity.
From past experience it is impossible for the Senate of the United States
to doubt of your zealous cooperation with the Legislature in every effort
to promote the general happiness and tranquillity of the Union.
Accept, sir, our warmest wishes for your health and happiness.
JOHN E. HOWARD,
President of the Senate pro tempore.
NOVEMBER 25, 1800.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
CITY OF WASHINGTON, November 26, 1800.
Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Senate:
For this excellent address, so respectful to the memory of my illus-
trious predecessor, which I receive from the Senate of the United States
at this time, and in this place with peculiar satisfaction, I pray you to
accept of my unfeigned acknowledgments. With you I ardently hope
that permanence and stability will be communicated as well to the Gov-
ernment itself as to its beautiful and commodious seat. With you I
deplore the death of that hero and sage who bore so honorable and efficient
a part in the establishment of both. Great indeed would have been mv
gratification if his sum of earthly happiness had been completed by seeine
the Government thus peaceably convened at this place, himself at i f
head; but while we submit to the decisions of Heaven, whose councils
are inscrutable to us, we can not but hope that the members of Congress,
the officers of Government, and all who inhabit the city or the country
will retain his virtues in lively recollection and make his patriotism,
morals, and piety models for imitation.
300 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
I thank you, gentlemen, for your assurance that the several subjects
for legislative consideration recommended in my communication to both
Houses shall receive from the Senate a deliberate and candid attention.
With you, gentlemen, I sincerely deprecate all spirit of innovation
which may weaken the sacred bond that connects the different parts of
this nation and Government, and with you I trust that under the protec-
tion of Divine Providence the wisdom and virtue of our citizens will
deliver our national compact unimpaired to a free, prosperous, happy, and
grateful posterity. To this end it is my fervent prayer that in this city
the foundations of wisdom may be always opened and the streams of elo-
quence forever flow. Here may the youth of this extensive country
forever look up without disappointment, not only to the monuments and
memorials of the dead, but to the examples of the living, in the members
of Congress and officers of Government, for finished models of all those
virtues, graces, talents, and accomplishments which constitute the dignity
of human nature and lay the only foundation for the prosperity or dura-
tion of empii es.
JOHN ADAMS.
ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES TO JOHN ADAMS,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
JOHN ADAMS,
President of tJte United States.
SIR: The House of Representatives have received with great respect
the communication which you have been pleased to make to the two
Houses of Congress at the commencement of the present session.
The final establishment of the seat of National Government, which has
now taken place, within the District of Columbia is an event of no small
importance in the political transactions of our country, and we cordially
unite our wishes with yours that this Territory may be the residence of
happiness and virtue.
Nor can we on this occasion omit to express a hope that the spirit
which animated the great founder of this city may descend to future gen-
erations, and that the wisdom, magnanimity, and steadiness which marked
the events of his public life may be imitated in all succeeding ages.
A consideration of those powers which have been vested in Congress
over the District of Columbia will not escape our attention, nor shall we
forget that in exercising these powers a regard must be had to those
events which will necessarily attend the capital of America.
The cheerfulness and regularity with which the officers and soldiers of
the temporary army have returned to the condition of private citizens is
a testimony clear and conclusive of the purity of those motives which
induced them to engage in the public service, and will remain a proof on
all future occasions that an army of soldiers drawn from the citizens of
our country deserve our confidence and respect.
John Adams 301
No subject can be more important than that of the judiciary, which
you have again recommended to our consideration, and it shall receive
our early and deliberate attention.
The Constitution of the United States having confided the manage-
ment of our foreign negotiations to the control of the Executive power,
we cheerfully submit to its decisions on this important subject; and in
respect to the negotiations now pending with France, we sincerely hope
that the final result may prove as fortunate to our country as the most
ardent mind can wish.
So long as a predatory war is carried on against our commerce we
should sacrifice the interests and disappoint the expectations of our con-
stituents should we for a moment relax that system of maritime defense
which has resulted in such beneficial effects. At this period it is confi-
dently believed that few persons can be found within the United States
who do not admit that a navy, well organized, must constitute the natural
and efficient defense of this country against all foreign hostility.
The progress which has been made in the manufacture of arms leaves
no doubt that the public patronage has already placed this country beyond
all necessary dependence on foreign markets for an article so indispensa-
ble for defense, and gives us assurances that, under the encouragement
which Government will continue to extend to this important object, we
shall soon rival foreign countries not only in the number but in the qual-
ity of arms completed from our own manufactories.
Few events could have been more pleasing to our constituents than
that great and rapid increase of revenue which has arisen from perma-
nent taxes. Whilst this event explains the great and increasing resources
of our country, it carries along with it a proof which can not be resisted
that those measures of maritime defense which were calculated to meet our
enemy upon the ocean, and which have produced such extensive protec-
tion to our commerce, were founded in wisdom and policy. The mind
must, in our opinion, be insensible to the plainest truths which can not
discern the elevated ground on which this policy has placed our country.
That national spirit which alone could vindicate our common rights has
been roused, and those latent energies which had not been fully known
were unfolded and brought into view, and our fellow-citizens were pre-
pared to meet every event which national honor or national security could
render necessary. Nor have its effects been much less important in other
respects.
Whilst many of the nations of the earth have been impoverished and
depopulated by internal commotions and national contests, our internal
peace has not been materially impaired; our commerce has extended,
under the protection of our infant Navy, to every part of the globe;
wealth has flowed without intermission into our seaports, and the labors
of the husbandman have been rewarded by a ready market for the pro-
ductions of the soil.
302 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Be assured, sir, that the various and important subjects recommended
to our consideration shall receive our early and deliberate attention; and,
confident of your cooperation in every measure which may be calculated
to promote the general interest, we shall endeavor on our part to testify
by our industry and dispatch the zeal and sincerity with which we regard
the public good
NOVEMBER 26, 1800.
REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT.
WASHINGTON, November 27, 1800.
Mr. Speaker and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Compelled by the habits of a long life, as well as by all the principles
of society and government which I could ever understand and believe,
to consider the great body of the people as the source of all legitimate
authority no less than of all efficient power, it is impossible for me to
receive this address from the immediate Representatives of the American
people at this time and in this place without emotions which it would
be improper to express if any language could convey them.
May the spirit which animated the great founder of this city descend
to future generations, and may the wisdom, magnanimity, and steadiness
which marked the events of his public life be imitated in all succeed-
ing ages.
I thank you, gentlemen, for your assurance that the judiciary system
shall receive your deliberate attention.
With you, gentlemen, I sincerely hope that the final result of the
negotiations now pending with France may prove as fortunate to our
country as they have been commenced with sincerity and prosecuted
with deliberation and caution. With you I cordially agree that so long
as a predatory war is carried on against our commerce we should sacri-
fice the interests and disappoint the expectations of our constituents
should we for a moment relax that system of maritime defense which
has resulted in such beneficial effects. With you I confidently believe
that few persons can be found within the United States who do not
admit that a navy, well organized, must constitute the natural and effi-
cient defense of this country against all foreign hostility.
Those who recollect the distress and danger to this country in former
periods from the want of arms must exult in the assurance from their
Representatives that we shall soon rival foreign countries not only in the
number but in the quality of arms completed from our own manufactories.
With you, gentlemen, I fully agree that the great increase of revenue
is a proof that the measures of maritime defense were founded in wisdom.
This policy has raised us in the esteem of foreign nations. That national
spirit and those latent energies which had not been and are not yet fully
known to any were not entirely forgotten by those who had lived long
John Adams 303
enough to see in former times their operation and some of their effects.
Our fellow-citizens were undoubtedly prepared to meet every event which
national honor or national security could render necessary. These, it is
to be hoped, are secured at the cheapest and easiest rate; if not, they will
be secured at more expense.
I thank you, gentlemen, for your assurance that the various subjects
recommended to your consideration shall receive your deliberate atten-
tion. No further evidence is wanting to convince me of the zeal and
sincerity with which the House of Representatives regard the public
good.
I pray you, gentlemen, to accept of my best wishes for your health
and happiness.
JOHN ADAMS,
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
UNITED STATES, December 15, 1800.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I transmit to the Senate, for their consideration and decision, a conven-
tion, both in English and French, between the United States of America
and the French Republic, signed at Paris on the 3Oth day of September
last by the respective plenipotentiaries of the two powers. I also trans-
mit to the Senate three manuscript volumes containing the journal of our
envoys.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January i, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to both Houses of Congress, for their information and con-
sideration, copies of laws enacted by the governor and judges of the Mis-
sissippi Territory from the 3oth of June until the 3ist of December,
A. D. 1799.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 17, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I have received from Elias Boudinot, esq., Director of the Mint of the
United States, a report of the 2d of January, representing the state of it,
together with an abstract of the coins struck at the Mint from the ist of
January to the 3ist of December, 1800; an abstract of the expenditures
of the Mint from the ist of January to the 3 ist of December, inclusive;
a statement of gain on copper coined at the Mint from the ist of January
34 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
to the 3ist of December, 1800, and a certificate from Joseph Richardson,
assayer of the Mint, ascertaining the value of Spanish milled doubloons
in proportion to the gold coins of the United States to be no more than
84 cents and |M parts of a cent for i pennyweight, or 28 grains and lifrt
parts of a grain to one dollar. These papers I transmit to Congress
for their consideration,
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January 21, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In compliance with your request, signified in your resolution of the
2oth day of this month, I transmit you a report made to me by the Sec-
retary of State on the same day, a letter of our late envoys to him of the
4th of October last, an extract of a letter from our minister plenipoten-
tiary in London to him of the 22d of November last, and an extract of
another letter from the minister to the Secretary of the 3ist of October
last.
The reasoning in the letter of our late envoys to France is so fully
supported by the writers on the law of nations, particularly by Vattel,
as well as by his great masters, Grotius and Puffendorf , that nothing is
left to be desired to settle the point that if there be a collision between
two treaties made with two different powers the more ancient has the
advantage, for no engagement contrary to it can be entered into in the
treaty afterwards made; and if this last be found in any case incompat-
ible with the more ancient one its execution is considered as impossible,
because the person promising had not the power of acting contrary to his
antecedent engagement. Although our right is very clear to negotiate
treaties according to our own ideas of right and justice, honor and good
faith, yet it must always be a satisfaction to know that the judgment of
other nations with whom we have connection coincides with ours, and that
we have no reason to apprehend that any disagreeable questions and discus-
sions are likely to arise. The letters from Mr. King will therefore be
read by the Senate with particular satisfaction.
The inconveniences to public officers and the mischiefs to the public
arising from the publication of the dispatches of ministers abroad are so
numerous and so obvious that I request of the Senate that these papers,
especially the letters from Mr. King, be considered in close confidence.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, January jo, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to Congress for their consideration a letter from William
Thornton, Alexander White, and William Cranch, esquires, commis-
sioners of the city of Washington, with a representation of the affairs of
John Adams 305
the city made by them to the President of the United States, dated 28th
of January, 1801, accompanied with a series of documents marked from
A to H, inclusively,
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 16, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I wish to know the pleasure of Congress and request their direction
concerning the disposition of the property of the United States now in
my possession; whether I shall deliver it into the hands of the heads
of Departments, or of the commissioners of the city of Washington, or of
a committee of Congress, or to any other persons Congress may appoint,
to be delivered into the hands of my successor, or whether I shall present
it myself to the President of the United States on the 4th of March next.
Any of these modes will be agreeable to me.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, February 20, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit to Congress a report received this morning from Elias
Boudinot, esq., Director of the Mint, dated February 13, 1801, which
will require the attention and decision of Congress before the close of
the session.
JOHN ADAMS.
UNITED STATES, March 2, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I have considered the advice and consent of the Senate to the ratifica-
tion of the convention with France under certain conditions. Although it
would have been more conformable to my own judgment and inclination to
have agreed to that instrument unconditionally, yet as in this point I
found I had the misfortune to differ in opinion from so high a constitu-
tional authority as the Senate, I judged it more consistent with the honor
and interest of the United States to ratify it under the conditions pre-
scribed than not at all. I accordingly nominated Mr. Bayard minister
plenipotentiary to the French Republic, that he might proceed without
delay to Paris to negotiate the exchange of ratifications; but as that gen-
tleman has declined his appointment, for reasons equally applicable to
every other person suitable for the service, I shall take no further meas-
ures relative to this business, and leave the convention, with all the docu-
ments, in the Office of State, that my successor may proceed with them
according to his wisdom.
JOHN ADAMS.
306 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
PROCLAMATION.
JANUARY 30, 1801.
To the Senators of the United States, respectively.
SIR: It appearing to me proper and necessary for the public service
that the Senate of the United States should be convened on Wednesday,
the 4th of March next, you are desired to attend in the Chamber of the
Senate on that day, at 10 o'clock in the forenoon, to receive and act
upon any communications which the President of the United States may
then lay before you touching their interests, and to do and consider all
other things which may be proper and necessary for the public service
for the Senate to'do and consider.
JOHN ADAMS,
President of the United States.
QUESTIONS.
1. How is the District of Columbia governed? Pages 295, 298,
300.
2. How are treaties with foreign countries made and ratified?
Page 304.
3. If the terms of a treaty with one foreign power are contrary
to the terms of a treaty with another power, which takes
precedence? Page 304.
4. When were the first gold and silver coined in the United
States? Page 239.
5. What was the condition of American commerce and markets
during the European Wars of 1800? Page 301.
6. What was John Adams' opinion of the importance of a mer-
chant marine ? Page 246.
7. With what European nation was our first reciprocal commer-
cial treaty signed ? Pages 287, 296.
8. Why did the President pardon the insurgents in Pennsyl-
vania? Page 293.
9. What coins continued to be legal tender after our coinage of
gold and silver? Page 239.
300-A
SUGGESTIONS.
Read John Adams' simple short announcement of Washington's
death. Page 287.
Read Adams' Foreign Policy. Page 228.
For a clear conception of the patience, and yet firmness, of the
United States where foreign countries are oppressive, read pages
260 to 270.
It is an impressive fact that each of the wars engaged in by the
United States has been provoked by our antagonist, and that we
have endured many abuses, just as in the case of the French
troubles, related by John Adams.
NOTE.
For further suggestions on Adams' administration, see Adams,
John, Encyclopedic Index.
By reading the Foreign Policy of each President, and by scan-
ning the messages as to the state of the nation, a thorough knowl-
edge of the history of the United States will be acquired from the
most authentic sources ; because, as has been said, "Each President
reviews the past, depicts the present and forecasts the future of
the nation."
300-B
Thomas Jefferson
March 4, 18O1, to March 4, 18O9
SEE ENCYCLOPEDIC INDEX.
The Encyclopedic Index is not only an index to the other volumes, not only a key that
unlocks the treasures of the entire publication, but it is in itself an alphabetically arranged
brief history or story of the great controlling events constituting the History of the United
States.
Under its proper alphabetical classification the story is told of every great subject
referred to by any of the Presidents in their official Messages, and at the end of each article
the official utterances of the Presidents themselves are cited upon the subject, so that you
may readily turn to the page in the body of the work itself for this original information.
Next to the possession of knowledge is the ability to turn at will to where knowledge
is to be found.
MONTICELLO, VIRGINIA, HOME OF THOMAS JEFFERSON
With reproduction of official portrait, by Andrews, from the White House
Collection
JEFFERSON
Thomas Jefferson still lives. The honors heaped upon him by the
people were but their gifts to their benefactor, the insignia of his labors,
his burdens and his cares. How paltry seems that long catalogue of
official designations compared with what he was himself a man God-
gifted and God-armed for the battle of right against wrong compared
to what he did for the people, his gifts to them. There is not a heart
that loves humanity and thrills with noble rage for right and truth and
justice; there is not a people on earth who are weary and heavy laden
under the burden of oppression; there is not a chancellor who loves
equity ; there is not a devotee who bows his head in free worship to his
Maker; there is not an ingenuous student by the midnight lamp; there
is not a toiler by land or sea ; yea, there is not an astronomer who reads
the stars, nor an humble farmer in his cabin, nor a freeman anywhere
who treads the earth with the spirit of the free who does not bless
God that Thomas Jefferson lived, and that his life goes marching on !
What did Jefferson do for the people ? Rather, what did he not do ?
He was one of them. He loved them, trusted them, guided them; he
cheered them, he comforted them, he led them. So much for generalities.
It is true, as said by the Cicero of Massachusetts, Edward Everett,
that there rests on Thomas Jefferson the imperishable renown of having
framed the Declaration of Independence. But had he never penned
a syllable of it he would be immortal. It is true he raised his hand
against the Established Church, threw himself against the great landed
proprietors and powerful party leaders and brought forth the first statute
of religious freedom that adorned the history of the world. Imperish-
able renown with that, but without it he would have been immortal.
It is true he negotiated the purchase of Louisiana from Napoleon,
gaining a kingdom for a song, securing the free navigation of the Missis-
sippi to the countless multitudes who now throng its bank and adding
the Great West and Southwest to the Union the greatest territory ever
won by man without a drop of blood. But without all this he would
have been immortal. He will be remembered as the most accomplished
man America has ever produced.
Jefferson's mind was practical and of the kind which turns things to
account. He loved the mathematics, and no superstition could ever
lead him from the rock-bed notion that two and two make four, world
without end. He was as precise in detail as he was broad and accurate
in generalization. His mind was like an elephant's trunk in that it could
pick up a pin or knock down a lion. When he was President he went
regularly to market, and in his journal he kept a record of the date of
3 o6-C
the appearance of spring fruits and vegetables. The stately dome of
the University of Virginia and the classic lines of the mansion at Mon-
ticello bespeak the classic mind that reproduced them.
He founded the Patent Office of the United States, but do you know
that he was himself an inventor? While in France, as minister, he
wrote his admirable notes on Virginia, and with the Revolution fer-
menting about him, he invented a hillside plow which won him a medal
from the "Royal Agricultural Society" of the Seine. He was also the
inventor of the modern revolving office chair. The rice grown in the
Southern States to-day is from grain which Jefferson hid in his pockets
while in Italy, and distributed ten grains at a time to the farmers on
his return. His influence is felt to-day when any important questions
are up for discussion.
He was a child of nature, this glorious Jefferson, and with all his
wisdom and all his culture he was on the people's side of all questions.
An honest son of Mother Earth; a man with a man's faults, but no
Pharisee. He had fewer faults and lesser faults than most, and noble
and God-like virtues.
He was strong in all courage ; yea, in civic courage, the rarest of all
forms of bravery. This Jefferson had the quiet, patient, daring superb
courage that looks public opinion in the eye, and dares confront and
affront it and not flinch the encounter. When he stood for Independ-
ence they said "Rebel." When he stood for justice they said "Com-
munist." When he stood for religious freedom they cried "Infidel. '
When he aroused the people against monarchy and concentrated power
they said "Demagogue." But the common people heard him gladly.
They knew their ears, and with one accord they said, "All Hail, Our
Friend."
Dying without a penny, his very books, his land, his home were sold
away from his inheritors, and fighting successfully every battle but his
own, he crowned the people as victor in every battle that he won. If
it is right that a man sues for, and if he does not believe that one
man is born bridled and saddled, and the other booted and spurred let
him pluck a flower from this good man's life and wear it in his soul
forever.
^
306-0
MARTHA JEFFERSON RANDOLPH
MARTHA JEFFERSON RANDOLPH, the elder of
the President's two daughters, presided at the
White House whenever possible during her
father's administrations, his wife having died
nineteen years hefore his election. The White
I louse, however, during his terms was practically
without a mistress, although at times Mrs. Madi-
son acted also in that capacity. Mrs. Randolph
was eminently fitted for such a sphere, but was
able to assume its duties only twice. Having re-
ceived the advantages of foreign education and
travel, and of the continual association with men
of letters, she was a most brilliant woman, and
had her tastes been less domestic she would have
shone in society. She gave her father unremit-
ting care when, after his retirement from public
life, he settled at his estate, Monticello, where two
years after his death her husband also passed
away. Monticello was then sold, and the re-
maining eight years of her life were spent among
ner children.
Thomas Jefferson
THOMAS JEFFERSON was born at Shadwell, Albemarle County, Va.,
on April 2 (old style), 1743. He was the oldest son of Peter Jefferson,
who died in 1757. After attending private schools, he entered William
and Mary College in 1760. In 1767 began the practice of the law. In
1769 was chosen to represent his county in the Virginia house of bur-
gesses, a station he continued to fill up to the period of the Revolution.
He married Mrs. Martha Skelton in 1772, she being a daughter of John
"Vayles, an eminent lawyer of Virginia. On March 12^1773, was chosen
a member of the first committee of correspondence established by the
Colonial legislature. Was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress
in 1775; was placed on the Committee of Five to prepare the Declaration
of Independence, and at the request of that committee he drafted the
Declaration, which, with slight amendments, was adopted July 4, 1776.
Resigned his seat in Congress and occupied one in the Virginia legisla-
ture in October, 1776. Was elected governor of Virginia by the legis-
lature on June i, 1779, to succeed Patrick Henry. Retired to private
life at the end of his term as governor, but was the same year elected
again to the legislature. Was appointed commissioner with others to
negotiate treaties with France in 1776, but declined. In 1782 he was
appointed by Congress minister plenipotentiary to act with others in,
Europe in negotiating a treaty of peace with Great Britain. Was agaiii
elected a Delegate to Congress in 1783, and as a member of that body he
advocated and had adopted the dollar as the unit and the present system
of coins and decimals. In May, 1784, was appointed minister plenipo-
tentiary to Europe to assist John Adams and Benjamin Franklin in nego-
tiating treaties of commerce. In March, 1 785 , was appointed by Congress
minister at the French Court to succeed Dr. Franklin, and remained in
France until September, 1789. On his arrival at Norfolk, November 23,
1789, received a letter from Washington offering him the appointment of
Secretary of State in his Cabinet. Accepted and became the first Secre-
tary of State under the Constitution. December 31, 1793, resigned his
place in the Cabinet and retired to private life at his home. In 1796 was
brought forward by his friends as a candidate for President, but Mr.
Adams, receiving the highest number of votes, was elected President, and
Jefferson became Vice- President for four years from March 4, 1797. In
1800 was again voted for by his party for President. He and Mr. Burr
received an equal number of electoral votes, and under the Constitution
307
308 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the House of Representatives was called upon to elect. Mr. Jefferson
was chosen on the thirty-sixth ballot. Was reelected in 1804, and retired
finally from public life March 4, 1809. He died on the 4th day of July,
1826, and was buried at Monticello, Va.
NOTIFICATION OF ELECTION.
Mr. Pinckney, from the committee instructed on the i8th instant to
wait on the President elect to notify him of his election, reported that the
committee had, according to order, performed that service, and addressed
the President elect in the following words, to wit :
The committee beg leave to express their wishes for tne prosperity of
your Administration and their sincere desire that it may promote your
own happiness and the welfare of our country.
To which the President elect was pleased to make the following reply :
I receive, gentlemen, with profound thankfulness this testimony of
confidence from the great representative council of our nation. It fills
up the measure of that grateful satisfaction which had already been
derived from the suffrages of my fellow-citizens themselves, designating
me as one of those to whom they were willing to commit this charge, the
most important of all others to them. In deciding between the candi-
dates whom their equal vote presented to your choice, I am sensible that
age has been respected rather than more active and useful qualifications.
I know the difficulties of the station to which I am called, and feel
and acknowledge my incompetence to them. But whatsoever of under-
standing, whatsoever of diligence, whatsoever of justice or of affectionate
concern for the happiness of man, it has pleased Providence to place
within the compass of my faculties shall be called forth for the discharge
of the duties confided to me, and for procuring to my fellow-citizens all
the benefits which our Constitution has placed under the guardianship of
the General Government.
Guided by the wisdom and patriotism of those to whom it belongs
to express the legislative will of the nation, I will give to that will a
faithful execution.
I pray you, gentlemen, to convey to the honorable body from which
you are deputed the homage of my humble acknowledgments and the
sentiments of zeal and fidelity by which I shall endeavor to merit these
proofs of confidence from the nation and its Representatives; and accept
yourselves my particular thanks for the obliging terms in which you
have been pleased to communicate their will.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 20, 1801.
Thomas Jefferson 39
LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT ELECT.
The President laid before the Senate a letter from the President elect
of the United States, which was read, as follows:
WASHINGTON, March 2, i8or.
The PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE OF THE SENATE.
SIR: I beg leave through you to inform the honorable the Senate of
the United States that I propose to take the oath which the Constitution
prescribes to the President of the United States before he enters on the
execution of his office on Wednesday, the 4th instant, at 12 o'clock, in
the Senate Chamber.
I have the honor to be, with the greatest respect, sir, your most obedi-
ent and most humble servant,
TH: JEFFERSON.
(The same letter was sent to the House of Representatives. )
FIRST INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
AT WASHINGTON, D. C.
Friends and Fellow-Citizens.
Called upon to undertake the duties of the first executive office of our
country, I avail myself of the presence of that portion of my fellow-citi-
zens which is here assembled to express my grateful thanks for the favor
with which they have been pleased to look toward me, to declare a sin-
cere 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 Consti-
tution 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
310 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
enable us to steer with safety the vessel in which we are all embarked
amidst the conflicting elements of a troubled world.
During the contest of opinion through which we have passed the ani-
mation of discussions and of 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 Constitution, all will, of
course, arrange themselves under the will of the law, and unite rn com-
mon 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 affec-
tion 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 lib-
erty, 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, and should divide opinions as to
measures of safety. But every difference 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 can not be strong, that this Government is not strong
enough; but would the honest patriot, in the full tide of successful
experiment, abandon a government 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 law,
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
can not be trusted with the government of himself. Can he, then, be
trusted with the government of others ? Or have we found angels in the
forms 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 union and representative
Thomas Jefferson 311
government. Kindly separated 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 gen-
eration; entertaining a due sense of our equal right to the use of our own
faculties, to the acquisitions of our own 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 practiced in various forms, yet all of them inculcating 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 a 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 com-
prehend everything dear and valuable to you, it is proper 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 principle, but not all its limitations. 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 administrations for our domestic concerns and the
surest bulwarks against antirepublican 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 despotism; a well-dis-
ciplined 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 burthened ; the honest payment of our debts and sacred preserva-
tion of the public faith ; encouragement of agriculture, and of commerce
as its handmaid; the diffusion of information and arraignment of all
abuses at the bar of the public reason ; freedom of religion ; freedom of the
press, and freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus,
312 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
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 attainment. They should
be the creed of our political faith, the text of civic instruction, the
touchstone by which to try the services of those we trust; and should
we wander from them in moments of error or of 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 greatest revolutionary character,
whose preeminent services had entitled him to the first place in his coun-
try's love and destined for him the fairest page in the volume of faithful
history, I ask so much confidence only as may give firmness and effect to
the legal administration of your affairs. I 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 implied by your
suffrage is a great 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 sen-
sible 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.
MARCH 4, 1801.
PROCLAMATION.
fKrom the National Intelligencer, March 13, 1801.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
Whereas by the first article of the terms and conditions declared by
the President of the United States on the iyth day of October, 1791, for
regulating the materials and manner of buildings and improvements
Thomas Jefferson 313
on the lots in the city of Washington, it is provided "that the outer and
party walls of all houses in the said city shall be built of brick or stone; "
aud by the third article of the same terms and conditions it is declared
1 ' that the wall of no house shall be higher than 40 feet to the roof in
any part of the city, nor shall any be lower than 35 feet in any of the
avenues; " and
Whereas the above-recited articles were found to impede the settlement
in the city of mechanics and others whose circumstances did not admit of
erecting houses authorized by the said regulations, for which cause the
President of the United States, by a writing under his hand, bearing date
the 25th day of June, 1796, suspended the operation of the said articles
until the first Monday of December, 1800, and the beneficial effects aris-
ing from such suspension having been experienced, it is deemed proper
to revive the same:
Wherefore I, Thomas Jefferson, President of the United States, do
declare that the operation of the first and third articles above recited
shall be, and the same is hereby, suspended until the ist day of January,
1802, and that all the houses which shall be erected in the said city of
Washington previous to the said ist day of January, 1802, conformable
in other respects to the regulations aforesaid, shall be considered as law-
fully erected, except that no wooden house shall be erected within 24 feet
of any brick or stone house.
Given under my hand this nth day of March, 1801.
TH: JEFFERSON.
In communicating his first message to Congress, President Jefferson
addressed the following letter to the presiding officer of each branch of
the National Legislature:
DECEMBER 8, 1801.
The Honorable the PRESIDENT OP THE SENATE.
SIR: The circumstances under which we find ourselves at this place
rendering inconvenient the mode heretofore practiced of making by per-
sonal address the first communications between the legislative and execu-
tive 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 embarrassment 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
inclosed 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.
TH: JEFFERSON.
314 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
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 forgive-
ness, we are bound with peculiar gratitude to be thankful to Him that
our own peace has been preserved through so perilous a season, and our-
selves permitted quietly to cultivate the earth and to practice and improve
those arts which tend to increase our comforts. The assurances, indeed,
of friendly disposition received from all the powers with whom we have
principal relations had inspired a confidence that 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 can not but add to this confidence, and strength-
ens at the same time the hope that wrongs committed on unoffending
friends under a pressure of circumstances will now be reviewed with can-
dor, and will be considered as founding just claims of retribution for the
past and new assurance 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 hus-
bandry 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 subsistence over the precarious resources of
hunting and fishing, 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 experience an increase of population.
To this state of general peace with which we have been blessed, one
only exception exists. Tripoli, the least considerable 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 com-
ply 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 protect 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.
Thomas Jefferson 315
Our commerce In the Mediterranean was blockaded and that of the
Atlantic in peril. The arrival of our squadron dispelled the danger.
One of the Tripolitan cruisers having fallen in with and engaged the
small schooner Enterprise, commanded by Lieutenant Sterret, which had
gone as a tender to our larger vessels, was captured, after a heavy slaugh-
ter of her men, without the loss of a single one on our part. The bravery
exhibited by our citizens on that element will, 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 defense, the vessel, being disabled from committing further hostil-
ities, was liberated with its crew. The Legislature will doubtless consider
whether, by authorizing measures of offense also, they will place our force
on an equal footing with that of its adversaries. I communicate all
material information on this subject, that in the exercise of this impor-
tant 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 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 immediate measures for fulfilling them, to vindicate to ourselves
the right of considering the effect of departure from stipulation 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 num-
bers 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 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 happiness, educated in
the love of order, habituated to self-government, and valuing its bless-
ings 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 in
foreign relations now taking place so desirably for the whole world may
for a season affect this branch of revenue, yet weighing all probabilities of
316 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
expense as well as of income, there is reasonable ground of confidence
that we may now safely dispense with all the internal taxes, comprehend-
ing excise, 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 provide for the support of Government, to pay the interest of the pub-
lic debts, and to discharge the principals within shorter periods than the
laws or the general expectation had contemplated. War, indeed, and
untoward events may change this prospect of things and call for expenses
which the imposts 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 burthens 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 Government, 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 property, and our reputation, con-
stituting the great field of human concerns, we may well doubt whether
our organization is not too complicated, too expensive; whether offices
and officers have not been multiplied unnecessarily and sometimes inju-
riously to the service they were meant to promote. I will cause to be
laid before you an essay toward 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 ram-
ifications 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 unnecessary.
The expenses of diplomatic agency have been considerably diminished.
The inspectors of internal revenue who were found to obstruct the ac-
countability of the institution have been discontinued. Several agencies
created by Executive authority, 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 inspection and sanc-
tion. 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 and try all its parts by the test of
public utility, they may be assured of every aid and light which Execu-
tive information can yield. Considering the general tendency to multiply
offices and dependencies and to increase expense to the ultimate term of
burthen which the citizen can bear, it behooves us to avail ourselves of
Thomas Jefferson 3 1 7
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, Government 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 defi-
nition ; by disallowing all applications of money varying from the appro-
priation in object or transcending it in amount; by reducing the undefined
field of contingencies and thereby circumscribing discretionary powers
over money, and by bringing back to a single department all accounta-
bilities for money, where the examinations may be prompt, efficacious,
and uniform.
An account of the receipts and expenditures of the last year, as pre-
pared by the Secretary of the Treasury, will, as usual, be laid before you.
The success which has attended the late sales of the public lands shews
that with attention they may be made an important source of receipt.
Among the payments those made in discharge of the principal and interest
of the national debt will shew 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 affected 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 expe-
dient 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 defense against
invasion their number is as nothing, nor is it conceived needful or safe
that a standing army should be kept up in time of peace for that purpose.
Uncertain 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 neigh-
boring citizens as formed into a militia. On these, collected from the
parts most convenient in numbers proportioned to the invading force, it is
best to rely not only to meet the first attack, but if it threatens to be
permanent to maintain the defense 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
shew 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 everything for the militia which we could do
were an enemy at our door.
The provision of military stores on hand will be laid before you, that
you may judge of the additions still requisite.
With respect to the extent to which our naval preparations should be
318 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
carried some difference of opinion may be expected to appear, but just
attention to the circumstances 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 to 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 exigence calls them
into use. Progress has been made, as will appear by papers now com-
municated, in providing materials for 74-gun ships as directed by law.
How far the authority given by the Legislature for procuring 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 incurred 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 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 yourselves also will be guided by your own view in
the legislative 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 sub-
ject for legislation. A communication will also be made of our progress
in the execution of the law respecting the vessels directed to be sold.
The fortifications of our harbors, more or less advanced, present con-
siderations of great difficulty. While some of them are on a scale suffi-
ciently proportioned to the advantages of their position, to the efficacy of
their protection, 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 com-
menced or projected, of the expenses already incurred, and estimates of
their future cost, as 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 respecting 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
Thomas Jefferson 319
our constitutional powers, your sense of their importance is a sufficient
assurance they will occupy your attention. We can not, indeed, but all
feel an 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 especially 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 con-
sideration whether the protection of the inestimable institution of juries
has been extended to all the cases involving the security of our persons;
and property. 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 can not 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
proportion 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 to the unhappy fugitives from dis-
tress 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 Constitution indeed has wisely provided that for
admission to certain offices of important trust a residence shall be required
sufficient to develop character and design. But might not the general
character and capabilities of a citizen be safely communicated to every-
one manifesting a bona fide purpose of embarking his life and fortunes
permanently with us, with restrictions, perhaps, to guard against the
fraudulent usurpation of our flag, an abuse which brings so much
embarrassment and loss on the genuine citizen and so much danger to the
nation of being 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 con-
sideration at this time. Some others of less moment or not yet ready
for communication 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
12
320 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
carry that judgment into faithful execution. The prudence and temper-
ance of your discussions will promote within your own walls that concil-
iation which so much befriends rational conclusion, and by its example
will encourage among our constituents that progress of opinion which is
tending to unite them in object and in will. That all should be satisfied
with any one order of things is not to be expected; but I indulge the
pleasing persuasion that the great body of our citizens will cordially con-
cur in honest and disinterested efforts which have for their object to pre-
serve 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 administration
favorable to the security of liberty and property, and to reduce expenses
to what is necessary for the useful purposes of Government.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
DECEMBER n, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
Early in the last month I received the ratification by the First Consul of
France of the convention between the United States and that nation.
His ratification not being pure and simple in the ordinary form, I have
thought it my duty, in order to avoid all misconception, to ask a second
advice and consent of the Senate before I give it the last sanction by pro-
claiming it to be a law of the land.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 22, 1801.
Gentlemen of tJte Senate:
The States of Georgia and Tennessee being peculiarly interested in our
carrying into execution the two acts passed by Congress on the igth of
February, 1799 (chapter 115), and i3th May, 1800 (chapter 62), com-
missioners were appointed early in summer and other measures taken
for the purpose. The objects of these laws requiring meetings with the
Cht:rokees, Chickasaws, Choctaws, and Creeks, the inclosed instructions
were prepared for the proceedings with the three first nations. Our appli-
cations to the Cherokees failed altogether. Those to the Chickasaws
produced the treaty now laid before you for your advice and consent,
whereby we obtained permission to open a road of communication with
the Mississippi Territory. The commissioners are probably at this time
in conference with the Choctaws. Further information having been
wanting when these instructions were formed to enable us to prepare
Thomas Jefferson 321
those respecting the Creeks, the commissioners were directed to proceed
with the others. We have now reason to believe the conferences with
the Creeks can not take place till the spring.
The journals and letters of the commissioners relating to the subject
of the treaty now inclosed accompany it.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 22, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now inclose sundry documents supplementary to those communicated
to you with my message at the commencement of the session. Two others
of considerable importance the one relating to our transactions with the
Barbary Powers, the other presenting a view of the offices of the Govern-
ment shall be communicated as soon as they can be completed.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 23, 1801.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Another return of the census of the State of Maryland is just received
from the marshal of that State, which he desires may be substituted as
more correct than the one first returned by him and communicated by
ie to Congress. This new return, with his letter, is now laid before you.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY n, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives.
I now communicate to you a memorial of the commissioners of the city
of Washington, together with a letter of later date, which, with their me-
morial of January 28, 1801, will possess the Legislature fully of the state
of the public interests and of those of the city of Washington confided to
them. The moneys now due, and soon to become due, to the State of
Maryland on the loan guaranteed by the United States call for an early
attention. The lots in the city which are chargeable with the payment
of these moneys are deemed not only equal to the indemnification of the
public, but to insure a considerable surplus to the city to be employed
for its improvement, provided they are offered for sale only in sufficient
numbers to meet the existing demand. But the act of 1796 requires
that they shall be positively sold in such numbers as shall be necessary
for the punctual payment of the loans. Nine thousand dollars of interest
are lately become due, $3,000 quarter yearly will continue to become
due, and $50,000, an additional loan, are reimbursable on the ist day of
November next. These sums would require sales so far beyond the
322 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
actua. demand of the market that it is apprehended that the whole prop-
erty may be thereby sacrificed, the public security destroyed, and the
residuary interest of the city entirely lost. Under these circumstances I
have thought it my duty before I proceed to direct a rigorous execution
of the law to submit the subject to the consideration of the Legislature.
Whether the public interest will be better secured in the end and that
of the city saved by offering sales commensurate only to the demand at
market, and advancing from the Treasury in the first instance what these
may prove deficient, to be replaced by subsequent sales, rests for the
determination of the Legislature. If indulgence for the funds can be ad-
mitted, they will probably form a resource of great and permanent value ;
and their embarrassments have been produced only by overstrained
exertions to provide accommodations for the Government of the Union.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 12, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate.'
I now communicate to you a letter from the Secretary of State inclos-
ing an estimate of the expenses which appear at present necessary for
carrying into effect the convention between the United States of America
and the French Republic, which has been prepared at the request of the
House of Representatives.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 27, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives :
I lay before you the accounts of our Indian trading houses, as rendered
up to the ist day of January, 1801, with a report of the Secretary of War
thereon, explaining the effects and the situation of that commerce and
the reasons in favor of its further extension. But it is believed that the
act authorizing this trade expired so long ago as the 3d of March, 1799.
Its revival, therefore, as well as its extension, is submitted to the consid-
eration of the Legislature.
The act regulating trade and intercourse with the Indian tribes will
also expire on the 3d day of March next. While on the subject of its
continuance it will be worthy the consideration of the Legislature whether
the provisions of the law inflicting on Indians, in certain cases, the punish-
ment of death by hanging might not permit its commutation into death
by military execution, the form of the punishment in the former way
being peculiarly repugnant to their ideas and increasing the obstacles to
the surrender of the criminal.
These people are becoming very sensible of the baneful effects produced
on their morals, their health, and existence by the abuse of ardent spirits,
Thomas Jefferson 323
and some of them earnestly desire a prohibition of that article from being
carried among them. The Legislature will consider whether the effec-
tuating that desire would not be in the spirit of benevolence and liberal-
ity which they have hitherto practiced toward these our neighbors, and
which has had so happy an effect toward conciliating their friendship.
It has been found, too, in experience that the same abuse gives frequent
rise to incidents tending much to commit our peace with the Indians.
It is now become necessary to run and mark the boundaries between
them and us in various parts. The law last mentioned has authorized
this to be done, but no existing appropriation meets the expense.
Certain papers explanatory of the grounds of this communication are
herewith inclosed.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 2, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now lay before you
1. A return of ordnance, arms, and military stores the property of the
United States.
2. Returns of muskets and bayonets fabricated at the armories of the
United States at Springfield and Harpers Ferry, and of the expenditures
at those places ; and
3. An estimate of expenditures which may be necessary for fortifica-
tions and barracks for the present year.
Besides the permanent magazines established at Springfield, West
Point, and Harpers Ferry, it is thought one should be established in
some point convenient for the States of North Carolina, South Carolina,
and Georgia. Such a point will probably be found near the border of
the Carolinas, and some small provision by the Legislature preparatory
to the establishment will be necessary for the present year.
We find the United States in possession of certain iron mines and works
in the county of Berkeley and State of Virginia, purchased, as is presum-
able, on the idea of establishing works for the fabrication of cannon
and other military articles by the public. Whether this method of sup-
plying what may be wanted will be most advisable or that of purchasing
at market where competition brings everything to its proper level of price
and quality is for the Legislature to decide, and if the latter alternative
be preferred, it will rest for their further consideration in what way the
subjects of this purchase may be best employed or disposed of. The
Attorney-General's opinion on the subject of the title accompanies this.
There are in various parts of the United States small parcels of land
which have been purchased at different times for cantonments and other
military purposes. Several of them are in situations not likely to be
accommodated to future purposes. The loss of the records prevents a
3 2 4 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
detailed statement of these until they can be supplied by inquiry. In
the meantime, one of them, containing 88 acres^ in the county of Essex,
in New Jersey, purchased in 1799 and sold the following year to Cornelius
Vermule and Andrew Codmas, though its price has been received, can
not be conveyed without authority from the Legislature.
I inclose herewith a letter from the Secretary of War on the subject of
the islands in the lakes and rivers of our northern boundary, and of cer-
tain lands in the neighborhood of some of our military posts, on which it
may be expedient for the Legislature to make some provisions.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 16, 1802.
Gentkmen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now transmit a statement of the expenses incurred by the United
States in their transactions with the Barbary Powers, and a roll of the
persons having office or employment under the United States, as was
proposed in my messages of December 7 and 22. Neither is as perfect
as could have been wished, and the latter not so much so as further time
and inquiry may enable us to make it.
The great volume of these communications and the delay it would
produce to make out a second copy will, I trust, be deemed a sufficient
reason for sending one of them to the one House, and the other to the
other, with a request that they may be interchanged for mutual infor-
mation rather than to subject both to further delay.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 18, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In a message of the 2d instant I inclosed a letter from the Secretary
of War on the subject of certain lands in the neighborhood of our mili-
tary posts on which it might be expedient for the Legislature to make
some provisions. A letter recently received from the governor of Indi-
ana presents some further views of the extent to which such provision
may be needed. I therefore now transmit it for the information of
Congress.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 24, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I communicate to both Houses of Congress a report of the Secretary of
the Treasury on the subject of our marine hospitals, which appear to
require legislative attention.
As connected with the same subject, I also inclose information respect-
Thomas Jefferson 325
ing the situation of our seamen and boatmen frequenting the port of New
Orleans and suffering there from sickness and the want of accommoda-
tion. There is good reason to believe their numbers greater than stated
in these papers. When we consider how great a proportion of the terri-
tory of the United States must communicate with that port singly, and
how rapidly that territory is increasing its population and productions, it
may perhaps be thought reasonable to make hospital provisions there
of a different order from those at foreign ports generally.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 25, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
No occasion having arisen since the last account rendered by my pred
ecessor of making use of any part of the moneys heretofore granted to
defray the contingent charges of the Government, I now transmit to
Congress an official statement thereof to the 3ist day of December last,,
when the whole unexpended balance, amounting to $20,911.80, was car-
ried to the credit of the surplus fund, as provided for by law, and this
account consequently becomes finally closed.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 26, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
Some statements have been lately received of the causes decided or
depending in the courts of the Union in certain States, supplementary or
corrective of those from which was formed the general statement accom-
panying my message at the opening of the session. I therefore commu-
nicate them to Congress, with a report of the Secretary of State noting
their effect on the former statement and correcting certain errors in it
which arose partly from inexactitude in some of the returns and partly
in analyzing, adding, and transcribing them while hurried in preparing
the other voluminous papers accompanying that message.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH i, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit for the information of Congress letters recently received
from our consuls at Gibraltar and Algiers, presenting the latest view of
the state of our affairs with the Barbary Powers. The sums due to the
Government of Algiers are now fully paid up, and of the gratuity which
had been promised to that of Tunis, and was in a course of preparation,
a small portion only remains still to be finished and delivered.
TH: JEFFERSON.
326 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
MARCH 9, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The governor of New York has desired that, in addition to the negotia-
tions with certain Indians already authorized under the superintendence of
John Taylor, further negotiations should be held with the Oneidas and
other members of the Confederacy of the Six Nations for the purchase
of lands in and for the State of New York, which they are willing to sell,
as explained in the letter from the Secretary of War herewith sent. I
have therefore thought it better to name a commissioner to superintend
the negotiations specified with the Six Nations generally, or with any of
them.
I do accordingly nominate John Taylor, of New York, to be commis-
sioner for the United States, to hold a convention or conventions between
the State of New York and the Confederacy of the Six Nations of Indi-
ans, or any of the nations composing it.
This nomination, if advised and consented to by the Senate, will com-
prehend and supersede that of February i of the same John Taylor so
far as it respected the Seneca Indians.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 10, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate'
I now submit for the ratification of the Senate a treaty entered into by
the commissioners of the United States with the Choctaw Nation of
Indians, and I transmit therewith so much of the instructions to the com-
missioners as related to the Choctaws, with the minutes of their proceed-
ings and the letter accompanying them,
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 29, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The Secretary of State, charged with the civil affairs of the several Ter-
ritories of the United States, has received from the marshal of Colum-
bia a statement of the condition, unavoidably distressing, of the persons
committed to his custody on civil or criminal process and the urgency
for some legislative provisions for their relief. There are other important
cases wherein the laws of the adjoining States under which the Territory
is placed, though adapted to the purposes of those States, are insufficient
for those of the Territory for the dissimilar or defective organization of
its authorities. The letter and statement of the marshal and the dis-
quieting state of the Territory generally are now submitted to the wisdom
and consideration of the Legislature.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 327
MARCH 29, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The commissioners who were appointed to carry into execution the
sixth article of the treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation between
the United States and His Britannic Majesty having differed in opinion
is to the objects of that article and discontinued their proceedings, the
"Executive of the United States took early measures, by instructions to
our minister at the British Court, to negotiate explanations of that article.
This mode of resolving the difficulty, however, proved unacceptable to
the British Government, which chose rather to avoid all further discus-
sion and expense under that article by fixing at a given sum the amount
for which the United States should be held responsible under it. Mr.
King was consequently authorized to meet this proposition, and a settle-
ment in this way has been effected by a convention entered into with the
British Government, and now communicated for your advice and consent,
together with the instructions and correspondence relating to it. The
greater part of these papers being originals, the return of them is re-
quested at the convenience of the Senate.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 30, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The Secretary of War has prepared an estimate of expenditures for
the Army of the United States during the year 1802, conformably to
the act fixing the military peace establishment, which estimate, with his
letter accompanying and explaining it, I now transmit to both Houses
of Congress.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 31, 1802.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
According to the desire expressed in your resolution of the 23d instant,
I now transmit a report of the Secretary of State, with the letters it refers
to, shewing the proceedings which have taken place under the resolution
of Congress of the i6th of April, 1800. The term prescribed for the exe-
cution of the resolution having elapsed before the person appointed had
sat out on the service, I did not deem it justifiable to commence a course
of expenditure after the expiration of the resolution authorizing it. The
correspondence which has taken place, having regard to dates, will place
this subject properly under the view of the House of Representatives.
TH: JEFFERSON.
328 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
APRII, 8, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In order to satisfy as far as it is in my power the desire expressed in
your resolution of the 6th instant, I now transmit you a letter from John
Read, agent for the United States before the board of commissioners
under the sixth article of the treaty with Great Britain, to the Attorney-
General, bearing date the 25th of April, 1801, in which he gives a sum-
mary view of the proceedings of those commissioners and of the principles
established or insisted on by a majority of them.
Supposing it might be practicable for us to settle by negotiation with
Great Britain the principles which ought to govern the decisions under
the treaty, I caused instructions to be given to Mr. Read to analyze the
claims before the board of commissioners, to class them under the prin-
ciples on which they respectively depended, and to state the sum depending
on each principle or the amount of each description of debt. The object
of this was that we might know what principles were most important for
us to contend for and what others might be conceded without much
injury. He performed this duty, and gave in such a statement during
the last summer, but the chief clerk of the Secretary of State's office
being absent on account of sickness, and the only person acquainted with
the airangement of the papers of the office, this particular document can
not at this time be found. Having, however, been myself in possession
of it a few days after its receipt, I then transcribed from it for my own
use the recapitulation of the amount of each description of debt. A
copy of this transcript I shall subjoin hereto, with assurances that it is
substantially correct, and with the hope that it will give a view of the
subject sufficiently precise to fulfill the wishes of the Senate. To save
them the delay of waiting till a copy of the agent's letter could be made,
I send the original, with the request that it may be returned at the con-
venience of the Senate.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 15, 1802.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I now transmit the papers desired in your resolution of the 6th instant.
Those respecting the Berceau will sufficiently explain themselves. The
officer charged with her repairs states in his letter, received August 27,
1801, that he had been led by circumstances, which he explains, to go
considerably beyond his orders. In questions between nations, who
have no common umpire but reason, something must often be yielded of
mutual opinion to enable them to meet in a common point.
The allowance which had been proposed to the officers of that vessel
being represented as too small for their daily necessities, and still more so
as the means of paying before their departure debts contracted with our
Thomas Jefferson 3 2 9
citizens for. subsistence, it was requested on their behalf that the daily
pay of each might be the measure of their allowance.
This being solicited and reimbursement assumed by the agent of their
nation, I deemed that the indulgence would have a propitious effect in
the moment of returning friendship. The sum of $870.83 was accordingly
furnished them for the five months of past captivity and a proportional
allowance authorized until their embarkation.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 20, 1802.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I transmit you a report from the Secretary of State, with the information
desired by the House of Representatives, of the 8th of January, relative
to certain spoliations and other proceedings therein referred to.
TH; JEFFERSON.
APRTI, 26, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In pursuance of the act entitled "An act supplemental to the act
entitled 'An act for an amicable settlement of limits with the State of
Georgia, and authorizing the establishment of a government in the Mis-
sissippi Territory,' " James Madison, Secretary of State, Albert Gallatin,
Secretary of the Treasury, and Levi Lincoln, Attorney-General of the
United States, were appointed commissioners to settle by compromise
with the commissioners appointed by the State of Georgia the claims and
cession to which the said act has relation.
Articles of agreement and cession have accordingly been entered into
and signed by the said commissioners of the United States and of Georgia,
which, as they leave a right to Congress to act upon them legislatively
at any time within six months after their date, I have thought it my duty
immediately to communicate to the legislature.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 27, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
The commissioners who were appointed to carry into execution the
sixth article of the treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation between
the United States and Great Britain having differed in their construction
of that article, and separated in consequence of that difference, the Presi-
dent of the United States took immediate measures for obtaining conven-
tional explanations of that article for the government of the commissioners.
Finding, however, great difficulties opposed to a settlement in that way,
33 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
he authorized our minister at the Court of London to meet a proposition
that the United States by the payment of a fixed sum should discharge
themselves from their responsibility for such debts as can not be recovered
from the individual debtors. A convention has accordingly been signed,
fixing the sum to be paid at ,600,000 in three equal and annual install-
ments, which has been ratified by me with the advice and consent of the
Senate.
I now transmit copies thereof to both Houses of Congress, trusting
that in the free exercise of the authority which the Constitution has given
them on the subject of public expenditures they will deem it for the
public interest to appropriate the sums necessary for carrying this con-
vention into execution.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SECOND ANNUAL MESSAGE.
DECEMBER 15, 1802.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
When we assemble together, fellow-citizens, to consider the state of
our beloved country, our just attentions are first drawn to those pleasing
circumstances which mark the goodness of that Being from whose favor
they flow and the large measure of thankfulness we owe for His bounty.
Another year has come around, and finds us still blessed with peace and
friendship abroad; law, order, and religion at home; good affection and
harmony with our Indian neighbors; our burthens lightened, yet our
income sufficient for the public wants, and the produce of the year great
beyond example. These, fellow-citizens, are the circumstances under
which we meet, and we remark with special satisfaction those which
under the smiles of Providence result from the skill, industry, and order
of our citizens, managing their own affairs in their own way and for their
own use, unembarrassed by too much regulation, unoppressed by fiscal
exactions.
On the restoration of peace in Europe that portion of the general car-
rying trade which had fallen to our share during the war was abridged
by the returning competition of the belligerent powers. This was to be
expected, and was just. But in addition we find in some parts of Europe
monopolizing discriminations, which in the form of duties tend effectu-
ally to prohibit the carrying thither our own produce in our own vessels.
From existing amities and a spirit of justice it is hoped that friendly
discussion will produce a fair and adequate reciprocity. But should
false calculations of interest defeat our hope, it rests with the Legislature
to decide whether they will meet inequalities abroad with countervailing
inequalities at home, or provide for the evil in any other way.
Thomas Jefferson 331
It is with satisfaction I lay before you an act of the British Parliament
anticipating this subject so far as to authorize a mutual abolition of the
duties and countervailing duties permitted under the treaty of 1794. It
shows on their part a spirit of justice and friendly accommodation which
it is our duty and our interest to cultivate with all nations. Whether this
would produce a due equality in the navigation between the two coun-
tries is a subject for your consideration.
Another circumstance which claims attention as directly affecting the
very source of our navigat is the defect or the evasion of the law pro-
viding for the return of sea en, and particularly of those belonging to
vessels sold abroad. Numbers of them, discharged in foreign ports, have
been thrown on the hands of our consuls, who, to rescue them from the
dangers into which their distresses might plunge them and save them to
their country, have found it necessary in some cases to return them at the
public charge.
The cession of the Spanish Province of Louisiana to France, which
took place in the course of the late war, will, if carried into effect, make
a change in the aspect of our foreign relations which will doubtless have
just weight in any deliberations of the Legislature connected with that
subject.
There was reason not long since to apprehend that the warfare hi which
we were engaged with Tripoli might be taken up by some other of the
Barbary Powers. A reenforcement, therefore, was immediately ordered
to the vessels already there. Subsequent information, however, has
removed these apprehensions for the present. To secure our commerce
in that sea with the smallest force competent, we have supposed it best
to watch strictly the harbor of Tripoli. Still, however, the shallowness
of theu: coast and the want of smaller vessels on our part has permitted
some cruisers to escape unobserved, and to one of these an American
vessel unfortunately fell a prey. The captain, one American seaman, and
two others of color remain prisoners with them unless exchanged under
an agreement formerly made with the Bashaw, to whom, on the faith of
that, some of his captive subjects had been restored.
The convention with the State of Georgia has been ratified by their
legislature, and a repurchase from the Creeks has been -consequently made
of a part of the Talasscee country. In this purchase has been also com-
prehended a part of the lands within the fork of Oconee and Oakmulgee
rivers. The particulars of the contract will be laid before Congress so
soon as they shall be in a state for communication.
In order to remove every ground of difference possible with our Indian
neighbors, I have proceeded in the work of settling with them and mark-
ing the boundaries between us. That with the Choctaw Nation is fixed
in one part and will be through the whole within a short time. The
country to which their title had been extinguished before the Revolution
is sufficient to receive a very respectable population, which Congress will
33 2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
probably see the expediency of encouraging so soon as the limits shall be
declared. We are to view this position as an outpost of the United States,
surrounded by strong neighbors and distant from its support; and how
far that monopoly which prevents population should here be guarded
against and actual habitation made a condition of the continuance of title
will be for your consideration. A prompt settlement, too, of all existing
rights and claims within this territory presents itself as a preliminary
operation.
In that part of the Indiana Territory which includes Vincennes the lines
settled with the neighboring tribes fix the extinction of their title at a
breadth of 24 leagues from east to west and about the same length par-
allel with and including the Wabash. They have also ceded a tract of
4 miles square, including the salt springs near the mouth of that river.
In the Department of Finance it is with pleasure I inform you that the
receipts of external duties for the last twelve months have exceeded those
of any former year, and that the ratio of increase has been also greater
than usual. This has enabled us to answer all the regular exigencies
of Government, to pay from the Treasury within one year upward of
$8,000,000, principal and interest, of the public debt, exclusive of upward
of one million paid by the sale of bank stock, and making in the whole
a reduction of nearly five millions and a half of principal, and to have
now in the Treasury $4,500,000, which are in a course of application to
the further discharge of debt and current demands. Experience, too, so
far, authorizes us to believe, if no extraordinary event supervenes, and
the expenses which will be actually incurred shall not be greater than
were contemplated by Congress at their last session, that we shall not be
disappointed in the expectations then formed. But nevertheless, as the
effect of peace on the amount of duties is not yet fully ascertained, it is
the more necessary to practice every useful economy and to incur no
expense which may be avoided without prejudice.
The collection of the internal taxes having been completed in some of
the States, the officers employed in it are of course out of commission.
In others they will be so shortly. But in a few, where the arrangements
for the direct tax had been retarded, it will be some time before the
system is closed. It has not yet been thought necessary to employ the
agent authorized by an act of the last session for transacting business in
Europe relative to debts and loans. Nor have we used the power con-
fided by the same act of prolonging the foreign debt by reloans, and of
redeeming instead thereof an equal sum of the domestic debt. Should,
however, the difficulties of remittance on so large a scale render it neces-
sary at any time, the power shall be executed and the money thus unem-
ployed abroad shall, in conformity with that law, be faithfully applied
here in an equivalent extinction of domestic debt. When effects so sal-
utary result from the plans you have already sanctioned ; when merely by
avoiding false objects of expense we are able, without a direct tax, with-
Thomas Jefferson 333
out internal taxes, and without borrowing to make large and effectual
payments toward the discharge of our public debt and the emancipation
of our posterity from that mortal canker, it is an encouragement, fellow-
citizens, of the highest order to proceed as we have begun in substituting
economy for taxation, and in pursuing what is useful for a nation placed
as we are, rather than what is practiced by others under different circum-
stances. And whensoever we are destined to meet events which shall
call forth all the energies of our countrymen, we have the firmest reliance
on those energies and the comfort of leaving for calls like these the
extraordinary resources of loans and internal taxes. In the meantime,
by payments of the principal of our debt, we are liberating annually
portions of the external taxes and forming from them a growing fund
still further to lessen the necessity of recurring to extraordinary resources.
The usual account of receipts and expenditures for the last year, with
an estimate of the expenses of the ensuing one, will be laid before you by
the Secretary of the Treasury.
No change being deemed necessary in our military establishment, an
estimate of its expenses for the ensuing year on its present footing, as
also of the sums to be employed in fortifications and other objects within
that department, has been prepared by the Secretary of War, and will
make a part of the general estimates which will be presented you.
Considering that our regular troops are employed for local purposes,
and that the militia is our general reliance for great and sudden emer-
gencies, you will doubtless think this institution worthy of a review, and
give it those improvements of which you find it susceptible.
Estimates for the Naval Department, prepared by the Secretary of the
Navy, for another year will in like manner be communicated with the
general estimates. A small force in the Mediterranean will still be neces-
sary to restrain the Tripoline cruisers, and the uncertain tenure of peace
with some other of the Barbary Powers may eventually require that force
to be augmented. The necessity of procuring some smaller vessels for
that service will raise the estimate, but the difference in their maintenance
will soou make it a measure of economy.
Presuming it will be deemed expedient to expend annually a conven-
ient sum toward providing the naval defense which our situation may
require, I can not but recommend that the first appropriations for that
purpose may go to the saving what we already possess. No cares, no
attentions, can preserve vessels from rapid decay which lie in water and
exposed to the sun. These decays require great and constant repairs,
and will consume, if continued, a great portion of the moneys destined
to naval purposes. To avoid this waste of our resources it is proposed to
add to our navy-yard here a dock within which our present vessels may
be laid up dry and under cover from the sun. Under these circumstances
experience proves that works of wood will remain scarcely at all affected
by time. The great abundance of running water which this situation
334 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
possesses, at heights far above the level of the tide, if employed as is prac-
ticed for lock navigation, furnishes the means for raising and laying up
our vessels on a dry and sheltered bed. And should the measure be found
useful here, similar depositories for laying up as well as for building and
repairing vessels may hereafter be undertaken at other navy-yards offering
the same means. The plans and estimates of the work, prepared by a
person of skill and experience, will be presented to you without delay,
and from this it will be seen that scarcely more than has been the cost of
one vessel is necessary to save the whole, and that the annual sum to be
employed toward its completion may be adapted to the views of the leg-
islature as to naval expenditure.
To cultivate peace and maintain commerce and navigation in all their
lawful enterprises; to foster our fisheries as nurseries of navigation and
for the nurture of man, and protect the manufactures adapted to our cir-
cumstances; to preserve the faith of the nation by an exact discharge of
its debts and contracts, expend the public money with the same care and
economy we would practice with our own, and impose on our citizens no
unnecessary burthens; to keep in all things within the pale of our consti-
tutional powers, and cherish the federal union as the only rock of safety
these, fellow-citizens, are the landmarks by which we are to guide our-
selves in all our proceedings. By continuing to make these the rule of
our action we shall endear to our countrymen the true principles of their
Constitution and promote an union of sentiment and of action equally
auspicious to their happiness and safety. On my part, you may count on
a cordial concurrence in every measure for the public good and on all
the information I possess which may enable you to discharge to advan-
tage the high functions with which you are invested by your country.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
DECEMBER 22, 1802.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
I now transmit a report from the Secretary of State with the informa-
tion requested in your resolution of the iyth instant.
In making this communication I deem it proper to observe that I was
led by the regard due to the rights and interests of the United States and
to the just sensibility of the portion of our fellow-citizens more imme-
diately affected by the irregular proceeding at New Orleans to lose not
a moment in causing every step to be taken which the occasion claimed
from me, being equally aware of the obligation to maintain in all cases
the rights of the nation and to employ for that purpose those just and
honorable means which belong to the character of the United States.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 335
DECEMBER 23, 1802.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives.
In pursuance of the resolution of the House of Representatives of the
3d of May last, desiring a statement of expenditures from January i , 1 797,
by the Quartermaster- General and the navy agents, for the contingen-
cies of the naval and military establishments and the navy contracts for
timber and stores, I now transmit such statements from the offices of the
Secretaries of the Treasury, War, and Navy, where alone these expend-
itures are entered,
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 27, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you a treaty, which has been agreed to by commissioners
duly authorized on the part of the United States and the Creek Nation
of Indians, for the extinguishment of the native title to lands in the
Talassee County, and others between the forks of Oconee and Oakmulgee
rivers, in Georgia, in pursuance of the convention with that State,
together with the documents explanatory thereof; and it is submitted to
your determination whether you will advise and consent to the ratifica-
tion thereof.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 27, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I lay before you a treaty, which has been concluded between the State
of New York and the Oneida Indians, for the purchase of lands within
that State.
One other, between the same State and the Seneca Indians, for the
purchase of other lands within the same State.
One other, between certain individuals styled the Holland Company
with the Senecas, for the exchange of certain lands in the same State.
And one other, between Oliver Phelps, a citizen of the United States,
and the Senecas, for the exchange of lands in the same State; with sundry
explanatory papers, all of them conducted under the superintendence of
a commissioner on the part of the United States, who reports that they
have been adjusted with the* fair and free consent and understanding of
the parties. It is therefore submitted to your determination whether you
will advise and consent to their respective ratifications.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 27, 1802.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
In my message of the 1 5th instant I mentioned that plans and esti-
mates of a dry dock for the preservation of our ships of war, prepared by
336 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
a person of skill and experience, should be laid before you without delay.
These are now transmitted, the report and estimates by duplicates; but
the plans being single only, I must request an intercommunication of
them between the Houses and their return when they shall no longer be
wanting for their consideration.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 30, 1802.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
In addition to the information accompanying my message of the 226.
instant, I now transmit the copy of a letter on the same subject, recently
received.
TH: JEFFERSON.
WASHINGTON, December+jo, 1802.
The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES.
SIR: Although an informal communication to the public of the sub-
stance of the inclosed letter may be proper for quieting the public mind,
yet I refer to the consideration of the House of Representatives whether
the publication of it in form might not give dissatisfaction to the writer
and tend to discourage the freedom and confidence of communications
between the agents of the two Governments. Accept assurances of my
high consideration and respect.
TH: JEFFERSON.
NATCHEZ, November 25, 1802.
The Honorable the SECRETARY OF STATE,
Washington.
SIR: I have the honor to inclose you an original copy of a communication (together
with a translation thereof) which I this morning received from the governor-genera?
of the Province of Louisiana in answer to my letters of the 28th ultimo.
I am, sir, with respect and esteem, your humble servant,
WILLIAM C. C. CLAIBORNE.
[Translation.]
NEW ORLEANS, November 75, 1802.
His Excellency WIU.IAM C. C. CX.AIBORNE.
MOST EXCEI.I.ENT SIR: I received a few days past your excellency's esteemed
letter of the 28th ultimo, in which your excellency, referring to the twenty-second
article of the treaty of friendship, navigation, and limits agreed upon between the
King, my master, and the United States of America, has been pleased to inquire,
after transcribing the literal text of said article (which you find so explicit as not to
require any comment nor to admit of dubious construction ) , if His Majesty has been
pleased to designate any other position on the banks of the Mississippi, and where
that is, if his royal pleasure does not continue the permission stipulated by the said
treaty which entitled the citizens of the United States to deposit their merchandise
and effects in the port of New Orleans; and you request at the same time that, as the
Thomas Jefferson 337
affair is so interesting to the commerce of the United States and to the welfare of its
citizens, I may do you the favor to send you an answer as early as possible. I can
now assure your excellency that His Catholic Majesty has not hitherto issued any
order for suspending the deposit, and consequently has not designated any other
position on the banks of the Mississippi for that purpose. But I must inform you,
in answer to your inquiry, that the intendant of these provinces (who in the affairs
of his own department is independent of the general Government), at the same time
that, in conformity with the royal commands (the peace in Europe having been
published since the 4th of May last), he suspended the commerce of neutrals, also
thought proper to suspend the tacit prolongation which continued, and to put a stop
to the infinite abuses which resulted from the deposit, contrary to the interest of the
State and of the commerce of these colonies, in consequence of the experience he
acquired of the frauds which have been committed and which it has been endeavored
to excuse under the pretext of ignorance, as is manifested by the number of causes
which now await the determination of His Majesty, as soon as they can be brought
to his royal knowledge, besides many others which have been dropt because the
individuals have absconded who introduced their properties into the deposit and did
not extract them, thus defrauding the royal interests.
It might appear on the first view that particular cases like these ought not to
operate against a general privilege granted by a solemn treaty, and it is an incon-
testable principle that the happiness of nations consists in a great measure in main-
taining a good harmony and correspondence with their neighbors by respecting
their rights, by supporting their own, without being deficient in what is required by
humanity and civil intercourse; but it is also indubitable that for a treaty, although
solemn, to be entirely valid it ought not to contain any defect; and if it be perni-
cious and of an injurious tendency, although it has been effectuated with good faith
but without a knowledge of its bad consequence, it will be necessary to undo it,
because treaties ought to be viewed like other acts of public will, in which more
attention ought to be paid to the intention than to the words in which they are
expressed; and thus it will not appear so repugnant that the term of three years
fixed by the twenty-second article being completed without the King's having
granted a prolongation, the intendancy should not, after putting a stop to the
commerce of neutrals, take upon itself the responsibility of continuing that favor
without the express mandate of the King, a circumstance equally indispensable for
designating another place on the banks of the Mississippi.
From the foregoing I trust that you will infer that as it is the duty of the intendant,
who conducts the business of his ministry with a perfect independence of the Gov-
ernment, to have informed the King of what he has done in fulfillment of what has
been expressly stipulated, it is to be hoped that His Majesty will take the measures
which are convenient to give effect to the deposit, either in this capital, if he should
not find it prejudicial to the interests of Spain, or in the place on the banks of the
Mississippi which it may be his royal pleasure to designate; as it ought to be con-
fided that the justice and generosity of the King will not refuse to afford to the
American citizens all the advantages they can desire, a measure which does not
depend upon discretion, nor can an individual chief take it upon himself. Besides
these principles on which the regulation of the intendant is founded, I ought at the
same time to inform you that I myself opposed on my part, as far as I reasonably
could, the measure of suspending the deposit, until the reasons adduced by the
intendant brought it to my view; that as all events can not be prevented, and as
with time and different circumstances various others occur which can not be foreseen,
a just and rational interpretation is always necessary. Notwithstanding the fore-
going, the result of my own reflections, I immediately consulted on the occasion
with my captain-general, whose answer, which can not be long delayed, will dissipate
every doubt that may be raised concerning the steps which are to be takeu. By all
338 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
means your excellency may live in the firm persuasion that as there has subsisted,
and does subsist, the most perfect and constant good harmony between the King,
my master, and the United States of America, I will spare no pains to preserve it
by all the means in my power, being assured of a reciprocity of equal good offices in
observing the treaty with good faith, ever keeping it in view that the felicity and
glory of nations are deeply concerned in the advantages of a wise and prudently
conducted commerce.
I have the honor to assure your excellency of the respect and high consideration
which I profess for you; and I pray the Most High to preserve your life many years.
I kiss your excellency's hands.
Your most affectionate servant,
MANUEL DE SALCEDO.
JANUARY 5, 1803.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Agreeably to the request of the House of Representatives, I now trans-
mit a statement of the militia of those States from which any returns
have been made to the War Office. They are, as you will perceive, but
a small proportion of the whole. I send you also the copy of a circular
letter written some time since for the purpose of obtaining returns from
all the States. Should any others in consequence of this be made during
the session of Congress, they shall be immediately communicated.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 7, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
I submit for your approbation and consent a convention entered into
with the Choctaw Nation of Indians for ascertaining and marking the
limits of the territory ceded to our nation while under its former govern-
ment, and lying between the Tombigbee and Mobile rivers on the east
and the Chickasawhay River on the west.
We are now engaged in ascertaining and marking in like manner the
limits of the former cessions of the Choctaws from the river Yazoo to our
southern boundary, which will be the subject of another convention, and
we expect to obtain from the same nation a new cession of lands of con-
siderable extent between the Tombigbee and Alabama rivers.
These several tracts of country will compose that portion of the Mis-
sissippi Territory which, so soon as certain individual claims are arranged,
the United States will be free to sell and settle immediately.
TH: JEFFERSON
JANUARY n, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The cession of the Spanish Province of Louisiana to France, and per-
haps of the Floridas, and the late suspension of our right of deposit at
New Orleans are events of primary interest to the United States. On
Thomas Jefferson 339
both occasions such measures were promptly taken as were thought most
likely amicably to remove the present and to prevent future causes of
inquietude. The objects of these measures were to obtain the territory
on the left bank of the Mississippi and eastward of that, if practicable, on
conditions to which the proper authorities of our country would agree, or
at least to prevent any changes which might lessen the secure exercise
of our rights. While my confidence in our minister plenipotentiary at
Paris is entire and undiminished, I still think that these objects might be
promoted by joining with him a person sent from hence directly, carrying
with him the feelings and sentiments of the nation excited on the late
occurrence, impressed by full communications of all the views we enter-
tain on this interesting subject, and thus prepared to meet and to improve
to an useful result the counter propositions of the other contracting party,
whatsoever form their interests may give to them, and to secure to us the
ultimate accomplishment of our object.
I therefore nominate Robert R. Livingston to be minister plenipoten-
tiary and James Monroe to be minister extraordinary and plenipotentiary,
with full powers to both jointly, or to either on the death of the other,
to enter into a treaty or convention with the First Consul of France for
the purpose of enlarging and more effectually securing our rights and
interests in the river Mississippi and in the Territories eastward thereof.
But as the possession of these provinces is still in Spain, and the course
of events may retard or prevent the cession to France being carried into
effect, to secure our object it will be expedient to address equal powers
to the Government of Spain also, to be used only in the event of its
being necessary.
I therefore nominate Charles Pinckney to be minister plenipotentiary,
and James Monroe, of Virginia, to be minister extraordinary and plenipo-
tentiary, with full powers to both jointly, or to either on the death of
the other, to enter into a treaty or convention with His Catholic Majesty
for the purpose of enlarging and more effectually securing our rights and
interests in the river Mississippi and in the Territories eastward thereof.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY n, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The spoliations and irregularities committed on our commerce during
the late war by subjects of Spain or by others deemed within her respon-
sibility having called for attention, instructions were accordingly given
to our minister at Madrid to urge our right to just indemnifications, and
to propose a convention for adjusting them. The Spanish Government
listened to our proposition with an honorable readiness and agreed to a
convention, which I now submit for your advice and consent. It does
not go to the satisfaction of all our claims, but the express reservation of
34 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
our right to press the validity of the residue has been made the ground
of further instructions to our minister on the subject of an additional
article, which it is to be hoped will not be without effect.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 18, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
As the continuance of the act for establishing trading houses with the
Indian tribes will be under the consideration of the legislature at its
present session, I think it my duty to communicate the views which have
guided me in the execution of that act, in order that you may decide on
the policy of continuing it in the present or any other form, or discon-
tinue it altogether if that shall, on the whole, seem most for the public
good.
The Indian tribes residing within the limits of the United States have
for a considerable time been growing more and more uneasy at the con-
stant diminution of the territory they occupy, although effected by their
own voluntary sales, and the policy has long been gaining strength with
them of refusing absolutely all further sale on any conditions, insomuch
that at this time it hazards their friendship and excites dangerous jeal-
ousies and perturbations in their minds to make any overture for the
purchase of the smallest portions of their land. A very few tribes only
are not yet obstinately in these dispositions. In order peaceably to coun-
teract this policy of theirs and to provide an extension of territory which
the rapid increase of our numbers will call for, two measures are deemed
expedient. First. To encourage them to abandon hunting, to apply to
the raising stock, to agriculture, and domestic manufacture, and thereby
prove to themselves that less land and labor will maintain them in this
better than in their former mode of living. The extensive forests neces-
sary in the hunting life will then become useless, and they will see advan-
tage in exchanging them for the means of improving their farms and of
increasing their domestic comforts. Secondly. To multiply trading
houses among them, and place within their reach those things which will
contribute more to their domestic comfort than the possession of extensive
but uncultivated wilds. Experience and reflection will develop to them
the wisdom of exchanging what they can spare and we want for what we
can spare and they want. In leading them thus to agriculture, to manu-
factures, and civilization ; in bringing together their and our sentiments,
and in preparing them ultimately to participate in the benefits of our
Government, I trust and believe we are acting for their greatest good.
At these trading houses we have pursued the principles of the act of Con-
gress which directs that the commerce shall be carried on liberally, and
requires only that the capital stock shall not be diminished. We conse-
quently undersell private traders, foreign and domestic, drive them from
T/ionias Jefferson 341
the competition, and thus, with the good will of the Indians, rid ourselves
of a description of men who are constantly endeavoring to excite in the
Indian mind suspicions, fears, and irritations toward us. A letter now
inclosed shows the effect of our competition on the operations of the
traders, while the Indians, perceiving the advantage of purchasing from
Us, are soliciting generally our establishment of trading houses among
them. In one quarter this is particularly interesting. The Legislature,
reflecting on the late occurrences on the Mississippi, must be sensible
how desirable it is to possess a respectable breadth of country on that
river, from our southern limit to the Illinois, at least, so that we may pre-
sent as firm a front on that as on our eastern border. We possess what
is below the Yazoo, and can probably acquire a certain breadth from the
Illinois and Wabash to the Ohio; but between the Ohio and Yazoo the
country all belongs to the Chickasaws, the most friendly tribe within our
limits, but the most decided against the alienation of lands. The portion
of their country most important for us is exactly that which they do not
inhabit. Their settlements are not on the Mississippi, but in the interior
country. They have lately shown a desire to become agricultural, and
this leads to the desire of buying implements and comforts. In the
strengthening and gratifying of these wants I see the only prospect of
planting on the Mississippi itself the means of its own safety. Duty has
required me to submit these views to the judgment of the Legislature,
but as their disclosure might embarrass and defeat their effect, they are
committed to the special confidence of the two Houses.
While the extension of the public commerce among the Indian tribes
may deprive of that source of profit such of our citizens as are engaged
in it, it might be worthy the attention of Congress in their care of indi-
vidual as well as of the general interest to point in another direction
the enterprise of these citizens, as profitably for themselves and more
usefully for the public. The river Missouri and the Indians inhabiting
it are not as well known as is rendered desirable by their connection
with the Mississippi, and consequently with us. It is, however, under-
stood that the country on that river is inhabited by numerous tribes,
who furnish great supplies of furs and peltry to the trade of another
nation, carried on in a high latitude through an infinite number of port-
ages and lakes shut up by ice through a long season. The commerce on
that line could bear no competition with that of the Missouri, traversing
a moderate climate, offering, according to the best accounts, a continued
navigation from its source, and possibly with a single portage from the
Western Ocean, and finding to the Atlantic a choice of channels through
the Illinois or Wabash, the Lakes and Hudson, through the Ohio and Sus-
quehanna, or Potomac or James rivers, and through the Tennessee and
Savannah rivers. An intelligent officer, with ten or twelve chosen men,
fit for the enterprise and willing to undertake it, taken from our posts
where they may be spared without inconvenience, might explore the
342 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
whole line, even to the Western Ocean, have conferences with the natives
on the subject of commercial intercourse, get admission among them for
our traders as others are admitted, agree on convenient deposits for
an interchange of articles, and return with the information acquired
in the course of two summers. Their arms and accouterments, some
instruments of observation, and light and cheap presents for the Indians
would be all the apparatus they could carry, and with an expectation of
a soldier's portion of land on their return would constitute the whole
expense. Their pay would be going on whether here or there. While
other civilized nations have encountered great expense to enlarge the
boundaries of knowledge by undertaking voyages of discovery, and for
other literary purposes, in various parts and directions, our nation seems
to owe to the same object, as well as to its own interests, to explore this
the only line of easy communication across the continent, and so directly
traversing our own part of it. The interests of commerce place the prin-
cipal object within the constitutional powers and care of Congress, and
that it should incidentally advance the geographical knowledge of our
own continent can not but be an additional gratification. The nation
claiming the territory, regarding this as a literary pursuit, which it is in
the habit of permitting within its dominions, would not be disposed to
view it with jealousy, even if the expiring state of its interests there did
not render it a matter of indifference. The appropriation of $2 , 500 ' ' for
the purpose of extending the external commerce of the United States, ' '
while understood and considered by the Executive as giving the legis-
lative sanction, would cover the undertaking from notice and prevent the
obstructions which interested individuals might otherwise previously
prepare in its way.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 18, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I inclose a report of the Secretary of War, stating the trading houses
established in the Indian territories, the progress which has been made
in the course of the last year in settling and marking boundaries with the
different tribes, the purchases of lands recently made from them, and the
prospect of further progress in marking boundaries and in new extin-
guishments of title in the year to come, for which some appropriations
of money will be wanting.
To this I have to add that when the Indians ceded to us the salt springs
on the Wabash they expressed a hope that we would so employ them as
to enable them to procure there the necessary supplies of salt. Indeed,
it would be the most proper and acceptable form in which the annuity
could be paid which we propose to give them for the cession. These
springs might at the same time be rendered eminently serviceable to our
Thomas Jefferson 343
Western inhabitants by using them as the means of counteracting the
monopolies of supplies of salt and of reducing the price in that country
to a just level. For these purposes a small appropriation would be neces-
sary to meet the first expenses, after which they should support them-
selves and repay those advances. These springs are said to possess the
advantage of being accompanied with a bed of coal.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 19, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I now lay before Congress the annual account of the fund established
for defraying the contingent charges of Government. A single article of
$1,440, paid for bringing home 72 seamen discharged in foreign ports
from vessels sold abroad, is the only expenditure from that fund, leaving
an unexpended balance of $18,560 in the Treasury.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 24, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I transmit a report by the superintendent of the city of Washington
on.the affairs of the city committed to his care. By this you will per-
ceive that the resales of lots prescribed by an act of the last session of
Congress did not produce a sufficiency to pay the debt to Maryland to
which they are appropriated, and as it was evident that the sums neces-
sary for the interest and installments due to that State could not be
produced by a sale of the other public lots without an unwarrantable
sacrifice of the property, the deficiencies were of necessity drawn from
the Treasury of the United States.
The office of the surveyor for the city, created during the former estab-
lishment, being of indispensable necessity, it has been continued, and to
that of the superintendent, substituted instead of the board of commis-
sioners at the last session of Congress, no salary was annexed by law.
These offices being permanent, I have supposed it more agreeable to
principle that their salaries should be fixed by the legislature, and there-
fore have assigned them none. Their services to be compensated are
from the ist day of June last.
The marshal of the District of Columbia has, as directed by law, caused
a jail to be built in the city of Washington. I inclose his statements of
the expenses already incurred and of what remains to be finished. The
portion actually completed has rendered the situation of the persons con-
fined much more comfortable and secure than it has been heretofore.
TH: JEFFERSON.
344 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
FEBRUARY 3, 1803.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The inclosed letter and affidavits exhibiting matter of complaint against
John Pickering, district judge of New Hampshire, which is not within
Executive cognizance, I transmit them to the House of Representatives,
to whom the Constitution has confided a power of instituting proceedings
of redress, if they shall be of opinion that the case calls for them.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 14, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives :
In obedience to the ordinance for the government of the Territories of
the United States requiring that the laws adopted by the governor and
judges thereof shall be reported to Congress from time to time, I now
transmit those which have been adopted in the Indiana Territory from
January, 1801, to February, 1802, as forwarded to the office of the Secre-
tary of State.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 21, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
The Tuscarora Indians, having an interest in some lands within the
State of North Carolina, asked the superintendence of the Government
of the United States over a treaty to be held between them and the State
of North Carolina respecting these lands. William Richardson Davie
was appointed a commissioner for this purpose, and a treaty was con-
cluded under his superintendence. This, with his letter on the subject,
is now laid before the Senate for their advice and consent whether it
shall be ratified.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 23, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives:
I lay before you a report of the Secretary of State on the case of the
Danish brigantine Henrick, taken by a French privateer in 1799, retaken
by an armed vessel of the United States, carried into a British island,
and there adjudged to be neutral, but under allowance of such salvage
and costs as absorbed nearly the whole amount of sales of the vessel and
cargo. Indemnification for these losses occasioned by our officers is now
claimed by the sufferers, supported by the representations of their Gov-
ernment. I have no doubt the Legislature will give to the subject that
just attention and consideration which it is useful as well as honorable
Thomas Jefferson 345
to practice in our transactions with other nations, and particularly with
one which has observed toward us the most friendly treatment and
regard.
TH: JEFFERSON.
PROCLAMATION.
[Prom the National Intelligencer, July 18, 1803.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas great and weighty matters claiming the consideration of the
Congress of the United States form an extraordinary occasion for con-
vening them, I do by these presents appoint Monday, the lyth day of
October next, for their meeting at the city of Washington, hereby
requiring their respective Senators and Representatives then and there
to assemble in Congress, in order to receive such communications as may
then be made to them and to consult and determine on such measures
as in their wisdom may be deemed meet for the welfare of the United
States.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to
be hereunto affixed, and signed the same with my hand.
[SEAL.] Done at the city of Washington, the i6th day of July, A. D.
1803, and in the twenty-eighth year of the Independence of
the United States
TH: JEFFERSON.
By the President:
JAMES MADISON,
Secretary.
THIRD ANNUAL MESSAGE.
OCTOBER 17, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In calling you together, fellow-citizens, at an earlier day than was
contemplated by the act of the fast session of Congress, I have not been
insensible to the personal inconveniences necessarily resulting from an
unexpected change in your arrangements. But matters of great public
concernment have rendered this call necessary, and the interests you feel
in these will supersede in your minds all private considerations.
346 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
Congress witnessed at their late session the extraordinary agitation
produced in the public mind by the suspension of our right of deposit at
the port of New Orleans, no assignment of another place having been
made according to treaty. They were sensible that the continuance of
that privation would be more injurious to our nation than any conse-
quences which could flow from any mode of redress, but reposing just
confidence in the good faith of the Government whose officer had com-
mitted the wrong, friendly and reasonable representations were resorted
to, and the right of deposit was restored.
Previous, however, to this period we had not been unaware of the dan-
ger to which our peace would be perpetually exposed whilst so important
a key to the commerce of the Western country remained under foreign
power. Difficulties, too, were presenting themselves as to the naviga-
tion of other streams which, arising within our territories, pass through
those adjacent. Propositions had therefore been authorized for obtain-
ing on fair conditions the sovereignty of New Orleans and of other pos-
sessions in that quarter interesting to our quiet to such extent as was
deemed practicable, and the provisional appropriation of $2,000,000 to
be applied and accounted for by the President of the United States,
intended as part of the price, was considered as conveying the sanction
of Congress to the acquisition proposed. The enlightened Government
of France saw vith just discernment the importance to both nations of
such liberal arrangements as might best and permanently promote the
peace, friendship, and interests of both, and the property and sovereignty
of all Louisiana which had been restored to them have on certain con-
ditions been transferred to the United States by instruments bearing
date the 3oth of April last. When these shall have received the consti-
tutional sanction of the Senate, they will without delay be communicated
to the Representatives also for the exercise of their functions as to those
conditions which are within the powers vested by the Constitution in
Congress.
Whilst the property and sovereignty of the Mississippi and its waters
secure an independent outlet for the produce of the Western States and
an uncontrolled navigation through their whole course, free from collision
with other powers and the dangers to our peace from that source, the
fertility of the country, its climate and extent, promise in due season
important aids to our Treasury, an ample provision for our posterity, and
a wide spread for the blessings of freedom and equal laws.
With the wisdom of Congress it will rest to take those ulterior meas-
ures which may be necessary for the immediate occupation and temporary
government of the country; for its incorporation into our Union; for
rendering the change of government a blessing to our newly adopted
brethren; for securing to them the rights of conscience and of property;
for confirming to the Indian inhabitants their occupancy and self-govern-
ment, establishing friendly and commercial relations with them, and for
Thomas Jefferson 347
ascertaining the geography of the country acquired. Such materials, for
your information, relative to its affairs in general as the short space of
time has permitted me to collect will be laid before you when the subject
shall be in a state for your consideration.
Another important acquisition of territory has also been made since the
last session of Congress. The friendly tribe of Kaskaskia Indians, with
which we have never had a difference, reduced by the wars and wants
of savage life to a few individuals unable to defend themselves against
the neighboring tribes, has transferred its country to the United States,
reserving only for its members what is sufficient to maintain them in an
agricultural way. The considerations stipulated are that we shall extend
to them our patronage and protection and give them certain annual aids
in money, in implements of agriculture, and other articles of their choice.
This country, among the most fertile within our limits, extending along
the Mississippi from the mouth of the Illinois to and up the Ohio, though
not so necessary as a barrier since the acquisition of the other bank, may
yet be well worthy of being laid open to immediate settlement, as its
inhabitants may descend with rapidity in support of the lower country
should future circumstances expose that to foreign enterprise. As the
stipulations in this treaty also involve matters within the competence of
both Houses only, it will be laid before Congress as soon as the Senate
shall have advised its ratification.
With many of the other Indian tribes improvements in agriculture and
household manufacture are advancing, and with all our peace and friend-
ship are established on grounds much firmer than heretofore. The meas-
ure adopted of establishing trading houses among them and of furnishing
them necessaries in exchange for their commodities at such moderate
prices as leave no gain, but cover us from loss, has the most conciliatory
and useful effect on them, and is that which will best secure their peace
and good will.
The small vessels authorized by Congress with a view to the Mediter-
ranean service have been sent into that sea, and will be able more effec-
tually to confine the Tripoline cruisers within their harbors and supersede
the necessity of convoy to our commerce in that quarter. They will sen-
sibly lessen the expenses of that service the ensuing year.
A further knowledge of the ground in the northeastern and north-
western angles of the United States has evinced that the boundaries
established by the treaty of Paris between the British territories and ours
in those parts were too imperfectly described to be susceptible of execu-
tion. It has therefore been thought worthy of attention for preserving
and cherishing the harmony and useful intercourse subsisting between
the two nations to remove by timely arrangements what unfavorable inci-
dents might otherwise render a ground of future misunderstanding. A
convention has therefore been entered into which provides for a practi-
cable demarcation of those limits to the satisfaction of both parties.
348 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
An account of the receipts and expenditures of the year ending the
3Oth of September last, with the estimates for the service of the ensuing
year, will be laid before you by the Secretary of the Treasury so soon as
the receipts of the last quarter shall be returned from the more distant
States. It is already ascertained that the amount paid into the Treasury
for that year has been between $11,000,000 and $12,000,000, and that
the revenue accrued during the same term exceeds the sum counted on
as sufficient for our current expenses and to extinguish the public debt
within the period heretofore proposed.
The amount of debt paid for the same year is about $3, 100,000, exclu-
sive of interest, and making, with the payment of the preceding year, a
discharge of more than $8,500,000 of the principal of that debt, besides
the accruing interest; and there remain in the Treasury nearly $6,000,000.
Of these, $880,000 have been reserved f or payment of the first installment
iue under the British convention of January 8, 1802, and two millions
are what have been before mentioned as placed by Congress under the
power and accountability of the President toward the price of New Or-
leans and other territories acquired, which, remaining untouched, are still
applicable to that object and go in diminution of the sum to be funded
for it.
Should the acquisition of Louisiana be constitutionally confirmed and
carried into effect, a sum of nearly $13,000,000 will then be added to our
public debt, most of which is payable after fifteen years, before which
term the present existing debts will all be discharged by the established
operation of the sinking fund. When we contemplate the ordinary
annual augmentation of impost from increasing population and wealth,
the augmentation of the same revenue by its extension to the new acqui-
sition, and the economies which may still be introduced into our pub-
lic expenditures, I can not but hope that Congress in reviewing their
resources will find means to meet the intermediate interest of this addi-
tional debt without recurring to new taxes, and applying to this object
only the ordinary progression of our revenue. Its extraordinary increase
in times of foreign war will be the proper and sufficient fund for any
measures of safety or precaution which that state of things may render
necessary in our neutral position.
Remittances for the installments of our foreign debt having been found
practicable without loss, it has not been thought expedient to use the
power given by a former act of Congress of continuing them by reloans,
and of redeeming instead thereof equal sums of domestic debt, although
no difficulty was found in obtaining that accommodation.
The sum of $50,000 appropriated by Congress for providing gunboats
remains unexpended. The favorable and peaceable turn of affairs on the
Mississippi rendered an immediate execution of that law unnecessary,
and time was desirable in order that the institution of that branch of our
force might begin on models the most approved by experience. The
Thomas Jefferson 349
same issue of events dispensed with a resort to the appropriation of
$1,500,000, contemplated for purposes which were effected by happier
means.
We have seen with sincere concern the flames of war lighted up again
in Europe, and nations with which we have the most friendly and useful
relations engaged in mutual destruction. While we regret the miseries
in which we see others involved, let us bow with gratitude to that kind
Providence which, inspiring with wisdom and moderation our late legis-
lative councils while placed under the urgency of the greatest wrongs,
guarded us from hastily entering into the sanguinary contest and left us
only to look on and to pity its ravages. These will be heaviest on those
immediately engaged. Yet the nations pursuing peace will not be ex-
empt from all evil. In the course of this conflict let it be our endeavor,
as it is our interest and desire, to cultivate the friendship of the bellig-
erent nations by every act of justice and of innocent kindness; to receive
their armed vessels with hospitality from the distresses of the sea, but to
administer the means of annoyance to none; to establish in our harbors
such a police as may maintain law and order; to restrain our citizens
from embarking individually in a war in which their country takes no
part; to punish severely those persons, citizen or alien, who shall usurp
the cover of our flag for vessels not entitled to it, infecting thereby with
suspicion those of real Americans and committing us into controver-
sies for the redress of wrongs not our own; to exact from every nation
the observance toward our vessels and citizens of those principles and
practices which all civilized people acknowledge; to merit the character
of a just nation, and maintain that of an independent one, preferring
every consequence to insult and habitual wrong. Congress will consider
whether the existing laws enable us efficaciously to maintain this course
with our citizens in all places and with others while within the limits of
our jurisdiction, and will give them the new modifications necessary for
these objects. Some contraventions of right have already taken place,
both within our jurisdictional limits and on the high seas. The friendly
disposition of the Governments from whose agents they have proceeded,
as well as their wisdom and regard for justice, leave us in reasonable expec-
tation that they will be rectified and prevented in future, and that no
act will be countenanced by them which threatens to disturb our friendly
intercourse. Separated by a wide ocean from the nations of Europe
and from the political interests which entangle them together, with pro-
ductions and wants which render our commerce and friendship useful to
them and theirs to us, it can not be the interest of any to assail us, nor
ours to disturb them. We should be most unwise, indeed, were we to
cast away the singular blessings of the position in which nature has
placed us, the opportunity she has endowed us with of pursuing, at a
distance from foreign contentions, the paths of industry, peace, and
happiness, of cultivating general friendship, and of bringing collisions
350 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
of interest to the umpirage of reason rather than of force. How desir-
able, then, must it be in a Government like ours to see its citizens adopt
individually the views, the interests, and the conduct which their country
should pursue, divesting themselves of those passions and partialities
which tend to lessen useful friendships and to embarrass and embroil us
in the calamitous scenes of Europe. Confident, fellow-citizens, that you
will duly estimate the importance of neutral dispositions toward the
observance of neutral conduct, that you will be sensible how much it is
our duty to look on the bloody arena spread before us with commisera-
tion indeed, but with no other wish than to see it closed, I am persuaded
you will cordially cherish these dispositions in all discussions among
yourselves and in all communications with your constituents; and I
anticipate with satisfaction the measures of wisdom which the great inter-
ests now committed to you will give you an opportunity of providing,
and myself that of approving and of carrying into execution with the
fidelity I owe to my country.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
OCTOBER 17, 1803.
Gentlemen of the Senate:
In my message of this day to both Houses of Congress I explained the
circumstances which had led to the conclusion of conventions with France
for the cession of the Province of Louisiana to the United States. Those
conventions are now laid before you with such communications relating
to them as may assist in deciding whether you will advise and consent to
their ratification.
The ratification of the First Consul of France is in the hands of his
charge" d'affaires here, to be exchanged for that of the United States
whensoever, before the 3oth instant, it shall be in readiness.
TH: JEFFERSON.
OCTOBER 21, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In my communication to you of the lyth instant I informed you that
conventions had been entered into with the Government of France for
the cession of Louisiana to the United States. These, with the advice
and consent of the Senate, having now been ratified and my ratifica-
tion exchanged for that of the First Consul of France in due form, they
are communicated to you for consideration in your legislative capacity.
You will observe that some important conditions can not be carried into
FULTON'S CLERMONT AND THE IMPERATOR.
The Clermont, as shown in the upper panel, was about the size of an ordi-
nary river tugboat. By comparing it with the Inipcrator (in 1914, the largest
ship afloat), some idea may be obtained of the relative power of Fulton's
feeble craft and the ocean steamer of to-day.
Every patriotic American must regret that eighty per cent of the vessels
seen in our harbors are foreign-owned. The problem of restoring our mer-
chant marine to its former high place in the commerce of the world has been
frequently and fully discussed by our Presidents. Let us hope that some
day we will not have to depend on foreign nations for our shipping, but thnt
American goods will be transported in American-built and American-owned
bottoms. (See "Commerce" in the encyclopedic index.)
Thomas Jefferson 351
execution but with the aid of the Legislature, and that time presses a
decision on them without delay.
The ulterior provisions, also suggested in the same communication, for
the occupation and government of the country will call for early atten-
tion. Such information relative to its government as time and distance
have permitted me to obtain will be ready to be laid before you within a
few days; but as permanent arrangements for this object may require
time and deliberation, it is for your consideration whether you will not
forthwith make such temporary provisions for the preservation in the
meanwhile of order and tranquillity in the country as the case may
require.
TH: JEFFERSON.
OCTOBER 24, 1803.
To the Senate of the United States.'
I lay before you the convention signed on the i2th day of May last
between the United States and Great Britain for settling their boundaries
in the northeastern and northwestern parts of the United States, which
was mentioned in my general message of the lyth instant, together with
such papers relating thereto as may enable you to determine whether
you will advise and consent to its ratification.
TH: JEFFERSON.
OCTOBER 31, 1803.
To the Senate of the United States of America:
I now lay before you the treaty mentioned in my general message at
the opening of the session as having been concluded with the Kaskaskia
Indians for the transfer of their country to us under certain reservations
and conditions.
Progress having been made in the demarcation of Indian boundaries, I
am now able to communicate to you a treaty with the Delawares, Shawa-
nese, Potawatamies, Miamis, Eel-rivers, Weeas, Kickapoos, Piankeshaws,
and Kaskaskias, establishing the boundaries of the territory around St.
Vincennes.
Also a supplementary treaty with the Eel-rivers, Wyandots, Pianke-
shaws, Kaskaskias, and Kickapoos, in confirmation of the fourth article
of the preceding treaty.
Also a treaty with the Choctaws, describing and establishing our
demarcation of boundaries with them.
Which several treaties are accompanied by the papers relating to them,
and are now submitted to the Senate for consideration whether they will
advise and consent to their ratification.
TH: JEFFERSON.
13
35 2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
NOVEMBER 4, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
By the copy now communicated of a letter from Captain Bainbridge,
of the Philadelphia frigate, to our consul at Gibraltar, you will learn that
an act of hostility has been committed on a merchant vessel of the United
States by an armed ship of the Emperor of Morocco. This conduct on
the part of that power is without cause and without explanation. It is
fortunate that Captain Bainbridge fell in with and took the capturing
vessel and her prize, and I have the satisfaction to inform you that about
the date of this transaction such a force would be arriving in the neigh-
borhood of Gibraltar, both from the east and from the west, as leaves less
to be feared for our commerce from the suddenness of the aggression.
On the 4th of September the Constitution frigate, Captain Preble, with
Mr. Lear on board, was within two days' sail of Gibraltar, where the
Philadelphia would then be arrived with her prize, and such explanations
would probably be instituted as the state of things required, and as might
perhaps arrest the progress of hostilities.
In the meanwhile it is for Congress to consider the provisional author-
ities which may be necessary to restrain the depredations of this power
should they be continued,
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 14, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now communicate a digest of the information I have received relative
to Louisiana, which may be useful to the Legislature in providing for the
government of the country. A translation of the most important laws
in force in that province, now in press, shall be the subject of a supple-
mentary communication, with such further and material information as
may yet come to hand.
TH; JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 24, 1803.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
In conformity with the desire expressed in the resolution of the House
of Representatives of the i5th instant, I now lay before them copies of
such documents as are in possession of the Executive relative to the
arrest and confinement of Zachariah Cox by officers in the service of the
United States in the year 1798. From the nature of the transaction
some documents relative to it might have been expected from the War
Office; but if any ever existed there they were probably lost when the
ffice and its papers were consumed by fire.
TIJ: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 353
NOVEMBER 25, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The treaty with the Kaskaskia Indians being ratified with the advice
and consent of the Senate, it is now laid before both Houses in their
legislative capacity. It will inform them of the obligations which the
United States thereby contract, and particularly that of taking the tribe
under their future protection, and that the ceded country is submitted
to their immediate possession and disposal.
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 29, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now communicate an appendix to the information heretofore given
on the subject of Louisiana. You will be sensible, from the face of
these papers, as well as of those to which they are a sequel, that they are
not and could not be official, but are furnished by different individuals
as the result of the best inquiries they had been able to make, and now
given as received from them, only digested under heads to prevent repe-
titions.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 5, 1803.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I have the satisfaction to inform you that the act of hostility men-
tioned in my message of the 4th of November to have been committed
by a cruiser of the Emperor of Morocco on a vessel of the United States
has been disavowed by the Emperor. All differences in consequence
thereof have been amicably adjusted, and the treaty of 1786 between
this country and that has been recognized and confirmed by the Em-
peror, each party restoring to the other what had been detained or taken.
I inclose the Emperor's orders given on this occasion.
The conduct of our officers generally who have had a part in these
transactions has merited entire approbation.
The temperate and correct course pursued by our consul, Mr. Simp-
son, the promptitude and energy of Commodore Preble, the efficacious
cooperation of Captains Rodgers and Campbell, of the returning squad-
ron, the proper decision of Captain Bainbridge that a vessel which had
committed an open hostility was of right to be detained for inquiry and
consideration, and the general zeal of the other officers and men are
honorable facts which I make known with pleasure. And to these I add
what was indeed transacted in another quarter the gallant enterprise of
Captain Rodgers in destroying on the coast of Tripoli a corvette of that
power of 22 guns.
354 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
I recommend to the consideration of Congress a just indemnification
for the interest acquired by the captors of the Mishouda and Mir bo ha,
yielded by them for the public accommodation.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 5, 1803.
To the Senate of the United States:
In compliance with the desire of the Senate expressed in their resolu-
tion of the 22d of November, on the impressment of seamen in the service
of the United States by the agents of foreign nations, I now lay before
the Senate a letter from the Secretary of State with a specification of the
cases of which information has been received.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 21, 1803.
To the Senate of the United States:
On the nth of January last I laid before the Senate, for their consid-
eration and advice, a convention with Spain on the subject of indemnities
for spoliations on our commerce committed by her subjects during the
late war, which convention is still before the Senate. As this instru-
ment did not embrace French seizures and condemnations of our vessels
in the ports of Spain, for which we deemed the latter power responsible,
our minister at that Court was instructed to press for an additional article,
comprehending that branch of wrongs. I now communicate what has
since passed on that subject. The Senate will judge whether the pros-
pect it offers will justify a longer suspension of that portion of indem-
nities conceded by Spain should she now take no advantage of the lapse
of the period for ratification. As the settlement of the boundaries of
Louisiana will call for new negotiations on our receiving possession of
that Province, the claims not obtained by the convention now before the
Senate may be incorporated into those discussions.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 3 1, 1803.
73? the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now lay before Congress the annual account of the fund established
for defraying the contingent charges of Government. No occasion hav-
ing arisen for making use of any part of it in the present year, the balance
of $18,560 unexpended at the end of the last year remains now in the
Treasury.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 355
JANUARY 16, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In execution of the act of the present session of Congress for taking
possession of Louisiana, as ceded to us by France, and for the temporary
government thereof, Governor Claiborne, of the Mississippi Territory,
and General Wilkinson were appointed commissioners to receive posses-
sion. They proceeded with such regular troops as had been assembled
at Fort Adams from the nearest posts and with some militia of the Mis-
sissippi Territory to New Orleans. To be prepared for anything unex-
pected which might arise out of the transaction, a respectable body of
militia was ordered to be in readiness in the States of Ohio, Kentucky,
and Tennessee, and a part of those of Tennessee was moved on to the
Natchez. No occasion, however, arose for their services. Our commis-
sioners, on their arrival at New Orleans, found the Province already
delivered by the commissioners of Spain to that of France, who delivered
it over to them on the 2oth day of December, as appears by their declara-
tory act accompanying this. Governor Claiborne, being duly invested
with the powers heretofore exercised by the governor and intendant
of Louisiana, assumed the government on the same day, and for the
maintenance of law and order immediately issued the proclamation and
address now communicated.
On this important acquisition, so favorable to the immediate interests
of our Western citizens, so auspicious to the peace and security of the
nation in general, which adds to our country territories so extensive and
fertile and to our citizens new brethren to partake of the blessings of
freedom and self-government, I offer to Congress and our country my
sincere congratulations,
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 24, 1804.
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:
I communicate for your information a letter just received from Gov-
ernor Claiborne, which may throw light on the subject of the government
of Louisiana, under contemplation of the Legislature. The paper being
original, a return is asked,
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 16, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Information having been received some time ago that the public lands
in the neighborhood of Detroit required particular attention, the agent
appointed to transact business with the Indians in that quarter was
356 Message* and Papers of the Presidents
instructed to inquire into and report the situation of the titles and occu
pation of the lauds, private and public, in the neighboring settlements.
His report is now communicated, that the Legislature may judge how far
its interposition is necessary to quiet the legal titles, confirm the equitable,
to remove the past and prevent future intrusions which have neither
law nor justice for the basis.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 22, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate to Congress, for their information, a report of the sur-
veyor of the public buildings at Washington, stating what has been done
under the act of the last session concerning the city of Washington on
foe Capitol and other public buildings, and the highway between them.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 29, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate, for the information of Congress, a letter stating certain
fraudulent practices for monopolizing lands in Louisiana, which may per-
haps require legislative provisions.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 20, 1804
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate to Congress a letter received from Captain Bainbridge,
commander of the Philadelphia frigate, informing us of the wreck of
that vessel on the coast of Tripoli, and that himself, his officers and men,
had fallen into the hands of the Tripoli tans. This accident renders it
expedient to increase our force and enlarge our expenses in the Medi-
terranean beyond what the last appropriation for the naval service con-
templated. I recommend, therefore, to the consideration of Congress such
an addition to that appropriation as they may think the exigency requires.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 22, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I lay before Congress the last returns of the militia of the United
States. Their incompleteness is much to be regretted, and its remedy
may at some future time be a subject worthy the attention of Congress.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 357
PROCLAMATION.
[Prom Annals of Congress, Eighth Congress, second session, 1234.]
To all whom these presents shall come:
Whereas by an act of Congress authority has been given to the Presi-
dent of the United States, whenever he shall deem it expedient, to erect
the shores, waters, and inlets of the bay and river of Mobile, and of the
other rivers, creeks, inlets, and bays emptying into the Gulf of Mexico
east of the said river Mobile and west thereof to the Pascagoula, inclu-
sive, into a separate district for the collection of duties on imports and
tonnage; and to establish such place within the same as he shall deem it
expedient to be the port of entry and delivery for such district; and to
designate such other places within the same district, not exceeding 'two,
to be ports of delivery only:
Now know ye that I, Thomas Jefferson, President of the United
States, do hereby decide that all the above-mentioned shores, waters,
inlets, creeks, and rivers lying within the boundaries of the United
States shall constitute and form a separate district, to be denominated
"the district of Mobile;" and do also designate Fort Stoddert, within
the district aforesaid, to be the port of entry and delivery for the said
district.
Given under my hand this 2oth day of May, 1804,
TH: JEFFERSON.
FOURTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.
NOVEMBER 8, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
To a people, fellow-citizens, who sincerely desire the happiness and
prosperity of other nations; to those who justly calculate that their own
well-being is advanced by that of the nations with which they have
intercourse, it will be a satisfaction to observe that the war which was
lighted up in Europe a little before our last meeting has not yet extended
its flames to other nations, nor been marked by the calamities which
sometimes stain the footsteps of war. The irregularities, too, on the
ocean, which generally harass the commerce of neutral nations, have, in
distant parts, disturbed ours less than on former occasions; but in the
American seas they have been greater from peculiar causes, and even
within our harbors and jurisdiction infringements on the authority of
the laws have been committed which have called for serious attention.
35 8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
The friendly conduct of the Governments from whose officers and sub-
jects these acts have proceeded, in other respects and in places more
under their observation and control, gives us confidence that our repre-
sentations on this subject will have been properly regarded.
While noticing the irregularities committed on the ocean by others,
those on our own part should not be omitted nor left unprovided for.
Complaints have been received that persons residing within the United
States have taken on themselves to arm merchant vessels and to force a
commerce into certain ports and countries in defiance of the laws of those
countries. That individuals should undertake to wage private war, inde-
pendently of the authority of their country, can not be permitted in a
well-ordered society. Its tendency to produce aggression on the laws
and rights of other nations and to endanger the peace of our own is so
obvious that I doubt not you will adopt measures for restraining it effec-
tually in future.
Soon after the passage of the act of the last session authorizing the
establishment of a district and port of entry on the waters of the Mobile
we learnt that its object was misunderstood on the part of Spain. Candid
explanations were immediately given and assurances that, reserving our
claims in that quarter as a subject of discussion and arrangement with
Spain, no act was meditated in the meantime inconsistent with the peace
and friendship existing between the two nations, and that conformably to
these intentions would be the execution of the law. That Government
had, however, thought proper to suspend the ratification of the conven-
tion of 1802; but the explanations which would reach them soon after,
and still more the confirmation of them by the tenor of the instrument
establishing the port and district, may reasonably be expected to replace
them in the dispositions and views of the whole subject which originally
dictated the convention.
I have the satisfaction to inform you that the objections which had
been urged by that Government against the validity of our title to the
country of Louisiana have been withdrawn, its exact limits, however,
remaining still to be settled between us; and to this is to be added that,
having prepared and delivered the stock created in execution of the con-
vention of Paris of April 30, 1803, in consideration of the cession of that
country, we have received from the Government of France an acknowl-
edgment, in due form, of the fulfillment of that stipulation.
With the nations of Europe in general our friendship and intercourse
are undisturbed, and from the Governments of the belligerent powers
especially we continue to receive those friendly manifestations which are
justly due to an honest neutrality and to such good offices consistent
with that as we have opportunities of rendering.
The activity and success of the small force employed in the Mediterra-
nean in the early part of the present year, the reenforcements sent into
that sea, and the energy of the officers having command in the several
Thomas Jefferson 359
vessels will, I trust, by the sufferings of war, reduce the barbarians of
Tripoli to the desire of peace on proper terms. Great injury, however,
ensues to ourselves, as well as to others interested, from the distance to
which prizes must be brought for adjudication and from the impractica-
bility of bringing hither such as are not seaworthy.
The Bey of Tunis having made requisitions unauthorized by our treaty,
their rejection has produced from him some expressions of discontent.
But to those who expect us to calculate whether a compliance with unjust
demands will not cost us less than a war we must leave as a question of
calculation for them also whether to retire from unjust demands will not
cost them less than a war. We can do to each other very sensible injuries
by war, but the mutual advantages of peace make that the best interest
of both.
Peace and intercourse with the other powers on the same coast con-
tinue on the footing on which they are established by treaty.
In pursuance of the act providing for the temporary government of Loui-
siana, the necessary officers for the Territory of Orleans were appointed in
due time to commence the exercise of their functions on the ist day of
October. The distance, however, of some of them and indispensable
previous arrangements may have retarded its commencement in some
of its parts. The form of government thus provided having been consid-
ered but as temporary, and open to such future improvements as further
information of the circumstances of our brethren there might suggest, it
will of course be subject to your consideration.
In the district of Louisiana it has been thought best to adopt the
division into subordinate districts which had been established under its
former government. These being five in number, a commanding officer
has been appointed to each, according to the provisions of the law, and so
soon as they can be at their stations that district will also be in its due
state of organization. In the meantime their places are supplied by the
officers before commanding there. And the functions of the governor
and judges of Indiana having commenced, the government, we presume,
is proceeding in its new form. The lead mines in that district offer so
rich a supply of that metal as to merit attention. The report now com-
municated will inform you of their state and of the necessity of imme-
diate inquiry into their occupation and titles.
With the Indian tribes established within our newly acquired limits, I
have deemed it necessary to open conferences for the purpose of estab-
lishing a good understanding and neighborly relations between us. So
far as we have yet learned, we have reason to believe that their disposi-
tions are generally favorable and friendly; and with these dispositions on
their part, we have in our own hands means which can not fail us for pre-
serving their peace and friendship. By pursuing an uniform course of
justice toward them, by aiding them in all the improvements which may
better their condition, and especially by establishing a commerce on terms
360 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
which shall be advantageous to them and only not losing to us, and so
regulated as that no incendiaries of our own or any other nation may be
permitted to disturb the natural effects of our just and friendly offices,
we may render ourselves so necessary to their comfort and prosperity
that the protection of our citizens from their disorderly members will
become their interest and their voluntary care. Instead, therefore, of
an augmentation of military force proportioned to our extension of fron-
tier, I propose a moderate enlargement of the capital employed in that
commerce as a more effectual, economical, and humane instrument for
preserving peace and good neighborhood with them.
On this side the Mississippi an important relinquishment of native title
has been received from the Delawares. That tribe, desiring to extin-
guish in their people the spirit of hunting and to convert superfluous
lands into the means of improving what they retain, has ceded to us
all the country between the Wabash and Ohio south of and including
the road from the rapids toward Vincennes, for which they are to receive
annuities in animals and implements for agriculture and in other neces-
saries. This acquisition is important, not only for its extent and fertility,
but as fronting 300 miles on the Ohio, and near half that on the Wabash.
The produce of the settled country descending those rivers will no longer
pass in review of the Indian frontier but in a small portion, and, with
the cession heretofore made by the Kaskaskias, nearly consolidates our
possessions north of the Ohio, in a very respectable breadth from Lake
Erie to the Mississippi. The Piankeshaws having some claim to the coun-
try ceded by the Delawares, it has been thought best to quiet that by fair
purchase also. So soon as the treaties on this subject shall have received
their constitutional sanctions they shall be laid before both Houses.
The act of Congress of February 28, 1803, for building and employing
a number of gunboats, is now in a course of execution to the extent there
provided for. The obstacle to naval enterprise which vessels of this
construction offer for our seaport towns, their utility toward supporting
within our waters the authority of the laws, the promptness with which
they will be manned by the seamen and militia of the place in the moment
they are wanting, the facility of their assembling from different parts
of the coast to any point where they are required in greater force than
ordinary, the economy of their maintenance and preservation from decay
when not in actual service, and the competence of our finances to this
defensive provision without any new burthen are considerations which
will have due weight with Congress in deciding on the expediency of
adding to their number from year to year, as experience shall test their
utility, until all our important harbors, by these and auxiliary means,
shall be secured against insult and opposition to the laws.
No circumstance has arisen since your last session which calls for any
augmentation of our regular military force. Should any improvement
occur in the militia system, that will be always seasonable.
Thomas Jefferson 361
Accounts of the receipts and expenditures of the last year, with esti-
mates for the ensuing one, will as usual be laid before you.
The state of our finances continues to fulfill our expectations. Eleven
millions and a half of dollars, received in the course of the year ending
the 30th of September last, have enabled us, after meeting all the ordi-
nary expenses of the year, to pay upward of $3,600,000 of the public
debt, exclusive of interest. This payment, with those of the two preced-
ing years, has extinguished upward of twelve millions of the principal
and a greater sum of interest within that period, and by a proportionate
diminution of interest renders already sensible the effect of the growing
sum yearly applicable to the discharge of the principal.
It is also ascertained that the revenue accrued during the last year
exceeds that of the preceding, and the probable receipts of the ensuing
year may safely be relied on as sufficient, with the sum already in the
Treasury, to meet all the current demands of the year, to discharge up-
ward of three millions and a half of the engagements incurred under the
British and French conventions, and to advance in the further redemption
of the funded debt as rapidly as had been contemplated. These, fellow-
citizens, are the principal matters which I have thought it necessary at
this time to communicate for your consideration and attention. Some
others will be laid before you in the course of the session; but in the dis-
charge of the great duties confided to you by our country you will take
a broader view of the field of legislation. Whether the great interests of
agriculture, manufactures, commerce, or navigation can within the pale
of your constitutional powers be aided in any of their relations; whether
laws are provided in all cases where they are wanting; whether those
provided are exactly what they should be; whether any abuses take place
in their administration, or in that of the public revenues; whether the
organization of the public agents or of the public force is perfect in all
its parts; in fine, whether anything can be done to advance the general
good, are questions within the limits of your functions which will neces-
sarily occupy your attention. In these and all other matters which you
in your wisdom may propose for the good of our country you may count
with assurance on my hearty cooperation and faithful execution.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
NOVEMBER 15, 1804.
To the Senate of the United States:
I now lay before you a treaty, entered into on the i8th day of August
of the present year, between the United States on one part and the Dela-
ware Indians on the other, for the extinguishment of their title to a tract
of country between the Ohio and Wabash rivers.
362 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
And another of the 2yth day of the same month, between the United
States and the Piankeshaws, for a confirmation of the same by the latter,
together with a letter from Governor Harrison on the same subject; which
treaties are submitted for your advice and consent.
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 15, 1804.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
Agreeably to your resolution of the gth instant, I now lay before you a
statement of the circumstances attending the destruction of the frigate
Philadelphia, with the names of the officers and the number of men em-
ployed on the occasion, to which I have to add that Lieutenant Decatur
was thereupon advanced to be a captain in the Navy of the United
States.
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 30, 1804.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now lay before you copies of the treaties concluded with the Dela-
ware and Piankeshaw Indians for the extinguishment of their title to the
lands therein described, and I recommend to the consideration of Congress
the making provision by law for carrying them into execution.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 13, 1804.
To the Senate of the United States:
I present for your advice a treaty entered into on behalf of the United
States with the Creek Indians for the extinguishment of their right in
certain lands in the forks of Oconee and Okmulgee rivers, within the
State of Georgia. For the purpose of enabling you to form a satisfac-
tory judgment on the subject, it is accompanied with the instructions of
1802, April 12, to James Wilkinson, Benjamin Hawkins, and Andrew
Pickens, commissioners; those of 1803, May 5, to James Wilkinson, Ben-
jamin Hawkins, and Robert Anderson, commissioners, and those of 1804,
April 2, to Benjamin Hawkins, sole commissioner. The negotiations for
obtaining the whole of the lands between the Oconee and Okmulgee have
now been continued through three successive seasons under the original
instructions and others supplementary to them given from time to time,
as circumstances required, and the unity of the negotiation has been pre-
served not only by the subject, but by continuing Colonel Hawkins always
one of the commissioners, and latterly the sole one. The extent of the
cession to be obtained being uncertain, the limitation of price was what
should be thought reasonable according to the usual rate of compensation.
The commissioner has been induced to go beyond this limit probably by
Thomas Jefferson 363
the just attentions due to the strong Interest which the State of Georgia
feels in making this particular acquisition, and by a despair of procuring
it on more reasonable terms from a tribe which is one of those most fixed
in the policy of holding fast their lands. To this may be added that if,
by an alteration in the first article, instead of giving them stock which
may be passed into other hands and render them the prey of speculators,
an annuity shall be paid them in this case, as has hitherto been practiced
in all similar cases, the price of these lands will become a pledge and
guaranty for our future peace with this important tribe, and eventually
an indemnity for the breach of it.
On the whole, I rest with entire satisfaction on the wisdom and counsel
of those whose sanctions the Constitution has rendered necessary to the
final validity of this act.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 31, 1804.
To tJie Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The inclosed letter, written from Malta by Richard O'Brien, our late
consul at Algiers, giving some details of transactions before Tripoli, is
communicated for the information of Congress.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 31, 1804.
To the Senate of the United States:
Most of the Indians residing within our northern boundary on this
side of the Mississippi receiving from us annual aids in money and nec-
essaries, it was a subject of complaint with the Sacs that they received
nothing and were connected with us by no treaty. As they owned the
country in the neighborhood of our settlements of Kaskaskia and St.
Louis, it was thought expedient to engage their friendship, and Governor
Harrison was accordingly instructed in June last to propose to them an
annuity of $500 or $600, stipulating in return an adequate cession of
territory and an exact definition of boundaries. The Sacs and Foxes
acting generally as one nation, and coming forward together, he found it
necessary to add an annuity for the latter tribe also, enlarging proportion-
ably the cession of territory, which was accordingly done by the treaty
now communicated, of November the 3d, with those two tribes.
This cession, giving us a perfect title to such a breadth of country on
the eastern side of the Mississippi, with a command of the Ouisconsin,
strengthens our means of retaining exclusive commerce with the Indians
on the western side of the Mississippi a right indispensable to the policy
of governing those Indians by commerce rather than by arms.
The treaty is now submitted to the Senate for their advice and consent.
TH: JEFFERSON.
364 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
JANUARY 31, 1805.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
In compliance with the desire of the House of Representatives, ex-
pressed in their resolution of yesterday, I have to inform them that by
a letter of the 3oth of May last from the Secretary of War to Samuel
Hammond, a member of the House, it was proposed to. him to accept a
commission of colonel-commandant for the district of Louisiana when
the new government there should commence. By a letter of the 3oth of
June he signified a willingness to accept, but still more definitively by
one of October 26, a copy of which is therefore now communicated.
A commission had been made out for him bearing date the ist day of
October last, and forwarded before the receipt of his letter of October 26.
No later communication has been received from him, nor is anything
later known of his movements.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY i, 1805.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
For some weeks past I have had reason to expect by every mail from
New Orleans information which would have fully met the views of the
House of Representatives, expressed in their resolution of December 31,
on the subject of a post-road from the city of Washington to New
Orleans; but this being not yet received, I think it my 'duty without fur-
ther delay to communicate to the House the information I possess, how-
ever imperfect.
Isaac Briggs, one of the surveyors-general of the United States, being
about to return in July last to his station at Natchez, and apprised of the
anxiety existing to have a practicable road explored for forwarding the
mail to New Orleans without crossing the mountains, offered his serv-
ices voluntarily to return by the route contemplated, taking as he should
go such observations of longitude and latitude as would enable him to
delineate it exactly, and by protraction to show of what shortenings it
would admit. The offer was accepted and he was furnished with an accu-
rate sextant for his observations. The route proposed was from Wash-
ington by Fredericksburg, Cartersville, Lower Sauratown, Salisbury,
Franklin Court-House in Georgia, Tuckabachee, Fort Stoddert, and the
mouth of Pearl River to New Orleans. It is believed he followed this
route generally, deviating at times only for special purposes, and return-
ing again into it. His letters, herewith communicated, will shew his
opinion to have been, after completing his journey, that the practicable
distance between Washington and New Orleans will be a little over 1,000
miles. He expected to forward his map and special report within one week
from the date of his last letter, but a letter of December 10, from another
person, informs me he had been unwell, but would forward them within a
Thomas Jefferson 365
wreck from that time. So soon as they shall be received they shall be
communicated to the House of Representatives.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 5, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The Secretary of State has lately received a note from the Danish
charg6 d'affaires, claiming, in the name of his Government, restitution in
the case of the brig ff enrich, communicated to Congress at a former ses-
sion, in which note were transmitted sundry documents chiefly relating to
the value and neutral character of the vessel, and to the question whether
the judicial proceedings were instituted and conducted without the concur-
rence of the captain of the Henrich. As these documents appear to form
a necessary appendage to those already before Congress, and throw addi-
tional light on the subject, I transmit copies of them herewith.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 13, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In the message to Congress at the opening of the present session I
informed them that treaties had been entered into with the Delaware
and Piankeshaw Indians for the purchase of their right to certain lands
on the Ohio. I have since received another, entered into with the Sacs
and Foxes, for a portion of country on both sides of the river Missis-
sippi. These treaties, having been advised and consented to by the Sen-
ate, have accordingly been ratified, but as they involve conditions which
require legislative provision, they are now submitted to both branches
for consideration.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 20, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate, for the information of Congress, a letter of September
1 8 from Commodore Preble, giving a detailed account of the transactions
of the vessels under his command from July the gth to the loth of Sep-
tember last past.
The energy and judgment displayed by this excellent officer through
the whole course of the service lately confided to him and the zeal and
valor of his officers and men in the several enterprises executed by them
can not fail to give high satisfaction to Congress and their country, of
whom they have deserved well.
TH: JEFFERSON.
366 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
FEBRUARY 28, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now lay before Congress a statement of the militia of the United
States, according to the returns last received from the several States. It
will be perceived that some of these are not of recent dates, and that from
the States of Maryland, Delaware, and Tennessee no returns are stated.
As far as appears from our records, none were ever rendered from either
of these States.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 28, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now render to Congress the account of the fund established by the
act of May i, 1802, for defraying the contingent charges of Government.
No occasion having arisen for making use of any part of the balance of
$18,560 unexpended on the 3ist day of December, 1803, when the last
account was rendered by message, that balance has been carried to the
credit of the surplus fund.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
Proceeding, fellow-citizens, to that qualification which the Constitution
requires before my entrance on the charge again conferred on me, it is
my duty to express the deep sense I entertain of this new proof of confi-
dence from my fellow-citizens at large, and the zeal with which it inspires
me so to conduct myself as may best satisfy their just expectations.
On taking this station on a former occasion I declared the principles
on which I believed it my duty to administer the affairs of our Common-
wealth. My conscience tells me I have on every occasion acted up to
that declaration according to its obvious import and to the understand-
ing of every candid mind.
In the transaction of your foreign affairs we have endeavored to culti-
vate the friendship of all nations, and especially of those with which we
have the most important relations. We have done them justice on all
occasions, favored where favor was lawful, and cherished mutual interests
and intercourse on fair and equal terms. We are firmly convinced, and
we act on that conviction, that with nations as with individuals our inter-
ests soundly calculated will ever be found inseparable from our moral
duties, and history bears witness to the fact that a just nation is trusted
on its word when recourse is had to armaments and wars to bridle others.
At home, fellow-citizens, you best know whether we have done well
PAUL JONES CAPTURES THE SERAPIS
JOHN* 1'AL'I. JONES CAl'Tl'RES Till-: "SERAPLS."
The naval exploits of John Paul Jones, commonly known as Paul Jones,
the first man to raise the Stars and Stripes on an American battleship, are
among the noblest exploits of the War of Independence. In 1778, he cap-
tured the English man-of-war, "Drake," in a naval engagement off the
coast of Ireland, and Congress rewarded him in 1779 by making him com-
mander of a fleet of five vessels, of which the flagship was the redoubtable
"Bonhomme Richard.'' On September 23, 1779, Jones encountered near
the mouth of the Humber a merchant fleet of about forty English vessels,
convoyed by the "Serapis," a 44-gun ship, and another English man-of-war.
Night fell upon the scene while the "Bonhomme Richard" and the "Serapis"
were maneuvering for position, and it was not until seven o'clock in the
evening that the darkness was dissipated by the streaks of flame belching
forth from the cannon. The two vessels finally lay so close together that
their riggings became entangled, and the intrepid American tried to board
his enemy, only to be repulsed. Nothing daunted, he redoubled his efforts,
until both vessels were riddled with shot and on fire ; and the British cap-
tain, Pearson, had to capitulate when his mainmast was shot away, and
l.is ship was no longer manageable. Neither ship was able to keep afloat
after the battle. Jones was rewarded by a vote of gratitude and a gold
medal from Congress, and by a gold sword presented by the French nation.
In 1905, the body of the first American commodore was removed from ils
Paris resting-place to a magnificent crypt in the grounds of the Naval Acad-
emy at Annapolis.
Thomas Jefferson 367
or ill. The suppression of unnecessary offices, of useless establishments
and expenses, enabled us to discontinue our internal taxes. These, cov-
ering our land with officers and opening our doors to their intrusions, had
already begun that process of domiciliary vexation which once entered
is scarcely to be restrained from reaching successively every article of
property and produce. If among these taxes some minor ones fell which
had not been inconvenient, it was because their amount would not have
paid the officers who collected them, and because, if they had any merit,
the State authorities might adopt them instead of others less approved.
The remaining revenue on the consumption of foreign articles is paid
chiefly by those who can afford to add foreign luxuries to domestic
comforts, being collected on our seaboard and frontiers only, and, incorpo-
rated with the transactions of our mercantile citizens, it may be the pleas'
ure and the pride of an American to ask, What farmer, what mechanic,
what laborer ever sees a taxgatherer of the United States? These con-
tributions enable us to support the current expenses of the Government,
to fulfill contracts with foreign nations, to extinguish the native right of
soil within our limits, to extend those limits, and to apply such a surplus
to our public debts as places at a short day their final redemption, and
that redemption once effected the revenue thereby liberated may, by a
just repartition of it among the States and a corresponding amendment of
the Constitution, be applied in time of peace to rivers, canals, roads, arts,
manufactures, education, and other great objects within each State. In
time of war, if injustice by ourselves or others must sometimes produce
war, increased as the same revenue will be by increased population and
consumption, and aided by other resources reserved for that crisis, it may
meet within the year all the expenses of the year without encroaching
on the rights of future generations by burthening them with the debts of
the past. War will then be but a suspension of useful works, and a return
to a state of peace a return to the progress of improvement.
I have said, fellow-citizens, that the income reserved had enabled us to
extend our limits, but that extension may possibly pay for itself before
we are called on, and in the meantime may keep down the accruing
interest; in all events, it will replace the advances we shall have made.
I know that the acquisition of Louisiana has been disapproved by some
from a candid apprehension that the enlargement of our territory would
endanger its unicn. But who can limit the extent to which the federa-
tive principle may operate effectively? The larger our association the
less will it be shaken by local passions; and in any view is it not better
that the opposite bank of the Mississippi should be settled by our own
brethren and children than by strangers of another family? With which
should we be most likely to live in harmony and friendly intercourse?
In matters of religion I have considered that its free exercise is placed
by the Constitution independent of the powers of the General Govern-
ment. I have therefore undertaken on no occasion to prescribe the
368 Messages and Papers of Hie Presidents
religious exercises suited to it, but have left them, as the Constitution
found them, under the direction and discipline of the church or state
authorities acknowledged by the several religious societies.
The aboriginal inhabitants of these countries I have regarded with the
commiseration their history inspires. Endowed with the faculties and
the rights of men, breathing an ardent love of liberty and independence,
and occupying a country which left tuem no desire but to be undisturbed,
the stream of overflowing population from other regions directed itself
on these shores; without power to divert or habits to contend against it,
they have been overwhelmed by the current or driven before it; now
reduced within limits too narrow for the hunter's state, humanity enjoins
us to teach them agriculture and the domestic arts; to encourage them
to that industry which alone can enable them to maintain their place in
existence and to prepare them in time for that state of society which to
bodily comforts adds the improvement of the mind and morals. We
have therefore liberally furnished them with the implements of hus-
bandry and household use; we have placed among them instructors in
the arts of first necessity, and they are covered with the aegis of the law
against aggressors from among ourselves.
But the endeavors to enlighten them on the fate which awaits their
present course of life, to induce them to exercise their reason, follow
its dictates, and change their pursuits with the change of circumstances
have powerful obstacles to encounter; they are combated by the habits
of their bodies, prejudices of their minds, ignorance, pride, and the influ-
ence of interested and crafty individuals among them who feel themselves
something in the present order of things and fear to become nothing in
any other. These persons inculcate a sanctimonious reverence for the
customs of their ancestors; that whatsoever they did must be done
through all time; that reason is a false guide, and to advance under its
counsel in their physical, moral, or political condition is perilous innova-
tion; that their duty is to remain as their Creator made them, ignorance
being safety and knowledge full of danger; in short, my friends, among
them also is seen the action and counteraction of good sense and of
bigotry; they too have their antiphilosophists who find an interest in
keeping things in their present state, who dread reformation, and exert
all their faculties to maintain the ascendency of habit over the duty
of improving our reason and obeying its mandates.
In giving these outlines I do not mean, fellow-citizens, to arrogate to
myself the merit of the measures. That is due, in the first place, to the
reflecting character of our citizens at large, who, by the weight of public
opinion, influence and strengthen the public measures. It is due to the
sound discretion with which they select from among themselves those to
whom they confide the legislative duties. It is due to the zeal and wis-
dom of the characters thus selected, who lay the foundations of public
happiness in wholesome laws, the execution of which alone remains for
Thomas Jefferson 369
others, and it is due to the able and faithful auxiliaries, whose patriotism
has associated them with me in the executive functions.
During this course of administration, and in order to disturb it, the
artillery of the press has been leveled against us, charged with whatsoever
its licentiousness could devise or dare. These abuses of an institution so
important to freedom and science are deeply to be regretted, inasmuch as
they tend to lessen its usefulness and to sap its safety. They might,
indeed, have been corrected by the wholesome punishments reserved to
and provided by the laws of the several States against falsehood and defa-
mation, but public duties more urgent press on the time of public servants,
and the offenders have therefore been left to find their punishment in the
public indignation.
Nor was it uninteresting to the world that an experiment should be
fairly and fully made, whether freedom of discussion, unaided by power,
is not sufficient for the propagation and protection of truth whether a
government conducting itself in the true spirit of its constitution, with
zeal and purity, and doing no act which it would be unwilling the whole
world should witness, can be written down by falsehood and defamation.
The experiment has been tried; you have witnessed the scene; our
fellow-citizens looked on, cool and collected; they saw the latent source
from which these outrages proceeded; they gathered around their public
functionaries, and when the Constitution called them to the decision
by suffrage, they pronounced their verdict, honorable to those who had
served them and consolatory to the friend of man who believes that he
may be trusted with the control of his own affairs.
No inference is here intended that the laws provided by the States
against false and defamatory publications should not be enforced; he
who has time renders a service to public morals and public tranquillity
in reforming these abuses by the salutary coercions of the law; but the
experiment is noted to prove that, since truth and reason have main-
tained their ground against false opinions in league with false facts, the
press, confined to truth, needs no other legal restraint; the public judg-
ment will correct false reasonings and opinions on a full hearing of all
parties; and no other definite line can be drawn between the inestimable
liberty of the press and its demoralizing licentiousness. If there be still
improprieties which this rule would not restrain, its supplement must be
sought in the censorship of public opinion.
Contemplating the union of sentiment now manifested so generally as
auguring harmony and happiness to our future course, I offer to our
country sincere congratulations. With those, too, not yet rallied to the
same point the disposition to do so is gaining strength; facts are pierc-
ing through the veil drawn over them, and our doubting brethren will at
length see that the mass of their fellow-citizens with whom they can not
yet resolve to act as to principles and measures, think as they think and
desire what they desire; that our wish as well as theirs is that the public
37 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
efforts may be directed honestly to the public good, that peace be culti-
vated, civil and religious liberty unassailed, law and order preserved,
equality of rights maintained, and that state of property, equal or unequal,
which results to every man from his own industry or that of his father's.
When satisfied of these views it is not in human nature that they should
not approve and support them. In the meantime let us cherish them
with patient affection, let us do them justice, and more than justice, in
all competitions of interest, and we need not doubt that truth, reason,
and their own interests will at length prevail, will gather them into the
fold of their country, and will complete that entire union of opinion
which gives to a nation the blessing of harmony and the benefit of all its
strength.
I sha 1 ! now enter on the duties to which my fellow-citizens have again
called me, and shall proceed in the spirit of those principles which they
have approved. I fear not that any motives of interest may lead me
astray; I am sensible of no passion which could seduce me knowingly
from the path of justice, but the weaknesses of human nature and the
limits of my own understanding will produce errors of judgment some-
times injurious to your interests. I shall need, therefore, all the indul-
gence which I have heretofore experienced from my constituents; the
want of it will certainly not lessen with increasing years. I shall need,
too, the favor of that Being in whose hands we are, who led our fathers,
as Israel of old, from their native land and planted them in a country
flowing with all the necessaries and comforts of life; who has covered
our infancy with His providence and our riper years with His wisdom
and power, and to whose goodness I ask you to join in supplications
with me that He will so enlighten the minds of your servants, guide
their councils, and prosper their measures that whatsoever they do shall
result in your good, and shall secure to you the peace, friendship, and
approbation of all nations.
MARCH 4, 1805.
FIFTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.
DECEMBER 3, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
At a moment when the nations of Europe are in commotion and arming
against each other, and when those with whom we have principal inter-
course are engaged in the general contest, and when the countenance of
some of them toward our peaceable country threatens that even that may
not be unaffected by what is passing on the general theater, a meeting of
the representatives of the nation in both Houses of Congress has become
Thomas Jefferson 371
more than usually desirable. Coming from every section of our country,
they bring with them the sentiments and the information of the whole,
and will be enabled to give a direction to the public affairs which the will
and the wisdom of the whole will approve and support.
In taking a view of the state of our country we in the first place
notice the late affliction of two of our cities under the fatal fever which
in latter times has occasionally visited our shores. Providence in His
goodness gave it an early termination on this occasion and lessened the
number of victims which have usually fallen before it. In the course of
the several visitations by this disease it has appeared that it is strictly
local, incident to cities and on the tide waters only, incommunicable
in the country either by persons under the disease or by goods carried
from diseased places; that its access is with the autumn and it dis-
appears with the early frosts. These restrictions within narrow limits
of time and space give security even to our maritime cities during three-
fourths of the year, and to the country always. Although from these
facts it appears unnecessary, yet to satisfy the fears of foreign nations
and cautions on their part not to be complained of in a danger whose
limits are yet unknown to them I have strictly enjoined on the officers at
the head of the customs to certify with exact truth for every vessel sail-
ing for a foreign port the state of health respecting this fever which
prevails at the place from which she sails. Under every motive from
character and duty to certify the truth, I have no doubt they have faith-
fully executed this injunction. Much real injury has, however, been
sustained from a propensity to identify with this endemic and to call by
the same name fevers of very different kinds, which have been known
at all times and in all countries, and never have been placed among those
deemed contagious. As we advance in our knowledge of this disease,
as facts develop the source from which individuals receive it, the State
authorities charged with the care of the public health, and Congress with
that of the general commerce, will become able to regulate with effect
their respective functions in these departments. The burthen of quaran-
tines is felt at home as well as abroad; their efficacy merits examination.
Although the health laws of the States should be found to need no pres-
ent revisal by Congress, yet commerce claims that their attention be
ever awake to them.
Since our last meeting the aspect of our foreign relations has consider-
ably changed. Our coasts have been infested and our harbors watched
by private armed vessels, some of them without commissions, some with
illegal commissions, others with those of legal form, but committing
piratical acts beyond the authority of their commissions. They have
captured in the very entrance of our harbors, as well as on the high seas,
not only the vessels of our friends coming to trade with us, but our own
also. They have carried them off under pretense of legal adjudication,
but not daring to approach a court of justice, they have plundered and
372 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
sunk them by the way or in obscure places where no evidence could
arise against them, maltreated the crews, and abandoned them in boats
in the open sea or on desert shores without food or covering. These
enormities appearing to be unreached by any control of their sovereigns,
I found it necessary to equip a force to cruise within our own seas, to
arrest all vessels of these descriptions found hovering on our coasts
within the limits of the Gulf Stream and to bring the offenders in for
trial as pirates.
The same system of hovering on our coasts and harbors under color of
seeking enemies has been also carried on by public armed ships to the
great annoyance and oppression of our commerce. New principles, too,
have been interpolated into the law of nations, founded neither in justice
nor the usage or acknowledgment of nations. According to these a bel-
ligerent takes to itself a commerce with its own enemy which it denies to
a neutral on the ground of its aiding that enemy in the war; but reason
revolts at such an inconsistency, and the neutral having equal right with
the belligerent to decide the question, the interests of our constituents and
the duty of maintaining the authority of reason, the only umpire between
just nations, impose on us the obligation of providing an effectual and
determined opposition to a doctrine so injurious to the rights of peaceable
nations. Indeed, the confidence we ought to have in the justice of others
still countenances the hope that a sounder view of those rights will of
itself induce from every belligerent a more correct observance of them.
With Spain our negotiations for a settlement of differences have not
had a satisfactory issue. Spoliations during a former war, for which
she had formally acknowledged herself responsible, have been refused to
be compensated but on conditions affecting other claims in no wise con-
nected with them. Yet the same practices are renewed in the present
war and are already of great amount. On the Mobile, our commerce
passing through that river continues to be obstructed by arbitrary duties
and vexatious searches. Propositions for adjusting amicably the bound-
aries of Louisiana have not been acceded to. While, however, the right
is unsettled, we have avoided changing the state of things by taking
new posts or strengthening ourselves in the disputed territories, in the
hope that the other power would not by a contrary conduct oblige us to
meet their example and endanger conflicts of authority the issue of which
may not be easily controlled. But in this hope we have now reason to
lessen our confidence. Inroads have been recently made into the Terri-
tories of Orleans and the Mississippi, our citizens have been seized and
their property plundered in the very parts of the former which had been
actually delivered up by Spain, and this by the regular officers and
soldiers of that Government. I have therefore found it necessary at
length to give orders to our troops on that frontier to be in readiness to
protect our citizens, and to repel by arms any similar aggressions in
future. Other details necessary for your full information of the state of
Thomas Jefferson 373
things between this country and that shall be the subject of another
communication.
In reviewing these injuries from some of the belligerent powers the
moderation, the firmness, and the wisdom of the Legislature will all be
called into action. We ought still to hope that time and a more correct
estimate of interest as well as of character will produce the justice we
are bound to expect. But should any nation deceive itself by false calcu-
lations, and disappoint that expectation, we must join in the unprofitable
contest of trying which party can do the other the most harm. Some of
these injuries may perhaps admit a peaceable remedy. Where that is com-
petent it is always the most desirable. But some of them are of a nature
to be met by force only, and all of them may lead to it. I can not,
therefore, but recommend such preparations as circumstances call for.
The first object is to place our seaport towns out of the danger of insult.
Measures have been already taken for furnishing them with heavy can-
non for the service of such land batteries as may make a part of their
defense against armed vessels approaching them. In aid of these it is
desirable we should have a competent number of gunboats, and the
number, to be competent, must be considerable. If immediately begun,
they may be in readiness for service at the opening of the next season.
Whether it will be necessary to augment our land forces will be decided
by occurrences probably in the course of your session. In the meantime
you will consider whether it would not be. expedient for a state of peace
as well as of war so to organize or class the militia as would enable us
on any sudden emergency to call for the services of the younger portions,
unencumbered with the old and those having families. Upward of
300,000 able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 26 years, which the
last census shews we may now count within our limits, will furnish a com-
petent number for offense or defense in any point where they may be
wanted, and will give time for raising regular forces after the necessity
of them shall become certain; and the reducing to the early period of life
all its active service can not but be desirable to our younger citizens of
the present as well as future times, inasmuch as it engages to them in
more advanced age a quiet and undisturbed repose in the bosom of their
families. I can not, then, but earnestly recommend to your early considera-
tion the expediency of so modifying our militia system as, by a separation
of the more active part from that which is less so, we may draw from it
when necessary an efficient corps fit for real and active service, and to
be called to it in regular rotation.
Considerable provision has been made under former authorities from
Congress of materials for the construction of ships of war of 74 guns.
These materials are on hand subject to the further will of the Legislature.
An immediate prohibition of the exportation of arms and ammunition
is also submitted to your determination.
Turning from these unpleasant views of violence and wrong, I con-
374 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
gratulate you on the liberation of our fellow-citizens who were stranded
on the coast of Tripoli and made prisoners of war. In a government
bottomed on the will of all the life and liberty of every individual citizen
become interesting to all. In the treaty, therefore, which has concluded
our warfare with that State an article for the ransom of our citizens has
been agreed to. An operation by land by a small band of our country-
men and others, engaged for the occasion in conjunction with the troops
of the ex-Bashaw of that country, gallantly conducted by our late consul,
Eaton, and their successful enterprise on the city of Derne, contributed
doubtless to the impression which produced peace, and the conclusion of
this prevented opportunities of which the officers and men of our squad-
ron destined for Tripoli would have availed themselves to emulate the
acts of valor exhibited by their brethren in the attack of the last year.
Reflecting with high satisfaction on the distinguished bravery displayed
whenever occasions permitted in the late Mediterranean service, I think it
would be an useful encouragement as well as a just reward to make an
opening for some present promotion by enlarging our peace establishment
of captains and lieutenants.
With Tunis some misunderstandings have arisen not yet sufficiently
explained, but friendly discussions with their ambassador recently arrived
and a mutual disposition to do whatever is just and reasonable can not
fail of dissipating these, so that we may consider our peace on that coast,
generally, to be on as sound a footing as it has been at any preceding
time. Still, it will not be expedient to withdraw immediately the whole
of our force from that sea.
The law providing for a naval peace establishment fixes the number
of frigates which shall be kept in constant service in time of peace, and
prescribes that they shall be manned by not more than two-thirds of
their complement of seamen and ordinary seamen. Whether a frigate
may be trusted to two- thirds only of her proper complement of men must
depend on the nature of the service on which she is ordered; that may
sometimes, for her safety as well as to insure her object, require her
fullest complement. In adverting to this subject Congress will perhaps
consider whether the best limitation on the Executive discretion in this
case would not be by the number of seamen which may be employed in
the whole service rather than by the number of the vessels. Occasions
oftener arise for the employment of small than of large vessels, and it
would lessen risk as well as expense to be authorized to employ them at
preference. The limitation suggested by the number of seamen would
admit a selection of vessels best adapted to the service.
Our Indian neighbors are advancing, many of them with spirit, and
others beginning to engage in the pursuits of agriculture and household
manufacture. They are becoming sensible that the earth yields subsist-
ence with less labor and more certainty than the forest, and find it their
interest from time to time to dispose of parts of their surplus and waste
Thomas Jefferson 375
lands for the means of improving those they occupy and of subsisting
their families while they are preparing their farms. Since your last ses-
sion the Northern tribes have sold to us the lands between the Connecticut
Reserve and the former Indian boundary and those on the Ohio from the
same boundary to the rapids and for a considerable depth inland. The
Chickasaws and Cherokees have sold us the country between and adja-
tent to the two districts of Tennessee, and the Creeks the residue of
their lands in the fork of Ocmulgee up to the Ulcofauhatche. The three
former purchases are important, inasmuch as they consolidate disjoined
parts of our settled country and render their intercourse secure ; and the
second particularly so, as, with the small point on the river which we
expect is by this time ceded by the Piankeshaws, it completes our pos-
session of the whole of both banks of the Ohio from its source to near its
mouth, and the navigation of that river is thereby rendered forever safe
to our citizens settled and settling on its extensive waters. The pur-
chase from the Creeks, too, has been for some time particularly interesting
to the State of Georgia.
The several treaties which have been mentioned will be submitted to
both Houses of Congress for the exercise of their respective functions.
Deputations now on their way to the seat of Government from various
nations of Indians inhabiting the Missouri and other parts beyond the
Mississippi come charged with assurances of their satisfaction with the
new relations in which they are placed with us, of their dispositions to
cultivate our peace and friendship, and their desire to enter into com-
mercial intercourse with us. A state of our progress in exploring the
principal rivers of that country, and of the information respecting them
hitherto obtained, will be communicated so soon as we shall receive some
further relations which we have reason shortly to expect.
The receipts at the Treasury during the year ending on the 3oth day of
September last have exceeded the sum of $13,000,000, which, with not
quite five millions in the Treasury at the beginning of the year, have
enabled us after meeting other demands to pay nearly two millions of the
debt contracted under the British treaty and convention, upward of four
millions of principal of the public debt, and four millions of interest.
These payments, with those which had been made in three years and a
half preceding, have extinguished of the funded debt nearly eighteen
millions of principal. Congress by their act of November 10, 1803,
authorized us to borrow $1,750,000 toward meeting the claims of our
citizens assumed by the convention with France. We have not, however,
made use of this authority, because the sum of four millions and a half,
which remained in the Treasury on the same 3Oth day of September last,
with the receipts which we may calculate on for the ensuing year, besides
paying the annual sum of $8,000,000 appropriated to the funded debt
and meeting all the current demands which may be expected, will ena-
ble us to pay the whole sum of $3,750,000 assumed by the French
376 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
convention and still leave us a surplus of nearly $1,000,000 at our free
disposal. Should you concur in the provisions of arms and armed vessels
recommended by the circumstances of the times, this surplus will furnish
the means of doing so.
On this first occasion of addressing Congress since, by the choice of my
constituents, I have entered on a second term of administration, I embrace
the opportunity to give this public assurance that I will exert my best
endeavors to administer faithfully the executive department, and will
zealously cooperate with you in every measure which may tend to secure
the liberty, property, and personal safety of our fellow-citizens, and to
consolidate the republican forms and principles of our Government.
In the course of your session you shall receive all the aid which I can
give for the dispatch of public business, and all the information neces-
sary for your deliberations, of which the interests of our own country and
the confidence reposed in us by others will admit a communication.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
DECEMBER 6, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The depredations which had been committed on the commerce of the
United States during a preceding war by persons under the authority
of Spain are sufficiently known to all. These made it a duty to require
from that Government indemnifications for our injured citizens. A
convention was accordingly entered into between the minister of the
United States at Madrid and the minister of that Government for for-
eign affairs, by which it was agreed that spoliations committed by Span-
ish subjects and carried into ports of Spain should be paid for by that
nation, and that those committed by French subjects and carried into
Spanish ports should remain for further discussion. Before this conven-
tion was returned to Spain with our ratification the transfer of Louisiana
by France to the United States took place, an event as unexpected as dis-
agreeable to Spain. From that moment she seemed to change her con-
duct and dispositions toward us. It was first manifested by her protest
against the right of France to alienate Louisiana to us, which, however,
was soon retracted and the right confirmed. Then high offense was
manifested at the act of Congress establishing a collection district on the
Mobile, although by an authentic declaration immediately made it was
expressly confined to our acknowledged limits; and she now refused to
ratify the convention signed by her own minister under the eye of his
Sovereign unless we would consent to alterations of its terms which
Thomas Jefferson 377
would have affected our claims against her for the spoliations by French
subjects carried into Spanish ports.
To obtain justice as well as to restore friendship I thought a special
mission advisable, and accordingly appointed James Monroe minister
extraordinary and plenipotentiary to repair to Madrid, and in conjunc-
tion with our minister resident there to endeavor to procure a ratification
of the former convention and to come to an understanding with Spain
as to the boundaries of Louisiana. It appeared at once that her policy
was to reserve herself for events, and in the meantime to keep our differ-
ences in an undetermined state. This will be evident from the papers now
communicated to you. After nearly five months of fruitless endeavor to
bring them to some definite and satisfactory result, our ministers ended
the conferences without having been able to obtain indemnity for spolia-
tions of any description or any satisfaction as to the boundaries of Loui-
siana, other than a declaration that we had no rights eastward of the
Iberville, and that our line to the west was one which would have left
us but a string of land on that bank of the river Mississippi. Our injured
citizens were thus left without any prospect of retribution from the
wrongdoer, and as to boundary each party was to take its own course.
That which they have chosen to pursue will appear from the documents
now communicated. They authorize the inference that it is their inten-
tion to advance on our possessions until they shall be repressed by an
opposing force. Considering that Congress alone is constitutionally
invested with the power of changing our condition from peace to war, I
have thought it my duty to await their authority for using force in any
degree which could be avoided. I have barely instructed the officers
stationed in the neighborhood of the aggressions to protect our citizens
from violence, to patrol within the borders actually delivered to us, and
not to go out of them but when necessary to repel an inroad or to rescue
a citizen or his property; and the Spanish officers remaining at New
Orleans are required to depart without further delay. It ought to be
noted here that since the late change in the state of affairs in Europe
Spain has ordered her cruisers and courts to respect our treaty with her.
The conduct of France and the part she may take in the misunder-
standings between the United States and Spain are too important to be
unconsidered. She was prompt and decided in her declarations that our
demands on Spain for French spoliations carried into Spanish ports were
included in the settlement between the United States and France. She
tock at once the ground that she had acquired no right from Spain, and
had meant to deliver us none eastward of the Iberville, her silence as
to the western boundary leaving us to infer her opinion might be against
Spain in that quarter. Whatever direction she might mean to give to
these differences, it does not appear that she has contemplated their pro-
ceeding to actual rupture, or that at the date of our last advices from
Paris her Government had any suspicion of the hostile attitude Spain had
378 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
taken here; on the contrary, we have reason to believe that she was dis-
posed to effect a settlement on a plan analogous to what our ministers
had proposed, and so comprehensive as to remove as far as possible the
grounds of future collision and controversy on the eastern as well as
western side of the Mississippi.
The present crisis in Europe is favorable for pressing such a settle-
ment, and not a moment should be lost in availing ourselves of it.
Should it pass unimproved, our situation would become much more diffi-
cult. Formal war is not necessary it is not probable it will follow; but
the protection of our citizens, the spirit and honor of our country require
that force should be interposed to a certain degree It will probably con-
tribute to advance the object of peace.
But the course to be pursued will require the command of means which
it belongs to Congress exclusively to yield or to deny. To them I com-
municate every fact material for their information and the documents
necessary to enable them to judge for themselves. To their wisdom,
then, I look for the course I am to pursue, and will pursue with sincere
zeal that which they shall approve.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER n, 1805.
To the Senate of the United States:
I now lay before the Senate the several treaties and conventions follow-
ing, which have been entered into on the part of the United States since
their last session:
1 . A treaty of peace and amity between the United States of America
and the Bashaw, Bey, and subjects of Tripoli, in Barbary.
2. A treaty between the United States and the Wyandot, Ottawa,
Chippewa, Munsee, and Delaware, Shawnee, and Potawatamie nations
of Indians.
3. A treaty between the United States and the agents of the Connect-
icut Land Companies on one part and the Wyandot, Ottawa, Chippewa,
Munsee, and Delaware, Shawnee, and Potawatamie nations of Indians.
4. A treaty between the United States and the Delawares, Potawata-
mies, Miamis, Eel-rivers, and Weeas.
5. A treaty between the United States and the Chickasaw Nation of
Indians.
6. A treaty between the United States of America and the Cherokee
Indians.
7. A convention between the United States and the Creek Nation of
Indians; with the several documents necessary for their explanation.
The Senate having dissented to the ratification of the treaty with the
Creeks submitted to them at their last session, which gave a sum of
$200,000 for the country thereby conveyed, it is proper now to. observe
Thomas Jefferson 379'
that instead of that sum, which was equivalent to a perpetual annuity of
$12,000, the present purchase gives them an annuity of $12,000 for eight
years only and of $11,000 for ten years more, the payments of which
would be effected by a present sum of $130,000 placed at an annual
interest of 6 per cent. If from this sum we deduct the reasonable value
of the road ceded through the whole length of their country from Ocmul-
gee toward New Orleans, a road of indispensable necessity to us, the
present convention will be found to give little more than the half of the
sum which was formerly proposed to be given. This difference is thought
sufficient to justify the presenting this subject a second time to the Senate.
On these several treaties I have to request that the Senate will advise
whether I shall ratify them or not.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 23, 1805.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The governor and presiding judge of the Territory of Michigan have
made a report to me of the state of that Territory, several matters in
which being within the reach of the legislative authority only, I lay the
report before Congress.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 31, 1805.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
I now communicate to the House of Representatives all the informa-
tion which the executive offices furnish on the subject of their resolution
of the 23d instant respecting the States indebted to the United States.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 10, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
In compliance with the request of the Senate expressed in their reso-
lution of December 27, 1 now lay before them such documents and papers
(there being no other information in my possession) as relate to com-
plaints by the Government of France against the commerce carried on by
the citizens of the United States to the French icland of St. Domingo.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 13, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
According to the request of the Senate of December 30, 1 now lay before
them the correspondence of the naval commanders Barron and Rodgers
and of Mr. Eaton, late consul at Tunis, respecting the progress of the
380 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
war with Tripoli, antecedent to the treaty with the Bey and Regency of
Tripoli, and respecting the negotiations for the same, and the commission
and instructions of Mr. Eaton, with such other correspondence in posses-
sion of the offices as I suppose may be useful to the Senate in their delitx
erations upon the said treaty.
The instructions which were given to Mr. Lear, the consul-general at
Algiers, respecting the negotiations for the said treaty accompanied the
treaty and the message concerning the same, and are now with them in
possession of the Senate.
So much of these papers has been extracted and communicated to the
House of Representatives as relates to the principles of the cooperation
between the United States and Hamet Caramalli, which is the subject of
a joint message to both Houses of Congress bearing equal date with the
present, and as those now communicated to the Senate comprehend the
whole of that matter, I request that they may be considered as compris-
ing the documents stated in that message as accompanying it. Being
mostly originals or sole copies, a return of them is requested at the con-
venience of the Senate.
We have no letter from Mr. Lear respecting Tripoline affairs of later
date than that of July 5, which was transmitted to the Senate with the
treaty, nor, consequently, any later information what steps have been
taken to carry into effect the stipulation for the delivery of the wife and
children of the brother of the reigning Bashaw of Tripoli.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 13, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I lay before Congress the application of Hamet Caramalli, elder brother
of the reigning Bashaw of Tripoli, soliciting from the United States atten-
tion to his services and sufferings in the late war against that State; and
in order to possess them of the ground on which that application stands,
the facts shall be stated according to the views and information of the
Executive.
During the war with Tripoli it was suggested that Hamet Caramalli,
elder brother of the reigning Bashaw, and driven by him from his throne,
meditated the recovery of his inheritance, and that a concert in action
with us was desirable to him. We considered that concerted operations
by those who have a common enemy were entirely justifiable, and might
produce effects favorable to both without binding either to guarantee the
objects of the other. But the distance of the scene, the difficulties of
communication, and the uncertainty of our information inducing the less
confidence in the measure, it was committed to our agents as one which
might be resorted to if it promised to promote our success.
Mr. Eaton, however (our late consul), on his return from the Medi-
Thomas Jefferson 381
terranean, possessing personal knowledge of the scene and having con-
fidence in the effect of a joint operation, we authorized Commodore Bar-
ron, then proceeding with his squadron, to enter into an understanding
with Hamet if he should deem it useful; and as it was represented that
he would need some aids of arms and ammunition, and even of money,
he was authorized to furnish them to a moderate extent, according to the
prospect of utility to be expected from it. In order to avail him of the
advantages of Mr. Eaton's knowledge of circumstances, an occasional
employment was provided for the latter as an agent for the Navy in that
sea. Our expectation was that an intercourse should be kept up between
the ex-Bashaw and the commodore; that while the former moved on by
land our squadron should proceed with equal pace, so as to arrive at their
destination together and to attack the common enemy by land and sea at
the same time. The instructions of June 6 to Commodore Barren shew
that a cooperation only was intended, and by no means an union of our
object with the fortune 01 the ex-Bashaw, and the commodore's letters
of March 22 and May 19 prove that he had the most correct idea of our
intentions. His verbal instructions, indeed, to Mr. Eaton and Captain
Hull, if the expressions are accurately committed to writing by those
gentlemen, do not limit the extent of his cooperation as rigorously as he
probably intended; but it is certain from the ex-Bashaw's letter of Jan-
uary 3, written when he was proceeding to join Mr. Eaton, and in which
he says, "Your operations should be carried on by sea, mine by land,"
that he left the position in which he was with a proper idea of the nature
of the cooperation. If Mr. Eaton's subsequent convention should appear
to bring forward other objects, his letter of April 29 and May i views
this convention but as provisional, the second article, as he expressly
states, guarding it against any ill effect; and his letter of June 30 con-
firms this construction.
In the event it was found that after placing the ex-Bashaw in posses-
sion of Derne, one of the most important cities and provinces of the
country, where he had resided himself as governor, he was totally unable
to command any resources or to bear any part in cooperation with us.
This hope was then at an end, and we certainly had never contemplated,
nor were we prepared, to land an army of our own, or to raise, pay, or
subsist an army of Arabs to march from Derne to Tripoli and to carry
on a land war at such a distance from our resources. Our means and our
authority were merely naval, and that such were the expectations of
Hamet his letter of June 29 is an unequivocal acknowledgment. While,
therefore, an impression from the capture of Derne might still operate
at Tripoli, and an attack on that place from our squadron was daily ex-
pected, Colonel Lear thought it the best moment to listen to overtures of
peace then made by Bashaw. He did so, and while urging provisions
for the United States he paid attention also to the interests of Hamet,
but was able to effect nothing more than to engage the restitution of his
382 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
family, and even the persevering in this demand suspended for some time
the conclusion of the treaty.
In operations at such a distance it becomes necessary to leave much
to the discretion of the agents employed, but events may still turn up
beyond the limits of that discretion. Unable in such a case to consult his
Government, a zealous citizen will act as he believes that would direct
him were it apprised of the circumstances, and will take on himself the
responsibility. In all these cases the purity and patriotism of the motives
should shield the agent from blame, and even secure a sanction where
the error is not too injurious. Should it be thought by any that the
verbal instructions said to have been given by Commodore Barren to
Mr. Eaton amount to a stipulation that the United States should place
Hamet Caramalli on the throne of Tripoli a stipulation so entirely
unauthorized, so far beyond our views, and so onerous could not be
sanctioned by our Government or should Hamet Caramalli, contrary to
the evidence of his letters of January 3 and Jurje 29, be thought to have
left the position which he now seems to regret, under a mistaken expec-
tation that we were at all events to place him on his throne, on an appeal
to the liberality of the nation something equivalent to the replacing him
in his former situation might be worthy its. consideration.
A nation by establishing a character of liberality and magnanimity
gains in the friendship and respect of others more than the worth of mere,
money. This appeal is now made by Hamet Caramalli to the United
States. The ground he has taken being different not only from our
views but from those expressed by himself on former occasions, Mr.
Eaton was desired to state whether any verbal communications passed
from him to Hamet which had varied what we saw in writing. His
answer of December 5 is herewith transmitted, and has rendered it still
more necessary that in presenting to the Legislature the application of
Hamet I should present them at the same time an exact statement of the
views and proceedings of the Executive through this whole business,
that they may clearly understand the ground on which we are placed.
It is accompanied by all the papers which bear any relation to the prin-
ciples of the cooperation, and which can inform their judgment ic decid-
ing on the application of Hamet Caramalli.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 15, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now render to Congress an account of the grant of $20,000 for the
contingent charges of Government by an act making appropriations for
the support of Government for the year 1805. Of that sum $1,987-50
have been necessarily applied to the support of the Territorial govern-
WAR WITH THE BARBARY PIRATES.
Few facts in recent history are more astounding than the shameful tril>-
utes which even the greatest nations of the world yielded to the pirates of
the Mediterranean at the end of the eighteenth century. In 1785, these
freebooters from the shores of northern Africa captured two American ves-
sels, and in 1793, added eleven more to their list really leading to the
construction of the first American men-of-war built since the War of Inde-
pendence. The United States followed the example of European countries
in granting tributes of some several millions of dollars to the sea-lords of
the Mediterranean ; but even an annual tribute of $8.3,000 was not sufficient
for the Pacha of Tripoli, who formally declared war against the Unite;!
States in 1801. It was not until 1803, however, that the American navy
meted out severe punishment to the pirates, who were glad to conclude a
treaty of peace in 1804. (Sec Tripolitan War in Encyclopedic Index.)
Thomas Jefferson 383
meats of Michigan and Louisiana until an opportunity could occur of mak-
ing a specific appropriation for that purpose. The balance of $i 8,0 1 2.50
remains in the Treasury,
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 17, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In my message to both Houses of Congress at the opening of their
present session I submitted to their attention, among other subjects, the
oppression of our commerce and navigation by the irregular practices of
armed vessels, public and private, and by the introduction of new prin-
ciples derogatory of the rights of neutrals and unacknowledged by the
usage of nations.
The memorials of several bodies of merchants of the United States are
now communicated, and will develop these principles and practices which
are producing the most ruinous effects on our lawful commerce and
navigation.
The rights of a neutral to carry on commercial intercourse with every
part of the dominions of a belligerent permitted by the laws of the coun-
try (with the exception of blockaded ports and contraband of war) was
believed to have been decided between Great Britain and the United
States by the sentence of their commissioners mutually appointed to
decide on that and other questions of difference between the two nations,
and. by the actual payment of the damages awarded by them against
Great Britain for the infractions of that right. When, therefore, it was
perceived that the same principle was revived with others more novel and
extending -the injury, instructions were given to the minister plenipoten-
tiary of the United States at the Court of London, and remonstrances
duly made by him on this subject, as will appear by documents trans-
mitted herewith. These were followed by a partial and temporary sus-
pension only, without any disavowal of the principle. He has therefore
been instructed to urge this subject anew, to bring it more fully to the
bar of reason, and to insist on rights too evident and too important to be
surrendered. In the meantime the evil is proceeding under adjudica-
tions founded on the principle which is denied. Under these circum-
stances the subject presents itself for the consideration of Congress.
On the impressment of our seamen our remonstrances have never been
intermitted. A hope existed at one moment of an arrangement which
might have been submitted to, but it soon passed away, and the practice,
though relaxed at times in the distant seas, has been constantly pursued
in those in our neighborhood. The grounds on which the reclamations
on this subject have been urged will appear in an extract from instructions
to our minister at London now communicated.
TH: JEFFERSON.
384 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
JANUARY 17, 1806,
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The inclosed letter from the minister plenipotentiary of the United
States at the Court of London contains interesting information on the
subjects of my other message of this date. It is sent separately and
confidentially because its publication may discourage frank communica-
tions between our ministers generally and the Governments with which
they reside, and especially between the same ministers.
TH: JEFFERSON. .
JANUARY 24, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
A convention has been entered into between the United States and
the Cherokee Nation for the extinguishment of the rights of the lattei
and of some unsettled claims in the country north of the river Tennefr
see, therein described. This convention is now laid before tLe Senate
for their advice and consent as to its ratification.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 27, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
According to the desire of the Senate expressed in their resolution of
the loth instant, I now communicate to them a report of the Secretary
of State, with its documents, stating certain new principles attempted to
be introduced on the subject of neutral rights, injurious to the rights
and interests of the United States. These, with my message to both
Houses of the i7th instant and the documents accompanying-it, fulfill the
desires of the Senate as far as it can be done by any information in my
possession which is authentic and not publicly known.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 29, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Having received from sundry merchants at Baltimore a memorial on
the same subject with those I communicated to Congress with my mes-
sage of the 1 7th instant, I now communicate this also as a proper sequel
to the former, and as making a part of the mass of evidence of the vio-
lations of our rights on the ocean,
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 3, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
A letter has been received from the governor of South Carolina cover-
ing an act of the legislature of that State ceding to the United States
Thomas Jefferson 385
various forts and fortifications and sites for the erection of forts in that
State on the conditions therein expressed. This letter and the act it
covered are now communicated to Congress.
I am not informed whether the positions ceded are the best which can
be taken for securing their respective objects. No doubt is entertained
that the legislature deemed them such. The river of Beaufort, particu-
larly, said to be accessible to ships of very large size and capable of yield-
ing them a protection which they can not find elsewhere but very far tc
the north, is from these circumstances so interesting to the Union in gen-
eral as to merit particular attention and inquiry as to the positions on it
best calculated for health as well as safety,
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 3, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In the course of the last year the following treaties and conventions
for the extinguishment of Indian title to lands within our limits were
entered into on behalf of the United States:
A treaty between the United States and the Wyandot, Ottawa, Chip-
peway, Munsee and Delaware, Shawanee and Pottawatamy nations of
Indians.
A treaty between the United States and the agents of the Connecticut
Land Company on one part and the Wyandot and Ottawa, Chippeway,
Munsey and Delaware, Shawanee and Pottawatamy nations of Indians.
A treaty between the United States and the Delawares, Pottawatamies,
Miamis, Eel-rivers, and Weas.
A treaty between the United States and the Chickasaw Nation of
Indians.
Two treaties between the United States and the Cherokee Indians.
A convention between the United States and the Creek Nation of
Indians.
The Senate having advised and consented to the ratification of these
several treaties and conventions, I now lay them before both Houses of
Congress for the exercise of their constitutional powers as to the means
of fulfilling them. ,
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 6, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Since the date of my message of January 17 a letter of the 26th of
November has been received from the minister plenipotentiary of the
United States at London, covering one from the secretary for foreign
affairs of that Government, which, being on the subject of that message,
386 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
is now transmitted for the information of Congress. Although nothing
forbids the substance of these letters from being communicated without
reserve, yet so many ill effects proceed from the publications of cor-
respondences between ministers remaining still in office that I can not
but recommend that these letters be not permitted to be formally pub-
lished.
TH; JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 19, 1806.'
To the Senate and tfouse of Representatives of the United States:
In pursuance of a measure proposed to Congress by a message of Jan-
uary 1 8, 1803, and sanctioned by their approbation for carrying it into
execution, Captain Meriwether Lewis, of the First Regiment of infantry,
was appointed, with a party of men, to explore the river Missouri from
its mouth to its source, and, crossing the highlands by the shortest port-
age, to seek the best water communication thence to the Pacific Ocean;
and Lieutenant Clarke was appointed second in command. They were
to enter into conference with the Indian nations on their route with a
view to the establishment of commerce with them. They entered the
Missouri May 14, 1804, and on the ist of November took up their winter
quarters near the Mandan towns, 1,609 miles above the mouth of the
river, in latitude 47 21' 47" north and longitude 99 24' 45" west from
Greenwich. On the 8th of April, 1805, they proceeded up the river in
pursuance of the objects prescribed to them. A letter of the preceding
day, April 7th, from Captain Lewis is herewith communicated. During
his stay among the Mandans he had been able to lay down the Missouri
according to courses and distances taken on his passage up it, corrected
by frequent observations of longitude and latitude, and to add to the
actual survey of this portion of the river a general map of the country
between the Mississippi and Pacific from the thirty-fourth to the fifty-
fourth degree of latitude. These additions are from information col-
lected from Indians with whom he had opportunities of communicating
during his journey and residence with them. Copies of this map are
now presented to both Houses of Congress. With these I communicate
also a statistical view, procured and forwarded by him, of the Indian
nations inhabiting the Territory of Louisiana and the countries adjacent
to its northern and western borders, of their commerce, and of other
interesting circumstances respecting them.
In order to render the statement as complete as may be of the Indians
inhabiting the country west of the Mississippi, I add Dr. Sibley's account
of those residing in and adjacent to the Territory of Orleans.
I communicate, also, from the same person, an account of the Red
River, according to the best information he had been able to collect.
Having been disappointed, after considerable preparation, in the pur-
Thomas Jcjferson 387
pose of sending an exploring party up that river in the summer of 1804,
it was thought best to employ the autumn of that year in procuring a
knowledge of an interesting branch of the river called the Washita.
This was undertaken under the direction of Mr. Dunbar, of Natchez,
a citizen of distinguished science, who had aided and continues to aid
us with his disinterested and valuable services in the prosecution of these
enterprises. He ascended the river to the remarkable hot springs near
it, in latitude 34 31' 4.16", longitude 92 50' 45" west from Greenwich,
taking its courses and distances, and correcting them by frequent celes-
tial observations. Extracts from his observations and copies of his map
of the river from its mouth to the hot springs make part of the present
communications. The examination of the Red River itself is but now
commencing,
TH: JEFFERSON,
MARCH 5, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
According to the request of the Senate expressed in their resolution
of 3d instant, I now transmit the extract of a letter from the Secretary
of State to the minister plenipotentiary of the United States at Paris, the
answer to that letter, and two letters from Henry Waddell, a citizen of
the United States, relative to the interference of the said minister in the
case of the ship New Jersey and to the principles alleged to have been
laid down on that occasion.
There are in the office of the Department of State several printed doc-
uments in this case by the agent of those interested in the ship, which
are voluminous and in French. If these be within the scope of the
request of the Senate, the printed copies can be sent in immediately, but if
translations be necessary some considerable time will be requisite for their
execution. On this subject any further desire which the Senate shall
think proper to express shall be complied with.
TH; JEFFERSON.
MARCH 7, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
According to the request of the Senate of yesterday, I now transmit the
five printed memorials of the agent for the ship New Jersey, in the one of
which marked B, at the ninth page, will be found the letter relative to
it from the minister plenipotentiary of the United States at Paris to the
French minister of the treasury, supposed to be the one designated in
the resolution. We have no information of this letter but through the
channel of the party interested in the ship, nor any proof of it more
authentic than that now communicated.
TH: JEFFERSON.
388 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
MARCH 19, 1806. .
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
It was reasonably expected that while the limits between the terri-
tories of the United States and of Spain were unsettled neither party
would have innovated on the existing state of their respective positions.
Some time since, however, we learnt that the Spanish authorities were
advancing into the disputed country to occupy new posts and make new
settlements. Unwilling to take any measures which might preclude a
peaceable accommodation of differences, the officers of the United States
were ordered to confine themselves within the country on this side of
the Sabiue River which, by delivery of its principal post, Natchitoches,
was understood to have been itself delivered up by Spain, and at the
same time to permit no adverse post to be taken nor armed men to remain
within it. In consequence of these orders the commanding officer of
Natchitoches, learning that a party of Spanish troops had crossed the
Sabine River and were posting themselves on this side -the Adais, sent a
detachment of his force to require them to withdraw to the other side of
the Sabine, which they accordingly did.
I have thought it proper to communicate to Congress the letter detail-
ing this incident, that they may fully understand the state of things in
that quarter and be enabled to make such provision for its security as,
in their wisdom, they shall deem sufficient.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRII, n, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now lay before Congress a statement of the militia of the United
States according to the returns last received from the several States and
Territories. It will be perceived that some of these are not of recent
dates, and that from the States of Maryland and Delaware no returns
are stated. As far as appears from our records, none were ever rendered
from either of these States. From the Territories of Orleans, Louisiana,
and Michigan complete returns have not yet been received.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 14, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
During the blockade of Tripoli by the squadron of the United States a
small cruiser, under the flag of Tunis, with two prizes, all of trifling value,
attempted to enter Tripoli; was turned back, warned, and, attempting
again to enter, was taken and detained as prize by the squadron. Her res-
titution was claimed by the Bey of Tunis with a threat of war in terms so
serious that on withdrawing from the blockade of Tripoli the command-,
Thomas Jefferson 389
Ing officer of the squadron thought it his duty to repair to Tunis with his
squadron and to require a categorical declaration whether peace or war
was intended. The Bey preferred explaining himself by an ambassador
to the United States, who on his arrival renewed the request that the
vessel and her prizes should be restored. It was deemed proper to give
this proof of friendship to the Bey, and the ambassador was informed the
vessels would be restored. Afterwards he made a requisition of naval
stores to be sent to the Bey, in order to secure a peace for the term of
three years, with a threat of war if refused. It has been refused, and
the ambassador is about to depart without receding from his threat or
demand.
Under these circumstances, and considering that the several provisions
of the act of March 25, 1804, will cease in consequence of the ratification
of the treaty of peace with Tripoli, now advised and consented to by the
Senate, I have thought it my duty to communicate these facts, in order
that Congress may consider the expediency of continuing the same provi-
sions for a limited time or making others equivalent.
TH; JEFFERSON.
15, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The Senate having advised and consented to the ratification of a treaty
concluded with the Piankeshaw Indians for extinguishing their claim to
the country between the Wabash and Kaskaskia cessions, it is now laid
before both Houses for the exercise of their constitutional powers as to
the means of fulfilling it on our part.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 17, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The Senate having advised and consented to the ratification of a con-
vention between the United States and the Cherokee Indians, concluded
at Washington on the yth day of January last, for the cession of their
right to the tract of country therein described, it is now laid before both
Houses of Congress for the exercise of their constitutional powers toward
the fulfillment thereof.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRII, 18, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
In compliance with the request of the Senate of yesterday's date, I
now communicate the entire correspondence between the ambassador of
Tunis and the Secretary of State, from which the Senate will see that
the first application by the' ambassador for restitution of the vessels taken
39 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
in violation of blockade having been yielded to, the only remaining
cause of difference brought forward by him is the requisition of a present
of naval stores to secure a peace for three years, after which the infer-
ence is obvious that a renewal of the presents is to be expected to renew
the prolongation of peace for another term. But this demand has been
pressed in verbal conferences much more explicitly and pertinaciously
than appears in the written correspondence. To save the delay of copy-
ing, s^me originals are inclosed, with a request that they be returned.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRII, 19, 1806.
To the Senate of the United States:
I nominate James Monroe, now minister plenipotentiary of the United
States at the Court of London, and William Pinkney, of Maryland, to
be commissioners plenipotentiary and extraordinary for settling all mat-
ters of difference between the United States and the United Kingdoms
of Great Britain and Ireland relative to wrongs committed between the
parties on the high seas or other waters, and for establishing the princi-
ples of navigation and commerce between them.
James Houston, of Maryland, to be judge of the court of the United
States for the district of Maryland.
Willis W. Parker, of Virginia, to be collector of the district and in-
spector of the revenue for the port of South Quay.
TH: JEFFERSON.
PROCLAMATIONS.
[Prom Annals of Congress, Ninth Congress, second session, 685.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas satisfactory information has been received that Henry Whitby,
commanding a British armed vessel called the Leander, did on the 25th
day of the month of April last, within the waters and jurisdiction of the
United States, and near to the entrance of the harbor of New York, by
a cannon shot fired from the said vessel Leander, commit a murder on
the body of John Pierce, a citizen of the United States, then pursuing
his lawful vocation within the same waters and jurisdiction of the United
States and near to their shores; and that the said Henry Whitby can not
at this time be brought to justice by the ordinary process of law; and
Whereas it does further appear that both before and after the said day
Thomas Jefferson 39 r
sundry trespasses, wrongs, and unlawful interruptions and vexations on
trading vessels coming to the United States, and within their waters and
vicinity, were committed by the said armed vessel the Leander, her offi-
cers and people; by one other armed vessel called the Cambrian, com-
manded by John Nairne, her officers and people; and by one other armed
vessel called the Driver, commanded by Slingsby Simpson, her officers
and people; which vessels, being all of the same nation, were aiding and
assisting each other in the trespasses, interruptions, and vexations afore-
said:
Now, therefore, to the end that the said Henry Whitby may be brought
to justice and due punishment inflicted for the said murder, I do hereby
especially enjoin and require all officers having authority, civil or mili-
tary, and all other persons within the limits or jurisdiction of the United
States, wheresoever the said Henry Whitby may be found, now or here-
after, to apprehend and secure the said Henry Whitby, and him safely
and diligently to deliver to the civil authority of the place, to be pro-
ceeded against according to law.
And I do hereby further require that the said armed vessel the Lean-
der, with her officers and people, and the said armed vessels the Cambrian
and Driver, their officers and people, immediately and without any delay
depart from the harbors and waters of the United States. And I do
forever interdict the entrance of all other vessels which shall be com-
manded by the said Henry Whitby, John ^Nairne, and Slingsby Simpson,
or either of them.
And if the said vessels, or any of them, shall fail to depart as afore-
said, or shall reenter the harbors or waters aforesaid, I do in that case
forbid all intercourse with the said armed vessels the Leander, the Cam-
brian, and the Driver, or with any of them, and the officers and crews
thereof, and do prohibit all supplies and aid from being furnished them,
or any of them. And I do declare and make known that if any person
from or within the jurisdictional limits of the United States shall afford
any aid to either of the said armed vessels contrary to the prohibition
contained in this proclamation, either in repairing such vessel or in fur-
nishing her, her officers or crew, with supplies of any kind or in any
manner whatever; or if any pilot shall assist in navigating any of the
said armed vessels, unless it be for the purpose of carrying them in the
first instance beyond the limits and jurisdiction of the United States,
such person or persons shall on conviction suffer all the pains and pen-
alties by the laws provided for such offenses. And I do hereby enjoin
and require all persons bearing office, civil or military, within the United
States, and all others citizens or inhabitants thereof, or being within the
same, with vigilance and promptitude to exert their respective authorities
and to be aiding and assisting to the carrying this proclamation and
every part thereof into full effect.
39 2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to be
affixed to these presents, and signed the same with my hand,
r n Given at the city of Washington, the 3d day of May, A. D.
1806, and of the Sovereignty and Independence of the United
States the thirtieth.
O:H: JEFFERSON.
By the President:
JAMBS MADISON,
Secretary of State.
[From Annals of Congress, Ninth Congress, second session, 686.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas information has been received that sundry persons, citizens
of the United States or residents within the same, are conspiring and
confederating together to begin and set on foot, provide, and prepare the
means for a military expedition or enterprise against the dominions of
Spain; that for this purpose they are fitting out and arming vessels in
the western waters of the United States, collecting provisions, arms,
military stores, and means; are deceiving and seducing honest and well-
meaning citizens, under various pretenses, to engage in their criminal
enterprises; are organizing, officering, and arming themselves for the
same, contrary to the laws in such cases made and provided:
I have therefore thought proper to issue this my proclamation, warn-
ing and enjoining all faithful citizens who have been led without due
knowledge or consideration to participate in the said unlawful enterprises
to withdraw from the same without delay, and commanding all persons
whatsoever engaged or concerned in the same to cease all further pro-
ceedings therein, as they will answer the contrary at their peril and incur
prosecution with all the rigors of the law. And I hereby enjoin and
require all officers, civil and military, of the United States, or of any of
the States or Territories, and especially all governors and other executive
authorities, all judges, justices, and other officers of the peace, all military
officers of the Army or Navy of the United States, or officers of the militia,
to be vigilant, each within his respective department and according to
his functions, in searching out and bringing to condign punishment all
persons engaged or concerned in such enterprise, in seizing and detaining,
subject to the disposition of the law, all vessels, arms, military stores, or
other means provided or providing for the same, and, in general, in pre-
venting the carrying on such expedition or enterprise by all lawful means
within their power; and I require all good and faithful citizens and others
within the United States to be aiding and assisting herein, and especially
in the discovery, apprehension, and bringing to justice of all such offend-
Thomas Jefferson 393
ers, in preventing the execution of their unlawful designs, and in giving
information against them to the proper authorities.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to
be affixed to these presents, and have signed the same with my
hand.
[SEAL.] Given at the city of Washington on the 2yth day of Novem-
ber, 1806, and in the year of the Sovereignty of the United
States the thirty-first.
TH: JEFFERSON.
By the President:
JAMES MADISON,
Secretary of State.
SIXTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.
DECEMBER 2, 1806.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America
in Congress assembled:
It would have given me, fellow-citizens, great satisfaction to announce
in the moment of your meeting that the difficulties in our foreign rela-
tions existing at the time of your last separation had been amicably and
justly terminated. I lost no time in taking those measures which were
most likely to bring them to such a termination by special missions
charged with such powers and instructions as in the event of failure
could leave no imputation on either our moderation or forbearance. The
delays which have since taken place in our negotiations with the British
Government appear to have proceeded from causes which do not forbid
the expectation that during the course of the session I may be enabled
to lay before you their final issue. What will be that of the negotia-
tions for settling our differences with Spain nothing which had takeii
place at the date of the last dispatches enables us to pronounce. On the
western side of the Mississippi she advanced in considerable force, and
took post at the settlement of Bayou Pierre, on the Red River. This
village was originally settled by France, was held by her as long as she
held Louisiana, and was delivered to Spain only as a part of Louisiana.
Being small, insulated, and distant, it was not observed at the moment of
redelivery to France and the United States that she continued a guard
of half a dozen men which had been stationed there. A proposition, how-
ever, having been lately made by our commander in chief to assume the
Sabine River as a temporary line of separation between the troops of
the two nations until the issue of our negotiations shall be known, this
has been referred by the Spanish commandant to his superior, and in the
meantime he has withdrawn his force to the western side of the Sabine
394 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
River. ,The correspondence on this subject now communicated will
exhibit more particularly the present state of things in that quarter.
The nature of that country requires indispensably that an unusual
proportion of the force employed there should be cavalry or mounted
infantry. In order, therefore, that the commanding officer might be
enabled to act with effect, I had authorized him to call on the governors
of Orleans and Mississippi for a corps of 500 volunteer cavalry. The
temporary arrangement he has proposed may perhaps render this unnec-
essary; but I inform you with great pleasure of the promptitude with
which the inhabitants of those Territories have tendered their services in
defense of their country. It has done honor to themselves, entitled them
to the confidence of their fellow-citizens in every part of the Union, and
must strengthen the general determination to protect them efficaciously
under all circumstances which may occur.
Having received information that in another part of the United States
a great number of private individuals were combining together, arming
and organizing themselves contrary to law, to carry on a military expedi-
tion against the territories of Spain, I thought it necessary, by procla-
mation as well as by special orders, to take measures for preventing and
suppressing this enterprise, for seizing the vessels, arms, and other means
provided for it, and for arresting and bringing to justice its authors and
abettors. It was due to that good faith which ought ever to be the rule
of action in public as well as in private transactions, it was due to good
order and regular government, that while the public force was acting
strictly on the defensive and merely to protect our citizens from aggres-
sion the criminal attempts of private individuals to decide for their
country the question of peace or war by commencing active and unau-
thorized hostilities should be promptly and efficaciously suppressed.
Whether it will be necessary to enlarge our regular force will depend
on the result of our negotiations with Spain; but as it is uncertain wher
that result will be known, the provisional measures requisite for that,
and to meet any pressure intervening in that quarter, will be a subject
for your early consideration.
The possession of both banks of the Mississippi reducing to a single
point the defense of that river, its waters, and the country adjacent, it
becomes highly necessary to provide for that point a more adequate
security. Some position above its mouth, commanding the passage of
the river, should be rendered sufficiently strong to cover the armed ves-
sels which may be stationed there for defense, and in conjunction with
them to present an insuperable obstacle to any force attempting to pass.
The approaches to the city of New Orleans from the eastern quarter
also will require to be examined and more effectually guarded. For the
internal support of the country the encouragement of a strong settlement
on the western side of the Mississippi, within reach of New Orleans, will
be worthy the consideration of the Legislature.
Thomas Jefferson 395
The gunboats authorized by an act of the last session are so advanced
that they will be ready for service in the ensuing spring. Circumstances
permitted us to allow the time necessary for their more solid construc-
tion. As a much larger number will still be wanting to place our sea-
port towns and waters in that state of defense to which we are competent
and they entitled, a similar appropriation for a further provision for them
is recommended for the ensuing year.
A further appropriation will also be necessary for repairing fortifi-
cations already established and the erection of such other works as may
have real effect in obstructing the approach of an enemy to our seaport
towns, or their remaining before them.
In a country whose constitution is derived from the will of the people,
directly expressed by their free suffrages; where the principal executive
functionaries and those of the legislature are renewed by them at short
periods; where under the character of jurors they exercise in person the
greatest portion of the judiciary powers; where the laws are consequently
so formed and administered as to bear with equal weight and favor on
all, restraining no man in the pursuits of honest industry and securing to
everyone the property which that acquires, it would not be supposed
that any safeguards could be needed against insurrection or enterprise
on the public peace or authority. The laws, however, aware that these
should not be trusted to moral restraints only, have wisely provided pun*
ishment for these crimes when committed. But would it not be salutary
to give also the means of preventing their commission? Where an enter-
prise is meditated by private individuals against a foreign nation in amity
with the United States, powers of prevention to a certain extent are given
by the laws. Would they not be as reasonable and useful where the
enterprise preparing is against the United States? While adverting to
this branch of law it is proper to observe that in enterprises meditated
against foreign nations the ordinary process of binding to the observance
of the peace and good behavior, could it be extended to acts to be done
out of the jurisdiction of the United States, would be effectual in some
cases where the offender is able to keep out of sight every indication of
his purpose which could draw on him the exercise of the powers now
given by law.
The States on the coast of Barbary seem generally disposed at present
to respect our peace and friendship; with Tunis alone some uncertainty
remains. Persuaded that it is our interest to maintain our peace with
them on equal terms or not at all, I propose to send in due time a reen-
forcement into the Mediterranean unless previous information shall shew
it to be unnecessary.
We continue to receive proofs of the growing attachment of our Indian
neighbors and of their disposition to place all their interests under the
patronage of the United States. These dispositions are inspired by their
confidence in our justice and in the sincere concern we feel for their
396 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
welfare; and as long as we discharge these high and honorable functions
with the integrity and good faith which alone can entitle us to their
continuance we may expect to reap the just reward in their peace atid
friendship.
The expedition of Messrs. Lewis and Clarke for exploring the river
Missouri and the best communication from that to the Pacific Ocean has
had all the success which could have been expected. They have traced
the Missouri nearly to its source, descended the Columbia to the Pacific
Ocean, ascertained with accuracy the geography of that interesting com-
munication across our continent, learnt the character of the country,
of its commerce and inhabitants; and it is but justice to say that Messrs.
Lewis and Clarke and their brave companions have by this arduous serv-
ice deserved well of their country.
The attempt to explore the Red River, under the direction of Mr. Free-
man, though conducted with a zeal and prudence meriting entire appro-
bation, has not been equally successful. After proceeding up it about
600 miles, nearly as far as the French settlements had extended while the
country was in their possession, our geographers were obliged to return
without completing their work.
Very useful additions have also been made to our knowledge of the
Mississippi by Lieutenant Pike, who has ascended it to its source, and
whose journal and map, giving the details of his journey, will shortly be
ready for communication to both Houses of Congress. Those of Messrs.
Lewis, Clarke, and Freeman will require further time to be digested
and prepared. These important surveys, in addition to those before pos-
sessed, furnish materials for commencing an accurate map of the Missis-
sippi and its western waters. Some principal rivers, however, remain
still to be explored, toward which the authorization of Congress by mod-
erate appropriations will be requisite.
I congratulate you, fellow-citizens, on the approach of the period at
which you may interpose your authority constitutionally to withdraw
the citizens of the United States from all further participation in those
violations of human rights which have been so long continued on the
unoffending inhabitants of Africa, and which the morality, the reputa-
tion, and the best interests of our country have long been eager to pro-
scribe. Although no law you may pass can take prohibitory effect till
the first day of the year 1808, yet the intervening period is not too long
to prevent by timely notice expeditions which can not be completed
before that day.
The receipts at the Treasury during the year ending on the 3Oth day
of September last have amounted to near $15,000,000, which have enabled
us, after meeting the current demands, to pay $2, 700, coo of the American
claims in part of the price of Louisiana ; to pay of the funded debt upward
of three millions of principal and nearly four of interest, and, in addition,
to reimburse in the course of the present month near two millions of 5^
Thomas Jefferson 397
per cent stock. These payments and reimbursements of the funded debt,
with those which had been made in the four years and a half preceding,
will at the close of the present year have extinguished upward of twenty-
three millions of principal.
The duties composing the Mediterranean fund will cease by law at the
end of the present session. Considering, however, that they are levied
chiefly on luxuries and that we have an impost on salt, a necessary of
life, the free use of which otherwise is so important, I recommend to
your consideration the suppression of the duties on salt and the continua-
tion of the Mediterranean fund instead thereof for a short time, after
which that also will become unnecessary for any purpose now within
contemplation .
When both of these branches of revenue shall in this way be relin-
quished there will still ere long be an accumulation of moneys in the
Treasury beyond the installments of public debt which we are permitted
by contract to pay. They can not then, without a modification assented
to by the public creditors, be applied to the extinguishment of this debt
and the complete liberation of our revenues, the most desirable of all
objects. Nor, if our peace continues, will they be wanting for any other
existing purpose. The question therefore now comes forward, To what
other objects shall these surpluses be appropriated, and the whole surplus
of impost, after the entire discharge of the public debt, and during those
intervals when the purposes of war shall not call for them? Shall we
suppress the impost and give that advantage to foreign over domestic
manufactures? On a few articles of more general and necessary use the
suppression in due season will doubtless be right, but the great mass of
the articles on which impost is paid are foreign luxuries, purchased by
those only who are rich enough to afford themselves the use of them.
Their patriotism would certainly prefer its continuance and application
to the great purposes of the public education, roads, rivers, canals, and
such other objects of public improvement as it may be thought proper to
add to the constitutional enumeration of Federal powers. By these opera-
tions new channels of communication will be opened between the States,
the h'nes of separation will disappear, their interests will be identified,
and their union cemented by new and indissoluble ties. Education is
here placed among the articles of public care, not that it would be pro-
posed to take its ordinary branches out of the hands of private enter-
prise, which manages so much better all the concerns to which it is equal,
but a public institution can alone supply those sciences which though
rarely called for are yet necessary to complete the circle, all the parts of
which contribute to the improvement of the country and some of them
to its preservation. The subject is now proposed for the consideration
of Congress, because if approved by the tune the State legislatures shall
have deliberated on this extension of the Federal trusts, and the laws
shall be passed and other arrangements made for their execution, the
398 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
necessary funds will be on hand and without employment. I suppose
an amendment to the Constitution, by consent of the States, necessary,
because the objects now recommended are not among those enumerated
in the Constitution, and to which it permits the public moneys to be
applied.
The present consideration of a national establishment for education
particularly is rendered proper by this circumstance also, that if Congress,
approving the proposition, shall yet think it more eligible to found it on
a donation of lands, they have it now in their power to endow it with
those which will be among the earliest to produce the necessary income.
This foundation would have the advantage of being independent of war,
which may suspend other improvements by requiring for its own purposes
the resources destined for them.
This, fellow-citizens, is the state of the public interests at the present
moment and according to the information now possessed. But such is
the situation of the nations of Europe and such, too, the predicament in
which we stand with some of them that we can not rely with certainty on
the present aspect of our affairs, that may change from moment to mo-
ment during the course of your session or after you shall have separated.
Our duty is, therefore, to act upon things as they are and to make a rea-
sonable provision for whatever they may be. Were armies to be raised
whenever a speck of war is visible in our horizon, we never should have
been without them. Our resources would have been exhausted on dan-
gers which have never happened, instead of being reserved for what is
really to take place. A steady, perhaps a quickened, pace in preparations
for the defense of our seaport towns and waters; an early settlement of
the most exposed and vulnerable parts of our country; a militia so organ-
ized that its effective portions can be called to any point in the Union, or
volunteers instead of them to serve a sufficient time, are means which
may always be ready, yet never preying on our resources until actually
called into use. They will maintain the public interests while a more
permanent force shall be in course of preparation. But much will depend
on the promptitude with which these means can be brought into activity.
If war be forced upon us, in spite of our long and vain appeals to the jus-
tice of nations, rapid and vigorous movements in its outset will go far
toward securing us in its course and issue, and toward throwing its bur-
thens on those who render necessary the resort from reason to force.
The result of our negotiations, or such incidents in their course as may
enable us to infer their probable issue; such further movements also on
our western frontiers as may shew whether war is to be pressed there
while negotiation is protracted elsewhere, shall be communicated to you
from time to time as they become known to me, with whatever other
information I possess or may receive, which may aid your deliberations
on the great national interests committed to your charge.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 399
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
DECEMBER 3, 1806.
Tr the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I have the satisfaction to inform you that the negotiation depending
between the United States and the Government of Great Britain is pro-
ceeding in a spirit of friendship and accommodation which promises a
result of mutual advantage. Delays, indeed, have taken place, occasioned
by the long illness and subsequent death of the British minister charged
with that duty. But the commissioners appointed by that Government
to resume the negotiation have shewn every disposition to hasten its
progress. It is, however, a work of time, as many arrangements are
necessary to place our future harmony on stable grounds. In the mean-
time we find by the communications of our plenipotentiaries that a tem-
porary suspension of the act of the last session prohibiting certain
importations would, as a mark of candid disposition on our part and of
confidence in the temper and views with which they have been met, have
a happy effect on its course. A step so friendly will afford further evi-
dence that all our proceedings have flowed from views of justice and
conciliation, and that we give them willingly that form which may best
meet corresponding dispositions.
Add to this that the same motives which produced the postponement
of the act till the 15th of November last are in favor of its further sus-
pension, and as we have reason to hope that it may soon yield to arrange-
ments of mutual consent and convenience, justice seems to require that the
same measure may be dealt out to the few cases which may fall within
its short course as to all others preceding and following it. I can not,
therefore, but recommend the suspension of this act for a reasonable time,
on considerations of justice, amity, and the public interests.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 15, 1806.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
I lay before Congress a report of the surveyor of the public buildings,
stating the progress made on them during the last season and what is
proposed for the ensuing one.
I took every measure within my power for carrying into effect the
request of the House of Representatives of the 1 7th of April last to cause
the south wing of the Capitol to be prepared for their accommodation
by the commencement of the present session. With great regret I found
it was not to be accomplished. The quantity of freestone necessary,
with the size and quality of many of the blocks, was represented as
4oo Messages and Papers of the Presidents
beyond what could be obtained from the quarries by any exertions whicH
could be commanded. The other parts of the work, which might all
have been completed in time, were necessarily retarded by the insuffi-
cient progress of the stonework.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 5, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I transmit to each House of Congress a copy of the laws of the Terri-
tory of Michigan passed by the governor and judges of the Territory
during the year 1805.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 22, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Agreeably to the request of the House of Representatives communi
cated in then- resolution of the i6th instant, I proceed to state, under the
reserve therein expressed, information received touching an illegal combi-
nation of private individuals against the peace and safety of the Union,
and a military expedition planned by them against the territories of a
power in amity with the United States, with the measures I have pur-
sued for suppressing the same.
I had for some time been in the constant expectation of receiving such
further information as would have enabled me to lay before the Legisla-
ture the termination as well as the beginning and progress of this scene
of depravity so far as it has been acted on the Ohio and its waters. From
this the state of safety of the lower country might have been estimated
on probable grounds, and the delay was indulged the rather because no
circumstance had yet made it necessary to call in the aid of the legisla-
tive functions. Information now recently communicated has brought us
nearly to the period contemplated. The mass of what I have received in
the course of these transactions is voluminous, but little has been given
under the sanction of an oath so as to constitute formal and legal evi-
dence. It is chiefly in the form of letters, often containing such a mix-
ture of rumors, conjectures, and suspicions as renders it difficult to sift
out the real facts and unadvisable to hazard more than general outlines,
strengthened by concurrent information or the particular credibility of the
relator. In this state of the evidence, delivered sometimes, too, under
the restriction of private confidence, neither safety nor justice will permit
the exposing names, except that of the principal actor, whose guilt is
placed beyond question.
Some time in the latter part of September I received intimations that
designs were in agitation in the Western country unlawful and unfriendly
to the peace of the Union, and that the prime mover in these was Aaron
Thomas Jefferson 401
Burr, heretofore distinguished by the favor of his country. The grounds
of these intimations being inconclusive, the objects uncertain, and the
fidelity of that country known to be firm, the only measure taken was to
urge the informants to use their best endeavors to get further insight into
the designs and proceedings of the suspected persons and to communicate
them to me.
It was not till the latter part of October that the objects of the con-
spiracy began to be perceived, but still so blended and involved in mystery
that nothing distinct could be singled out for pursuit. In thic state of
uncertainty as to the crime contemplated, the acts done, and the legal
course to be pursued, I thought it best to send to the scene where these
things were principally in transaction a person in whose integrity, under-
standing, and discretion entire confidence could be reposed, with instruc-
tions to investigate the plots going on, to enter into conference (for which
he had sufficient credentials) with the governors and all other officers, civil
and military, and with their aid to do on the spot whatever should be
necessary to discover the designs of the conspirators, arrest their means,
bring their persons to punishment, and to call out the force of the coun-
try to suppress any unlawful enterprise in which it should be found they
were engaged. By this time it was known that many boats were under
preparation, stores of provisions collecting, and an unusual number of
suspicious characters in motion on the Ohio and its waters. Besides
dispatching the confidential agent to that quarter, orders were at the same
time sent to the governors of the Orleans and Mississippi Territories and
to the commanders of the land and naval forces there to be on their guard
against surprise and in constant readiness to resist any enterprise which
might be attempted on the vessels, posts, or other objects under their
care; and on the 8th of November instructions were forwarded to Gen-
eral Wilkinson to hasten an accommodation with the Spanish command-
ant on the Sabine, and as soon as that was effected to fall back with his
principal force to the hither bank of the Mississippi for the defense of
the interesting points on that river. By a letter received from that
officer on the 25th of November, but dated October 2 1 , we learnt that a
confidential agent of Aaron Burr had been deputed to him with commu-
nications, partly written in cipher and partly oral, explaining his designs,
exaggerating his resources, and making such offers of emolument and
command to engage him and the army in his unlawful enterprise as he
had flattered himself would be successful. The General, with the honor
of a soldier and fidelity of a good citizen, immediately dispatched a trusty
officer tome with information of what had passed, proceeding to establish
such an understanding with the Spanish commandant on the Sabine as
permitted him to withdraw his force across the Mississippi and to enter
on measures for opposing the projected enterprise.
The General's letter, which came to hand on the 25th of November, as
has been mentioned, and some other information received a few days
49 2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
earlier, when brought together developed Burr's general designs, dif-
ferent parts of which only had been revealed to different informants.
It appeared that he contemplated two distinct objects, which might be
carried on either jointly or separately, and either the one or the other
first, as circumstances should direct. One of these was the severance of
the Union of these States by the Alleghany Mountains; the other an
attack on Mexico. A third object was provided, merely ostensible, to
wit, the settlement of a pretended purchase of a tract of country on the
Washita claimed by a Baron Bastrop. This was to serve as the pre-
text for all his preparations, an allurement for such followers as really
wished to acquire settlements in that country and a cover under which
to retreat in the event of a final discomfiture of both branches of his real
design.
He found at once that the attachment of the Western country to the
present Union was not to be shaken; that its dissolution could not be
effected with the consent of its inhabitants, and that his resources were
inadequate as yet to effect it by force. He took his course then at once,
determined to seize on New Orleans, plunder the bank there, possess
himself of the military and naval stores, and proceed on his expedition
to Mexico, and to this object all his means and preparations were now
directed. He collected from all the quarters where himself or his agents
possessed influence all the ardent, restless, desperate, and disaffected per-
sons who were ready for any enterprise analogous to their characters.
He seduced good and well-meaning citizens, some by assurances that he
possessed the confidence of the Government and was acting under its
secret patronage, a pretense which procured some credit from the state
of our differences with Spain, and others by offers of land in Bastrop' s
claim on the Washita.
This was the state of my information of his proceedings about the last
of November, at which time, therefore, it was first possible to take spe-
cific measures to meet them. The proclamation of November 27, two
days after the receipt of General Wilkinson's information, was now
issued. Orders were dispatched to every interesting point on the Ohio
and Mississippi from Pittsburg to New Orleans for the employment of
such force either of the regulars or of the militia and of such proceedings
also of the civil authorities as might enable them to seize on all the boats
and stores provided for the enterprise, to arrest the persons concerned,
and to suppress effectually the further progress of the enterprise. A little
before the receipt of these orders in the State of Ohio our confidential
agent, who had been diligently employed in investigating the conspiracy,
had acquired sufficient information to open himself to the governor of
that State and apply for the immediate exertion of the authority and
power of the State to crush the combination. Governor Tiffin and the
legislature, with a promptitude, an energy, and patriotic zeal which enti-
tle them to a distinguished place in the affection of their sister States,
Thomas Jefferson 43
effected the seizure of all the boats, provisions, and other preparations
within their reach, and thus gave a first blow, materially disabling the
enterprise in its outset.
In Kentucky a premature attempt to bring Burr to justice without
sufficient evidence for his conviction had produced a popular impression
in his favor and a general disbelief of his guilt. This gave him an unfor-
tunate opportunity of hastening his equipments. The arrival of the
proclamation and orders and the application and information of our con-
fidential agent at length awakened the authorities of that State to the
truth, and then produced the same promptitude and energy of which the
neighboring State had set the example. Under an act of their legisla-
ture of December 23 militia was instantly ordered to different important
points, and measures taken for doing whatever could yet be done. Some
boats (accounts vary from five to double or treble that number) and per-
sons (differently estimated from 100 to 300) had in the meantime passed
the Falls of Ohio to rendezvous at the mouth of Cumberland with others
expected down that river.
Not apprised till very late that any boats were building on Cumber-
land, the effect of the proclamation had been trusted to for some time in
the State of Tennessee; but on the igth of December similar communi-
cations and instructions with those to the neighboring States were dis-
patched by express to the governor and a general officer of the western
division of the State, and on the 23d of December our confidential agent
left Frankfort for Nashville to put into activity the means of that State
also. But by information received yesterday I learn that on the 22d of
December Mr. Burr descended the Cumberland with two boats merely of
accommodation, carrying with him from that State no quota toward his
unlawful enterprise. Whether after the arrival of the proclamation, of the
orders, or of our agent any exertion which could be made by that State
or the orders of the governor of Kentucky for calling out the militia at
the mouth of Cumberland would be in time to arrest these boats and those
from the Falls of Ohio is still doubtful.
On the whole, the fugitives from the Ohio, with their associates from
Cumberland or any other place in that quarter, can not threaten serious
danger to the city of New Orleans.
By the same express of December 19 orders were sent to the govern-
ors of Orleans and Mississippi, supplementary to those which had been
given on the 25th of November, to hold the militia of their Territories in
readiness to cooperate for their defense with the regular troops and armed
vessels then under command of General Wilkinson. Great alarm, indeed,
was excited at New Orleans by the exaggerated accounts of Mr. Burr,
disseminated through his emissaries, of the armies and navies he was to
assemble there. General Wilkinson had arrived there himself on the
24th of November, and had immediately put into activity the resources
of the place for the purpose of its defense, and on the xoth of December
404 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
he was joined by his troops from the Sabine. Great zeal was shewn by
the inhabitants generally, the merchants of the place readily agreeing to
the most laudable exertions and sacrifices for manning the armed vessels
with their seamen, and the other citizens manifesting unequivocal fidelity
to the Union and a spirit of determined resistance to their expected as-
sailants.
Surmises have been hazarded that this enterprise is to receive aid from
certain foreign powers; but these surmises are without proof or proba-
bility. The wisdom of the measures sanctioned by Congress at its last
session has placed us in the paths of peace and justice with the only
powers with whom we had any differences, and nothing has happened
since which makes it either their interest or ours to pursue another course.
No change of measures has taken place on our part; none ought to take
place at this time. With the one, friendly arrangement was then pro-
posed, and the law deemed necessary on the failure of that was suspended
to give time for a fair trial of the issue. With the same power friendly
arrangement is now proceeding under good expectations, and the same
law deemed necessary on failure of that is still suspended, to give time
for a fair trial of the issue. With the other, negotiation was in like man-
ner then preferred, and provisional measures only taken to meet the
event of rupture. With the same power negotiation is still preferred,
and provisional measures only are necessary to meet the event of rupture.
While, therefore, we do not deflect in "the slightest degree from the course
we then assumed and are still pursuing with mutual consent to restore a
good understanding, we are not to impute to them practices as irreconcil-
able to interest as to good faith, and changing necessarily the relations of
peace and justice between us to those of war. These surmises are there-
fore to be imputed to the vauntings of the author of this enterprise
to multiply his partisans by magnifying the belief of his prospects and
support.
By letters from General Wilkinson of the I4th and i8th of December,
which came to hand two days after the date of the resolution of the House
of Representatives that is to say, on the morning of the i8th instant
I received the important affidavit a copy of which I now communicate,
with extracts of so much of the letters as comes within the scope of the
resolution. By these it will be seen that of three of the principal emis-
saries of Mr. Burr whom the General had caused to be apprehended,
one had been liberated by habeas corpus, and two others, being those
particularly employed in the endeavor to corrupt the general and army
of the United States, have been embarked by him for ports in the Atlan
tic States, probably on the consideration that an impartial trial could
not be expected during the present agitations of New Orleans, and that
that city was not as yet a safe place of confinement. As soon as these
persons shall arrive they will be delivered to the custody of the law
and left to such course of trial, both as to place and process, as its func-
Thomas Jefferson 405
tionaries may direct. The presence of the highest judicial authorities,
to be assembled at this place within a few days, the means of pursuing a
sounder course of proceedings here than elsewhere, and the aid of the
Executive means, should the judges have occasion to use them, render it
equally desirable for the criminals as for the public that, being already
removed from the place where they were first apprehended, the first reg-
ular arrest should take place here, and the course of proceedings receive
here its proper direction.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 26, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I received from General Wilkinson on the 23d instant his affidavit
charging Samuel Swartwout, Peter V. Ogden, and James Alexander
with the crimes described in the affidavit a copy of which is now com-
municated to both Houses of Congress.
It was announced to me at the same time that Swartwout and Bollman,
two of the persons apprehended by him, were arrived in this city in cus-
tody each of a military officer. I immediately delivered to the attorney
of the United States in this district the evidence received against them,
with instructions to lay the same before the judges and apply for their
process to bring the accused to justice, and put into his hands orders to
the officers having them in custody to deliver them to the marshal on
his application.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 27, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now render to Congress the account of the fund established for
defraying the contingent expenses of Government for the year 1806.
No occasion having arisen for making use of any part of the balance of
$18,012.50, unexpended on the 3ist day of December, 1805, that balance
remains in the Treasury.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 28, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
By the letters of Captain Bissel, who commands at Fort Massac, and
of Mr. Murrell, to General Jackson, of Tennessee, copies of which are
now communicated to Congress, it will be seen that Aaron Burr passed
Fort Massac on the 3ist December with about ten boats, navigated by
about six hands each, without any military appearance, and that three
boats with ammunition were said to have been arrested by the militia at
Louisville.
4 6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
As the guards of militia posted on various points of the Ohio will be
able to prevent any further aids passing through that channel, should any
be attempted, we may now estimate with tolerable certainty the means
derived from the Ohio and its waters toward the accomplishment of the
purposes of Mr. Burr.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 31, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In execution of the act of the last session of Congress entitled "An
act to regulate the laying out and making a road from Cumberland, in
the State of Maryland, to the State of Ohio," I appointed Thomas
Moore, of Maryland; Joseph Kerr, of Ohio, and Eli Williams, of Mary-
land, commissioners to lay out the said road, and to perform the other
duties assigned to them by the act. The progress which they made in
the execution of the work during the last season will appear in their
report now communicated to Congress. On the receipt of it I took
measures to obtain consent for making the road of the States of Penn-
sylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, through which the commissioners pro-
posed to lay it out. I have received acts of the legislatures of Maryland
and Virginia giving the consent desired ; that of Pennsylvania has the
subject still under consideration, as is supposed. Until I receive full
consent to a free choice of route through the whole distance I have
thought it safest neither to accept nor reject finally the partial report of
the commissioners. Some matters suggested in the report belong exclu-
sively to the legislature.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 6, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I lay before Congress the laws for the government of Louisiana, passed
by the governor and judges of the Indiana Territory at their session at
Vincennes begun on the ist of October, 1804.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 6, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The Government of France having examined into the claim of M. de
Beaumarchais against the United States, and considering it as just and
legal, has instructed its minister here to make representations on the
subject to the Government of the United States. I now lay his memoir
thereon before the Legislature, the only authority competent to a final
decision on the same.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 407
FEBRUARY 10, 1807.
To the Senate ant. House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate, for the information of Congress, a letter from Cowles
Mead, secretary of the Mississippi Territory, to the Secretary of War, by
which it will be seen that Mr. Burr had reached that neighborhood on
the 1 3th of January,
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 10, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In compliance with the request of the House of Representatives
expressed in their resolution of the 5th instant, I proceed to give such
information as is possessed of the effect of gunboats in the protection and
defense of harbors, of the numbers thought necessary, and of the proposed
distribution of them among the ports and harbors of the United States.
Under present circumstances, and governed by the intentions of the
Legislature as manifested by their annual appropriations of money for
the purposes of defense, it has been concluded to combine, first, land
batteries furnished with heavy cannon and mortars, and established on all
the points around the place favorable for preventing vessels from lying
before it; second, movable artillery, which may be carried, as occasion
may require, to points unprovided with fixed batteries; third, floating
batteries, and fourth, gunboats which may oppose an enemy at his
entrance and cooperate with the batteries for his expulsion.
On this subject professional men were consulted as far as we had
opportunity. General Wilkinson and tne late General Gates gave their
opinions in writing in favor of the system, as will be seen by their let-
ters now communicated. The higher officers of the Navy gave the same
opinions in separate conferences, as their presence at the seat of Govern-
ment offered occasions of consulting them, and no difference of judgment
appeared on the subject. Those of Commodore Barron and Captain
Tingey, now here, are recently furnished in writing, and transmitted
herewith to the Legislature.
The efficacy of gunboats for the defense of harbors and of other smooth
and inclosed waters may be estimated in part from that of galleys for-
merly much used but less powerful, more costly in their construction
and maintenance, and requiring more men. But the gunboat itself is
believed to be in use with every modern maritime nation for the purposes
of defense. In the Mediterranean, on which are several small powers
whose system, like ours, is peace and defense, few harbors are without
this article of protection. Our own experience there of the effect of gun-
boats for harbor service is recent. Algiers is particulary known to have
owed to a great provision of these vessels the safety of its city since the
epoch of their construction. Before that it had been repeatedly insulted
408 Messages and Papers of the Presidents ,
and injured. The effect of gunboats at present in the neighborhood of
Gibraltar is well known, and how much they were used both in the attack
and defense of that place dr <-ing a former war. The extensive resort to
them by the two greatest n?/val powers in the world on an enterprise of
invasion not long since in prospect shews their confidence in their efficacy
for the purposes for which they are suited. By the northern powers of
Europe, whose seas are particularly adapted to them, they are still more
used. The remarkable action between the Russian flotilla of gunboats
and galleys and a Turkish fleet of ships of the line and frigates in the
Liman Sea in 1788 will be readily recollected. The latter, commanded
by their most celebrated admiral, were completely defeated, and several
of their ships of the line destroyed.
From the opinions given as to the number of gunboats necessary for
some of the principal seaports, and from a view of all the towns and
ports from Orleans to Maine, inclusive, entitled to protection in propor-
tion to their situation and circumstances, it is concluded that to give
them a due measure of protection in times of war about 200 gunboats
will be requisite.
According to first ideas the following would be their general distribu-
tion, liable to be varied on more mature examination and as circumstances
shall vary; that is to say:
To the Mississippi and its neighboring waters, 40 gunboats.
To Savannah and Charleston, and the harbors on each side from St.
Marys to Currituck, 25.
To the Chesapeake and its waters, 20.
To Delaware Bay and River, 15.
To New York, the Sound, and waters as far as Cape Cod, 50.
To Boston and the harbors north of Cape Cod, 50.
The flotillas assigned to these several stations might each be under
the care of a particular commandant, and the vessels composing them
would in ordinary be distributed among the harbors within the station
in proportion to their importance.
Of these boats a proper proportion would be of the larger size, such as
those heretofore built, capable of navigating any seas and of reenforcing
occasionally the strength of even the most distant ports when menaced
with danger. The residue would be confined to their own or the neigh-
boring harbors, would be smaller, less furnished for accommodation, and
consequently less costly. Of the number supposed necessary, 73 are built
or building, and the 127 still to be provided would cost from $500,000 to
$600,000. Having regard to the convenience of the Treasury as well as
to the resources for building, it has been thought that the one-half of
these might be built in the present year and the other half the next.
With the Legislature, however, it will rest to stop where we are, or at
any further point, when they shall be of opinion that the number pro-
vided shall be sufficient for the object.
Thomas Jefferson 409
At times when Europe as well as the United States shall be at peace
it would not be proposed that more than six or eight of these vessels
should be kept afloat. When Europe is in war, treble that number
might be necessary, to be distributed among -those particular harbors
which foreign vessels of war are in the habit of frequenting for the pur-
pose of preserving order therein. But they would be manned in ordinary,
with only their complement for navigation, relying on the seamen and
militia of the port if called into action on any sudden emergency. It
would be only when the United States should themselves be at war that
the whole number would be brought into active service, and would be
ready in the first moments of the war to cooperate with the other means
for covering at once the line of our seaports. At all times those unem-
ployed would be withdrawn into places not exposed to sudden enterprise,
hauled up under sheds from the sun and weather, and kept in preserva-
tion with little expense for repairs or maintenance.
It must be superfluous to observe that this species of naval armament
is proposed merely for defensive operation; that it can have but little
effect toward protecting our commerce in the open seas, even on our
own coast; and still less can it become an excitement to engage in offen-
sive maritime war, toward which it would furnish no means.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY n, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now lay before Congress a statement of the militia of the United
States according to the latest returns received by the Department of
War. From two of the States no returns have ever been received.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 19, 1807.
To the Senate and House oj Representatives of the United States:
I transmit to Congress a letter from our ministers plenipotentiary at
London, informing us that they have agreed with the British commission-
ers to conclude a treaty on all the points which had formed the object
of their negotiation, and on terms which they trusted we would approve.
Also a letter from our minister plenipotentiary at Paris covering one to
him from the minister of marine of that Government assuring him that
the imperial decree lately passed was not to affect our commerce, which
would still be governed by the rules of the treaty established between
the two countries.
Also a letter from Cowles Mead, secretary of the Mississippi Territory,
acting as governor, informing us that Aaron Burr had surrendered himself
to the civil authority of that Territory.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Messages and Papers of the Presidents
PROCLAMATIONS.
BY THOMAS JEFFERSON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION,
During the wars which for some time have unhappily prevailed among
the powers of Europe the United States of America, firm in their prin-
ciples of peace, have endeavored, by justice, by a regular discharge of all
their national and social duties, and by every friendly office their situa-
tion has admitted, to maintain with all the belligerents their accustomed
relations of friendship, hospitality, and commercial intercourse. Taking
no part in the questions which animate these powers against each other,
nor permitting themselves to entertain a wish but for the restoration of
general peace, they have observed with good faith the neutrality they
assumed, and they believe that no instance of a departure from its duties
can be justly imputed to them by any nation. A free use of their har-
bors and waters, the means of refitting and of refreshment, of succor to
their sick and suffering, have at all times and on equal principles been
extended to all, and this, too, amidst a constant recurrence of acts of
insubordination to the laws, of violence to the persons, and of trespasses
on the property of our citizens committed by officers of one of the bellig-
erent parties received among us. In truth, these abuses of the laws of
hospitality have, with few exceptions, become habitual to the commanders
of the British armed vessels hovering on our coasts and frequenting our
harbors. They have been the subject of repeated representations to their
Government. Assurances have been given that proper orders should
restrain them within the limits of the rights and of the respect due to
a friendly nation; but those orders and assurances have been without
effect no instance of punishment for past wrongs has taken place. At
length a deed transcending all we have hitherto seen or suffered brings
the public sensibility to a serious crisis and our forbearance to a nec-
essary pause. A frigate of the United States, trusting to a state of
peace, and leaving her harbor on a distant service, has been surprised
and attacked by a British vessel of superior force one of a squadron then
lying in our waters and covering the transaction and has been disabled
from service, with the loss of a number of men killed and wounded.
This enormity was not only without provocation or justifiable cause, but
was committed with the avowed purpose of taking by force from a ship
of war of the United States a part of her crew; and that no circumstance
might be wanting to mark its character, it had been previously ascer-
tained that the seamen demanded were native citizens of the United
States. Having effected her purpose, she returned to anchor with her
Thomas Jefferson 411
squadron within our jurisdiction. Hospitality under such circumstances
ceases to be a duty, and a continuance of it with such uncontrolled
abuses would tend only, by multiplying injuries and irritations, to bring
on a rupture between the two nations. This extreme resort is equally
opposed to the interests of both, as it is to assurances of the most friendly
dispositions on the part of the British Government, in the midst of which
this outrage has been committed. In this light the subject can not but
present itself to that Government and strengthen the motives to an hon-
orable reparation of the wrong which has been done, and to that effectual
control of its naval commanders which alone can justify the Government
of the United States in the exercise of those hospitalities it is now con-
strained to discontinue.
In consideration of these circumstances and of the right of every nation
to regulate its own police, to provide for its peace and for the safety of
its citizens, and consequently to refuse the admission of armed vessels
into its harbors or waters, either in such numbers or of such descriptions
as are inconsistent with these or with the maintenance of the authority
of the laws, I have thought proper, in pursuance of the authorities
specially given by law, to issue this my proclamation, hereby requiring
all armed vessels bearing commissions under the Government of Great
Britain now within the harbors or waters of the United States immedi-
ately and without any delay to depart from the same, and interdicting
the entrance of all the said harbors and waters to the said armed vessels
and to all others bearing commissions under the authority of the British
Government.
And if the said vessels, or any of them, shall fail to depart as afore-
said, or if they or any others so interdicted shall hereafter enter the
harbors or waters aforesaid, I do in that case forbid all intercourse with
them, or any of them, their officers or crews, and do prohibit all supplies
and aid from being furnished to them, or any of them.
And I do declare and make known that if any person from or within
the jurisdictional limits of the United States shall afford any aid to any
such vessel contrary to the prohibition contained in this proclamation,
either in repairing any such vessel or in furnishing her, her officers or
crew, with supplies of any kind or in any manner whatsoever; or if any
pilot shall assist in navigating any of the said armed vessels, unless it bt
for the purpose of carrying them in the first instance beyond the limits
and jurisdiction of the United States, or unless it be in the case of a
vessel forced by distress or charged with public dispatches, as hereinafter
provided for, such person or persons shall on conviction suffer all the
pains and penalties by the laws provided for such offenses.
And I do hereby enjoin and require all persons bearing office, civil or
military, within or under the authority of the United States, and all
others citizens or inhabitants thereof, or being within the same, with
vigilance and promptitude to exert their respective authorities and to
412 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
be aiding and assisting to the carrying this proclamation and every part
thereof into full effect.
Provided, nevertheless, that if any such vessel shall be forced into the
harbors or waters of the United States by distress, by the dangers of the
sea, or by the pursuit of an enemy, or shall enter them charged with dis-
patches or business from their Government, or shall be a public packet
for the conveyance of letters and dispatches, the commanding officer,
immediately reporting his "vessel to the collector of the district, stating
the object or causes of entering the said harbors or waters, and conform-
ing himself to the regulations in that case prescribed under the authority
of the laws, shall be allowed the benefit of such regulations respecting
repairs, supplies, stay, intercourse, and departure as shall be permitted
under the same authority.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to be
affixed to these presents, and signed the same.
.- -, Given at the city of Washington, the 2d day of July, A. D.
1807, and of the Sovereignty and Independence of the United
States the thirty-first.
TH: JEFFERSON.
By the President:
JAMES MADISON,
Secretary of State.
[From Annals of Congress, Tenth Congress, first session, vol. i, 9.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas great and weighty matters claiming the consideration of the
Congress of the United States form an extraordinary occasion for conven-
ing them, I do by these presents appoint Monday, the 26th day of October
next, for their meeting at the city of Washington, hereby requiring the
respective Senators and Representatives then and there to assemble in
Congress, in order to receive such communications as may then be made
to them, and to consult and determine on such measures as in their wis-
dom may be deemed meet for the welfare of the United States.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to be
hereunto affixed, and signed the same with my hand.
Done at the city of Washington, the 3Oth day of July, A. D.
L L -J 1807, and in the thirty -second year of the Independence of
the United States.
TH: JEFFERSON.
By the President:
JAMES MADISON,
Secretary of State.
Thomas Jefferson 413
[From the National Intelligencer, October 19, 1807.]
BY THE PRESIDENT OP THE UNITED STATES OP AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas information has been received that a number of individuals
who have deserted from the Army of the United States and sought shel-
ter without the jurisdiction thereof have become sensible of their offense
and are desirous of returning to their duty, a full pardon is hereby pro-
claimed to each and all of such individuals as shall within four months
from the date hereof surrender themselves to the commanding officer of
any military post within the United States or the Territories thereof.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States to be
affixed to these presents, and signed the same with my hand.
P -, Done at the city of Washington, the i5th day of October,
A. D. 1807, and of the Independence of the United States of
America the thirty-second.
TH: JEFFERSON.
By the President:
JAMES MADISON,
Secretary of State t
SEVENTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.
OCTOBER 27, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Circumstances, fellow-citizens, which seriously threatened the peace
of our country have made it a duty to convene you at an earlier period
than usual. The love of peace so much cherished in the bosoms of our
citizens, which has so long guided the proceedings of their public coun-
cils and induced forbearance under so many wrongs, may not insure our
continuance in the quiet pursuits of industry. The many injuries and
depredations committed on our commerce and navigation upon the high
seas for years past, the successive innovations on those principles of pub-
lic law which have been established by the reason and usage of nations
as the rule of their intercourse and the umpire and security of their rights
and peace, and all the circumstances which induced the extraordinary
mission to London are already known to you. The instructions given
to our ministers were framed in the sincerest spirit of amity and modera-
tion. They accordingly proceeded, in conformity therewith, to propose
arrangements which might embrace, and settle all the points in difference
between us, which might bring us to a mutual understanding on our
neutral and national rights and provide for a commercial intercourse on
414 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
'conditions of some equality. After long and fruitless endeavors to effect
the purposes of their mission and to obtain arrangements within the
limits of their instructions, they concluded to sign such as could be
obtained and to send them for consideration, candidly declaring to the
other negotiators at the same time that they were acting against their
instructions, and that their Government, therefore, could not be pledged
for ratification. Some of the articles proposed might have been admitted
on a principle of compromise, but others were too highly disadvantageous,
and no sufficient provision was made against the principal source of the
irritations and collisions which were constantly endangering the peace
of the two nations. The question, therefore, whether a treaty should be
accepted in that form could have admitted but of one decision, even had
no declarations of the other party impaired our confidence in it. Still
anxious not to close the door against friendly adjustment, new modifica-
tions were framed and further concessions authorized than could before
have been supposed necessary; and our ministers were instructed to
resume their negotiations on these grounds. On this new reference to
amicable discussion we were reposing in confidence, when on the 226.
day of June last by a formal order from a British admiral the frigate Ches-
apeake t leaving her port for a distant service, was attacked by one of
those vessels which had been lying in our harbors under the indulgences
of hospitality, was disabled from proceeding, had several of her crew
killed and four taken away. On this outrage no commentaries are neces-
sary. Its character has been pronounced by the indignant voice of our
citizens with an emphasis and unanimity never exceeded. I immediately,
by proclamation, interdicted our harbors and waters to all British armed
vessels, forbade intercourse with them, and uncertain how far hostilities
were intended, and the town of Norfolk, indeed, being threatened with
immediate attack, a sufficient force was ordered for the protection of
that place, and such other preparations commenced and pursued as the
prospect rendered proper. An armed vessel of the United States was
dispatched with instructions to our ministers at London to call on that
Government for the satisfaction and security required by the outrage.
A very short interval ought now to bring the answer, which shall be
communicated to you as soon as received; then also, or as soon after as
the public interests shall be found to admit, the unratified treaty and
proceedings relative to it shall be made known to you.
The aggression thus begun has been continued on the part of the
British commanders by remaining within our waters in defiance of the
authority of the country, by habitual violations of its jurisdiction, and at
length by putting to death one of the persons whom they had forcibly
taken from on board the Chesapeake. These aggravations necessarily
lead to the policy either of never admitting an armed vessel into our har-
bors or of maintaining in every harbor such an armed force as may
constrain obedience to the laws and protect the lives and property of our
. ..
JEFFERSON'S NEUTRALITY PROCLAMATION DURING EUROPEAN
WARS.
of
e \
Stric
t^*
tfo.
LAST PAGE OF JEFFERSON'S NEUTRALITY PROCLAMATION,
UEARIM; SIGNATURE OF JAMES MADISON AS SECRETARY
OF STATE.
Thomas Jefferson 4 T S
citizens against their armed guests; but the expense of such a standing
torce and its inconsistence with our principles dispense with those cour-
tesies which would necessarily call for it, and leave us equally free to
exclude the navy, as we are the army, of a foreign power from entering
our limits.
To former violations of maritime rights another is now added of very
extensive effect. The Government of that nation has issued an order
interdicting all trade by neutrals between ports not in amity with them;
and being now at war with nearly every nation on the Atlantic and
Mediterranean seas, our vessels are required to sacrifice their cargoes at
the first port they touch or to return home without the benefit of going
to any other market. Under this new law of the ocean our trade on the
Mediterranean has been swept away by seizures and condemnations, and
that in other seas is threatened with the same fate.
Our differences with Spain remain still unsettled, no measure having
been taken on her part since my last communications to Congress to bring
them to a close. But under a state of things which may favor recon-
sideration they have been recently pressed, and an expectation is enter-
tained that they may now soon be brought to an issue of some sort.
With their subjects oc our borders no new collisions have taken place
nor seem immediately to be apprehended. To our former grounds of
complaint has been added a very serious one, as you will see by the
decree a copy of which is now communicated. Whether this decree,
which professes to be conformable to that of the French Government of
November 21, 1806, heretofore communicated to Congress, will also be
conformed to that in its construction and application in relation to the
United States had not been ascertained at the date of our last communi-
cations. These, however, gave reason to expect such a conformity.
With the other nations of Europe our harmony has been uninter-
rupted, and commerce and friendly intercourse have been maintained on
their usual footing.
Our peace with the several states on the coast of Barbary appears as
firm as at any former period and as likely to continue as that of any
other nation.
Among our Indian neighbors in the northwestern quarter some fermen-
tation was observed soon after the late occurrences, threatening the con-
tinuance of our peace. Messages were said to be interchanged and tokens
to be passing, which usually denote a state of restlessness among them,
and the character of the agitators pointed to the sources of excitement.
Measures were immediately taken for providing against that danger;
instructions were given to require explanations, and, with assurances of
our continued friendship, to admonish the tribes to remain quiet at home,
taking no part in quarrels not belonging to them. As far as we are yet
informed, the tribes in our vicinity, who are most advanced in the pur-
suits of industry, are sincerely disposed to adhere to their friendship with
15
Messages and Papers of the Residents
us and to their peace with all others, while those more remote do not
present appearances sufficiently quiet to justify the intermission of mili-
tary precaution on our part.
The great tribes on our southwestern quarter, much advanced beyond
he others in agriculture and household arts, appear tranquil and identi-
fying their views with ours in proportion to their advancement. With
the whole of these people, in every quarter, I shall continue to inculcate
peace and friendship with all their neighbors and perseverance in those
occupations and pursuits which will best promote their own well-being.
The appropriations of the last session for the defense of our seaport
towns and harbors were made under expectation that a continuance of
our peace would permit us to proceed in that work according to our con-
venience. It has been thought better to apply the sums then given
toward the defense of New York, Charleston, and New Orleans chiefly,
as most open and most likely first to need protection, and to leave places
less immediately in danger to the provisions of the present session.
The gunboats, too, already provided have on a like principle been
chiefly assigned to New York, New Orleans, and the Chesapeake.
Whether our movable force on the water, so material in aid of the
defensive works on the land, should be augmented in this or any other
form is left to the wisdom of the Legislature. For the purpose of man-
ning these vessels in sudden attacks on our harbors it is a matter for
consideration whether the seamen of the United States may not justly
be formed into a special militia, to be called on for tours of duty in de-
fense of the harbors where they shall happen to be, the ordinary militia
of the place furnishing that portion which may consist of landsmen.
The moment our peace was threatened I deemed it indispensable to
secure a greater provision of those articles of military stores with which
our magazines were not sufficiently furnished. To have awaited a pre-
vious and special sanction by law would have lost occasions which might
not be retrieved. I did not hesitate, therefore, to authorize engage-
ments for such supplements to our existing stock as would render it
adequate to the emergencies threatening us, and I trust that the Legis-
lature, feeling the same anxiety for the safety of our country, so mate-
rially advanced by this precaution, will approve, when done, what they
would have seen so important to be done if then assembled. Expenses,
also unprovided for, arose out of the necessity of calling all our gunboats
into actual service for the defense of our harbors; of all which accounts
will be laid before you.
Whether a regular army is to be raised, and to what extent, must de-
pend on the information so shortly expected. In the meantime I have
called on the States for quotas of militia, to be in readiness for present
defense, and have, moreover, encouraged the acceptance of volunteers;
and I am happy to inform you that these have offered themselves with
great alacrity in every part of the Union. They are ordered to be organ-
Thomas Jefferson 4*7
ized and ready at a moment's warning to proceed on any service to
which they may be called, and every preparation within the Executive
powers has been made to insure us the benefit of early exertions.
I informed Congress at their last session of the enterprises against the
public peace which were believed to be in preparation by Aaron Burr
and. his associates, of the measures taken to defeat them and to bring the
offenders to justice. Their enterprises were happily defeated by the patri-
otic exertions of the militia whenever called into action, by the fidelity of
the Army, and energy of the commander in chief in promptly arranging
the difficulties presenting themselves on the Sabine, repairing to meet
those arising on the Mississippi, and dissipating before their explosion
plots engendering there. I shall think it my duty to lay before you the
proceedings and the evidence publicly exhibited on the arraignment of
the principal offenders before the circuit court of Virginia. You will be
enabled to judge whether the defect was in the testimony, in the law, or
in the administration of the law; and wherever it shall be found, the
Legislature alone can apply or originate the remedy. The framers of our
Constitution certainly supposed they had guarded as well their Govern-
ment against destruction by treason as their citizens against oppression
under pretense of it, and if these ends are not attained it is of impor-
tance to inquire by what means more effectual they may be secured.
The accounts of the receipts of revenue during the year ending on
the 3oth day of September last being not yet made up, a correct state-
ment will be hereafter transmitted from the Treasury. In the meantime,
it is ascertained that the receipts have amounted to near $16,000,000,
which, with the five millions and a half in the Treasury at the beginning
of the year, have enabled us, after meeting the current demands and
interest incurred, to pay more than four millions of the principal of our
funded debt. These payments, with those of the preceding five and a
half years, have extinguished of the funded debt $25,500,000, being the
whole which could be paid or purchased within the limits of the law and
of our contracts, and have left us in the Treasury $8,500,000. A portion
of this sum may be considered as a commencement of accumulation of
the surpluses of revenue which, after paying the installments of debt
as they shall become payable, will remain without any specific object.
It may partly, indeed, be applied toward completing the defense of the
exposed points of our country, on such a scale as shall be adapted to our
principles and circumstances. This object is doubtless among the first
entitled to attention in such a state of our finances, and it is one which,
whether we have peace or war, will provide security where it is due.
Whether what shall remain of this, with the future surpluses, may be
usefully applied to purposes already authorized or more usefully to
others requiring new authorities, or how otherwise they shall be dis-
posed of, are questions calling for the notice of Congress, unless, indeed,
they shall be superseded by a change in our public relations now awaiting
4i8 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
the determination of others. Whatever be that determination, it is a
great consolation that it will become known at a moment when the
supreme council of the nation is assembled at its post, and ready to give
the aids of its wisdom and authority to whatever course the good of our
country shall then call us to pursue.
Matters of minor importance will be the subjects of future commu-
nications, and nothing shall be wanting on my part which may give
information or dispatch to the proceedings of the Legislature in the ex-
ercise of their high duties, and at a moment so interesting to the public
welfare.
TH: JEFFERSON.
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
NOVEMBER n, 1807.
To the Senate of the United States:
Some time had elapsed after the receipt of the late treaty between the
United States and Tripoli before the circumstance drew particular atten-
tion that, although by the third article the wife and children of the
ex-Bashaw were to be restored to him, this did not appear either to have
been done or demanded; still, it was constantly expected that explana-
tions on the subject would be received. None, however, having arrived
when Mr. Davis went as consul to Tripoli, he was instructed to demand
the execution of the article. He did so, but was answered by the exhi-
bition of a declaration, signed by our negotiator the day after the sig-
nature of the treaty, allowing four years for the restoration of the family.
This declaration and the letter of Mr. Davis stating what passed on the
occasion are now communicated to the Senate. On the receipt of this
letter I caused the correspondence of Mr. Lear to be diligently reex-
amined in order to ascertain whether there might have been a commu-
nication of this paper made and overlooked or forgotten. None such,
however, is found. There appears only in a journalized account of the
transaction by Mr. Lear, under date of June 3, a passage intimating that
he should be disposed to give time rather than suffer the business to
be broken off and our countrymen left in slavery; and again, that on
the return of the person who passed between himself and the Bashaw,
and information that the Bashaw would require time for the delivery
of the family, he consented, and went ashore to consummate the treaty.
This was done the next day, and being forwarded to us as ultimately
signed, and found to contain no allowance of time nor any intimation that
there was any stipulation but what was in the public treaty, it was sup-
posed that the Bashaw had, in fine, abandoned the proposition, and the
instructions before mentioned were consequently given to Mr. Davis.
Thomas Jefferson 419
An extract of so much of Mr. Lear's communication as relates to this
circumstance is now transmitted to the Senate, the whole of the papers
having been laid before them on a former occasion. How it has happened
that the declaration of June 5 has never before come to our knowledge
can not with certainty be said, but whether there has been a miscarriage
of it or a failure of the ordinary attention and correctness of that officer
in making his communications, I have thought it due to the Senate as
well as to myself to explain to them the circumstances which have with-
held from their knowledge, as they did from my own, a modification
which, had it been placed in the public treaty, would have been relieved
from the objections which candor and good faith can not but feel in its
present form.
As the restoration of the family has probably been effected, a just regard
to the character of the United States will require that I make to the
Bashaw a candid statement of facts, and that the sacrifices of his right
to the peace and friendship of the two countries, by yielding finally to the
demand of Mr. Davis, be met by proper acknowledgments and repara-
tion on our part,
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 19, 1807.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
According to the request expressed in your resolution of the i8th
instant, I now transmit a copy of my proclamation interdicting our har-
bors and waters to British armed vessels and forbidding intercourse with
them, referred to in my message of the 2yth of October last.
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 23, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Agreeably to the assurance given in my message at the opening of the
present session of Congress, I now lay before you a copy of the proceed-
ings and of the evidence exhibited on the arraignment of Aaron Burr
and others before the circuit court of the United States held in Virginia
in the course of the present year, in as authentic form as their several
parts have admitted,
TH: JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER 23, 1807.
To the Senate of the United States:
Some circumstance, which can not now be ascertained, induced a
belief that an act had passed at the last session of Congress for establish-
ing a surveyor and inspector of revenue for the port of Stonington, in
Connecticut, and commissions were signed appointing Jonathan Palmer,
420 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
of Connecticut , to those offices. The error was discovered at the Treasury,
and the commissions were retained; but not having been notified to me, I
renewed the nomination in my message of the gth instant to the Senate.
In order to correct the error, I have canceled the temporary commissions,
and now revoke the nomination which I made of the said Jonathan
Palmer to the Senate.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 2, 1807.
To the Senate of the United States:
In compliance with the request made in the resolution of the Senate of
November 30, I must inform them that when the prosecutions against
Aaron Burr and his associates were instituted I deli vered to the Attorney-
General all the evidence on the subject, formal and informal, which I
had received, to be used by those employed in the prosecutions. On the
receipt of the resolution of the Senate I referred it to the Attorney-Gen-
eral, with a request that he would enable me to comply with it by putting
into my hands such of the papers as might give information relative to
the conduct of John Smith, a Senator from the State of Ohio, as an
alleged associate of Aaron Burr, and having this moment received from
him the affidavit of Elias Glover, with an assurance that it is the only
paper in his possession which is within the term of the request of the
Senate, I now transmit it for their use.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 7, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Having recently received from our late minister plenipotentiary at
the Court of London a duplicate of dispatches, the original of which has
been sent by the Revenge schooner, not yet arrived, I hasten to lay them
before both Houses of Congress. They contain the whole of what has
passed between the two Governments on the subject of the outrage com-
mitted by the British ship Leopard on the frigate Chesapeake. Congress
will learn from these papers the present state of the discussion on that
transaction, and that it is to be transferred to this place by the mission
of a special minister.
While this information will have its proper effect on their deliberations
and proceedings respecting the relations between the two countries, they
will be sensible that, the negotiation being still depending, it is proper
for me to request that the communications may be considered as confi-
dential.
Til: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 42 1
DECEMBER 18, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The communications now made, shewing the great and increasing
dangers with which our vessels, our seamen, and merchandise are threat-
ened on the high seas and elsewhere from the belligerent powers of
Europe, and it being of the greatest importance to keep in safety these
essential resources, I deem it my duty to recommend the subject to the
consideration of Congress, who will doubtless perceive all the advantages
which may be expected from an inhibition of the departure of our vessels
from the ports of the United States.
Their wisdom will also see the necessity of making every preparatiou
for whatever events may grow out of the present crisis.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 30, 1807.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate to Congress the inclosed letters from Governor Hull,
respecting the Indians in the vicinity of Detroit residing within our
lines. They contain information of the state of things in that quarter
which will properly enter into their view in estimating the means to be
provided for the defense of our country generally.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 8, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now render to Congress the account of the fund established for
defraying the contingent expenses of Government for the year 1807.
Of the sum of $18,012.50, which remained unexpended at the close of
the year 1806, $8,731. n have been placed in the hands of the Attorney-
General of the United States, to enable him to defray sundry expenses
incident to the prosecution of Aaron Burr and his accomplices for trea-
sons and misdemeanors alleged to have been committed by them, and
the unexpended balance of $9,275.39 is now carried according to law to
the credit of the surplus fund.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 15, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
The posts of Detroit and Mackiuac having been originally intended
by the Governments which established and held them as mere depots for
commerce with the Indians, very small cessions of land around them
were obtained or asked from the native proprietors, and these posts de-
pended for protection on the strength of their garrisons. The principles
422 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
of cur Government leading us to the employment of such moderate gar-
risons in time of peace as may merely take care of the post, and to a
reliance on the neighboring militia for its support in the first moments
of war, I have thought it would be important to obtain from the Indians
such a cession in the neighborhood of these posts as might maintain a
militia proportioned to this object; and I have particularly contemplated,
with this view, the acquisition of the eastern moiety of the peninsula
between lakes Michigan and Huron, comprehending the waters of the
latter and of Detroit River, so soon as it could be effected with the per-
fect good will of the natives. Governor Hull was therefore appointed a
commissioner to treat with them on this subject, but was instructed to
confine his propositions for the present to so much of the tract before
described as lay south of Saguina Bay and round to the Connecticut
Reserve, so as to consolidate the new with the present settled country.
The result has been an acquisition of so much only of what would have
been acceptable as extends from the neighborhood of Saguina Bay to the
Miami of the Lakes, with a prospect of soon obtaining a breadth of 2 miles
for a communication from the Miami to the Connecticut Reserve. The
treaty for this purpose entered into with the Ottoways, Chippeways,
Wyandots, and Pottawattamies at Detroit on the lyth of November last
is now transmitted to the Senate, and I ask their advice and consent as to
its ratification.
I communicate herewith such papers as bear any material relation to
the subject.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 15, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States'
Although it is deemed very desirable that the United States should
obtain from the native proprietors the whole left bank of the Mississippi
to a certain breadth, yet to obliterate from the Indian mind an impres-
sion deeply made in it that we are constantly forming designs on their
lands I have thought it best where urged by no peculiar necessity to
leave to themselves and to the pressure of their own convenience only
to come forward with offers of sale to the United States.
The Choctaws, being indebted to certain mercantile characters beyond
what could be discharged by the ordinary proceeds of their huntings,
and pressed for payment by those creditors, proposed at length to the
United States to cede lands to the amount of their debts, and designated
them in two different portions of their country. These designations
not at all suiting us, their proposals were declined for that reason, and
with an intimation that if their own convenience should ever dispose
them to cede their lands on the Mississippi we should be willing to pur-
chase. Still urged by their creditors, as well as by their own desire to
be liberated from debt, they at length proposed to make a cession which
Thomas Jefferson 423
should be to our convenience. James Robertson, of Tennessee, and Silas
Dinsmore were thereupon appointed commissioners to treat with them on
that subject, with instructions to purchase only on the Mississippi. On
meeting their chiefs, however, it was found that such was the attachment
of the nation to their lands on the Mississippi that their chiefs could
not undertake to cede them; but they offered all their lands south of a
line to be run from their and our boundary at the Omochita eastwardly
to their boundary with the Creeks, on the ridge between the Tombigbee
and Alabama, which would unite our possessions there from Natchez to
Tombigbee. A treaty to this effect was accordingly signed at Pooshape-
kanuk on the i6th of November, 1805; but this being against express
instructions, and not according with the object then in view, I was disin-
clined to its ratification, and therefore did not at the last session of Con-
gress lay it before the Senate for their advice, but have suffered it to lie
unacted on.
Progressive difficulties, however, in our foreign relations have brought
into view considerations other than those which then prevailed. It is
now, perhaps, become as interesting to obtain footing for a strong settle-
ment of militia along our southern frontier eastward of the Mississippi
as on the west of that river, and more so than higher up the river itself.
The consolidation of the Mississippi Territory and the establishing a bar-
rier of separation between the Indians and our Southern neighbors are also
important objects. The cession is supposed to contain about 5,000,000
acres, of which the greater part is said to be fit for cultivation, and no
inconsiderable proportion of the first quality, on the various waters it in-
cludes; and the Choctaws and their creditors are still anxious for the sale.
I therefore now transmit the treaty for the consideration of the Senate,
and I ask their advice and consent as to its ratification. I communicate
at the same time such papers as bear any material relation to the subject,
together with a map on which is sketched the northern limit of the ces-
sion, rather to give a general idea than with any pretension to exactness,
which our present knowledge of the country would not warrant.
TH; JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 20, 1808.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
Some days previous to your resolutions of the I3th instant a court of
inquiry had been instituted at the request of General Wilkinson, charged
to make the inquiry into his conduct which the first resolution desires,
and had commenced their proceedings. To the judge-advocate of that
court the papers and information on that subject transmitted to me by^
the House of Representatives have been delivered, to be used according
to the rules and powers of that court.
The request of a communication of any information which may have
424 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
been received at any time since the establishment of the present Gov-
ernment touching combinations with foreign agents for dismembering
the Union or the corrupt receipt of money by any officer of the United
States from the agents of foreign governments can be complied with but
in a partial degree.
It is well understood that in the first or second year of the Presidency
of General Washington information was given to him relating to certain
combinations with the agents of a foreign government for the dismember,
ment of the Union, which combinations had taken place before the estab-
lishment of the present Federal Government. This information, however,
is believed never to have been deposited in any public office, or left in
that of the President's secretary, these having been duly examined, but
to have been considered as personally confidential, and therefore retained
among his private papers. A communication from the governor of Vir-
ginia to President Washington is found in the office of the President's
secretary, which, although not strictly within the terms of the request
of the House of Representatives, is communicated, inasmuch as it may
throw some light on the subjects of the correspondence of that time
between certain foreign agents and citizens of the United States.
In the first or second year of the Administration of President Adams
Andrew Ellicott, then employed in designating, in conjunction with the
Spanish authorities, the boundaries between the territories of the United
States and Spain, under the treaty with that nation, communicated to
the Executive of the United States papers and information respecting
the subjects of the present inquiry, which were deposited in the Office of
State. Copies of these are now transmitted to the House of Represent-
atives, except of a single letter and a reference from the said Andrew
Ellicott, which, being expressly desired to be kept secret, is therefore
not communicated, but its contents can be obtained from himself in a
more legal form, and directions have been given to summon him to ap-
pear as a witness before the court of inquiry.
A paper on "The Commerce of Louisiana," bearing date the i8th of
April, 1798, is found in the Office of State, supposed to have been
communicated by Mr. Daniel Clark, of New Orleans, then a subject of
Spain, and now of the House of Representatives of the United States,
stating certain commercial transactions of General Wilkinson in New
Orleans. An extract from this is now communicated, because it contains
facts which may have some bearing on the questions relating to him.
The destruction of the War Office by fire in the close of 1800 involved
all information it contained at that date.
The papers already described therefore constitute the whole of the
information on the subjects deposited in the public offices during the
preceding Administrations, as far as has yet been found ; but it can not
be affirmed that there may be no other, because, the papers of the office
being filed for the most part alphabetically, unless aided by the sugges-
Thomas Jefferson 4 2 S
tion of any particular name which may have given such information, noth-
ing short of a careful examination of the papers in the offices generally
could authorize such an affirmation.
About a twelvemonth after I came to the administration of the Gov-
ernment Mr. Clark gave some verbal information to myself, as well as
to the Secretary of State, relating to the same combinations for the dis-
memberment of the Union. He was listened to freely, and he then
delivered the letter of Governor Gayoso, addressed to himself, of which a
copy is now communicated. After his return to New Orleans he for.
warded to the Secretary of State other papers, with a request that after
perusal they should be burnt. This, however, was not done, and he
was so informed by the Secretary of State, and that they would be held
subject to his orders. These papers have not yet been found in the
office. A letter, therefore, has been addressed to the former chief clerk,
who may perhaps give information respecting them. As far as our
memories enable us to say, they related only to the combinations before
spoken of, and not at all to the corrupt receipt of money by any officer
of the United States; consequently they respected what was considered
as a dead matter, known to the preceding Administrations, and offering
nothing new to call for investigations, which those nearest the dates of
the transactions had not thought proper to institute.
In the course of the communications made to me on the subject of the
conspiracy of Aaron Burr I sometimes received letters, some of them
anonymous, some under names true or false, expressing suspicions and
insinuations against General Wilkinson; but one only of them, and that
anonymous, specified any particular fact, and that fact was one of those
which had been already communicated to a former Administration.
No other information within the purview of the request of the House
is known to have been received by any department of the Government
from the establishment of the present Federal Government. That which
has been recently communicated to the House of Representatives, and by
them to me, is the first direct testimony ever made known to me charg-
ing General Wilkinson with the corrupt receipt of money, and the House
of Representatives may be assured that the duties which this information
devolves on me shall be exercised with rigorous impartiality. Should
any want of power in the court to compel the rendering of testimony
obstruct that full and impartial inquiry which alone can establish guilt or
innocence and satisfy justice, the legislative authority only will be com-
petent to the remedy.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 30, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The Choctaws, being indebted to their merchants beyond what could
be discharged by the ordinary proceeds of their huntings, and pressed for
426 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
payment, proposed to the United States to cede lands to the amount of
their debts, and designated them in two different portions of their coun-
try. These designations, not at all suiting us, were declined. Still
urged by their creditors, as well as by their own desire to be liberated from
debt, they at length proposed to make a cession which should be to our
convenience. By a treaty signed at Pooshapuckanuck on the i6th of
November, 1805, they accordingly ceded all their lands south of a line to
be run from their and our boundary at the Omochita eastwardly to their
boundary with the Creeks, on the ridge between the Tombigbee and
Alabama, as is more particularly described in the treaty, containing about
5,000,000 acre , as is supposed, and uniting our possessions there from
Adams to Washington County.
The location contemplated in the instructions to the commissioners was
on the Mississippi. That in the treaty being entirely different, I was at
that time disinclined to its ratification, and I have suffered it to lie unacted
on. But progressive difficulties in our foreign relations have brought into
view considerations other than those which then prevailed. It is now,
perhaps, as interesting to obtain footing for a strong settlement of militia
along our southern frontier eastward of the Mississippi as on the west
of that river, and more so than higher up the river itself. The consoli-
dation of the Mississippi Territory and the establishment of a barrier of
separation between the Indians and our Southern neighbors are also
important objects; and the Choctaws and their creditors being still anx-
ious that the sale should be made, I submitted the treaty to the Senate,
who have advised and consented to its ratification. I therefore now lay
it before both Houses of Congress for the exercise of their constitutional
powers as to the means of f ulfilling it.
TH: JEFFERSON.
JANUARY 30, 1808.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
The posts of Detroit and Mackinac having been originally intended
by the Governments which established and held them as mere depots for
commerce with the Indians, very small cessions of land around them were
obtained or asked from the native proprietors, and these posts depended
for protection on the strength of their garrisons. The principles of our
Government leading us to the employment of such moderate garrisons
in time of peace as may merely take care of the post, and to a reliance
on the neighboring militia for its support in the first moments of war, I
have thought it would be important to obtain from the Indians such a
cession in the neighborhood of these posts as might maintain a militia
proportioned to this object; and I have particularly contemplated, with
this view, the acquisition of the eastern moiety of the peninsula between
the lakes Michigan, Huron, and Erie, extending it to the Connecticut
Thomas Jefferson 427
Reserve so soon as it could be effected with the perfect good will of the
natives.
By a treaty concluded at Detroit on the iyth of November last with
the Ottoways, Chippeways, Wyandots, and Pattawatimas so much of
this country has been obtained as extends from about Saguina Bay
southwardly to the Miami of the lyakes, supposed to contain upward of
5,000,000 acres, with a prospect of obtaining for the present a breadth of
2 miles for a communication from the Miami to the Connecticut Reserve.
The Senate having advised and consented to the ratification of this
treaty, I now lay it before both Houses of Congress for the exercise of
their constitutional powers as to the means of fulfilling it.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 2, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Having received an official communication of certain orders of the
British Government against the maritime rights of neutrals, bearing date
the nth of November, 1807, I transmit them to Congress, as a further
proof of the increasing dangers to our navigation and commerce, which
led to the provident measure of the act of the present session laying an
embargo on our own vessels.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 4, 1808.
To the House of Representatives of the United States:
In my message of January 20 I stated that some papers forwarded by
Mr. Daniel Clark, of New Orleans, to the Secretary of State in 1803 had
not then been found in the Office of State, and that a letter had been
addressed to the former chief clerk, in the hope that he might advise
where they should be sought for. By indications received from him
they are now found. Among them are two letters from the Baron de
Carondelet to an officer serving under him at a separate post, in which
his views of a dismemberment of our Union are expressed. Extracts
of so much of these letters as are within the scope of the resolution of
the House are now communicated. With these were found the letters
written by Mr. Clark to the Secretary of State in 1803. A part of
one only of these relates to this subject, and is extracted and inclosed
for the information of the House. In no part of the papers communi-
cated by Mr. Clark, which are voluminous and in different languages,
nor in his letters, have we found any intimation of the corrupt receipt
of money by any officer of the United States from any foreign agent.
As to the combinations with foreign agents for dismembering the Union,
these papers and letters offer nothing which was not probably known to
428 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
my predecessors, or which could call anew for inquiries, which they
iiad not thought necessary to institute, when the facts were recent and
could be better proved. They probably believed it best to let pass into
oblivion transactions which, however culpable, had commenced before
this Government existed, and had been finally extinguished by the
treaty of 1795.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 9, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate to Congress, for their information, a letter from the
person acting in the absence of our consul at Naples, giving reason tc
believe, on the affidavit of a Captain Sheffield, of the American schooner
Mary Ann, that the Dey of Algiers has commenced war against the
United States. For this no just cause has been given on our part
within my knowledge. We may daily expect more authentic and par-
ticular information on the subject from Mr. Lear, who was residing as
our consul at Algiers.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 15, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I communicate for the information of Congress a letter from the consul
of the United States at Malaga to the Secretary of State, covering one
from Mr. Lear, our consul at Algiers, which gives information that the
rupture threatened on the part of the Dey of Algiers has been amicably
settled, and the vessels seized by him are liberated.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 19, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United S fates:
The States of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia having by their
several acts consented that the road from Cumberland to the State of
Ohio, authorized by the act of Congress of the 29th of March, 1806,
should pass through those States, and the report of the commissioners,
communicated to Congress with my message of the 3ist January, 1807,
having been duly considered, I have approved of the route therein pro-
posed for the said road as far as Brownsville, with a single deviation,
since located, which carries it through Union town.
From thence the course to the Ohio and the point within the legal
limits at which it shall strike that river is still to be decided. In form-
ing this decision I shall pay material regard to the interests and wishes
of the populous parts of the State of Ohio and to a future and convenient
Thomas Jefferson 429
connection with the road which is to lead from the Indian boundary near
Cincinnati by Vincennes to the Mississippi at St. Louis, under authority
of the act of the 2ist April, 1806. In this way we may accomplish a
continued and advantageous line of communication from the seat of the
General Government to St. Louis, passing through several very interest-
ing points of the Western country.
I have thought it advisable also to secure from obliteration the trace
of the road so far as it has been approved, which has been executed at
such considerable expense, by opening one-half of its breadth through
its whole length.
The report of the commissioners, herewith transmitted, will give par-
ticular information of their proceedings under the act of the 29th March,
1806, since the date of my message of the 3ist January, 1807, and will
enable Congress to adopt such further measures relative thereto as they
may deem proper under existing circumstances.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 25, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The dangers to our country arising from the contests of other nations
and the urgency of making preparation for whatever events might affect
our relations with them have been intimated in preceding messages to
Congress. To secure ourselves by due precautions an augmentation of our
military .force, as well regular as of volunteer militia, seems to be expe-
dient. The precise extent of that augmentation can not as yet be satis-
factorily suggested, but that no time may be lost, and especially at a
season deemed favorable to the object, I submit to the wisdom of the
Legislature whether they will authorize a commencement of this precau-
tionary work by a present provision for raising and organizing some
additional force, reserving to themselves to decide its ultimate extent on
such views of our situation as I may be enabled to present at a future
day of the session.
If an increase of force be now approved, I submit to their considera-
tion the outlines of a plan proposed in the inclosed letter from the Secre-
tary of War.
I recommend also to the attention of Congress the term at which the
act of April 18, 1806, concerning the militia, will expire, and the effect
of that expiration.
TH: JEFFERSON.
FEBRUARY 26, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I inclose, for the information of Congress, letters recently received from
our ministers at Paris and London, communicating their representations
43 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
against the late decrees and orders of France and Great Britain, heretofore
transmitted to Congress. These documents will contribute to the infor-
mation of Congress as to the dispositions of those powers and the probable
course of their proceedings toward neutrals, and will doubtless have their
due influence in adopting the measures of the Legislature to the actual
crisis.
Although nothing forbids the general matter of these letters from being
spoken of without reserve, yet as the publication of papers of this descrip-
tion would restrain injuriously the freedom of our foreign correspondence,
they are communicated so far confidentially and with a request that after
being read to the satisfaction of both Houses they may be returned.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH i, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
In compliance with the resolution of the Senate of February 26, 1 now
lay before them such memorials and petitions for the district of Detroit,
and such other information as is in my possession, in relation to the con-
duct of William Hull, governor of the Territory of Michigan, and Stanley
Griswold, esq, , while acting as secretary of that Territory.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 2, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
In compliance with the resolution of the Senate of November 30, 1807,
I now transmit a report of the Secretary of State on the subject of im-
pressments, as requested in that resolution. The great volume of the
documents and the time necessary for the investigation will explain to
the Senate the causes of the delay which has intervened.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 7, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In the city of New Orleans and adjacent to it are sundry parcels of
ground, some of them with buildings and other improvements on them,
which it is my duty to present to the attention of the Legislature. The
title to these grounds appears to have been retained in the former sov-
ereigns of the Province of Louisiana as public fiduciaries and for the
purposes of the Province. Some of them were used for the residence of
the governor, for public offices, hospitals, barracks, magazines, fortifica-
tions, levees, etc., others for the townhouse, schools, markets, landings,
and other purposes of the city of New Orleans ; some were held by reli-
gious corporations or persons, others seem to have been reserved for future
disposition. To these must be added a parcel called the Batture, which
E
Q
JZ
THE DUEL BETWEEN BURR AND HAMILTON.
In 1804, Alexander Hamilton, being present at a caucus of Federalists
in Albany, spoke depreciatingly of the proposal to nominate Burr for gov-
ernor of New York State. Some of Burr's friends in an adjoining room
overheard Hamilton's remarks; and although his opinions contained noth-
ing uncomplimentary to Burr's personal character, Burr chose to revenge
his defeat upon Hamilton himself. He seized the publication of Hamil-
ton's poor political opinion of him as a pretext for demanding a retrac-
tion. Hamilton replied by denying that he had in any way attacked Burr
personally, and offered to withdraw any statement to which Burr took
exception. Burr refused to be mollified, however, and challenged Hamilton
to a duel, which the prevailing code of honor of the time compelled
Hamilton to accept. The two men met at Weehawken, N. Y. f on July
11, 1804. Hamilton, with no malice toward his opponent, refused to aim at
him, but was mortally wounded, and died the next day. Burr's deed drove
him from Xew York State; and, a fugitive from justice, he found that, by
killing Hamilton, he had caused his own political death.
Thomas Jefferson 43 1
requires more particular description. It is understood to have been a
shoal or elevation of the bottom of the river adjacent to the bank of the
suburbs of St. Mary, produced by the successive depositions of mud dur-
ing the annual inundations of the river, and covered with water only
during those inundations. At all other seasons it has been used by the
city immemorially to furnish earth for raising their streets and court-
yards, for mortar, and other necessary purposes, and as a landing or quay
for unlading firewood, lumber, and other articles brought by water.
This having been lately claimed by a private individual, the city opposed
the claim on a supposed legal title in itself; but it has been adjudged
that the legal title was not in the city. It is, however, alleged that that
title, originally in the former sovereigns, was never parted with by them,
but was retained in them for the uses of the city and Province, and con-
sequently has now passed over to the United States. Until this question
can be decided under legislative authority, measures have been taken
according to law to prevent any change in the state of things and to
keep the grounds clear of intruders. The settlement of this title, the
appropriation of the grounds and improvements formerly occupied for
provincial purposes to the same or such other objects as may be better
suited to present circumstances, the confirmation of the uses in other
parcels to such bodies, corporate or private, as may of right or on other
reasonable considerations expect them, are matters now submitted to the
determination of the Legislature.
The papers and plans now transmitted will give them such information
on the subject as I possess, and being mostly originals, I must request
that they may be communicated from the one to the other House, to
answer the purposes of both,
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 10, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
A purchase having lately been made from the Cherokee Indians of a
tract of land 6 miles square at the mouth of the Chickamogga, on the
Tennessee, I now lay the treaty and papers relating to it before the Sen-
ate, with an explanation of the views which have led to it.
It was represented that there was within that tract a great abundance
of iron ore of excellent quality, with a stream and fall of water suitable
for iron works; that the Cherokees were anxious to have works estab-
lished there, in the hope of having a better supply of those implements of
household and agriculture of which they have learned the use and neces-
sity, but on the condition that they should be under the authority and
control of the United States.
As such an establishment would occasion a considerable and certain
demand for corn and other provisions and necessaries, it seemed probable
43 2 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
that it would immediately draw around it a close settlement of the Cher-
okees, would encourage them to enter on a regular life of agriculture,
familiarize them with the practice and value of the arts, attach them to
property, lead them of necessity and without delay to the establishment
of laws and government, and thus make a great and important advance
toward assimilating their condition to ours. At the same time it offers
considerable accommodation to the Government by enabling it to obtain
more conveniently than it now can the necessary supplies of cast and
wrought iron for all the Indians south of the Tennessee, and for those also
to whom St. L,ouis is a convenient deposit, and will benefit such of our
own citizens likewise as shall be within its reach. Under these views the
purchase has been made, with the consent and desire of the great body
of the nation, although not without some dissenting members, as must
be the case will all collections of men. But it is represented that the
dissentients are few, and under the influence of one or two interested
individuals. It is by no means proposed that these works should be
conducted on account of the United States. It is understood that there
are private individuals ready to erect them, subject to such reasonable
rent as may secure a reimbursement to the United States, and to such
other conditions as shall secure to the Indians their rights and tran-
quillity.
The instrument is now submitted to the Senate, with a request of their
advice and consent as to its ratification.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 17, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I have heretofore communicated to Congress the decrees of the Gov-
ernment of France of November 21, 1806, and of Spain of February 19,
1807, with the orders of the British Government of January and Novem-
ber, 1807.
I new transmit a decree of the Emperor of France of December 17, 1807,
and a similar decree of the 3d of January last by His Catholic Majesty.
Although the decree of France has not been received by official com-
munication, yet the different channels of promulgation through which
the public are possessed of it, with the formal testimony furnished by
the Government of Spain in their decree, leave us without a doubt that
such a one has been issued. These decrees and orders, taken together,
want little of amounting to a declaration that every neutral vessel found
on the high seas, whatsoever be her cargo and whatsoever foreign port be
that of her departure or destination, shall be deemed lawful prize ; and
they prove more and more the expediency of retaining our vessels, our
seamen, and property within our own harbors until the dangers to which
they are exposed can be removed or lessened.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 433
MARCH 18, 1808
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The scale on which the Military Academy at West Point was originally
established is become too limited to furnish the number of well-instructed
subjects in the different branches of artillery and engineering which the
public service calls for. The want of such characters is already sensibly
felt, and will be increased with the enlargement of our plans of military
preparation. The chief engineer, having been instructed to coasider the
subject and to propose an augmentation which might render the estab-
lishment commensurate with the present circumstances of our country,
has made the report which I now transmit for the consideration of Con-
gress.
The idea suggested by him of removing the institution to this place
is also worthy of attention. Besides the advantage of placing it under
the immediate eye of the Government, it may render its benefits common
to the Naval Department, and will furnish opportunities of selecting on
better information the characters most qualified to fulfill the duties which
the public service may call for.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 22, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
At the opening of the present session I informed the Legislature that
the measures which had been taken with the Government of Great
Britain for the settlement of our neutral and national rights and of the
conditions of commercial intercourse with that nation had resulted in
articles of a treaty which could not be acceded to on our part; that
instructions had been consequently sent to our ministers there to resume
the negotiations, and to endeavor to obtain certain alterations, and that
this was interrupted by the transaction which took place between the
frigates Leopard and Chesapeake. The call on that Government for rep-
aration of this wrong produced, as Congress has been already informed,
the mission of a special minister to this country, and the occasion is now
arrived when the public interest permits and requires that the whole of
these proceedings should be made known to you.
I therefore now communicate the instructions given to our minister
resident at London and his communications with that Government on the
subject of the Chesapeake, with the correspondence which has taken place
here between the Secretary of State and Mr. Rose, the special minister
charged with the adjustment of that difference; the instructions to our
ministers for the formation of a treaty; their correspondence with the
British commissioners and with their own Government on that subject;
the treaty itself and written declaration of the British commissioners
accompanying it, and the instructions given by us for resuming the
434 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
negotiation, with the proceedings and correspondence subsequent thereto.
To these I have added a letter lately addressed to the Secretary of State
from one of our late ministers, which, though not strictly written in an
official character, I think it my duty to communicate, in order that his
views of the proposed treaty and of its several articles may be fairly pre-
sented and understood.
Although I have heretofore and from time to time made such communi-
cations to Congress as to keep them possessed of a general and just view
of the proceedings and dispositions of the Government of France toward
this country, yet in our present critical situation, when we find that
no conduct on our part, however impartial and friendly, has been suffi-
cient to insure from either belligerent a just respect for our rights, I am
desirous that nothing shall be omitted on my part which may add to your
information on this subject or contribute to the correctness of the views
which should be formed. The papers which for these reasons I now lay
before you embrace all the communications, official or verbal, from the
French Government respecting the general relations between the two
countries which have been transmitted through our minister there, or
through any other accredited channel, since the last session of Congress,
to which time all information of the same kind had from time to time
been given them. Some of these papers have already been submitted to
Congress, but it is thought better to offer them again in order that the
chain of communications of which they make a part may be presented
unbroken.
When, on the 26th of February, -I communicated to both Houses the
letter of General Armstrong to M. Champagny, I desired it might not be
published because of the tendency of that practice to restrain injuriously
the freedom of our foreign correspondence. But perceiving that this cau-
tion, proceeding purely from a regard to the public good, has furnished
occasion for disseminating unfounded suspicions and insinuations, I am
induced to believe that the good which will now result from its publica-
tion, by confirming the confidence and union of our fellow-citizens, will
more than countervail the ordinary objection to such publications. It
it my wish, therefore, that it may be now published.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 22, 1808.
To the Senate and House or Representatives of the United States:
In a separate message of this date I have communicated to Congress
so much as may be made public of papers which give a full view of the
present state of our relations with the two contending powers, France
and England. Everyone must be sensible that in the details of instruc-
tions for negotiating a treaty and in the correspondence and conferences
respecting it matters will occur which interest sometimes and sometimes
J^homas Jefferson 435
respect or other proper motives forbid to be made public. To recon-
cile my duty in this particular with my desire of letting Congress know
everything which can give them a full understanding of the subjects on
which they are to act, I have suppressed in the documents of the other
message the parts which ought not to be made public and have given
them in the supplementary and confidential papers herewith inclosed,
with such references as that they may be read in their original places as
if still standing in them; and when these confidential papers shall have
been read to the satisfaction of the House, I request their return, and that
their contents may not be made public.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 25, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
In proceeding to carry into execution the act for fortifying our forts
and harbors it is found that the sites most advantageous for their defense,
and sometimes the only sites competent to that defense, ar~ in some cases
the property of minors incapable of giving a valid consent to their aliena-
tion; in others belong to persons who may refuse altogether to alienate,
or demand a compensation far beyond the liberal justice allowable in such
cases. From these causes the defense of our seaboard, so necessary to
be pressed during the present season, will in various parts be defeated
unless a remedy can be applied. With a view to this I submit the case
to the consideration of Congress, who, estimating its importance and
reviewing the powers vested in them by the Constitution, combined witli
the amendment providing that private property shall not be taken for
public use without just compensation, will decide on the course most
proper to be pursued.
I am aware that as the consent of the legislature of the State to the
purchase of the site may not in some instances have been previously
obtained, exclusive legislation can not be exercised therein by Congress
until that consent is given. But in the meantime it will be held under
the same laws which protect the property of individuals and other prop-
erty of the United States in the same State, and the legislatures at their
next meetings will have opportunities of doing what will be so evidently
called for by the particular interest of their own State.
TH; JEFFERSON.
MARCH 25, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now lay before Congress a statement of the militia of the United
States according to the latest returns received by the Department of
War. From the State of Delaware alone no return has been made.
TH: JEFFERSON.
43 6 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
MARCH 25, 1808,
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
1 transmit to both Houses of Congress a report from the surveyor of
the public buildings of the progress made on them during the last session,
of their present state, and of that of the funds appropriated to them.
These have been much exceeded by the cost of the work done, a fact not
known to me till the close of the season. The circumstances from which
it arose are stated in the report of the surveyor.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 29, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
When the convention of the yth of January, 1806, was entered into
with the Cherokees for the purchase of certain lands, it was believed by
both parties that the eastern limit, when run in the direction therein
prescribed, would have included all the waters of Elk River. On pro-
ceeding to run that line, however, it was found to omit a considerable
extent of those waters, on which were already settled about 200 families.
The Cherokees readily consented, for a moderate compensation, that the
line should be so run as to include all the waters of that river. Our com-
missioners accordingly entered into an explanatory convention for that
purpose, which I now lay before the Senate for consideration whether
they will advise and consent to its ratification. A letter from one of the
commissioners, now also inclosed, will more fully explain the circum-
stances which led to it.
Lieutenant Pike on his journey up the Mississippi in 1805-6, being at
the village of the Sioux, between the rivers St. Croix and St. Peters,
conceived that the position was favorable for a military and commercial
post for the United States whenever it should be thought expedient to
advance in that quarter. He therefore proposed to the chiefs a cession
of lands for that purpose. Their desire of entering into connection with
the United States and of getting a trading house established there induced
a ready consent to the proposition, and they made, by articles of agree-
ment now inclosed, a voluntary donation to the United States of two
portions of land, the one of 9 miles square at the mouth of the St.
Croix, the other from below the mouth of St. Peters up the Mississippi
to St. Anthonys Falls, extending 9 miles in width on each side of the
Mississippi. These portions of land are designated on the map now
inclosed. Lieutenant Pike on his part made presents to the Indians to
some amount. This convention, though dated the 23d of September,
1805, is but lately received, and although we have no immediate view
of establishing a trading post at that place, I submit it to the Senate
for the sanction of their advice and consent to its ratification, in order
to give to our title a full validity on the part of the United States, when
Thomas Jefferson 437
ever it may be wanting, for the special purpose which constituted in
the inind of the donors the sole consideration and inducement to the
cession.
TH: JEFFERSON.
MARCH 30, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Since my message of the 22d instant letters have been received from
our ministers at Paris and London, extracts from which, with a letter to
General Armstrong from the French minister of foreign relations, and a
letter from the British envoy residing here to the Secretary of State, I
now communicate to Congress. They add to the materials for estimat-
ing the dispositions of those Governments toward this country.
The proceedings of both indicate designs of drawing us, if possible, into
the vortex of their contests; but every new information confirms the
prudence of guarding against these designs as it does of adhering to the
precautionary system hitherto contemplated.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 2, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
Believing that the confidence and union of our fellow-citizens at the
present crisis will be still further confirmed by the publication of the
letter of Mr. Champagny to General Armstrong and that of Mr. Erskine
to the Secretary of State, communicated with my message of the 3oth
ultimo, and therefore that it may be useful to except them from the con-
fidential character of the other documents accompanying that message,
I leave to the consideration of Congress the expediency of making them
public,
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 8, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States.'
Agreeably to the request of the Senate in their resolution of yester-
day, I have examined my papers and find no letter from Matthew Nimmo
of the date of November 28, 1806, nor any other from him of any date
but that of January 23, 1807, now transmitted, with all the papers in
my possession which accompanied it. Nor do I find any letter from
John Smith, of Ohio, bearing date at any time in the month of January,
1807.
Having delivered to the Attorney-General all the papers respecting
the conspiracy of Aaron Burr which came to my hands during or before
his prosecution, I might suppose the letters above requested had been
438 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
delivered to him; but I must add my belief that I never received such
letters, and the ground of it. I am in the habit of noting daily in the
list kept for that purpose the letters I receive daily by the names of the
writers, and dates of time, and place, and this has been done with such
exactness that I do not recollect ever to have detected a single omission.
I have carefully examined that list from the ist of November, 1806, to
Ae last of June, 1807, and I find no note within that period of the
receipt of any letter from Matthew Nimmo but that now transmitted,
nor of any one of the date of January, 1807, from John Smith, of Ohio.
The letters noted as received from him within that period are dated
at Washington, February 2, 2, 7, and 21, which I have examined, and
find relating to subjects entirely foreign to the objects of the resolution
of the 7th instant; and others, dated at Cincinnati, March 27, April 6, 13,
and 17, which, not being now in my possession, I presume have related
to Burr's conspiracy, and have been delivered to the Attorney-General.
I recollect nothing of their particular contents. I must repeat, therefore,
my firm belief that the letters of Nimmo of November 28, 1806, and of
John Smith of January, 1807, never came to my hands, and that if such
were written (and Nimmo's letter expressly mentions his of November
28), they have been intercepted or otherwise miscarried.
TH: JEFFERSON.
APRIL 22, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I transmit to both Houses of Congress a letter from the envoy of His
Britannic Majesty at this place to the Secretary of State on the subject
of certain British claims to lands in the Territory of Mississippi, relative
to which several acts have been heretofore passed by the Legislature.
TH: JEFFERSON.
PROCLAMATION.
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas information has been received that sundry persons are com-
bined or combining and confederating together on Lake Chauiplain and
the country thereto .adjacent for the purposes of forming insurrections
against the authority of the laws of the United States, for opposing the
same and obstructing their execution, and that such combinations are
Thomas Jefferson 439
too powerful to be suppressed by the ordinary course of judicial proceed-
ings or by the powers vested in the marshals by the laws of the United
States:
Now, therefore, to the end that the authority of the laws may be main-
tained, and that those concerned, directly or indirectly, in any insurrec-
tion or combination against the same may be duly warned, I have issued
this my proclamation, hereby commanding such insurgents and all con-
cerned in such combination instantly and without delay to disperse and
retire peaceably to their respective abodes. And I do hereby further
require and command all officers having authority, civil or military, and
all other persons, civil or military, who shall be found within the vici-
nage of such insurrections or combinations to be aiding and assisting by
all the means in their power, by force of arms or otherwise, to quell and
subdue such insurrections or combinations, to seize upon all those therein
concerned who shall not instantly and without delay disperse and retire
to their respective abodes, and to deliver them over to the civil authority
of the place, to be proceeded against according to law.
In testimony whereof I have caused the seal of the United States
to be affixed to these presents, and signed the same with my
hand.
[SEAL.] Given at the city of Washington, the igth day of April, 1808,
and in the year of the Sovereignty and Independence of the
United States the thirty-second,
TH: JEFFERSON.
By the President :
JAMBS MADISON,
Secretary of State.
EIGHTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.
NOVEMBER 8, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
It would have been a source, fellow-citizens, of much gratification if
our last communications from Europe had enabled me to inform you
that the belligerent nations, whose disregard of neutral rights has been
so destructive to our commerce, had become awakened to the duty and
true policy of revoking their unrighteous edicts. That no means might
be omitted to produce this salutary effect, I lost no time in availing
myself of the act authorizing a suspension, in whole or in part, of the sev-
eral embargo laws. Our ministers at London and Paris were instructed
to explain to the respective Governments there our disposition to exer-
cise the authority in such manner as would withdraw the pretext on
44O Messages and Papers of the Presidents
which the aggressions were originally founded and open the way for a
renewal of that commercial intercourse which it was alleged on all sides
had been reluctantly obstructed. As each of those Governments had
pledged its readiness to concur in renouncing a measure which reached
its adversary through the incontestable rights of neutrals only, and as
the measure had been assumed by each as a retaliation for an asserted
acquiescence in the aggressions of the other, it was reasonably expected
that the occasion would have been seized by both for evincing the sin-
cerity of their professions, and for restoring to the commerce of the
United States its legitimate freedom. The instructions to our ministers
with respect to the different belligerents were necessarily modified with
a reference to their different circumstances, and to the condition annexed
by law to the Executive power of suspension, requiring a decree of
security to our commerce which would not result from a repeal of the
decrees of France. Instead of a pledge, therefore, of a suspension of
the embargo as to her in case of such a repeal, it was presumed that a
sufficient inducement might be found in other considerations, and par-
ticularly in the change produced by a compliance with our just demands
by one belligerent and a refusal by the other in the relations between
the other and the United States. To Great Britain, whose power on the
ocean is so ascendant, it was deemed not inconsistent with that condition
to state explicitly that on her rescinding her orders in relation to the
United States their trade would be opened with her, and remain shut
to her enemy in case of his failure to rescind his decrees also. From
France no answer has been received, nor any indication that the requi-
site change in her decrees is contemplated. The favorable reception of
the proposition to Great Britain was the less to be doubted, as her orders
of council had not only been referred for their vindication to an acqui-
escence on the part of the United States no longer to be pretended, but
as the arrangement proposed, whilst it resisted the illegal decrees of
France, involved, moreover, substantially the precise advantages profess-
edly aimed at by the British orders. The arrangement has nevertheless
been rejected.
This candid and liberal experiment having thus failed, and no other
event having occurred on which a suspension of the embargo by the
Executive was authorized, it necessarily remains in the extent originally
given to it. We have the satisfaction, however, to reflect that in return
for the privations imposed by the measure, and which our fellow-citizens
in general have borne with patriotism, it has had the important effects
of saving our mariners and our vast mercantile property, as well as of
affording time for prosecuting the defensive and provisional measure?
called for by the occasion. It has demonstrated to foreign nations the
moderation and firmness which govern our councils, and to our citizens
the necessity of uniting in support of the laws and the rights of their
country, and has thus long frustrated those usurpations and spoliations
Thomas Jefferson 441
which, if resisted, involved war; if submitted to, sacrificed a vital prin-
ciple of our national independence.
Under a continuance of the belligerent measures which, in defiance of
laws which consecrate the rights of neutrals, overspread the ocean with
danger, it will rest with the wisdom of Congress to decide on the course
best adapted to such a state of things; and bringing with them, as they
do, from every part of the Union the sentiments of our constituents, my
confidence is strengthened that in forming this decision they will, with
an unerring regard to the essential rights and interests of the nation,
weigh and compare the painful alternatives out of which a choice is to
be made. Nor should I do justice to the virtues which on other occa-
sions have marked the character of our fellow-citizens if I did not cherish
an equal confidence that the alternative chosen, whatever it may be, will
be maintained with all the fortitude and patriotism which the crisis ought
to inspire.
The documents containing the correspondences on the subject of the
foreign edicts against our commerce, with the instructions given to our
ministers at London and Paris, are now laid before you.
The communications made to Congress at their last session explained
the posture in which the close of the discussions relating to the attack by
a British ship of war on the frigate Chesapeake left a subject on which
the nation had manifested so honorable a sensibility. Every view of what
had passed authorized a belief that immediate steps would be taken by
the British Government for redressing a wrong which the more it was
investigated appeared the more clearly to require what had not been
provided for in the special mission. It is found that no steps have been
taken for the purpose. On the contrary, it will be seen in the documents
laid before you that the inadmissible preliminary which obstructed the
adjustment is still adhered to, and, moreover, that it is now brought into
connection with the distinct and irrelative case of the orders in council.
The instructions which had been given to our minister at London with
a view to facilitate, if necessary, the reparation claimed by the United
States are included in the documents communicated.
Our relations with the other powers of Europe have undergone no
material changes since your last session. The important negotiations
with Spain which had been alternately suspended and resumed neces-
sarily experience a pause under the extraordinary and interesting crisis
which distinguishes her internal situation.
With the Barbary Powers we continue in harmony, with the exception
of an unjustifiable proceeding of the Dey of Algiers toward our consul to
that Regency. Its character and circumstances are now laid before you,
and will enable you to decide how far it may, either now or hereafter,
call for any measures not within the limits of the Executive authority.
With our Indian neighbors the public peace has been steadily main-
tained. Some instances of individual wrong have, as at other times,
442 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
taken place, but in no wise implicating the will of the nation. Beyond
the Mississippi the loways, the Sacs, and the Alabamas have delivered up
for trial and punishment individuals from among themselves accused of
murdering citizens of the United States. On this side of the Mississippi
the Creeks are exerting themselves to arrest offenders of the same kind,
and the Choctaws have manifested their readiness and desire for amicable
and just arrangements respecting depredations committed by disorderly
persons of their tribe. And, generally, from a conviction that we con-
sider them as a part of ourselves, and cherish with sincerity their rights
and interests, the attachment of the Indian tribes is gaining strength
daily is extending from the nearer to the more remote, and will amply
requite us for the justice and friendship practiced toward them. Hus-
bandry and household manufacture are advancing among them more rap-
idly with the Southern than Northern tribes, from circumstances of soil
and climate, and one of the two great divisions of the Cherokee Nation
have now under consideration to solicit the citizenship of the United
States, and to be identified with us in laws and government in such pro-
gressive manner as we shall think best.
In consequence of the appropriations of the last session of Congress
for the security of our seaport towns and harbors, such works of defense
have been erected as seemed to be called for by the situation of the sev-
eral places, their relative importance, and the scale of expense indicated
by the amount of the appropriation. These works will chiefly be finished
in the course of the present season, except at New York and New Or-
leans, where most was to be done; and although a great proportion of the
last appropriation has been expended on the former place, yet some fur-
ther views will be submitted to Congress for rendering its security entirely
adequate against naval enterprise. A view of what has been done at the
several places, and of what is proposed to be done, shall be communicated
as soon as the several reports are received.
Of the gunboats authorized by the act of December last, it has been
thought necessary to build only 103 in the present year. These, with
those before possessed, are sufficient, for the harbors and waters most
exposed, and the residue will require little time for their construction
when it shall be deemed necessary.
Under the act of the last session for raising an additional military force
so many officers were immediately appointed as were necessary for carry-
ing on the business of recruiting, and in proportion as it advanced others
have been added. We have reason to believe their success has been sat-
isfactory, although such returns have not yet been received as enable me
to present you a statement of the numbers engaged.
I have not thought it necessary in the course of the last season to call
for any general detachments of militia or of volunteers under the laws
passed for that purpose. For the ensuing season, however, they will be
required to be in readiness should their service be wanted. Some small
Thomas Jefferson 443
and special detachments have been necessary to maintain the laws of
embargo on that portion of our northern frontier which offered peculiar
facilities for evasion, but these were replaced as soon as it could be done
by bodies of new recruits. By the aid of these and of the armed vessels
called into service in other quarters the spirit of disobedience and abuse,
which manifested itself early and with sensible effect while we were
unprepared to meet it, has been considerably repressed.
Considering the extraordinary character of the times in which we live,
our attention should unremittingly be fixed on the safety of our country.
For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well organized
and armed militia is their best security. It is therefore incumbent on
us at every meeting to revise the condition of the militia, and to ask
ourselves if it is prepared to repel a powerful enemy at every point of our
territories exposed to invasion. Some of the States have paid a laudable
attention to this object, but every degree of neglect is to be found among
others. Congress alone having the power to produce an uniform state
of preparation in this great organ of defense, the interests which they so
deeply feel in their own and their country's security will present this as
among the most important objects of their deliberation.
Under the acts of March 1 1 and April 23 respecting arms, the diffi-
culty of procuring them from abroad during the present situation and
dispositions of Europe induced us to direct our whole efforts to the means
of internal supply. The public factories have therefore been enlarged,
additional machineries erected, and, in proportion as artificers can be
found or formed, their effect, already more than doubled, may be in-
creased so as to keep pace with the yearly increase of the militia. The
annual sums appropriated by the latter act have been directed to the
encouragement of private factories of arms, and contracts have been
entered into with individual undertakers to nearly the amount of the
first year's appropriation.
The suspension of our foreign commerce, produced by the injustice of
the belligerent powers, and the consequent losses and sacrifices of our
citizens are subjects of just concern. The situation into which we have
thus been forced has impelled us to apply a portion of our industry and
capital to internal manufactures and improvements. The extent of this
conversion is daily increasing, and little doubt remains that the estab-
lishments formed and forming will, under the auspices of cheaper mate-
rials and subsistence, the freedom of labor from taxation with us, and
of protecting duties and prohibitions, become permanent. The com-
merce with the Indians, too, within our own boundaries is likely to
receive abundant aliment from the same internal source, and will secure
to them peace and the progress of civilization, undisturbed by practices
hostile to both.
The accounts of the receipts and expenditures during the year ending
the 3Oth of September last being not yet made up, a correct statement
444 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
will hereafter be transmitted from the Treasury. In the meantime it
is ascertained that the receipts have amounted to near $18,000,000,
which, with the eight millions and a half in the Treasury at the begin-
ning of the year, have enabled us, after meeting the current demands
and interest incurred, to pay $2, 300,000 of the principal of our funded
debt, and left us in the Treasury on that day near $14,000,000. Of
these, $5,350,000 will be necessary to pay what will be due on the ist
day of January next, which will complete the reimbursement of the 8 per
cent stock. These payments, with those made in the six years and a
half preceding, will have extinguished $33,580,000 of the principal of the
funded debt, being the whole which could be paid or purchased within
the limits of the law and of our contracts, and the amount of principal
thus discharged will have liberated the revenue from about $2,000,000
of interest and added that sum annually to the disposable surplus. The
probable accumulation of the surpluses of revenue beyond what can be
applied to the payment of the public debt whenever the freedom and
safety of our commerce shall be restored merits the consideration of Con-
gress. Shall it lie unproductive in the public vaults? Shall the reve-
nue be reduced? Or shall it not rather be appropriated to the improve-
ments of roads, canals, rivers, education, and other great foundations of
prosperity and union under the powers which Congress may already pos-
sess or such amendment of the Constitution as may be approved by the
States? While uncertain of the course of things, the time may be advan-
tageously employed in obtaining the powers necessary for a system of
improvement, should that be thought best.
Availing myself of this the last occasion which will occur of address-
ing the two Houses of the Legislature at their meeting, I can not omit the
expression of my sincere gratitude for the repeated proofs of confidence
manifested to me by themselves and their predecessors since my call to
the administration and the many indulgences experienced at their hands.
The same grateful acknowledgments are due to my fellow-citizens gener-
ally, whose support has been my great encouragement under all embar-
rassments. In the transaction of their business I can not have escaped
error. It is incident lo our imperfect nature. But I may say with truth
my errors have been of the understanding, not of intention, and that
the advancement of their rights and interests has been the constant motive
for every measure. On these considerations I solicit their indulgence.
Looking forward with anxiety to their future destinies, I trust that in
their steady character, unshaken by difficulties, in their love of liberty,
obedience to law, and support of the public authorities I see a sure guar-
anty of the permanence of our Republic; and, retiring from the charge
of their affairs, I carry with me the consolation of a firm persuasion that
Heaven has in store for our beloved country long ages to come of pros-
perity and happiness.
TH: JEFFERSON.
Thomas Jefferson 445
SPECIAL MESSAGES.
NOVEMBER 8, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
The documents communicated with my public message of this day
contain such portions of the correspondences therein referred to, of the
ministers of the United States at Paris and I^ondon, as relate to the
present state of affairs between those Governments and the United States,
and as may be made public. I now communicate, confidentially, such
supplementary portions of the same correspondences as I deem improper
for publication, yet necessary to convey to Congress full information on
a subject of their deliberations so interesting to our country.
TH; JEFFERSON.
NOVEMBER n, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
* * *****
The governor of the Mississippi Territory having thought it expedient
to dissolve the general assembly of that Territory, according to the
authority vested in him by the ordinance of July 13, 1787, and having
declared it dissolved accordingly, some doubt was suggested whether that
declaration effected the dissolution of the legislative council. On mature
consideration and advice I approved of the proceeding of the governor.
The house of representatives of the Territory, since chosen, have conse-
quently nominated ten persons out of whom a legislative council should
be appointed. I do accordingly nominate and, by and with the advice
and consent of the Senate, shall appoint John Flood McGrew, Thomas
Calvit, James Lea, Alexander Montgomery, and Daniel Burnet, being five
of the said ten persons, to serve as a legislative council for the said Ter-
ritory, to continue in office five years, unless sooner removed according
to law.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 13, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I now transmit to both Houses of Congress a report of the commis-
sioners appointed under the act of March 29, 1806, concerning a road
from Cumberland to Ohio, being a statement of the proceedings under
the said act since their last report communicated to Congress, in order
that Congress may be enabled to adopt such further measures as may be
proper under existing circumstances.
TH: JEFFERSON.
446 Messages and Papers of the Presidents
DECEMBER 23, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
According to the request of the Senate in their resolution of Novem-
ber 14, that copies should be laid before them of all the orders and decrees
of the belligerent powers of Europe, passed since 1791, affecting the com-
mercial rights of the United States, I now transmit them a report of the
Secretary of State of such of them as have been attainable in the Depart-
ment of State and are supposed to have entered into the views of the
Senate.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 27, 1808.
To the Senate of the United States:
According to the request expressed by the Senate in their resolution
of November 14, I now transmit a report of the Secretary of the Treasury
and statement showing, as far as returns have been received from the
collectors, the number of vessels which have departed from the United
States with permission, and specifying the other particulars contemplated
by that resolution.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 30, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
At the request of the governor, the senate, and house of representa-
tives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, I communicate certain reso-
lutions entered into by the said senate and house of representatives, and
approved by the governor, on the 23d instant. It can not but be encour-
aging to those whom the nation has placed in the direction of their affairs
to see that their fellow-citizens will press forward in support of their
country in proportion as it is threatened by the disorganizing conflicts
of the other hemisphere.
TH: JEFFERSON.
DECEMBER 30, 1808.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States:
I lay before the Legislature a letter from Governor Claiborne on the
subject of a small tribe of Alabama Indians on the western side of the
Mississippi, consisting of about a dozen families. Like other erratic
tribes in that country, it is understood that they have hitherto moved
from place to place according to their convenience, without appropriat-
ing to themselves exclusively any particular territory; but having now
become habituated to some of the occupations of civilized life, they wish
for a fixed residence. I suppose it will be the interest of the United
States to encourage the wandering tribes of that country to reduce them-
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